I am very grateful and blessed for the privilege of havingcrossed path with Dr. Marie Marcelle Racine. A gentle human being whose demeanor inspired peace, calmness and admiration. She embodied a sense of care and respect for others exceeding common standards, with a remarkable and empowering trait of humility that helped her establish a healthy connection, and rapport with people in general and her students in particular. Dr.Racine will be remembered as a peacemaker whose actions in life reflected a constant quest for harmony. As such, she perfectly translated in her everyday life the view of Nelson Mandela about people of influence when he uttered these words:“Great peacemaker are all people of integrity, of honesty, but humility”.
A devoted and passionate educator, Dr. Marie Racine, a professor emeritus of French and Linguistics at the University of the District of Columbia has instilled in her students the values and qualities that have characterized her life as an authentic and respectable human being. She made a world of difference in her students’ life, impacting everything from their classroom learning to their long term success.
A member of the Haitian Creole Academy, Dr. Racine brought meaningful and significant contributions to the work of this organization in her efforts to promote and advance the Creole Language. For many years, she taught Haitian Creole at the Embassy of Haiti in Washington, DC. She also devoted time and efforts in the work of the Committee for the Advancement of the Creole Language (KOMALAK), in the Washington area.
As a faithful and diligent servant, Dr. Marie Marcelle Racine is departing this earth with a sense of mission well accomplished. Her legacy will endure for years to come.
On behalf of the members of KOMALAK, I would like to offer my sincere condolences to the family, friends and colleagues of Dr. Marie Marcelle Racine.
Fred Williams, Ph.D.Executive Coordinator of KOMALAK(Committee for the Advancement of the Creole Language)Silver Spring, Md.
Dr. Marie-Marcelle Buteau Racine 