Well-loved Montreal entertainer Geraldine Doucet passed away in her sleep Friday in Florida, her son Paul Doucet has confirmed.
"My mother was a little bit frail of late. No one expects that you're going to pass but I'm not surprised that it happened," he told CTV Montreal.
Doucet, who was 85, spent her winters in Florida but spent the rest of the year in Montreal.
"She was always a very strong personality in our household and protective of her husband and her children," Paul Doucet said from his home in Georgia
Geraldine Doucet was a multi-talented singer and actress who was involved in political and charity work, including with the Children's Wish Foundation.
Her late husband Roger Doucet was also well-known for singing the national anthems prior to Montreal Canadiens hockey games for many years. She has since remarried.
Doucet was a naturalized Canadian who moved to Montreal from the United States in the 1950s.
In recent months she helped organize an internet radio undertaking at a Montreal North seniors' centre and also performed in a show designed to raise funds for fridges at a local hospital, an activity supported by the Roger Doucet Fund.
“Her legacy is of a woman who gave herself to the community to help others who could not help themselves,” said her son Paul Doucet.
A ceremony aimed at celebrating her life is being planned for this spring in Montreal.
Peter Doucet provided CTV Montreal with the obituary below.
Geraldine peacefully passed away on Saturday, January 24, 2015 at the age of 85. She was in her winter home in West Palm Beach FL with her husband Ben Linds.
Geraldine was born in New York City and in 1952 married Roger Doucet Roger Doucet, CM (21 April 1919 – 19 July 1981). After Roger’s death in 1981, Geraldine continued the legacy of her husband and dedicated her life to entertainment and to helping those in need. Geraldine will be remembered for her pioneering work with the Canadian Children’s Wish foundation, her dedication to the Roger Doucet Humanitarian Fund as well as countless charities in the Montreal area. She will also be remembered for her roles as Mother Superior in Nunsense and her one women show “Sophie Tucker”. Geraldine never tired from helping others, in 2012, Geraldine was awarded the AFBS, Leslie Yeo Award for Volunteerism and although she struggled with some health issues, she continued to put on a show to raise funds for the Roger Doucet Humanitarian fund and was planning a show for her local community in West Palm Beach. Geraldine will be remembered for being one of the most loving, caring and giving person who has touched the lives of so many. Her love of life was inspirational to so many of her fellow entertainers who would support her charity events. Geraldine had a gift that enabled her to bring joy to so many, those beautiful blue eyes will be sorely missed. Known to many as simply GiGi, her friends and family will remember her ever present positive outlook, deep affection and compassion for others.
Geraldine will be dearly missed by her husband Ben Linds, her 3 sons, daughter’s in law, grandchildren and Ben’s sons, families and grandchildren.
