Pop’s Family

My dad, Edouard Raoul Sauvé, was born into a big family of eight children. Two other children died as babies.

From left to right: Marcel-Assistant Superintendant, RCMP; Roger-Professional singer/Bell Telephone; University professor, Mathematics; Edouard (Ed, Eddie)-Electrical Engineering, Atomic Energy; Charles (Charlie)-WWII veteran (lost a leg in the war)/Government Printing Plant; Fernand (Fern)-Assistant Deputy Minister (I don’t know which government department), spent some years working in France where he met his wife, Antoinette (Tony); Lucille-expert with needlework, especially crochet; Grandmama Sauvé-sweet, gentle, amazing baker; Thérèse-won an award as Canada’s fastest typist. Note: I particularly love Charlie. He was sweet and kind, and he and Pop were great buddies.

His father, Ubald Sauvé, was Chief of the Morality Squad at the Ottawa Police Force. His mother, Edelma Normand, was a quiet and sweet woman who spent her life caring for her husband and eight children. When my grandfather died unexpectedly in 1953, she had to go to work to support herself. She worked as a clerk at Larocques Department Store on Rideau Street in Ottawa. They were a loving couple, and both belonged to the Temperance Society–no alcohol in their house!

I’m unsure of the birth order, but I think it goes like this: Fernand (Fern), Léo, Charles (Charlie), Lucille, Marcel, Pop, Roger, Thérèse.

Fern worked in the federal government as an Assistant Deputy Minister and spent many years working in France, where he met his wife, Antoinette (Toni). He was extremely cultured, and she was a beautiful and elegant Parisian lady. Sadly, Fern died when their son, Pierre, was about 10 years old.

Léo was a mathematician who taught at Ottawa University. He loved classical music and Shakespeare. He married Carmen, a lovely, sweet, and loving woman. They had four children. Their first girl, Claire, was intellectually disabled, and doctors said she would never live a normal life. However, Carmen wouldn’t accept that and worked with Claire to develop many life skills. Claire also learned to play piano and did go on to live a happy and normal life. Their son, Dr. Jacques Philippe Sauvé, was somewhat of a genius. At the age of 17, he graduated from Ottawa University with a degree in engineering. He went on to earn a PhD in Electrical Engineering at the University of Waterloo in Ontario. He moved to Brazil, where he continues to live to this day and works as a Professor of Computer Science. He has published 10 books and many papers. Read more about Jacques here: http://www.dsc.ufcg.edu.br/~jacques/principal.htm. Their third child, Madeleine, was a sweet girl with gorgeous eyes. She took a different route in life, joining some sort of “religious” group, which is most likely a cult. I don’t have any history on their second boy.

Charlie worked at the Queen’s Printers in Hull. He was one of the nicest, most humble, and fun-loving men I have known. He married Loretta Skillen, and they had two children, Judy and Gary.

Lucille was a mentally fragile woman, spending her life in and out of mental hospitals. She married Donald Skillen (Loretta’s brother), who was an alcoholic and both verbally and physically abusive. She called Pop on many occasions to come rescue her and take her back to the mental hospital.

Marcel (Mars) was an Assistant Commissioner of the RCMP and recipient of the Lt. of the Royal Victorian Order. He married Violette, a wonderful woman, and had five children.

Eddie worked at Atomic Energy and was responsible for a new quality control system for the cobalt cancer machines. He had a passion for music and owned and played many organs and pianos. He married Monica Gricken (The Warden) and had two children, Gloria and Bob.

Roger worked at Bell Canada installing phone lines. His real passion was music. He had a beautiful singing voice, much like Perry Como, and released a few records. In his younger days, he performed in Ottawa nightclubs and was the heartthrob of many young girls. He married Barbara (I don’t recall her last name), and together, they had six children.

Theresa was the baby of the family. She won a speed typing contest in the days when typewriters were big, clunky and hard-to-use machines. She married Harold Skillen, Loretta and Donald’s brother). Like his brother, Harold was an alcoholic and both mentally and physically abusive to Theresa and their daughter, Diane. She divorced him, finally, and married again in 1981, although I don’t recall the name of her second husband. She is the only surviving member of the Sauvé siblings and must be nearly 100 years old.

I am proud to be a member of this extraordinary family.

P.S. Two Sauvé girls married two Skillen men. Theresa and Harold Skillen, and Lucille and Donald Skillen.