Maureen Boutin

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Maureen Boutin (62) passed away on September 29, 2022, surrounded by her loving
family and close friends. Maureen is survived by her husband of almost 40 years,
Donald Boutin, her daughter Molly, and her loving spouse Tim Bertram, and her son
Sean, and his wife, Marlee.
Maureen had a wonderful life. What more could someone want? Of course Maureen
wanted more time with her huge devoted family and many loyal friends! It seemed as
though that was not to be. Maureen had ALK+ Lung Cancer, which is simply a mutation
of cancer cells growing out of control. This is a cancer not caused by smoking or other
habits. Maureen's message to all is that if you have breathing issues or feel something
isn't right, then you should get a Lung Cancer Biomarker screening. People can extend
their life by years by getting the appropriate diagnosis and treatment.
Maureen leaves behind her loving parents, John V. Welch, and Marcy Welch, brother,
John V Welch, Jr, his partner Soudabeh, brother Joseph, and sisters Kathleen
Naughton and Karen Welch.
Maureen worked for over 30 years at the Workforce Development Office at Columbia
Greene Community College. During the course of her career Maureen performed many
roles, helping thousands of local residents reach their education and employment goals.
She especially loved meeting one on one with customers, helping them identify and
define their own strengths and skills. Maureen closed her career as the Director of the
Workforce Office. As one of her last successes she obtained a half-million-dollar training
grant designed to address the opioid crisis. During her career she earned many honors,
including the SUNY Chancellor’s Award for Excellence in Administration.
Maureen’s community involvement extended to serving on a variety of Community
Boards. This included the Greene County Chamber of Commerce, the Early Childhood
Learning Center, the Community Action Grow It Forward Greenhouse program, the
Columbia County Reentry Program, and the Cairo Bear Community Art Project.
For friends, Maureen was also a natural leader. She organized an annual “Girls
Weekend”, for her girlfriends and their daughters. This annual tradition has continued
over two decades and took place in her home state of Rhode Island. She was also
responsible for organizing the longest running, unofficial book club in the Cairo area.
Each meeting would always include at least a two-minute discussion of the chosen
book.
Gardening was another of Maureen’s passions. Her labors produced artistic landscapes
and luscious culinary delights that she generously shared with friends and family.
Services were held at Sacred Heart Church, Cairo, NY. In lieu of flowers, donations can
be made to ALK Positive, Inc. in memory of Maureen. This group supports research into
new cancer treatments