By Ruby Pratka
Local Journalism Initiative
The six funeral homes in the Salons Funéraires Desourdy network, in Cowansville, Farnham, Henryville, Knowlton, Mansonville and Sutton, have been sold to the Coopérative funéraire de Saint-Hyacinthe, a representative for the co-op confirmed last week.
Gilles Cardinal, president of the Coopérative funéraire de Saint-Hyacinthe (CFSH), said discussions had been ongoing for nearly two years between the Fédération des coopératives funéraires du Québec (FCFQ), of which the CFSH is a member, and the private funeral home chain, which has been established in the area for nearly a century. He did not disclose the amount the chain was sold for.
The previous owner, Jean-Pierre Desourdy, was unavailable to comment before press time. Cardinal said Desourdy was “a great worker, who didn’t have any [potential successors] in his immediate family. He had not put [the company] on the market, but through contacts, we learned that he wanted to slow down, and we said if there is interest, maybe we can start talking. The first documents were signed between the FCFQ and Desourdy; after that commitment, the FCFQ asked around to see which of its members might be interested [in taking over the company], and we showed our interest.”
Before the sale, the co-op ran a single funeral home in Saint-Hyacinthe. “The company [Salons Funéraires Desourdy] was very well maintained, had a very good reputation, and had all kinds of equipment that we haven’t got in Saint-Hyacinthe – the embalming service, the crematorium, the fleet of vehicles for funeral processions – as well as a team of quality people,” said Cardinal. “We subcontracted [embalming and crematory] services before, and now we’ll be able to offer them in-house. [Desourdy] has some very dedicated employees, and we have some things we can learn from them.” Cardinal said the co-op planned to keep existing staff at the six funeral homes – including Jean-Pierre Desourdy – on staff.
He emphasized that the co-op was “the property of Quebecers that will stay in Quebec,” adding that “we made this acquisition with a lot of pride.”
Cardinal said the sale would not change much for families making funeral arrangements via one of the six Desourdy homes. The homes will be incorporated into the co-op, which functions a bit like a credit union, with members able to join the board and vote on some governance decisions, and a small slice of the profits returned to the membership. “They will be able to become members of the co-op if they choose, which comes with some economic advantages. They will continue to have the same services they had at Desourdy, [such as] advance funeral arrangements … in Saint-Hyacinthe, it will allow us to add a lot of services.” Services in English will still be available where there is demand. “In places like Knowlton, Sutton and Cowansville, where there are a lot of anglophones, we will make sure there are people who can serve those families.”
