Rick Roth is a veritable force to be reckoned with in the city of Pawtucket. A dedicated, hardworking screen printer, his immense passion for the city of Pawtucket, and the world at large, is inspirational. Rick is the owner of the cutting-edge textile printing company “Mirror Image” located at 190 Exchange Street in Pawtucket, a company he moved here from Cambridge Massachusetts in 1999. He has always run a Union shop, allowing dignity and respect to all his employees. Rick is known as “the godfather” of modern print screening and was named one of the top five maverick CEO’s by The Counselor magazine in 2022. He is a contributing editor for Printwear and Impressions magazines and has written a book “Screen Printing Today: The Basics”. Rick is an advocate for environmentally friendly and sustainable work and uses only water-based inks, as well as educating others on this practice. He was the printer for T-Shirts for both the Super Bowl winning Patriots and the World Series winning Red Sox. He has won national and international recognition and multiple awards in the printing industry. In 2020 (post-COVID), he launched “Here for Rhode Island”, encouraging sales of shirts, bandannas & hats to keep workers afloat. Roth’s influence goes beyond decoration and carries into activism and charitable causes. “It’s satisfying both creatively and personally when there’s a social mission behind doing the work,” Roth says.

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His history proves this enthusiasm for giving back, having worked on campaigns like Students for a Free Tibet, in their struggle for freedom and independence, and as a member of Amnesty International, promoting human rights. Other groups include Farm Aid, Music Makers Foundation, New Orleans Musician’s Clinic, offering medical care and social services for performing artists, and so many more. He has accomplished a plethora of charitable work and community involvement stating, “I don’t make clear divisions with my personal and work life, so it’s only natural that my business would also have charitable aims. It’s incredibly gratifying.”

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Rick is the originator of “The Pawtucket Film Fest”, screening independent films since the inception of the Pawtucket Arts Festival. Film director Michael Corrente once said, while sitting with Robert Altman and Martin Scorsese at the Toronto Film Festival, “Sorry, I can’t hang with you any longer, I have to go to the Pawtucket Film Festival”.

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A baseball player himself while at Colgate, he went on to attend Harvard Divinity School. He then worked with addicted individuals and troubled youth in Boston. A Quaker, he demonstrates the truly selfless heart and soul of social activist.

 

Rick Roth has truly made a lasting impact on the quality of life in Pawtucket, having left an indelible mark in both his professional and personal achievements. We are pleased to welcome him to the 2023 Pawtucket Hall of Fame.