Gisele Therese Pageotte, née Jouglard, born on May 9, 1930, passed away at her home on Thursday, January 11, 2024 at the age of 93.

Gisele, affectionately called Mem by many, arrived in Somersworth, NH from Reims, France at the age of nineteen. She worked for French factory owners, the Lepoutres, as domestic help. She had plans to stay just a few years, but meeting Donald Pageotte, who became her husband, altered those plans. They had two children, Francine and Daniel.

The couple settled in Somersworth, where Gisele lived in the same house for 67 years. Her neighborhood is filled with loving, thoughtful, compassionate individuals who helped Gisele stay in her home as she aged. They were a tremendous blessing to her, especially in the last year of her life.

Gisele spent most of her time with needle and thread in hand, a craft she learned as a very young girl in France from her aunt who raised her. She taught sewing classes out of her home, created custom garments, constructed quilts, including those for Victims, Inc. out of Rochester, and altered formal gowns. There are hundreds and hundreds of brides all over the Seacoast who entrusted Gisele with their special day. She was creative, masterful, and precise. It was her passion and her work was artistry. She was more than a seamstress; she was a couturier. She sewed professionally until she was 92.

The creativity did not stop with sewing. Gisele was also a fine knitter. She belonged to a weekly knitting group that she happily referred to as "Stich and Bitch." Through the skeins of yarn and click of needles, she wove wonderful friendships with women who supported her for many years all the way through to her final hours.

She believed in the importance of education. She often repeated, "Education is something no one can ever take from you." At the age of fifty, Gisele obtained her Graduate Equivalency Degree. Although she had a well-established, successful business and the GED did nothing to further her career or earning potential, Gisele secretly took classes at the Somersworth Public Library to prepare for the exam because she wanted paper-proof that she was an educated and intelligent woman. She frequently gifted books for birthdays and holidays.

Mem relished travel near and far. Two of her favorite destinations of all time were Bermuda and Corsica. Despite the many hours she worked in her sewing room, you could most likely talk her into a ride to the beach and an ice cream cone. She appreciated live theater, enjoyed films at the cinema, and delighted in most PBS offerings, especially world-renowned violinist, Andre Rieu.

She has been a member of St. Martin's Catholic Church in Somersworth, NH (now St. Ignatius of Loyola) since her arrival to the US. Her faith was pure and unwavering. It is this faith that gave her strength through cardiac surgeries, numerous hip replacements (she kept wearing them out!), and a battle with non-Hodgkins lymphoma.

She is predeceased by her husband Donald, and their two infant sons, as well as her siblings, André, Eugène, Andrea, and Jacqueline. She is survived by her children; Francine and Daniel; her grandchildren, Andrea, Ashley, Danielle, Abby, Alexander, and Haley; and her great-grandchildren, Paige, Kolbie, Brooke, Hunter, Jeremy, and Addison; as well as several nieces and nephews who reside in France.

Calling hours will be at Bernier Funeral Home in Somersworth on Wednesday, January 24 from 5-7pm. A funeral mass will be held at St. Ignatius of Loyola on Thursday, January 25 at 10:30 followed by burial at Mount Calvary Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family humbly request donations to Hyder Hospice House where she stayed for respite just before Christmas. Donations can be made online at https://friendsofhyderfamilyhospicehouse.org/donation/ Donations may also be made by check payable to Friends of Hyder Family Hospice House 285 County Farm Road Dover, NH 03820