'Moe' Lafreniere marks 30 years with Plymouth Rotary

PLYMOUTH — Maurice Lafreniere, better known as "Moe," celebrated his 30th year as a member of the Plymouth Rotary Club this past February.

A resident of Holderness, Moe explained why he was interested in joining the club three decades ago: “I was in my 30s and raising a young family. I wanted to give back to the community that had been so kind to me, while doing work that would serve as an example to my children.”

Moe joined the Plymouth Rotary Club when he reconnected with Ed Fornier, a friend from high school who owned a local funeral home. The two joined together and became actively involved in many aspects of the club.

Though Moe said the club has always been somewhat affiliated with the international goals of Rotary International, he has always been most inspired by "provincial doings" or local efforts to improve life in the greater Plymouth community.

Moe has served as a Plymouth Rotary Club Board member, treasurer, secretary and president (1995-96). He was chair of the membership committee and its "Fireside Chats" (an opportunity for prospective members to be interviewed to determine their interest in joining the club), helped raise funds to build the Rotary Amphitheater on Green Street, and headed up the club’s annual “Citizen of the Year” awards for the past 20 years.

Moe has had a varied and interesting career in several fields. In 1975, he made a two-year deal with a local employer to work while obtaining his degree. Later, he worked for Plymouth Stitching, an apparel company that sold to various retailers’ catalogs, including the New York apparel market. When the owner of the single-facility Plymouth Stitching company decided to sell the business, Moe purchased the company as a co-owner and expanded it to five locations, including facilities in New Hampshire, Vermont, and Maine, with 505 employees.

Following the 1999 Global Trade Agreement, Moe decided it was time to pursue a new career opportunity, and he joined the Common Man Family and Alex Ray in 2000, as the company’s new chief financial officer. Moe was delighted to participate in the Common Man Family’s mission of “Doing Good” and took on various business and administrative tasks to move the company forward.

Moe said that, when he joined Alex Ray, Ray made him understand that, for a company to survive, it needs to concentrate on growth.

Moe spends his spare time enjoying his family, including his five granddaughters. He loves to boat on Squam Lake, and enjoys skiing and woodworking (including such projects as making a toy chest for his grandchildren).

For more than 20 years, Moe has served on the board of directors of First Star Tonight, a nonprofit organization that supports chronically and terminally ill children and young adults in the Pemi-Baker Valley. He is also an honorary member of the board of the Squam Lakes Natural Science Center, having served for more than 20 years. Moe is chair of the board of directors of Meredith Village Savings Bank and the vice-chair of New Hampshire Mutual Bancorp.

Moe is a first-generation college graduate and married to Susan Lafreniere, the girl he went to school with from first through 12th grade. In 1997, the Lafrenieres was hosts to a Rotary International Exchange student from Lithuania. The student worked at Rockywold-Deephaven Camp and graduated from Cornell University and Aurora College. She is now an internationally renowned landscape architect. Moe’s family has stayed in touch with her over the years and they visit back and forth between Plymouth and Europe.

Moe encourages his neighbors and friends to consider a membership in the Plymouth Rotary Club. Joining the club is an opportunity to "do good" and make a difference through service. For more information, go to www.plymouthnhrotary.org and take a look at the “New Membership Application and Guidelines” located in the “Documents” box on the far right of the homepage. Prospective members should also consider attending a Plymouth Rotary meeting as a guest to learn more. The club meets on Wednesdays for breakfast at the Common Man Inn in Plymouth from 7 to 8 a.m. each week, and all are welcome to attend.