Civil servant.
Born in Manitoba on 2 January 1924, son of Edmond Prefontaine and Lucienne Sicotte (1901-1987), he was the Liberal candidate for Provencher in the 1958 federal general election and the Progressive Conservative candidate for the La Verendrye constituency in the 1962 provincial general election, losing each time. Appointed in 1963 as Vice-Chairman of the Manitoba Centennial Corporation, he moved to Ottawa in early 1966 and worked for the federal government, including service as a senior planning advisor to the Secretary of State. He returned to Manitoba to be Deputy Minister of Cultural Affairs (1979-1982) in the government of Sterling Lyon. He and wife Yvonne L'Heureux (1925-2019) had eight children. He was killed in an automobile accident at Hull, Quebec on 30 January 1984.
“Prefontaine leaving for post in Ottawa,” Winnipeg Free Press, 18 December 1965, page 9.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 31 January 1984, page 45.
“Rene Prefontaine killed in Quebec automobile accident,” Winnipeg Free Press, 1 February 1984, page 31.
We thank Lise Prefontaine-Pigeon for providing additional information used here.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 17 September 2023
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