Image Credit: The Canadian Press

By The Canadian Press

ALINE CHRETIEN PASSES AWAY

Aline Chretien, wife and trusted adviser of former PM, dead at 84

Sep 13, 2020 | 10:15 AM

OTTAWA – Aline Chretien, the wife and trusted adviser of former prime minister Jean Chretien, has died at 84.

A spokesman for the Chretien family says she died at her home in Shawinigan, Que., on Saturday morning surrounded by family. A cause of death was not specified.

Bruce Hartley says only a private ceremony is being planned for now because of restrictions associated with COVID-19, with a public memorial planned for sometime in the future.

Aline Chretien grew up in a blue-collar family, just a few blocks away from her future husband in the Quebec pulp-and-paper town of Shawinigan, where they met during a chance encounter on a bus.

While she rarely spoke publicly, Aline Chretien was a constant presence at Jean Chretien’s side and a major influence on him during his four-decade political career.

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(The Canadian Press)