A common first name, recent news… If the Grande Joséphine made history speak following an extraordinary destiny which today allows her to legitimately integrate the Pantheon, Joséphine Zawislak will remain the grande dame of Saint-Étienne for her life destined for her own, and totally devoted to others in a village that she was able to grow. From sport to culture, there was only one step that enabled this person with a strong character to cross the barriers; her children Étienne, Lucien, Marc, Raymond, her daughter Thérèse, a loyal supporter of the Fobio des belles années in the company of her footballing husband Roland Groc, gave her the opportunity to lay a foundation stone on the stadiums; the creation of the village football club in 1970 is the work of the Zawislak family and several friends from Saint-Etienne, the first locker room at the ASSE center is the result of the family business.
The future wife of Stanislas, a Polish emigrant, had (already) gone straight to the point on the church square; a single glance was enough to take the plunge with her man a few years later: a great life of love and toil was opening up for this couple with a different culture; Joséphine, of Italian origins, and Stanislas both vowed, in perfect harmony, a real attachment to their village. Later, much later, on the death of her husband, Joséphine would take the reins of the company with the same rigor, an never-weakened passion, under the admiring gaze of her children, all committed to the commitment of a mother. without flaw or weakness. Nothing could stop the CEO for whom daily work was not enough, and should in no way affect her thirst to serve the social cause. She could thus broaden her field of action; Deputy mayor, Madame Zawislak was going to multiply actions: the creation of the CCAS, domestic helpers, the third age club, the green presence, dancing teas or even Occitan culture or friendly trips to Mimizan, Narbonne, all the same brand …
And these are thirty years of continuous creation; from the music festival to the very friendly sausage festival, which fully justify this name worn since 2018 at the entrance to the village associations hall, thus rendering honor and recognition to this exceptional woman: mother, wife, building professional, this great pioneer of social links has been able to uphold the values of the Saint-Etienne village, thanks to her good choices, her sought-after complicity in values and service to others.
The Saint-Étienne football club and all the friends from Saint-Etienne offer their sincere condolences to Joséphine’s children and family, and are grateful for the action left by Madame Joséphine Zawislak throughout her life.