Brother Baudoin Mensch

1934 - 2020

 Brother Baudoin Mensch, FNDL, passed away unexpectedly from heart complications on Monday, March 23, 2020 at the age of 85 years. 

 He was born on March 26, 1934. The Brothers of Our Lady of Lourdes came from the Netherlands in the 1950s and served various communities throughout British Columbia and Alberta in a variety of ways. In the early 1960s, Brother Baudoin Mensch and Brother John Maas came to Canada to join their fellow Brothers, serving as much-needed educators. Brother Baudoin spent most of his working life in Taber, where he worked untiringly at St. Mary’s School. He was an excellent math teacher, coach and confidante for many students and staff.  His tenure at St. Mary’s school encompassed thirty three years and included a dedicated long-term coaching of basketball, volleyball and badminton teams. The school gymnasium was renamed the “Brother Baudoin Gymnasium” in his honour and was routinely open under his supervision on weekends for various student activities.

 Following his retirement from St. Mary’s, Brother Baudoin volunteered his services to the Taber campus of the Lethbridge Community College, where he tutored students in mathematics for about three years. He also spent time as a volunteer teacher in third world countries, two years in Kiribati and two years in Indonesia. In 2015, Brother Baudoin returned to the Netherlands where he resided until the time of his passing.

 Brother Baudoin wanted, even in his death, to be useful and expressed the desire that after his passing his body be used for the education of doctors at the University of Nijmegen.

He will be sadly missed by his family and his fellow brothers for whom he was a great help and friend.  May the good Lord keep him in the palm of His hand and may he rest in eternal peace.