Obituary of Penny Picard Sampson

Penny Picard Sampson of Unity, Maine died Thursday afternoon, December 19, after more than a decade of battling illnesses. She was born to Linda Louise (Constable) and Charles Clovis Picard on November 15, 1966. She grew up in a busy household with her parents and siblings and attended Unity Elementary School, graduated from Mount View High School, and then earned her B.A. in English from Unity College. 

She developed a love of animals by sharing in the daily tasks of the family’s hard-scrabble dairy farm, feeding baby cows by hand by age three and helping her older brother Matt muck out the barn by kindergarten. Her love of animals extended to the barn cats and the many German Shepherds raised on the farm. She shared with her younger brother Dennis the nuances of vegetable growing in their mother’s prodigious garden. This knowledge would come in handy when she worked for Johnny’s Selected Seeds as a customer contact specialist and the animal experiences prepared her for later work as an animal control officer.  

In her formative years, Penny spent many happy hours with her horse Frosty. They were a force in the local show rings, bringing home blue ribbons for their teamwork. They often rode through town in parades, sparkling in silver and black-fringed tack. More than once on hot summer days, they rode to Lake Winnecook where Frosty waded and Penny did flips off his back.

Encouraged by her family legacy, Penny chose to attend Unity College. This choice also allowed her to spend time with her new sibling, Patti. Outside of her academic pursuits, she made many lifelong friendships at the small college. She was also an active member of the women’s woodsman team. Off campus she was most often seen at The Homestead Restaurant where she was an adept and loved server. 

After college, she worked for several years as an editor of the Unity-based Thorndike Press, using her language arts skills to edit books for large print publication. She often spent her leisure time at Unity or Wiscasset Raceways, which would become like second homes on Saturdays. When she wasn’t on the track competing in the women’s races in the 04x, she was in the scoring tower. She was a beloved and integral member of the scoring team at both raceways. On Sunday afternoons, she was at her uncle Ed’s dirt track where she kept things running smoothly. If she wasn’t by the flagger, she was kicking up dust on the track driving in races herself  and taking home her fair share of trophies each season. Racing was so much a part of her that she opened up a restaurant, Penny’s Pit Stop, across the street from Unity Raceway.   

Through a love of racing initially nurtured by her parents, she met another racing enthusiast, Daniel Sampson, who would become her husband. They married on the track of Unity Raceway on August 1, 2008, and celebrated their union in a victory lap to the applause of the local racing community. Their steadfast love and devotion never waivered. Penny frequently offered glimpses into their mutual trust and humorous interactions in her weekly FB posts she entitled “Friday Thoughts.” 

Penny spent 16 years as a collections specialist for MBNA/ Bank of America. Her next career path also engaged her financial knowledge and communication skills; she entered public service to the Town of Unity. She was a reliable and active participant in town affairs and had served as the animal control officer, taking the role over from her mother. Penny was well versed in town history, policies, and needs when she was elected for several terms as selectperson. She  secured grants for Unity, saving thousands for taxpayers. She helped facilitate the designation of the Alton McCormick Memorial Bridge, negotiated the expansion of the Pond Cemetery, and improved the operation of the boat launch. She went above and beyond her job’s expectations, providing direct services such as delivering sand buckets to disabled citizens and cleaning up refuse at the beach. 

She volunteered countless hours honoring those town citizens who came before, cleaning hundreds of headstones and markers and recruiting student groups to join her while sharing research about those who were placed at rest in Unity cemeteries. This led to her final town role as town sexton. She also supported her husband’s active role in maintaining local snowmobile trails and enjoyed helping at the Open Door lunches and distributing food from the local food pantry to those in need. She served several terms on the Waldo County budget committee and was humbled to be the recipient of a county service award. Her volunteerism included serving as the Unity correspondent for the Republican Journal and more recently for The Villager. 

Over her too few years, she was deeply devoted to her home and large family. She was an incredible cook and no Picard family gathering was complete without her dishes and presence there. She immensely enjoyed evenings gathered with the Constable cousins for celebrations and games, especially Scrabble. She was a master and spent Friday evenings wordsmithing with her Aunt Rose. 

Penny had an indomitable spirit. She was unashamedly real–  a modern princess of the Paper Bag Princess lineage. She was fierce in wielding her verbal sword against injustices and indifference and firm in her commitments to family, friends, and town. She was a constant giver, no matter what obstacles life threw her way. She kept a home that was both cheerful and comfortable and gardens that she shared with the menagerie of critters that visited. She was forthright, looking others in the eye and offering clarity and an opportunity to make amends. She was forgiving, always waiting for her detractors to find their better selves. Her memory was encyclopedic. She withstood pain with great perseverance and dignity. She remembered to seek out the positive and enjoy each day’s gifts- the birds at the feeder, a get well card from a competitor, the new opossum nibbling the cat food, antiquing, an empathetic nurse holding her hand, a seven tile Scrabble word played with an X on a triple, Dan coming home, another chance to say “I love you” to a family member or special friend.  

Penny is predeceased by her mother Linda Constable, her brother John, and sisters Patience and Dorrie Ann. She is survived by her husband, Daniel Sampson; her father Charles Picard; brother Matthew and wife Lucia of Unity; brother Dennis and wife Sharon of Bangor; sister Patti Picard and husband Amir Chaudhry of Dearborn, MI; aunts Rosemary, Catherine, Linda, Sharon, and Elena; uncles Andrew and Michael; nephews Joshua and Daniel; nieces Caitlin, Meredith, Asiya, Amelia, Phoebe, and Nadia; grand-nephew Hunter, great- uncle Harold Tucker, many cousins and close friends. 

Penny’s family extends special appreciation to Jimmy Delorenzo, Holly Emerson, Emily Newell, the Unity Ambulance Corps, and Penny’s many healthcare providers. 

A celebration of Penny’s life will be held at 1:00 on Saturday, January 4, at the Star in the West Masonic Lodge at 327 Main Street in Unity.  

Donations in memory of Penny may be made to The Open Door of Unity (care of The Unity Food Pantry, P.O. Box 156, Unity, Me., 04988) or to the Waterville Area Humane Society (100 Webb Road, Waterville, Me., 04901).