HELENE BLAIS

Adjust Text Size: A+ A-

HELENE BLAIS Hélène Marie Désange Blais passed away quietly on the evening of December 14, 2012. Born in Transcona in 1917 to Eusèbe and Eléontine Blais, she was the sole survivor of the family of seven children. By the age of four her life was forever changed by polio, but the family ensured that she attended boarding school with her sisters at St. Charles Convent and St. Joseph's Academy. Her lifelong commitment to music began with piano at the age of 12. Following the completion of a music teacher diploma in 1938 and her performance diploma 1939, she began teaching piano lessons from the family home on Victoria Avenue in Transcona. In 1944 she became member of the Registered Music Teachers Association of Manitoba. Starting in 1955, the Helene Blais Music Studios at 306 Day Street influenced many hundreds of children and adults in the appreciation and discipline of classical piano. She also provided opportunity for many young music teachers to get a career start at Miss Blais's Studio'. Annually her baby grand piano was moved to a local auditorium for the students to have the experience of a public piano recital, that also proudly featured her percussion band, to raise funds for the Society of Manitobans with Disabilities. Music was her passion and a vocation that she shared tirelessly for decades as the organist for numerous weddings and funerals throughout Winnipeg, and during weekly services at Notre Dame de l'Assomption Parish in Transcona. As a strong and steadfast Roman Catholic she always maintained a commitment to the church, including her involvement with La Ligue des Femmes Catholiques and numerous church bazaars and spring teas. Following her retirement in 1983, she eventually moved to L'Acceuille Columbian in St. Boniface and Tache Personal Care Home for the past five years. Hélène now re-joins her two brothers Jean John Blais and Félix Blais and her sisters: Lillianne Roy, Marguerite McMillan, and Thérèse Everton who have gone before her, along with bébé Marie who died as an infant. As a single woman with a disability she was independent and rose to be a successful business owner at a time when either one of those factors might have been a barrier. In her own words reflecting on her life she wrote I've always been a fighter and I don't give up easily. Music is a great healer and AMEN I know it will help me cope with every day life no matter what happens. Her love of music and life is left to be carried on by her many nieces and nephews living in various parts of Canada and who survive the diminutive woman who showed us all how to be proudly committed to life. Adieu Amen. In respecting Hélène's wishes, her body has been contributed to the University of Manitoba for the advancement of medicine through anatomical study. A funeral Mass will be held on Thursday, December 27 at 10:30 a.m. at the St. Boniface Cathedral, 190 avenue de la Cathedrale. The interment of her cremated remains will take place at a later date. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Helene Blais Music Scholarship Fund, Conservatory Canada, 45 King Street, Suite 61, London, ON N6A 1B8. Condolences may be sent to www.desjardinsfuneralchapel.ca Desjardins 233-4949 1-888-233-4949 www.desjardinsfuneralchapel.ca

As published in Winnipeg Free Press on Dec 22, 2012