Released on June 21, 2013
The Province of Saskatchewan will present the Bellegarde-area community with a Fransaskois flag to recognize its contributions to French language and culture during its St-Jean-Baptiste Day celebrations today.
“It’s truly a privilege to present this flag to honour this area’s francophone settlers of the past and more importantly to recognize the continuing work of residents today to strengthen the Fransaskois community, which enriches all of Saskatchewan,” Cannington MLA Dan D’Autremont said on behalf of Provincial Secretary Wayne Elhard.
The Fransaskois flag was adopted as a provincial emblem in 2005 to recognize the status of French as one of Canada's official languages and to acknowledge the heritage of Saskatchewan's francophones and their significant contributions to the province.
A commemorative plaque will also be presented to the community as part of the event in Bellegarde, where francophone settlers from Belgium and France arrived in the 1890s. One of the early settlers was Maurice Quennelle, who in 1912 was the first president of what later became the present-day Assemblée communautaire fransaskoise, which represents Saskatchewan’s Francophone community.
The flag and a plaque have been presented to Regina, Duck Lake, Ferland, St. Denis, Gravelbourg, Zenon Park and Saskatoon, as part of a province-wide recognition initiative.
St-Jean-Baptiste Day is held annually on June 24 and named after the patron saint of French-speaking Canadians. It is celebrated by many francophone Saskatchewan communities on or near the actual date.
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For more information, contact:
Dan Palmer
Intergovernmental Affairs
Regina
Phone: 306-787-2155