Claude Mainville

- by Jocelyne Arseneau and Denis Schneider

Dear Friends of the Anthroposophical Society,

Claude Mainville, a member of the Anthroposophical Society and the School of Spiritual Science, crossed the threshold on October 31, 2014, at 11:55 p.m.  He had been in a coma for some twelve hours, surrounded by his family. The following are some brief memories of this individual who became a friend to us during the last years of his life.

Claude attended the first gathering of the study group held at Éric Schneeberger’s residence in Val David. He subsequently contacted Jocelyne Arseneau to inquire whether other study groups existed, and then became an active member when a new group was formed, even welcoming us into his home. That same winter (2013) he organized a showing of the film The Challenge of Rudolf Steiner in the Bistro Le Baril Roulant in Val David. He was already aware at this time of the illness that would finally take his life.


That spring, he invited Michel Florin, head of the Agriculture Section at the Goetheanum, to visit his vegetable garden in Val David. Michel Florin had come to participate in the conference organized by l’Institut Rudolf Steiner du Québec. His courageous battle with his illness led him to Toronto so seek anthroposophical medical treatment, and in the summer of 2013 he decided to travel to Dornach to take the one-year course of
anthroposophical studies in English founded by Virginia Sease. While there, he was able to avail himself of treatments offered at the Lukas Klinik in Arlesheim.


There remains much to be said about Claude, a man of great dedication and commitment.