Jacqueline Desmarais
Jacqueline Desmarais | |
|---|---|
| Born | Jacqueline Maranger September 20, 1928 Sudbury, Ontario, Canada |
| Died | March 3, 2018 (aged 89) |
| Nationality | Canadian |
| Known for | Philanthropy |
| Spouse(s) | Paul Desmarais (1953-2013; his death) |
| Children | 4, including Paul Jr. and André |
Jacqueline Desmarais, OC GOQ (September 20, 1928 – March 3, 2018) was a Canadian billionaire, and long-term supporter of music and opera.
Early life[]
She was born Jacqueline Maranger in Sudbury, Ontario, to Ernest Marenger and Albertine Thanase, on September 20, 1928.[2][3]
Career[]
According to Forbes, Desmarais had a net worth of $4.2 billion in January 2015.[1]
She was a long-term supporter of music and opera in Canada, and head of the guild of the Montreal Symphony Orchestra from 1989 to 1999. In 1997, she created a foundation in her name to support young opera singers.[3]
Honours[]
- In 2011, Desmarais was awarded a Knight of the Legion of Honour from the French President Nicolas Sarkozy, who called her "a great friend to France and a great lady of the arts".[3][4]
- In 2011, she received an honorary doctorate from the Université de Montréal's faculty of music.[5]
- In 2012, she was made a Grand Officer of the National Order of Quebec.[6]
- In 2013, Desmarais was named an officer of the Order of Canada.[3] In 2016, she was awarded a Companion of Quebec's Order of Arts and Letters.[5]
- In 2016, Montreal's Sainte-Justine Hospital christened the Jacqueline Desmarais Pavilion.[5]
Personal life[]
On September 8, 1953,[2] at Notre-de-Dame-de-Grâce, Quebec, she wed the financier Paul Desmarais (1927-2013), also a native of Sudbury.
They had two sons: Paul Jr. and André (who is married to Canadian former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien's daughter France) and two daughters, Sophie and Louise.[7]
Jacqueline Desmarais lived on a 75-acre estate at Domaine Laforest à Sagard, Charlevoix, Quebec, until her death in 2018.[1]
Death[]
Jacqueline Desmarais died on March 3, 2018, aged 89.[5][3]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "Jacqueline Desmarais". Forbes. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Birth of Jacqueline Marenger". NosOrigines. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Quebec philanthropist Jacqueline Desmarais dead at 89". cbc.ca. Retrieved March 4, 2018.
- ^ "Jacqueline Desmarais". 12 May 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Quebec philanthropist Jacqueline Desmarais dies at 89". montrealgazette.com. March 4, 2018.
- ^ "National Order of Quebec citation" (in French).
- ^ André et Paul Jr deviennent Officiers, Québec Métro, June 20, 2009.
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| General | |
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- 1928 births
- 2018 deaths
- Canadian billionaires
- Female billionaires
- Desmarais family
- Businesspeople from Greater Sudbury
- Businesspeople from Quebec
- Grand Officers of the National Order of Quebec
- Officers of the Order of Canada
- Chevaliers of the Légion d'honneur
- Disease-related deaths in Quebec