Comments on: Janice Kucher-Patenaude

by: Dan Kaufman

Mon, 04 Aug 2008 02:48:25 +0000

I am so sad to read about JKP’s passing, and the subsequent passing of her husband last year. I only knew Janice for the year that she taught at Lawrence High School in Lawrenceville, NJ. In that one year, though, we got to know each other very well. I would stop by her office every day before homeroom, and then I had her for madrigal singers first period. We helped each other through what was a difficult year for both of us–hers because she was competing against the memory of a beloved teacher who had left, and mine because, well, because of lots of things a senior goes through :)

I remember her amazing piano playing, how much she missed her former school, the ways she tried to lighten us up when we were nervous (like holding up sheets of paper with funny things written on them that only we could see during concerts), and finding her paper to tear up before a performance–a stress reliever for her.

She was strong, talented, bright, and she let all of that shine through even when she was not feeling the love from the school administration. Her students at LHS came to love her, as it is apparent those at her subsequent school system did as well. I’m sorry I lost track of her, only now to find out it’s too late to get back in touch.

Peace.

by: Marie

Tue, 10 Jul 2007 16:15:59 +0000

I was one of her students at Drury. She introduced us to so much amazing music. Coming from haiti, she was one of the few people who made me feel welcome. She found a spot for sore thumb me in every musical :) I think of her often and will continue to do so. I’m grateful to have known her.

by: joy

Tue, 16 May 2006 02:54:30 +0000

Articles covering Saturday’s benefit concert for K-P

http://www.dailyrecord.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060512/COMMUNITIES30/605120305/1005/ARCHIVES

http://www.nj.com/search/index.ssf?/base/news-1/1147417079307030.xml?starledger?nmr&coll=1

by: John Chang

Wed, 03 May 2006 01:27:52 +0000

I too was a graduate of MTHS…class of ‘95. KP was an inspiration. There is not other way to say it, just reading all the comments that everyone has made just reinforces the fact that KP was a muse to a lot of people. However, like everyone else, she was more than just a muse and a teacher…she was a FRIEND.

Everyone here owes a great deal of who they are and who they have become to KP, myself included. What more can I say that hasn’t already been said about KP. She touched my life and today I say goodbye to an Angel…she returns to the world from where she came.

KP…you will always be loved!

by: John Chang

Wed, 03 May 2006 01:19:59 +0000

I too was a graduate of MTHS…class of ‘95. I’m sitting here staring at a screen trying to think of what to write. What can I say about KP that hasn’t already been side. Even still what can I say about the most influential person in my life. For 3 years of high school I was the stereotypical “jock”. I only wound up in KP’s class as a favor to my friend, Nadia. However it was KP would opened my eyes to the world of music. She showed me that there was so much more to life and that sometimes you just have to throw caution to the wind to enjoy the ride. I couldn’t begin to tell you how right she was…everything that has happened to me since high school I owe to KP. My part in Joseph and the Amazing Technocolor Dreamcoat, my friendship with Sajid and his wife Alexis, and even my wife whom I would have never met if not for Saj.

I will miss KP…she was a teacher…a mentor…but most importantly she was a FRIEND!

by: SERGIO DEMO

Mon, 01 May 2006 13:59:18 +0000

Jan actively recruited me for the part of Conrad Birdie in Bye-Bye Birdie for the spring musical of 1973 at Drury High School. It was probably her first production. She took quite a gamble since she had no idea if I could sing, act, or dance. I guess I just looked the part. I wasn’t very good but Jan provided me with one of my fondest high school memories. The world has become a duller, less colorful place due to her passing.

by: Christine Laird

Thu, 27 Apr 2006 22:45:23 +0000

Hello, all… I’m also a North Adams alumni from 1977. I had the joy of having Jan as my teacher and director for 4 years, and also experienced being in awe of and singing with Joe Patenaude, who was a year ahead of me in school. What a gift those years were, and isn’t it amazing to revisit them again. Rusty and Kathy - such a joy to see your names here.

When I was an awkward teenager, I knew I loved to sing but never believed that I could have a lead in a show, sing a solo. Jan gave me the confidence to believe in myself and what a difference that has made. I went on to a master’s degree in voice, singing all the while, and now continue to sing, teach voice, and also am an arts administrator for a music series. The things I learned from Jan in those “formative years” stayed with me forever and shaped who I am as a musician and as a person. She was a true gift.

Joe, in the last three months Jan kept popping into my head; I googled her name, found an email address, and came so close to writing so many times, but life’s demands got in the way. I am so sorry I’d lost touch and didn’t contact her when something was telling me I should. Please know that you’re in my thoughts and prayers now and always.

I lost my oldest brother Don three years ago; he was a wonderful singer and muse. I hope he and Jan meet up and start planning some heavenly musical events.

by: Saj Surve

Thu, 27 Apr 2006 15:08:32 +0000

It’s wonderful to see some familiar names on this blog, but of course the of tcircumstances couldn’t be more remorseful.

I’m a 1997 grad of MTHS, and alumnus of Man of La Mancha ‘94, Godspell ‘94, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat ‘95, Anything Goes ‘96, Pippin ‘97, and Godspell ‘00.

All that I am and all that I have I directly attribute to Jan’s influence on my life. I call her Jan because she specifically asked me to do so, otherwise she would always be remembered by me as KP. She took a quiet, insecure, pimply-faced freshman with a moustache, and taught him the joy of performance, the importance of spirituality, the meaning of life, and the essence of self-expression. I did more growing and maturing in that year than any other before or since. Her wisdom has stayed with me to this very day, guiding my decisions and shaping my personality.

Not many people know this, but it was Jan that pushed me to become a physician despite my love of and talent for music. She saw through me to my soul and realized that my path was to help people heal. I’ve never regretted my decision to pursue medicine, which would have been impossible without her support. Of course music is still a very large part of my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

As if the above wasn’t enough, I also owe Jan for facilitating the meeting of my wife. I met the love of my life while doing Joseph, and we’ve been inseperable since. Our time with Jan is something we will always cherish.

It seems that the brightest stars always burn out before their time, and we can’t help but feel blessed for the opportunity to experience the extraordinary warmth and brilliant light they provide while they are here.

Jan, you will be missed.

by: Nadia Q.

Fri, 21 Apr 2006 00:48:42 +0000

K-P introduced me to the wonderful world of Broadway:) I remember when I told her that I had never seen a Broadway show before, it was like she had never heard of such a tragedy. So she up and arranged for a school field trip so i could see my first Broadway show, Tommy. I will always be grateful to K-P for making me feel special, beautiful, and pretending to like my voice;) This is truly a great loss for all whose lives she has touched….and whose lives she will never touch.

by: Michael M

Thu, 20 Apr 2006 22:24:10 +0000

Please see below the obituary that appeared online in today’s Star-Ledger as well as the one that appeared in print in the April 20, 2006 Star-Ledger. I will also testify to how she lives within me even still. Since she arrived at MTHS my sophmore year, she made quite an impression on my life as well as many others. Having been a veteran of Pippin, Joseph and… and Barnum as well as the summer production of Godspell, she has a special place in my life. At that time, I don’t know what I would have done without her. My prayers are with her and her family. My hope is she has found the joy in death that she deserves.

KUCHER-PATENAUDE - Janice, of Madison, on Thursday, April 13, 2006, at Compassionate Care Hospice in Dover after a short illness. She was 55. Loving wife of Joseph, chair of the Theatre Arts Department at Drew University, Madison, and devoted mother of Emma. She is also survived by her parents, Howard A. and Mildred L. Kucher of Stirling, N.J., her sister, Joy Montana of Grand Rapids, Minn., and brothers, Lawrence Kucher and his wife, Mary Flynn, of Morristown, N.J., J. Howard and his wife, Cindy Leahy, of Baltimore, Md., and Jeff Kucher of Stirling, N.J. A memorial service for Janice will be held on Saturday, April 22, 2006, at 2 p.m. at the United Methodist Church of New Providence. In lieu of flowers, donations in Janice’s name can be made to K-P Fund, c/o Howard Kucher, 1165 Long Hill Road, Stirling, N.J. 07980. Arrangements are with BURROUGHS, KOHR & DANGLER FUNERAL HOME, Madison, N.J.
Published in the Star-Ledger on 4/20/2006.

Janice Kucher-Patenaude, 55, theatre teacher, choral director
A memorial service for Janice Kucher-Patenaude, 55, of Madison will be at 2 p.m. Saturday in the United Methodist Church of New Providence.
Arrangements are by the Burroughs, Korh & Dangler Funeral Home, Madison.
Mrs. Kucher-Patenaude, who died April 3 in the Compassionate Care Hospice, Dover, was the choral director, theatre teacher and director of plays and musicals at Montville Township High School the past 24 years. Earlier, she directed plays and musicals at Drury High School in North Adams, Mass.
A 1973 cum laude graduate of Ithica (N.Y.) College with a batchelor’s degree in music, she earned her master’s degree in creative arts education from Rutgers University in 1985.
Mrs. Kucher-Patenaude also founded the “Cherry Tree Players” in Montville and produced several summer musicals with students and alumni from the Montville pulic schools. She also founded the “North Adams Stagehands” in Massachusetts, which produced summer musicals.
Mrs. Kucher-Patenaude was instrumental in bringing “The Names Project: AIDS Memorial Quilt” to Montville High School.
Her choirs appeared at various events and concerts, including Carnegie Hall, Dorney Park and Walt Disney World, and als regulary represented Morris County at the State Teen Arts Festival.
Mrs. Kucher-Patenaude was a member of the New Jersey Education Association and the Music Educators National Conference.
Born in Irvington, she lived in West Caldwell before moving to Madison 10 years ago.
Surviving are her husband, Joesph Patenaude; a daughter, Emma Patenaude; her parents, Howard A. and Mildred L. Kucher; a sister, Joy Montana, and brothers, Lawrence, Howard and Jeff Kucher.