other improvements<\/a> of the home.<\/p>\n\u201cOur requests have fallen on deaf ears.\u201d<\/p>\n
After this year\u2019s presentation to council, Valenti said they took a different approach.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe gave up asking,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are owned by the city. They help other groups, but our requests have fallen on deaf ears. I question \u2014 does the city really understand how much the Quints are bringing in?\u201d<\/p>\n
The Dionne Quints Museum board is looking to the public to help raise $10,000.<\/p>\n
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Pleading to North Bay council didn\u2019t work, so volunteers have decided to launch a GoFundMe Account.<\/p>\n
The Dionne Quints Museum is looking to expand its operations from Friday to Saturday to six days a week during the summer months of June, July and August.<\/p>\n
The funds will be used to hire two students to conduct museum tours from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday.<\/p>\n
Museum tours are currently being done by volunteers.<\/p>\n
Valenti said if they don\u2019t secure the funds they will have no choice but to reduce the museum\u2019s hours.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be forced to reduce our opening hours to Fridays and Saturdays and showings upon requests. We like and want to be open, and it also helps our bottom line because we rely on donations.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gord Young, communication officer with the City of North Bay, said the city is always willing to work collaboratively with the Dionne Museum board and other community partners to explore ways to support their work.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, under the agreement between the city and the Dionne Museum board, the city, as owner of the Dionne Home, is responsible for capital-related costs associated with the building but does not provide funding for day-to-day operations.\u201d<\/p>\n
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The board is also organizing a celebration of life for the five Dionne quintuplets on August 8 at the Davedi Club.<\/p>\n
The dinner will also include a silent auction which will includes several pieces of cartoonist Lynn Johnston\u2019s collection. Tickets are $45.<\/p>\n
The Dionne quintuplets were the first known set of quintuplets to survive infancy. They were born on May 28, 1934 in Corbeil, Ontario to Elzire (Legros) and Oliva Dionne, a French-Canadian farming couple.<\/p>\n
The five identical girls\u2019 names were Yvonne \u00c9douilda Marie, Annette Lillianne Marie, C\u00e9cile Marie \u00c9milda, \u00c9milie Marie Jeanne and Marie R\u00e9ina Alma. Midwives Madame Lebel and Madame Legros (Elzire\u2019s Aunt) delivered the two-months premature babies weighing less than 14 pounds total.<\/p>\n
Their skills helped ensure the survival of the girls, according to the GoFundMe page.<\/p>\n
That survival was considered a miracle at the time. Elzire had already given birth to six children \u2014 Ernest, Rose Marie, Therese, Daniel and Pauline, with one boy Leo, passing soon after birth. Three boys followed \u2014 Oliva, Victor and Claude.<\/p>\n
\u201cSoon after the Quints\u2019 birth, the Ontario government took custody of the girls under the guise of protecting them from exploitation. Ironically, they ended up being exploited by the government itself,\u201d according to the fund.<\/p>\n
As of Thursday, the fund had reached $436 of its $10,000 goal.<\/p>\n
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![\"Dionne](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0812-nb-dionne7.jpg\")
The Dionne Museum board has launched a GoFundMe to help raise funds to pay for a second summer student. Photo by Jennifer Hamilton-McCharles, The NuggetArticle content<\/p>\n