Huguette Authier

Huguette Marie Cecile Lafreniere Authier, age 91, passed away on September 23, 2019. She was born on November 21, 1927 in Cochran, Ontario, Canada to Marie Cecile Lafreniere nee Lallemande and Joseph Octave Lafreniere.  Her mother died young and left three children including Huguette’s brothers Gilles and Gerard. Her father Octave remarried Eveline Montcalm and five more siblings were born: Roberte, Lucie, Jeannine, Gaeton and Cecile.

She spent her early childhood in Shawinigan, Quebec and attended boarding school from age five through eighteen. She graduated from College Marianapolis in Westmount Canada and moved to New York City where she became a translator at the New Yorker Hotel. It was there that she met her future husband Emery Authier. They married in 1950 and had six children, including Michele (husband Craig Dreisbach) Mark, Annmarie (husband Warren Speck), Marcelle (husband Sandy Friedman) Pierrette (partner Dieter Nurnberger) and Vincent (wife Cheryl Authier)

Huguette lived primarily in Springfield, MA, Dearborn, MI and Orlando, Fla. before spending the last five years of her life at the St. Johnsbury House. She became devoted friend to Yvonne and Charlotte. Everyone at the St. Johnsbury House welcomed her with love and kindness.

Wherever she lived, Huguette loved to serve her community. She volunteered at hospitals in Springfield, St. Augustine and Dearborn. She was a guide at Greenfield Village in Dearborn Michigan. She was a coach for the blind in Florida and led chair exercises at Hubbard Towers Senior Living Center in Dearborn.

Huguette loved music, especially opera.  A voracious reader, she instilled the love of reading in her children. When her eyesight failed her, she switched to audio books. Her favorite authors were Maeve Binchy, Rosamund Pilcher and Jan Karon.

She was an enthusiastic storyteller who loved to make people laugh and she maintained correspondence for decades with pen pals around the world.

She was known to her grand-children as “Muffy”. They include Erica, Christopher, Tom, Matthew, Shamus, Sean, Jenna, Michael and Caitlyn. Great grand-children include Arbor, Tenaya, Sienna and Marcus. Huguette made each person she met feel special. She liked to say “I was a lot of fun.”

Huguette was predeceased by her mother Cecile, father Octave, former husband Emery, her siblings Gilles, Gerard and Babette, son Mark and daughter-in-law Cheryl.

At Huguette’s request there will be no services. Donations in Huguette’s memory may be sent to: Caledonia Home Health Care and Hospice, 161 Sherman Drive, St. Johnsbury, Vermont 05819

Memories and condolences can be shared with the family at www.saylesfh.com