Businessman and member of the Panthéon des Sports du Québec Bernard Trottier has helped more than one generation of Olympic athletes.
He financially supported two champions in particular, Peter Duncan and Jean-Guy Brunet. To collect donations, he passed the hat on the steps of the church in Saint-Sauveur on some Sundays.
His extensive involvement with Alpine Ski Canada enabled the “Crazy Canucks” to make the history of Canadian alpine skiing on an international level. He was also part of the group that founded the Équipe Québec in freestyle skiing.
Today, his best moments are when a former athlete thanks him for the financial help he gave him. Over the years, he has donated nearly a million dollars to athletes.
You're from Montreal.
I was born in the Saint-Henri neighborhood before moving to Parthenais Street, south of Ontario Street. As you often say: “in the Loisirs Saint-Eusèbe district”.
You were the hitter for Jackie Robinson, the first African-American woman to play major league baseball.
In 1946, the Royals played at De Lorimier Stadium, a short walk from my home, where Pierre Dupuy High School is now located.
Describe Jackie Robinson to me.
First of all, he was a real baseball player. Jackie Robinson, I describe him as a generous person with a kindness towards me that I now consider unforgettable.
The influence of your parents.
My father, Drummond, and my mother, Rosealma, had eight children. My father was a blacksmith and taught me the importance of hard work. While my mother, an excellent cook, made sure that the children wanted for nothing.
Your first jobs.
I had three jobs at the same time. I delivered beer and orders for the Gravel grocery store. I still remember climbing the steps in the snow to the third floor. I peddled popcorn at outdoor wrestling galas.
You sold popcorn on wrestling nights.
Where Lafleur Restaurant is located, on Ontario Street, just east of De Lorimier, there was a small outdoor wrestling amphitheater directly in front of the stadium where the Royals played.
The wrestlers fought on the street.
Some nights the wrestlers would fight in the street after the Royals match. The tram had to stop. The fans crowded into the street and formed a circle around the wrestlers.
You moved to Ontario to work with your brother.
When I was 15, I worked part time at Omer DeSerres in the ski equipment sales department. When I was 16, I was a pipe fitter and my brother had a sprinkler company in Ontario.
You played baseball for Plateau Mont-Royal.
I played baseball for the Plateau until the late and legendary baseball player Fred Spada brought me back to play with the Maisonneuve team on the east side of Montreal. Previously I was part of the Champêtre team from Saint-Aloysius, which consisted mainly of English-speaking players. By the way, I didn't speak any English and, what was worse, I didn't understand anything. Then I played for Saint-Clement Parish.
Former Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda was your manager.
Fred Spada arranged for me to attend the Spokane AAA level training and enabled me to learn English. The manager was the colorful Tommy Lasorda. However, the magic moment of this season was when I faced Quebec pitcher Claude Raymond.
Have you played hockey?
I was playing with my friends on the street. However, I played a lot at Jean-Baptiste-Meilleur-Gymnasium. There was an outdoor skating rink in the schoolyard and sometimes we competed against the friars who were also our teachers.
You were kicked out of your school's hockey program.
A decree stated that it was forbidden to subject a monk to a physical examination if he wore his cassock to play. This has happened to me too many times when I don't respect these rules. Result: I was expelled from the hockey program.
Her winter sport later became skiing.
I started on the site of what is now the Olympic Stadium and then on the slopes of Mount Royal, the University of Montreal and Maisonneuve Park before becoming part of the Laurentides ski competition team.
Their first skis were wooden planks from a barrel.
There was a landfill not far from my house. I collected barrels to use the wooden planks to make my skis. Without realizing it, I had just designed the first ballet skis due to the width of my skis.
Their children carry on the family tradition.
My daughter Brigitte and son Robert run the Ski Town equipment store in Brossard. I am so proud of them as they continue the family mission of financially supporting our athletes in Quebec.
You worked in Tremblant.
I gave ski lessons, also organized parties and even weddings. Sometimes I left Montreal on the bus with a group of women. There I met my future wife Pierrette. Instead of skiing, the group sometimes got together to go to the dance halls. However, when she returned home, she snowed the straps because they were her brother's skis and she wanted him to think she had been skiing.
Continuing your studies is important.
I am proud of the athletes' successes. However, the most important thing for me is that they continue their studies.