A community-oriented approach with a progressive editorial stance, striving for transparency and encouraging readers to consider multiple perspectives.

Wednesday, July 9, 2025
booked.netCall us at 613-935-3763
Eco-conscious : Print an issue, plant a tree! 

No products in the cart.

  • About
    • Contributors
    • Disclaimers
    • Terms & Conditions
    • Giving back
    • Mission Statement
    • Past Issues
    • Where to Find
    • Call us at 613-935-3763
The Seeker - Positively Local, Suporting Local
  • Home
  • News
  • The Soapbox
  • Columnists
  • Events
  • Advertise!
    • Online
    • In Print
  • Puzzles
  • Videos
Seeker
No Result
View All Result

Wondrous Life – June 2021: Stand Tall – a story about Betty Ann Villeneuve

Lisa Gray by Lisa Gray
July 3, 2021
in News
Reading Time: 4 mins read
0
Lucidpress

Lucidpress

“Part of the process of interviewing people for stories starts with our childhood reflections of where we stood and what we believed. It’s interesting to note how a ten year olds perspective could so direct the course of one’s life towards service to others. In this, Betty Ann & I could be sisters”.

Stand Tall

You might also like

A Night to Remember: HGMH Foundation Launches New Era with Major Gift Announcement

More walks, more training, more hope: CMHA Champlain East gets $229K boost for local mental health

St. Lawrence Parks Commission Sets the Stage for the Future with $82.2M Infrastructure Investment

To the ancient Celts, the daisy is a symbol of innocence and purity. Synonymous with spring and found everywhere, one could liken a daisy to a slender girl with long fine hair. In a generations struggle with bullying, the daisies bear witness, bringing both light and life to darkened corners and whose countless mentors step forward and inward. Appearing stoic, their smiling faces belie the truth and quiet strength of their predecessors.

At a home that exists only in the memory of her mother’s kitchen table, the youthful spirit of Betty Ann Villeneuve stems a daisy-chain of everlasting love. Her mother Carol was a fierce go- getter, having originated from the small town of Sullivan, Quebec, where she served in the Canadian Air Force as a Radar Specialist, during the Cold War.

Betty Ann’s father Claude was from Dalkeith, Ontario. As a young father, he taught his children their time had value, while living by his motto ‘You’re only as good as your handshake.’ That honest wisdom may well be rare today, but as the family worked together in their home-based grocery delivery business, the cornerstone of strong family bonds was impenetrable.

When she was almost 15, Betty Ann joined the Sea Cadets. Excelling in First Aid, her superiors recognized an instructional leader and suggested she follow a career in nursing, so at 19, Betty Ann applied for the Licensed Practical Nursing Program at Algonquin College in Ottawa.

While raising her children, Betty Ann worked for the Community Nurses Registry of Ottawa when out of the blue she received a flyer in the mail offering children’s Taekwondo classes with flexible hours. She’d just turned 35 so the idea to keep everyone active was a simple one. With her mother’s guidance of believing in one’s own power, Betty Ann set her intentions to bloom.

Walking into her first Dojang, Betty Ann was struck by the familiar themes of a lifetime ago. As a newcomer to Martial Arts, she took the Student Oath to heart. The tenets of Taekwondo include the practice of courtesy, integrity, perseverance, self-control, indomitable spirit and respecting one’s instructors and seniors, to never misuse Taekwondo and be a champion of freedom and justice while building a peaceful world.

The co-ordination of social skills needed to envelope a learning path, is life-long. Feeling her instructors had their hearts in the right place Betty Ann approached her own students with courage and respect. In groups from ages 4 – 61, one’s ability to gain a student’s trust was garnered in letting them know they were not alone.

With light hearted teasing and gentle smiles, Betty Ann taught her kids to be thankful for their parent’s sacrifices.

Guided by the support of her original Taekwondo instructors in Ottawa, Betty Ann moved back to Cornwall and transformed her garage on Hoople Avenue into her very own Dojang. She named her school Freedom Taekwondo, as it would symbolize that one could be free from fear and stand tall. Even the family pet, a Norwegian Behund, was renamed Freedom. Along with her parent’s ideals and values, Betty Ann set about changing lives. https://www.facebook.com/CornwallFreedomTKD

Chances are if you’ve had school aged children, they’ve participated in Taekwon-Do. Everywhere you turn it’s inevitable that someone knows of or went to school with Betty Ann. Maybe you were a neighbour on Eleventh Street, or a grandmother who felt their confidence and soul renewed while acquiring a black belt under her tutelage. Of the many hundreds of young adults touched by Betty Ann’s guidance today, the truest honours grow from the benevolence of good seed and full sun.

Although Betty Ann’s dad never got the chance to watch her footprints run scatterings across his heart, the warmth and love from his energy was surely felt through the years. For when he passed, Carol got a job working nights, making tape on Rosemount Avenue with her sister Maggie and best friend Doreen. Thick as thieves, the women were known for their great work ethics, belly laughs and weekend game nights in a tradition that’s followed into second and third generations. And it gives us peace that although we can’t undo what came before, people like Betty Ann Villeneuve are out there in the garden, empowering kids young and old to revel in their weirdness and believe in themselves again. “Copyright © April 2021 – I would love to get feedback from my stories. Please email me at [email protected]

Lisa Gray

Lisa Gray

Lisa is a member of the Cornwall Writer Society, a group that meets at the Cornwall Public Library on the 3rd Monday of each month from 6:15 to 8:15 pm. For more information about this or any program at the library, please call 613-932-4796. To reach Lisa, email [email protected].

Next Post
How To Choose The Ideal Electricians For Your Company Needs

How To Choose The Ideal Electricians For Your Company Needs

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Categories

  • Business & Finances (15)
  • Columns (636)
    • Archived (116)
      • Filter-Free Zone (10)
      • For What it's Worth (37)
      • Fostering Change (2)
      • Memo from the Mayor (2)
      • Men Writes (26)
      • Mortgage Tips (1)
      • Seeker Snippets (22)
      • Take Note (6)
      • Which Witch is Witch? (10)
    • Current (397)
      • Appreciating Contemporary Art (3)
      • Discover SD&G (36)
      • Fashionably Marlene (13)
      • From Sharyn's Pantry (7)
      • Gardening – Ask Anna (28)
      • Grant Spills the Gravy (10)
      • Jay's Tech & Cyber Insights (4)
      • Keeping it Reel (27)
      • Local Spins from Bud's Records (9)
      • Louise Mignault (58)
      • Mental Health Matters (11)
      • Out and About (51)
      • Outdoor Club (24)
      • Reality Bytes (8)
      • roadSIGNS (32)
      • Smart Move with Sondra (4)
      • The Resilient Life (5)
      • Transition Cornwall+ (16)
      • What I'm Reading (2)
      • Wondrous Life (34)
      • Yafa Arts & Craft (22)
    • Friends of the Cline House (2)
  • Douris Deliberations (6)
  • Events (1)
  • Health & Fitness (11)
  • Home & Garden (11)
  • Interviews (159)
    • 5 questions with… (106)
    • Business Profiles (2)
    • Locals in the Loupe (49)
  • Leisure & Lifestyle (736)
  • News (2,576)
    • Ontario (1)
  • Politics (24)
    • Federal Elections (10)
    • Provincial Elections (10)
  • Science & Technology (46)
  • Sports (3)
  • The Adventures of D.B Cooper (1)
  • The Soapbox (260)
    • Agree to Disagree (114)
  • This May Also Interest You (1,594)
  • Travel (52)
  • You May Also Like (971)
Facebook Twitter Instagram Youtube TikTok
Don't miss anything!

Get notified of all our new news by ringing the bell at the bottom left corner!

Content Safety

HERO

theseeker.ca

Trustworthy

Approved by Sur.ly

2024
Disclaimers
Stock Photos partially provided by our partner Depositphotos
The Seeker Newspaper is located at 327 Second Street E., Cornwall, ON K6H 1Y8 -- All rights reserved
The Seeker does not accept responsibility for errors, misprints or inaccuracies published within.Please note that the views and opinions expressed in news article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of The Seeker. The content provided is for informational purposes only and has been written from the authors’ perspective, aiming to engage and inform readers. The Seeker is committed to presenting a wide range of viewpoints and encourages readers to conduct their own research and exercise critical thinking when considering these opinions in the context of their own perspectives.
ISSN 2562-1750 (Print)

ISSN 2562-1769 (Online)
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • The Soapbox
  • Columnists
  • Events
  • Advertise!
    • Online
    • In Print
  • Puzzles
  • Videos

© 2023 Reducing our footprint!   For every issue we print, we plant a tree!

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.