From the province’s first female cabinet minister to one of Montreal’s most beloved troubadours, Global News remembers those who passed away in 2016.
René Angélil
January 14, 2016
“I was in love with him the first day. Getting back on the stage and performing for our fans has helped me deal with balancing those current struggles at home.”
René Angélil, singer Celine Dion’s husband, died in his Las Vegas home at the age of 73 after a lengthy battle with cancer.
Victor Goldbloom
February 15, 2016
“He was a great Quebecer, a great Canadian, of course, but he did a lot for Quebec in uniting people across lines of religion, language and communities.”
Former Quebec cabinet minister Victor Goldbloom, remembered for fostering communication between various communities in the province, died of a heart attack at the age of 92.
Marie-Claire Kirkland-Casgrain
March 24, 2016
Claire Kirkland, the first woman elected to Quebec’s legislature and a pioneer in the women’s movement, died at the age of 91.
Jean-Charles Lapierre
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March 29, 2016
“Jean was an extraordinary, thoughtful, passionate man who was deeply committed to his country and always looked for the very best in it.”
Former federal politician and one of Quebec’s best-known political commentators, Jean-Charles Lapierre, 59, died after the plane he was in crashed in Îles-de-la-Madeleine, just east of Quebec.
Gilles Lamontagne
June 14, 2016
Former Quebec City mayor and federal cabinet minister Gilles Lamontagne died at the age of 97.
Lamontagne, who was born in Montreal in 1919, served in the Royal Canadian Air Force during the Second World War and was a prisoner of war in Germany from March 1943 until May 1945.
Manuel Batshaw
July 18, 2016
“He listens, he’s a very, very, good listener. It is special because there are not too many like him.”
Manuel “Manny” Batshaw, well-known Quebec social worker and namesake of Batshaw Youth and Family Services, passed away at the age of 101.
Sylvie Roy
July 31, 2016
Independent MNA Sylvie Roy passed away at the age of 51 from acute hepatitis at the Enfant-Jésus Hospital in Quebec City.
Roy represented the rural riding of Arthabaska in the legislature since 2003, first under the Action Démocratique du Québec (ADQ) banner, then as a member of the Coalition Avenir Quebec (CAQ), then as an independent for the last year of her life.
Jean Langevin
September 16, 2016
“We thought it was quite a commitment and very nice that he would do this to support her of course, but also, to support the cause.”
City of Bromont director general Jean Langevin, 59, passed away after an accident on the Rivières des Prairies during Circuit-Bleu, a four-day tour of the Island of Montreal that raises money for children with cancer.
Dean Stock
September 23, 2016
“He was one of the toughest players I’ve ever played against.”
Dean Stock, a West Island native and brother of former NHL player, PJ Stock, died of complications of Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) also known as Lou Gherig’s disease at the age of 39.
Leonard Cohen
November 7, 2016
“We have lost one of music’s most revered and prolific visionaries.”
Legendary Canadian singer, songwriter, author and poet Leonard Cohen died in his sleep at the age of 82 after falling down in the middle of the night at his Los Angeles home.
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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