April 26, 1936 – July 7, 2023
COTTONWOOD – Sister Mary Jean Lalande, OSB, 87, a former Prioress at the Monastery of St. Gertrude and a well-known teacher in Idaho, passed into eternal life on July 7, 2023, at the Monastery of St. Gertrude in Cottonwood.
Sister Jean was born Patricia Anne on April 26, 1936, in Nampa to Joseph Victor “Vic” and Pauline (Marsh) Lalande. She attended St. Paul’s Catholic School in Nampa where she was impressed by the approach to life of the Sisters from the Monastery of St. Gertrude who taught at the school. By the eighth grade, she discerned a call to join the community, entering in 1954 after high school, where she played volleyball, basketball, and tennis. She professed her First Vows in 1956.
A love of science led her to earn an associate degree from the College of St. Gertrude, followed by a bachelor’s degree in 1965 from Mount St. Scholastica College in Atchison, Kan.
Sister Jean served as a physical education, science and math teacher in Cottonwood, Nez Perce, Genesee, Boise and Nampa. She was then awarded a National Science Foundation grant that allowed her to earn a master's degree in biological sciences from University of Idaho and, later, a master’s in spirituality from Gonzaga University.
She returned to the monastery in 1977, serving as formation director. She then embarked on a new ministry, becoming a certified massage therapist and health educator in Lewiston. She also served as a pastoral associate in Lewiston.
Sister Jean served on the monastery council in the 1990s, before her election as Prioress in 1999. She played a key role in visioning meetings that led to the construction of Spirit Center, the monastery’s retreat and conference center. A serious auto accident in 2005 required substantial healing time, but she continued to be part of the retreat ministry and spiritual direction programs at the monastery until her retirement in 2010.
Sister Jean’s was preceded in death by her parents and two half-brothers, Rusty and John Boicourt. She is survived by her sister-in-law Jan (Dennis) Achey, nephews Rusty (Sheri) Boicourt and John Boicourt, and niece Kris Davis, along with great-nieces and nephews, many cousins and her sisters in community at the monastery.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be Saturday, July 15 at 11:15 a.m. in the monastery chapel. Interment will follow at 1:30 p.m. in the monastery cemetery.
Blackmer Funeral Home, Grangeville, Idaho (www.blackmerfuneralhome.com), handled arrangements. Memorial gifts can be made to the Monastery of St. Gertrude, 465 Keuterville Road, Cottonwood, Idaho 83522, or via the website: https://stgertrudes.org/donate/
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