Joan Cotsis
SACO – Joan Marion Cotsis of Saco, Maine passed away peacefully on Sept. 28 at the age of 90.
She was born in Nashua, New Hampshire, on May 25, 1933, a daughter of Jean B. Pelletier and Alma (Boissonneault) Pelletier. Joan spent her childhood in Nashua and then attended and graduated from Old Orchard Beach High School (OOB) in 1951.
She met her husband Charlie while working in OOB, and they were married on Oct. 5, 1953. In the midst of delivering nine children over a span of 19 years and raising them for 36, she worked in a variety of jobs in order to contribute all that she could to her growing family. For most of the decade of the 1970s, Joan owned and operated the Bar-B-Q-King restaurant in OOB with the support of her husband, eventually employing all nine of their children in the summer business. Speaking fluent French, she was key to the operation, building a loyal following of returning patrons who looked forward to reconnecting with her every summer.
Following that venture, she opened a retail store in Kennebunkport, Maine called the Etcetera House with her daughter-in-law Wendy during the 1980s. A person with boundless energy and ambition, she and Charlie purchased and modified a second home adjacent to their own, where Joan offered child care services during the day, and then taught disco and belly dancing in the evening. Along the way, Joan somehow managed to make time to serve on the Saco School Board, and then to run and win a seat on the Saco City Council. Having always aspired to sing and dance, she also participated in musicals at the Biddeford City Theater for over two decades.
Originally born into the Catholic denomination, Joan was baptized and converted to her husband’s Greek Orthodox religion and enthusiastically adopted all of the associated rituals and traditions. In so doing, she became a member of the St. Fotini Society and the Daughters of Penelope, and spent countless hours volunteering for the needs of the St. Demetrios Church in Saco. She and Charlie attended many Greek dances over the decades where she could combine family traditions with her love of dance and music.
One of the many benefits of embracing her adopted heritage was her exceptional mastery of baking Greek pastry, a skill that she thankfully passed on to the next generation. Joan also used her artistic abilities to make Greek wedding favors called ‘boubouneires’ for family weddings and baptisms. Ever the perfectionist, each one of those celebratory favors were meticulously assembled, works of art. She employed that same creativity to hand paint scenes on the windows of her home around the various holidays, and created clever crafts for the amusement of her children and in pursuit of her own artistic interests. She loved, adored and doted over all of her grand and great-grandchildren who brought their ‘Yia-Yia’ enormous laughter and joy, and she was always so proud of their various accomplishments.
Joan will be lovingly missed by her husband of 70 years, Charles S. Cotsis; her nine children, Ted Cotsis, James Cotsis (Wendy), Chrystal Lee (Thomas), John Cotsis (Tanya Zimmer), Louis Cotsis, Sophocles Cotsis (Carla), Evgenia Kokotkiewicz, Vangel Cotsis (Ericka), and Stelios Cotsis; her 19 grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren; and eight nieces and nephews. She is predeceased by one brother, Paul Pelletier Sr. of Connellsville, Pennsylvania.
Joan opted to participate in an anatomical donor program through the University of New England, and in so doing, a celebration of life is planned for the spring of 2024 with an invitation to follow via social media for family and friends. In lieu of flowers, a donation in her memory can be made to the St. Demetrios Church in Saco, at 186 Bradley St., Saco, Maine 04072.
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