The Christmas season is commonly referred to as the most wonderful time of the year. While some people simply enjoy baking holiday treats, others value spending time with the ones they love. For a student at Saint Anselm College, who wishes to remain anonymous, this time of the year is special because it reminds her of her great grandfather, Joseph Armand Bombardier, the inventor of the snowmobile.
As with many things in life that stem from tragedies, so too did Joseph Armand find motivation to invent the snowmobile after the death of a loved one. In the winter of 1934 in Valcourt, the province of Quebec, Canada, Joseph’s two year old son, Yvon, died from appendicitis. Although Yvon could have been saved by a doctor, the inaccessible roads prevented his transportation to the hospital.
This difficult loss made Joseph Armand determined to create a motorized vehicle light enough to travel on the snow. In five years’ time, 1939, Joseph Armand produced his first B7 snowmobile. It is from this invention that the Bombardier legacy began. Although Joseph Armand came from a relatively modest background, he was able to achieve an important role in the transportation industry. Today, the Bombardier Corporation specializes in recreational products, railway transport, and aeronautics.
Reflecting on her relationship to such a remarkable man, Joseph Armand’s great-granddaughter says, “Sometimes, it’s hard to believe that I’m related to him. Whenever I watch TV and see Bombardier advertisements, it’s crazy to think that all of this started with the imagination of my great-grandfather.”
Although the student never had the chance to meet her great-grandfather, she has learned much about him from her mother and grandmother’s stories.
“Although I never met him, I have the greatest admiration for him. I think that he teaches everyone important lessons about life, one which is so often forgotten: while life is filled with ups and downs, we need to have the courage to pick ourselves up when we fall. If we don’t make this attempt, we will lose in this constant battle with life. And surely, this is no life at all,” she says.
While her great-grandfather lived a short life, dying at the young age of fifty-six, he undoubtedly lived his life to the fullest. As Abraham Lincoln once said, “In the end, it’s not the years in your life that count. It’s the life in your years.”
The student hopes that, in light of the New Year, Anselmians will make resolutions to strive for greatness, as Joseph Armand did seventy-five years ago.
“As Joseph-Armand showed in his life, do not let your background prevent you from making something of yourself. Anything is possible – all you need is the correct mentality and confidence in yourself. As Condoleezza Rice once said, ‘It doesn’t matter where you came from, it matters only where you’re going.’”