14

(Miraculous icon in the name of Notre-Dame du Bon-Conseil.)

During a trip to Rome, Most Rev. Michel-Thomas Labrecque was much impressed by the miracle of this icon and named the new congregation after it.

15

Parents of Françoise Simard
1851
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

16

The choice had been made. Miss Françoise Simard was born on January 18, 1851, in the village of Saint-Alphonse. Ville de la Baie had not yet been founded. Fourth in a family of 13 children; her father, Hyppolyte Simard; her mother, Dosithée Simard. (House of her birth in Saint-Alphonse.)

After a few conversations and interviews, Miss Françoise Simard de Ste-Anne de Chicoutimi, who then taught in Saint-Fulgence, accepted to take part in this foundation project. On November 4, 1894, with a friend, she started on this road that would lead her and her Sisters to bring support to the courageous pioneers who cleared the forest. Daughter of a colonist herself, in the Anse-à-Benjamin sector, of Bagotville (Ville de la Baie) where she was born in 1851, she knew how to encourage her Sisters in their difficult educational task in the remote parishes of the Côte-Nord, Saguenay, and Lac-Saint-Jean regions.

17

Response from Françoise Simard to Most Rev. Michel-Thomas Labrecque.
1894
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

18

Response from Françoise Simard to Most Rev. Michel-Thomas Labrecque:

"The project your Highness has conceived for my attention is a great one; I am not worthy of such high consideration. However, I accept the mission that has been placed before me, hoping that God in his goodness will grant me the grace I will need to fulfill my destiny."

I am honoured to be, with all due respect,

Most Reverend, by your Highness,

your very humble, very obedient servant,

Françoise Simard

Saint-Anne de Chicoutimi
October 15, 1894

19

Response from Most Rev. to the letter of Miss Françoise Simard.
1894
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

20

Response from Most Rev. to the letter of Miss Françoise Simard:

"I have just received your kind letter by which you accept the mission that has been entrusted to you by Divine Providence.

I am convinced that you will be true to the vision of Our Lord, by which you will be sanctified through the practice of religious virtue and charity towards your brethren.

You have obviously thought about this seriously: such a mission and, especially, the establishment of a new congregation, however small and humble, requires many sacrifices. But also, these sacrifices, made from the goodness of your heart and for the love of God and your fellow man, bring, to the soul of a good Sister, consolation akin to that felt by the Great Apostle St. Peter when he cried out: "I am exceeding joyful in all our tribulation." Such will be your fate and inheritance: you will be overcome with joy and consolation through the sorrows, thorns, and brambles that stand in the way of she who fights the good fight to wrest the true servants of Our Lord and of our beloved brethren.

Remember these words that Our Lord addressed to his apostles and to those whom he calls upon to follow his steps on the way to evangelical counsel: If any will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me."

This is what Our Lord asks of you today, through my ministry:

1st He asks that you deny yourself, whatever the cost; to put down one's own will to do the Will of God, that is the foundation of religious life;

2nd He asks you to take up your cross: what form will it take? He Himself prepares it, but in His Mercy, he will shower upon you treasures of grace to lighten the burden of this cross.

3rd He asks you to follow him, He who is the way, the truth, and life. What road will He choose to pave your way to Heaven? It is the road of obedience to the rules you must follow.

While you wait for the day when I will ask you to come to Chicoutimi, continue your fervent prayers to God; take communion as often as you can to obtain God's grace for the undertaking, and start to discretely prepare... But keep the utmost secrecy.

Please believe in my highest regard and count on my humble prayers.

Pray the Holy Virgin in the name of Notre-Dame du Bon-Conseil. She will be your first counsel.

Michel-Thomas Labrecque, Bishop of Chicoutimi.

21

Please prepare to begin communal life on November 4, 1894
1894
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

22

On Sunday, October 22, the following letter was addressed to Miss Françoise Simard

Diocese of Chicoutimi, October 22, 1894

Sainte-Anne de Chicoutimi, October 22, 1894

Mademoiselle,

Please prepare to begin communal life this coming November 4, 1894, on Saint-Charles Borromée day and patronage of the Holy Virgin.

You will be housed in the Diocese, on the third floor, in isolated, separate apartments: it is a true provisional convent.

To begin, you will have only one companion, Miss Georgianna Bergeron, of Chicoutimi. You will wear secular clothing for one month and will don religious dress on the day of the Immaculate Conception, December 8.

As November 4 is a Sunday, you will travel to the Diocese of Chicoutimi on Saturday, along with your companion.

Please keep this a secret; that is the key to success for any undertaking. In the meantime, let us pray God to bless this endeavour Himself, so that it may contribute to His glory and to the salvation of souls.

Also pray Notre-Dame du Bon-Conseil.

Accept my special blessing and believe in my Faith in Our Lord,
your devoted servant,

Michel-Thomas Labrecque, Bishop of Chicoutimi.

23

First monastery
1895
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

24

Chicoutimi, first monastery, 1895 + expansion of 1902 and demolition in 1957, White House, 1910, Mother House, 1918

Most Rev. Michel-Thomas Labrecque paid $3,700 for the construction of the first monastery in 1895. Fifteen years later, given the cramped conditions of the first monastery, the Most Reverend bequeathed the "cap de la baleine" to the Sisters, where they built their Mother House.

25

View from 'Cap de la baleine'
2005
Saguenay-Lac-Saint-Jean, Quebec, Canada

26

View from "Cap de la baleine", location of the Notre-Dame du Bon-Conseil monastery in Chicoutimi.