Admired by his Entourage

François-Xavier Lachance has marked the people he had met, both by his work and his personality.

Karine Vachon-Soulard, former director of the Parc maritime de Saint-Laurent, is in the rowboat shop. She speaks to an interviewer on the left side of the camera.

[Karine Vachon-Soulard] In the course of my work, I had a lot to do with the family of F-X Lachance, mainly his son Jean-Guy. Jean-Guy Lachance who became a pilot on the St. Lawrence.

Color photograph of Jean-François Lachance wearing a sailor striped toque on the left and Jean-Guy Lachance wearing a sailor’s cap on the right.

[K. V.-S.] I also had to work with his grandson, Jean-François Lachance,

Return on Karine Vachon-Soulard in the rowboat shop.

[K. V.-S.] who also had the same desire to pass on the life of his grandfather as a legacy. So we really felt that F-X Lachance did not just mark his children, but his grandchildren, so it really passed from generation to generation.

Black and white photograph of a boat on a trailer, on the roadside, in front of two houses near the river. Four men are busy. A woman walks to the right while looking at the camera

[K. V.-S.] At the level of the inhabitants, I think of an employee here in the Parc maritime

Return on Karine Vachon-Soulard in the rowboat shop.

[K. V.-S.] who even named his son in honor of F-X Lachance,

Video sequence showing the top of a workbench where a plane is placed and, behind, a piece of metal engraved with “F.X. Lachance”.

[K. V.-S.] so she named her son François-Xavier, she chose that name because

Return on Karine Vachon-Soulard in the rowboat shop.

[K. V.-S.] her mother admired Francois-Xavier Lachance and she herself had a lot of admiration for this man. In fact, the word “admiration”, I think it’s the one who was most often said when I was told about François-Xavier Lachance.

Sepia photograph of two wooden boats, with cabins, anchored near the shore. Houses and trees without leaves are in the background.

[K. V.-S.] What to remember about François-Xavier Lachance, I think, it’s not only his work,

Sepia photograph of a sailboat sailing on the river. The boat is pitching and the sails are deployed.

[K. V.-S.] which was very meticulous, which was extremely valued,

Return on Karine Vachon-Soulard in the rowboat shop.

[K. V.-S.] but I think he has marked the village of Saint-Laurent also by his personality. When people talk about him, it’s not just his work, but also his kindness, his generosity, his integrity, his boundless energy. So it’s a man who influenced others, I was also told sometimes the word “model”. So I think the word “model” is … a legacy that is perpetuated because it’s a man like this that we would like to look like in the end.

Sepia photograph of F-X Lachance, dressed in a working suit and cap, holding a paint bucket. He is standing on the shore in front of a boat covered with a cloth. He looks at the camera and smiles.

[K. V.-S.] People actually talked about him, saying that he was a tall man, but also a great man.