Gil Bernardi’s tribute to Francine Brochot, his “irreplaceable pen”
A look back at the speech delivered on February 2, 2016, by Mayor Gil Bernardi on the retirement of his chief of staff.
On February 2, 2016, a page turned at the town hall of Le Lavandou. Gil Bernardi, then mayor of the commune, paid a public and deeply personal tribute to Francine Brochot, his closest collaborator, on the occasion of her official retirement. This speech, imbued with emotion and respect, highlighted an extraordinary professional and human relationship, woven over the years in service to the town.
“Respect, succour, fidelity, and assistance”
From his very first words, Gil Bernardi emphasized the intensity of the bonds uniting a mayor and his cabinet, evoking “a fragment of life, this slice of existence” where “understanding becomes automatic and the unspoken takes precedence over the explanatory.” To illustrate the strength of this collaboration with Francine Brochot, he resorted to a rather unexpected metaphor, that of marriage, citing Article 212 of the Civil Code.
“spouses owe each other mutual respect, succour, fidelity, and assistance.”
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With this image, the mayor soberly acknowledged, knowing his interlocutor's discretion, “respect in commitment, succour in the aid provided, fidelity in action, and assistance in daily life... and beyond.”
The journalist at the service of communication
Beyond loyalty, the mayor wished to highlight the professionalism of Francine Brochot. He recalled her initial career path as a “talented journalist whose gaze and analytical skills she preserved.” This expertise proved crucial in her duties as chief of staff in charge of communication, a role where she mastered both “the know-how and knows how to make it known.”
Gil Bernardi also praised “the woman of relationships, of ministerial friendships, of knowledge of political and administrative life.” The speech evoked, in veiled terms, shared trials, those “battles won when we feared losing them, battles lost when we had just triumphed.” A confidence bearing witness to a journey led “side by side” and often “crowned with success.”
A woman of commitment and passion
The portrait drawn by the mayor is that of a multi-faceted collaborator, far beyond her official role. He described Francine Brochot as a “collaborator of conviction and passion,” driven by “a sense of dedication and commitment.”
Her deep involvement in local life was also praised. The elected official thus recalled her investment in community associations, her attachment to culture, and her key role in the twinning of the town with the German commune of Kronberg, of which she was an “unconditional supporter.”
“A new beginning, not a farewell”
Far from a farewell, Gil Bernardi presented this retirement as a new stage.
“Tonight is not a departure but a new beginning, so much do I know that you have the desire to continue to serve and to give to others,” he asserted.
With a touch of humour, he slipped in a word for her husband, Gérard, warning that he should not “rejoice too much in advance about ‘getting her back’ full-time. For that will not be the case!”
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In concluding his tribute, Gil Bernardi described his collaborator's help as “precious... irreplaceable... and therefore one that will not be replaced.” He ended by praising her “pen, which is but the projection of the mind,” symbolically offering her a new pen, twin to his own, for the friendship forged by writing “with two hands, as with two minds.” A powerful testament of gratitude for “those millions of words” that marked the political life of Le Lavandou.
Read also: the death notice of Francine Brochot, a figure of journalism and local life in the Var