Nuit Blanche For girls who want to have fun

France Bound

The Francophile Network started at a dinner held at the home of Anne-Marie and Colin Lawrence in February 1997. For several years Anne Marie offered Saturday Seminars - Bon Voyage France - through North Shore Continuing Education to people interested in travelling to France. While she had extensive knowledge, she wanted to develop a network of Canadians who offered opportunities to visit France to her students.
The following year a Francophile Directory was put together to list Francophiles with their contact information and their particular interest in France. The first edition of the newsletter, The Franco Chat, appeared in 1998.
A year after the inaugural dinner the first wine and cheese event took place. These wine and cheese parties continued annually for several years at the homes of members who very generously opened their houses to our group. The get-together has always been held on a Sunday afternoon between 3 and 6 p.m.

In 2001, the former Consul General, Michel Dejaegher, invited our group to hold the annual get-together at the French Consulate residence. Since then, except for 2003, we have been most fortunate to be able to get-together at the residence of the Consul General. In 2005 Consul General Defay and Mme Defay welcomed us into their home with great warmth, which we truly appreciated. In 2006 they retired and returned to France.