Mrs. Laurie B. (Gilchrist) Wence, 52, of Waterbury died Monday October 13, 2008 at Saint Marys Hospital. She was the wife of Karl S. Wence. Laurie was born April 5, 1956 in Waterbury, daughter of George and Doris (Ackerman) Gilchrist and was a lifelong Waterbury resident. She attended Waterbury schools and was a graduate of Crosby High School. She had worked at United Security, Winn Management, where she had worked as a supervisor and Coffee And in the Naugatuck Valley Mall. She was a volunteer at the American School for the Deaf in West Hartford and a member of the First Congregational Church of Waterbury. Laurie enjoyed cooking and music and loved cats. Besides her husband and parents, she leaves her son Karl Wence, Jr of Waterbury, her daughters, Jennifer Santopietro of Bristol and Tracy Verrastro and her husband Ken of Bolton, her sisters, Linda Gilchrist of Coventry and Debra Blais of Pennsylvania and her grandson Brendon. Funeral services for Laurie will be held Friday at 10 a.m. at the Alderson Funeral Home of Waterbury 9 Holmes Ave. Burial will follow in Evergreen Cemetery in Watertown. Friends may call at the funeral home Friday morning from 9 a.m. until the time of the service. If desired, memorial contributions may be made to the Harold Leever Regional Cancer Center 1075 Chase Parkway Waterbury, CT. 06708.