Alphonse Vautour, 102, of Shediac passed away peacefully on Sunday March 27, 2022, at the Dr. Georges-L. Dumont UHC. Born in Petit-Cap, he was the son of the late Honoré and Marceline (Gallant) Vautour. He was the last surviving member of his immediate family.
He was a veteran of the Second World War having served over seas from 1939 to 1945 with the North Shore NB Regiment.
He will be deeply missed by his seven children: Alphonsine Poirier (Bernard), Joanne Richard (Maurice), Monique Vautour (Andrew Jennings), Hervé (Denise Ouellet) and Roger all of Shediac, Omer of Kelowna, BC, and Daniel (Nicole Briand) of Saint-Antoine; 13 grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; three great-great-grandchildren, as well as many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
He was predeceased by his wife of 61 years, Marie (Porelle) Vautour (2001); one daughter, Emelice Arsenault (2012); four sisters: Emelice Bacon, Elizabeth Gautreau, Velma Lirette and Dorilla LeBlanc; five brothers: Blair, Charles, Lionel, Hector and Mathias. Four of his siblings also lived beyond the age of 103, namely Charles and Emelice, and his sister, Elizabeth lived past 107 years and Mathias age 104 who recently passed March 16, 2022.
The family would like to acknowledge and thank all the staff at the O Bon Soins care home. They took good care of dad, and he made a lot of friends. A special thank you to the wonderful nurses at the CHU Dumont Hospital.
The family will receive condolences at the Frenette Funeral and Cremation Centre, 396 Main Street, Shediac, on Friday April 1st from 2 pm to 3:45pm. The funeral service will be celebrated in the chapel at 4 pm. Face coverings are mandatory to enter the centre. The funeral service will be streamed live Friday at 4 pm; to view the funeral, go to his obituary on our Website. Interment is in the Ste-Thérèse d’Avila cemetery, Cap-Pelé. In memory of Alphonse, a donation to the charity of the donor’s choice would be appreciated.
Alphonse Vautour a Veteran of Second World War, served in the Canadian Forces with the North Shore NB Regiment from 1939 to 1945.
When the war was declared on September 3, 1939, he left his family farm in Petit Cape, NB, at the young age of 19 years old and joined the army on September 6, 1939. He served in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Newfoundland & Labrador until 1943. Then his regiment sailed overseas for Liverpool, England, he was stationed in Nutley, Farnham and then Camp Aldershot. On June 6, 1944, as part of the first wave of the D-Day invasion, his regiment landed on Juno Beach at Bernier sur Mer. He then campaigned in Europe for a year and then took part of the Liberation of the Netherlands, up until the end of the war at which time he received an honorable discharge.
He was humbled to receive the Star of France, Star of Germany, Defense Medal and the Canadian Volunteer Service Medal and Clasp and the Legion of Honor of France.
On a personal note, Alphonse the Great, as he became known, enjoyed a long and full life up until the very end. He especially loved his big family, and nothing made him prouder. He truly enjoyed being around people and made friends no matter where he was. His mind was incredibly sharp and remembered a lot of historic events, family genealogy, quirky old-time stories, and jokes to make us all laugh. His heart was bigger, and he genuinely care about people. Always positive about life, he would not want to miss a party, hugs (especially from the ladies), outings at the Legion, volunteering in the Poppy Campaign until the age of 100 and staying active in his community. He was presented with the Paul Harris award and an Honorary member of the Veterans UN Nato group. He also loved to travel and always ready for a new adventure. At the age of 99 he flew to France and took part in the official ceremonies of the 75th anniversary of D-Day, Juno Beach in Normandy. He was ready and willing to go to the Netherlands for the Liberation 75 at a 100 if it had not been cancelled due to the Pandemic.
A favorite memory we have is whenever he sat down to a nice feed of Lobster and a cold beer, he would always ask "Who lives better than we do?", then answer his own question – "Nobody!". Cheers!
Alphonse has always maintained a positive and favorable attitude towards life in general. He takes pleasure in bringing joy to his family, his friends and the people he meets. He was a man of honor, integrity and great loyalty.
Online words of comfort and condolence can be sent on our website at: www.frenettefuneralhome.com