Joanne Louise Binette, 73, of Biddeford, and The Villages, Florida, passed away Tuesday, May 9, at an Ocala, Florida, hospital with her devoted husband and son at her side.

Joanne cherished every day of her 51-year marriage to her husband, Michael, whom she loved with all her heart and soul. The couple met while they both worked at the First National store in Biddeford.

She deeply loved being a mom to her son, Chad, and daughter-in-law, Hollie, and also was like a surrogate mom to many more. Kind, warm and caring, she always listened to and helped anyone in need, no matter how much time that took.

She adored her grandchildren, Luke and Veronica, both big fans of “Nana.” She enjoyed cheering them on at their baseball and softball games, playing Transformers and Legos, and reading books with them.

A graduate of Thornton Academy, in 1967, and Husson College, in 1971, Joanne created the medical assisting program and lifted up the lives of many students at the Biddeford Regional Center of Technology, where she taught for 25 years. Her students remember her for mentoring them, encouraging them to pursue their dreams and being “the best teacher” they ever had.

Joanne was the youngest daughter of Edgar and Laurence Perron and was preceded in death by them, as well as her sisters, Pauline Martel and Jacqueline Chasse. In addition to her husband, son, daughter-in-law and grandchildren, she is survived by many nieces, nephews, grandnieces and grandnephews whom she loved very much.

Joanne was a parishioner of Most Holy Trinity Church. A funeral mass will be held at Most Holy Trinity, 271 Main St., Saco, at 1 p.m. Friday, May 26. Visitation will be from 4 to 7 p.m. Thursday, May 25, at Hope Memorial Chapel, 480 Elm St., Biddeford. Joanne’s family would like to thank Hiers-Baxley Funeral Services of Ocala, Florida, and Hope Memorial Chapel for handling the arrangements.

In lieu of flowers, please consider contributing to the Joanne Binette Scholarship Fund at the Biddeford Regional Center of Technology, 10 Maplewood Ave., Biddeford, ME 04005.