After decades on television and radio, his name is familiar to almost every Aroostook County athlete and sports enthusiast.
Rene Cloukey, longtime sports anchor at WAGM Television and founder of the Cloukey Charity Challenge that raised more than $120,000 for Special Olympics Maine, garnered another honor on Thursday when he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Central Aroostook Chamber of Commerce.
The chamber recognized Cloukey and other award winners during its annual banquet at the Caribou Wellness & Recreation Center.
Shelby Pelletier, founder of The Aroostook Common, gallery owner and musician, was named Citizen of the Year.
Best Western Caribou Inn earned Business of the Year for Economic Impact, and The County Federal Credit Union netted Business of the Year for Community Impact.
Sarah Brooks, organizer of the Maine-Quebec Winter Caravan and vice president of the Can-Am International Sled Dog Races, won the President’s Award.
Stacey Skinner was named Board Member of the Year.
In a speech punctuated with humor, AJ Cloukey introduced his father, joking that Rene’s fame has defined every family member.
“I’m AJ Cloukey, aka Rene’s son. I’m here with my two sisters, Angela and Amber, and they’ve always been known as Rene’s kids,” AJ Cloukey said. “And my wife, Shawn, and my son, Aaron, are known as Rene’s relatives. I guess that’s what you get when you have a sports legend like Rene Cloukey.”
The elder Cloukey has been inducted into the Maine Sports Legends Hall of Fame, the Maine Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame and the Ashland Career Hall of Fame, and six times has received the Maine Sportscaster of the Year Award, his son said.
He’s also received the Suzanne Goucher Lifetime Achievement Award, the Maine Association of Basketball Coaches media award and the Heroes Award for his work with Special Olympics.
He acquired his work ethic and passion for making people feel valued from his parents, Rene and Phyllis Cloukey, AJ Cloukey said. Throughout his career, he strived to make every athlete — no matter their age or ability — feel appreciated.
His presence became a local constant, as much for the news coverage as for the boost he gave kids, his son said. The award recognizes not just his own achievements, but the thousands of people his work touched.
“It’s a recognition of a community that’s stronger, more connected and more proud because Dad chose to dedicate his life to it,” AJ Cloukey said. “And it’s a recognition of the simple truth that Rene Cloukey is one of the best ambassadors Aroostook County has ever had.”
Rene Cloukey, a Sheridan native, said he knew he wanted to be a sportscaster in the fifth grade. It was 1967 and the Red Sox went to the World Series after being in last place.
“I knew at that point that I was going to be the Red Sox radio announcer someday,” he joked. “I never accomplished that. But in my mind, I accomplished something even greater. I have been able to, for almost 50 years, give sports results in Aroostook County and western New Brunswick.”
He retired from WAGM in November 2024, after more than 40 years at the local station. He now works for Channel X Radio.
Many people have come up to him through the years, asking if he remembered them. He’ll ask for a hint, but then remembers them and how their team did, he said.
He recounted his first coverage of a Special Olympics event. That day ignited his passion for the organization and its athletes, he said.
He was nervous, but Steve Richard of the Central Aroostook Association told him to talk to Special Olympians just like other athletes and cheer them on.
“He said, ‘It’s your first one. It won’t be your last one.’ And it hasn’t. I have been there every year,” Cloukey said.
The Aroostook County Special Olympics spring games are the largest regional spring games in Maine, he said. And now, thanks to the Maine Principals’ Association partnering with Special Olympics, unified high school sports have launched in The County.
“Presque Isle, Caribou and Houlton all have unified basketball teams, which have made such a difference to so many of these high school Olympians who are now able to walk down the hall and everyone is giving them a high five,” he said.
He founded the Cloukey Charity Challenge golf tournament to raise money for Aroostook County athletes, and over its 35 years the event garnered more than $120,000, Cloukey said. What blows him away is that the money all came in $20 at a time from registrations.
Cloukey thanked family and friends, and attributed his success to the people who have surrounded him over the years. His wife, Kelley Fitzpatrick, keeps him grounded, and he’s proud of his children, AJ, Amber and Angela, and all they’ve accomplished, he said.
His secret is that he always listens to people, he said.
“I really, really am humbled by receiving this,” Cloukey said. “And just in closing, as Lou Gehrig said in his retirement speech, ‘I’m the luckiest man alive.’ I happen to disagree with that, because I am the luckiest man alive to be able to have lived my dream for 50 years.”
