Anne-Marie Gagnon (née Lajeunesse) died peacefully at home in Windsor on October 6, 2026, at the age of 78, with her family around her and the last of her garden’s dahlias in a jar on the windowsill.

Anne-Marie Gagnon (née Lajeunesse) est décédée paisiblement à son domicile de Windsor le 6 octobre 2026, à l’âge de 78 ans, entourée des siens, avec les derniers dahlias de son jardin sur le rebord de la fenêtre.

Born in Windsor to Lucien and Thérèse Lajeunesse, Anne-Marie grew up speaking French at the supper table and English on the street, and she spent her life insisting that both belonged to her. She taught French for thirty-three years, first in elementary classrooms and later at the secondary level, and she was known for a stubborn rule: no English in her room after the first bell, not even for “bathroom.” Generations of students learned to say “Est-ce que je peux aller aux toilettes?” before they could conjugate a single verb.

Née à Windsor, fille de Lucien et Thérèse Lajeunesse, Anne-Marie a enseigné le français pendant trente-trois ans. Elle a passé sa vie à défendre la langue et la culture franco-ontariennes, en classe comme dans la communauté. Chaque 25 septembre, elle hissait le drapeau vert et blanc devant sa maison, et pendant plus de vingt ans elle a été bénévole aux festivités franco-ontariennes de la région.

At home, Anne-Marie gardened with the same discipline she brought to grammar. Her backyard on a quiet street near the river held forty-two varieties of dahlias, each labelled in her careful handwriting, and she split the tubers every spring to give away to anyone who asked. She married Gilles Gagnon, a high school science teacher, in 1971; they canoed every summer, argued cheerfully about tomatoes, and made tourtière together every Christmas Eve for forty-nine years.

Anne-Marie is survived by her children Julie Gagnon (Marc Bélanger) and Étienne Gagnon (Sarah Gagnon); her grandchildren Chloé Bélanger, Mathieu Bélanger, Léa Gagnon and Olivier Gagnon; and her brother Denis Lajeunesse. She was predeceased by her husband Gilles Gagnon in 2020 and her parents, Lucien and Thérèse Lajeunesse. Elle laisse dans le deuil sa famille, ses amis et des centaines d’anciens élèves. In lieu of flowers, donations to the Windsor Public Library would be warmly appreciated.