Memorial Service for Bernie Lavigne & Lois Floyd Lavigne - Our God loves to be part of our assemblies. We trust Bernie & Lois are with Him. - October 22nd, 2022 - Assembly in Danny & Sheila's home

 We pray in anticipation of the Resurrection 

VOCATION: Jesus calls each and every one of us - He calls you to follow Him, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and become a missionary disciple....

 The Word of God, Fr. Gilles' Homily, Prayers, and sharing by Danny, Kaytlin, & Grace MP3 version 

Memories shared by Kaytlin, Grace, and Danny PDF file

(Grace Lavigne)

 Celebration of life

Dear Grandma and Grandpa,

I cry because you have passed away, but I smile because we lived a great life together. Today is

a very special day because all I can think of is you.

A few weeks ago on your anniversary, we took out your old projector and we watched pictures

of you. It made me feel good to see all of your memories.

Grandma, you were so smart, kind and creative. You made me a baby blanket, which is still my favorite blanket. I would love spending time with you while you would knit.

Grandpa, we used to walk to the park together and go on the swings. Once you surprised us with a cool Lego set and every time after it would be on the same shelf. I loved when you lived with us and we would come home from school, you would ask us how our day was and would tell you all about it.

What I miss the most is every Father’s Day we would get your favorite meal, which is lobster and you taught me to crack open the shell. Grandma didn't like lobster, so we would make her chicken Alfredo which made me happy because I would eat it too.

Grandma and Grandpa, I know that you are safe and happy together now. I know you are not in pain and you are running free in heaven. I think about when you were young and healthy and I believe that is how you are spending your days together. I love you both with all my heart.

I have a little video for you guys –

love you so much –

love, Grace

(Kaytlin Lavigne)

Grandma and Grandpa were the most amazing and incredible people in the world. They would make me laugh and smile all the time.

Grandpa would tell me thousands of stories about him when he was younger. I remember when I came home one day from school when grandpa was living with us, he told me the story about how he met grandma in a bar. He told me how he would take the train from New Brunswick to Quebec on Christmas eve and sing Christmas carols with people on the train.

One time we went to visit grandma in the hospital and we brought a bunch of nail polishes and we let her choose her favourite colour and she pointed out this really pretty purple and I painted her nails for her.

When they lived in the house in Pierrefonds, we would always go on the deck swing. It was our favourite thing. Grandpa would go on with us and make us go really high until we hit the back of the deck railing. While we were doing that grandma would make us kraft dinner or butter and salt pasta.

They had a bird house and we would watch the birds go in and out grabbing the seeds. There was a park down the road we used to go to and there was this one time when we were pretty young but old enough to remember.

We saw a guy with his dog and the dog was so cute, his name was PK. We turned around for literally one second and grandma started swearing. PK peed on grandma's shoe. We all started to kill ourselves laughing. That was probably one of my favourite memories. Now to this day we all sing PK peed on grandma's shoe.

Grandpa and Grandma spent so much time with us. They would help mama and Dada with the house. Grandma would help with the gardening and grandpa would help with the building. Grandpa loved Tim Hortons, every time we slept over, we would drive to go get Tim’s. Every Christmas we would get him a gift card and he would always order a coffee and an egg sandwich.

Grandma loves chicken alfredo pasta and whenever we asked for mama to make it, she always does and it reminds us of grandma. It makes me feel better to know that they are together now. I love them with all my heart and I know Grandpa and Grandma are still looking over dada, mama, me Liam and grace. We will always be a family!

(Danny Lavigne)

Hi guys thank you for being here with us it means everything in world to me. All of us here today have different beliefs and our own thoughts but one thing we all have in common is life and death. I’ve learned that every day after their passing is hard, but remembering all of the good times we all spent with them makes it a little easier.

As a child, you look at your parents as your teachers, the ones you look to for comfort and support love and guidance. I looked to my parents for everything and they were there for whatever I needed, all their attention, time and love because they knew that's what counted the most.

Time, the one thing you can't get enough of but they showed me that if you fill that time up with love it will last forever. As a little boy it felt like time stood still, because it was filled with road trips, sports bike rides and summers at Thorndale pool. It didn't matter what we did, we were together. It was the three of us and that's all I needed.

As an only child some People would say oh you must have been spoiled. and I was, not in the sense of material things but with love and attention because I didn't get whatever I wanted, they taught me at a very young age that if I wanted something that I would have to work for it, so dad helped me build a trailer for my bike to pull the mower and mom helped me get contracts from her friends in the neighborhood. Because of their love and support I worked hard and was the richest self made 9-year-old around.

Lois and Bernie were the kindest, most loving parents I could have ever asked for. The both of them Hard working and driven to never give up on a better life and to be better people. I understood why they worked so hard; it meant I was loved and everything they did as husband and wife and as parents they did for our family.

I was lucky to have two people in this world who would love me that much, no matter what. Lois never shied away from being there for others who needed support in one way or another, or to call them out as needed with her favorite saying “what the flip". As her son, I feel like I grew up with the most incredible role model who taught me to be kind, be myself and to always try to be a better person. With Kaytlin, Liam, Grace whom she loved more than anything else in this world. Lois would come to the house and right away grab a baby and smother them with kisses and squeezes, playing with them and making them laugh. Our kids made her love life that much more.

Mom was a good gardener, that's one of the things she took pride in. Her garden was always looking great and well manicured. So, when she came to the house and saw a weed growing in the path or flowers, she would pick it! Lois's blankets. She would spend hours night, after night, making one for everyone she knew, it showed how much she cared for them.

Sheila you were the daughter she never got to have. They both loved you as you were their own and were so proud of the strong woman that you are. I remember when you and my mom first met, Sheila was giving me a lift to school every day and during those first few weeks getting home I would shop talk with dad, but mom more importantly wanted to know about the girl in the car.

I explained how nice Sheila was and how every day was a good day working with her on projects in class. So, one of those first few days, way before we were even dating, Lois wanted to meet; so, she had Sheila out of the car, with a big smile holding her by the arms in true fashion, the hugs and touching of your face and hair turning saying to me! “oh my god she's so beautiful" not embarrassing at all! Mom looking at me then looking at you, and back to me with a smile as if to say don't fudge this up I love her!

Lois was a strong woman who was never scared of hard work, her determination and strength she took with her everywhere especially in sickness, whether it was brain surgery, strokes or car accidents she took one step at a time and worked her way back to health or as close as humanly possible. I will miss her smile, her laugh, her incredibly loud whistle you can hear a mile away when she wanted me home from the park. My Dad the love of her life was there with her throughout every good and bad day.

Dad From Bathurst New Brunswick. The most beautiful country town, but due to the pulp and paper factory it smelled like rotten eggs and cabbage, I missed it the second we pulled out in our old car down Lavigne Street every single time we had to leave to come back home. I loved seeing my Dad; when we were there in the summer, he was an outdoorsman, he knew exactly what to do, where to find it, how to make it, how to fix it or how to catch it. He was my MacGyver.

He was also a great carpenter, building furniture for anyone and everyone, from complicated rocking chairs to folding tables, he even built the tabernacle at church to store the Eucharist, nothing was too hard for him to create. He would read books and magazines to educate himself on techniques and then build something new like he's done it 100 times before and of course with attention to detail. But his favorite creation was what he called the Newfie tambourine. It took quite a few beers to build that masterpiece. I'm sure a few of you have seen him in action or have tried to play it. Once he started it was hard to get him off and the party was going.

One thing I know is that my dad had a good life with a wife who love him and a family who adored him, a son who looked up to him and was always proud to call him my Dad. So, in their vows they said till death do us part. In death they did part, but not for long as I believe they couldn't live without one another. I know all of us will miss them. So, after all Bernie and Lois made good time, the life they created together with that little bit of time, they created a whole lot of love that will never be forgotten. Thank you again for being her today to honor them. They loved all of you and their memory will live on in all of us.

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Prayers at the Graveside - Final prayers and Commendation - MP3 File 

Poem by Bede Jarrett - "We Give Them Back to You O Lord" 

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© 2006-2022 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2022 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC

The Funeral Mass for Maureen Rodrigues Marolly - Father, Jesus his Son, and the Holy Spirit offer intimate friendship to each and every human being on Earth. - June 3rd, 2022 - St. Thomas à Becket Parish Church

Holy Mass of Anticipation of the Resurrection   

VOCATION: Jesus calls us - He calls you to follow Him, to be filled with the Holy Spirit, and become a missionary disciple....

 Homily MP3 version 

HOMILY Text

        There is no doubt that our God clearly wants an intimate relation with all of us, with each and every human being. The mystery of it is that our God likes to play "hide and seek" and the Holy Trinity have elected to do the hiding and it's up to us to do the seeking; which explains why there is such a variety of religions in the world. The Father always wanted to bring us closer to Himself, and so, it was from all eternity He planned to send his Son among us to become one of us, and we know Him as Jesus.

        Now, Jesus spent most of his life living a simple life with his Mother Mary and Father Joseph, learning the trade of a carpenter and being a good neighbour; learning to be an expert with wood, but also with people. Then, He spent three years trying to bring humanity closer. Have you ever wondered why Jesus used so many different parables to speak about this new life, this new relationship with God? The Apostles were actually exasperated with Him at times and wanted Him to make things simpler, plainer. The truth of it is that this new life, this Kingdom of God, is something interior, which also becomes visible. 

        For example... Clayton, do you still love Maureen? "Definitely, at all times." Show me your love... where is it? Bring it out... show it to us. Of course not, it's something interior, mysterious, hidden, but it is so real, yes? And it does manifest itself. As Adrian witnessed, you put a cot next to Maureen's hospital bed to be with her... so we understand these things. The important precious things are invisible, but they do manifest themselves in the visible world. 

        I'm very grateful to the grandchildren because of the beautiful birthday card you gave to your Nana. I saw it yesterday and I read the notes, and I was very struck by something. At least three of you wrote: "I don't know what I would do without you, Nana." Something like that. Right? I think that you already knew that she wasn't well and you could already foresee the day when she would no longer we walking among us. So, that's a very precious thought. What would I do without you? Indeed, what would I do without you? We say to the person we love who has gone from this world. 

        So, where is she? ("She's with God.") What we have here is her earthly home in which we knew her, touched her, loved her, and who cooked for us, and so on, with this body, this earthly home, this dwelling, this house, which is now empty. As I mentioned yesterday, this house no longer has curtains in the windows; the windows are bare, the lights are out, it's empty, it's sad; so, where has the occupant gone? 

        If it helps you to visualize this, you might want to close your eyes for a moment, and just become aware of the interior landscape inside yourself. I believe that a lot of people - and this is one of the reasons there's so much trouble in the world - a lot of people have never realized there is a world inside them. I thank God for our grade two teacher (Miss Frenette). We must have been rambunctious... she told us to put our heads on our desk and close our eyes, and she led us in a reflection, and in this reflection I became aware that there is a world inside. It is in this world inside that God visits with us. Call it the "soul"... it is also linked to our mind, which is a factory producing thoughts, and it is also linked to our heart, the crossroads of our emotions... but the deepest part of this interior world is our soul. 

        It is immortal; it will never die. It is a spark of God's own divinity. He who is a divine being who never had a beginning and will never have an end, created our human souls like himself, like the angels in a way, immortal, who will never die. Nothing in the universe, no power, can ever destroy a human soul. 

        Now, this soul is what contains all of our experiences, all of our memories, all of our decisions, all of our efforts to love and to be loved, our willingness to forgive, our acceptance and endurance of suffering; all the great accomplishments of human beings are contained and reserved in the soul. Consider it the "hard drive" of a human being, and this soul leaves the body when we draw our last breath. People who have died for a few minutes and come back relate stories of having glimpsed this other world, this other dimension, this Kingdom of God, the Presence of the Almighty. And it's often an experience of light, of wonder, of peace, of love.

        The atmosphere in this world is oxygen, nitrogen, and humidity, and sometimes pollution. The atmosphere in Heaven is Love. I'm sure your Nana would want you to know and to remember this: that you have choices every day, and often during the day, and the choices are about accepting love and accepting to give love, and we give love in many ways. We cook and serve food. We also accept to put up with one another. There is perhaps no greater love than this, to put up with another person, to accept them as they are; not to try and change them, but to accept them as they are. And if we think there's something wrong with them; it's God's problem. God is the one who works on human souls, to transform us, to help us grow. Our best decision and action is to serve one another, put ourselves at the service of others, offer a kind and listening ear, offer a smile, a helping hand. I think there's even room for kidding; right Clayton? (Clayton:) "100%." One hundred percent he says. 

        What will happen in your home? We don't know. Whatever it was that mysteriously began on October 7th, 1994... this mysterious fragrant oily liquid coming out of statues, religious pictures, and tapestries... perhaps it's ending today. Whatever God wants, He will get. What was the purpose of it all? You called upon me shortly after it began and asked me for advice because people were coming and knocking on the door at all hours every day of the week... you were a family, you were concerned about your children, you were concerned about privacy... and the Lord made it obvious to me what to say to you. It's your home. God could have made this happen in the church, in a public place. He chose a home. God respects our freedom. You're the man of the house, you're the husband, you're the father. 

        You can make decisions. You can set the terms. You can limit the times. That is perhaps what I'd like to end with. We have no idea how much Almighty God respects the freedom He has given to us. The Father, and Jesus, and the Holy Spirit offer to us intimate friendship beginning now and which will go on forever, but it's up to us. We can and we do say: "No!" We can and we do turn our backs. We do this to one another, and we do it to God. And He puts up with us, and He knows there will be another day; until the last day comes and there will be no more days. So, there is a kind of urgency in the Good News. Jesus kept harping at that. "The Kingdom of God is near. Wake up! Smell the coffee! Get with the program! Stop wasting time! 

        Call the person you've been neglecting. Drop in on the person you're avoiding. Forgive the enemy. Stop holding onto those burdens. It's time to give it up. It's time to let it go. It's time to put our trust in the One from whom we come and the One to whom we are returning. Amen? (All:) "Amen!" 

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What are the offerings that we bring to God? What is the meaning of "HOSANNAH!" We acclaim God for his greatness and praise Him, while at the same time calling upon Him to rescue us in our distress.... "HOSANNAH!" MP3 version 

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AT THE END OF HOLY MASS: Fr. Gilles - Invitation to write and send testimonies and "character references" about Maureen Rodrigues Marolly to Clayton or Father Gilles for the purpose of sending them to the Archbishop with a request to open an canonical inquiry into Maureen's life with a view to asking the Church to declare her a servant of God, blessed, and among the saints. 

Final prayers and Commendation - MP3 File 

Prayers at the Graveside - MP3 File 

Poem by Bede Jarrett - "We Give Them Back to You O Lord" 

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© 2006-2022 All rights reserved Fr. Gilles Surprenant, Associate of Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montreal QC           © 2006-2022 Tous droits réservés Abbé Gilles Surprenant, Prêtre Associé de Madonna House Apostolate & Poustinik, Montréal QC