French-canadian Legacy Podcast

This week Jesse is joined by Lise Pelletier and they discuss Acadian History. Lise is the director of the Acadian Archives at the University of Maine at Fort Kent and even though she grew up with no knowledge of Acadian history she’ll discuss how she learned about it through literature. This week's episode deals with some difficult topics, but they are stories that are very important to tell. Online Acadian Archives - www.umfk.edu/archives/ Lise Staff Bio - www.umfk.edu/directory/bio/lise-m-pelletier/

Lise Pelletier joins us next week to discuss Acadian history. Lise is the director of the Acadian Archives at the University of Maine at Fort Kent and even though she grew up with no knowledge of Acadian history she’ll discuss how she learned about it through literature. Next week's episode deals with some difficult topics, but they are stories that are very important to tell. Online Acadian Archives - https://www.umfk.edu/archives/ Lise Staff Bio - https://www.umfk.edu/directory/bio/lise-m-pelletier/

Our guest this week is Steven Riel. We were lucky enough to meet him at the Rassemblement in Orono and knew right away we wanted him on the show. Steven is a poet and the author of Fellow Odd Fellow his first full collection of poetry. His third Chapbook, Postcard from P-town was the runner-up for the inaugural Robin Becker Chapbook Prize. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of the Franco-American literary e-journal Résonance. Résonance Website - https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/resonance/ Steven's Website - https://www.stevenriel.com/ Fellow Odd Fellow - https://www.amazon.com/Fellow-Odd-Steven-Riel/dp/0985529237

Steven Riel is joining us next week. We were lucky enough to meet him at the Rassemblement in Orono and knew right away we wanted him on the show. Steven is a poet and the author of Fellow Odd Fellow his first full collection of poetry. His third Chapbook, Postcard from P-town was the runner-up for the inaugural Robin Becker Chapbook Prize. He is also the Editor-in-Chief of the Franco-American literary e-journal Résonance*. Steven's Website - https://www.stevenriel.com/ Résonance - https://digitalcommons.library.umaine.edu/resonance/ Fellow Odd Fellow on Amazon - https://www.amazon.com/Fellow-Odd-Steven-Riel/dp/0985529237 * I'd like to apologize for how I pronounce Résonance in the episode. I tried my best and still struck out hard.

This week’s guest is considered by many to be the greatest Franco-American storyteller in New Hampshire. Robert Perreault is an Author, Historian and Professor and he was nice enough to sit down with us at the Rassemblement in Orono. Jesse talks to Robert about growing up in Manchester, some of the work he did after college and they’ll talk about the Irish vs the French in Manchester. We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we do! New Hampshire Humanities Bio - www.nhhumanities.org/presenters/robert-b-perreault Amazon Author's Page - www.amazon.com/Robert-B-Perreault/e/B001H6IKNK New Hampshire Humanities Facebook Page - www.facebook.com/newhampshirehumanities/

This week’s guest is considered by many to be the greatest Franco-American storyteller in New Hampshire. Robert Perreault is an Author, Historian and Professor and he was nice enough to sit down with us at the Rassemblement in Orono. Jesse talks to Robert about growing up in Manchester, some of the work he did after college and they’ll talk about the Irish vs the French in Manchester. Please join us next week for this fantastic episode. New Hampshire Humanities Bio - https://www.nhhumanities.org/presenters/robert-b-perreault Amazon Author's Page - https://www.amazon.com/Robert-B-Perreault/e/B001H6IKNK New Hampshire Humanities Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/newhampshirehumanities/

Our guest this week is John Tousignant, the Executive Director of the Franco-American Centre in Manchester, NH. For years he’s been working day in and day out helping to promote the Franco culture, so we wanted to have him on to tell his story. Some of the things Jesse and John talk about are how John grew up in a house that didn’t speak French and you’ll learn about all the non-profits he’s worked with through the years. We hope you enjoy the episode. Franco-American Centre Facebook Page - https://www.facebook.com/centrefrancoamerican Franco-American Centre Website - https://www.facnh.com/

From the first episode Jesse has been saying there’s been a renaissance happening in the Franco-American scene in the Manchester area. Next week’s guest is one of the people responsible for that. John Tousignant is the Executive Director of the Franco-American Centre in Manchester, NH and works day in and day out helping to promote the Franco culture. They’ll talk about everything from how John grew up in Concord, NH in a non-French speaking household and you’ll find out about all of the important non-profits he’s worked with in the past. Franco-American Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/centrefrancoamerican Franco-American Website - https://www.facnh.com/

This week’s episode is our first roundtable film discussion. We have Tonya and Ray Shevenell on to talk about the documentary The Home Road. Tonya directed the film and Ray is the “Star”. The film is about how Ray retraced his Great Great Grandfather’s trip from Compton, Quebec to Biddeford, Maine. The Film is an exploration of family, history and family - and how a journey into the unexpected inevitably leads to home. Tonya also talks about her upcoming projects, including an exclusive announcement of an upcoming book. Since we have two guest this week, Jesse welcomes Mike to the co-host chair. We hope you enjoy the discussion about this important documentary. The Home Road Website - https://www.thehomeroad.com/ Watch The Home Road Online - https://www.thehomeroad.com/see-the-film Malibu Maine Website - https://www.malibumaine.com/ Shape of Love: 200 Years in Maine - https://shapeoflove.me/

Next week’s episode is going to be a fun one for a couple of reasons. It’ll be the first time we’ll have two guests and so it’d only make sense to have two hosts. Jesse will share hosting duties with Mike and they’ll welcome Tonya and Ray Shevenell to the show. Tonya is the director of the documentary The Home Road and Ray, her father, is the self-described “Star”. The short description of The Home Road is, A 74-year-old Maine man retraces the journey of his pioneering, 19-year-old great-great-grandfather, who left his home in Canada in 1845. Join us next week as we talked to Tonya and Ray all about this amazing film and how the story still resonates today. Tonya has recently made The Home Road free to watch online. So please visit the links below where you can also order the DVD. The Home Road Website - https://www.thehomeroad.com/ Watch The Home Road Online - https://www.thehomeroad.com/see-the-film

This week's guest is Paul Marion. He's a poet and community leader from Lowell Massachusetts, who was heavily involved in the formation of the Lowell National Historical Park which he will discuss with Jesse. They also talk about Paul's childhood in Lowell and what the French-Canadian culture is like there today. Jesse also talks to Paul about his book Union River, which is a collection of poems about his life as a French-Canadian. We hope you enjoy this episode. Loom Press Author Page - http://www.loompress.com/authors-paul-marion Union River Amazon link - https://www.amazon.com/Union-River-Sketches-Paul-Marion/dp/1946741000 Information about Lowell National Historical Park - https://www.nps.gov/lowe/index.htm

Paul Marion is a Poet and Community Leader from Lowell, Massachusetts who was nice enough to sit down with us and talk about his life and career. He grew up in Lowell and was instrumental to helping create the Lowell National Park. Tune in next week to hear Jesse and Paul talk about all things Lowell and also about Paul’s book Union River. Loom Press Author Page - http://www.loompress.com/authors-paul-marion Union River Amazon link - https://www.amazon.com/Union-River-Sketches-Paul-Marion/dp/1946741000 Information about Lowell National Historical Park - https://www.nps.gov/lowe/index.htm

We were lucky to meet this week’s guest at the Rassemblement in Orono and knew we had to have her on the show. Dr. Chelsea Ray is an Associate Professor of French Language and Literature at Umaine-Augusta. Every year she helps put together a French Immersion Weekend where students and people of any age can spend a weekend at Blueberry Cove Camp in Tenants Harbor, Maine and participate in various activities all while speaking only French. Jesse also asks Dr. Ray about growing up in California and how she ended up in Maine, what it’s like taking 20 college students to France for two weeks and how some of her classes might relate to our show. French Immersion weekend - https://www.uma.edu/academics/programs/french/events/ Chelsea Ray info - https://www.uma.edu/directory/staff/chelsea-d-ray/ French Program - https://www.uma.edu/academics/programs/french/

Dr. Chelsea Ray is an Associate Professor of French Language and Literature at UMaine Augusta. Dr. Ray will be our guest next week to talk about a very interesting project she helps put together each year. We met her at the Rassemblement in Orono, Maine in April and wanted to have her on the show to talk about the French Immersion Weekend at Blueberry Cove Camp in Tenants Harbor, Maine. This year’s event takes place September 27th through the 29th. Join us next week for the full interview to learn more about this fantastic weekend to experience the French language and much more. French Immersion Weekend Info - https://www.uma.edu/academics/programs/french/events/ Dr. Ray UMaine Bio - https://www.uma.edu/directory/staff/chelsea-d-ray/ French Language Program at UMaine Augusta - https://www.uma.edu/academics/programs/french/

This week’s guest is a French-Canadian Hall of Fame Musician, host of Bonjour a French Language talk show that aired over 500 episodes, she’s performed all over the world and she was kind enough to let us use her fantastic song “French in America” to start and end our show each week. Josée Vachon sits down with Jesse to talk about all that and she’ll discuss how she was introduced to music and talk about some of her favorite songs. Josée Vachon Website - http://www.joseevachon.com/ Josée Vachon CD Baby Page - https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/JoseeVachon Foot Tapping Lesson - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whQbiofXc8s

Next week’s guest has been involved with every episode of the French-Canadian Legacy and we’re very excited we got to sit down with her. Josée Vachon is a French-Canadian Hall of Fame musician who allows us to use her song ‘French in America’ every week. Jesse and Josée discuss her childhood in Maine, when she discovered her love of music and they’ll discuss the origin of a few of her songs. Make sure you keep listening after the bonus question because you’ll hear the full version of French in America. Josée Vachon Website - http://www.joseevachon.com/ Josée Vachon CD Baby Page - https://store.cdbaby.com/Artist/JoseeVachon Foot Tapping Lesson - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=whQbiofXc8s

This week’s episode is a little different but we hope you’ll come along for the ride. Two weeks ago we attended the fourth annual NH PoutineFest in Merrimack, NH. We interviewed a lot of people, restaurants and venders that were there and put it all together in our first wrap up episode. Tim Beaulieu, Event Organizer of NH PoutineFest, was nice enough to chat with us about the successful event. We were also lucky enough to sit down with Doris Proulx who was named Franco-American of the Year at the event. We want to thank everyone that took the time to talk to us and everyone that visited our table at the event. It’s great to hear that people are enjoying the show. Just a note about the audio in this episode, it was my first time using portable audio equipment, so the levels aren’t as high as the interview with Tim. I hope this doesn’t distract anyone from listening to the interviews because there are a lot of great stories being shared. I’m still learning and I thank everyone for bearing with us. I also wan

Every year Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day is celebrated June 24th so we wanted to have an episode that focused on the history of the event. We were lucky enough to have James Myall back to teach us not just the history of Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day in Canada but also in New England. We talk about the origin, how it was celebrated and why we don’t seem to celebrate it as much as we used to. Follow James on Twitter - https://twitter.com/jamesxmyall Rare Pictures of Saint-John-Baptist day - http://myall.bangordailynews.com/2017/06/24/maine/no-fairer-spectacle-rare-pictures-of-a-maine-st-johns-day-1897/ A Great and Worthy Celebration - http://myall.bangordailynews.com/2016/06/23/maine/a-great-and-worthy-celebration-st-johns-day/ Query the Past Saint-John-Baptist - http://querythepast.com/saint-jean-baptiste-new-england/

Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day is June 24th so we wanted to have an episode about the history of the event. Next week we’ll have the full episode but we wanted to give you a preview of what to expect. We were lucky enough to have James Myall back to talk about the history of Saint-Jean-Baptiste Day in Canada and New England. We talk about the origin, how it was celebrated and why we don’t seem to celebrate it as much as we used to. Follow James on Twitter - https://twitter.com/JamesxMyall A Great and Worthy Celebration - http://myall.bangordailynews.com/2016/06/23/maine/a-great-and-worthy-celebration-st-johns-day/

This week’s episode is fantastic and we hope you enjoy listening to it as much as we do. Abby Paige is a Writer, Actor and an occasional Standup Comedian. Abby wrote and performed the show Piecework: When We Were French, which you can now stream online. Jesse talks to her about growing up in Vermont and how much French-Canadian culture she experienced growing up. They talk about getting married and moving to Quebec and of course they discuss the show Piecework and the new show she's working on. Special thanks to everyone who entered our contest for two tickets to NH PoutineFest. Our winner was Angela Hall, we hope she has an amazing time!! Abby Paige's Blog - abbypaige.com/ Abby's Facebook Page - www.facebook.com/ByAbbyPaige/ You can buy or stream Piecework here - vimeo.com/ondemand/piecework