Sister Gabrielle Poirier

“Father, I want those you have given to me, to be with me where I am.” Jn 17,24.

January 30, 2009, Sister Gabrielle Poirier,
her religious name, Sister M-Agathe-Eugénie,
went home to God at the age of 92 and was professed for 71 years.

Born in Valleyfield, Quebec, she was the only child of 
Arthur Poirier and Eugénie Daoust.

As philosopher and educator, Sister Gabrielle trained many teachers for eleven years at the “Écoles normales de Valleyfield and d’Eulalie-Durocher” in St. Lambert, Québec. Her former students recognized in her the talents that made her a great teacher. She was always well informed, enthusiastic and available to her students.

As researcher for Bishop Gérard-Marie Coderre at the Diocesan Centre of St-Jean-Longueuil, she was well known and appreciated for her gifts of precision, clear judgment and fairness.  She was also very involved with much interest and conviction in parish pastoral work at St-Antoine-de-Padoue.

As Provincial Superior of Longueuil, Sister Gabrielle promoted Education in the Faith. She was supportive, stimulating, encouraging, decisive, respectful and prudent. Her meetings were prepared meticulously with great detail. She would always ask questions and was adaptable.

During her illness, she kept in contact with others, was interested in their well-being and in their apostolic work.  She once confided that, “it is not easy to become dependent, inactive, to have nothing to do, to wake up one morning with an empty agenda. . .”.

This period in her life became a time spent in listening, in prayer, of letting go, of patience, of separation, peace and recognition.

Sister Gabrielle went to Heaven guided by the light of the star of the Epiphany in which she strongly believed.