FORT KENT – On March 3, 2009, Therese Y. (St. Jean) Voi-sine “Mrs. Halloween,” 84, left her earthly home to be with her parents, siblings and granddaughter in heaven. Therese was born July 25, 1924, in Connors, Pelletier’s Mills, New Brunswick and moved to Fort Kent when she was in her 20s. She married Edward “Ned” Voisine in 1951 and they had three children. Ned passed away unexpectedly in 1956 at the age of 35 and Therese never remarried. She struggled to raise her three very young children on her own, juggling two jobs and motherhood at a time when women rarely worked outside of the home. Through all of this, she spent many late nights keeping her kids beautifully dressed by hand making most of their clothes. Therese waited tables for several years in New Brunswick and Fort Kent, earning the nickname “Tractor” for her unprecedented ability to carry more dinner plates than anyone thought possible. In the early 1970s, she went on to cook at Forest Hill Manor nursing home, Fort Kent, where she stayed until her retirement in 1998. Here, she made several lifelong friends – you know who you are – and earned a reputation as an amazing cook, although her family had known this for years. To this day, her grandchildren consider her tomato rice soup a delicacy! Therese will be remembered by many for her grand holiday displays for Christmas and more notably, Halloween. She was featured on the local news several times and was visited by several hundred trick-or-treaters each year, many who affectionately called her “Mrs. Halloween” and referred to her home as “The Halloween House.” Therese worked hard her whole life, had a warm and loving heart, a sparkle in her eye, and was deeply loved and adored by her small family. She will be missed tremendously by her loved ones and also her “great-grand-dog,” Angel, who spent countless hours on her lap during the past couple of years. Therese leaves her daughters, Sally Voisine of Fort Kent and Judy (Voisine) Hartt of Newport Beach, Calif; and her son and daughter-in-law, Donald Voisine and Barbara Hertel-Voisine of Brooklyn, N.Y. She also leaves behind her adoring grandchildren, Alison Voisine and her fianc?, Alan Susee, and Justin Voisine, all of Fort Kent; and her only great-grandchild, Jeremy Voisine, who could do no wrong in her eyes. She also leaves her niece and nephew, Linda and Gerald St. Jean of Ontario; and a very special nephew who was like a son to her, Edgar Berube and his wife, Claudette, of Ontario. She was predeceased by her parents, Nazaire St. Jean and Edith (Beaulieu) St. Jean; her siblings, Camille St. Jean, Irma (St. Jean) Berube and Carmel St. Jean; and one infant granddaughter, Natalie Joy Hertel-Voisine, who will now have her Memere in heaven. Friends may call 9-10:30 a.m. Monday, March 9, at Daigle & Nadeau Funeral Home, Fort Kent. A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated 11 a.m. Monday at St. Louis Catholic Church, Fort Kent. Interment will be in the spring. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations for Therese may be made to The American Heart Association, 1 Union St., No. 301, Robbinsville, NJ 08691-4183 or Susan G. Komen for the Cure, Attn: Gift Management Services, 5005 LBJ Freeway, Suite 250, Dallas, TX 75244. Both causes were close to her heart. Right, Memere?
THERESE Y. (ST. JEAN) VOISINE
