For more than a quarter century, Ruth Thibeault’s near-daily routine has included a trip to St. Louis Church in Fort Kent. 

“I come in just about every day. There’s always a little something that needs to be done,” she says.

Thibeault has been sacristan at the church since 1998, and although she’s now 84 years old, she isn’t looking to stop anytime soon.

“I’ve kept doing it all these years because this is my life,” she says. “I’d be lost if I didn’t do it. On Monday morning, I say, ‘Oh, no, no. I can’t be late. I’ve got to be there.’ I’ve got to unlock the doors, for one thing.”

In addition to unlocking the doors, as sacristan, Thibeault prepares the liturgical books, vessels, and vestments for Masses, including for funerals and weddings.

“We do a lot of stuff. I do all the linens. I take them home with me and do the linens and anything else that needs washing, the altar cloths,” she says.

Monday is cleaning day at the church.

“It’s the big straightening out of all the books and the church. There’s always cleaning to be done, washing. Next week, we’re going to be going upstairs and washing the pews in the balcony,” she says.

 Despite the work involved, Thibeault embraces her responsibilities as sacristan.

“I look forward to it because I get to spend time in church with the Blessed Sacrament. I do take time to pray when I’m here. It’s a beautiful experience. We are very close to Christ while we’re here,” she says.

Thibeault says her love for Christ comes from her upbringing in a strong Catholic family.

“We always said the Rosary every night. And on the first Friday, we did not have Mass on Friday, we had adoration at our house. We always did one hour of prayer on our knees, which I would not be able to do today,” she says.

 While she may not be able to kneel for an hour now, she still credits prayer for keeping her faith so vibrant.

“A lot of prayer. A lot of prayers. A lot of prayers,” she says.

Thibeault’s service to the Church goes back even further than her decades as sacristan. She has long been an extraordinary minister of holy Communion and was the cantor for many years. She still often leads the singing at daily Masses. She has also helped to train altar servers and has been a reader at Mass.

 Thibeault says it was while she was serving as a reader in 1998 that then-pastor Father James Plourde approached her about taking over as sacristan.

“It’s his fault. I keep telling him that,” she says, laughing. “We were standing in the back, and the sacristan had quit, the one that was here before me. And he said, ‘I need a sacristan. Would you do that?’ And I said, ‘No, not by myself.’ He said, ‘Get somebody to help you.’ That’s exactly what he said. And that’s what I did.”

It turned out to be an ideal fit both for her and the St. Louis community.

“I enjoy doing this. I enjoy spending time in church, spending time with everybody,” she says.

“She is a great sacristan. She loves her work. She’s very devoted to the Church. She is very generous in giving of her time. The work that she does is going to always be the best. It’s very well organized,” says Monsignor Jean-Paul Labrie, pastor of St. John Vianney Parish. “Ruth connects well with people and works very well with people. That allows her to have people around her who can help her and support her, but it also allows other people to become involved in work that’s very rewarding for her. So, she does her work very, very well, but I think her working with people is probably the thing that’s to be seen and admired the most.”

“She handles everything. If we need candles, she’s in here right off telling me we need candles. If we need hosts, she tells me exactly which hosts,” says Sharon Pelletier, the office receptionist. “When there is a baptism, she has everything ready for Monsignor. When there is a wedding, she has everything ready for the wedding. When there’s a funeral, she is there. She is here at every funeral. She knows everybody anyway. She is an awesome pillar of this community.”

When Thibeault isn’t at St. Louis Church, you might find her at the Christian Life Center in neighboring Frenchville, where she also serves as sacristan. She also visits and brings holy Communion to nursing home residents, and she is a member of both the Columbiettes and the Ladies of St. Anne, organizations that support the Church and the community. Thibeault says she believes it’s important for people to be involved.

“I wish there were more people. We need to show support for our faith. Our faith is very important,” she says. “We’re part of something very special.” 

“I look forward to it because I get to spend time in church with the Blessed Sacrament.” 

—Ruth Thibeault