Mrs. Gilberte Gil Irene St. Hilaire Farrell

1928 - 2010

Auburn – Gilberte “Gil” Irene Farrell, age 81 of 33 Hackett Road, Auburn, ME died Wednesday morning June 2, 2010 at The Hospice House.

She was born in Lewiston, Maine June 20, 1928 daughter of the late Alphonse and Hally Boucher St. Hilaire. She graduated in the top ten of her class from Lewiston High School in 1947 and married Paul Nathan Farrell on October 18, 1952.

Gil loved music, singing and dancing, the ocean, swimming, her garden, her Rosary, collecting jewelry, cooking , and watching the birds, especially the Hummingbirds at the feeders she lovingly maintained. She was fond of playing cards with friends and family. Dearest of all to her were her children and grand-children.

She was a parishioner of Sacred Heart Church, singing for many years in the choir. She belonged to The Golden Age Club and was a member of New Auburn Senior Citizens and Association Canado – Americaine (ACA). Gil especially enjoyed performing with “The Silver Tones,” a band led by her husband, Paul. The Silver Tones played at local events and entertained the residents at many nursing and rest homes.

She is survived by her husband of 57 years Paul Nathan Farrell, sons Michael and Charles Farrell, both of Auburn, daughters Linda Farrell of Front Royal, Virginia, Jane Price of Urbana, Maryland; Susan MacKay of Ellsworth, Maine and Debra Hughes of Urbana, Maryland, 13 Grandsons Paul M. J. Farrell; Sean and Ian Glick, Alex Deraps, Nathan, Samuel, Benjamin and John Paul Price, Shawn Lyons and Patrick MacKay, Matthew, David, and Joshua Bates; and four granddaughters Keara Heavener, Mary and Stephanie Price and Sara Lyons. She is also survived by a number of great-grandchildren.

She was pre-deceased by her brothers Alphonse, Armand and Joseph ‘Lee’ St. Hilaire and her sisters Gertrude Beaulieu, and Carmen Morin.

Her unfailing love for family, sense of humor and laughter, and the tantalizing aroma of her cooking will be greatly missed, but never forgotten by those who loved her.

The family wishes to express their sincere thanks to all staff and volunteers at The Hospice House for the kind and gentle comfort/care Gil received while there; and also to Carol B. Landry for the loving companionship and care that she extended to Gil in her last months and days.

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June 3

Feature Obituary: 'Gil' Farrell, 81, band singer, mom who 'kept us laughing'

By Emma Bouthillette [email protected]

News Assistant

AUBURN - It was love at first sight for Gilberte "Gil" Farrell and her eventual husband, Paul Farrell.

He was working third shift at the time for the railroad and reluctantly went to a dance with four of the guys he worked with.

"I didn't have a choice that night. I was the only one with a car," he said.

Looking back on that night, he said four of the five men who went to the dance found their future wives, Paul Farrell included. Even after 57 years of marriage, he still called Mrs. Farrell "his bride."

She died Wednesday at age 81.

Mrs. Farrell grew up in an area of Lewiston called "Little Canada," and embraced her Franco-American heritage throughout her life.

Her mother worked at Bates Mill in Lewiston and never learned to speak English, so Mrs. Farrell grew up speaking Canadian French, as well as English.

This led to her participation in the Association Canado-Americaine, as well as performing with her husband in a band called "The Silver Tones."

"It would be natural for her to hold onto that heritage," said one of her four daughters, Susan MacKay.

"We played everything, all in French if that's what (the audience) wanted," her husband said.

He was the lead singer and guitarist in the group, and his wife also sang. The last time they visited their daughter Linda Farrell, she arranged for them to perform at a local nursing home in Virginia.

"They said my parents made everyone's day," she said. "That's pretty cool."

Mrs. Farrell's daughters, Linda Farrell, Jane Price, Debra Hughes and MacKay, all remembered special times they shared with their mother.

When she visited Linda Farrell a number of years ago, the two went to see the cherry blossoms in Washington, D.C.

"She told me that was her class trip back when she graduated from high school," Linda Farrell said. "Her face and expression and how much she loved those blossoms -- she loved bright colors and flowers -- to me it was so special I got to share something she hadn't seen since high school."

Hughes realized she had taken her mother for granted, not fully appreciating her until she became a mother herself. Hughes said she called her mother in tears after having fully experienced the pressures of being a mother.

"I said, 'Mom, I love you so much. I'm sorry for all the times I was horrible as a teenager.' She just said to me, 'I think you need a nap.'"

Mrs. Farrell always kept a garden with vegetables and a section for flowers. Price remembers how her mother would can tomatoes, make jam from the raspberries she grew and sell the excess at the end of their road.

She also remembers how Mrs. Farrell placed bird feeders, especially for hummingbirds, outside the kitchen window so she could watch birds while doing the dishes.

Just last summer, MacKay said she decided to help her mother go for a swim off the North Carolina shore despite the rough surf.

MacKay laughed Wednesday remembering how one rogue wave barreled toward them, knocking them off their feet.

"She was laughing so hard, she could barely stand up," she said. "That's just how she was. She kept us laughing."

PASSAGES: Each day the newsroom selects one obituary and seeks to learn more about the life of a person who has lived and worked in Maine. We look for a person who has made a mark on the community or the person's family and friends in lasting ways.

Staff Writer Emma Bouthillette can be contacted at 791-6325 or at:

[email protected]