Judith Ann Doiron

SCARBOROUGH – Judith Ann Doiron, 84, was good at many things. She was a champion golfer, semi-professional belly dancer and expert trapper of nuisance squirrels. But what she excelled at was arguably the world’s most important occupations — being a truly wonderful wife, mother and grandmother.

She died peacefully in her sleep of natural causes Aug. 4, 2025, at the Maine Veterans Home, surrounded by her family.

Born Feb. 27, 1941, in Joliet, Ill., she was the third of seven children of Charles and Alice Misiurewicz. She grew up in a modest home two miles from the Illinois State Penitentiary, attended secretarial school and met the love of her life, Maine native Richard G. Doiron, while he was completing his doctorate in psychology at Loyola University Chicago.

They married and began a peripatetic life as an Army couple with young children, moving from Illinois to Texas to Kentucky before settling in Scarborough, where they would live for the next five decades — she left behind her Midwestern roots without hesitation, following her husband to Maine in a gesture of deep devotion. There she helped establish and sustain his psychological practice in Portland while raising a warm, bustling household.

She found community in Maine teaching parish religious education classes and competing on the women’s golf circuit, where her competitive streak shone. Fearless in trying new things, she picked up guitar, painting, sewing — even yodeling — and discovered a particular flair for belly dancing, performing under the stage name “Jezreel.”

Her sharp mind and nimble humor were constants: she devoured books, sailed through crossword puzzles and was a formidable Yahtzee player, sometimes “consulting the Yahtzee gods” for guidance. She loved birds and bugs and once revived a family hamster with a bicycle pump.

She traveled farther than her parents could have imagined, to California, Italy, France and Belgium. She was a talented, self-taught cook. A French exchange student once gained 10 pounds under her hospitable care.

To her grandchildren, she was “Nana” — the one who spoiled them with attention and treats. At her house, cold sodas were always waiting, dozens of TV channels beckoned, and she made each grandchild feel like the center of her world. Christmas meant poteca, an Eastern European pastry, and cookie decorating with an excess of frosting and sprinkles. She never missed a soccer game, track meet, or recital and always tucked a lottery ticket (somehow never a winner) in her birthday cards.

She rooted for Tiger Woods, sang along to Elvis and Nirvana, wore her favorite Estée Lauder scent and kept holy water in the fridge. She stood up for her children, defended them against bullies and delighted in their successes, earning a place, as her family said, as their greatest champion.

She is survived by her husband of 61 years, Richard; her sons Paul Doiron (Kristen Lindquist) and Roger Doiron (Jacqueline Delzandre Doiron), her daughters Pamela Doiron (Reitze Oenema) and Alicia Nagle; her sisters Nancy Stegall and Mari Ann Harvey, her brothers Augie Misiurewicz and Bob Misiurewicz; and seven grandchildren: Francois Chabab, Maxim Doiron, Sebastian Doiron, Lily Nagle, Ren Ciara Oenema, Jemma Nagle and Aros Oenema.

She was predeceased by her parents, Charles and Alice Misurewicz; her brother Chuck Misurewicz, her sister Lynn Morris; and her beloved Shetland sheepdog, Shelby.

A mass of Christian burial will be celebrated Aug. 18 at 11 a.m. at St. Maximilian Kolbe Church in Scarborough, with a reception to follow. A private interment will take place at a later date at Black Point Cemetery.