1963-2018

It was 20 years ago this year that Lise Brunelle and her husband Mario Masse – her accomplice in everything – moved to our pretty little town. Lise passed away the night of February 18 of this year, in the Sainte-Agathe-des-Monts hospital. She rests today in Mont-Tremblant’s Sacré-Cœur-de-Jésus cemetery, in the village she loved so much.

In addition to her powerful voice, which was incredibly moving to those fortunate enough to hear her sing, mezzo-soprano Lise Brunelle left an indelible mark on the Mont-Tremblant community. She leaves her son William and her husband Mario, as well as very many friends. Her kind, warm personality touched a great number of us. Always smiling, Lise was missed by many at the starts of the Ironman 70.3 and Ironman Mont-Tremblant triathlons where she had, until now, interpreted the Canadian national anthem with much spirit and skill.

An uncompromising lifestyle

Lise Brunelle left us too soon, but she lived her life with great intensity. Her passion for the arts led her to accomplish great things, both for the Mont-Tremblant community and for herself. In fact, on December 5, 2013, Lise was in New York to deliver an unforgettable performance at the prestigious Carnegie Hall.

“From the very start of our marriage, we agreed that we would never hear ourselves say ‘If only I had…,’” Mario Masse confides. “We had the same tastes for the arts and culture and encouraged each other in our enthusiasms. We traveled a lot,” he continues, “and William was always with us. We often went to Europe, and to New York at least four times a year. It’s a special city for us, where we went to recharge our batteries. Barely twenty minutes after arriving, we felt energized.”

“Lise, the sower of happiness”

Shortly before her death, Lise was named volunteer of the year by the members of the town council and the management team of the Ville de Mont-Tremblant. Her devotion, in a range of committees, had notably led her to bring together the ladies of the Village district for tea time.

“She brought people together,” Mario Masse emphasizes. “Everything started with tea time. Lise felt it was a shame not to know a neighbour two doors away after 10 years. So she put a little notice in the local paper to invite all the ladies to the Resto-Pub Au Coin. And then there were the knitters….”

You may remember that in 2011, Lise invited the ladies of the Village to get together to knit a scarf of solidarity: an enormous scarf destined to beautify the Village church. Sixty or so women responded to the call to arms by the Mont-Tremblant singer. In all, it took 750 hours of work to actually make – knit – a scarf 170 feet long. “The project, which was really to bring local women together and recreate the spirit of the village of yesteryear,” was remembered during the homage ceremony and was a great success.

A fighter, and resilient

The terrible diagnosis was pronounced in September 2016. From then on, Lise battled a rare, aggressive form of cancer. “Ever during that period, she stayed the same,” Mario confides. “She was an extremely resilient combatant. She did everything possible to fight, but she accepted her fate,” he concludes.

Mario Masse invites you to visit his wife’s website where you can hear Lise sing by clicking on the “Audio” tab.

lisebrunelle.com