Small towns come together in large ways to commemorate special occasions and people, and a recent event at Fletcher Memorial Library was no exception as nearly one hundred residents gathered to celebrate the grand opening of the building’s new addition. Among them were honored guests Roma Dupuis, whose generous contribution realized the completion of its construction, and members of his family.
Originally, the library board considered asking the Town to fund the remaining $25,000 after a donation drive garnered $23,000 toward the expansion of the existing sunroom. But resident Roma Dupuis offered to contribute the balance with funds from the Joan Dupuis Memorial Fund for Children, sparing the taxpayers any cost in providing an accessible space to accommodate the increase in participants at the many programs the library sponsors. The fund was established after the tragic accident and untimely death of Mr. Dupuis’ beloved wife, their children’s beloved mother, and the town’s beloved educator. Mrs. Dupuis served as a paraprofessional at Hampton Elementary School for over 20 years. Several of her eight children, and many grandchildren, were present at the opening.
Dale Dupuis, the eldest of her children, spoke briefly before the ceremonial ribbon cutting. “A library is one of the most treasured gifts that we pass on to future generations,” he said. Referencing the inscription on the ancient Egyptian Library of Thebes, he said his mother exemplified ‘Medicine for the Soul’ for her own and other children. “She affected lives by sharing her heart, providing encouragement and support, compassion and empathy, protection and guidance, comfort and consolation…She loved children and loved to teach and when the two of those things came together, she loved that most of all.”
Also recognized during the ceremony – Michael Barr for the construction, the musicians who entertained the guests throughout the evening, all who furnished the refreshments, and the town for its generosity.
The donation also provided funds for a water feature in the library’s butterfly garden, dedicated to Mrs. Dupuis and her dearest friend, Phyllis Stensland, also known for her service of nearly 50 years at the elementary school. A plaque announcing: “The Joan Dupuis and Phyllis Stensland Children’s Water Garden Sector” presides over a stone patio in the shade of hydrangeas where a waterfall spills into a pool of water lilies and a bench provides a place to rest and listen to the music of the falling water among flowers and butterflies. “The water feature will enhance the environmental impact of the garden as well as providing a charming focal point for visitors,” said Library Board Chairman Anne Christie, who designed the landscape, the first certified butterfly garden in Eastern Connecticut.
Flowers and butterflies are a theme common to the memory of Mrs. Dupuis. The Memorial Fund was initially used to build a solarium located in the elementary school library. Students are drawn to its warmth to read and to sprout the seeds they plant. The mural at the solarium’s entrance was painted by Mrs. Dupuis’ daughter, Kim, and one of the panes on the wall of windows is a stained glass depiction of Mrs. Dupuis surrounded by children and butterflies. One plaque lists the recipients of the Joan Dupuis Award for Special Achievement, and another “In Memory of Mrs. Dupuis in her Springtime” reminds us “Without butterflies, the word would have few flowers”.
And so the memory of Mrs. Dupuis dwells in another sunlit place in our town where books are revered, and children are enriched, and butterflies flourish in the garden.
Dayna McDermott