Lois D. McGuire

Today, we honor the life of Lois Desautels McGuire. A devout follower of the lord, a lover and player of music, and an inspiring matriarch of the Desautels family. She was born in Rapid City, South Dakota on July 21st, 1936.
One of three children, Lois lived the majority of her life in Rapid City, South Dakota, where she raised her children for some time alongside her first husband, Conrad Desautels Jr. In the late 60's, she and her family moved together to Burlington, Vermont, where they would spend the next 30 years together.
In her adult life, she served as an OR nurse instructor, where she shaped the teaching and education of hundreds of trained nurses in her time in the field. Over many weekends, she was the Church Organist, and a parish member at Christ the King in Burlington, Vermont.
On December 12th, 1995, Conrad passed away from a sudden heart attack. His absence was missed by all of his children, grandchildren, fellow church members, and all other members of the community in towns throughout Chittenden County. Most of all, Lois made mention of him for the rest of her life, and in her conversations the love she had for him resonated in each person who had, and hadn't, met her husband.
14 years after Conrad's passing, she met a kind and humorous man from Brooklyn, New York named Edward "Ed" McGuire. After many outings at McDonald's, Wendy's and other local Vermont fast food chains, they made a decision that changed the rest of their lives together and got engaged. While late in their lives, they spent the next 14 years happily married, having moved down to St. Augustine, Florida.
In her final months, she resided in Essex Junction, Vermont, to be closer to the whole Desautels family. Living for 6 months alongside her, Ed passed on February 15th, 2024 at the age of 100 years old.
Surviving and thriving are four of her five children: Terry, Mark, Tom, and Lori. In her legacy live 13 grandchildren, based in places across Vermont, New York, and Georgia. To many of her grandchildren, Lois was affectionately referred to as "Grammy". For decades she sat as the faithful matriarch of the family.
Lois passed peacefully on April 29th, 2024 at 10:19 PM. Until the very end, she was surrounded by her loving family. Although departing us in the physical world, she joins Conrad, Edward, and Janet upwards in Heaven in a long-awaited and joyful reunion.
We give our wholehearted gratitude to the family and staff at Mansfield Place and Bayada Hospice, who provided tender, loving care for Lois in the last 6 months of her life. You all made her last moments special, and we sincerely appreciate what you have done for our family.
Calling hours are 2:00 - 4:00 PM on Tuesday, May 7th at Ready Funeral Home 261 Shelburne Road, Burlington, VT 05452. The Desautels Family will hold a mass in her memory on Wednesday, May 8th at 11:30 AM at Holy Family Church, 30 Lincoln Street, Essex Junction, Vermont. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Jude Children's Research Hospital 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis TN 38105