Joan Guilmette Obituary

Joan (Vacca) Guilmette
Joan (Vacca) Guilmette, wife of Randall Guilmette of Portland, passed away peacefully on Thursday, January 22nd, following a brief illness. She was 77. The daughter of the late John and Caroline (Amenta) Vacca, Joan lived her entire life in Portland. In the 1970s, she was an active member of the Portland Junior Women's Club, and served for two years on the Board of Education. A life-long parishioner at St. Mary's Church, she was often recognized as, "the lady with the hats." Joan was possessed of an indomitable spirit, and was fearless in pursuit of her goals. After graduating from Portland High School in 1966, Joan went to work at Camp's in Middletown, where she developed her love and aptitude for sewing, often making her own clothes when what was available in stores didn't meet her standards. Finding herself unemployed in her early 40s, Joan founded her own company, Connecticut Metal and Tool Supply, and resolutely took on much bigger competitors in a male-dominated industry, forging her own path and running a successful business before selling and retiring at age 70. A life-long lover of learning, Joan had always dreamed of going to college and, in her 50s she took that step, earning her B.A. in history from Trinity College--and having so much fun doing so that she went ahead and earned her M.A. from Wesleyan as well. Joan loved family and friends and had plenty of both, and her house was always open to anyone coming to town who needed a place to stay. She loved cooking and trying new recipes, and was happiest whenever her family was all together. She housed foreign exchange students from many countries and, as a result, had friends all over the world. She loved to travel and visit friends in other countries and, in her retirement, continued traveling, visiting France, Italy and New Zealand, cruising the Nile, and traveling the length of the Mississippi River. She worked as a guide at the Mark Twain house, and volunteered at the Connecticut River Museum and the Portland Historical Society. When she wasn't working or traveling, Joan enjoyed summers in her pool, and walks around the neighborhood with her friends, daughter, and sister-in-law, Alice. Joan was accompanied on all her journeys by the love of her life, her husband, Randy, whom she married in 1967.
In addition to her husband, Joan leaves behind three children and children-in-law: Lucian Guilmette and Kristine Hopp, Dolores and Alexander Bates, and John and Meghan Guilmette, all of Portland. As a proud Nunna, Joan took delight in her seven grandchildren: Emily, Isabelle, and Katherin Guilmette, Mariana (Bates) Stover and her husband, Russell and Cole Bates, and Clara and Evan Guilmette. She also leaves her brother, James Vacca and his wife, Joyce; and her sister, Suzanne Burgess and her husband, Jeffrey, also all of Portland; along with many beloved nieces and nephews and countless friends.
Her family would like to thank the staff at Middlesex and Hartford Hospitals and at Portland Care and Rehabilitation Center for taking such good care of Joan in her final days.
The funeral will be held on Saturday, January 31st, at 9 a.m. at the Portland Memorial Funeral Home, 231 Main St., Portland, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Mary's Church, Portland, at 10 a.m. Burial will be in St. Mary's Cemetery, Portland. Friends may call at the funeral home on Friday, January 30th, from 4-6 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please make memorial contributions to St. Mary's Church in Portland.