Irene S Pinette

Irene St. Germain Pinette of East Hartford, Connecticut, aged 98, passed away in the early afternoon of Thursday, October 16, 2025 after a short illness. She would have turned 99 years old later this year!

Irene was born in Millinocket, Maine on December 2, 1926, the sixth of ten children to Henry and Modeste (Ouellette) St. Germain. She was a communicant of the St. Christopher’s and St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Churches in East Hartford since moving from Maine to Connecticut in the late 1940’s.

She was married to Ronald (Roland) Pinette of Wallagrass, Maine on June 5, 1945; they were married for 37 years before he died on October 25, 1982. They enjoyed travelling throughout New England and Canada to visit friends and family. She often said there were only two things in life that meant anything to her: her husband and her home!

Irene worked on the assembly line at Arrow-Hart & Hegeman in Hartford, putting together electrical assemblies and, after the company left Hartford, she worked for Gerber Scientific, doing similar work in their former facilities in Manchester. She retired in the early 1990’s.

In her earliest days of living in East Hartford (in the 1950’s and early 1960’s), her large extended family would gather at her and her husband’s house for major holidays, where there would be much cooking, laughing, and enjoying of each other’s company, as well as playing Charlemagne, a card game played in eastern Canada and Maine. She loved to be outdoors, tending to her roses and hydrangea bushes, and mowing her lawn. She also loved to do oil painting and, in later years, she enrolled in crafting classes along with her sister Dora. She crafted many beautiful centerpieces and arrangements for her home and for her sisters’ homes.

Towards the end of her life, she was called on a daily basis by her two surviving sisters, Lorraine (who died in 2019), and Mary-Ellen (who died in 2023). She was the last living member of a family of 10 siblings!

Irene is survived by her nieces Sandra Jacques of Coventry, Connecticut, Sr. Linda Mae Plourde of Manchester, New Hampshire, Patty-Ann Brousseau of Manchester, Carrie Earley of Rockledge, Florida, Faye Anderson of Hampden, Maine, Lisa Cyr of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, Deborah Calano of East Hartford, and Barbara Gess of Manchester; her nephews Fr. James Plourde of St. Agatha, Maine, Ellis Paulman, and Danny Paulman of East Hartford, Danny Sopher of Kissimmee, Florida, Allen Plourde of St. Agatha, Maine, Mark Jacques of South Windsor, Robert Sopher of Kissimmee, Florida, Steven Martin of Windsor Locks, and Robert Gess of Boston, Massachusetts. She was especially grateful to the members of her late husband’s family who remained close after his passing: nieces Caroline Cyr, Claudette Hinchcliffe, and Theresa LeMay of Bristol, and nephew Dana Pelletier of Converse, Texas.

She was preceded in death by her husband Ronald (Roland) Pinette; her older brother Herman St. Germain; her older sisters Louise Jacques, Germaine St. Germain, and Lorraine Paulman; her younger brother Edmund St. Germain; her younger sisters Lillian Plourde, Julie Sopher, Dora Martin, and Mary-Ellen Gess. She was also predeceased by her beloved niece June Kasinski and beloved nephew Roger Plourde; her sisters-in-law Geraldine Rouillard and Marion St. Germain; her brothers-in-law Henry Jacques, Donald Paulman, Alberic Plourde, Arthur Martin, Ronald Gess, and Robert Sopher.

Relatives and friends may call at Newkirk & Whitney Funeral Home, 318 Burnside Ave., East Hartford on Thursday, October 23 from 10am-12, a funeral service will follow at 12noon at the funeral home. Burial will follow at Hillside Cemetery in East Hartford.

www.dignitymemorial.com/funeral-homes/connecticut/east-hartford/newkirk-whitney-funeral-home

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be given to the North American Martyrs Parish, 15 Maplewood Avenue, East Hartford, Connecticut 06108. The family of Irene Pinette wishes to thank Father Timothy E. Ryan and Deacon Phil Gosselin of the North American Martyrs Parish in addition to the staff at Manchester Rehabilitation and Healthcare Center for the care and compassion they provided to Irene during her five-month illness.