Sarah Prudence, aka Prudence (Prudy) Elizabeth Gushee passed away on her 77th birthday in St Croix, U.S. Virgin Islands, on February 1, 2026 after a period of declining health. Sarah was born and raised in Appleton, Maine. She was predeceased by her parents, Floyd and Elizabeth (Meservey) Gushee, and her brother F. Larry Gushee.

She leaves behind her brother Jenness R. Gushee, Sr. and his wife Goldie of Appleton; sister-in-law Valerie Burke Gushee; birth daughter, Shannon White and family; special cousins Craig and Dawn; nieces and nephews Kristi, Kathi, Kendall, Michael, Jenness Jr., Julie, Stephenie; and many extended family members.

Island friends, who were like family for decades, include Ellie, Gloria, Karen, Patricia, Richard, and many others.

Sarah Prudy attended Appleton schools and was part of the first class of Appleton students to graduate from Camden District High School in 1967. Sarah pursued her Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Maine in Orono. She spent most of her career fiercely advocating for children in the Special Education field. Her teaching career included time in California, New Hampshire, Maine, including her hometown of Appleton, and the Island. On St Croix, USVI Sarah taught college level courses, at the Queen Louise Children's Home, at the Charles H. Emanuel School, and eventually retiring from the USVI Education Dept.

Sarah Prudy grew up in rural Appleton on a dairy and chicken farm in a neighborhood surrounded by relatives from both sides of her family. She grew up a gentle girl who enjoyed nature, animals of all kinds, plants, reading, piano, and wonderful friends. Once into adulthood she spread her wings and traveled. Sarah continued to return home during the summers to Sennebec Pond, surrounded by family and the joy and laughter of children, barking dogs, wildlife, and family.

Sarah Prudy's four decades of life that she lived in the Virgin Islands was filled with much the same as Appleton, and her friends were her island family. Most of her island time was lived near the top of a rural hill in the Bellevue neighborhood of Christiansted, owned by the Bond family, where she overlooked the beautiful Caribbean Sea. She continued to rescue animals, feed strays, grow beautiful plants, and soak up the Island sunshine. Golfing became this gentle woman's passion. Through good strokes and bad, and with hurricanes causing off grid primitive living, the laughter and friendship of her Island family sustained her.

A Celebration of Sarah Prudy's Life will be held March 9, 2026, in Christiansted USVI.

A Maine Summer Celebration will be held at Sennebec Pond with more information to follow. Sarah Prudy will be interred at Pine Grove Cemetery in Appleton and in Christiansted, St Croix, USVI.

Our thanks to all who shared Sarah Prudy's life.

Thank you to Shusters Crematorium for assistance.