Evelyn M. (Dufresne) LaChapelle, 90, a native and lifelong resident of Haverhill, died Sunday August 23,at Lahey Clinic, Burlington.
The daughter of the late Raymond L. Dufresne and Marion E. (Demerias) (Dufresne) Clevesy and step-daughter of the late Cecil Clevesy, she attended Haverhill Public Schools and was a member of the Haverhill High School class of 1943.
LaChapelle was first employed in the Boston Naval Shipyard and later for more than 25 years as a bookkeeper at Sears Roebuck and Company. She was also a longtime participant in thoroughbred racing at Rockingham Park and Suffolk Downs as an owner and boarder of race horses. She also assisted her late husband Michael in the breeding and training of their horses. She was a member of All Saints Parish, Haverhill, and the New England Chapter of the Horsemen’s Benevolent and Protective Association.
The wife of the late Michael LaChapelle, she is survived by a daughter, Lynette A. Bush, of Haverhill; grandson Vernon Michael Bush of Pelham, N.H. and his girlfriend, Kristin Hoffman; two brothers Raymond Dufresne and Edward H. Dufresne, both of Haverhill; three sisters, Dorothy E. Demand of Haverhill, Jeanette A. Marquis of Plaistow, N.H., and Mildred E. Wall of Salem, N.H.; and several nieces and nephews.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend LaChapelle’s life celebration Friday, Aug. 28, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m. at Berube-Comeau Life Celebration Home, 47 Broadway, Haverhill. A Mass of Christian Burial will take place Friday at noon in All Saints Church, 120 Bellevue Ave., Haverhill. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Old Friends Equine Retirement, 1841 Paynes Depot, Georgetown, KY 40324.