Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club 50th Anniversary Celebration

Jake Auchincloss presented certificate of recognition to RSCC President Donna Howard at the RSCC 50th Anniversary Celebration

Group photo, 50th anniversary RSCC

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Joan King, member for 23 years with "King Charles Mickie"

Representative Steven Howitt presented a certificate of State recognition for our 50th Anniversary

Posted Monday, August 12, 2024 12:00 am

Our 50th Anniversary Celebration was a wonderful tribute to the members and friends of the Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club! Below are the remarks on that occasion as given by the current President, Donna Howard.

As you know, we are here to celebrate our founding fathers, charter members and members of the Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club who have worked tirelessly over these 50 years for the betterment of the seniors of Rehoboth!

To paraphrase an old saying “We have come a long way, baby.”

Picture this: a very concerned senior citizen, Helena Wheeler, called a get-together of like minded friends to discuss what to do about all the senior citizens in town who might be missing things – you know, like meals, family, talking to other adults. As a group of 25 they decided to form the Rehoboth Senior Citizens. That was in May of 1973!

The group elected officers: President Edward Lamooureux, Secretary Helena Wheeler, Treasurer Hildreth Waterman, and Chaplain Theodore Maddern. The following month they elected Herb Thompson as Vice President. They met in the Problem Solving Center. (The old State Police Barracks)

Imagine this: In June of 1973 The Rehoboth Senior Citizens had so many interested members (totaling 35 charter members now) that they initiated a discussion about the formation of the Council on Aging with Elder Affairs and the selectmen. One Year Later, in June of 1974, we had the Council on Aging in Rehoboth!

Picture this: In November or 1973, the Rehoboth Seniors (membership now being over 65 in number) moved from meeting at the Town Hall to their new meeting place at the old fire station on Anawan Street.

Did you know that in February of 1974, the Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club requested its Charter from the National Council of Senior Citizens, Inc.?

Our CHARTER was presented to us on May 24, 1974, 50 years ago today!

After the old fire station was remodeled and the Senior Citizens were more established, and after a few years, they had an important fundraising luncheon for all seniors who were interested in coming. And, as told by Mary Francis Tobin, the room was overflowing with folks standing outside for the luncheon. They did manage to squeeze everyone in eventually. What a great success that was! BUT THAT PROMPTED ANOTHER OBVIOUS THOUGHT. THEY NEEDED MORE ROOM!

Well, in 1999, the Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club brought forth the idea of having a Senior Center in Rehoboth to the selectmen. It needed the townspeople’s vote on a ballot. An Override of Proposition 2 was put on the ballot in 2000 to get the funds needed to build the center, but, it was rejected. The seniors of Rehoboth were determined to see this happen, so the following year the Override was on the ballot again. THIS TIME IT PASSED.

The groundbreaking ceremony for the senior center was in April of 2002.

The fire in September, 2020 was heart-breaking and devastating. Our seniors have great memories of being in the Senior Center for those 20 years: trips to Foxwoods, the annual Fall Bazaars or Christmas Bazaars, spaghetti dinners, card games, yard sales, etc., membership dues going from $3 to $5… So many wonderful times.

SO, here we are today in this beautiful facility at Francis Farm Complex, 50 years to the day of receiving our Charter!

The seniors and The Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club have been very influential over these last 50 years and continue to work for the betterment of, and donating monies in various ways to, all seniors in Rehoboth. Congratulations Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club for your 50 years of service to the senior community of Rehoboth!

We would like to express our appreciation of, and say “Thank You” for, the Rehoboth community spirit. We could NOT have been this successful over the years without your support!

We sincerely express our gratitude to the many businesses and community members who helped make out 50th Anniversary Celebration such a wonderful success:

Special Thanks

The Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club would like to extend a special thank you to the 50tth Anniversary Committee for its tireless and heartfelt commitment to this momentous event, and to the members for their unwavering support and assistance whenever it was needed.

We would also like to thank the COA Board of Directors for allowing us the use of this gorgeous facility at the Francis Farm Complex for our milestone anniversary.

Many thanks also go to our contributors who have provided services and donated goods that have greatly assisted us in the success of our 50th Anniversary Celebration: Land Tech Maintenance, Dunkin, Lions Club, Jon Ogden Photography, Nate Adams, DJ, Christine Carvalho, Sharon Ogden, Cook’s House, and many community members.

Our sincere thank you is given to our volunteer servers today. They are Joann Bennett, Diana Silva, Linda Coolidge, George Solas, Selectman, Jonah Hebda, and Mark Rossi. Please take a moment to thank them for volunteering to assist with dinner.

The Committee heartily thanks our members and friends who made the beautiful favors! We ask that you take them home with you - the acrylic picture frames and the especially decorated anniversary cups – as a wonderful reminder of our Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club.

And, we, the 50th Anniversary Committee, thank all of you for attending our very special 50th Anniversary Celebration!

As a reminder, our Rehoboth Senior Citizens Club meetings will resume on September 19, 2024. We will meet in the Arcade Building at noon. Lunch will be provided, but please bring a potluck dessert and your favorite drink. Many items are on the agenda, including news of the activities, trips and celebrations we expect this fall.

I hope your summer has been relaxing and enjoyable! Get ready to start working on our Annual Fall Bazaar. We are accepting donations for the Roll-up Table, Bake Table, white Elephant Table, and the donations and Theme Gift Baskets for the Center Table. If you need donation request letters and Bazaar flyers, please request them from either Jane Williams or me.

Looking forward to greeting all of you at our September 19th meeting!!! See you there!