Julien Morazé, a Saint-Pierrais with an extraordinary destiny

There are unusual destinies for unusual personalities. Julien Morazé was certainly part of that class. Passed away on October 11 in Montreal at the age of 95, he was one of the first airline pilots from Saint-Pierre and Miquelon.

Son of the famous bootlegger Henri Mozaré, Julien Morazé lived an unusual life between the archipelago and Quebec. His granddaughter Karina Morazé agreed to confide in some stories told by her grandfather over the years.

As a child, Julien grew up in the family home located in what is now the Héritage museum. “His father was pretty tough.” smiles Karina. Requirement is the right term to talk about the youth of the future airline pilot. Not to mention pressure. “Actually, he must have been excellent at school. If he wasn't in the top three in his class, he was struggling at home.”

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This is surely what shaped him. His father's discipline and the rigor of a home where success was no joke made Julien ambitious. This is how the idea of ​​becoming an airline pilot made its way into the young man’s head. With his father's speeches never far away. “Becoming an airline pilot was initially his father’s idea. For him, it was the most prestigious profession. My grandfather Julien therefore followed this idea.”

Between the gardeners and the servants working for the Morazé household, and surrounded by his four brothers and sisters, Julien had a relatively happy childhood. But a tragic event will fundamentally affect the young man. At 13, he lost his younger brother Robert who drowned in the Savoyard pond. “Robert died when he was twelve years old. Julien always blamed himself. In fact, he explained to me that his brother always made the joke about drowning and that he didn't believe him… “

It is therefore with rage in his heart that Julien will go through his adolescence before joining Quebec at 18 years old. He will find relief in the exercise of his profession as an airline pilot, aware that he is marking the history of his territory by becoming one of the first to come from the archipelago. For twelve years, between Quebecair and his position as a private pilot, he traveled extensively in North America. With a few suspended moments, like the birth of his son which he learns in mid-flight. “He married my grandmother, whom he met in 1959 in Rimouski. Then, he learned of my dad's birth in the air. It was air traffic that alerted him.”

But also with some scares. Including one in particular. Then a pilot in the service of a Quebec politician, the latter wishes to take off despite Julien's reluctance due to the weather conditions. As the two men fly over the small municipality of Nomingue, they find themselves in the middle of a snowstorm.

They crashed in the snow. The plane was split in two, but there were no deaths or injuries. Just a lot of fear.

Following this incident, nothing will ever be the same again for Saint-Pierrais. Julien decides to stop flying. He will never touch the controls of a plane again after this according to his granddaughter Karina.

After twelve years of piloting, Julien is looking to reinvent himself. He will find his salvation in Montreal. First working at the port, then in Canadian government offices. “He took evening classes at the University of Montreal, he studied a lot.” Then followed a career of more than 35 years until becoming director of employment within the Immigration Canada agency. For Karina, it is clear, he owes his rise to the demands of his childhood and the environment in which he grew up. “With his father, he had a somewhat conflictual relationship, of course, but he taught him rigor and discipline. He kept that until the end of his life, and he was recognized at work for these values. “

Also and above all, Karina retains a special charm from her grandfather. The one of the people who talked a lot while saying nothing. That of the people who lived. Always with a little thought for the archipelago. “He really loved Saint-Pierre and Miquelon. He had warm memories of it, others a little more painful, like the death of his little brother. But he had a beautiful, full life.”