Thérèse Vanier

Thérèse Marie Chérisy Vanier (February 27, 1923 - June 16, 2014) was a decorated veteran and medical doctor who specialized in haematology and palliative care.^[1] She co-founded L'Arche UK, a branch of the international organization dedicated to the communal care of people with learning disabilities, establishing the first community near Canterbury in 1974.^[2]

Biography

Thérèse Vanier was born on February 27, 1923 in Camberley, Surrey to Pauline Vanier (née Archer), an appointed member of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada^[3] and Georges Vanier,^[4] a decorated soldier and former Governor General of Canada.^[1] Her third name, Chérisy, marks the location in France where her father lost a leg in the trenches during World War I.^[5] Vanier was the eldest of five children. Her brother Jean Vanier, a trained naval officer and Catholic philosopher founded the first L'Arche community in Trosly-Breuil, France in 1964.^[1]

As a young adult Vanier studied at Mayfield in Sussex. At the age of 19, she signed up with the British Mechanised Transport Corps and sailed in a convey as part of the Battle of the Atlantic. Vanier went on to join the Canadian Women’s Army Corps, eventually rising to the rank of captain.

After the World War II Vanier studied medicine at the Sorbonne and Cambridge University. Vanier completed her clinical studies at St Thomas’ Hospital in Central London where she became the first female consultant in haematology. It was during this time that she met lifelong friend Cicely Saunders, a pioneer in hospice care, and the founder of St Christopher's Hospice.^[1][5] In 1972 Vanier resigned from her position at St Thomas' Hospital to join Saunders at St Christopher's where she taught and pursued clinical work in the burgeoning field of palliative care.^[1][2]

Vanier opened the first English L'Arche community in January 1974 near Cantebury. She went on to personally oversee the opening of four other communities. Today there are ten communities in the UK, including one in Lambeth, South London where Vanier lived until her death in 2014.^[6]

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