Mrs. Lucie Bernatchez Mainguy donated $250,000 to the Armand-Frappier Foundation to support scientific research projects related to the use of essential oils for health prevention and treatment. To discuss this philanthropic gesture and the impact this field can have on the well-being of our society, the Foundation met with the donor.
Interview with the donor, Mrs. Lucie Bernatchez Mainguy
FAF: It is a great pleasure for us to be able to speak with you about your support for the Armand-Frappier Foundation. To begin, could you tell us a little about yourself, your work and projects, particularly as a distiller, teacher, and grandmother?
LBM: That sums up a whole life! I am also very pleased to be able to share with you this passion that leads me to offer you support for scientific research.
I have a background as a mother and a background as a herbalist who became a distiller. Through circumstances, life’s coincidences, and passion, I was able to run an essential oil company where I was able to initiate a series of productions and products for 34 years. Passionate about aromatherapy, I worked to deepen my knowledge of the field, notably by consulting various scientific studies on the benefits of essential oils. It is a passion that has lasted, and continues to this day, as the subject remains relevant.
Today, it is very important for me to involve the scientific community more in the evidence of the effectiveness and safety of essential oils, given all the benefits that we can have as a society by using these products.
FAF: You donated $250,000 to the Armand-Frappier Foundation to fund scientific research projects related to the use of essential oils for health prevention and treatment. Could you tell us about the elements that motivated this philanthropic gesture? What needs did you hope to address with your donation?
LBM: There is a very long history behind this donation, but the main objective is to encourage a Quebec approach to the development of essential oils. Indeed, only two or three oils of Quebec origin are currently included in the panoply of world aromatherapy, while we have developed more than thirty! The therapeutic functions of all these other oils have not yet been fully explored and validated.
While researching the work on identifying the function and potential of oils, I came across the research that Dr. Lacroix from the Armand-Frappier Center had carried out with her team. I was really amazed to find this resource here! It was then that I was able to discover the beautiful founding principles of the Armand-Frappier Foundation, as well as their commitment to improving the health and well-being of our societies. It was very convincing to see these foundations of science, applied to what interests us all: health and society.
It must be said that by becoming a grandmother, I also became “long-sighted”, because the more we age, the more we see the generations succeeding us, and the more we are aware that time will play either in favor or against our children. With the realization of the passing of time, I also realized that I had the opportunity to leave a positive mark behind me by contributing to the advancement of knowledge, science, and human wisdom. It is because we all grow together that I want to support science. We still have a lot to learn – from Mother Nature, we still have a lot, a lot to learn!
FAF: In your opinion, what role should businesses and individuals play in supporting scientific research in Quebec?
LBM: I have never worked in a laboratory or a scientific group. I am an average person from the general public – I have been a businesswoman, herbalist, farmer, and mother. My interest in scientific research is motivated by my desire to be informed about health – a desire we all share. What I hope is that the general public will be interested in learning more and being more involved in the field of research. The fact is that the field of aromatherapy is under-explored, since it is not patentable – its results concern natural products that would be accessible to all over the counter. The investment limits of private companies being obvious, I think that financial support should come from those who will eventually benefit from this new knowledge and this freedom of access – in other words: all of us.
The donation I made is obviously clearly insufficient to explore the entire field of prophylaxis related to essential oils. What I hope is that by raising public awareness, informing them, and involving them in research, we can increase our impact and together make discoveries that will change our lives. This is why I would call on the general public to join us and invest in our future by supporting the essential work that takes place in the scientific laboratories of the researchers at the Armand-Frappier Centre.
For me, this collaboration is a dream come true. My donation was support for the Armand-Frappier Foundation, but it is also a gift that I offer to my grandchildren. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity.