Carol L. Riopelle

1937 - 2023

WESTFORD – Carol L. (Leighton) Riopelle, age 86, a resident of Westford, passed away at the Westford House on Monday, November 6th, 2023 surrounded by her loving family. She was the beloved wife of the late Raymond J. Riopelle with whom she enjoyed 57 years of marriage.

She was born in Lowell on August 30, 1937 and was the daughter of the late Raymond and Glenda (McAllister) Leighton. Carol was a 1955 graduate of Lowell High School.

In her early years Carol worked in food service at Parker Jr High in Chelmsford, and later worked at Raytheon in Andover.

Carol enjoyed spending her days sewing, baking, and cooking, and spending time with her many family and friends, especially her grandchildren. She also loved spending her winters in Florida with her husband Ray.

Carol is survived by and will be greatly missed by her children Susan, Lisa and Raymond C. Riopelle all of Lowell; her siblings Janice Renaud of Dracut, John Leighton of New Hampshire, Gary Leighton and his wife Janice Leighton of Dracut; two granddaughters Randi Lee of Nashua and Emily Bell of Lowell; two great-grandchildren Arya and Jade, and many nieces, nephews and friends. She is predeceased by her daughter Lori Gifford of Nashua, and her siblings Richard and Raymond Leighton.

Her family would like the thank the caring staff of Westford House and Compassus Hospice care for giving her the best care and comfort.

Her funeral service will be held on Friday, November 17th at 1pm at St. Joseph Cemetery, 96 Riverneck Rd., CHELMSFORD. KINDLY GATHER AT THE CHAPEL. In lieu of flowers, donations in her name can be made to the Compassus Living Foundation https://compassuslivingfoundation.org or The Alzheimer's Association https://www.alz.org. Arrangements have been entrusted to the care of the DRACUT FUNERAL HOME, 2159 Lakeview Ave., DRACUT. Funeral Directors Paul A. Hardy, Jr. & Jennifer Lebaropoulos Hardy. For online guestbook, visit DRACUTFUNERALHOME.COM and find us on Facebook.