Jane Ellen (LeBouf) Guimares

On Monday afternoon, August 2nd, Jane Ellen (LeBouf) Dodge Guimares was received into God’s loving arms. Jane passed peacefully at the ICU in Beth Israel Deaconess (Plymouth) with her husband Al Guimares and daughter Heather (Kiwerski) White holding her hands, surrounded by their love as she was received into heaven. 

Jane was born in 1947 to the late Harold Francis LeBouf and Lida Priscilla (Wotton) LeBouf in Fitchburg, Massachusetts on a bright November day. Born with two holes in her heart, she was not expected to survive long, but with the dedicated care of her parents and a strong will to survive, she thrived. Jane would have open heart surgery to repair the holes when she was 17, bearing a long scar down her breastbone for the remainder of her life. This scar was a symbol of her determination and drive, and was not something she ever hid. Despite being told she should take it easy and would be at risk of a reduced life expectancy, Jane was driven to achieve her goals, and live life to the fullest. 

Jane graduated from Fitchburg State College in 1969 with a B.S. in Education, and started teaching immediately upon graduation. Jane would continue to take classes part time while teaching and raising her daughter as a single Mom, earning her M.S. in Education in 1974 from Fitchburg State College. 

Jane was married briefly to David J. Kiwerski while in college working on her B.S. degree. Later she would marry the first love of her life, Robert E. Dodge, who unexpectedly passed on to heaven in 2001. Jane and Robert were blessed with over 25 years together, raising Jane’s daughter and having the joy of an extended family with his 5 children from a prior marriage. 

Jane taught high school AP Biology and General Science for over 30 years, first in Fitchburg, then in Avon, and in Middleborough until her retirement from teaching in 2002. After retirement, she took on the full-time running of her late husband Robert’s local small businesses - the New Launderama.  It was here that God blessed her yet again, meeting the second love of her life, Alfred W. Guimares. They were married in 2005 and have enjoyed an exciting 16 years together filled with love and adventure, riding motorcycles and taking trips to Aruba, Bermuda, Hawaii, and Florida to name a few. They worked together to run the New Launderama until Jane’s stroke in 2017, which necessitated the sale of the business. The stroke left Jane with limited use of her right side, but she again showed her strength of will by relearning to walk with a cane, use her left hand to write, and to speak again. She was driven to be as independent as possible, taking care of herself fully despite the shortcomings handed her by the stroke. Her strong faith sustained her through everything that came her way, relying on God to carry her when it got tough. Her husband Alfred, daughter Heather, and the entire family cheered her on during this time. Alfred took an early retirement from his job as a Printer to be home with Jane, supporting her desire for independence. They continued to enjoy life, even purchasing a slingshot 3-wheeler so that Jane could still enjoy the open road with her husband. Never ones to be idle, Jane and Al still ran a small home business involving laundry for several local restaurants to supplement their retirement income. They loved to work together as a team on the daily laundry loads, with Al doing the heavy work and Jane folding the completed laundry.  

Jane was a beloved fixture in the Middleborough community for many years, first as a high school teacher and then as a small business owner running a local laundromat. She touched the lives of many of the town’s residents, always having a smile and a hug to share. Jane fought hard to live but had no fear of dying, knowing that she was going to rest in Jesus when her time was done. Jane had underlined two key sentences in her favorite daily devotional that express beautifully how she lived her life:  “Today is a non-renewable resource--once it’s gone, it’s gone forever”  and  “And let us remember that for those of us who have been saved by God’s only begotten Son, everyday is a cause for celebration.”   We know that Jane is now in Heaven, experiencing the peace that passes all understanding, and reunited with our loved ones that have gone on before. Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again: Rejoice! (Philippians 4:4)

Jane is survived by her husband, Alfred W. Guimares of Middleborough, Ma, her daughter and son-in-law, Heather (Kiwerski) Callahan Bergeron-White and Christopher White of Westminster, Ma, her step-children Diana (Dodge) Hickey and son-in-law Tim Hickey, Sherree (Dodge) Doyle, Cindy (Dodge) Bell Haslem, Karen (Dodge Arneson) Freitas and son-in-law Tony Freitas; and Robert (Dodge) Arneson and daughter-in-law Lorna Arneson; her cherished sister and brother-in-law, Deborah (LeBouf) and Peter Kulkkula of Fitchburg, and her favorite “little” brother and sister-in-law, Harold and Cheryl LeBouf; her niece and namesake Jane (Kulkkula) Andrews with her husband Troy Andrews and their daughter Laura Jane Andrews; her niece Haley LeBouf and nephew Shane LeBouf; her cherished cousins - sisters Rebecca (Saunders) Leger and Lida Saunders, Brenda (LeBouf) Preston; Jane’s great aunt, Dorothy Pinkney (Jane’s father’s sister) and the last in that generation. Uncle Robert Wotton and his wife Joan; Cousin Gail (Wotton) Cheries; Cousins Bruce LeBouf and his wife Connie; Barbara LeBouf Voorhees and her husband Bill and her beloved 13 grandchildren and 4 great-grandchildren that brought boundless joy into her life:   Heather’s children - Deborah (Callahan) Morris-Crowley, Patrick Bergeron-Callahan, Daniel Bergeron-Callahan, and Jean-Luc Bergeron; Sherree’s children - Macee Doyle, Sherren (Doyle) Bean, Troy Doyle; Karen’s son - Nick Freitas; Diana’s children - Ryan Hickey, Taylor Hickey; Cindy’s children - Jeffrey Bell (predeceased), Kerry Arneson; and Robert’s daughter - Skyla Arneson.  Great-grandchildren - Deborah’s daughters Madison Morris, Natalie Morris, and Abigail Crowley; and Sherren’s daughters, Elliana Bean and Mackenzie Bean; and Skyla's children, Greyson and Gianna. 

In lieu of flowers, the family is requesting that memorial donations be made to the American Cancer Society https://www.cancer.org/involved/donate/memorial-giving.html, a cause that Jane believed strongly in. 

Calling hours are Saturday (August 14, 2021) from 9 until 11 AM in the O'Neill Funeral Home, 59 Peirce Street (corner of School Street) Middleboro. 

Funeral services at 11:30 AM until 12 Noon in the funeral home.  Pastor George Small will officiate.  

You are encouraged to wear a mask.  

A Life Celebration will follow at 12:30 PM until 4 PM in the function room of Fisher's Pub, 360 Wareham Street, Middleboro. 

A private graveside service and interment will be held on Monday in Forest Hill Cemetery, Fitchburg.  


 

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