I. Charism - La Salle.org

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IV. DISCOVERING, LIVING, SHARING THE GIFT OF GOD
tolic initiative of these two persons who, with different motivations,
wanted to start a school for the sons of the poor of Reims towards
the end of the year 1679. It was their step which led John-Baptist
de La Salle to do what he did.
Madame Maillefer.
Canon Blain devotes all of Chapter 7 of Volume 1, Book 1 of his
life of de La Salle, to the story of Madame Maillefer, a chapter entitled:
“The hidden way by which Divine Providence imperceptibly
led M. de La Salle to the execution of its plans by means of a man
sent to Reims by Madame de Maillefer to open Gratuitous Schools
there. A summary of the admirable life of this Lady from the time
of her conversion”. In passing, one might note that the biographer
does not forget to mention the link between “the man sent to
Reims” (Adrien Nyel), Madame(de) Maillefer, John-Baptist de La
Salle and the opening of gratuitous schools in Reims. Blain has conferred
a title (using ‘de’) on Jeanne Dubois who had simply become
Jeanne Maillefer through her marriage to Ponce Maillefer, a cloth
merchant. It would be their son Simon who would receive a title
and become “Maître des Comptes”. But this is not the place to rewrite
the story of this lady. It is probable, according to Bros. Léon-
Marie Aroz and Yves Poutet, that the sources of the canon-biographer
strayed a little.
Jeanne Dubois, Madame Maillefer, (1622-1693), was related to the
de La Salle family.
Above all, she took part in the foundation of the schools for the
poor children of Rouen, especially that of Darnétal, for girls, which
she also helped to run; this school was run by the Sisters of
Providence of Père Barré. Thus she was well aware of the school
movement for the poor set up by Nicolas Barré and by Nicolas
Roland.