By Julien-Pierre Desmeules-Paré
–
It was surrounded by his spiritual family that little brother Marc Sirard passed away on February 7 at the age of 88. Member and former administrator of the Myriam Beth’léhem Family, he leaves his mark on his community for, among other things, his management, his experience, his kindness and his advice.
Administrator for thirty years for the Myriam Beth’léhem Family of Baie-Comeau, Mr. Sirard was not, however, predestined to become a member of a religious community.
Born into a family of farmers on May 3, 1932 in West Shefford near Bromont, the little brother did his classical studies at the Collège de l’Assomption, with the Fathers of the Blessed Sacrament, then studied administration at the Queen’s University in Ontario. During the first part of his life, he was a famous businessman in Montreal, he married and became the father of four children, Jean-Pierre, Louise, Marc-André and Isabelle.
The conversion of the little brother took place in 1981. At the time, the Myriam Beth’léhem Family had just moved into the old building of the Auberge du Roc è Baie-Comeau. The retired businessman, who had just gone through a divorce, had come to lend a hand a few years earlier to the repair of the building in order to welcome the first members.
For more than 30 years, his business experience allowed him to administer and manage several family homes, which were rapidly increasing at the time in Quebec and internationally. He kept this post until the 2010s. He then began to bequeath the task to another member of his spiritual family, Alexandre Djoric.
For him, Mr. Sirard has been of great help to the community. “This life experience that he had, he put to good use by accompanying, for a good thirty years, couples at the spiritual level, but also with material advice given his experience as a banker and businessman ”, explains the administrator and little brother of the Myriam Beth’lehem Family.
According to Mr. Djoric, “for him it was a real passion to help couples have a successful marriage. He had had an unfortunate experience, but he had learned a lot through it. He also founded career groups, including Défis Parents. He prepared people for marriage ”.
A fighting man
Mr Sirard was a fighting man who, at the age of 27, suffered the ravages of polio. Paralysis in one of his legs forced him to walk with a cane at a very young age. Worse yet, the doctors told him he might never walk again. But his relentlessness and the words of encouragement from a nurse will have enabled him to partially fight the prognosis, confides Mr. Djoric.
The man of great faith carried out both tasks simultaneously, namely the administration of the community, counselor, without forgetting his life of prayer. “Mr. Sirard didn’t turn corners in business, it wasn’t his way of doing things. He had a reputation in business for being a man of integrity and honesty. It is an apprenticeship that I received from him ”, underlines little brother Djoric.
In his last moments, Marc Sirard had the chance to leave in peace and to be accompanied by members of his spiritual family. The latter forms a bubble that allowed the members to say goodbye and accompany their brother on his last trip.
Little brother Marc Sirard will have left indelible marks on the community and on the people he worked with during his life. Despite the void left by his departure, his brothers and sisters of the Myriam Beth’Léhem Family will continue to move forward with the honesty and integrity that so well characterized the man of faith.
–
