Laura Henderson

Laura L. Henderson was born on August 1, 1953. She died on July 21, 2025, at her home in Portland, Maine. Her passing came as a complete surprise to her devoted friends, family, and colleagues at Pine Tree Legal Assistance, where she had recently retired after more than 22 years as a System Administrator.

Laura graduated from Michigan State University in 1974 with a BA in television and radio, followed by an MA in communication in 1978. She served as an instructor of communication at the University of Southern Maine (USM) for thirteen years. Originally from Michigan, Laura came to embrace Maine as her home.

At USM, Laura met her husband, William H. Rudy, who returned to college under the G.I. Bill and was a student in her class. Laura and Will enjoyed each other’s company working together at The Free Press, the university’s newspaper, where he was the Editor and she was a typesetter. They married soon after.

Laura later joined J. Weston Walch Publishing, where she rose from editorial assistant to director of sales and marketing. She then joined the Volunteer Lawyers Project and, later, Pine Tree Legal Assistance.

Laura and Will shared a strong intellectual bond and the joy of a succession of dogs. Importantly, they saw eye-to-eye on politics. In addition to her full-time career, Laura became Will’s primary caretaker as he lost mobility to progressive multiple sclerosis. Will died in 2024 at the age of eighty-one.

Laura is survived by her stepdaughter Jill Baker; her in-laws, Barbara Henderson and Jan and Jim Roy; her nieces, Alix Hackett and Dana Roy; her friends Joyce Branaman and Skip Stahl, Lindsay Marie Butler, and Grace March, among many others; as well as by her colleagues at Pine Tree Legal Assistance, who became her extended family. Laura’s beloved dog, Bella, has found a loving home with one of Laura’s dearest friends.