By Doug Holder

Most people in Somerville remember George McLean as the city’s police chief – a job that forced him into the middle of many local disputes and controversies.

But folks should also know that McLean, an affable, prosperous looking man in his late middle age, is a longtime member of the Kiwanis Club in Somerville, and is finishing up his term as president.

The Somerville chapter was founded in 1925, and its main focus (but not its only) is on children. This club is international in scope and its altruistic outreach has stretched to the Dominican Republic, Ghana, India and other countries as well. In fact, the local club has helped fund a nurse’s trip to the Dominican Republic to address the alarming rates of infant mortality.

Here in Somerville the club is composed of businessmen and professionals with connections to the city, who read to children in the schools, present song recitals to the elderly in nursing homes and run field trips for young people to the U.S. Constitution in Charlestown and other sites.

The club is made up of 55 benevolent solid citizens, who take time to donate books to schools, support the initiatives of the “Head Start Program” and assist in the much-lauded “Toys for Tots” program.

The ongoing programs the club supports are: a senior citizen Thanksgiving dinner, support of the Somerville High School Basketball team and other projects.

McLean is a firm believer that adults must be positive role models for kids and they must interact with them in positive ways during their impressionable years.

McLean said his family immigrated directly to Somerville from Ireland in the 1930s. McLean himself was born and raised in the city but moved to Reading with his family after becoming a police officer.

He said that his 30-something daughter and her husband returned to the city where he cut his teeth and, in time, he may follow. “Once you get Somerville in your blood, it stays with you,” he said.

The Kiwanis Club, according to McLean is still going strong, but it is always on the lookout for new members who want to be ‚Äúactively‚Äù involved. Prospective new members are encouraged to come to their weekly luncheons at Somerville’s Mt. Vernon Restaurant at 12:15 p.m. every Thursday. Here they can meet fellow members and find out more about this valuable club.