RUMFORD – Jane deFrees’ family found a handwritten quote on her desk the day she died.

“Live each day so that each yesterday is a memory of happiness and every tomorrow is a dream of hope.”

More than 300 family members, friends and colleagues turned out Saturday morning to remember a woman who had so tirelessly served her community.

She was 70 years old when she died Sept. 16 at the East Andover Road home she shared with her husband, Burt.

The historic Rumford Municipal Building auditorium was filled to capacity Saturday as friends and family lovingly remembered Jane deFrees’ gentle fierceness, tolerance for alternative views, passion for the truth and belief that everyone could succeed.

“If it wasn’t for her family, I wouldn’t have gone to college. They believed in me and backed me up,” said Donna Ziemack, a Fredericksburg, Va., resident.

Neighbor Dan Abbott babysat deFrees’ three children. His experience with the deFrees family changed his life.

“They always made me feel interesting and important. Jane always seemed to know just what we needed,” he said.

Others remembered her commitment to children and her belief that a community is good only to the degree to which the smallest voice is heard.

Ken Nye, a former neighbor who had served on the Rumford school board with deFrees, said she stood for fairness and equity for every child.

This belief eventually led deFrees to a seat on the State Board of Education.

“The Rumford community and the state are better places because of this woman,” he said.

Another neighbor and friend, Elissa Thibodeau, said deFrees was a strong role model.

“She made me feel special, warm and loved,” she said. “I want to remember Jane by trying to imitate her commitment to the community.”

DeFrees’ children, Evelyn, Beth and Ethan, remembered her calm voice at the end of a phone at all hours of the day and night, and the compassion and generosity she had for the thousands of people who drove up her driveway over the years. And she believed that her children could manage their own lives while she offered loving support.

David Peterson, a colleague who met deFrees more than 50 years ago, held a respect he said bordered on awe, that one person could manifest so many traits – intelligence, wisdom, common sense, integrity and patience, while at the same time being “a modest, self-effacing, warm and accessible friend.”

DeFrees leaves her husband of 46 years, Burt; a son, Ethan, and his wife, Kirstin deFrees and their son, Benjamin; daughter Evie deFrees and her husband, Brad LaRoche and their daughter, Olivia; and daughter Beth Tappan-deFrees and Isabel Tappan-deFrees and their son, Elijah.

Those who wish, may remember deFrees with donations to the Beacon House, 150 Congress St., Rumford; Rumford Public Library; or Swarthmore College, Swarthmore, Pa.