Obituary of Mary Simone Frechette

Simone Frechette passed away peacefully on April 5, 2019, at Our Lady of Providence in Winooski with her family by her side, three weeks before her 97th birthday.  She was born on April 22, 1922, in Berkshire, Vermont,  to Ferdinand and Mary Louise (Larose) Smith, the first of eleven children.   

She was raised in the Berkshire area. Simone married Robert J. Frechette on October 25, 1945.  She and Robert (Bob) had three children, Ann, John and James. They were residents of East Richford, Richford and Georgia, Vermont. Simone was a member of St. Ann’s Church in Milton until she moved to Our Lady of Providence, in Winooski.

Our Mom was a very special person and loved by us and so many of her relatives and friends.  We will miss her dearly and will think of her daily. During World War II, Simone worked at a defense plant in Hartford, CT. She worked at several retail stores in the Richford area after her children were older. She was the only cook in the East Richford one-room schoolhouse, and later worked at the Richford Elementary school.  Mom enjoyed crocheting, sewing, gardening, cooking, playing cards and board games.  She was an excellent cook, which our family always enjoyed, and an excellent Scrabble player.

Simone is survived  by her daughter Ann Benoit and husband James, and her son James Frechette. She is also survived by her granddaughters Margot Rodger and husband Brian, and their sons Liam and Finn, and Alison Wilson and husband John, and their children Carter and Macy, and granddaughter Melissa Van Buskirk.  She is also survived by her sisters Annette Montagne and Maria Ploof and her husband Donald, sisters-in-law Shirley Smith, Kathleen Smith, and brothers-in-law, Carmen Mayhew and Wellington Towle, and many nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by her husband Robert in 2013 and her son John, her parents, brothers Armand, Gerard, Raymond and Lawrence Smith; sisters Rose West, Jane Mayhew, Theresa Towle, Sister Cecile Smith and sister-in-law Clara Demers, brothers-in-law Lynwood West and Francois Montagne, and Robert’s family, Harold Frechette, Evelyn and Donald Miner, Frances and Herbert Tanner, Beatrice Perry, Goldie and Philip Bean.

Simone’s family would like to thank the wonderful and caring staff at Our Lady of Providence, her other family. She enjoyed her time there and she received excellent care for over five years.

Visiting hours will be held on Tuesday, April 9, 2019 from 4 to 7 pm, with prayers offered by Fr. Feltz at 4pm, at the Minor Funeral and Cremation Center in Milton.  A Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday, April 10, 2019 at 11 am at St. Ann’s Church in Milton.

For those who wish, contributions for Simone may be made to Our Lady of Providence, 47 West Spring Street, Winooski, VT  05404 or the University of Vermont Health Network, Home Health & Hospice, 1110 Prim Road, Colchester, VT  05446.