Sophie Loretan: “My grandmothers gave me values ​​from which I draw my strength”

On the paternal side, Sophie draws other values. Her grandmother Michèle, 93, is her refuge. In the shadow of her wings, she always felt safe. “She embodies straightness, honesty, always available when it comes to listening. This gift triggers avalanches of confidences. It is said that behind every great man there is a woman. My grandmother was that woman. Married for sixty years to my late grandfather, she carried him, supported him, loved him, and raised her five children. But Michèle is also a woman of character, sensitive to local food and Valais traditions. Every year, the Loèche-les-Bains charanga pays homage to the Loretan family in the courtyard of the family chalet. “It’s a thousand-year-old tradition,” explains Sophie. All the men of the family were magistrates at the service of the Old Homeland. Now that the men are gone, it is the grandmother who proudly welcomes this brass band from her window in the Kastlanhaus.