RICHARD PELLETIER's FAMILY

His 2 Wives:
► Marie A. 'Ann' (Lacombe) [Landry] Pelletier 1910-1940 [age 30]
married on May 15, 1933, at L'Église de St-Marc-du-Lac-Long, in Témiscouata, Québec, Canada
Note:
Ann was previously married to Télesphore Landry. She was widowed in 1932, at age 21.
► Emily M. (Pelletier) [Cormier] Pelletier 1903-1973 [age 70]
married on May 29, 1943, at Saint Anne's Church in Waterbury, Connecticut
(now known as The Shrine of Saint Anne under the umbrellaed 'All Saints Parish')
Note:
Emily was previously married to Onésime Cormier. She was widowed in 1931, at age 27.

His Son:
Joseph O. 'Bobby' Pelletier 1932-1972 [age 39]
married on May 27, 1955, in Waterbury, Connecticut, to Lorraine L. Gilbert 1933-2000 [age 67]

His 5 Stepchildren - Emily's children
► Eugene E. 'Geneo' Pelletier 1919-2001 [age 81]
married Feb. 8, 1947, in Saco, Maine, to Anita N. (Labelle) Danis 1924-1985 [age 60]
separated and later divorced
► Pearl L. (Cormier) Searles 1921-1997 [age 76]
married Aug. 21, 1937, in Millinocket, Maine, to Arnold E. Searles 1915-1994 [age 79]
► Oneil J. 'Neil' Cormier 1922-2002 [age 79]
married Sep. 26, 1943, in Biddeford, Maine, to Lucille J. Simoneau 1923-2010 [age 87]
► Lawrence N. 'Norman' Cormier 1923-1944 [age 20] - WIA/DOI World War II
Note: For Norman's updated (more complete) biography, click here
► June A. (Cormier) DeCarlo 1925-1968 [age 43]
married June 30, 1945, in Waterbury, Connecticut, to Rocco J. DeCarlo 1920-1991 [age 71]

His Parents:
Denis I. Pelletier 1870-1929 [age 58]
and Luce M. 'Lucy' (Gendreau) Pelletier 1876-1950 [age 73]
married on January 14, 1901, at Saint Charles Borromeo Church in St. Francis, Maine
(Saint Charles was umbrellaed into the new 'St. John Vianney Parish' in 2007)

His 9 Siblings:
► Claire M. 'Clara' (Pelletier) Salisbury 1901-1979 [age 77]
married May 23, 1937, in Portland, Maine, to Leslie D. Salisbury 1888-1955 [age 66]
► Cyrille J. Pelletier 1903-1978 [age 75]
married Apr. 15, 1929, in Lac-Baker, NB, Canada, to Julie M. 'Julia' Beaulieu 1910-1968 [age 58]
► Patrick D. 'Pat' Pelletier 1905-1973 [age 67]
married Jun. 4, 1935, in Lac-Baker, NB, Canada, to Carmen M. Beaulieu 1912-1969 [age 56]
► Hedwidge M. (Pelletier) Chassé 1907-1958 [age 50]
married Sep. 26, 1927, in Lac-Baker, NB, Canada, to Napoléon A. Chassé 1904-1971 [age 66]
► Isaïe J. 'Zie' Pelletier 1911-2001 [age 89]
married Aug. 2, 1945, in Waterbury, Connecticut, to Mary A. Favale 1920-1998 [age 77]
► Alphonse F. Pelletier 1914-1970 [age 55]
married Apr. 17, 1940, to Antoinette M. Morin 1921-1980 [age 59]
in St-Jean-de-la-Lande, Témiscouata, Québec, Canada
► Thomas B. Pelletier 1916-1919 [age 2½]
► Juliette M. (Pelletier) Banville 1920-1995 [age 75]
married Jun. 11, 1943, in Fort Smith, Arkansas, to Joseph E. Banville 1910-1990 [age 79]
► Abel J. Pelletier 1921-2003 [age 81]
married Jul. 28, 1942, in Lac-Baker, NB, Canada, to Germaine Nadeau 1921-2004 [age 83]
divorced in 1982

His Grandparents:
Paternal - his father's parents
► Isaïe Pelletier 1834-1900 [age 65]
[son of Bénoni and Victoire (Violet) Pelletier]
and Élisabeth (Nadeau) Pelletier 1837-1910 [age 73]
[daughter of Simon and Marcelline (Michaud) Nadeau]
married on February 21, 1859,
at L'Église de St-François-Xavier in St-François-de-Madawaska, New Brunswick, Canada
Maternal - his mother's parents
► Lévite Gendreau 1848-1930 [age 82]
[son of Eugène and Luce (Dominique) Gendreau]
and Sophie E. (Thibodeau) Gendreau 1851-1936 [age 84]
[daughter of Élie and Marie Radegonde 'Seconde' (Jalbert) Thibodeau]
married on March 23, 1876, at Saint Louis Church in Fort Kent, Maine

TELL THE STORY · REMEMBER THE LIFE

Richard Émile Pelletier was born in Lac Baker, New Brunswick, Canada, christened 'Joseph Émile Richard' as was the French-Canadian Catholic custom of yesteryear. To some of his friends and coworkers, he was known as Dick, but to his wife and his family, he was always Richard.

The fifth of of ten children, Richard spent his childhood and early adult years in Madawaska, New Brunswick, and Témiscouata, Québec, where in 1933 at age 23 he married Anne Landry, a young woman who had been widowed 16 months earlier. The couple established themselves in Lac Baker, Richard's hometown; and in the spring of 1934 they set out on a trip to Québec City. There they visited a now-defunct orphanage, La Crèche de St-Vincent-de-Paul, which was run by the Sisters of the Good Shepherd; and they decided to adopt a young boy who was about a year-and-a-half old. Along with their new son, Richard and Ann returned home to Lac-Baker; but their time together would be short-lived. Six years later, on December 14, 1940, Ann died unexpectedly at age 30, leaving her husband to finish raising their eight-year-old boy; and by 1942, Richard and his son had quit Canada and moved to the States.

After making their way to Connecticut, dad and son settled in the south end of Waterbury which was then heavily populated by French-Canadian immigrants who worked in the local brass factories. In short time, Richard met and took a liking to a forty-year-old widow who hailed from northern Maine — Emily (Pelletier) Cormier; and in late May of 1943, he and she were married. By then, Emily already had five grown children and two grandchildren; but Richard and his son were welcomed into the family fold and in time Emily formally adopted her young stepson.

Note: Unbeknownst to them, though quite common in French-Canadian circles, Richard and Emily were descended from the same family roots and were actually fourth cousins (i.e. they had a set of great-great-great-grandparents in common).

In the 1950s, the Pelletiers moved a few miles south to Naugatuck — where two of Emily's married children had settled; and by the end of the decade, Richard had secured a job as the superintendant and caretaker at Saint James Cemetery, which was then under the auspices of Saint Francis Church (the parish to which they belonged). In addition to a weekly salary, his new position included the use of a single-family house adjacent to the cemetery; and for more than a decade, the old homestead (now razed) became the setting for many family picnics and Sunday gatherings. By the close of the decade, Richard had also tucked another accomplishment under his belt — when, on December 10, 1959, he became a citizen of the United States.

Both Richard and Emily loved children; and in the late 1950s, with an empty nest and a four-bedroom house, the couple decided to take in two young foster children — Peggy and Valerie (who were sisters). The girls became part of the family fabric and lived with the Pelletiers for about five years before returning to their parents. During that time, they brought a great deal of happiness and purpose to the couple's lives and were sorely missed when they left.

Richard E. Pelletier died on the job at age 60, ten days before Christmas in 1969. He had just finished working a funeral on a cold winter morning; and while leaning on his shovel, engaged in conversation with a local funeral director, he collapsed and died of a massive heart attack. Three days later, Richard was buried a stone's throw from his house in the same cemetery he'd overseen for more than a decade. At the time of his death, he and Emily had been married for 26 years.

Rest in peace, Pépère. We think of you often.

CEMETERY INFORMATION

Type of Marker: Headstone (monument)

Location:
Richard and his wife Emily are buried side-by-side in the southeastern corner of the cemetery, across from the office building. Easy to find.

Directions:
Enter the cemetery from Cross Street; turn left; drive about 150 feet; bear right around the bend and park. The Pelletier plot is on your immediate right in the 3rd row of upright monuments, the 4th plot in from the road. [Look for the 'BINKOSKI' monument, roadside. That's the row.]

Click 'Show Map' in the Burial information at the top of this page. The Pelletier plot is pinpointed with a red icon.