Sister Joan Ayotte, DW

Please pray for the repose of the soul of Sister Joan Ayotte, D.W., who died in Madawaska at the age of 86 with her sisters by her side. She was born on January 8, 1938, in Frenchville, the second daughter of Lawrence and Irene Albert Ayotte. 

Sr. Joan discerned a religious vocation during high school and made her first profession with the Daughters of Wisdom Novitiate in Litchfield, Connecticut, on February 2, 1959.

She spent her first 10 years as a sister working in food service in New York, where she also received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Queens College. She then returned to the St. John River Valley where she taught home economics to Fort Kent Community High School students. She furthered her education at the University of Maine in Orono, earning a Master of Education degree. She then taught special education for 10 years at Madawaska Elementary School. 

Sr. Joan retired from teaching in 1998. Following her retirement, she became a certified nurse’s assistant and completed hospice volunteer training.  She served the elderly and the sick at High View Manor and also became her father's primary caregiver. She also volunteered with Meals and Wheels and became a medical transport person with the St. John Valley Faith in Action. She volunteered on the Pioneer Educational Foundation Board of Directors and was a member of the Marquis Family Reunion Committee.

In 2006, Sr. Joan became an integral part of setting up and maintaining Long Lake Public Library, working tirelessly to catalog and maintain the library collection.