Since 1971, URI club rowing has called Narrow River home. In 1994, OARS was deeded the boathouse and the land upon which it sits.

About OARS of RI

The mission of OARS is to promote and support club rowing at the University of Rhode Island, directly and indirectly, through fundraising and promotional activities in the greater community, including, but not limited to, URI alumni and friends.

Mission

Our History

When the URI club rowing program was launched in 1965, it didn’t take long before an alumni base was established, that has rallied to support the team throughout the years. In 1982, long-time crew member and supporter, Mark Beckenbach, after much work, formally launched the Old and Ancient Rowers Society of Rhode Island (aka OARS of RI). In 1994, OARS was deeded the land and the boathouse on it, by W.E.R. LaFarge, making the group the “keeper” of the boathouse. Without formal support from the University of Rhode Island, the maintenance and upkeep of the boathouse for the club team’s year-round usage has been taxing, but a labor of love for OARS.

Fall 1965: the Crew Club is launched under the direction of 23 year old Ralph Kopperman, an MIT PhD and assistant professor at mathematics at URI. The team rows out of "Hanson’s Boat Yard” on “Upper Point Judith Pond.”

Spring 1966: the team's boathouse moves to Worden's Pond; Charles Rowe of Hanson’s Boatyard in Wakefield donates a building to the Crew; the building was 10’ too short, so it was cut in half and a center section inserted.

Circa 1971: Crew members negotiate with W.E.R. LaFarge to lease land at 166 Walmsley Lane. John "Doc" Mottinger acquires a "Butler Building" and the first Walmsley Lane boathouse is erected.

Fires in the late '70's and early '90's both destroyed the team's then-boathouses. With lots of sweat equity from the team, an assist from URI and alumni, the boathouse was rebuilt each time. In 1994, W.E.R. LaFarge deeded the land upon which the boathouse sat to OARS of RI.

Crew Boathouses throughout Time

Meet Our Team

OARS is a 100% volunteer-run organization. Our three board members, and one communications volunteer, are all URI graduates and Crew alumni. To say that their work is a labor of love is a bit of an understatement.

  • Jeff Sweenor ('86)

    BOARD, PRESIDENT

    Jeff rowed for the URI Crew program from 1982-85 and was a member of the 1984 Men’s Varsity LTWT-8 Dad Vail Regatta gold medal boat. A Wakefield, Rhode Island resident, Jeff has been a part of OARS since 1992. Professionally, he is the Founder and President of Sweenor Builders, an award-winning luxury custom homebuilder based in coastal Rhode Island.

  • Jim Mackenzie ('86)

    BOARD, TREASURER

    Jim rowed for the URI Crew program from 1982-86 and was a captain and a member of the 1984 Men’s Varsity LTWT-8 Dad Vail Regatta gold medal boat. After marrying teammate and women’s captain Mary O’Hara (‘87) in 1987, the two moved to New Jersey where Jim embarked upon a successful 30 year career in the pharmaceutical industry. Jim and Mary recently relocated to Cape Cod, MA and Newport, RI. Jim joined the board of OARS in 2021.

  • Chris Yun ('88)

    BOARD, SECRETARY

    Chris rowed and coxed for the URI Crew program from 1984-88. He and crew alumna, Lisa Rodier (’87), married and spent several years in the southeast while Chris grew his career as a pharmaceutical clinical development consultant. The two relocated to Rhode Island in 2015; in 2019, Chris joined the OARS’ board. He is also involved with URI as the Chair of the College of Health Sciences Advisory Council, and a member of the URI Foundation & Alumni Engagement Campaign Committee.

  • Lisa Rodier ('87)

    VOLUNTEER

    Lisa coxed for the URI Crew program from 1985-87. She married teammate Chris Yun in 1993, and the couple moved to the southeast to pursue career opportunities for several years. Back in Rhode Island since 2015, Lisa volunteers her time as communications coordinator, a non-board role with OARS.

Initiatives

OARS’ goal is to promote the sport of rowing in the state of Rhode Island — both through our support of club rowing at URI, and through our community rowing initiative, Narrow River Rowing (NRR). NRR endeavors to make rowing accessible to Rhode Islanders, including juniors, military veterans (“Freedom Rows”), and adults, from beginner to advanced.