PASADENA, Calif. – Amy M. (McNamee) Cote, 52, passed away peacefully on July 6, 2026 after a courageous fight to recover from an anoxic brain injury and heart attack in 2024.

Born in Melrose, Mass., Amy moved to Maine with her family shortly after her birth. Growing up in Lyman, she formed a close circle of friends, maintaining many of these friendships throughout her entire life. As a teenager, Amy was an avid reader who proudly displayed a massive collection of Nancy Drew books in her childhood bedroom. She also loved skiing with her family at Sunday River and was an active member of the International Order of the Rainbow for Girls, serving as a Worthy Advisor in the Sanford assembly. In 1991, she graduated in the top 10 of her class from Massabesic High School.

Amy loved to learn and travel; she was especially drawn to exploring other cultures. Her love for languages began in high school, when she began studying both French and Spanish. She went on to pursue World Languages at Connecticut College where she also studied and lived abroad in Spain. She was fluent in three languages by the time she graduated in 1995.

During her time at Connecticut College, Amy met the love of her life and future husband, Alexander Cote.

After college, they moved to Pasadena, Calif., where Alex practiced law and Amy became a beloved educator. She taught languages to students of all ages, from elementary through high school, including 17 dedicated years at Chandler School and her recent tenure at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy. Driven to empower others, Amy earned a master’s in Educational Leadership from Penn State and facilitated community workshops at the Institute for Girls’ Development. She believed that education was the key to helping young women build confidence, embrace resilience, and become thoughtful global citizens.

Family and adventure were at the center of Amy’s world, and she was the incredibly proud mom of two smart boys, Zach and Nico. She poured her entire heart into raising them, creating a home life that was vibrant, active, and packed with tickle fights, hiking adventures, Boy Scout trips, music classes, and a deep lifelong commitment to their education by staying on top of their grades in preparation for college.

She and Alex took their boys on countless travels, with Mexico and Hawaii becoming favorite family vacations. Amy also made sure to stay deeply connected to her East Coast roots, returning every summer to visit her parents in Maine, along with her sister Karen and grandmother Marjorie in Massachusetts.

Whether traveling or at home, Amy was the ultimate host. She loved nothing more than welcoming family and friends for visits, showing off all that Southern California has to offer, cooking dinner parties, or throwing backyard pool parties. Through these endless celebrations, she and Alex cultivated a beautiful West Coast family of loved ones who will always carry the warmth of her sunshine with them.

Amy lived to make others happy. A creative soul, she shared joy with her community as the lead singer in a local cover band, Out of the Blue, performing annually in concerts organized by the Pasadena Music Academy. She was also an extraordinary gift-giver who had an innate talent for finding the perfect, most meaningful token for the people she held dear. Amy loved the energy of crowds, the thrill of shopping, and, most of all, being right in the middle of where the action was, surrounded by family and friends.

Amy faced life’s obstacles without complaint, meeting her 2016 breast cancer diagnosis with an incredibly courageous spirit. She was an extraordinary sister to Karen, and the two were bound by a deep, lifelong love. When their mother was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s, Amy poured everything she had into supporting her family. When the illness made it impossible for her mom to travel to the West Coast, Amy didn’t hesitate to increase her own trips back east. She wanted to see her mother face-to-face and make sure Karen wasn’t carrying the care giving journey alone. She supported them both with a boundless, selfless patience, even while recovering from her own cancer treatments. Amy brought that same beautiful spirit to her final battle with a brain injury, sharing her bright personality and constant sense of humor with her dedicated care team.

She is survived by her husband, Alexander; her sons Zachary “Zach” and Nicholas “Nico”; her sister, Karen Hurtado, and her husband Guillermo (and their sons, Mateo and Luca) of Plymouth, Mass.; her father, Bruce McNamee and her stepmom Linda, of Waterboro; her stepsiblings Mindy Richards and Heather Glidden of Waterboro, and DJ Sawyer, of Clover, S.C.; and her grandmother, Marjorie McNamee of Holbrook, Mass. She is also survived by her uncles Chester Freeman of Quincy, Mass., and Kenneth McNamee of Brockton, Mass., and her aunt, Virginia Freeman of Bath; among many other close friends and extended family members including cousins Rebecca Bushway and Amanda Robbins; Andrew, John, and Christopher Freeman, Kenneth, John, Scott, and Brandon McNamee.

She was predeceased by her mother, Margaret.

Memorial services will be held August 16 at 10 a.m., at Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy in La Canada Flintridge, Calif., and Alfred Parish Church in Alfred, Sept. 19 at 10 a.m.

In lieu of flowers the family requests donations in Amy’s memory be made to

Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy

440 St. Katherine Dr.

La Canada Flintridge, CA 91011