On Saturday morning, less than two weeks after the Amqui tragedy, the funeral of one of the three victims was held in Bas-Saint-Laurent.
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With the warm nickname “Mr. Gérald”, Gérald Charest, 65, was described as a unifying man who lived well. A large part of the congregation attended his funeral, which took place in the church of Amqui.
“He was a really good guy. He gave a lot of himself. We can’t come back. We are in so much pain,” says one woman through tears.
“Gérald was a smiling man. We didn’t deserve to die like this. It means that life is important, you have to be careful,” says one man.
Grieving is particularly difficult in community.
“Today we are in a very significant example of a community like that of Amqui with a tragic death. We see how important funeral rituals are to the family and to everyone involved in Mr Charest’s death. Funeral rituals are an important step in the grieving process,” said Annie St-Pierre, executive director of the Corporation des thanatologues du Québec.