Achi news desk-
Jean-Pierre Perland’s state funeral will be held on Saturday, June 1, at 11 a.m. at the Cathedral of Mary, Queen of the World in Montreal, Prime Minister Francois Lego’s office announced Wednesday.
The day before, the singer’s remains will be laid in state at the Mason Theater in Place des Arts, Montreal. The Montreal-born singer died on April 27 of natural causes. He was 89 years old.
The next day, Legault indicated that he would offer the family a state funeral, which they later accepted.
A press release from the Prime Minister’s Office stated that a limited number of places would be offered to the public for a funeral in the cathedral, but no further details were given.
The chapel at Théâtre Maisonneuve will welcome visitors on May 31 from 10:30 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Meanwhile, the Quebec government has set up an online condolence book at Quebec.ca/condoleances.
In Quebec, state funerals are reserved “for personalities who have left their mark on political life, according to a government decision.” The ceremony is simpler than national funerals, usually reserved for former prime ministers and the president of the National Assembly. On the day of a state funeral, flags are flown at half-mast from dawn to dusk.
On June 1, the Quebec flag on the main tower of the Legislature building will be flown at half-mast from sunrise to sunset. Ferland has been hospitalized since February 14 at CHSLD Desy, in Saint-Gabriel-de-Brandon, in the Lanaudière region of Quebec.
He would have turned 90 on June 24, the same day as Quebec’s Fête National. This year’s festivities are expected to feature him prominently.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published in French on May 8, 2024.
