A Family Affair : the Béland

Interview with the members of the Béland family: Owners of Club Hosanna

Close-up of Michel Béland, Club Hosanna’s founder, in interview format, sitting in a wooden chair inside the Hosanna museum. On-screen text: Michel Béland.

Michel Béland: My name is Michel Béland. I’m a former forestry worker and the founder of Club Hosanna.

Close-up of Max Béland, the owner of Club Hosanna and son of Michel Béland, in interview format, sitting on the porch of a forest cottage. On-screen text: Max Béland.

Max Béland: My name is Max Béland. I took over from my father Michel about 10 years ago. Now I run the outfitting operation with my girlfriend Lucie and my children, Émile and Élodie, who are never very far away.

[Music]

Succession of images of the Béland family walking in the woods. Aerial view of a cottage near a lake; behind the cottage, we get a glimpse of mountains stretching to the horizon. On-screen text: Pourvoirie Club Hosanna, Mauricie. Black-and-white photo of a man standing near a sled loaded with wood and harnessed to a horse, followed by a shot of artwork, photos, newspaper articles and period items, including tools used to build the outfitter’s cottages.

Close-up of Michel Béland, in interview format, sitting in a wooden chair inside the Hosanna museum.

M.B: I worked for 55 years in the forestry and hunting and fishing industries. Today, I am passing on all that expertise and all that lifetime of experience in the forest to my son Max and to my grandchildren.

[Music]

Shots of historic artefacts, a couple fishing in a motor boat and Max Béland showing a magnificent fish on the screen. Close-up of Max Béland, in interview format, sitting on a cottage porch.

Max B: Club Hosanna is located in the heart of the Mauricie region. It’s now a 130-square-kilometre domain where guests can find brook trout, rainbow trout and lake trout.

Several shots of cottages around a large expanse of water and an immense forest. Close-up of Michel Béland, in interview format, sitting in a wooden chair inside the Hosanna museum.

M.B: These days, we talk about foresters, but when I was a kid they were woodsmen. My grandfather used to say to me, “I’ve got a real little woodsman here!” What I know I learned from my grandparents. They were real outdoor types, at home in the woods. They were able not just to survive in the forest, but to live in the forest, as long as they wanted. When I would go out with my grandfather to spend two weeks in the woods, I wasn’t ever worried about not eating or sleeping because we had everything we needed.

In less time than it would take to say it, he would get out a little length of fishing line and land a fish. Those are memories from my childhood, but we keep those memories with us all our lives. Today, I am very eager to pass on that knowledge to Max as well as to my grandchildren.

[Music]

Black-and-white photo of a lumberjack camp; a succession of images showing small horses harnessed to sleds loaded with logs, followed by an exhibition of over-snow vehicles. We see an old-style lantern, a wicker tackle box, an old scoop net and a picture with fish sculpted in wood. Close-up of Max Béland, in interview format, sitting on a cottage porch.

Max B: Passing on that expertise is a gradual process that goes on every day, whether it’s restoring over-snow vehicles, building cottages or raising trout. It all happened on an ongoing basis, a little bit at a time. These aren’t things you learn in a week! It’s really a step-by-step process that can take years, or even decades. And I grew up in it! I still remember when I was 10 years old, my son’s age. I was very little and I used to follow him around and learn something new every day. Like how some machine worked, how to repair something else, or how to build something. Those are things I learned over time and now today, well, it’s my occupation, it’s my life! It’s a way of living that I wouldn’t trade for anything in the world.

Succession of shots. An over-snow vehicle, a log cabin and its interior. A child and father catching a fish on the shore.

Musher: Come on, my little wolves!!! Let’s go, let’s go!

[Music]

A few winter shots, including a “musher” and dogs pulling a sled. An over-snow vehicle driving up to the Club Hosanna office. Then a few summertime images, including a fish filmed underwater. An angler sitting in a boat and a loon with an injured wing. Close-up of Michel Béland, in interview format, sitting in a wooden chair inside the Hosanna museum.

M.B: Thirty years later, it’s all about having my family around me. Having my grandchildren visit me. Can we help you, Grandpa? What did you do new today? And of course, quite naturally, I have a lot of projects on the go. The children watch everything closely, and it’s a great satisfaction for me to be able to pass on my knowledge.

[Music]

Shot of Michel Béland sitting in the forest near a trail, accompanied by his grandchildren who are filled with wonder. He appears to be telling them exciting stories. Close-up of Max Béland, in interview format, sitting on a cottage porch and accompanied by his children Élodie and Émile Béland.

Max B: For me, the most beautiful thing in this whole deal is that I see myself today through the eyes of my children, Élodie and Émile. I was exactly the same age as Émile, 10 years old, at the time. And the thing I find most wonderful today is the response I get when I ask my kids, “What would you like to do when you grow up?”

Émile: I want to run the outfitting business.

Élodie: Work at Club Hosanna.

Max B: Really? Well then, you’ve made me a very happy man! (Laughter.) It’s a great day, right?

Élodie, Max and Émile: Yes!

[Closing music]

Aerial shot of a large expanse of water and on-screen text: Family Stories: The Béland.