When Alexandra Dupré left her native France and chose Manitoba as the destination for her school exchange program in August 2008, she was sent to Lorette for ten months. Thanks to the warmth of the welcome she received, she still hasn’t left, almost 13 years later!
Alexandra Dupré still remembers that day vividly, August 28, 2008, when she landed at the Winnipeg Airport for the first time. “Marcel and Michelle Sorin and their children, the family that was going to welcome me in Lorette, had all come to pick me up at the airport. I knew they would be there, but I didn’t know they would have Welcome to Manitoba Alexandra banners! That touched me.”
“Michelle and Robert Lajoie were there too. They were my second host family, because both families wanted the experience. I stayed with the Sorins for five months and then I stayed with the Lajoies.”
The welcome she received from her families in Lorette was beyond Alexandra Dupré’s expectations, but the community was not done. A few months after her arrival, the young woman was invited to an evening of beer and skits put on by the Lorette Cultural Committee. A surprise awaited her there.
“They did a sketch about me! It was funny and very touching. Then they offered me flowers in a bowl to welcome me. Thirteen years later, I still use that bowl to eat my cereal.”
“I also noticed very quickly in Lorette that everyone seemed to know me by my first name, even if I had never met them. It showed me that no matter where you come from, in Lorette they welcome you as if you had always been part of the family.”
Faced with such kindness and hospitality, the young French woman soon felt a desire to stay. “I think that I began my steps for permanent residence one month after arriving at the Lajoie family home, where I finally stayed for a year and three months instead of five months.”
“It was Michelle Lajoie, who was working for the government at the time, who told me about permanent residency and the possibility of dual nationality. The Lajoies have always supported me in my efforts to stay here. They have more than once vouched for me.”
Indeed, the couple also co-signed “no questions asked” so that she could rent an apartment in Lorette and buy a car.
True Solidarity
Alexandra Dupré had also come to Manitoba to work at Les Chouettes de Lorette daycare. Once again, the magic of the rural world worked its magic. “Les Chouettes de Lorette had just opened when I arrived at the beginning of the 2008 school year, and it was my first job. So I felt a little lost at first. But the team took me under their wing and guided me very well.”
“There is a real solidarity and kindness in Lorette. People are very united, they all know each other and they really want to help each other. Especially the Francophones, but it is also true for most of the Anglophones here. That’s what I liked. Everywhere, I felt at home right away. I very quickly became attached to the people with whom I worked and lived.”
In 13 years, Alexandra Dupré has worked at Les Chouettes de Lorette, École Lagimodière, and today at the divisional office of the Division scolaire franco-manitobaine. Three jobs, all in Lorette.
She was also a volunteer firefighter for the Rural Municipality of Taché from 2013 to 2020. “It was my childhood dream,” she says. “But I had to stop everything because of a bad concussion. It was very hard for me.”
Fortunately, her community of Lorette was able to help her through that ordeal. And while the young woman is living in Winnipeg this year, Lorette is never far away!
“I love going to work every day in Lorette, to see my little home. I like being connected to this community. It makes me feel good. No matter what I do, no matter where I go, I always come back to Lorette!”
“Communities are like flavors: when you mix them together, it’s better!”
Just 15-20 minutes from Winnipeg, the Rural Municipality of Taché is ideal for newcomer families who want to settle and connect with the local population.
Justin Bohémier, Mayor of the Rural Municipality of Taché, points out the advantages: “It’s rural, but just outside of town. So we have the advantage of small communities where it’s easier to make connections and feel part of the group, while being able to reach Winnipeg very quickly and easily. In addition, we have very good French and immersion schools.”
“Most of the newcomers who have settled here don’t leave anymore,” he says. “They stay in Taché for generations.”
For the Rural Municipality, the arrival of these newcomers is also a blessing. “It brings new perspectives, an open mindedness. I’m a chef by trade and for me, a community is like a kitchen: when you mix influences from different countries, it’s better.”
“In addition, thanks to immigration, we built new apartments, condos, houses, sold lots… We had a real residential boom in 2010.”
