Patricia Connolly-Dupuis

Patricia Connolly-Dupuis, age 82, of Toronto, Ontario passed away peacefully on Sunday, August 10, 2025. She was surrounded by family. She was devoted to her husband, Dr. Gilles Dupuis; children, Michael (Medina) Dupuis, Lucie (José) Dupuis, and the late François Dupuis; and grandchildren, Benjamin Dupuis, Mathieu Dupuis, Sébastien Dupuis, Patrick Guilmette, and Camie Guilmette. She is also survived by her sister, Mary Kaufman, and many nieces, nephews, grandnieces, grandnephews, cousins, and friends.

Patricia was born in Pittsburgh, PA on March 17, 1943 to Michael and Bridget Connolly, who were from Galway, Ireland. She graduated from St. Peter’s High School in Pittsburgh in 1961 and took continuing education courses, including classes in creative writing, psychology, and secretarial science, at the University of Pittsburgh throughout the 1960s. She worked as a medical secretary at Western Psychiatric Institute and Clinic and Presbyterian-University Hospital before becoming first an administrative assistant in the Protein Research Laboratory and then an executive secretary in the Department of Radiation at the University of Pittsburgh.

While working for Dr. Klaus Hofmann in the Protein Research Laboratory, she met a young graduate student named Gilles Dupuis, who wooed her. They married on January 7, 1970 and lived in Vancouver, British Columbia before settling in Sherbrooke, Québec and raising a family. Patricia was a dedicated stay-at-home mom while her children were growing up, as well as a committed and regular volunteer who focused her efforts on helping children, immigrants, the sick, and the elderly. She also provided clerical assistance for Gilles in his work as a biochemist. In 1989, Patricia returned to school to become a nursing assistant. She worked with seniors and specialized in end-of-life care. After 50 years in Sherbrooke, Patricia and Gilles moved to Toronto to be closer to their children.

Patricia was an exceptionally loving, caring, loyal, generous, and hard-working person. She was whip-smart and had an excellent sense of humor. She loved a good story and combined an eye for detail with compassion and empathy for what makes people human. She did the work of staying close to people, no matter if they were in Sherbrooke, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Chicago, Washington, California, or Ireland. She knew no strangers. She was the best mother, wife, grandmother, sister, aunt, cousin, friend, and neighbor a person could ask for. In honor of her memory, please write or call a loved one from your past or present today. 

Memorial services will be held in Sherbrooke and in Pittsburgh. Details will be shared later.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations in honor of her beloved son François to JEVI Suicide Prevention Center or to Dorothy Ley Hospice in gratitude for their compassionate care.