HOBE SOUND, Fla. – Paul Emile Turcotte, 77, of Hobe Sound, Fla., passed away Nov. 13, while a patient at Treasure Coast Hospice.

He was born June 13, 1929, in Greene, the son of Antonio Turcotte and Irena Guay. Moving to Lewiston as a child, he attended Jordan Elementary School and graduated in 1948 from Lewiston High School. On July 16, 1949, he married Germaine Masse, his high school sweetheart at Holy Family Catholic Church.

Employed in Lewiston at Dube’s Flower Shop, he began a career in horticulture, which led to a move in 1952 to Miami, Fla. Employed by the city of Miami as a horticulturist, he worked his way through the civil service system and became assistance superintendent of parks and recreation, supervising the two municipal golf courses, Mel Reese and Miami Springs.

During his tenure with the city, he was a member of the South Florida Golf Course Superintendents Association and served as president, vice-president, treasurer and on the board of directors. In his sparetime he scout mastered Boy Scout Troop 462 for 10 years. Retiring in 1985 after 31 years with the city of Miami, he and Germaine moved to Hobe Sound, Fla., where they lived until his passing.

In life he was a tireless apostle of Christ. He founded the first jail ministry in Miami-Dade County, served as a eucharistic minister, worked with the elderly, poor and disenfranchised through the Saint Vincent de Paul Society and was a fourth degree Knight of Columbus, Council 1764 of Stuart, Fla.

Paul, you have fought the good fight to the end; you have run the race to the finish; you have kept the faith; rest now in the hands of the Lord and know that you shall be missed by all whose lives you so enriched.

He is survived by his wife, Germaine Masse Turcotte; son, the Rev. Dr. Richard Turcotte of Fort Lauderdale, Fla.; daughter, Joline Hodges of Durham, N.C.; daughter-in-law, Elaine Turcotte; son-in-law, Ted Hodges; four grandchildren, Michelle Turcotte-Burbank of Birmingham, Ala., Sarah Hodges of London, England, Chloe Turcotte of Tuscaloosa, Ala., Rachel Hodges of Wilmington, N.C. and Thomas Hodges; and four great-granddaughters, Joplin, Ella Rose, Ezra and Arwen Turcotte-Burbank.