Rita P Larocque

Rita Paula (Benoit) LaRocque, 95, died in her sleep of old age at The Teresian House in Albany, N.Y. on December 26, 2022. She was a former longtime Plattsburgh, N.Y. resident, and called Cliff Haven home for 50 years.
Rita was born on Independence Day, July 4, 1927 and raised in Malone N.Y. She grew up on Murray Street and was the second child of French Canadian parents, Rosario and Germaine Benoit. Along with siblings Lillian, Claire and Gerald, Rita enjoyed their Ruprecht cousins living next-door. The cousins shared in home keeping tasks, celebrated birthdays, swam and picnicked at Lake Titus, ice skated in the backyard, cross-country skied and enjoyed Sunday dinners. When she was 18, Rita received the high honor of bestowing a wreath of flowers on the statue of Mary, during the May Crowning ceremony. She attended St. Angela’s Elementary, and graduated from St. Joseph’s Ursuline Academy in 1946.
On June 25, 1949, Rita married Marcel Jean Marie LaRocque at Notre Dame Church in Malone. They spent early years together on First Street, welcoming their son, John, before moving to Plattsburgh, N.Y. in 1952. Here the years flew by with busy lives raising three sons and two daughters, whose ages spanned eleven years. As a young homemaker, Rita was a member of the Cliff Haven Mother’s Club, Bridge Club, and her interest in diverse experiences were many, like camping with her daughter’s Girl Scout troupe on Lake Champlain islands, or traveling for a month with college students in Austria and Italy while her son studied abroad. She expressed love for her family through culinary skills, hand sewn clothing, impeccable housekeeping and decorating, and volunteered whenever she was needed at St. John’s School.
She would drop everything to come to another’s aid. Rita was a devout Catholic and parishioner of St. John’s Catholic Church. She was a member of the Altar Rosary Society, St. John’s Church choir, Catholic Charities, a Sunday Mass greeter and Eucharistic Minister. She was instrumental in bringing the EWTN channel to the North Country, and volunteered for Birthright. In 2009, the North Country Catholic awarded Rita “Woman of Faith”.
Rita was predeceased by her husband Marcel of 67 years, her sister Claire, her brother Gerald, nephew Patrick, nieces Paula and Jeanne, and was especially close to her first grandchild, Eric LaRocque, who predeceased her in 2015.
Rita is survived by her sister, Lillian, children John (Donna) of Plattsburgh, N.Y. Philip (Penny) of Averill Park, N.Y. Matthew (Jodie) of Charlotte, N.C. Marcia (David) of Easthampton, MA, and Denise (Michael) of East Nassau, N.Y. She also leaves behind thirteen grandchildren, three great-grandchildren and cherished nieces and nephews.
Calling hours will be held Wednesday, January 4, 2023, from 11:00 AM-12:30 PM at Brown Funeral Home, 29 Broad Street in Plattsburgh. A funeral Mass follows at 1:00 PM at St. John the Baptist Church, 18 Broad Street. Burial for both Rita and Marcel will be held in the St. John’s Cemetery later this spring. All are invited to attend a reception to celebrate Rita’s life at the Valcour Brewing Company from 2:15-4:30. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Rita’s memory to St. John’s Church Altar Rosary Society.