Obituary of Leon Doucet

Leon Joseph Doucet passed away at the Lloydminster Hospital on Monday, February 17, 2020 at the age of 94 years. Leon leaves to mourn his passing: his children, Carol MacDonald, Paulette (Joseph) Holden, and Kevin (Cindy Mittelstaedt) Doucet; grandchildren, Cory (Tracy) Biever, Leonna (Peter) Wojcik, Michael (Taren) Holden, and Jill (Darcy) Williams; and great-grandchildren, Cody, Courteney and Kyler Biever, Jordan, Jessica and Jayda Wojcik, Annika, Linnea, Josefine and Leo Holden, and Kadence, Ava and Brinley Williams. Leon was predeceased by: his loving wife, Adelaide Doucet; grandson, Darryl Biever; son-in-law, Neil MacDonald; parents, Arthur and Antonia (nee: LaLonde) Doucet; brother, Gerry Doucet; and sisters, Denise Jordan and Rita Baribeau. Prayer Vigil will be conducted from St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church, Lloydminster, Alberta on Wednesday, February 26, 2020 at 5:00 PM. The Mass of Christian Burial for Leon will be conducted from St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church, Lloydminster, Alberta on Thursday, February 27, 2020 at 12:45 PM. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Leon may be made to St. Anthony's Roman Catholic Church - Building Project for the Rectory or the donor's charity of choice. Eulogy ~ Everyone please be seated. I am Kevin Doucet, son of Leon. Leon Joseph Doucet was born on March 24th, 1925 to Tony and Art Doucet in Neepawa, Manitoba. He was predeceased by: his sisters, Rita and Denise; his brother, Gerry; his son-in-law, Neil; and his wife, Adelaide. Dad's parents moved to Biggar, Saskatchewan in 1927 where his father managed the Imperial lumber yard. His first memories were of when his Mom had taken ill for a while and the Nun's from the convent from down the street had taken care of him until his mother recovered. This was his first real exposure to people that spoke English, for only French was spoken in the household. In 1934, the lumber yard closed due to the depression, and nine year-old Leon joined his Dad on a wagon pulled by horses loaded with furniture and feed. They headed for the Makwa area, and one night the horses got spooked and his Dad had to head out after them leaving Leon alone with the wagon and his dog for days. Mother Tony and the three younger kids soon joined them. The 1930's were not the time to try to start a new farm in northern Saskatchewan. Times were tough and the family was dirt poor, some meals were potatoes only, or sometimes a fish caught from the nearby river. Dad enjoyed leading his siblings the three mile walk to the Blueberry school, even though they were poor, they had each other. In 1941, at the age of 16, Leon joined the work force and moved to Niagara Falls, Ontario to work in a plant that produced parts for the defense effort. He returned to Makwa the next year and his father was managing the credit union and Co-op. Not being needed on the farm, he then joined the Royal Canadian Air Force. He was sent to Edmonton for basic training, followed by pre-air training at the University of Saskatchewan. Graduated from wireless school in Calgary, followed by bombing and gunnery in Mossbank. He was involved in a plane crash during training and narrowly survived. Dad was commissioned as a Pilot Officer and was about to be deployed into the Philippines when the war ended. He was honorably released in Jan of 1945 and at the age of 19; he then enrolled in Management training course in Regina. By June of ‘45 he was recommended to the Federated Co-op and took a job managing a tiny store in Domremy, Saskatchewan where he met his wife, Adelaide and was married in 1948. In ‘49 he was advanced to traveling Field Supervisor for North East Saskatchewan. In ‘53 he took the position as Operations Manager of the Saskatoon retail stores until 1957. At this point, he moved his family which included his wife and two young daughters, Carol and Paulette to Lloydminster to take a position as General Manager. It was a position he held for the next 28 years. His years at GM in Lloyd saw the business grow from sales of less than a million to over 29 million. It became the largest retail store in town and grew into multiple departments; lumberyard, feed mill, propane and service stations, besides the growth and multiple expansions of the main retail store. I will talk further on some of his business accomplishments during the luncheon after the funeral. Let's just say Dad's success as a manager had a tremendous economic impact on this city and employed hundreds of people who were able to provide for their families. Dad was a straightforward, direct manager, sometimes very hard-nosed, but always fair. He never micromanaged and gave people their duties and supported them to find ways to be successful. He was always there as a sounding board or to lend support if needed. Leon, the man at home, was deeply in love with his wife and kids. Always supporting his wife who ran the household and enjoyed the family pets. Leon had a deep commitment to the Catholic faith and had a great relationship with God. He took the family on multiple camping trips and loved fishing with family and friends. I remember as a young child being placed in the front of the boat at ridiculously early mornings, where I would make a bed out of life jackets and sleep very well to the hum of the motor and the rhythm of the waves hitting the boat. Dad was great to all three of us kids when we had a big decision to make in life. He was a great decision maker himself and always told us to break down the issues into its core elements and make the decision based on what was right. He always added clarity to situations, for there was not a lot of middle ground with Dad. He was a great storyteller and retold many of his favorites and they were funny every time. Leon loved refereeing hockey, becoming a level four official and one of the top officials in this area. Like in business, he was always fair even though not everyone agreed with him. Having the crowd go against him, never bothered him for he was not out there to make friends, he was out there to be fair and make decisions. Dad was a self-taught golfer, who had one of the most unique swings ever in the sport. He loved the game and I loved hearing his stories of business or sport, for he really opened up on the golf course. One of Dad's most unique and cherished memories, was filling in for his daughter, Carol, as manager of the Co-op in Resolute Bay, NWT. Running a store in Resolute is not the same as running a store in the south. He loved the experience and had a new level of respect of what his daughter did after that short exposure to her job. Dad and Paulette worked together for years as she became manager of the Pharmacy department. He was always a strong role model and someone you could talk to when you had an idea; just better be prepared for he was normally two steps ahead of you when you were presenting. After he retired from Lloydminster, he was hired by Federated Co-op as the Special Assignment Manager and took over the bankrupt Edmonton Co-ops and saved the nearly bankrupt Drumheller Co-op. Dad had a long and enjoyable retirement, filled with grandkids, driving the boat on the lake, many winters in Arizona and traveling. In closing, I will leave you with these words written by Leon himself: Carol and Paulette, it is okay to wipe away a few tears, your Dad loved you three kids as much as anyone could have loved their kids. I was proud of each of you, as was your Mom. Remember to love your kids and grandkids. Be kind to one another and be Proud! Pray for me once in a while. I have forgiven anyone who may of done me harm and I regret any harm, real or imagined, I may have done to anyone. Few people could have asked for a challenging, happy and fulfilling life. I loved your Mom as she loved me. Leon's funeral card can be viewed or downloaded from the link below. https://indd.adobe.com/view/364cecb3-bf22-4b55-815e-fc51b9a8b455