F. Gérard Dufresne, (1918 – 27 January 2013 ) was a well-known local

politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politicians represent the people, make decisions, and influence the formulation of public policy. The roles ...

and a military officer in

Shawinigan, Quebec Shawinigan (; ) is a city located on the Saint-Maurice River in the Mauricie area in Quebec, Canada. It had a population of 49,620 as of the 2021 Canadian census. Shawinigan is also a territory equivalent to a regional county municipality (TE) ...

. Born in East Angus, Quebec,

Eastern Townships The Eastern Townships (, ) is a historical administrative region in southeastern Quebec, Canada. It lies between the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence Lowlands, St. Lawrence Lowlands and the American border, and extends from Granby, Quebec, Granby in ...

in 1918, he got a degree from the Shawinigan Technical Institute and would later make career as an insurance agent.

Military

Dufresne became a member of the 694 Army Cadet Corps (Collège Immaculée-Conception) in 1933 and then became a reservist with the Régiment de Joliette. During World War II he commanded an

infantry Infantry, or infantryman are a type of soldier who specialize in ground combat, typically fighting dismounted. Historically the term was used to describe foot soldiers, i.e. those who march and fight on foot. In modern usage, the term broadl ...

company in

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

and served in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, with the Régiment des Fusiliers Mont-Royal and in Germany. After the war, he became the commanding officer of the Shawinigan-based C Company of the Régiment de Joliette. In 1953, Dufresne was promoted lieutenant colonel and served as commander of the 62nd (Shawinigan) Field Artillery Regiment, which he had joined in 1948, until 1960. From 1966 to 2005, he was the Honorary Colonel of the same unit. In 2006, local military author Captain (ret) Guy Arcand, CD published a book on Gérard Dufresne 'Biographie du Col Gerard F. Dufresne, CM, ED, OSTJ, CD' La Societe d'histoire militaire mauricienne.

Politics

In 1963, Dufresne was elected Mayor of Shawinigan against François Roy. Under his tenure, the old City Market (located downtown) was demolished to make room for a

Woolworth's Woolworth, Woolworth's, or Woolworths may refer to: Businesses Australia and New Zealand * Woolworths Group (Australia), the largest retail company in Australia and New Zealand; named after the American F.W. Woolworth company, but unrelated * W ...

retail store and Boulevard Royal was extended to the current location of the Biermans movie theater. Also, the construction of the Centre des Arts de Shawinigan (located at 2100 Boulevard des Hêtres and completed in 1967) began.Fabien LaRochelle, Shawinigan depuis 75 ans, 1976 In 1966 he lost his bid for re-election to Maurice Bruneau. In

1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...

, Dufresne was the Liberal candidate in the district of Saint-Maurice. He finished third with 24.3% of the vote, behind Union Nationale incumbent

Philippe Demers Philippe Demers (April 28, 1919 – March 4, 1999) was a veterinarian and a politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec. Early life and career He was born in 1919 in Saint-Sébastien, Montérég ...

(36.9%) and

Parti Québécois The Parti Québécois (PQ; , ) is a sovereignist and social democratic provincial political party in Quebec, Canada. The PQ advocates national sovereignty for Quebec involving independence of the province of Quebec from Canada and establishi ...

candidate

Yves Duhaime Yves Duhaime (born May 27, 1939) is a former politician in Quebec, Canada. He served as Cabinet Member and Member of the National Assembly of Quebec. Early life Duhaime was born in Chicoutimi, and grew up in Shawinigan. In the 1960s, Duhaime ...

(24.4%). Duhaime had been an officer of the 62nd (Shawinigan) Field Artillery Regiment at the time Dufresne was its commanding officer. Dufresne is a

federalist The term ''federalist'' describes several political beliefs around the world. It may also refer to the concept of parties, whose members or supporters call themselves ''Federalists''. History Europe federation In Europe, proponents of deep ...

, a loyal supporter of Prime Minister

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a retired Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. He served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, leader of t ...

and has remained a card-carrying member of the

Liberal Party of Canada The Liberal Party of Canada (LPC; , ) is a federal political party in Canada. The party espouses the principles of liberalism,McCall, Christina; Stephen Clarkson"Liberal Party". ''The Canadian Encyclopedia''. and generally sits at the Centrism, ...

for decades.

Footnotes

References

* J.J. Bellemare, 60 ans d'artillerie en Mauricie, 1996 {{DEFAULTSORT:Dufresne, Gerard 1918 births Canadian military personnel of World War II Mayors of Shawinigan 2013 deaths 20th-century mayors of places in Quebec

Military

Politics

Footnotes

See also

References