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44-556: Blanca María Rodríguez was born in Rubio , Táchira State , the youngest of eight children to Manuel and Adela Rodríguez. Her grandfather, Eliodoro Rodríguez, was a prominent landowner in Rubio. Her father was also a coffee planter and a veteran of Colombia 's Thousand Days War , in which he volunteered to fight on the side of the Liberal forces and acted as lieutenant to General Uribe . As

88-593: A Bachelor of Arts in Sociology . Sinclair met Pierre Trudeau , who was then Minister of Justice, while vacationing in Tahiti with her family when she was 18. Sinclair did not recognize him, and she in fact thought little of their encounter, but Trudeau, then 47, was captivated by the carefree " flower child " and began to pursue her. Pierre Trudeau was a bachelor before he became Prime Minister in 1968. They kept their romance private, so Canadians were shocked after

132-737: A London , England-born Anglo-Irishman whose great-grandfather, Arthur Bernard, was a member of the Irish House of Commons for Bandonbridge , and brother of Francis Bernard , Solicitor-General for Ireland , and ancestor of the Earls of Bandon . Francis James Bernard was the founder of the Singapore Police Force in 1819, The Singapore Chronicle , the first newspaper in Singapore, was established with Bernard as owner, publisher, and editor in 1824 and he opened up Katong , now

176-633: A child, she was aware of her older cousin Carlos Andrés Pérez engaging in long political discussions with her father on topics as varied as the legacy of Simón Bolívar , the French Revolution and the dictatorship of Juan Vicente Gómez in Venezuela . At the age of four, her mother died of cancer and Blanca's rearing was left in the hands of her older sister, Ana Isabel. Four years later, her father would also die. The family

220-585: A densely populated-residential enclave, the first to cultivate a coconut estate there in 1823. In 1818, Bernard married Margaret Trudeau's 3rd great-grandmother, Esther Farquhar. She was the eldest daughter of Scotsman William Farquhar , a colonial leader in the founding of modern Singapore , by Farquhar's first wife, Antoinette "Nonio" Clement, who was the daughter of a French father and an ethnic Malaccan mother. Another great-grandmother, Cornelia Louisa Intveld, married in 1822 to Royal Navy officer and merchant, William Purvis, from Dalgety Bay, Scotland , and

264-584: A first cousin of American abolitionist Robert Purvis ; a noted fine soprano and a beauty of her era. Upon glimpsing her across the auditorium at the opera in London , England, British King William IV sent his equerry to invite her to his box. After she refused, the King sent the equerry back just to ask her name. Intveld was born in Padang , present-day West Sumatra, Indonesia. At the time of Intveld's birth, Padang

308-475: A friendship with US Senator Ted Kennedy . She was also associated with members of the Rolling Stones , including Ronnie Wood and, according to Keith Richards ' autobiography, Life , Mick Jagger . She separated from her husband in 1977. Pierre Trudeau won custody of the children and did not pay spousal support. Margaret Trudeau had a difficult time earning a living after her marriage. She wrote

352-517: A majority government , becoming the 23rd Prime Minister of Canada . During the campaign, she was involved, but avoided campaigning in public as the Conservative campaign's main attack line against Justin was "Just Not Ready" and she feared they would suggest her son was "so unready he needs his mummy." On April 27, 2020, Trudeau was hospitalized with smoke inhalation after a fire broke out in her apartment building. From 2002 to 2017, Trudeau

396-467: A majority-government. "From the day I became Mrs. Pierre Elliott Trudeau," she writes in her memoirs, "a glass panel was gently lowered into place around me, like a patient in a mental hospital no longer considered able to make decisions and cannot be exposed to a harsh light." The couple had three children: Justin (born December 25, 1971), Alexandre (Sacha) (born December 25, 1973), and Michel (October 2, 1975 – November 13, 1998). Trudeau tore apart

440-532: A member of the Acción Democrática party. Blanca had to endure frequent security police searches of their home as well as tend to her young children while her husband was often on the run or in prison. In 1952, she followed him into exile in San José, Costa Rica . The couple had six children, five daughters, Sonia, Thais, Martha, María de los Ángeles and María Carolina, and a son, Carlos Manuel. When

484-466: A quilt made by Canadian conceptual artist Joyce Wieland on the wall in the prime-minister's official residence in Ottawa because it celebrated "reason over passion". (Her husband's personal motto was "Reason before passion".) Over time, the marriage disintegrated to the point where, as recounted in her 1982 book Consequences , Trudeau had affairs with Jack Nicholson , Ryan O'Neal , Lou Rawls , and

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528-403: A top campaign asset, and sent her off alone to help local candidates in hotly contested ridings while, as critics noted, the wives of Stanfield and Lewis were on the campaign trail but rarely spoke and stood behind their husbands at events. Political observers also found Pierre Trudeau noticeably more relaxed at events while Margaret came along. Initially, she brought her six-month-old son Sasha on

572-502: Is also the mother of the journalist and author Alexandre "Sacha" Trudeau , and Michel Trudeau (now deceased) with Trudeau, and of son Kyle (born 1984), and daughter Alicia (born 1988), with Ottawa real-estate developer Fried Kemper. She is the first woman in Canadian history to have been both the wife and the mother of prime ministers. Trudeau is an advocate for people with bipolar disorder , with which she has been diagnosed. Trudeau

616-477: Is an accepted version of this page Margaret Joan Trudeau ( née Sinclair , formerly Kemper ; born September 10, 1948) is a Canadian activist and the mother of Justin Trudeau , the 23rd and current prime minister of Canada . She married Pierre Trudeau , the 15th prime minister of Canada , in 1971, three years after he became prime minister. They divorced in 1984, during his final months in office. She

660-410: Is sometimes called "La Ciudad Pontalida" ("The City of Bridges") and housed Christiansen Academy , an international school. The Junín Municipality, according to the 2001 Venezuelan census, has a population of 68,869 (up from 53,981 in 1990). This amounts to 6.9% of Táchira's population. The municipality's population density is 566.2 people per square mile (218.63/km²). Rubio is the shire town of

704-558: Is the shire town of the Junín Municipality and, according to the 2001 Venezuelan census , the municipality has a population of 68,869. Rubio is one of the largest towns in the state of Táchira. Its importance derives from its coffee production and the nearby commerce that exists with Colombia. Venezuela's former president, Carlos Andrés Pérez , was also born in Rubio. Rubio has beautiful natural tunnels called La Cueva de los Miagros. There are some rivers and waterfalls on

748-499: The 1974 federal election . At a rally in Vancouver, she told a crowd of 2,000 her husband taught her "a lot about loving." The remark was wildly mocked and dismissed in public during the campaign by members of the press gallery as well as by her husband's main political rivals Progressive Conservative Party of Canada leader Robert Stanfield and New Democratic Party leader David Lewis . Liberal party organizers considered her

792-623: The Canadian Broadcasting Corporation led its morning radio broadcast about Prime Minister Trudeau honeymooning at Alta Lake, British Columbia , at the foot of Whistler Blackcomb Ski Resort the day after a surprise wedding in North Vancouver, British Columbia , on March 4, 1971. Although she had accompanied Pierre Trudeau in public a year before to ice skate and dance at an event at Rideau Hall , official residence of Canada's Governor General , it

836-605: The 1979 book Beyond Reason about her marriage. On the eve of the 1979 election , in which Pierre Trudeau's party lost the majority of seats in the House of Commons, she was dancing at Studio 54 nightclub in New York City . A photo of her at the disco was featured on many front pages across Canada. Margaret Trudeau filed for a no-fault divorce at the Ontario Supreme Court on November 16, 1983, which

880-459: The Bandesir foundation. Whilst Carlos Andrés Pérez had been self-exiled since 1998, Blanca Rodríguez remained in the country. In 2004, government security forces raided Blanca Rodríguez's house with the excuse of finding weapons and documents related to an anti-Chávez conspiracy, a charge that was clearly seen as baseless given that she had not seen or spoken to her estranged husband since he left

924-573: The Children's Foundation. Under her leadership, the foundation supported the government's initiative to roll out the daycare centre programme all over the country as part of its welfare provision. During the military coup organized by Hugo Chávez on 4 February 1992, Blanca, her daughters and granddaughters were in residence at the Presidential palace of La Casona whilst it was besieged by rebel forces. While her husband managed to escape and quell

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968-623: The Junín Municipality in Táchira. The mayor of the Junín Municipality is Angel Marquez Elected in 2017 after winning the elections against Jobel Sandoval at the end of 2017 The economy of the city is based on coffee production. The first exploitation of oil in Venezuela (1883) was in La Petrolia by the company "Compañia Nacional Minera Petrolía del Táchira" and the first well was called "Salvador" ("Savior"). Margaret Trudeau This

1012-515: The Presidency in December 1973, Blanca Rodríguez assumed the role of First Lady . In Venezuela, this involved acting as the head of the Children's Foundation, a charitable organisation that organised summer camps and festivals for disadvantaged children. Blanca was eager to develop a program that would have a greater impact on the lives of the poor and would provide year-round assistance. One of

1056-665: The Trudeaus took a second honeymoon in the Caribbean to Barbados and an unidentified nearby island then Tobago , then to Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (including both Bequia and St. Vincent ) with Pierre taking a side-trip to Trinidad while Margaret stayed in Tobago. After Pierre Trudeau's government's near defeat in 1972 (Margaret herself was uninvolved in the campaign), she decided to become much more active for

1100-470: The bottom of British Columbia 's Kokanee Lake . The loss of her son was devastating. When Pierre Trudeau died in 2000, Margaret was at his bedside with their surviving sons Justin and Alexandre. Speaking in 2010 about her marriage to Trudeau, she said: "Just because our marriage ended didn't mean the love stopped." On October 19, 2015, her eldest son, Justin Trudeau , led the Liberal Party to

1144-471: The country. In keeping with her deep Catholic faith, attempts by Pérez to divorce her were rebuffed by her lawyers and the couple was still legally married at the time of Perez's death in late 2010. Blanca Rodriguez died on August 5, 2020, at the age of 94. Rubio, Venezuela Rubio is a town in the Venezuelan Andean state of Táchira . Founded in 1794 by Gervasio Rubio, this town

1188-523: The coup attempt, Blanca remained at La Casona during the particularly heavy attack. She later made sure to assist in the tending of wounded soldiers, regardless of their allegiance, and was crucial in keeping morale up during the few hours when it seemed the residence was going to be taken. After leaving office, Blanca Rodríguez retired to her home in the outskirts of Caracas , a house she designed to resemble one of her father's haciendas . She continued to devote time to charitable work, mainly in relation to

1232-465: The dictatorship of Marcos Pérez Jiménez was overthrown in 1958, Blanca and Carlos Andrés Pérez returned to Venezuela with the children. Her husband's ascendant political career resulted in Blanca's increasingly prominent role as a politician's wife, one who would be actively involved in supporting his career, campaigning and developing her own charitable activities. With Carlos Andrés Pérez's election to

1276-545: The first months, they lived in the provincial city of San Cristóbal, Táchira , but, moved to the Venezuelan capital to share a rented house with Julia Pérez, Blanca's mother-in-law. A few months later, in November 1948, the military launched a coup against the democratically elected government of President Rómulo Gallegos and installed a dictatorship. Carlos Andrés Pérez became the target of harassment and persecution as

1320-558: The foundation organized to hand over wheelchairs to people who could not afford them. She also fundraised for Bandesir and extended its remit so that it could also provide cheap or free medical attention to the needy who came to its headquarters. She was also a patron of the Leper Hospice in La Guaira . Blanca Rodríguez again became First Lady upon her husband's second election to the Presidency in 1988. She resumed her position at

1364-449: The most important aspects of her legacy as First Lady was the development of a network of daycare centres (hogares de cuidado diario) for low income communities across the country. These centres were created to enable working, and often single, mothers to earn a wage without leaving their children in the hands of unsuitable caretakers. The emphasis of the daycare centre program was on grass-roots involvement. Community mothers were consulted in

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1408-407: The occasion to sing a song that she had written to honor Rodríguez. After Carlos Andrés Pérez left the presidency in 1979, Blanca Rodríguez devoted her energies to supporting a charitable foundation, Bandesir, focused on providing wheelchairs and crutches to the disabled poor. She became Bandesir's chairwoman and pursued an active schedule of visits around the country to attend the frequent ceremonies

1452-716: The one-woman-show Certain Woman of an Age in Chicago as part of the city's Wellness Week . She is an honorary patron of the Canadian Mental Health Association . In July 2019, she attended an opening ceremony of WE College in Narok County ( Kenya ) with former Prime Minister of Canada Kim Campbell , Kenyan First Lady Margaret Kenyatta and Craig Kielburger , a co-founder of WE Charity organization. In 2010, she authored Changing My Mind ,

1496-532: The outskirts of town. The town has many bridges especially in Old Rubio. For this reason it is called "Ciudad Pontalida" or "City of Bridges." Rubio is located in the west of Estado Táchira and is a 40-minute drive from San Cristóbal, the capital of Táchira. Rubio was founded by Gervasio Rubio in 1794. It was then the capital of the Táchira State, before the capital was moved to San Cristóbal . Rubio

1540-733: The selection and vetting of caretakers and the Foundation provided financial support to the "mother-carers", as the women in charge of the centres were identified. In addition, Blanca Rodríguez accompanied her husband on his frequent trips abroad to meet world leaders, including memorable visits to Mexico , Egypt , Russia and Iran . She also hosted the visits of the King Juan Carlos I and Queen Sofía , U.S. President Jimmy Carter and wife U.S. First Lady Rosalynn Carter to Caracas as well as Canadian Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau and his wife Margaret Trudeau . Margaret Trudeau used

1584-460: The trail with her, and one veteran reporter said, "It's the first campaign plane for the first thing off is a crib and a diaper bag." Later, she left her sons with her parents in North Vancouver while campaigning. Asked at the time if she thought her campaigning was helping Pierre Trudeau pick up votes, she replied, "I won't know until July 8th. But 52 per cent of the voters in this country are women...an awful lot ..." Her husband's party returned to

1628-540: Was a complete secret except to immediate family members and close friends that she was in a romantic relationship, then in a six-month engagement to the Prime Minister. As Pierre Trudeau was a Catholic , she converted to the Catholic Church for their marriage. When asked about her role in a marriage to the prime minister, Trudeau said, "I want to be more than a rose in my husband's lapel." In 1971,

1672-576: Was born in Vancouver , British Columbia, Canada, the daughter of Scottish-born James "Jimmy" Sinclair , a former Liberal member of the Parliament of Canada and Minister of Fisheries and Oceans , and Doris Kathleen (Bernard) Sinclair. Her grandmother, Rose Edith (Ivens) Bernard, with whom she had an especially close relationship, lived in Roberts Creek, British Columbia , in later life, and

1716-405: Was finalized on April 2, 1984. On April 18, 1984, with her three sons attending, she married Ottawa real-estate developer Fried Kemper in a civil ceremony in the chambers of Judge Hugh Poulin . She had two children with him: son Kyle (born 1984), and daughter Alicia (born 1988). In November 1998, the Trudeaus' youngest son, Michel , an avid outdoorsman, was killed when an avalanche swept him to

1760-600: Was financially ruined by the worldwide economic depression of the 1930s and all of the family haciendas had to be sold. She was educated by nuns at the Our Lady of the Rosary Convent School, where she graduated in 1944. Carlos Andrés Pérez began courting his cousin Blanca in 1944. He was then working and living in Caracas and would travel to Rubio as he could to visit her. They were wed on 8 June 1948. For

1804-766: Was from Virden, Manitoba . Her grandfather, Thomas Kirkpatrick Bernard, was born in Makassar , Dutch Celebes , now in Sulawesi, Indonesia, and immigrated in 1906 at age 15 with his family to Penticton, British Columbia , eventually working as a payroll clerk for Canadian Pacific Railway . The Bernards were the descendants of colonists in the Straits Settlements , the Dutch East Indies , and British Malaya , nowadays respectively Singapore , Indonesia, and Malaysia, including Francis James Bernard ,

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1848-811: Was in the territory of the Pagaruyung Kingdom , where her father, who came from humble beginnings in Hellevoetsluis, South Holland , rose up through the Dutch East India Company to become the Dutch Resident of Padang. Her maternal grandmother was an Ono Niha ranee (a term covering every rank from chieftain's daughter to princess) married a prominent Dutch colonial official and merchant. Acclaimed British harpsichordist , Violet Gordon-Woodhouse , and Hawaiian settler, Edward William Purvis , according to popular belief,

1892-536: Was the honorary president of WaterAid Canada , an Ottawa-based organization dedicated to helping the poorest communities in developing countries build sustainable water supply and sanitation services. In 2014, she visited Mali as an ambassador of WaterAid Canada. On May 5, 2006, Trudeau announced she has bipolar disorder . Since then, she advocated for reducing the social-stigma of mental illness—bipolar disorder in particular—with speaking engagements across North America. In May 2019, she presented

1936-961: Was the namesake of the ukulele , are Margaret Trudeau's first cousins, three times-removed. Trudeau explored her mother's family's roots in Singapore during an episode of Who Do You Think You Are? . Trudeau's family moved to a large house in Rockcliffe Park, Ontario , in 1952 after her father was appointed to the Cabinet, and she attended Rockcliffe Park Public School although they returned to North Vancouver after he lost his re-election bid in 1958. She attended Hamilton Junior Secondary School and Delbrook Senior Secondary School in North Vancouver. Trudeau graduated in 1969 from Simon Fraser University in Burnaby, British Columbia with

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