Ruscitos Retire from Managing Winchendon McDonald's as Restaurant is Named
First in United States for Round-up Donations
Generous Winchendonians contribute $15.3K to Ronald McDonald House Charities in 2021
Joe and Lori Ruscito, who in the Fall of 2021 sold their three McDonald's restaurants, including their Winchendon franchise after 29 years of ownership.
Photo courtesy of the Ruscitos
The Winchendon McDonald's franchise located at 235 Spring Street, formerly owned by Joe and Lori Ruscito for 29 years, was announced to be the highest ranking franchise store in the United States for the year 2021 in receipt round-ups contributed by many caring customers for the Ronald McDonald House Charities, totaling $15,304.65 and beating out every other McDonald's store in the nation!
Photo by Keith Kent
There is retiring, and then there is retiring knowing you went out on top. Such was happily the case for Joe and Lori Ruscito, owners of the Winchendon McDonald's for nearly 30 years. Shortly after entering retirement and selling their businesses they were notified that their former store was "Number One in Round-up donations for the Ronald McDonald House Charities in the United States" with a whopping total of $15,304.65 for 2021 contributed by many generous and caring customers.
To put this into perspective, the Ruscito's Winchendon McDonald's store has some pretty lofty competition. The store not only topped franchises in such highly populated areas as Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, MA as well as Providence, RI, Manchester, NH, Hartford, CT and Bangor, ME, it collected more donations than stores in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles and more. In other words, McDonald's of Toy Town beat out its counterparts everywhere in the USA! 'Nuff said! ...or is it?
On October 15, 2021, the Ruscitos, just shy of three decades of personal ownership in the fast food restaurant business, decided to retire and sell their three stores--two in Massachusetts with Winchendon and Westborough, and a third store in nearby Jaffrey, NH. The Ruscitos acknowledged that after some 30 years, added to the professional complications of running multiple businesses during a global pandemic, it was time to stop and smell the roses, and enjoy some quality family time. The Ruscitos have sold their three stores to the Sellia Corporation, a family of franchisees from Spencer, MA who currently own restaurants in MA, RI, NY, and now their first in the Granite State with the Jaffrey MacDonald's.
In a true hallmark of leadership, Joe and Lori Ruscito spoke first of all the others involved in promoting the donation program before speaking of themselves. Lori said, "The team members who were the key contributors to the success of the donations for the Ronald McDonald House Charities were Restaurant General Manager Shannon Lafrennie, Geri Brouillette (whose idea it was to create an incentive to increase the donations), Joanie Lemere, Olianney Noble, Victor Perez, Julia Seavey, and Andrew Cormier. They deserve the credit for their efforts. It's truly a credit and tribute to their efforts. They all came forward and said they wanted to try to increase the funding to the Ronald McDonald House Charities and I said go for it. We had some pretty stiff competition from a few stores in New Hampshire, but our store did it, and for a small store from a small town, we are really pretty proud of that!"
The flyer located at the Winchedon McDondald's cash registers, notifying customers that their very own local McDonald's franchise with the help of all its kind hearted customers was number one in the entire USA for total receipt round-ups collected from many giving customers supporting the Ronald McDonald House Charities.
Photo by Keith Kent
When asked how long she and her husband Joe had been in business with the McDonald's franchise, Lori Ruscito replied, "My husband Joe had forty-nine years in his career working with McDonald's, and I had about forty-five, so it's a long time. With everything happening these days we just wanted to have enough time to enjoy retirement together, and also with our family. We also can say we grew and had a nice McDonald's family as we call them all our McFamily. We felt the operation we sold to, Sellia Corporation out of Spencer, Massachusetts was a good fit, as we also wanted new owners that we felt would take care of the people working for us, who we truly considered our McFamily."
While always supporting charitable causes, the Ruscitos kept their charitable giving close to their vests--from local fundraising efforts, to gift coupons for town causes such as Earth Day, school events, to the Winchendon CAC and private requests for helping families in need. Over the years those in the know knew the Ruscitos quietly and privately supported many local charitable causes and endeavors, never seeking credit for their donations, all the while just wanting to support the same community that supported their local business and employees.
Joe Ruscito explained, "It was absolutely great to be able to do that. We never really set priorities as to who or where would get what, or where they were in line. When assessing the needs of people or groups as explained to us, we just tried to always accommodate them all as much as possible." Lori Ruscito added, "Winchendon as we all know is not a very financially affluent community, so when we kept seeing how much people were donating over time rounding up purchases, it really told us about the same community we were also giving back to. It said a lot about Winchendon as a community, especially in this current economy today. You also really choke up when you see what kind of work the Ronald McDonald House Charity does with those roundup donations for children and families providing for all their expenses."
Now that they are finally retired, the Ruscitos are looking forward to traveling. "Owning the businesses are a 24/7 thing, so your cell phones are always at your side. Now knowing we can take a trip and not have to always take the laptop computer with us, or having to always check our emails and message will be a welcome change. Many people thought we were a huge corporation being McDonald's, but we were a small family-owned business franchise with three stores, so we truly were a small family owned and operated business. So that being said, not having to have a phone or laptop with us on vacation for once is going to be a real treat. We now own a second home in Florida and we haven't yet been snowbirds, but you can bet we are looking forward to that next year!" Lori Ruscito happily added.
Both Joe and Lori also said that now being able to do things like take up hobbies, read a book, go for walks, and much more will be welcome changes after their over nine decades of combined years of work in the McDonald's franchise. They also added that while their children are grown up and grandchildren are now also grown and or in college, they have seen their grandchildren more in the last six months leading up to and during the start of their retirement than they had in the last two years and expressed that they are off to a great retirement start.
In closing, Lori Ruscito wanted their former customers and everyone else to know, "We are so thankful for all the community support over all the years, and also being able to help support the community in a small town. Our employees were really like a family to us. While we are now glad to be retired, we miss the people. It's really nice to be retired, but yes, we miss the people and we miss our McFamily."
Rolling Thunder® Inc. Donates $2,000 to MVOC for Winchendon Veterans' Housing Project in Honor of Former Member
On February 23, Vermont Rolling Thunder Inc. Chapter 1 Vice President Fred Blanchard presents Stephanie Marchetti, Executive Director of the Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center, a check for $2,000 in memory of deceased member Marie Conlin, to be applied to the cost of future Veterans Housing in the Town of Winchendon.
Photo courtesy of the MVOC
Marie Conlin, a VT Rolling Thunder Inc. Chapter 1 member who passed away last December 2, 2021, was honored by the MC Chapter with a $2,000 donation made in her name and memory, with the donation designated for the future Veterans housing project to be constructed in the Town of Winchendon.
Photo courtesy of VT Rolling Thunder Inc. Chapter 1
As part of a significant ongoing fundraising effort in support of much needed new Veterans Housing in the Town of Winchendon, Rolling Thunder® Inc. Vermont Chapter 1graciously presented the Montachusett Veterans Outreach Center a check for $2,000 in memory of one of its former members on Wednesday, February 23, as a contribution to one of what it recognizes as many honorable causes.
The check was donated in honor of chapter member Marie Conlin, who was a patriot, a former member of the United States Coast Guard Auxiliary and a member of Vermont Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 for several years. The organization felt it both proper and fitting to present the donation in Marie's name to MVOC Executive Director Stephanie Marchetti, Ed.D.
"Marie Conlin passed away in early December," Marchetti told the Courier. "She and her [late] husband were both members of the Coast Guard Auxiliary and she is best known for her community support, particularly her membership in Rolling Thunder® Inc.. The Winchendon connection is that this donation was made specifically for the housing project MVOC is working on in Winchendon."
The check was presented by Vermont Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 Vice President Fred Blanchard, who at age 79 is active in the organization Chapter, and served his country during the Vietnam war in the United States Air Force. Blanchard explained that the organization hosts many fundraisers throughout the year, such as pancake breakfasts, raffles, coffee breakups, calendar sales, and more. Blanchard is also known for doubling as Santa Claus to help raise money and donations for the organization's various patriotic causes. Blanchard added, "The purpose of Vermont Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 is to honor past, present, and future veterans of the United States of America, and you do not need to be a veteran to participate in the [organization]."
Blanchard went on to say, "We are a non-profit, and every single penny we take in, goes back to veterans. Some examples are we give to the Veterans Home in Vermont, the Veterans Outreach in Greenfield, Mass who provides veterans with meals, and other causes. In the case of the upcoming Veterans Housing Project in Winchendon, we were previously invited to a meeting with Stephanie Marchetti regarding the project, and felt after Marie Conlin's passing that the donation should go to the project in her name, so our [organization] appropriated the donation and I met with Stephanie and handed her the check for $2,000 from our [organization] for the Veterans Housing Project."
Assisting with another noteworthy cause, members of Vermont Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 also recently helped out by attending a veteran's funeral at the Winchendon State Veterans Cemetery, forming a flag line of twelve persons for the deceased and family, one of many they have assisted with at various veteran's funerals. After the funeral, the organization chapter attended the celebration of life at the Winchendon American Legion, where family members thanked them for showing up to pay respects and assist with providing the flag line for the funeral outside of the cemetery chapel. Blanchard was quick to point out many other patriotic motorcycle organizations also provide the same services to honor veterans.
When asked about motivations to donate to the Winchendon Veterans Housing Project, Blanchard explained that as there is no military draft, it's a smaller select group of people who volunteer to sign up for military service. Many are seeing more than one or multiple tours of service, and PTSD and other issues are far more common than previously. Blanchard also added, "Projects such as this to provide housing for Veterans who often have medical, psychological, financial issues and more, need places like this available to them, and that is what Stephanie Marchetti and the MVOC is trying to help provide. We have to pay respect and take care of these men and women who are taking care of the rest of us. Freedom isn't free, and it's costing money to get these people back where they should be. These are the kinds of things Rolling Thunder® tries to do and wants to contribute to!"
For previous coverage on the entire scope of the Winchendon Veterans Housing Project, see "Former Streeter/Poland School Buildings Slated to Become 44 Units of Veterans Housing" in the December 23-30 2021 edition of the Winchendon Courier.
Find contacts for Vermont Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 and other state chapters online by visiting https://www.rollingthunder1.com/chapters
You can also visit VT Rolling Thunder® Inc. Chapter 1 on Facebook by going to https://www.facebook.com/Rolling-Thunder-Vermont-1-221657651498777/.
Edited to correct organization name.
Council on Aging To Hold Vaccination Clinic for Winchendon Residents on March 17
Winchendon Council on Aging Director Sheila Bettro, and Town Health Agent James Abare, are pleased to notify the public there will be a COVID-19 vaccination clinic for Winchendon residents only, held at the Old Murdock Senior Center at 52 Murdock Avenue, on Thursday, March 17, during the hours of 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. Registration is highly encouraged, however, walk-ins are still welcome.
To register for the vaccination clinic, please call the Montachusett Public Health Network COVID-19 Response Team at 978-602-2356 Monday through Saturday from 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m.
All three vaccines will be available: Pfizer, Moderna, and Johnson & Johnson vaccines. Residents can receive any dose that is needed, first dose, second dose, or booster shot. Residents should remember to bring their vaccine card to the clinic if already vaccinated or seeking a booster shot, and also always bring your insurance card and/or information to the clinic.
As of Thursday, March 10, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reports that 6,017 or 56 percent of Winchendon's residents are fully vaccinated, and 6,750 or 63 percent are partially vaccinated. The Commonwealth of Massachusetts totals register at 5,300,535 of 6,996,000, or 75.8 percent of residents fully vaccinated. 2,871,992 or 41 percent of Massachusetts residents have also received a supplemental booster shot.
Asked why she would like to see Winchendon residents attend the vaccination clinic offered by the COA, Bettro replied, "The main reason I wanted to host a vaccination clinic was just knowing how low the vaccination percentage is in Winchendon versus the rest of the state, and knowing the population that we work with, I am always out there trying to look at how to make it easier for the elders. They are already in the building, so having another clinic with the booster shot also available I think it's just very worth it."
To schedule a free COVID-19 vaccination, including a booster, at any time, go to www.mass.gov/covid-19-vaccine.
Massachusetts COVID-19 Positivity Rates Continue to Plummet
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts COVID-19 viral positivity averages continue to rapidly drop, as the 14 day average has dropped from 2.32 to 1.85 percent over the course of the last week, with the current 7 day average now down to just 1.6 percent.
Locally, the town of Winchendon like almost all those around it has seen a considerable decrease in COVID positivity rates, lowering its 14 day average from 4.98 to 4.10 percent in the last 7 days, a drop of 18 percent versus the week prior Department of Public Health report. All but one town in Winchendon's ten town area continued to realize welcome decreases, with the only one to increase by only 4/100's of a percent being Royalston moving up from 2.90 to 2.94 percent. Its school district partner Athol, while considerably lower versus the week prior, is still the second highest in our ten town area, dropping from 7.92 to 5.03 percent. The neighboring town of Phillipston remains the highest in the area, decreasing from 9.84 to 6.67 percent positivity, with its school district partner, Templeton, seeing a healthy drop from 5.04 to just 2.95 percent.
Elsewhere around our ten town area, Gardner dropped considerably for a city of 20,000 plus, lowering from 4.47 to 2.81 percent. In the Ashburnham-Westminster Regional School District, Ashburnham dropped from 3.13 to the lowest in the area at just 0.93 percent, and Westminster lowered nearly 50 percent from the week prior, from 5.00 to 2.77 percent. Ashby decreased from 5.45 to 3.85 percent positivity, and Hubbardston dropped down from 3.67 to 2.07 percent positivity.
Winchendon vaccination rates have remained stagnant or nearly unchanged over the last several weeks. With school age students the percentages also remain nearly unchanged. Children in the 5 to 11 year old age group are listed by the Mass DPH as 21 percent fully vaccinated and 25 percent partially vaccinated. In the age group of 12 to 15 years, children register at 42 percent fully vaccinated and 45 percent partially vaccinated. In the 16 to 19 year old age group, Winchendon teenagers are 46 percent fully vaccinated and 53 percent partially vaccinated.
Among Winchendon adults, those aged 20 to 29 register at 46 and 51 percent fully and partially vaccinated, persons aged 30 to 49 show as 53 and 60 percent fully and partially vaccinated, and those aged 50 to 64 are 75 and 82 percent fully and partially vaccinated. Among older adults, persons aged 65 to 74 register at 89 percent fully, and greater than 95 percent partially vaccinated. Winchendon's oldest population, those aged 75 and older, are 86 percent fully, and greater than 95 percent partially vaccinated. In total, as of Thursday, March 10, the Massachusetts Department of Public Health reports that 6,017 or 56 percent of Winchendon's residents are fully vaccinated, and 6,750 or 63 percent are partially vaccinated, out of 10,785 residents, virtually unchanged from the two weeks prior.
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts totals register at 5,300,535 of 6,996,000, or 75.8 percent of residents fully vaccinated. 2,871,992 or 41 percent of Massachusetts residents have also received a supplemental booster shot. State wide, hospitalizations also continue to drop among the Commonwealth population.
In closing, the Town of Winchendon Board of Health continues to recommend getting vaccinated if not yet vaccinated, if healthy enough to do so. If you are either elderly, or among the immuno-compromosed populations, or have pre-existing conditions, you are highly urged to get vaccinated if not as of yet, as you are medically documented as among the high or higher risk populations.
Keith Kent
Chair
Board of Health
Town of Winchendon
