Revitalizing the Francophone community of Newfoundland and Labrador

Credit: Matthew Mills

She’s enthusiastic, dynamic, bright-eyed and not shy about her passion for her community. At 26, Megan Felix has returned home to the Port-au-Port peninsula, affectionately called the “Pays du bon Dieu,” on the west coast of the island of Newfoundland and home to one of Newfoundland’s largest Francophone communities.

Five years ago, Felix did what most young Newfoundlanders do: she packed her bags and headed west to find work. Newfoundland and Labrador still has one of the highest unemployment rates in Canada, and the Port-au-Port peninsula is no exception. The effect of the cod moratorium in the 1990s, which resulted in a significant drop in fishing revenues, can still be felt today in the province’s small coastal villages. “I didn’t have a choice in leaving, but I came back because I missed my family,” Felix says. “I feel like I can trust the people in my community. We know each other, and we take care of each other.”

Megan Felix is an exception to the rule. Most youth leave and do not return. “We can’t hold it against the young people. Everyone wants more money and a better life. We think that we can make more money somewhere else, but we often forget that the cost of living is higher and that it can be hard to make ends meet,” she explains. As a newly hired youth liaison officer for the Réseau de développement économique et d’employabilité (RDÉE), she hopes to break this vicious cycle that forces people out of the region: “I want to help young people find jobs so they can stay here, to give them a choice that I didn’t have.”

Felix’s initiative is just one example of many in Newfoundland and Labrador. Gaston Létourneau, with his tousled grey hair embodying his lively, enthusiastic spirit, is also passionate about helping this new generation. For the past four years, he has been involved with students at the École des Grands-Vents, the only French-language school in the province’s capital, St. John’s. As a cultural identity officer for Newfoundland and Labrador’s French-language school board, he develops activities and programs to support the advancement of youth in French. “We need to help them realize their potential,” says Létourneau. “If we can give them confidence, they may be more likely to stay.”

Christophe Caron, Director of RDÉE in Newfoundland and Labrador

Christophe Caron, Director of RDÉE in Newfoundland and Labrador, is well aware of the situation. Two years ago, he came from France through the Destination Canada program and joined Newfoundland’s Francophone community. He himself is a product of various attempts to stop the erosion of the Francophone community. Caron hopes that this generation’s future is slightly brighter thanks to projects geared toward French-speaking Newfoundlanders: Journée Orientation & Carrière, Place aux jeunes de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador, Faut que ça bouge!, and PERCÉ. These programs not only help young Francophones develop leadership skills and find employment opportunities in their area, but also promote recent Francophone graduates among employers. Activities at the Journée Orientation & Carrière and at Place aux jeunes focus on meeting employers. “Young people often aren’t well connected and are not really aware of the opportunities,” says Caron. According to him, the coming retirement wave means that the next generation will be crucial in filling all the vacant positions—both Anglophone and Francophone.

Philippe Enguehard
Credit: Archives of Franco-Jeunes de Terre-Neuve-et-Labrador association

Fortunately, some youth are already convinced, and Philippe Enguehard is one of them. For the Newfoundland native whose parents came from Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, leaving was not an option, even though he had to do his post-secondary studies in English. “I love Newfoundland and Labrador and I’m proud of my Francophone and Newfoundland heritages; I’m not at all interested in leaving the province," he says emphatically. This Director of Franco-Jeunes de Terre-Neuve et du Labrador says that the small, aging community makes the situation more difficult for the younger generation—all the more reason to take action and motivate youth. “If we can’t hold on to our young people, the community will vanish,” says Enguehard. “That’s why the work we do is so important. By seeking out youth and engaging them in events like the Jeux de l’Acadie (in French only) and initiatives like community radio, we ensure that they take ownership of the community and keep it alive.”