Maurice L. Ouellette

Maurice L. Ouellette, age 76, beloved husband of Leonore R. (Roberge) Ouellette, a Centralville resident died Tuesday, February 19, 2008, at the Saints Medical Center following a brief illness.
He was born in Lowell, on January 18, 1932, a son of the late Leo J. and Anna M. (Perras) Ouellette. Maurice was a 1954 graduate of St. Anselm College with a BS in biology.
In 1956 he graduated from New England Institute of Funeral Directors and Embalming and upon licensure he joined his father and began a career in funeral service that spanned the last 52 years.
Maurice was just 25 years old when his father died in 1957 leaving him to operate Leo J. Ouellette & Son Funeral Home alone. He was joined by his brother in law N. George Eno in 1959, which began a partnership that lasted 25 years until his death in 1986. Due to a lasting relationship with the McKenna family that started in 1942, Maurice merged his funeral home with Jay McKenna in January 1989 creating the McKenna-Ouellette Funeral Home.
Maurice was known for his compassion, having dealt firsthand with the tragic death of his wife, Denise (Bailly) and daughter, Lise Ann "Pixie" Ouellette in 1972.
Maurice received numerous citations and awards but, the one he was proudest of came from the Massachusetts Funeral Directors Association on February 11, 2006, celebrating his 50th year as a licensed funeral director.
Maurice was an Army veteran having served in the Korean War. He was a communicant of the former St. Louis de France Church. His involvement in the community included being a Director of the Butler Bank in Lowell for the past 23 years, Knights of Columbus Council 4225 in Dracut, Lowell Lodge of Elks, the Society of Catholic Laymen, D'Youville Manor Men's Guild, Lowell DAV, the Franco American War Veterans Association, Dracut American Legion, the Centralville Social Club, Massachusetts Funeral Directors Association where he served on the board of directors for several years in the 1960's, and the National Funeral Directors Association.
Surviving him besides his wife, are four children, Leo J. Ouellette II and his wife, Darlene of Dracut, Felice Ouellette of Lowell, Valerie Gauthier of Lowell, David Sancartier of FL; a granddaughter, Jordan Rena Gauthier of Lowell; three sisters and a brother-in-law, Doris C. Eno of Dracut, Pauline and Rodman Woodward of FL, Therese Swanson of Lowell; a brother-in-law and two sisters-in-law, Ronald and Jacqueline Roberge of Dracut, Beverly Roberge of Lowell; several aunts and uncles including his uncle and close friend, Raymond Ouellette and his wife, Pauline of Lowell; and several nieces, nephews, and cousins. He was also the son-in-law of the late Rena Roberge who died September 24, 2007.