Deann LeBeau, 77, died peacefully in Brooksville, Fla., December 9. She was born June 13, 1938, in Springfield, Mass.

She graduated from East Hampton High School in 1956, and achieved her undergraduate degree at West Virginia Wesleyan in 1960, earned a master's at Michigan State and her 6th Year from Fairfield University in 1976.

Ms LeBeau taught for a year in Alhambra, Calif., then at the University of Bridgeport, and, finally, for 30 years, at Newtown High School, retiring in 1995.

On top of her pursuit of advanced degrees, Ms LeBeau found time to obtain a realtor's license, become certified as a paralegal, and learn to be a general contractor.

She was an accomplished educator and coach. She earned prestigious Connecticut High School Coaches Association Outstanding Coach of the Year honors in girls’ swimming in 1980, and for girls’ track and field in 1981. She also was the first woman coach in Western Connecticut Conference boys’ track and field history, in 1981.

Ms LeBeau did not go into retirement quietly. She became a fierce advocate for LGBT youth. As a result, Ms LeBeau and PFLAG’s Jeff Carstens together were named to Out Magazine’s top 100 in 1997 for their work in adding sexual orientation to Connecticut’s Student Bill of Rights. That statute made Connecticut one of only five states to explicitly protect students on the basis of actual or perceived sexual orientation. For this crucial leadership the LGBT youth advocacy organization True Colors has expressed its enduring gratitude.

A true New Englander, Ms LeBeau was a lifelong Boston Red Sox fan. She also enjoyed following UConn women’s basketball, traveling to countless Women’s Final Fours to cheer on her team.

Her partner of 25 years, Susan Mayne of Bernard, Maine, and Spring Hill, Fla.; siblings Donald P. and husband Willem van Wijngaarden-LeBeau of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Barbara LeBeau of Sandwich, Mass., Janet L. and husband Robert Hill of Westport, Mass.; Cynthia L. and husband Arthur Garrison of South Hadley, Mass., and Richard T. LeBeau of Easthampton, Mass. She also leaves nephews: Christopher LeBeau of Sandwich, Mass.; Robert S. Hill, Jr, and wife Jarel L. Hill of Washington, DC, Peter H. Hill of Pembroke, Mass., and Phillip W. Hill of Bridgeport; and great-nieces and a great-nephew survive Ms LeBeau. Her father Emmanuel P. LeBeau of Quebec, Canada, and East Hampton, Mass.; and mother Doris M. LeBeau of East Hampton predeceased her.

Ms LeBeau’s loss is felt deeply in so many different communities. From her colleagues in the Newtown School System, her coaching peers in the State of Connecticut, her friends and allies who appreciate her efforts for LGBT youth advocacy, her former athletes, and the countless friends and family members she leaves behind, all will miss her dearly.

A memorial celebration is scheduled for Saturday, May 7, from 2 to 5 pm, at The Sea Coast Mission in Bar Harbor, Maine. All are welcome.

Memorial donations may be made to either Newtown Scholarship Association, PO Box 302, Newtown CT 06470; or True Colors, Inc, 30 Arbor Street, Suite 201 A, Hartford CT 06106.