Stephan Vigier '14
2010 - 2014
I currently play professional hockey in Lillehammer, Norway, a former Olympic city. Many World Cup, World Championship, and winter sports events are still held here, with visitors from all over the world. Because of my study with Dr. Kupper in the French Program at NMU, I don’t shy away from saying hi and starting conversation when I meet people speaking French, such as for example, professional athletes like skiers from France and snowboarders from Quebec. I also find myself using French more with family and friends when I return home.
I am taking lessons in Norwegian; and I think being fluent in French will help me learn. Although Norwegian is different from French and English, it’s neat to see some correlations between the three languages.
I grew up in the bilingual town Notre Dame de Lourdes in Manitoba, Canada. It is common in my town that with older residents the conversation would be mainly in French, and to walk into stores and to be greeted in French. The younger generation use a mixture of French and English, switching back and forth. In the schools in my town, half the classes are in French and half in English. Therefore, it wasn’t often that I wrote or read French. Although I spoke French from childhood, the French Program at NMU developed my reading and writing French, and provided me with a strong confidence for speaking the language with those I meet, family, and friends.
