Sailing through life!

My name is Marie-Claude Duménil. I was born in the Bush of Tamatave, on the east coast of Madagascar, in 1936. Why wasn’t I living in France? Because my father was the director of the Malagasy colony until 1959, so I had to live there. I loved it, my life was so different from a child’s typical life. As I didn’t speak Malagasy, I didn’t go to school until 7th grade, so I was homeschooled and my mother would teach me everything. I didn’t have a lot of friends; consequently I was close to my mother, but also to my father, even if I couldn’t see him very often.

The very first time I went to France was in 1939; I was six years old. We travelled by boat for twenty two days, crossing the Suez Canal. It was crazy; I was incredibly lucky. We stayed for six months, and while we were there, I found that France was so different from Madagascar; they were two universes apart. And I have to say, every time I came to France during my childhood, I rather missed my lovely country…

From 8th grade to my first baccalaureate, I went to a religious school in Antananarivo, the capital of Madagascar. I really liked it and I made plenty of friends there. But, unfortunately, I had to move to Paris in 1952 to graduate from high school for the second time. I went to school in Neuilly. It was pleasant but I really missed the culture I grew up with, the country I had always lived in. But I couldn’t return to Madagascar because I had to go to college, and then find a job to start my new French life.

From 1954, I studied in college for three years to get my degree in Law. After obtaining it, I found a job as a legal advisor in Paris, in 1957. I thought it was a great, a very interesting job, because I worked with a famous lawyer: Mr. Badinter; it was he who had the death penalty abolished (in 1981) when he became Minister of Justice.

In 1958, I met the love of my life, Michel, a marine engineer. We got married after four incredible years. I stopped working in 1962 to be able to travel around with my husband everywhere in France for his job. Our first children, two beautiful girls, were born two years after, and then we had two boys in 1968 and 1969. When our four children were old enough, I decided to start working again in Paris. I did so until I retired in 1993.

By then, our children had started their own adult lives, and so Michel and I bought a sailboat and decided to travel around the world, especially in the Mediterranean, for seven months each year. After fourteen years of wonderful journeys, we had to sell our boat, to the great despair of our grandchildren, but we needed a calmer retirement, as we weren’t getting any younger!

I couldn’t dream of having had a happier life. We had to give up our boat, but I still travel to visit my beautiful children who live on three different continents. My husband and I have lived through the ups and downs of life, with our happy family and incredible friends. I’m happy with my simple and peaceful life.

Article by Blandine LOCHU

Looking back on my 71 years...

Mme Dondainas and a few members of her family

My name is Janine Dondainas, I was born in Saint-Amand-Roche-Savine, in the Auvergne, on the 18th of April 1945. I was born at a perfect time: right at the end of the Second World War. I lived out of town so my family and I weren’t affected by the restrictions. I’ve happy memories of my childhood; I grew up with brother who is two years younger than me. My parents took good care of us and took us to the countryside with all of our aunts and uncles.

School, especially high school, was a good time of my life, even if the discipline was strict. I especially enjoyed my French classes. Thanks to my parents’ encouragements, I was able to choose Literature studies and eventually become a French teacher. I really loved my job and the contact with teenagers, seeing them change and progress. It was a very gratifying job; it made me feel useful. I taught for thirty years in many different schools around Clermont-Ferrand such as in Ceyrat and Billom. I took my retirement in 2000 when I was 55 years old.

I’ve dedicated my whole life to the education of my own children too and that of my grandchildren. I have three boys and a girl, and fourteen lovely grandchildren who are between 1 and 27 years old. I really enjoy my retirement as I can now spend time with my kids and on my hobbies (the cinema, reading books, meeting up with my friends, travelling, etc.).

I am now 71. I have lived my life to the full and I am so proud of my family. I am convinced my children and grandchildren will all be happy, self-confident, successful, wonderful people.

I have done more or less everything that I wanted to do in life: I’ve met wonderful people, accomplished my most ambitious projects, and have been to all of the places I use to dream about. Obviously, sometimes I failed, but I try to remember only the good times!

Article by Jeanne BRIEU

An italian immigrant's story...

Gino Boncristiano and his grandchildren

I was born in Puglia, Italy, on January 20, 1938, during the Second World War. I grew up in a family of seven children. My father was a soldier and my mother did household chores in neighbours’ houses. We were poor and feeding ourselves everyday was quite difficult. As a result, as soon as we were old enough, we had to know how to get by in life and find food on our own.

When I was thirteen, having already lived through many difficult moments, I thought about leaving Italy. To emigrate to France, I needed my parents’ permission but they didn’t want to give it to me. In fact, they were frightened to let their son flee the country, alone, as I didn’t speak French and hadn’t had any professional experience yet. I was very independent-minded, and I thought going abroad was my only way to succeed. Despite my parents’ refusal, I sent my file to the Emigration Office. Six years later, the Emigration Office sent me back my file with a positive answer. Legally, I wasn’t yet considered an adult and I had to make my parents sign false documents to obtain their signature…

I left my city in 1958, penniless. When I arrived in Milan, the Emigration Office tested my abilities as a plasterer-painter to decide where I could be sent. They gave me 200 Francs and I obtained an employment contract in Baye, Nièvre, France. When I arrived in France, I became homesick because it was -15°C, it was snowing and I was living in the countryside. I didn’t have any choice but to force myself to learn French since I was the only Italian living there. My living conditions were deplorable; I lived in a shed without any heating. Moreover, the windows were broken and my boss “forgot” to pick me up most of the time from construction sites. I was forced to respect the contract’s conditions because the Emigration Office regularly wanted reports about immigrants’ behaviour...

Fifteen months later, I found another job in Corbigny, a village near Baye. I saw my future wife, Annie, for the first time. Her mother invited me to dinner a few days later. I was so happy; it was the first time since I had arrived in France that I felt accepted and loved. I married her in 1966 and have never let her go.

I was very involved in politics, and, at night, I put up posters for Mitterrand. In 1961, there were many problems with the OAS terrorist organization. All immigrants who took part in politics were sent back to their native country. At that time, I was working for a high-ranking officer and told him that I didn’t have French nationality. I was worried about being forced to move back to Italy. Eight days later, I officially became French thanks to this man.

In 1964, I decided to build my own house. To achieve my dream, I bought a  field at the top of a hill. I created my building firm and, after that, I bought 8,000 square meters around my house to create rentals. I built a house each time that my employees couldn’t work in other construction sites because I had to pay them each month. I named the hill “La Blanche Colline”.

Several years had passed since I had given any news to my family and, one day, I saw my mother in Corbigny; she had come from Italy to take me back! I still don’t know how she managed to find me to this day as she couldn't read. I think she did it because, protective mother as she was, she needed to be sure of the happiness of her son. When she saw I was happy and healthy, she accepted my decision to stay in France. But now, I often call her to prove that she made the right choice.

Now, after 58 years in France, I own a property which is worth quite a bit; I’m proud of my rags-to-riches story because, thanks to my willpower and my hard work, I have managed to fulfil my dream. I am the father of two daughters, and the most loved and proudest grand-father of three grandchildren. Each time I see their smiles it is the reward for my hard work and proves to me that I have made the right choices despite the many difficulties I have encountered.

Article by Chloé CORREIA

“He will ask us if we have used our strength to help our fellow man…”

Edmond Michelet, Minister for the Armies, 

giving a speech (1946)

Journalist’s note: I imagined this first-person narrative from my grandmother Monique's account of her father Papamond's life. The title is a quote by Saint-Jean-Marie Vianney (the "He" of the title refers to Edmond Michelet).

“I am Edmond Michelet but everybody calls me “Papamond” (i.e. “Papa Edmond”), not only my family but also the Council of Ministers!

I was born in1899. I was the eldest of four children. My parents sent me early to a Christian boarding school.

After the First World War, I arrived in Brive and worked for Catholic charities. They gave me values like wanting to help my fellow man. I have tried to apply these values throughout my life.

I met my Marie and we got married in 1922 in Brive. My first son, Jean, was born in 1923 then my first daughter, Christiane, in 1924. Geneviève came to the world in 1925. Monique, was born in 1927, Bernard in 1931, Yves in 1934 and Claude in 1938.

In 1940, I became the head of the Briviste maquis and took the name of “Duval”. For 3 years, lots of Jewish families went through our house.

But on the 25th February 1943, the Gestapo came to take me to prison. Marie was dignified as always. The children stayed inside as I did not want them see. For six months, I was in Fresnes jail. My family kept in touch by hiding little messages in the potatoes that they sent me. Once, the German jail chaplain, Abbot Stock, told me, while we were reciting the “Hail Marie”: “Hail Mary, full of grace… Your wife is well… The Lord is with thee… your kids too… Blessed art thou amongst women… They asked me to tell you they love you…”

29th april 1945: the liberation of the camp.

The journalist Claude Dauphin interviewing ( from left to right )

Edmond Michelet, Vincent Badie (a politician)

and Armand Fily (a priest)

In 1943, I was deported as a political prisoner to Dachau. I was n° 52579. I tried to help and bring solace to my fellow prisoners. After the camp’s liberation, on the 29th of April 1945, I planned, with the Americans, the repatriation of the French.

Soon after my return, I was called up by General de Gaulle to hold the post of Minister of the Army. We lived in the Départment de la Marine; in the Place de la Concorde (Paris). I did not see the family much because I had lots of international obligations. I became the French delegate to the UN from 1953 to 1957. I traveled to Indochina, Tunisia, Algeria, and Madagascar. We moved to Rue Madame in the 6th arrondissement of Paris.

In 1957, I wrote my book Contre la guerre civile (“Against the civil war”) to denounce what was happening in Algeria. In 1959, I became the first garde des sceaux (Minister of Justice) of the 5th Republic. I held the post until 1961. I worked hard with General De Gaulle to make a success of the 5th Republic. I joined the Constitutional Council in 1962. That same year, I was raised to the dignity of Commandeur de la Légion d’Honneur.

1939, on holiday in Biarritz with his seven children

I have lived a wonderful life thanks my family and my friends, to the General, to Louis Terrenoir and Charles de Foucault, and so many others…

I entitled my autobiography Rue de la Liberté (“Freedom Street”). Rue de la Liberté was the name given to the main road through Dachau…”

Article by Thibault RIVIERE

Accounting for life...

Nairobi street scene, 1930s

My name is Michael Gontier. I was born in 1930 in Nairobi, the capital of Kenya, a country in the south-west of Africa. 

We were eight boys. My father was a dark-skinned man, whereas my mother was a fair-skinned woman. My father was working out of Nairobi, in a place called Kisumu. At the age of eight, I went to school. I had nobody to help me do my homework. Though I tried hard, I found learning my lessons difficult.

When I was twelve, my father died, aged thirty three. My mother was completely alone and had to look after eight brothers on just a nanny's salary… Four of my brothers died when they were still children.

At fourteen, I had to quit school to help my mother pay the bills. I started working as an apprentice motor mechanic. At the age of seventeen, I went to work as an electrician and, a year later, as a fridge mechanic. I did that for two years.

I was spotted by a British gentleman called Mr Bauer. He was an auditor who declared that I should be working in an office, doing clerical work. I can remember that I was very surprised at his offer. I told him that I had dropped out of school and that I had virtually no education. He asked me if I could do simple maths: add, subtract and divide. This, I told him, I could do.

On 2nd January 1951, I was told to come and report to Mr Bauer’s office. I did so and I was given a desk. I did simple clerical work. In my fourth year, I became office supervisor, in charge of fourteen clerks. A year later, I was asked to head the accounts department. Mr Bauer was transferred to the UK on a promotion, and another gentleman took over. I was unhappy working with him and so, after six years, I quit the firm.

I got a job working for the Kenyan government as an Assistant Accounts Auditor. After two years, I was told that I had to take charge of the Audit Department. I audited all payment vouchers.

After two years in charge of the Audit Department, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry told me that I should go to University. I studied for eighteen months after which I became a qualified civil servant, entitled to a pension. It felt like a dream come true!

I reported to the Kenyan Treasury. As an accountant, I ran the Exchequer and produced weekly financial statements. After two years, I was promoted to Accountant Grade One and I headed the Pension Division. I worked there for three years. I left the government six years later and joined a firm of auditors.

After a year with the firm, I was told to run the office and look after the business because the boss had to go to Europe for medical attention. I did so for three years. I was ordered to audit the Catholic University of Eastern Africa. I carried out the daily duties of the accounts department there.

Two years later, I left my job with the auditors and joined the University permanently as the Executive Officer in charge of finances. I worked there for five years.

I am now a peaceful pensioner, enjoying life in Paris with my beloved daughter and a wonderful son-in-law.

Article by Aurélie BERTHAUD

A courageous woman...

My name is Andrée Lebas. I was born on the 13th of October 1919 in Saint-Etienne, in France. At that time, people were recovering from the war and working to rebuild the country. My mother and my father were factory workers. I had a big brother and a little sister. Some of our friends were really poor but I never needed for anything as my parents were thrifty.

My childhood was quite normal, despite the fact that I lost my sister when she was two. I still talk to her when I miss her. I loved her a lot. She was my only real friend. I grew up close to Nature. My mother used to take a saucepan with us when we went for a walk in the forest. We filled the pan with things we found to make our dinner more interesting. Supplementing our meals in this way helped us to save money. As jobs were rare we had to move a lot. Every time one of our family members lost his job, we packed and moved. It was all about all having jobs to be sure to have enough money to survive.

I went to school. Learning was a pleasure that I wanted to share with all of my friends and the family members that couldn’t go to school. As my mother was working, I took care of my little sister. I was just seven years old when she died. I am still angry and sad about her death. Every time I talk about her I cry. After her death I took the decision to take care of people all my life and to work hard to be able to be a real lady later.

I stopped school when I was fourteen. Unemployment was getting higher every day and we needed money. I worked as a weaver in a factory. My mother and I shared the same post. When she was at the factory, I did the house work. My mother and I were promoted quite quickly. I continued studying on my own time. All my family loved reading and learning. We used to borrow books because it was cheaper. Those years were part of my happy ones.

The Second World War started and it was sometimes harder for us, civilians, than for our soldiers: bombing, diseases, fear. Part of France was occupied, but I was not afraid, I was excited! I decided to become a member of the Résistance. I was a messenger. I hid secret papers in the handlebars of my bicycle. Once, I was pushing my bike along the side of the road because it was broken. I bumped into a German soldier who offered to help me push my bike all the way home. I accepted! I didn’t know anything of the contents of these documents, and I still don’t know anything about them, because, if I was caught by the Germans, I could say, without lying, that I didn’t know anything about them! My grandmother was mad at me because my behaviour used to frighten her. During bombings, she insisted that I take shelter down in the cellar, but I didn’t want to go; I said preferred to die proudly in my own bedroom. I had decided at the beginning of the war that I was going to stay a real patriot.

After the war, I went to Paris because they needed help there. I spent a few sad years in Paris. Then, I met Eugène, the love of my life. He was a tall, strong man with black hair and dark eyes. He was really sweet but serious at the same time, really proud and down-to-earth. He was humble and a pious Catholic too. He used to go to mass every day. I finally married him in 1946. I became the lady I wanted to become. We had twin daughters. We travelled a lot to discover the world. We made a success of running several hairdressing salons. I was really happy and in love.

Though my prince passed away, I still say good morning and good night to him and talk to him every day. I am the same woman, still stubborn and humble, just older. I have six grandchildren and twenty great-grandchildren. I have Alzheimer’s, but I stay proud. I still walk alone. My nails are always done (never forget your nails, ladies!). At 95, you can still be a woman...

Journalist's note: My great-grandmother died on 10th December 2015 after being sick for several weeks. She was a model for all my family.

Article by Alix-Marie DARDEN

The greatest great-grandmother!

Anna, June 2010, a few weeks before she died

Journalist’s note: I wrote the following article largely from what I remember of the stories Anna used to tell me...

My name is Anna. I've been lucky to have been very happy in my life. I've lived with a wonderful husband, I have beautiful and talented children, and I've done everything in my power to make this life easier and better for everyone I love.

I was born on the 17^th august 1913 in Pfastatt. I’ve spent all my life in the Alsace. God knows it wasn’t easy every day. I grew up a few kilometers from the battle fields, in a family impoverished and bereaved by war. I hated the Germans as much as I hated the French. My father fought on the French side. I remember spending hours, during my early years, my nose to the window waiting for him. He never came back. I grew up without my daddy. I helped my mother, Victorine, on the farm, and I took care of my little brother.

By the time I reached school age, I had already met Joseph, your great-grandfather. When I saw him for the first time he was throwing pebbles against a tree on the other side of the wall, at the boys’ school. We grew up and graduated. Then we got married on October the 24th in 1937, we were both twenty four years old. It was certainly the most beautiful of day of my life.

By the time your grandfather was born, in August 1938, our life was wonderful. It was just like the entire world had opened its arms to us. We couldn’t imagine that only one year later, we would be plunged back into the horror of war…

Joseph went to the battle fields. He fought for France but I know that secretly in his head he was neither French nor German. On the 30th of September 1941, two men in uniform knocked on the door. I hid my children and, as I saw that these two soldiers had the tricolor flag sewn on their chests, I cried. The tears came streaming down my face, I opened the door and they told me my husband had been made prisoner by the German army in Flanders…

And here is something I'm proud of; here is what I want to tell you. I took the first train, the one which stops in Lille. You might know that we were not rich and that travelling was rare and expensive, people never left their native town, your grandfather did not see the ocean before his 20th birthday, but that's not the subject.

So, I took this train, I got off at Lille, and I walked. I walked for an entire week, following the rails so as not to get lost. My ankles ached and hunger gnawed at my stomach. It was hard to sleep; I only thought about my husband. I feared the state in which I would find him. I remember every detail of that journey, each gust of wind that hurt my face, each sound of the waves hitting the rocks on the coast. With each step I took I became more aware of the mistake I was making and that I would not survive. But I was too much in love to give up…

When I arrived in Flanders, thirteen days after the soldiers' passage, I was greeted by French Resistance fighters. To liberate Joseph, I had to negotiate with the German authorities. They gave me his freedom against his promise not to return to fight for France and to come and work in Germany. You can say that that is a horrible end but, you know, war is the worst invention of the human race. We went home, together, and that was the best ending I could expect. This story makes me proud; I had freed my man from the clutches of the Nazis.

Article by Alice EMBERGER