Musician.
Born at Winnipeg on 8 July 1953, son of Hilda Marie Desjarlais (1914-2008) and Leo Paul Desjarlais, he lived in St. Laurent until he was six years old before returning to Winnipeg. For 11 years he worked for the city’s Parks Department before leaving in the 1980 to follow a passion for music. He toured Canada with Len Henry and Good Company, later leading his own award-winnipeg groups, The Al Desjarlais Band and Trapline. His talent was recognized in 1984 with an award from the Manitoba Association of Country Arts (today’s Manitoba Country Music Association). He stopped touring in the 1990s but remained active in organizing and producing concerns and events, and would take the stage occasionally. He joined the hospitality industry and ran Elsie Bear’s Kitchen at the Manitoba Métis Federation for over two decades. He died at the St. Boniface Hospital on 26 August 2025, survived by two daughters.
Obituary [Hilda Marie Desjarlais], Winnipeg Free Press, 9 February 2008.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 6 September 2025.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 14 September 2025
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