Along with countless others, we were saddened to hear the news of Marcel De Hêtre’s passing on November 11, 2022 at the age of 57. Most might remember Marcel De Hêtre as a friend, partner or gifted tenor. For us at the Diocesan Office he was a beloved and talented co-worker.
From 2001 until 2013, Marcel worked as the Bishop’s Secretary, Webmaster and Front Desk Manager. According to his longtime partner, Laura Prince, “He loved his job at the Diocese. It was a perfect match for him…. His quirky sense of humour worked with most of the priests in the Diocese and the job allowed him to combine music and liturgy, which is what he knew, what he grew up with and what he loved.”
Both bishops he served under allowed Marcel the flexibility to continue singing in professional choirs, which of course was his passion.
While he didn’t sing much in the office, there was one song he performed with some regularity, called Macaroni Delight. The song was co-written by Marcel and myself and sung to the tune of Afternoon Delight by the Starland Vocal Band. It was reserved for those days when someone in the office had macaroni for lunch. Although this was years ago, I still think of him when I take a package of macaroni out of my pantry.
I asked my coworkers to share their own memories:
“As a priest in the diocese, I remember Marcel’s dry and quirky humour, his kindness in helping me navigate some word processing, and the beautiful translations into French of some of the hymns we sang at Diocesan services. Marcel always knew the answer to our questions. I will always remember the beautiful and meaningful funeral service Marcel planned and the extraordinary witness of his faith in the music he chose.“ – Bishop Mary
“Marcel’s sense of humor came in handy when he helped coordinate office pranks. I remember one instance when a colleague was away, we took a whole lot of file boxes and built a wall around their desk! He was also a marvel when it came to creatinginteractive forms and was patient in helping me figure things out.” – Ardyth Robinson
“My memories of Marcel go back to when I was a student at McGill, having moved to Montreal and made Christ Church Cathedral my home parish. Marcel was a member of the choir and at parish events, he was always friendly and poking gentle fun to make you feel like part of the “gang.” When I joined the Programme Office, Marcel joined the Bishop’s Office where his collegial sense of humour broke the ice and made you feel like part of the family. I will always remember Marcel for his sense of humour and compassion.” – The Ven Robert Camara
“As his successor, I had big shoes to fill. Marcel was the ultimate perfectionist, and I was very much in awe of his depth of knowledge. He had an amazing sense of humor too. I will miss his voice and his sharp wit.” – Mary Abate
“He knew everything about things like how to address the clergy, which can be intimidating to a non-Anglican coming into the job. He always took the time to answer my many questions.” – Jennifer James-Phillips
“Marcel and I shared a love of the Montreal Canadiens. We often reminisced about the glory days of the Habs during the 1970’s and 1980’s and lamented their playoff failures of the past two decades. We looked forward to a Stanley Cup parade and joked that when that day came, we would be standing in front of Christ Church Cathedral wearing our jerseys and cheering on our beloved team. The Habs will be winning the Stanley Cup in near future. I will be at the parade and I will be thinking of my friend, Marcel, who will be looking down from Heaven, yelling “Go Habs Go!”. – Stephen Tam
There is a through line in these memories; he was a man of talent, competence, helpfulness, and humour. I’ll bet he has those angels cracking up right now. Rest in peace dear Marcel.
montrealgazette.remembering.ca
