Philip I. Gaudet, of Lawrence died on a Wednesday at the Wood Mill Nursing Home, Lawrence.

He had lived in Andover and Lawrence, Massachusetts for many years. He was a self employed carpenter.

Mr. Gaudet was a lifelong member of the Loyal Order of Moose Lodge 1056 in Berlin, NH, where he was past governor and secretary, having received a fellowship degree.

He was also a lifelong member of the Sportsmen Club of Andover and was a Canadian Eagle Scout.

He was the widower of Mary "Bernie" (Gallant) Gaudet and is survived by his daughters, Mary K. Skea and Mrs. Henry (Emilia "Mimi") Boudette, Mrs. Joseph (Olive) Beauchesne, Theresa Robb and Carol Ann Reed Snider; sons, John C. Philip P., John P., Jerome A. and Joseph R.; sister, Mrs. James (Minolia) Brown, brother, Wilfred; 42 grandchildren; 66 great-grandchildren; four great-great-grandchildren and several nieces and newphews.

A Mass was celebrated at 11:30 a.m. at St. Augustine's Church, Andover, followed by the burial.

Services were by Racicot Funeral Home, 256 Broadway, Lawrence.


* The following story was written by Philip and Bernie's children for a Gaudet Family Reunion in Canada that was held in July of 2003.

Philip Isidore Gaudet

Philip Isidore Gaudet was the fifth child born to John Peter and Sophie (Bernard). He was born in Bath, Maine on March 23, 1903. He was raised in St. Louis, Prince Edward Island. His formal schooling consisted of attending the first and second grade. He was a teenager when he met and dated Mary Eva Bernadette "Bernie" Gallant. Phil would hitch up the horse and wagon and drive it over to Bernie's home in Tignish.

At about the age of 18, Phil went to Montreal to work as a shipwright. In the meantime, Bernie and her family moved to Rumford, Maine. Philip soon followed her and they were married in Rumford on September 15, 1924. Their first child, Mary Kathleen, was born in Maine in 1925.

They moved to Elm Street (at the corner of Florence Street), in Andover, Massachusetts where John Clifford, known as Clifford, was born in 1926. Twin girls followed but were stillborn, then Olive, Philip and John were born.

In 1933, Philip and Bernie bought a house at 17 Cuba Street in Andover. Emilia (Mimi) was the first child born there, followed by Wilford, Austin, Anita (who died in childhood), Theresa, Richard and Carol. Whenever Bernie had a baby, as was the custom then, she stayed in bed for weeks. Philip would tie a string to her toe, place a bell at the end, then tie it to the foot of the bed. When Bernie needed something, she would shake her foot and ring the bell until help arrived. Philip was very creative in designing helpful inventions. They lived on Cuba Street until all their children married.

They were a church going family and during the months of May and October, Mary's Months, all of the children were expected to line up and kneel each evening to recite the rosary in order to go outside to play the next day. Philip was a devout man throughout his life, and he never left home without his rosary.

Philip would often return home from work late, after the children had finished their dinner. Bernie's rule was that the children were not to bother their father as he ate, but the children knew if they were able to sneak past their mother into the kitchen, Dad would always share his dessert. Phil was a very kind and gentle man. He seldom disciplined or punished his children. Once, while working on a job in Andover, Philip took a cupola off a building and brought it home. He placed it in the back yard where it was used as a playhouse for his children.

Philip and Bernie usually made a summer trip to Prince Edward Island. They would pack their station wagon full of clothes their own children had outgrown, and deliver them to the Canadian relatives. Their nieces and nephews would delight in the gifts as if it were Christmas time. One year, they took seven of their children with them in the station wagon.

Philip worked for the town of Andover Board of Public Works and became foreman. During World War II, Philip worked again as a shipwright at the Boston Navy Yard. On their seven-acre farm, the family raised pigs and chickens to eat. They also had a milk cow and a horse that was used to plow, work and play. Although he had a large family, Phil was generous with his crops. He shared his food with extended family, friends and neighbors.

Eventually, Philip went into business on his own as a General Contractor, until his retirement in 1967. It was a family business and as his sons became of age they each took a turn working with their father.

In his retirement years, Philip moved to Berlin, New Hampshire where he enjoyed his involvement with the Moose Lodge. He also enjoyed farming on a little plot of land he bought twenty minutes away in Dummer, New Hampshire. He had a garden there and he would travel early each morning to care for his vegetables. He continued to drive himself to Canada in order to visit with his sisters, well into his 80's. Bernie died in 1990, at the age of 85. Philip died in 1993, at the age of 90. Philip and Bernie are both buried in St. Augustine's Cemetery in Andover, Massachusetts along side their daughter Anita and son Wilford.


Philip and Bernadette's Children


Mary Kathleen - May 30, 1925

John Clifford - September 1, 1926

Twins - Died at Birth 1927

Olive Bernadette - September 30, 1929

Philip Patrick - July 29, 1930

John Peter - October 17, 1931

Emilia "Mimi" Shirley - April 30, 1933

Wilfred L. - January 2, 1935 - Died 1989

Jerome Austin - January 31, 1936

Theresa Louise - February 7, 1938

Anita - April 5, 1939 - Died 1941

Joseph Richard - September 20, 1940

Carol Ann - February 27, 1945