Mathieu Traversy has been mayor of Terrebonne since 2021. He was previously a member of the National Assembly for two terms within the Parti Québécois. He attended Cégep de Lanaudière in Terrebonne and later UQAM in political science. He is passionate about the history of Quebec and elsewhere; In the fourth secondary school he discovered his political identity. He becomes a young nationalist who believes in Quebec’s sovereignty. Today he is proud to be the mayor of Terrebonne.
The attacks of September 11, 2001 left their mark on you.
A CEGEP employee told me that the two New York towers collapsed. Terrorists killed nearly 3,000 people and injured more than 6,000 others.
Have these attacks shocked you?
I was shocked because my ideas about how to create a better world were just out of balance. The world was changed by an upheaval that I never expected to happen in North America.
The mayor of Terrebonne is from Mascouche.
Until I was eight years old, I lived in Mascouche, where I attended Soleil-Levant elementary school.
The influence of your parents.
My father Pierre was a physical education teacher at the Vieux-Chêne school in Terrebonne for many years. My mother, Bibiane, was an aquatics manager for the city of Terrebonne. They encouraged me to play sports, but never tried to influence my political decisions. It was my decision and also to live with it.
Perseverance has played an important role in your life.
My parents taught me the importance of perseverance in everything I do. I had to do everything I could to win, but with humility and respect for others.
You wanted to be a teacher like your father.
I enrolled in the intensive sports program at Saint Louis School in Terrebonne. We will come back to this later in my life when it comes to my career choice.
You were exuberant at school.
And how ! I have always loved expressing myself. Needless to say, I often disrupted classes, much to the delight of the students but often to the dismay of the teachers.
You visited several regions of Quebec.
During the summer holidays, we visited several regions of Quebec, including Mauricie, Gaspésie and Tadoussac, with my parents, my brother Simon and my sister Lydia.
Do you have a preference?
The first time I saw a whale in Tadoussac, I was struck by its immensity. The beauty of nature in Mauricie is sparkling. But in the eyes of a young person my age, it was dazzling to see this huge rock jutting into the St. Lawrence River.
What sports did you enjoy doing?
Hockey on the street with my friends as well as on the ice rink in the nearby park. Swimming and badminton were part of my school activities. Not to forget the Fripouilles summer camp in Vaillant Park.
For what ?
As you and many others have noted, when I started high school at Collège Laval, badminton and swimming were more popular for me than soccer and hockey because of my body type.
You studied badminton as a sport, but you also decided to play the trumpet.
During my music lessons, I decided to play the trumpet in the school band, much to my parents’ dismay. My poor parents had to endure my hours of practicing to a noise that was definitely in their ears.
Was it difficult to change schools often?
I didn’t really think about it until you asked. To be honest, I realize today that it wasn’t necessarily easy to lose my friends, but I did find it easy to make new friends.
You loved history class.
My fourth-grade history class at Collège Laval played an influential role in my decision-making about Quebec’s history and the future I wanted.
They discovered several personalities who influenced Quebec’s history.
Maurice Duplessis, Robert Bourassa, General Charles de Gaulle, former President of France, and René Lévesque, each in their own way, allowed me to discover how they had to fight to achieve their successes. With these courses I wanted to play a role in Quebec history. I wanted to leave my mark and get involved so that Quebec would one day become independent.
They belong to the first cohort of Cégep de Terrebonne.
From the very first cohort who had the privilege of studying at CEGEP in a building and not in caravans (prefabricated facilities).
You improvised in CEGEP.
Unfortunately, student life didn’t offer much entertainment. Improvising allowed me to express myself with humor and, especially later, in political life, to never be surprised by a question or a derogatory comment.
You were elected student president of Cégep de Terrebonne.
They were really my first steps in defending ideas that needed to become reality. It’s funny, many of the causes I discussed haven’t improved.
You had to fight to improve student life.
I defended students’ rights regarding public transportation and the lack of parking spaces at CEGEP and did not forget to find activities to improve students’ belonging to CEGEP. I can’t help but smile when I see the student lounge that is just taken for granted, but we had to fight to get this lounge.
How do you feel about Terrebonne’s 350th anniversary celebration?
The city of Terrebonne has made headlines in recent years, and not necessarily always for good reasons.
The pride of being a citizen of the City of Terrebonne.
Terrebonne’s 350th anniversary celebration allowed citizens and visitors to rediscover how the City of Terrebonne has accomplished so much good. Today, Terrebonne residents are once again proud of their city.