The autumn sun sparkled on Monday above a black chapter in the recent history of Quebec. Two years ago, a man killed two people and wounded five others in a sword attack that remains, even today, senseless for the families of the disappeared.
Relatives, elected officials and simple passers-by attended, in the morning, the intimate unveiling of a commemorative plaque in tribute to the victims. “Suzanne Clermont, Francois Duchesne. Their memory is forever engraved in the heart of our city”, recalls the memorial inaugurated at the Place d’Armes.
It was in this square, one of the most beautiful in Quebec with the immensity of the Château Frontenac on one side and the old stones of rue Sainte-Anne on the other, that on October 31, 2020, François Duchesne found the dead, savagely attacked by Carl Girouard. In his run, the assailant also injured five other people, in addition to killing Suzanne Clermont and bruising the tranquility of an entire city.
“The plate will not take away the pain,” underlined the mayor of Quebec, Bruno Marchand. Nor will it take away the sadness and anger associated with the tragedy. […] But it will remind us of solidarity, the one that gives meaning to our lives, the one that gives meaning to our city. The mayor’s sneakers for the occasion were black, a far cry from their usual colorful extravagance.
One of Mr. Duchesne’s sisters also spoke at the microphone. “François was much more than a brother to me. François was the most formidable of the brothers,” began Marie-Josée Duchesne. She honored the memory of a “caring uncle” and an “exceptional son”, sensitive to art and to others.
“Two years ago, our world came crashing down here,” Ms.me Duchesne. Time and years pass, but pain and absence remain vivid for loved ones. “I think of him every day. It is with him that I would have liked to discover this exhibition. It is with him that I would have liked to share the plot of this new novel. It is with him that I would have liked to develop a travel plan. It is his opinion that I need to make a decision, small or large, listed the sister of François Duchesne. Without him, the world is no longer so sweet, the world is no longer so beautiful. »
Several elected officials, including the minister responsible for the Capitale-Nationale region, Jonatan Julien, and the supportive deputy for Jean-Lesage, Sol Zanetti, attended the ceremony. “Today, the City is doing a commemoration that gives a lot of meaning, began Mr. Julien. Which reminds us, ultimately, of the fragility of what we are. »
Carl Girouard, who was 25 when he committed his crimes, is serving a life sentence with no possibility of release until 2045. The judge, when handing down his sentence, had accused the culprit of having perpetrated ” absolutely heinous crimes” and destroying the lives of “a multitude of people.
“It’s something that has affected everyone in Quebec, believes MP Sol Zanetti. Everyone said, ‘It could have been me, it could have been my family.’”
Monday, on the sidelines of the ceremony, members and friends of the two missing communed together on the scene of one of the worst tragedies to have occurred in the capital in recent memory. The mother of François Duchesne, octogenarian, sometimes sketched a smile, surrounded by his own.
“Let’s never forget that happiness can be fleeting,” said her daughter, Marie-Josée, on the podium a few moments earlier. Do not waste time […] check in on your loved ones and tell them you love them – just like François would have done. »