ACTIVITIES AND APPRECIATONS: PUBLICITY STALLS

Throughout the celebrations of the birth, death and beatification of Dina Belanger various activities have been organized to make her better known, above all in Canada, by means of liturgical celebrations, the creation of shrines, publications, conferences, power points, videos, stage productions, festivals, the unveiling of plaques, commemorations, programs on Radio Galilee, Radio Canada and on the television about her life and spiritual journey. 

There were also a few greatly appreciated stalls where all kinds of information could be obtained:

From the 16 to 22 June 2008, during the Eucharistic Congress in Quebec, an event of great importance in order to make her better known,  a stall for Dina was set up in the Exposition Hall.

Other stalls should also be mentioned :

28th October 1993 in the Mall of St Roch, accompanying the film of a life of Dina, « The garden of Love »

15th February, 2000, at Lameque, New Brunswick, on the occasion of an exhibition about « The religion of our ancestors »

26th April 2001, at the Jesus and Mary School at Beauceville, for a fortnight during the mid-day break.

18th June 2006, at the Convent of the Dominican Adorers of Beauport, Quebec, on the occasion of the diocesan celebration of Corpus Christi.

26th September 2008, at Beauceville at the request of the Committee of Culture of the town, on the occasion of the week of culture.

16 – 17 May 2014 at the College Garnier at Quebec on the occasion of the Youth Festival.

MUSICAL THEATRE

On the 22nd January a press conference was held in order to launch to the general public, as an official event of the 400^th anniversary of the City of Quebec, the “Musical  Dina”, both words and music by Mr Louis-Martin Lanthier.

The announcement was made with the words “It's official, Dina Bélanger will be the star of a musical play for the 400^th Festival. It was on the occasion of the 49^th International Eucharistic Congress that the play would be first presented, from the 12^th to the 22^nd of June 2008, to be later repeated from the 25^th September to the 5^th October, all in the Dina Bélanger Hall of the Jesus and Mary College of Sillery.

The producer, Bruno Marquis, was responsible for the completion of the project, which included twenty or more singers and actors, accompanied by an orchestra of ten members  and with Myriam Brousseau in the role of Dina Bélanger”.

The Dress Rehearsal of the musical play Dina took place on the 12^th June in the presence of His Emminence  Cardinal Marc Ouellet and Bishops Mgr. Maurice Couture and Mgr. Pierre André Fournier, as well as dozens of priests, the civil authorities and a large audience.

The opening night was on the 14^th! The play was performed to capacity audiences for a total of 15 performances, to the enthusiastic applause of about 6000 delighted  spectators : adults – young people – religious – seminarians – priests - bishops         

MUSICAL ALBUM

On the 10^th November 1997 in the Dina Bélanger Hall of the Jesus and Mary College in Sillery, the CD of the musical works of Dine Bélanger was launched; Ricordanza, The Bells of the Abbey, Dream on the Saguenay, Cantique of Thanksgiving as well as the Mass 'Ricordanza', the work of Sr Cecile Kirouac RJM (a former piano pupil of Dina) on the theme of the piano piece of the same name, in  praise of the Adorable Trinity - this work was in homage to Dina on the occasion of the Beatification in 1993.  These pieces were played by Sr Rachel Fournier RJM, Pianist – Sr Annette Haché RJM, Soprano  - Sr Cécile Kirouac RJM,  Organist – Veronica Mathieu, Violin and the Jesus and Mary choir of Lauzon,

On the 22^nd May 2005, in the Dina Bélanger HaLL of the Jesus and Mary College at Sillery a musical album, entitled “The Courage to Love” was launched,  both the words and music being the work of Mr Louis- Martin Lanthier and provides an agreable account of Dina's life.

DINA BELANGER YOUTH FESTIVALS

 On the 2 November 2003, from 9h00 to 22h00, at the Jesus and Mary College at Sillery, the first “Dina Bélanger” Youth Festival was celebrated for young people from 16 to 30 years of age. 

This activity was jointly organised by the Pastoral Youth Commission of the Diocese of Quebec and the Pastoral Committee of the College. The object was to promote christian music with a programme of youth music and religious songs in French and in Quebecoise: “Let us sing to God in every tone”.

In the following years, every November until 2008, the festival was repeated in the Dina Belanger Hall in the College, and greatly  praised  for its aim to evangelise and bear witness in song.

DINA AND MUSIC

The beatification of Dina Bélanger, on the 20th March 1993 was followed by several concerts  - above all on the anniversaries of her birth and of her beatification as well as on the 4^th  September the day of her liturgical feast - in honour of the, now Blessed, musician.

In the period 1994 -1997 groups of artists sought to place themselves under her  protection and named Dina “patron of  artists” . On several occasions they took part in the preparation or animation of a special mass in Quebec, especially in the Church of Notre-Dame de Jacques-Cartier and the “God of the Arts” Centre (Fide-Art), including in their programmes some of Dina's musical compositions. These celebrations were often preceded by a brief concert, on an organ or other instruments.

On October 1^st 1998, the World Day of Music, Mr Roland Martel, leader of an orchestra, placed a poster of Dina at the entrance to his music store. He made Dina a “Director” of his business, so that financial considerations would not restrict his charitable activities.

COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE

COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE AT NEUVILLE

 On the 5^th September 1993, at the invitation of the families Matte and Bélanger, more than 800 people came together in the parish church of Neuville for a celebration of the Eucharist that was presided over by Mgr Roger Bloisvert, Vicar General.

After the Eucharist a commemorative plaque, on a lawn near the church, was unveiled and blessed. This plaque is placed on a stone brought from the ancestral home of the family of Dina's mother.

Following this and to great acclamation, 70 doves were released into the air in order to tell the world that Dina Bélanger has a special place in the heart of the parishioners.

After an open-air meal, twenty artists, descendents of the two families, together with some of the Religious, gave a concert in honour of Blessed Dina Bélanger, which included several of her own compositions.

THE COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE

THE COMMEMORATIVE PLAQUE IN THE CITY OF QUEBEC

On  the 22^nd of April, 1997, representatives of the City of Quebec and the Ministry of Culture and Communications of Quebec unveiled a commemorative plaque in homage to  Blessed Dina Belanger in the context of the hundredth anniversary of her birth. In this ceremony, which was held in the Council Chamber of the Town Hall of Quebec and presided over by Mr Jean-Paul  Lallier, Mayor of Quebec, homage was rendered in the presence of a large number of invited guests, including Madame Cecile Renaud Crépin, the god-daughter of Blessed Dina Bélanger.

On the 27^thAprii after the solemn Mass, celebrated in the Church of St Roch, by the Parish Priest Father Mario Dufour, at the end of a tridium in preparation for the celebration of the centenary of the birth of Blessed Dina, the plaque was installed on the facade of the Dina's birth-place at 168 Rue Notre Dame des Anges. A large number of local in habitants, religious, relatives, friends and  others from the diocese were present and took part in the homage offered to the first native of Quebec to be named Blessed.