Mary Beth Courtade

Breaking the hearts of her large family, Mary Elizabeth (LaGesse) Courtade, 60, passed away after a sudden illness – the youngest of eight siblings who should not have been among the first to leave us.

Mary Beth – nobody used Elizabeth except in anger – proved crucial glue in helping hold together her scattered family. She was a favorite, partly because she made everyone feel they were her favorite. MB worked to stay in touch and in doing so kept family and friends in touch with each other. All will have to try harder with her gone.

She met the love of her life, Andrew Courtade, in 2011 and they married in 2012, living in Cape Coral, Fl. As a couple, they loved to travel and bought an RV so they could bring along their beloved dogs, Duke and Henry.

Mary Beth worked for several decades as a bookkeeper at companies in Southwest Florida, where she had lived since the 1990s. She was born in St. Charles, Mo., near St. Louis, on Oct. 21, 1964, and graduated from St. Charles High School. She then moved to Colorado where she lived for about a decade before finding her way South Florida.

A beautiful woman of some style, MB always remained down-to-earth. She was an easy laugh, loved sharing good stories, and lit up any room she entered – as well as the hearts of anyone there. In recent years, Mary Beth and Andy expanded their circle with friends at Moose Lodge #2395 in Cape Coral.

Besides Andy, Mary Beth is survived by siblings Jacqueline Eilers (Ronald), Kathleen Dobson, Robert LaGesse (Donna), David LaGesse (Laura), Richard LaGesse (Akiko), and Kevin LaGesse. Also, by Andrew’s sister Kay Schwartz (Linus), stepchildren Eric Courtade (Ashley), Andrew Courtade II, Tiffany Rodriguez (Charleston), Ashley Moore, Kenneth Moore (Katherine), as well as numerous nieces, nephews, and grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Francis and Odelia LaGesse; a sister, Barbara Weber (Taylor); and nieces Stephanie Dobson and Kerry Jean Weber.

MB’s passing leaves family and friends in a despair that’s eased only by the comfort they find in each other, and that she chose to be an organ donor - her generosity lessening the suffering of at least six recipients. Remembrances can be made through contributions to the Senior Paws Sanctuary at https://seniorpawssanctuary.com/donate.