Laurianne Cormier was still attending to her volunteer duties at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center a short time before her death on June 23, 2015, just two weeks shy of her 103rd birthday.

The Catholic Foundation of Maine has announced the establishment of a new endowment to honor a woman who touched the lives of countless people and to assist students who demonstrate a commitment to both academics and service.

The Laurianne Michaud Cormier Endowment will allow for an annual scholarship to be awarded to a Saint Dominic Academy student who excels in the classroom and is a volunteer at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center in Lewiston or another area health-care facility.

Cormier, a native of Lewiston, attended St. Peter’s Parochial School and graduated from Cours Supérieur, an upper school for girls, in 1928. Both of her daughters graduated from St. Dominic High School, now Saint Dominic Academy. As a child, Cormier dreamed of becoming a nurse, but the death of her father and the need to help support her family during the Great Depression required her to set aside that dream. In her retirement, she became a dedicated volunteer at St. Mary’s Regional Medical Center, accumulating nearly 20,000 hours of service over 35 years.

Cormier was still attending to her duties at the hospital a short time before her death on June 23, 2015, just two weeks shy of her 103rd birthday. In recognition of her enormous contributions, Cormier was presented with the Mayoral Volunteer Inspire by Example Award in 2010 and named a Volunteer Hero by Maine’s First Lady Ann LePage at the Governor’s Awards for Service and Volunteerism in 2012.

The Laurianne Michaud Cormier Endowment was created by her daughter, Louise Jean (Saint Dominic Academy ’61), and Louise’s husband, Raymond Jean (Saint Dominic Academy ’60), who live in Scarborough, Maine and Marco Island, Florida.

To create an endowment with the Catholic Foundation of Maine or to contribute to an existing one, contact Executive Director Elizabeth Badger at 321-7820. For more information, visit the foundation’s website at www.catholicfoundationmaine.org.