The little village of Larchamp, France, where Brother André Mottais was born.

The church in Larchamp, France, which dates to the time of Brother André Mottais.

From the loft of the church in Larchamp.

Brother André, one of the first young men to answer Father Dujarié's call to the religious brotherhood, became important in the early community. Sent by Dujarié to study spirituality with the Christian Brothers in Paris for six months, André returned to Ruillé as the man who would form the novices for the new community.

Baptistry in which Brother André was christened in Larchamp.

When the Brothers of St. Joseph were transferred to Le Mans under the direction of Basil Moreau in 1835, Brother André remained an important member of the community. He was sent by Moreau to Algiers in one of the first foundations overseas. Today his burial site remains lost because the community cemetery in Le Mans was rearranged after Moreau stepped down as Superior General in 1871.

Painting by Brother Harold Ruplinger, csc, of Father Dujarié giving a religious habit to the first three young men to join his Brothers of St. Joseph at Ruillé in 1820. Although the painting is historically inaccurate since Dujarié met only two men on the road that day, one of these men was André Mottais.

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