Peter A. Labelle, Jr.

Friends and family are invited to the funeral mass at Our Lady of the Lake Church, Leominster on Thursday, January 21st at 11am.  The burial will be held immediately after the mass at Evergreen Cemetery. Masks will be required and social distance guidelines will be in place.



LEOMINSTER – Peter A. LaBelle Jr., 70, passed away peacefully on Friday, January 15th at Leominster Hospital after a valiant struggle against COVID-19.

 

He leaves his loving wife of 52 years, Yolanda “Sue” (Renda) LaBelle, his three children Timothy LaBelle and his partner Kristin Steele of Sutton, Catherine Harris and her husband Matthew of Leominster, and Elizabeth “Betsy” LaBelle of Leominster; four grandchildren Steven, Michael, Andrew, and Madison Harris of Leominster and one great-grandchild Parker Harris; siblings Thomas LaBelle and his wife Pauline, Darren (Poochie) LaBelle and his wife Melissa, Emilie Granata and her partner Dante, Marlene Goodwin and her partner Tom, Tammy LaBelle and her partner Joel, Barbara Comeau, and Elinor Reed; nieces Melanie Egan and Jessica LaBelle, and nephew Jordan LaBelle.  He was predeceased by his parents Lorraine Brassard and Peter A. LaBelle Sr. and his niece Amy Granata.

 

Born on April 7th, 1950, Pete was a lifelong resident of Leominster. Son of Peter and Lorraine LaBelle, he attended St. Cecilia’s school and graduated from St. Bernard’s Central Catholic High School in 1969.  He worked at Simonds Saw and Steel for 30 years.

Pete loved his family. He attended and cheered them on at every practice and game throughout the years.  He even attended Girl Scout camping trips.  Pete was a registered Girl Scout, supporting his wife’s passion in every way.  He could always be counted on to drive long distances bringing additional supplies to Girl Scout camp whenever needed.

 

Pete loved sports.  He was a lifelong bowler and was a celebrated “Prince of Mason’s” at a young age.  Although Pete loved all sports, his passion was baseball.  As a young man, Pete played baseball and helped coordinate games with other groups in an unofficial men’s league.  In the early 1970’s he started coaching Little League and that’s where his talents shined.  Pete was a winning coach, eventually transitioning from Little League to Babe Ruth.  Peter led the 13- and 15-year-old teams in 1984 and 1986, respectively, to the Babe Ruth World Series which were held in Newark, Ohio.  Peter was a respected manager/coach and accepted any invitation to play in tournaments throughout the state, never passing up an opportunity to bring players who wanted to play together.

 

He was a humble coach that valued sportsmanship.  On his teams, everyone played.  He was “Coach” to so many, even those that weren’t on his team.  He taught more than the game.

 

Always a faithful fan of all Leominster High School activities, Pete could often be seen wearing his “Leominster Blue” at baseball and football games cheering on the home team.  He would carefully read the sports page to see how ‘his players’ were doing.

 

He was a member of Our Lady of the Lake Parish.

 

The family would like to say thank you to the Life Care Center of Leominster for the loving care they gave Peter while he was a resident, and Leominster Hospital who showed compassion not only to Peter but to his family during his illness. There was never an unanswered question, which meant so much.  These men and women are truly Angels.

 

In lieu of flowers: Donations in memory of Peter LaBelle can be sent to Leominster High School Athletic Association (LHSAA) at 122 Granite Street, Leominster, MA, 01453, attention Athletic Department.  All money raised will be used for students who cannot afford the sports user fees.  He was a firm believer in the opportunity for everyone to play.