Pierre A. Paquin

April 5, 2023

Hasting Junior High to Fairahven High School Educator

Pierre Arnold Paquin was the husband of Leslie J. Paquin (née Nekuda), the son of the late Attorney Zephyr D. Paquin and late Olive Paquin Brown (nee Weaver), the grandson of Dr. Ubalde Paquin and grand-nephew of Marc Duff. His family connections saved his life. As a little boy of three, he contracted bacterial meningitis and was not expected to live. His grandfather made sure he was one of the first children to have a miracle cure of penicillin, the first antibiotic. While recovering, Pierre found his greatest comfort in classical music. Pierre earned his education at St. Joseph's Elementary School, New Bedford, where he learned to speak both English and French from the French-Canadian sisters of St. Joseph; the old Coyle High School in Taunton where he realized he had a calling from God; the Holy Cross Brothers, where he realized that calling wasn't in the church; and finally, Stonehill College where he learned that God needed his talents in the roles of husband, father and teacher. While at Stonehill College, he lended his strong, loud tenor-baritone voice to the chorale and performed on-stage. At a cast party, he met his future wife Leslie, and told her upon meeting her, that he was going to marry her. Upon graduation, Pierre found a position at Fairhaven High School where for twenty-seven years he was a foreign language teacher of French, Spanish and Latin, but he was also asked to teach some classes in English, history and drama. He loved teaching young people because their energy, goodness and potential, energized and informed his own life. Some of his students he considered to be his life-long friends. He chaperoned and led several student trips to Germany, France, Italy, England and had the courage to bring thirty-five students to the former Soviet Union in 1973, at the height of the Cold War. He also directed musicals My Fair Lady and King & I, and he was an advisor to several classes and after-school clubs. He also had a part-time job at WRLM in Taunton where he had a Sunday night program of classical music called Adventures in Music and he started his own audio-engineering business Sound Dynamics Associates: recording concerts, plays, orchestras, choruses for over fifty-five years. In early retirement, he moved to Dennis on Cape Cod where he resided for almost thirty years. He worked at WFCC 107.5 earning the Massachusetts Broadcaster Association Award for his classical music programming. He expanded Sound Dynamics Associates to include the Southcoast and Cape Cod. He held pride in his hometown New Bedford Symphony Orchestra growing into a wonderful jewel for the city and was hoping to finish recording their 2022-2023 season. He left behind a Youtube channel under Sound Dynamics Associates where one can find some of his favorite recordings and pieces of music. He delighted in his children. His laugh, humor, love of movies and oddball naming of everyday things will be missed greatly by his daughter, Angela and son-in-law, Andrew Devivo of Clinton, MA; his daughter, Corinne and son-in-law, Drew Meadors of London, England; his son, Andrew and daughter-in-law, Ingrid Gomez Paquin of Southampton, NY; his daughter, MaryAnne and son-in-law, Jason Robinette of Belle Meade, NJ and his daughter Bethany Paquin and new son-in-law, Mert Can of Edgewater, NJ. He enjoyed his seven grandchildren: Matthew, Avery, Luke, Roman, Leslie, Zephyr and Andy Jr. He loved his sister, Lisa and brother-in-law, Kenneth Dunaway of New Bedford, MA and his late brother, Capt. David and his late wife, Jane Paquin. He was Uncle Pia to his nieces: Erica Meyers, Larissa McLaughlin, Laureen Robinson and cousin Pia to Caroline Swiszcz and Jane Swiszcz. He held great affection and love for his dear Aunt Jeanne Swiszcz of New Bedford, MA. A special mention of gratitude and thanks from his family to his friends who called him, checked in on him, and stayed connected with him on those challenging days during his last several months - you were very special to him. A special scholarship fund for students in their third or fourth year of college will be established in his memory.
Published by Philbin-Comeau Funeral Home on Apr. 5, 2023.