 Rita Letendre was born the eldest of seven children to Anne-Marie Ledoux and Héliodore Letendre in Drummondville, Quebec.Despite Héliodore working as a mechanic and obtaining trucking contracts when possible, life for them was difficult and the family lived in poverty.Following a serious injury to one of her fingers in 1931, Rita was sent to live with her maternal grandmother in Saint-Francois-du-Lac.