Ellen Sinclair

BIDDEFORD — Ellen V. (Kennard) Wescott Sinclair, 82, passed away peacefully on Saturday, March 25, 2017, at the home of her daughter in Biddeford, after a period of declining health.

She was born July 10, 1934, in Windham, the daughter of Frank E. Kennard and Edna L. (Mains) Kennard.

There are many colorful stories of her childhood on White’s Bridge Road in Windham. In 1953, after being swept off her feet at Lakeland Dance Hall, she married Lawrence J. Wescott Jr. They settled in Windham before moving to Casco in 1966. They enjoyed 56 years of marriage before his passing in 2009. In 2013, she wed Dale E. Sinclair, who passed in 2016.

She was a 1953 graduate of Windham High School, and a 1977 graduate of the University of Maine in Augusta.

Ellen was a career musician and touched the lives of many through her art. After showing promise at the piano, at an early age she was often dragged off to accompany her brother Philip and others at area fiddlers' contests. This seat-of-the-pants playing prepared her well for a lifetime of accompanying unprepared musicians. She became a beloved piano teacher, church organist, accompanist, and performing musician.

Ellen taught over 200 piano students over the years, including her own children. She was organist at the Casco Village Church for over 50 years, and the organ there bears a plaque in her name. Many valued friendships were formed in that special place. Ellen and her Hammond organ graced the stage of many venues throughout Maine and New Hampshire, as a soloist and in dance bands including the family band, “Wescott & Company,” which included her husband and son, Bruce. She was a frequent accompanist for the Lake Region High School Chorus, and played piano and organ for several drama productions at LRHS and the Schoolhouse Arts Center, among others. She wrote and arranged several pieces for piano and for chorus. Her music lives on in the hearts and hands of her students.

She is survived by her son, Bruce Wescott of Lebanon; her daughter, Judy Welborne of Bedford, N.H.; her daughter, Elizabeth Plummer of Biddeford; her son, Lawrence Wescott III of Berwick; her stepson, Michael Wescott of Westbrook; 12 grandchildren; six great-grandchildren; and many nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by her beloved brother, Philip Kennard in 2016.

A memorial service will be held 11 a.m., Saturday, April 1, 2017, at the Casco Village Church, U.C.C., 942 Meadow Road, Casco. A reception will follow at the church. Interment will be held later in the spring at Arlington Cemetery, Windham. Arrangements are under the care of Dolby Funeral Chapel, 434 River Road, Windham. To view Ellen’s online tribute and to sign her guest book, please visit: www.dolbyfuneralchapels.com

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made in Ellen’s memory to the Music Program at Casco Village Church U.C.C., P.O. Box 367, Casco ME 04015.