Fontaine takes on CYO role
Former Mayor Leo T. Fontaine named part time director of Father Marot Center
WOONSOCKET – Former Woonsocket Mayor Leo T. Fontaine has been hired as the new part-time director of the Father Marot CYO Center in Woonsocket, one of two youth centers held by the Diocese of Providence.
Fontaine, who served as mayor of Woonsocket from 2009 to 2013, and was on the Woonsocket City Council for eight terms prior to that, was named to the director’s position last Friday by Diocesan officials and the Father Marot CYO Center Board of Directors.
The Father Marot CYO Center has served the greater Northern Rhode Island area for over 40 years. The center provides programs and activities, including leadership training and faith formation for youth and adults, under Catholic auspices and in accordance with the policies, procedures and guidelines of the Diocese’s Office of Catholic Youth Ministry. In addition, the Father Marot CYO Center serves as a resource center of information and training for parishes in Northern Rhode Island.
The center was founded in 1953 by the late Rev. Roger Marot, pastor emeritus of St. Agatha Parish in Woonsocket.
Fontaine, 49, a lifelong Woonsocket resident, said he applied for the advertised position after being encouraged
by family and friends.
“My kids go there and after leaving office I found myself getting more involved with the center,” he said. “I already have a full-time job, but after being asked to consider it I applied for the position because as many people know my faith is im- portant to me and I think with my abilities I can help out.”
The last full-time director at the center was administrator Roland Berard.
According to Fontaine, the Father Marot CYO Center serves to assist parishes in Northern Rhode Island in fostering and promoting the ideals and principles embodied in the social mission of the Church while ensuring the Christ like for- mation of youth and young adults and the development of their leadership potential. The center provides programs and activities, including prayer meetings, drop-in nights, and retreats, among other things.
“One of the things I’d like to focus on is helping to rebuild the CYO Center’s relationship with the parishes and take on more of a team approach,” he said.
In September, the Diocese an- nounced that the Federal Street property from which the Father Marot CYO Center had operated for nearly half a century had been sold. The site includes more than 8,000 square feet of space in two adjoining masonry buildings located at 53 and 57 Federal St. The diocese had been trying to sell one or both of the buildings for about five years. The facility had been used for regular prayer meetings, retreats and other youth-oriented CYO functions, and all scheduled activities have been permanently relocated to the St. Stanislaus Kostka Parish Rectory, located at 174 Harris Ave., effective Oct. 1. The new location at the St. Stanislaus Parish Rectory will continue to be known as the Father Marot CYO Center in honor of the founder’s legacy.