THE ÉLISABETH BRUYÈRE MONUMENT

Sister Élisabeth Bruyère, a young member of the Grey Nuns of Montreal, had been chosen by her superiors to come to Bytown in 1845 with a few companions to establish the Sisters of Charity, the first religious congregation in Bytown.

Mother Bruyère alongside the Sisters of Charity, established a school, a home for the aged, an orphanage, a home for abandonned children and founded a general hospital that would later become the Ottawa General Hospital and is now the Elizabeth Bruyere Hospital, part of the Bruyere Continuing Care organization.

The Sisters of Charity cared for people of every religious denomination in Bytown. The monument at Beechwood also honours the memory of St. Marguerite d’Youville. She was a French Canadian widow who founded the religious order of Sisters of Charity of Montreal, commonly known as the Grey Nuns of Montreal.

She was canonized by Pope John-Paul II of the Roman Catholic Church in 1990, the first native-born Canadian to be declared a saint.

Canadian sculptor Achim Klaas created five life-size figures, including a schoolgirl, an orphan boy and a sick or homeless person ‒ who represent all those whom Mother Bruyère and her companions had come to help.

The monument was a community achievement, organized and brought to fruition by a dedicated fundraising committee: Sister Lorraine Desjardins, of the Sisters of Charity of Ottawa; Mr. Klaas and Anita Bourdeau who were the initiators and driving force behind the project. This beautiful monument was the result of generous contributions from the community ‒ individuals, organizations, religious congregations and businesses.