Born in the village of Irma, just north of Edmonton, in 1927, Paré lived most of her life in Vermilion, a town about two hours east. She began cooking professionally after agreeing to cater an event for a thousand people out of her home kitchen back in 1963; that led to a catering business that helped her support four kids as a single parent. Eighteen years of catering meant frequent requests for recipes, and many clients suggested she compile them into a cookbook for ease of sharing.
Like other prolific cookbook authors, Paré built a team of recipe developers over the years. At the company’s peak, she led a full-time test kitchen called the Recipe Factory, where research and recipe development took place alongside an in-house photography studio. In 2010, Company’s Coming was sold to Washington-based Lone Pine Publishers, and Paré retired the year after.
Great tribute from dinnerwithjulie.