Obituary of Sarah A. Belanger

Sarah (Sally) A. Belanger, 83, passed away on March 25, surrounded by her family. Born in Sydney, Nova Scotia in 1931, Sally was the daughter of the late Dr. Duncan and Annie (Boutilier) Purcell. She is survived by a brother Robert Purcell of Coxheath, Nova Scotia. She was predeceased by siblings Jack Purcell, Claire (Purcell) O'Keefe and Margaret (Purcell) MacPherson, all of Sydney. Sally was raised in Sydney and attended St. Joseph School and Holy Angels Convent. She met her husband, the late Gilles Belanger (from Caribou, ME) while he was attending St. Francis Xavier University in Nova Scotia. They married in Sydney in 1953 and moved to Connecticut where Gilles was employed by UTC. Gilles and Sally were blessed with five children - Mark (Cindy), Gerard (Irene), both from New Britain, Stephen of Coventry, Michelle of West Hartford and Sean (Liza) of Tucson, AZ. From these unions came nine beautiful and caring grandchildren - Nicole, Matthew, Kristina, Jennifer (Steven), Jesse (Becky), Sarah (Christopher), Jacob, Georgia and Shaelyn. She also leaves two happy and curious great grandsons - Jack and Logan, who love their Grammy Cindy and Grampy Mark so much. A loving family friend, Karla Beckert, was an important part of her life in the last few years. Sally keeps in her heart many nieces, nephews and extended families who were a big part of her life and with whom she spent many happy summers at the bungalow in Cape Breton, Nova Scotia. The family wishes to thank Nella Zydanowicz the staff of St Francis Cancer Center, Mary Hebb and Angia Williams of Masonicare and the hospice staff at the Hospital at Hebrew Health Care, who all took such wonderful care of our beautiful mother and grandmother. Sally will be lovingly remembered for her strong faith, compassion for others, her wonderful sense of humor and lively stories. God bless you Mom - Slainte. Friends and family are invited to a Mass of Christian Burial held at St. Timothy's Church in West Hartford on Saturday, March 29 at 10:00 am. Burial will be private. There are no calling hours. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Masonicare Partners of East Hartford or Hebrew Health Care of West Hartford.