Constance "Connie" Marie Julie Lessard Nugent passed away on December 30, 2012 after a sudden illness. She was born on July 3, 1933 in Lewiston, Maine and was the oldest of nine children of Beatrice and Joseph Lessard. She cherished her family and never tired of telling stories about her siblings and growing up on the farm in Gardiner, Maine. Connie graduated from Gardiner High School in 1950 and went on to earn her Nursing Degree from Maine General in 1953. She was always so proud of being a nurse and never tired of caring for patients even in retirement. She enjoyed a long and distinguished career as a nurse working over the years at many different facilities including The Osteopathic Hospitals of Maine and Dallas, and Huntington Memorial Hospital in Pasadena, CA. She didn't stop at that and while working at National Medical Care as an administrator went on to earn her master's degree at St. Joseph's College. Her final administrative position was at Ukiah Convalescent Hospital where she made many happy memories. She enjoyed her work so much that her scrapbooks are filled with pictures from her years of work and the coworkers she worked with. She never tired of learning and went on to become a nurse practitioner. Over the years, she was a great mentor to other nursing students. Nursing led her to her future husband, John T Nugent, Sr. They met when he was a patient and she was his nurse. After dating for a short period of time, they married and had two sons, John T. Nugent, Jr. and Michael J. Nugent. While raising their young family, they traveled and lived in Texas, California, returning to Maine where they resided until relocating to Susanville, California in 1980. Connie was widowed in 1981 and never remarried. After John's death, she relocated to Ukiah, CA where she remained until retiring to Green Valley, AZ in 1998. Connie was blessed with six grandchildren and adored them. She loved to travel, especially if it involved an airplane. She would always make a special trip each year to both coasts to visit both families. She loved to run and play with her grandchildren. She always joked about being able to keep up with anyone. The families had the opportunity to travel with Gram to Disneyland and Disney World and create some wonderful memories that will be cherished forever. Connie was a devout Catholic and her faith was a cornerstone of her life. No matter where she lived, she always found a church family. Connie enjoyed photography and never went anywhere without her camera. Over the years, she created a legacy with her scrapbooks. Connie is survived by her two sons, John T. Nugent, Jr. and his wife, Dolores of Ukiah, CA, Michael J. Nugent and his wife, Debra of Charlotte, NC; six grandchildren, Kristen Nugent Crepeau and her husband, Jason of Lake Wylie, SC, Armanda Nugent Benites and her husband Luis of Ukiah, CA, Trevor Nugent of Biddeford, ME, John T Nugent, III and his wife Carole of Ukiah , R. Andrew Nugent of Ukiah, CA, and Taylor Nugent of Charlotte, NC; five great grandchildren, Kolby and Kollin Crepeau of Lake Wylie, SC, Bryson Hoefer-Nugent, John Thomas Nugent IV, and Boston Heilman of Ukiah, CA, ; three sisters, Cora Freeman Whiting of AZ, Mary Merrill of NH and Donna Lessard of AZ; four brothers, Robert Lessard of TX, Joseph Lessard of NH, Peter Lessard and Paul Lessard of ME. She was predeceased by her husband, John, parents, Joseph and Beatrice Lessard, and a sister, Armanda Lessard. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorials be made in Connie's name to the Alzheimer's Foundation of America (www.alzfdn.org) A Memorial Mass celebrating Connie's life will be held on Friday, January 11, 2013 at 11 a.m. at St. Mary of the Angels Catholic Church. Eversole Mortuary is in charge of arrangements.
Published in Ukiah Daily Journal on January 6, 2013