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CHARETTE/CHAREST FAMILY ASSOCIATION NEWSLETTER
October 2002 Vol 3 No 1
The Association was founded in October 2000 from the support generated at the Charette Family Reunion held in St Francois, NB,
CAN in July 2000. The goal of the Association is to foster an historical and genealogical study and appreciation of the CHARETTE
name and its variants.
Interim Officers at present are as follows;
President - Ray Thomas
Vice President - Denis Charest
Secretary/Treasurer - Ray Thomas
The ANNUAL dues are $10.00 US payable October 1st. Canadians, in writing a dues check should put "US FUNDS" $10.00. This
would cover any fluctuation in the exchange rate. Currently dues should be sent to Ray Thomas, 836 Marion Ave., Plantsville CT
06479 USA.
___________________________________________________________
PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE
We begin our third year. Amazing! I trust everyone is enjoying the newsletters. Of course, input to the newsletter is always
appreciated in the form of obits, births, marriages, articles, lineages or what have you. It is important to keep the newsletter
interesting . We place in each issue a main focus (Charette, PQ; La Charette, MO, etc.). Tell us your story as Carolyn Kent did a
few issues ago. I say it again -- This is your newsletter and your Association. We will make it grow.
Hope everyone had a wonderful summer! What happened to fall? Getting cold in Maine already!
A reminder - Dues for the new year, October 2002-October 2003.
This will be the last issue for those who have not renewed for the year 2001-2002 and the current year prior to the next newsletter
(January 2003).
Treasurers report: No expenses reported. Balance - $540.00
Ray
TIDBIT
Shorette is the 60,279th most popular last name (surname) in the United States
Thanks for the latest newsletter. I'm pleased that we've finally found William R. Charette. I tried to locate him (unsuccessfully) prior to
the 2000 reunion. We have two Charettes in the Medal of Honor roll. You've no doubt heard of the other, George Charette, for whom a
destroyer was named in WW II. My grandfather was a cousin (2nd cousin, I believe he used to say). The citation for him in the Medal
of Honor website is considerably briefer than that for William R., but in the early days, I'm told, the citations were more cryptic. I have
more information about the ship, if anyone is interested.
CHARETTE, GEORGE
Rank and organization: Gunner's Mate First Class, U.S. Navy. Entered service at: Lowell, Mass. Born: 6 June 1867, Lowell, Mass.
G.O. No.: 529, 2 November 1899. Citation: In connection with the sinking of the U.S.S. Merrimac at the entrance to the harbor of
Santiago de Cuba, 2 June 1898. Despite heavy fire from the Spanish batteries, Charette displayed extraordinary heroism throughout
this operation.
Art Charette
(Rays note I sent him the Vol 1, No. 2 newsletter that had the ship information. If anyone else would like to have that issue,
please let me know.)
______________________________________________________
As always I enjoyed the newsletter. Especially interesting was the story of William Charette and his medal of honor. Chuckled at the
"I'm My Own Grandpa" story. My mother who was born a Charette remarried her first cousin also a Charette after my dad died.
Thank goodness they were too old for child bearing or we may have had a similar situation!! Thanks again for an interesting
newsletter.
Pat Simpson
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OBITUARY
Obituary, St John Valley Times, Madawaska, ME September 18, 2002
Bernadette (Charette) Dube, 94, wife of the late Patrick Dube, died Sept. 10, at a Presque Isle health care facility. She was born
in Fort Kent, July 28, 1908, the daughter of Thomas and Elise (Daigle) Charette. She taught school in Grand Isle and Fort Kent for a
total of 11 years. She was a member of the Ladies of St Anne of Fort Kent and a member of the State Teachers Association. She
was predeceased by her husband Patrick in 1974. She will be dearly missed by her family. She is survived by her daughter Michele
Dube of Caribou; and several nieces, nephews and cousins. Friends called at the Daigle and Nadeau Funeral Home, Fort Kent untill
time of services. A Mass of Christian burial was celebrated at the St Louis Catholic Church, Fort Kent, with the Rev. Claude
Gendreau officiating. Committal services followed in the parish cemetery.
______________________________________________________
Medal of Honor Recipient WILLIAM R CHARETTE
This should have been included this in the last issue. You may see his picture and the citation he received from President
Eisenhower at the following websites:
http://www-nmcp.med.navy.mil/pao/charette.asphttp://navymedicine.med.navy.mil/med09h/charette.htm
______________________________________________________
Dear Ray, thanks for another great newsletter. Especially enjoyed the article re: MH Charette. A very brave young man and so glad
he is still w/us to share such stories.
We are back from fishing. a great season. All our guests went home w/much salmon and halibut. Emile Perreault ( son of Blanche
Charest) and his friend Dottie stopped to visit in Kenai. Always nice to see Emile and at long last to meet Dottie. Also Ray Leavitt's
(husband of Alice Perreault; dau of Blanche Charest) brother, George and his son-in-law stopped at the house but we missed them.
Always nice to have relatives visit.
I am especially happy to get Nancy Laura Charest's new e-mail address. Thank you :O) It seems we were both changing e-mail
addresses and just got lost in the shuffle. I am eagerly looking forward to the George and Anna Charest family history. Knowing
Nancy it will be excellent. God love her for putting in all that energy. Ah to be that young !!!!!!
Carolyn Kent Wasilka, AK
Following received from Don Charette of MA/Nova Scotia/FL accompanied by the difficult decision to be unable to attend the 2003
reunion in NH. As reported in a previous issue, Don and the large clan from MA hold a reunion every 5 years. That 5-year reunion
was in 2000 and happened to fall on the same weekend as the Charette reunion in New Brunswick in 2000. Don and his wife
attended our reunion instead of attending the MA reunion. Ray
". . . the main reason for our attending the terrific reunion at Ft. Kent was to meet people like you and Denis.
My generation was never able to get much information from our aunts or uncles about our ancestors. Therefore, I decided to go at it
myself, and go to that Charette reunion, knowing that I should get lots of answers that I never could get. It was a difficult decision,
but worth it for sure. You people were a great help, and made the trip worth while. And it was a great experience, meeting so many
other Charettes. Never know that so many existed .
Very good letter. I have not had much time to work on the tree lately but I will get back to it soon. I would love to get to that reunion
the 28th but just too damn busy this month! But I will get to the BIG one next year I am really looking forward to that one!
Take care Ray and tell your wife (my cousin) I expect to see her there !!
Mark+Lorie Voisine (Grandson of Isabelle Charest)
TIDBIT
History of Charette Design
The term "Charette" initially appeared in the early part of the late 1800's. Architecture students in Paris who needed to rush their
drawings to the Ecole Des Beaux-Arts placed them on a cart which was called a charette. Later the word broadened its meaning and
came to describe any intense, short-term student design project. Today the word is used by the architectural community at large to
describe any intense, on-the-spot design effort.
OBITUARY
Journal Tribune 2002-9-25
Leandre Charest
KENNEBUNK - Leandre R. Charest, M.D., F.A.C.S., 89, of Wiggins Pond Lane, died Monday at St. Andre's Health Care Facility in
Biddeford.
He was born in Manchester, N.H. on Jan. 31, 1913, the son of Seraphin and Eva Alice Lariviere Charest, and was educated in
Manchester schools, the University of New Hampshire and McGill University Medical School, where he studied surgery. His
internship and residency were served at St. Luke Hospital.
In 1940, he established the first blood bank in Montreal. The procedure was later utilized by the Royal Victoria Hospital in the setup
of its first blood bank.
He enlisted in the Medical Corps in 1941, was stationed at Fort Williams in Cape Elizabeth and served as Chief Surgeon and
Commander of the Fort McKinley Hospital on Great Diamond Island. In 1943, he sailed to England with other members of the 107th
Evacuation Hospital Unit. They landed at Omaha Beach two days after D-Day and followed the American troops, taking care of
wounded soldiers through the Battle of the Bulge, France and Belgium and eventually Germany, where his unit witnessed the horrors
of Buchenwald. He returned to the U.S. late in 1945.
He opened his first office in the Masonic Building in Biddeford in December 1945 and later built his office at 314 Alfred St. He
specialized in surgery, was Chief of Surgery at Notre Dame Hospital on Pool Road, and was also associated with Webber Hospital.
He was a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, the American Medical Association, the Maine Medical Association and York
County Medical Association.
He was a member and, later, commander of the Casco Bay Power Squadron, where he was active in teaching. He was elected
commander of District 19, made up of Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont and was named a life member in 1998. He was a former
member of the Portland Yacht Club and was active in numerous civic organizations in the Saco-Biddeford area.
He retired in January 1978 and moved to Palm Harbor, Fla., where he enjoyed golfing and visits from family. He and his wife returned
to Maine in 1993 and had lived in Kennebunk since. He was active as a volunteer for the Kennebunk Free Library and particularly
enjoyed repairing children's books.
Dying previously were his first wife, Georgette LaBrie, and two brothers, Hervin, who died in World War II, and Ulysses.
Survivors include his wife of 28 years, Jeannine Lemieux Charest; four sons, John L. of West Buxton, Richard H. of York, S.C.,
James H. of Winchester, Va. and Robert L. of Westbrook; nine grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.
Subject: Help with Charette or Charret Familly
Hi Everyone
I am sending this email in the hope of finding someone who may have some information regarding my Great Grandmother whose
surname was Charette.
She was descended from Antonio Charette who was born either in Corsica or Leghorn, Italy in 1785. He is recorded as joining the
Royal Navy in Plymouth, Devon as a ships boy aged 12 in 1797. After serving on a number of ships and being involved in a number of
Naval encounters he was eventually discharged along with all the other foreign Nationals at the ending of the Napoleonic wars. No
trace of him can be found until the 1830s when he was in Bristol and had two sons William & James. Then he turns up in the small
village of Bosherston in Pembrokeshire, Wales. Here he has more children John, Hester, Sarah & George. Antonio was probably at
sea with the merchant or coastal fleet at this time. His demise comes in 1851 when he falls of a cliff one winter evening and is found
on the beach below the following morning.
Most of his family remained in Wales during the 19th century, but George moved via Staffordshire to Scotland. I am interested to
know if any one recognises him or this family or has come across any members of it whilst conducting there own research. The
Charette name is also spelt as Charret & Charrott and possibly other variants in the Census.
Many Thanks
Paul Cavill (cavillp(a)btinternet.com)
Remembering the Three Pollys
When selecting page protectors or photo protector sheets, remember the three Pollys: polyester, polyethylene, and polypropanol.
These are archival-safe materials. If the package or your vendor can't verify the content of the materials, don't buy the product.
Mary Clement Douglass, CGRS
(Former Museum Curator)
Salina, KS
2003 ASSOCIATION REUNION
Latest on the Charest 2003 Reunion. It will be held in Newmarket NH the middle of August 2003. Will get back to you end of October
with the exact date and location. Am working on getting a tour of the old textile mill where George Charest and many many
Canadian's work in the mid to late 1800's. Am combining it with Old Home Week for Newmarket . They have fireworks that night
about 8:30 or 9:00 as well a many other events for us to partake of. Am also looking into a group for French Canadian Music/Singers.
Want to make this special!! For those who come so far. Will not be a parade however. They only do that every other year. Will keep
you in formed by end of month. Nancy Charest
(I will send out an update when received. Ray)
BROWNFIELD ME 2002 REUNION
I attended this reunion as did other Association members. This was Charest of ME/NH clan reported by Peter & Nancy Charest of
Sanbornville NH. The reunion is alternated between ME and NH.
It was quite a scenic ride. I rode by Mt Washington twice (later on that). Upon arriving, I was greeted by Nancy and in turn several of
the attendees. There were about 50-75 in that 2-car garage. Wonderful gathering! Many stories were shared. The food was good
also. I was introduced as representing the Association. They are all aware of the Association. All of the past newsletters were
there to read. Did I say the food was good?
I even met a Leavitt, distant cousin of my wife whose mother was a Leavitt. It was a distinct pleasure to meet our cousins and
hopefully we will see them all next year at the reunion mentioned in the article above.
Thanks to the hosts, the Perreaults for their wonderful hospitality.
As for Mt. Washington, be careful with MAPQUEST.com. I followed their directions to a T and went 20 miles out of way. It seems
they forgot one left turn. Back to using the good old reliable map.
Enjoy
Ray