Locals remember Koch, mourn loss

There’s a certain sadness in and around the Johnston Senior Center.

It has been that way since Sunday, Feb. 15, when the center and many other non-profit agencies lost a special, treasured friend named Peter Alfred Koch.

Koch, 65, will always be remembered for his love of golf and extraordinary efforts with the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership, among seemingly endless charitable contributions. He had a special place in his heart for the Johnston Senior Center, its management and staff.

“Peter Koch loved coming here,” said Debbi Ross, the center’s public relations coordinator who once worked at Koch Eye Associates in Warwick. “No one will ever forget Peter and Koch Eye Cares Day.”

Koch Eye Cares Day was as unique as Peter, the family-owned company’s CEO who along with his brother, Dr. Paul D. Koch, and sister, Dr. Patricia Koch, O.D., closed each and every branch of their statewide business and sent all employees – including doctors – into the community to volunteer at non-profit agencies like the senior center.

“The day began, as always, with an early kick-off breakfast for all employees on the first floor of the main building,” Ross remembered. “That was a great way to plan car pools before we headed out to spend the day volunteering at as many as 18 non-profit agencies in the state.”

Koch employees performed a number of duties on Koch Eye Cares Day. People like Dr. Michelle Lewis or Michael Consiglio. O.D., provided eye exams, and Peter donated glass frames and gift certificates for people who couldn’t afford a visit to the company’s Johnston office. The day, Ross remembered, “was filled with unmatched caring.”

In more recent years, the day was held in loving memory of Peter’s late mother Dorothy.

“Not only were employees paid for volunteering during the day,” she continued, “but the Koch family held its Summer Festival for staff and guests that evening from 6 to 11 p.m. at Aldrich Mansion on Warwick Neck. The party gave everyone an opportunity to discuss the day’s happenings and enjoy a wonderful summer evening.”

Although the last Koch Eye Cares Day was held on July 27, 2012, as the company has since been sold to another eye care company, people like Ross, senior center Executive Director Tony Zompa and Assistant Director Millie Santilli will forever have fond memories of the day and its treasured leader.

“We have pleasant memories of the Koch Eye staff coming to the center on Koch Eye Cares Day to help with our seniors,” Zompa said. “They always showed up with such enthusiasm and smiles. They served lunch, visited with our members and participated in our knitting class. In fact, one volunteer helped knit a scarf which was later sold in our gift shop.”

Zompa, who heaped words of praise on a man he called a polished and polite professional, concluded by saying: “It would be a unique opportunity for the company to continue this volunteer program as a legacy to a magnificent CEO. We would always welcome them here at the Johnston Senior Center.”

Santilli, who was vacationing in Florida when she learned of Peter’s passing, offered: “We all learned that he was a selfless person and always generous with not only his time, but his employees’ time as well. They truly got it when it came to reaching out. That’s what made him stand alone. I hope they continue his legacy. I feel blessed to have known Peter Koch.”

For Ross, Peter Koch’s passing will leave a void in her life.

She worked at Koch Eye Associates from 1994 until 2002, when a disability forced her to leave. She loved getting up each morning and going to work as the office manager in the Retina & Glaucoma Center.

Ross was also one of Peter’s first mentors when the Koch CEO became involved in the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership.

“We were assigned an elementary school student in Warwick to work with,” she remembers. “We’d leave work and mentor a child for one hour a week. We were paid while we did this, and Peter also mentored a child. At the end of the school year, he’d sponsor an event to celebrate mentoring. It was clear to all of us who mentored that Peter enjoyed doing this so much.”

For Ross, it was “a very rewarding experience … I was grateful to Peter for affording me the unique opportunity to participate.”

During her time at Koch Eye, Ross went through what she called “difficult times.” She emphasized how Peter Koch – although he was the CEO and her boss – treated her “as a friend and showed me such kindness and generosity. For that, I will always be grateful for how he helped me.”

Finally, Ross noted: “When working for Peter, Dr. Paul or Patty, you were always considered part of the family. That was evident at the wake and service, when so many former and current Koch employees came together to say goodbye to a wonderful man who always cared for his fellow men and women.”