UW Gazette, September 18, 1996
     
     Dr. Ray Dugan's fascination with French began with a
visit to relatives in MontrŽal when he was 10 years old. In
the days when French wasn't taught in Toronto elementary
schools, he was captivated by what seemed an exotic lan
guage and culture.
     Although his French studies did not begin until high
school, a retired University of Western Ontario (Brescia
College) French professor, whom he knew only as Madame
Brown, lived next door and became his tutor and mentor.
     Not only did he fall in love with the language, but
through it, he met and married Sylvia, a high school French
and German teacher. Dugan spent his professional career
sharing that passion for French, especially 19th century
French literature with his students at UW.
     He retired from UW's department of French studies this
summer.
     "A number of the 19th century writers, Flaubert,
MaupassantÉ have touched my life very deeply. They speak to
me," he says. "I've tried to impart that love to my
students, to encourage them to read and let themselves be
carried away in that world.
     "What I've enjoyed most during my time at Waterloo has
been my contact with students. I feel very strongly that
one of the major functions of a university is to hand down
knowledge to the next generation. It's an aspect often ne
glected. A discipline will only be kept alive by keeping
young people involved in it."
     When Dugan arrived at UW in 1968, he joined what was
called the department of classics and romance languages,
serving as chair from 1975 to 1981. It was during his
tenure as chair that a separate French department was
formed.
     Looking back, Dugan recalls the formation of "an
independent, autonomous department" as one of the major
achievements of his career. "During that time, for
political reasons, I felt French should be visible," he
said.
     Another milestone was his development of the French
contest in 1974. The competition is open to students in
their final year of secondary school, and first prize is a
six-week French immersion course in France.
     Dugan himself has both taught and traveled in France,
and it was during his visit to Bayeux, the Norman town that
is home to the famous 12th century tapestry, that he
conceived his own  great embroidery project. He decided to
create a replica of the 231-foot long work depicting the
Norman conquest of England.
     He ordered the wool thread from France, traced,
enlarged and transferred the pattern onto a single strip of
linen, and picked up his needle.
     "I got started, and kept going and going and going,"
he laughed. Ten and a half years later, the tapestry was
completed. "People ask me, 'What are you going to embroider
next?' I tell them, 'Nothing'."
     Although Dugan has no plans to make a career of
embroidery, the exhibition of his work could become a
"substantial retirement project", he said. The tapestry has
been exhibited in Kitchener city hall and Ottawa city hall
in August, and is headed for St. Paul's Anglican Cathedral
in London, Ontario, this month. As far as he knows, this is
the only replica of the tapestry in North America, though
there are rumors of a version done by a church women's
group in Reading, England.
     Working on the tapestry also became "a form of
therapy" for a couple of years after his two sons, Andrew
and Mark, died in a tragic accident in 1993. "That's one of
the reasons I took early retirement," he said. "It's been
very difficult."
     The Dugans, who are taking their retirement together,
plan time for relaxing at the cottage, as well as
traveling, Scottish country dancing, and perhaps co-
authoring a book about the history of the Dugan family in
Haliburton, who were known for their poetry and painting.
Ray may even be inspired to dust off his own watercolour
brushes again.É