By Lindsay Tice,Staff Writer

AUBURN – When Diane Robitaille got sick last fall, she didn’t want to stop teaching.

She’d been a fixture at St. Dominic Regional High School for the past 27 years. The school needed her. The kids needed her. She didn’t want to let anyone down.

But facing life-threatening health issues, including kidney failure, she finally left the school in September.

However, the school never left her.

“It’s just like a family, St. Dom’s. I call them my family,” said Robitaille, 53. “This has been the best medicine for me.”

For six months, the St. Dom’s community has flooded Robitaille with cards and letters. On those rare days that she’s able to drop by the school, students mob her with hugs.

In its most tangible show of support, the school has helped raise thousands of dollars to pay Robitaille’s medical expenses. A single spaghetti supper netted $10,000.

And the support shows no signs of ebbing.

“She’s in our prayers every day at school,” said teacher Joline Girouard. “We know that with her courage and determination, she’ll be back.”

Robitaille graduated from St. Dom’s in 1969. She was teaching in Windham in 1977 when she learned that her alma mater had an opening.

“I just dropped everything and never looked back,” she said. “I love it.”

Robitaille taught computer classes and led the school’s cheerleading team. Students loved her for her kindness and fairness. Co-workers loved her for her energy and spirit.

Although she has a family, Robitaille thought of St. Dom’s as her second home.

“She wanted to be here. This is pretty much her life,” Girouard said.

Last fall, when doctors told her that her 30-year battle with diabetes had taken its toll and her kidneys were failing, Robitaille continued to work. She planned to start dialysis after her son’s wedding in October, but she expected to teach through it all.

On Sept. 10, however, the spirited teacher suddenly felt very tired. Co-workers urged her to go home, but Robitaille stayed through the day and showed up for part of the school’s soccer game. She had to be there for her students.

On Sept. 11, Robitaille had trouble breathing. Tests showed her kidneys were failing and four arteries in her heart were blocked. She underwent bypass surgery, but it wasn’t wholly successful. During a second procedure, she had a stroke.

Since then, Robitaille has divided her time between home and dialysis, too ill to teach. She is scheduled for kidney transplant surgery in Boston on April 26. Her 41-year-old niece is donating a kidney.

I feel blessed’

Robitaille received a paycheck for the first 12 weeks she was out. She has been getting Social Security since. It’s enough to pay some bills, but not medical expenses.

When St. Dom’s learned of her situation, people started sending cards and letters. Almost every card had a check in it.

Some were from parents. Some were from students who were in Robitaille’s classes decades ago.

Others came from recent graduates struggling to pay their way through college.

“That means a lot to me. They’re in school and they’re sending me $10, $15. I really appreciate that,” Robitaille said.

In February, Robitaille’s sister, Linda Gelinas, spearheaded a fund-raiser: a spaghetti supper. At $5 a ticket, it netted $10,000.

“I never realized the impact she had on people until we started this,” said Gelinas.

Another fund-raiser – a dance – is planned for Saturday evening. Tickets are nearly sold out.

All of the attention has startled Robitaille. She keeps her cards and letters in a thick, three-ring binder so they won’t get lost. She writes a personal thank-you note to everyone.

She never knew how much the school community loved her, she said.

Despite her illness, which will keep her out of work until at least next fall, she considers herself fortunate.

“I am so lucky,” she said. “I feel blessed.”

“It’s just like a family, St. Dom’s.

I call them my family.”
Teacher Diane Robitaille
What: Fund-raising dance, with raffle and door prizes

When: 7 p.m. Saturday, April 16

Where: Carriage House Plus, 1119 Lisbon St., Lewiston

Cost: $10

For tickets: Call 212-6911