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| Claude L. Rémillard |
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Claude Rémillard was born at home on a farm in St. Phillipe De Laprairie, Quebec, Canada, in 1923. He attended a one-room school-house with 20 to 30 students from the first through sixth grades. He was the fourth of nine children (6 brothers and 2 sisters) who all had chores to do before breakfast, such as rounding up the cows from the pasture for milking, and the horses for the day’s work ahead in the summer or feeding in the winter. His maternal grandparents spent their last ten years with the family and his grandfather would tell stories of his childhood at night or play a few tunes on his violin, much like the “Evening Visits” described by Miss Martin, until the family purchased its first radio in 1935. “When I read this book, I relived my childhood all over again. From the daily chores to the evening prayers, I saw similarities to my own upbringing. My parents were very religious and we went to church every Sunday, in a horse-drawn buggy or sled. Neither rain nor snow storms could hold us back from this regular religious activity.” Claude began to learn English grammar in the sixth grade and also in high school, but had no occasion to practice speaking the language in his French community. When he was 18 years old, he spent a few months with an English farm family, 100 miles away, so he could develop his English speaking skills. Then he attended an electrical trade school where half the students were English and half were French. Some books were English, some in French, and classes were also taught in both languages. In 1950, he went to work in Windsor, Ontario, an English area, where he met his future wife, Rose-Marie Beaugrand. She was of French descent, but educated in English, and was later a great help in the translation of this book. Claude worked as an electrician for his entire career, immigrating to the U.S. in 1953 and eventually moving to Santa Clara, California, where he and Rose-Marie reared their family of nine children. He retired from the IBEW as a journeyman electrician in 1988. He has been active in the Roman Catholic Church all of his life, and especially with the Knights of Columbus where he has been a member since 1947 and a former Grand Knight. He has written and/or edited the organization’s monthly newsletter for over 30 years because he finds writing an enjoyable hobby.
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| Denise Rémillard Chachere |
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Denise Rémillard Chachere was the second of nine children born to Claude and Rose-Marie but became the oldest at the age of 3 when her sister died of cancer. She began her education at a Catholic school in Chicago and was always attracted to teaching and learning. The solid foundation provided her by the nuns at St. Blase allowed her to advance a grade when the family moved to California during her third grade. Her favorite classes were English grammar (thanks to Mrs. Zoe Foley) and writing (thanks to Mrs. Pearce). For many reasons, she was forced in the fall of 1969 to drop out of high school in her sophomore year. Years later she studied for and earned her GED while living in Texas with her daughter, Christina, and, upon hearing she received a very high score, it reignited her passion for education. After her second child, Brian, was born in Baton Rouge, she began her college studies at Louisiana State University. She earned her B.S. in Management and Computer Science after studying for ten years part-time and working full-time. A term paper she wrote for a labor economics class prompted the professor to encourage her to seek a graduate education. With the support of her husband, Steve, and family, they moved to Urbana, Illinois, where she completed her Master’s degree and doctoral studies in Human Resource Management and Labor Relations at the University of Illinois. She accepted her first academic Management assignment at Saint Louis University, a Jesuit institution. Denise and Steve currently live in St. Louis, Missouri, with their two cats, in their historic district house built in 1899. Consulting [www.eeassets.com] and projects in and around the house, especially gardening and historic research, keep her busy, as do their two grandsons, Christian and Seth.
As explained in the book preface, a worn copy was given to them by Denise’s neighbor in Baton Rouge, and Claude began the rough translation from California while she still lived in Louisiana. Work stopped when she moved to Illinois until Denise discovered a perfect copy of Désirée’s book at the UIUC Library which prompted them to return to the work they had begun several years earlier. It began a period of weekly long-distance conversations and mailings to perfect the translation and research the details of Miss Martin's life and experiences. An active member of the Episcopal Church and a licensed lay reader, Denise officiated for Morning Prayer at Emmanuel Episcopal Church every Thursday. After the service, the attendees gathered for coffee and discussion of the current events. Regulars in this ritual included Ed Davidson, Professor Emeritus of English, and Father Lou. As they heard about the book project, they offered their time to read the translation, and in Father Lou’s case to also read the French text, and give their feedback.
“I believe Désirée was guiding me from above with this project. When one considers the amazing circumstances of my life to accomplish the writing and publishing of this book, it has to include some form of Divine intervention. Sharon Edmon was my neighbor who first showed us the book. Steve is from Opelousas, Louisiana, which created opportunities for my father and me to visit and learn from Grand Coteau more than once. I selected the UIUC for my graduate education where the library had Miss Martin’s book as well as numerous books she had mentioned in her text, and which was an ideal resource for the research accomplished along with the translation. Then to have met Professor Davidson and Father Lou, who not only supported the project but provided their time and insight into its progress, was more than just fate. Finally, that I landed in St. Louis where the Society of the Sacred Heart has its national archives and I found a local printer who specializes in small independent projects, could not have been mere coincidence.”
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