Death of popular store owner saddens Chesterfield residents.
Source: Union-News (Springfield, MA)
Author: DAVID REID
CHESTERFIELD, MA – The death of the owner of the Chesterfield General Store following a fire at her home yesterday afternoon has left town residents in a state of shock.
Christine LaCourse, 49, 592 Main Road, was pronounced dead on arrival at Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton.
“The whole town is in shock,” Selectman Donald Houghton said last night. “People are prepared to do anything or everything to be of assistance,” he said.
First Assistant Northwestern District Attorney David Angier said an autopsy will be conducted today to determine the cause of Lacourse’s death.
He said the State Police Crime Prevention and Control Unit had obtained a search warrant for the house and sealed off the scene.
He said obtaining a search warrant is ” not uncommon is situations like this,” Angier said.
Lacourse’s husband, Dennis Lacourse, also 49, was also treated and released from Cooley Dickinson Hospital yesterday, but hospital officials would not provide any details about his injuries.
Deputy town Fire Chief Gilman Smith said firefighters were called to the scene at about 1 p.m. He said firefighters from Chesterfield, Goshen and Williamsburg responded to the blaze.
Smith would not provide any other details about the fire, except to say the home was not destroyed. He referred all questions to Fire Chief Winston Bancroft, who could not be reached for comment yesterday.
“I can’t remember another fatal fire” in town, Smith said.
He said local firefighters and emergency workers all knew the family, which makes it all the harder when a victim dies. “It’s something that we all kind of dread,” he said.
Selectman David Kielson said the Lacourses have operated the store since about 10 years ago, when they also built their Main Road home.
Houghton said Christine Lacourse owned and primarily ran the store, which has been the small town’s gathering place and center of town gossip, debate and local lore.
Houghton described Christine Lacourse as even-tempered woman who, as the owner of the general store, played hostess “without taking sides” while patrons gathered there to talk about politics, the weather and gossip.
“There’s no question that the store has been a real focal point of the town,” said Houghton, adding that “it was a vital function that she fulfilled.”
“It’s really tragic and we’re all still in shock,” said William Klein, who lives across the street from the general store and knew the Lacourses and their 12-year-old son Mark.
Klein said he knew Christine Lacourse casually, and often chatted with her about various topics. “It’s so sad,” he said.