Paul Edouard Dumond

      “Give me a problem and I’ll hand you a solution.” Those who knew Paul Edouard Dumond would agree that that motto accurately described him. Paul was a man of great drive and a very original, independent thinker. For Paul, no challenge was impossible, and just about any desired result was within his grasp. Paul placed great trust in his intuition. Since that intuition generally led him in the right direction, who was he to doubt it.

       He was the son of Hormidas Dumond and Ida (Léger) Dumond. His childhood found him in Cornwall, Ontario where he matured into the independent person he eventually became.

      During his grade school years, Paul was a very focused and serious student who actually enjoyed the challenge of many classroom problems. He was determined to succeed, and he drew upon his gifts of trust and perseverance to provide him with a competitive edge. While his first love might have been academics, Paul was an avid fisherman and enjoyed hockey and baseball. Paul delighted in projects that required planning, critical thinking and resolution.

      During high school, Paul was relentless in his pursuit of learning, especially in those subject areas that really grabbed hold of his interests. It wasn't that he didn't put forth his best efforts in all classes, but if a subject really interested him, he would eagerly put forth extra effort to learn all he could. Paul graduated from College Classique de Cornwall in 1969. His strongest class in high school was English Literature.

      Paul's inventive side developed as he moved into his college years. When Paul found himself involved in an area that particularly interested him, he could organize and complete any task that was given to him and make it look as if he hadn't really needed to put forth any effort. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree from the University of Ottawa in 1969. He earned his Bachelor of Education at Queen's University in 1970, then pursued a specialization in Librarianship from 1970 to 1972. While he was in college, Paul joined a choir named Les voies de l'harmonie, which is where he first met Louise Poirier and fell in love.

      Paul was loyal to his friends. He found that he was most in tune with people who had similar interests and thought about things much the way that he did. Paul sometimes had a tendency to be critical in his friendships but he was more interested in finding out what was right in a situation rather than in being mean toward others. He never intentionally set out to hurt any of his friends. Paul was a person who challenged others to fend for themselves and to be original in their thinking and evaluation of the outside world. While growing up, some of his best friends were Yvon Mayer, Maurice Leduc, Gilles Quenneville, Richard Ayotte and Richard Léger. Later in life, he became friends with John DiGiovanni, MIchel Denis, Richard Besner and Don Johnson.

      On December 27, 1969, Paul exchanged wedding vows with Louise Poirier at St. Columban Catholic Church of Cornwall, Ontario. Louise's sensitivity to Paul's needs proved to be a wonderful influence on this man, who preferred to live in his “gut.” Louise's influence brought Paul to a new emotional level, one that eventually enhanced all of his other gifts and abilities. Louise was able to help Paul appreciate the fact that others made contributions and Paul became better at interacting with those around him. Because of this, Paul grew as a person.

      Paul often neglected his own feelings in order to give to others. This was very true when it came to how he dealt with his children. He was able to hand on to each child a number of strong values. He taught them to appreciate their abilities, gave them a desire to persevere despite obstacles and set within them a drive to succeed. He had three, sons, Charles, Daniel and Joël. He also had three grandchildren, Maxim, Emilie, and Dominic. They were always aware of how much Paul loved them.

      During Paul's professional working years, he was at his best when working independently. It became the hallmark of his performance. Paul was generally able to refocus his drive and determination and readily work toward finding a way to get things done that was beneficial to himself and his co-workers. His primary occupation was in education. He was employed as the school librarian for 31 years at Ecole Secondaire La Citadelle before retiring from education. He then pursued a career as the library technician for the SD&G Law Association Library, when he was commonly recognized as the best librarian in the province of Ontario.

      For Paul, his outside interests and hobbies became another exercise in learning and mastering areas that interested him. He greatly enjoyed unraveling the "hows" and "whys" that lay behind his hobbies. Paul was always pushing himself to learn more and to stretch his knowledge base even further. He firmly believed that the more things that he knew the more control he would have over things. His favorite pursuits were fishing, technology, gardening and woodworking.

      Watching his favorite sporting events by himself was never a problem for Paul. It allowed him to indulge in his own individual interpretation of the event. It was not uncommon for Paul to know what the right play or move “should have been,” and he would vocally address these feelings even if there was no one around to hear them. And if there were others around, he would still state his feelings and gladly debate anyone on their opposing views. In high school, Paul played hockey and baseball. He enjoyed following his favorite sporting events. Tops on his list were hockey and baseball.

      Due to Paul's loyalty and passion for following things through to their conclusion, he found that he was a definite asset to many organizations. Once he was firmly behind a common goal, Paul's skills became an integral part of the planning process and the success of any project. Throughout his later years, Paul was an active member of the Teacher's Union, at one time acting as the union president. He was also the range master for the Archery Club at Ecole Secondaire La Citadelle. Paul's contributions were valued as being the “structure” person of each individual organization.

      Paul's faith allowed him to better appreciate the gifts and opinions of others. This deepening aspect of his life helped him to accept his own feelings to a greater degree. He was a member of St. Peter's Parish for over 30 years.

      Paul's skepticism was visible when he found it necessary to place too much trust in one person. This was never clearer than when it was time for him to schedule a vacation or period of time away from his regular schedule. Paul loved the research aspects of planning a trip and he did manage to enjoy some time away. Favorite vacations included a trip to the Canadian Maritime provionces, Quebec City, Niagara on the Lake, and Niagara Falls.

      When Paul's retirement finally came in 2001, he was ready. He worked out many of the details in advance so that he could enjoy the time and not have to worry. In retirement, he found new pleasure in fishing and gardening.

      Paul Edouard Dumond passed away on January 2, 2016 at at his home in Cornwall, Ontario. Paul died suddenly and peacefully from a massive heart attack. He is survived by his wife and soulemate, Louise Dumond, his sons Charles, Daniel and Joël. Services were held at St. Peter's Church. Paul was laid to rest in Notre Dame cemetery in Cornwall, Ontario.

      Paul Edouard Dumond was always drawn to what was measurable, practical and factual. He was a very competent person who expected competence from others. He could be headstrong and certain about the way things were supposed to be. He was determined in every aspect of his life and certain that he was usually right about things. He trusted his intuition over all else, even if it opposed the popular belief, and he had faith in his inner vision and speculations. He wanted to be acknowledged by others as having made a contribution to whatever he was working on. His family and friends will miss his fierce determination, relentless innovations and analytic mind. He leaves with all those who knew him many wonderful memories.

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Paul Dumond, 68, died Saturday January 2, 2016 at his home in Cornwall. Paul was born in Cornwall, Ontario on October 19th, 1947 to Hormidas Dumond and Ida (Léger) Dumond, by whom he is predeceased. He leaves his wife and soulmate of 46 years, Louise (Poirier) Dumond. He is also survived by his sons, Charles Dumond and his wife Nicole Dumond, Daniel Dumond and his wife Renée (Beaudette) Dumond, and Joël Dumond and his companion Carey-Jane Herron, three grandchildren Maxim, Émilie, and Dominic. Paul started his teaching career in 1970 at the former St Lawrence High School, now École Secondaire La Citadelle, where he continued his teaching career as the school librarian until retirement in 2001. In 2003, Paul began a new career as the law librarian at the SD&G Law Library until 2016. Paul was an avid fisherman, loyal Habs fan, and had a passion for gardening, technology, and woodworking. He was a jack of all trades for which no task or challenge was insurmountable, especially when it came to helping his family. Resting at LAHAIE AND SULLIVAN, CORNWALL FUNERAL HOMES, EAST BRANCH, 614 First Street East (613-933-2841) from 2 pm on Thursday. Funeral Friday, January 8, 2016 for Mass of Christian Burial in St. Peter’s Church at 10 am. The family will be in attendance from 2 – 5 pm and 7 – 9 pm on Thursday and from 9 am until time of Funeral on Friday. We know that Paul would rather be fishing or watching the game than to be the center of attention, but we hope you’ll join us anyway as we remember him. As expressions of sympathy, Memorial Donations to the Heart & Stroke Foundation would be appreciated by the family. Messages of condolences may be left at www.lahaiesullivan.ca.