Arlette (Rose) Milaire was born on October 28th, 1927 in Thai Nyugen, Indochina (present day Vietnam). Arlette spent her early years in Hanoi and it was there, in March 1948, that she married Andre Milaire. In the latter part of that year, Arlette gave birth to her first son Roland. During the 1950s Vietnam was a troubled country and events caused the family to move south, firstly to Dalat and then later to Saigon. In the late 50s, the family left Saigon and moved to Combs-la-Ville, France where they stayed with Andre’s mother, Helene. In 1960, Andre went ahead to establish himself in Vancouver, Canada in preparation for the family’s future home. On November 20th of that year, Arlette, now with 4 boys in tow, boarded a flight from Paris that would eventually have them reunited with their father in Vancouver.
Vancouver was challenging for her but in time, she discovered new friends, became fluent in the language and joined the French parish of Blessed Sacrament Church. The family grew to eventually include 2 girls; the children attended the parish school and settled into their home on 24th Avenue and Heather in Vancouver.
In her senior years, Arlette attended activities at the Douglas Park Community Centre, loved restaurant outings with her children and enjoyed walking to her favorite Vietnamese restaurant on Cambie Street where she could reconnect with her past by speaking Vietnamese and enjoying the Pho soup. Throughout Arlette's life she made so many loyal friends with her caring and gentle nature. To all her children and grandchildren she showed great strength and devotion.
Arlette passed away peacefully on the evening of August 29th, 2010. She will be lovingly remembered by her husband, Andre and six children, Roland, Serge, Gilles, Daniel, Patricia and Carole-Anne.