Three Village Rotary Club

The Rotary Club of Stony Brook (now The Rotary Club of Three Villages) was founded in 1945, with its first president being T. Bayles Minuse, who served for five years and for whom the ponds in downtown Stony Brook are named. Minuse was a business associate of Ward Melville and a former superintendent of waterways for Brookhaven Town.

He was succeeded by Duke Shea (1950–51), followed by Frank Gaebelein, Headmaster of The Stony Brook School. In 1959, Nelson Roberts, then-owner of The Three Village Inn, became president. In 1967, Val Harto, superintendent of schools, became president, followed in 1968 by David Minuse, son of T. Bayles.

A list of all club presidents can be found on a plaque at the Three Village Rotary Memorial Garden. Membership grew through the 1970s, reaching over 60 members. During that period, the club’s major fundraiser was an annual horse show, where members sold refreshments and watched the horses overnight.

Women in Rotary

A review of the club’s history shows all early presidents were men due to Rotary International’s policy prohibiting women from membership. In 1987, the Stony Brook Rotary Board challenged this restriction, which prompted a strong response—one member said women would be admitted “over my dead body.” Ironically, he divorced shortly after.

Before the club could act, Rotary International lifted the restriction. Ruth White, manager of Extebank (formerly at the site of The Reboli Center), became the first female member. Olga Belleau became the first woman president and remains an active member today, alongside Christine Grobe and Hope Kinney.

Fighting Discrimination

Controversy later arose over holding meetings and fundraisers at St. George’s Golf Course, which had a discriminatory membership policy. Olga Belleau, a Latin American woman and member by marriage, convinced the then-president to sign a memo of understanding to lift those restrictions.

Today’s Leadership

In 2024, the club experienced a resurgence, with membership more than doubling under the leadership of then President, Marios Patatinis and then Vice President, Chris Sokol.

In 2025, Marios Patatinis moved into the Immediate Past President/Club Director Role, with Chris Sokol becoming Club President and Leah Jaskolski serving as Club Vice President.