Monette was a graduate of the University of Massachusetts in Amherst. He joined the
Federal Emergency Management Agency after serving 30 years in the U.S. Army. He was the senior federal official in charge of response and recovery operations after the 2001
September 11 attack on New York City. He also guided the response and relief effort after
Hurricane Katrina and
Hurricane Rita. Monette was a veteran of the Vietnam War and the Persian Gulf wars. He died after testing positive for
COVID-19 during the
COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts. Monette also had Parkinson's disease. He was buried at the Massachusetts Memorial Veteran's Cemetery in Agawam on April 7, 2020. ==References==