RICHFORD - Therese S. Paquette, age 87, passed away Tuesday July 2, 2013 at Fletcher Allen Health Care in Burlington with her loving family at her side.
She was born in Highgate Center on March 28, 1926 the daughter of the late Henri & Maria (Gagne) Laroche.
Therese attended school in Highgate and had one year of schooling at St. Anns Academy in Swanton before working at the Deaf Mute Institute in Buffalo, New York. Upon her return to Vermont she married Gerard Paquette on June 18, 1946 in St. Louis Catholic Church in Highgate Center.
Therese was a faithful member of All Saints Catholic Church. She devoted her life to raising her family while helping her husband on the family farm and working in their store in East Franklin. She also worked for a brief period at the Richford Elementary School as a Foster Grandparent.
She loved to write letters, poems and short stories for children. She enjoyed collecting stamps and post cards, sewing quilts, and making braided rugs for family as well as donating some to the church bizarre. In her later years, she enjoyed playing Scrabble, putting together Jigsaw Puzzles and doing Word Searches. Her special hobby was collecting items for a miniature antique kitchen that resembled the kitchen she grew up in. She also enjoyed traveling, especially going on bus tours to historical sites.
Therese ended each day in prayer for her family, they will greatly miss her. She is survived by her sons, Claude Paquette of Tempe, AZ, Marcel Paquette and his wife Kim of Berkshire, and Daniel Paquette and his wife Carol of Cape Coral, FL; her daughters, Claudette Garrow, Madeline Wetherby and her husband Donald, Florence Doyle and her husband Eddie all of Richford, Rita Garrow and her husband Gordon of Berkshire, Monica Neveau and her husband Lance of Highgate, and Lucy Paquette and her husband Jean-Paul Lebeau of Stanbridge Est., Quebec; 22 grandchildren, 29 great grandchildren, and several step-grandchildren; 1 brother, Rev. Leonidas Laroche of Swanton; 3 sisters, Gertrude Cook of St. Albans, Marie-Ange Belanger and her husband Roland of Washington Depot, CT, and Rose-Anna Paquette of Swanton; sisters-in-law, Doris Laroche & Germaine Laroche both of St. Albans; brother-in-law, Paul Paquette and his wife Doris of New York; many nieces and nephews. Besides her parents, She was predeceased by her husband Gerard Paquette; her children, Monique & Jerome Paquette; grandchildren, Tonya Beaudry & Jesse Wetherby; brothers, Leonard, Laurent, Clement & Jean-Marie Laroche; her sisters, Alice Paquette, Lucienne Lambert, Florence Plant and Yvonne Moreau; and daughter-in-law, Viki Paquette.
Funeral services will be held Friday July 5, 2013 at 2:00 PM at All Saints Catholic Church, 152 Main Street, Richford with Rev. Karl Hahr Celebrating the Mass of Christian burial. Interment will follow in All Saints Cemetery.
A time of visitation will be held at the Spears Funeral Home, 96 Dickinson Ave., Enosburg Falls on Friday from 11:30 AM to 1:30 PM
For those who wish, contributions in Thereses memory may be made to All Saints Catholic Church, 152 Main Street, Richford, VT 05476.