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Saintly Connections:
Family celebrates canonization of relative

By Rosemary Bernth
Globe staff reporter
(Email Rosemary)

Most people consider it an honor to have a doctor or lawyer in the family, but not many can say they have a saint in the family like Teresa Girard can.

Girard’s grandmother, Anna Bessette Girard, is the niece of Alfred Bessette. Bessette is better known as Blessed Brother Andre Bessette, who is to be canonized a saint on Oct. 17 by Pope Benedict XVI.

This makes Girard the great-great niece of the soon-to-be first Canadian-born saint.

“I think of it as he is my Uncle Alfred, but the world’s Brother Andre,” said Girard, who grew up in Sioux City and graduated from St. Boniface Grade School and Heelan High School.

As a young girl, Girard said she read a biography about Brother Andre Bessette her Great Uncle Oscar Bessette had.

“He said that it was sent to him and all family members of Brother Andre,” she said. “He was very protective of the book. You could tell that it was very important to him.”

Growing up, Girard said she hid her relation to the Holy Cross brother who founded St. Joseph’s Oratory in Montreal, the largest St. Joseph shrine in the world.

“I was afraid that I would not be able to live up to the standard, that I would be set up as an example and that I would be found unworthy,” she said. “It was like our family secret.”

Now an adult living in Marion, Iowa, Girard and her siblings are planning to go to Montreal at the end of October to celebrate the canonization with a million others.

On Oct. 30, Girard and her family will celebrate Mass in an Olympic-sized stadium. On Oct. 31, they will celebrate a more intimate Mass for Brother Andre’s family and friends in his crypt at St. Joseph’s Oratory.
“I intend to pass out holy cards when they become available,” said Girard, no longer hiding her relation to Brother Andre. “I’ll pass them out like a new parent passes out mints or cigars.”

Girard said being related to a saint has strengthened her faith, especially since his story is relatable to today.
“Very few people know anyone who is related to a saint or think about saints as being contemporary,” she said. “To me, Brother Andre’s life story is relevant to people looking for work. He had a hard time staying employed due to his health issues. Prayer is the key.”

A few members of the family still reside in the Siouxland area.