Gilles Joanette

Gilles was born September 14, 1940 the only son of Alfred and Cecile Joanette who lived on a dairy farm east of Glen Robertson. Gilles and his wife Madeleine Levac live in the same farm and now keep beef cattle there.

He attended elementary school in Glen Robertson then Glengarry District High School in Alexandria and in 1961 graduated from Ecole Normale, Ottawa University. In a conversation Gilles stated that his father always insisted that he get a good education. His parents were a big influence on him with their encouragement and involvement in the community.

While in elementary school Gilles was very active in all sports, organizing games with the objective of having fun while applying all the skill possible. Before starting to skate around the age of 10, he played hockey at the school without skates.

In high school Gilles played 3 years on the football team first as a lineman and then a pass receiver. He played soccer for Glen Sandfield and joined a boxing club in Glen Sandfield where he learned many basic skills and made new friends. Also while in at Ottawa U. he became involved in judo. From all the sports he played, Gilles began to center on hockey, playing in the Alexandria Minor Hockey System starting with bantam and working his way through midget and juvenile. He was part of Father Gauthier’s Lochiel Farmers team which was known as the “LOKS”. He remembers one game against a Cornwall team being down by 5 goals but the team rallied by scoring 6 goals and won the game. Gilles got all 6 goals.

In 1956 Gilles was invited to the Junior Canadian Camp in Verdun, Quebec. His father refused to sign the permission form and insisted on education first, hockey, second.

From 1956-1960 Gilles played with the Alexandria Jr. B. team and was top scorer twice in four years. While attending Ottawa U. he was selected to play on the University hockey team. At the same time he was playing in the Dalhousie Border League. 1962 –1964 saw him playing for the Senior Lancaster Dodgers, the following years he played in the league Petite Nation in St. Bernadin and St.Isidore.

Following graduation from Ottawa U. Gilles returned to Glen Robertson to begin his teaching career at Ecole Notre Dame de L’Assomption, to Moose Creek for a one year period, returning to the Glen from 1966-1985. The years 1985-87 were spent in North Lancaster, then it was on to Ecole St.Bernard’s in Maxville where he finished his teaching career in 1996, thirty-one years as a classroom teacher and five years as a principal.

Gilles’ involvement in hockey also involved a coaching role along with his active team play. He coached beginning in 1961-62 season with the A.D.M.H.A. house league and continued to coach various teams until 1987. Observations from his coaching experiences showed Gilles there was a definite need for a basic hockey skills instructional program.

In August, 1963 the “Association Canadienne de Hockey Amateur” invited Gilles and Claude Demers from Hawkesbury and 48 other participants from the province of Quebec to participate in a 220 hour program with Dr. Gaston Marcotte at the University of Montreal. Among the topics covered, in addition to hockey skills, were how to train, what diet to follow and how to conduct a hockey school and other related subjects.

The following season Gilles wanted to apply what he had experienced with Dr. Gaston Marcotte and this was the beginning of his hockey school program. Each session began with a warm-up, followed by the teaching of a skill then a 40 min game to apply the knowledge again. The referee was the instructor, Gilles. By the third year Gilles had several competent instructors to carry on getting a program underway in St.Isidore on Sundays. He also considered this a family outing as his wife got to visit with her St.Isidore kin and their two boys skated with their father. Then it was dinner out before returning home!

In addition to the instruction of the children, Gilles followed up with a meeting with the coaches and referees to discuss any problems, and to offer special techniques. Gilles also emphasized that no child was ever turned away from his hockey school due to the lack of finances. Many “special” arrangements were made if a case came about.

Gilles continued his own learning by attending courses to obtain his National Coaching Certificate. Levels I and II were under Jacque Martin, Level III with Bob Byrnes, level III theory with Carl Turgeon at the Universite d’Ottawa, level 4 at Carleton University with Bob Byrnes, Doug Carpenter, Roger Neilson, Brian Kilrea, Jacque Martin, Brian Murray, Tom Watt, Don McAdam as instructors.

While teaching Gilles also coached his students in softball, volleyball, soccer and hockey games between schools in addition to organizing many tournaments. As these tournaments parents were always involved and the emphasis was on playing as a team and not as an individual performer. The children were taught how to win or lose gracefully!

The Glengarry Hockey School (Ecole de Hockey Glengarry) was started in 1980 with Gilles, Gaetan Giroux, and Barry Mac Donald, Yves and Pascal Joanette gradually became involved with their father, both working to obtain coaching and instructional certificates. But it was Gilles who was always the backbone of this school. At this point in time he is searching for someone to take over completely and hoping his two sons will continue in the future to run the hockey school. He pledged his assistance and support if either or both choose to do so.

Both sons have followed in their father’s footsteps by becoming teachers and also instructors in the hockey school.

In July of 1998, Gilles was invited to coach a bantam hockey team (15-16yrs) from France in Vancouver for two weeks. The France Wild Cats won the tournament; again in 1999 he coached the same team in Toronto with the France Wild Cats winning for a second year. The next month he was asked to go to France and for nine months to coach a senior team. After much thought he declined the offer – preferring to stay home and keep busy in Glengarry.

He still does some substitute teaching in Glengarry schools in addition to spending time with his family and three young grandchildren.

For Gilles sports have been a passion, where he used his unending patience and ability to teach, to program, to schedule and to lead and his perseverance to spend many years to help so many young folk in the community. He’s grateful acknowledged the support and respect he has received from the members of the community. One individual he mentioned as giving great support and encouragement was a teaching partner, named Theo Oetelar. He was always there to lend that extra helping hand.