From orilliamatters.com
By Tyler Evans
Langlois' memoir documents her personal experiences, volunteer work in local health care, and her perspective on the public health response during the pandemic
Susan Langlois spent five years documenting the COVID-19 pandemic one journal entry at a time. Now, the Orillia resident has turned those handwritten observations into a nearly 400-page book she hopes will spark conversation about one of the most turbulent periods in recent history.
The retired biotechnology regulatory specialist recently released and self published Surviving the COVID Pandemic – Contents of a Diary, a memoir based on journals she began keeping at the outset of the pandemic in 2020.
Langlois said she felt compelled to document events as they unfolded because she believed the pandemic would become a defining historical moment.
"I said to my husband, 'I'm going to keep a journal. I've got to keep a journal and document events as they occur in real time,'" she recalled. "I thought this was going to be major."
A resident of Orillia for about 15 years, Langlois' professional background also influenced her decision to write. She spent 45 years in the biotechnology industry, working in regulatory affairs, clinical trials and quality management, and says that experience shaped how she viewed the pandemic response.
Before retiring, she also volunteered extensively with Orillia Soldiers' Memorial Hospital, serving on several committees, including the hospital's ethics committee and patient advisory committee. She also chaired the Patient and Family Advisory Committee for the Couchiching Ontario Health Team.
Langlois said she dedicated much of her retirement to volunteering after the hospital saved her life decades ago as a child.
"I had an inflammation of the liver, and my parents took me to Soldiers. They said I probably wouldn't live through the night," she said. "They pulled me through. When we moved here to retire, I said, 'I'm going to give back.'"
Throughout the pandemic, Langlois said she filled multiple journals with observations from her volunteer work, committee meetings and personal experiences. Encouraged by her husband and son, she spent the past year turning those journals into a book.
The resulting memoir spans 394 pages and recounts her experiences during the pandemic in Orillia while also examining broader public health decisions through the lens of her professional background.
Langlois argues in the book that governments, healthcare institutions and pharmaceutical companies made significant mistakes during the pandemic and says she hopes readers will examine those decisions critically. Many of the book's conclusions challenge mainstream public health guidance from the pandemic and reflect the author's perspective on events.
"I wanted to document things as they happened," she said. "It's not an opinion piece. It's like Anne Frank's diary. It's captured in real time."
The book also chronicles deeply personal experiences, including the death of her mother in long-term care during the pandemic and the isolation she says many families experienced because of visitor restrictions.
Langlois said she believes those stories will resonate with readers who experienced similar hardships.
"So many people were affected," she said. "People lost loved ones, people lost jobs, families were divided. I experienced almost every aspect of it."
She acknowledges the book may generate criticism, particularly because it references local institutions and pandemic-era decisions in Orillia, although she said she does not identify local individuals by name.
"There could be risks, but quite frankly, I don't care," Langlois said. "People have to speak up."
The book was released last week and is available through Amazon, Indigo, Barnes & Noble and the author's website. It is available in hardcover, paperback and e-book formats.
"My hope is that people read it and remember what happened," she said. "I don't want us to forget."
