Obituary of Girard F. Saint-Dic
Beloved husband, father, grandfather, and great-grandfather
Girard Joseph Francois Ferdinand Saint-Dic was born on May 30, 1934 in Port-à-Piment, Haiti. He was the first child of two to Max Saint-Dic and Renee Fouron Saint-Dic.
Girard was born into a family who strongly believed in the importance of quality education. Thus, at the age of nine, he was sent to boarding school at Lycée Phillipe Guerrier in Port-au-Prince, Haiti. His father's parting words to him were: "Girard doit finis ses classes a l'age de seize ans. Savoir ou ne pas savoir lire, c'est son affaire luit regardons, On doit pas nourrir un petit Cretin!" ("Girard must be done with his education by the age of 16. Whether he becomes a well educated person or not will be up to him. For we will not raise a little dummy.") When recalling this story Girard would go on to say, "So, I decided to show that taskmaster just how smart I was. I was always first in my class!" Girard went on to become a well-known educator in Haiti where he taught at College Canado Frères du Sacre-Cœur.
On December 22, 1960, Girard married the love of his life, Gladys Hyppolite. They were blessed with five children: Roselie, Sabine, Michelle, Marie-Girard, and Rene. In 1971, Girard finally left his beloved Haiti and emigrated to the United States to create a better life for himself and his family. He worked as an accounting clerk at Glenshaw Glass Company, Inc. for over fifteen years, and as a security guard at The Brooklyn Museum (TBM) for more than thirteen years. At his retirement party from TBM he received many accolades, but the one he was most proud of was the perfect attendance plaque!
Girard's philosophy in life was quite simple, trust in God, work hard, and be honorable with your words and deeds. He was passionate about soccer, and enjoyed reading, discussing current events, and listening to music. His favorite American song was Lean On Me by Bill Withers, and to hear him sing the lyrics to that song is to feel the presence of God:
Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there's always tomorrow
Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
'Til I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on
Please swallow your pride
If I have faith you need to borrow
For no one can fill those of your needs
That you won't let show
You just call on me brother, when you need a hand
We all need somebody to lean on…
Towards the end of his life, Girard needed to lean on his family and friends, especially Sypho Constant, to carry on. We were truly honored to have been there for him to lean on.
On July 20th, 2017, at the age of 83, Girard died in the emergency room at South Nassau Communities Hospital. A prayer circle, led by his youngest nephew, Richard Demorcy, transitioned him Home to join his trinity: his wife, Gladys; his mother, Renee Saint-Dic; and his sister, Antoinette Saint-Dic.
Girard leaves to cherish his memory his children Roselie McNair (Cameron) of Maplewood, NJ; Sabine Pierre-Jules (Eddy) of Randolph, MA; Michelle Alvarez (Alex) of Baldwin, NY; Marie Saint-Dic (Michael) of Lynbrook, NY; and Rene Saint-Dic (Rochelle) of Philadelphia, PA. Girard also leaves fifteen grandchildren who were his pride and joy: Jayson, Marcus, Aleesha, Nicholas, Jordan, Christopher, Michel, Amber, Mikaela, Mikelle, Alexis, Alyssa, Jonathan, Jaden, and Mischa; his great-grandson, Andrew; and a host of cousins, nieces, nephews, and dear friends.
We thank God for sharing Girard Saint-Dic with us and we all are grateful for our time with him.
May Girard rest in eternal peace, for he certainly "has earned it"!
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