Obituary
OBITUARY: MARCELLA MARIE AYOTTE
Marcella Marie Ayotte, age 88, passed away on Friday, March 1, 2019, at Brandley
House Hospice in Summerfield, Florida. She was born on the family farm in Hamlin,
Maine, on January 28, 1931, the daughter of Fred and Sadie (Paradis) Ayotte. She was
a 1947 graduate of Notre Dame de la Sagesse Boarding School in St. Agatha, Maine.
After graduation, Marcella attended Husson College for two years before answering the
call to religious life. In 1950, she entered the order of the Sisters Servants of the
Immaculate Heart of Mary (Good Shepherd Sisters) and took her final vows seven
years later in Quebec, Canada. Marcella dedicated 21 years to this calling, during which
time she earned her BA in education from Anna Maria College in 1961, graduating
magna cum laude. She taught high school in Biddeford and Van Buren, Maine before
acquiring an M.A.T. in English from Assumption College in 1971.
Leaving religious life in 1971, Marcella continued her calling as a teacher in a career
that spanned over three decades. She taught high school English, first in Putnam, CT
(1971-1974), Van Buren, ME (1974-1977), Fredericksburg, VA (1978-1979), and finally
in Fairfax County, VA (1979-1993), where she eventually retired. Balancing her inclassroom
gravitas with a sense of humor and a personal joie de vivre, Marcella
touched the hearts and challenged the minds of generations of appreciative scholars.
Her successes and achievements were reflected in the many accolades she received
from administration, faculty, and students. While involved in numerous supervisory
positions herself, her first love always was her teaching and her students. She served in
many advisory roles, including class advisor, National Honor Society moderator, and
director of the Speech Club, which enjoyed many years of recognition at the district,
county, and state levels under her guidance. For several years after her formal
retirement, Marcella was a private tutor of the French language.
Marcella often reminisced about her years living and teaching in the D.C. area,
considering them to be some of her favorite. She loved the culture and excitement of
the city. Family and friends who visited her during these years would be treated to some
of her favorite activities: visiting the Smithsonian, taking in a show at the Kennedy
Center, and mall shopping at Tysons Corner. It was here, too, that she formed many
lifelong friendships. In 1998, Marcella left the D.C. area to move into her new home in
Summerfield, Florida, where she would be closer to her sister and brother-in-law.
Marcella was predeceased by her parents and her three brothers, Herbert, Roland, and
Norman Ayotte. She is survived by her sister, Muriel Thibodeau, and her husband,
Martin, of The Villages, Florida. She was the cherished aunt of 12 nieces and nephews.
Funeral services will be held on Monday, April 8, 2019, at 10:00 a.m. at St. Mark the
Evangelist Church in Summerfield, Florida. A memorial and burial service will also be
held in summer 2019 at St. Bruno-St. Remi Catholic Church in Van Buren, Maine.
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