Thank You, God, for One More Day: Claudine Contois on Family, Grit, Faith, and a Life Fully Lived | Conversations with a Chiropractor
Some conversations stop being content and become something closer to a keepsake. This is one of those.
In this episode of Conversations with a Chiropractor, Dr. Stephanie Wautier sits down with Claudine Contois for a conversation that moves through nearly nine decades of memory, family, hardship, humor, survival, and Love. Since this interview was recorded, Claudine has passed away. Her presence is felt deeply throughout this episode, and for those who would like to read more about her life, her obituary can be found here: https://www.fassbenderswansonhansen.com/obituaries/Claudine-Ann-Contois?obId=47520137#/obituaryInfo
What makes this episode special is how fully Claudine shows up as herself. She talks about growing up in Kingsford between Italian and Swedish family roots, her deep bond with her younger brother, and the people who shaped her early life. She shares what it meant to raise four boys, leave an abusive Marriage to protect them, build a second marriage that lasted more than 50 years, and create a life full of horses, snowmobiles, camping trips, card games, and unforgettable family stories.
She also speaks with unusual honesty about the final chapter of her life. After a sudden leukemia diagnosis, Claudine talks openly about fear, faith, readiness, family care, and her one simple wish, not to go alone. Even in the heaviest moments, she remains unmistakably herself: practical, funny, blunt, loving, and grateful for one more day.
This is a conversation about Caregiving, resilience, marriage, mortality, and the memories that outlast everything else. It is also, now, a remembrance of a woman whose strength, humor, and warmth are all over every minute of it.
In This Episode, Discover
Claudine’s childhood in Iron Mountain and Kingsford, shaped by Italian and Swedish roots
Her close relationship with her brother and the family stories that stayed with her
How she left an abusive marriage and rebuilt life with four boys
Meeting her second husband through dancing, and building a marriage that lasted decades
Her adventurous life as a mother, from horses and camping to snowmobiles and lake memories
Caregiving for her parents and husband, and what those years taught her
Her sudden leukemia diagnosis and the honesty with which she faced it
Why memory, family presence, faith, and gratitude became the center of her final season
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In Memory of Claudine Contois
Read Claudine’s obituary here: https://www.fassbenderswansonhansen.com/obituaries/Claudine-Ann-Contois?obId=47520137#/obituaryInfo
Credits
Podcast production by Brand|Sound. Start your podcast journey by emailing [email protected].
Chapters
00:00 Before we begin, a note about Claudine 00:39 Introduction to Conversations with a Chiropractor 01:18 Meet Claudine and her early family roots 03:45 Her brother, childhood memories, and family closeness 05:25 Leukemia diagnosis and being told time was short 06:20 Raising four boys and living full-out with them 09:20 Fear, seizures, and not wanting to be alone 10:00 Leaving an abusive marriage to protect her children 12:00 Meeting her second husband through dancing 14:00 Marriage advice, communication, and caregiving strain 18:10 Horseback trips, camping stories, and Whitefish Falls 21:00 Raccoons, pigs, and Claudine’s farm toughness 25:00 The sudden turn in her Health and the ER visit 27:20 Faith, readiness, and gratitude for one more day 28:15 Caring for her parents at the end of their lives 30:10 Cribbage, late nights, and family routines 33:00 Walkers, wheelchairs, and learning to be cared for 39:00 Nicknames, ancestry, and family identity 42:00 Wine, farm life, and old family traditions 45:00 The fun she brought to other people’s lives 49:00 Facing the ending, and what comes next 50:45 Closing condolence for Claudine and her family
