Grégory Dorte, mayor of Pont-sur-Yonne and 1st vice-president of the Departmental Council
“It's a great sadness on this New Year's Day… This illness against which he had been fighting for several months is a real slut. We were very close beyond the political aspect. Patrick was above all a benevolent person, he had temperance qualities. In short, he was a true humanist who listened. I would also say that he had a very keen analysis of politics; he loved his department and he had a good vision of education that I was able to measure when I was alongside him in the 5th commission. And then, we cannot remember Patrick without talking about his attachment to sport in general and to AJ Auxerre in particular. He was a genuine supporter.”
Jean-Luc Givord, mayor of Paron and Sens 2 departmental councilor
“I had a very close, friendly relationship with Patrick Gendraud… I really appreciated the man. He was honest. He was a true humanist. Politically, he was out of the ordinary, he was a visionary. In particular, he set up the territorial pact, a system which enabled the development of urban communities and municipalities. He was a unifier; he knew how to say things. He wasn't afraid to make decisions; he was a leader who knew how to listen. He was respected by everyone.”
Delphine Gremy, departmental councilor of Gâtinais in Burgundy
“This is very sad news. I appreciated him very much, both for his ability to manage the assembly in a respectful and democratic manner and for his human qualities, open-mindedness, sensitivity and empathy. I will not forget his immediate enthusiasm for the Handicap project on Kilimanjaro and his generosity in accompanying us on this adventure. We regularly discussed our personal journeys with the illness. He left very quickly, very weak. May he rest in peace.”
Paul-Antoine de Carville, mayor of Sens
“This is undoubtedly a great loss for the department. Patrick Gendraud was a man of dialogue, a humanist and deeply republican. For younger generations, he was a model of wisdom, in an increasingly complicated era, he always preferred dialogue to confrontation. Personally, I didn't work with him for long but every time I had the opportunity, he listened and provided advice. “
Henri De Raincourt, president of the General Council of Yonne from 1992 to 2008
“With Patrick, I think I can say that I had a special relationship with him because I welcomed him to the General Council. There has never been the slightest difficulty between us. He was someone for whom I had a lot of friendship. Politically, he was close to the inhabitants; he honored public life. He was a talented, open man, a man of unity and we must remember that he was a good manager, humanist, efficient and pragmatic. Lately I have been communicating with him by phone or text message. On Christmas Day he didn't answer me. I thought then that the situation was getting complicated.
Nicolas Soret, mayor of Joigny, regional councilor (PS)
“During the previous term at the Department, I was head of its opposition. We had disagreements expressed. The opposition was respected and even listened to. He was an endearing, humanist man, capable of an open mind. He fought courageously against illness.”
André Villiers, departmental councilor for the canton of Joux-la-Ville and former president of the Departmental Council (2011)
“There was a real closeness between him and me which dates back to the year 95 when he was mayor of Chablis. Our paths have never separated. When in 2011, I was elected president of the Departmental Council, he became my first vice-president. Today, I am overcome by sadness; he was a humanist, close to people. It’s thirty years of a shared journey that ends today.”
Julien Odoul, deputy for the 3rd constituency of Yonne (RN)
“I had known him since 1994. He was someone I respected beyond political opinions. He had a sense of dialogue, of listening, he was pleasant and not sectarian. He appreciated the man more than the labels. As far as I'm concerned, he never discriminated against me. We are losing a man of dialogue who had a peaceful vision of politics. I had the opportunity to meet him often during inaugurations of the property at Abbé-Deschamps.”
Comments collected by Alain CHABOTEAU
