Florence A. Lajoie Potvin

LEWISTON – Florence A. Lajoie Potvin, 93, passed away peacefully at Woodlands Memory Care in Lewiston on April 23, 2025, with loving family by her side.

She was born on Oct. 29, 1931, on Blake Street in Lewiston. She was the daughter of Laure (Levesque) and Joseph Lajoie. She was the youngest of 10 children and was proud to be the baby and live the longest of her family. She had a special cat named Peter who turned out to be a female. Over the years we all heard stories about Peter.

While living on Cedar street, she attended St. Mary’s School and was a member of St. Mary’s Parish as well as the Ladies of St. Anne’s Sodality. She went on to graduate from Lewiston High School in 1950. Her first job was in a restaurant on Lisbon Street.

She married her husband Normand on Oct. 3, 1953, and they made their home in Little Canada. Together they raised their five children.

Florence was employed doing beading on moccasins at home while her four girls were young. By the time her son was born, she was working at Bell-Moc shoe factory as a shoe cutter with her brother Tony. She loved to sew and made lots of dresses for her four little girls. As a family they did many trips to Easthampton, Mass., and Bangor, which we treasure.

Florence and Norm eventually moved to Lisbon for a few years then moved back to Lewiston at Oak Park Apartments. She made many friends there and loved to visit in the hallways. She enjoyed doing jigsaw puzzles with them and she loved to read and do Word Searches. She made a lot of afghans for her kids, grandchildren and some extended family. She also crocheted stove towels and hot plates for family and many at Oak Park also.

She was a loving mother and we all loved her back. She will be missed by her family.

The family would like to thank the Woodlands staff for the wonderful care given to her while she was there, and also to the staff at Andwell Hospice.

Florence was predeceased by her parents Joseph and Laure (Levesque) Lajoie, her beloved husband Normand A. Potvin, her brothers Antonio, Lucien, Gerard, Paul and Laureat, her sisters Lucille, Jeanne, Denise and Ida, as well as her great granddaughter Natalie Brisson and her son-in-law Richard Labonte.

She is survived by her children, Anita (Paul) Whitten, Diane (Marc) Laliberte, Joline Labonte, Gisele Potvin and Daniel (Laura) Potvin, her grandchildren, Amy, Melissa, Sarah, Corey, Joshua, Krista, Dylan and Alex. She also leaves behind her great grandchildren Nysa, Noah, Matthew, James, Drake and Jasmine and her sisters-in-law Fleurette Bell, Dorothy Levasseur and Rita Potvin and several nieces and nephews.

A Visitation for Florence will be held on Tuesday, May 6, 2025 from 3-7 p.m., at The Fortin & Pinette Group Funeral Home located at 305 Alfred A Plourde Parkway in Lewiston. A Mass of Christian Burial will be Celebrated on Wednesday, May 7, 2025 at 11 a.m., at Sacred Heart Church in Auburn followed by Committal Prayers at the Maine Veterans Memorial Cemetery.