Both sets of John Tousignant’s grandparents hailed from Quebec. While he didn’t grow up speaking French at home, it became the focus of his studies from middle school onwards.
He even became a French teacher before stepping up to lead the Franco-American Centre, based in Manchester. In all he does, Tousignant seeks to share his love of the French language and its power to connect people to their heritage.
That’s why he’s eagerly anticipating Saturday, when the Centre will host its inaugural FrancoFest, a day-long event at Kimball Jenkins.
The festival aims to converge food, music, art, culture and community for those who either share Francophone heritage or simply want to learn more.
“I hope that everybody is going to go away feeling a little bit more connected to the French heritage in our community, and they’ll feel that whether they’re of a French heritage background themselves, or they just like some aspect of French — French wine, French music, French art, French songs — they can feel a little connection and feel that the French world is a piece of their world as well,” Tousignant said.
Ninety countries belong to the Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie, an organization dedicated to preserving French language and Francophone culture across nations. An estimated 396 million people worldwide speak French.
Over one-fifth of the Granite State population can claim some French-Canadian heritage, according to the Franco-American Centre.
“So, even if they don’t speak any of the French language, they’ve probably been exposed to some of the traditions that come from that heritage,” said Tousignant. “What we try to do is make the community aware that the traditions that we take for granted sometimes are coming to us from another background, another ethnic experience, and that enriches our community by bringing in those extra features.”
The organization offers language classes and hosts events throughout the year.
FrancoFest will feature vendors selling art and food, as well as musical performances, culture exhibits and more. Senie Hunt, who is from Sierra Leone, will perform music paying homage to his West African roots. Quebec-born Josée Vachon will sing Franco-American folksongs, and the band Catfish Howl will play Cajun and Zydeco tunes.
Attendees can also learn to play the spoons and try their hands at using a dancing doll on a stick.
The FrancoAmerican Centre received a $7,500 Event Arts Grant from the City of Concord to launch the festival. As a result, attendance is free of charge.
Jessica Livingston has helped the Centre organize the event. She described it as a “mini-Multicultural Festival.” Each year, she helps organize the annual celebration of the myriad of cultures represented among the city’s residents.
FrancoFest, to her, provides another opportunity to do just that.
“It’s just really connecting with people over things, and in a meaningful way that’s going to create more tolerance and try to push against all of the negativity in the world right now around race and culture,” she said.
FrancoFest will take place from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. on Saturday, August 22 at Kimball Jenkins Estate in Concord. For more information, visit www.facnh.com/franco-fest.
