Lucille Margaret Rabideau

Lucille Margaret Rabideau,” Mimi” to all who knew her, passed away peacefully at age 97 on December 9, 2024, in Everett, Washington.

Mimi was born on April 25, 1927, in Mooers Forks, New York to Arthur and Nellie Rabideau (Lavallee). She was the youngest of 3 farm girls. Winnie LeFebvre was the oldest, and Jenny LaValley was the in the middle. Growing up during the depression was not easy, but at least farming gave the family the advantage of growing their own produce and meat, and there were plenty of wild berries nearby to pick in the summer, so they were quite well off compared to a lot of folks. The toilet was an out-house, and the water came from a hand pumped spigot. Mimi’s parents did not get electricity until the mid-40s because the farmhouse was located so far north.

The family farm was only minutes from the Canadian border and Mimi was very proud of her French-Canadienne heritage. The first Rabideau came to Canada from France in 1642, a fact she was quick to inform you of if you weren’t aware of her background. 

Mimi was one of fifteen seniors that graduated from Mooers Central High on June 25, 1945. The entire class of 15 immediately left on their senior class trip to New York City. The BIG city was quite an adventure for a young farm girl from “up-state” as you might imagine! They saw all the major sights, Radio City Music Hall, Rockefeller Center, Statue of Liberty, Empire State Building, etc. Perhaps this experience was where her love of travel adventures began?

Directly after high school Mimi went into Nurses Training in nearby Plattsburg, NY for the primary portion of her program. The program was sponsored by the US Army during World War 2, and her class was the last group accepted by the Army before being shut down. She was then sent back to New York City for her practical instruction with “The Grey Nuns” in their Catholic Hospital system. Mimi and her up-state pals sure seemed to get “lost” on the subway quite often during her stay there – and the Grey Nuns were never the wiser since all the trainees played up the “farm girls” lost in the big city aspect. Two of her closest life-long friendships with Ramona and Ginny were formed during this period of avoiding the wrath of the nuns in NYC. One incident included Ramona sneaking a bottle of vodka into the dorms, which of course was discovered by the nuns after it was dropped. (But not broken.) They quite naturally made up a story about it coming into their possession because they had confiscated it from a patient for his own good.

She then went on to work as a fully licensed RN in many hospitals across the states of New York, Wisconsin, Nevada, and Washington. Remarkably, she did 38 straight years of bed-side nursing, the majority of which were in the ICU and CCU, caring for the hospital’s sickest patients. Whenever she moved to a new area at a new hospital, she was always willing to take whatever post that needed filled, working nights, weekends, holidays, etc., and always without a single complaint. During a particularly noteworthy stint, while working at the TB hospital in Lake Placid NY, Mimi was selected to be the Queen of the Saranac Lake Winter Carnival & Ice Festival. This honor included a brief, all expenses paid ride on the Festival Float through town in the freezing cold of a February night.

After a couple of stints living and working in Puget Sound, Mimi eventually found the eastside suburbs of Seattle to her liking, and that is where she made her permanent home in 1970. She eventually made her way to Evergreen Hospital in Kirkland, back when it was a small 3 story hospital. At Evergreen she received her nickname “The God-Mother” because of her seniority, and the fact that she never tolerated any “crap” from the doctors – this in spite of the fact she was barely 5 feet tall. There she joined the union organizing committee to push for better pay, working conditions and benefits at her hospital. As many of you know, nursing then was known for low pay and long hard hours with benefits lacking as well. She was part of the bargaining team that led to many positive changes for nursing staffs across the state, one of which was a novel scheduling experiment with a 7-day work week doing 10 hour days, that then gave them 7 days off, all in a row. It was known as the 7/70. In fact, Mimi was interviewed in the National Nurses trade magazine about this new schedule. She loved it, especially because she could use a week of her vacation and get 3 weeks in a row of time off to travel!!!

After 38 years at the bedside, Mimi then went on to work as a Claims Review Specialist with Blue Cross/Blue Shield in downtown Seattle until she retired at 65. She rode the bus into Seattle every day, including the day of the huge snowstorm in December 1990. And yes, she eventually made it back home around 11pm using a combination of the bus, a bit of walking, and a ride from a kind stranger she befriended at the grocery store to get the last 2 miles to her home in Redmond. Snow wasn’t going to stop a farmer’s daughter from up-state New York!

Mimi really enjoyed travelling, whether it was camping in National Parks all over the Western US and Canada, road trips to the ocean or small towns, or destinations in Europe and Canada, she was always ready for an adventure. She would go with anyone, be it one of her travel buddies, her sister Winnie, or her immediate family. She had memorable trips to France and Germany, and an unforgettable trip to the USSR – which was suddenly interrupted by the Chernobyl Melt-down. Needless to say, they didn’t make it to Kiev, but the tour provider did complete other stops on the way to Moscow, and as an added bonus they were also treated to time in Finland.

Growing up on a farm, she naturally knew how to cook, can produce, and make jam. She enjoyed picking berries and turning them into pies and jam. Mimi was famous for her Key West lime and lemon sponge pies, and her carrot cake. But her favorite thing to serve was the traditional French- Canadienne meat pies for the holiday season. This became a family Christmas Eve tradition. Her pies and carrot cake live on now through her son as a tribute to her baking fame.

She also liked to tend her small garden and especially her rose bushes. While she didn’t have many roses, she had one in particular that was amazing for its sweet sent – the JFK rose. After retiring she also was able to have more time to pursue her love of books of all kinds including history, biographies, mysteries, and novels. She also became an avid Jig-saw puzzler. She loved all puzzles actually, and actively did many types of puzzles her entire life. She also enjoyed playing cards, and games, particularly with her son and granddaughter. As for music, she like Classical and Big Band Jazz.

The true joys of Mimi’s life were her only son, Charles William Rinehart III “Bill/Billy”, and later her only grandchild, Polly Carolyn Rinehart. (Bill was naturally relegated to second position after Polly’s arrival.) She also had a big soft spot for her only daughter in law Jennifer (Mimi gladly baked upon request her famous carrot cake every year for Jen’s Birthday). She was always a conscientious parent and was mostly a single mom. At one point the household also included 2 cats and a Great Dane named “Tiny”. She always provided a warm welcoming home in a good neighborhood with healthy food on the table. And she never missed a holiday, special occasion or birthday, be if for close or extended family members.

Mimi’s story telling detail was legendary, especially when recounting adventures from traveling, Nurses Training, or her childhood on the farm. The facts and details she would relate were astounding when describing the protagonists of her stories. Some of the most amazing stories were of growing up on the farm. One big favorite was the summers she spent working in a crayon factory and a munitions factory with her cousins in Massachusetts.

Mimi will be remembered for her devotion to her family. She was someone who never wanted anyone to make a fuss over her – just like her mother Nellie. She was always worrying about everyone else. She was also known for her radiant smile and twinkling eyes. She will be fondly missed by all who knew and loved her.

A celebration of life will be held during the second half of March. Details to follow.

Remembrances and donations to Alzheimer’s Association www.alz.org