Born in Vietnam, he had to leave his country at the age of five, after the capture of Saigon (today Ho Chi Minh City). He grew up in the north of France, and became an integration professional. Helping the most precarious through economic activity is a common thread in his life, which he follows tirelessly, even if his vision of the world becomes blurred, due to an eye disease.
In the premises of its integration association, Synapse 3i, located in a working-class district of Amiens, each person he meets in the corridors greets him warmly and adds his first name to his morning hello, so that Jean-Pierre Motte can identify them. To those the fifty-year-old does not know, he specifies that he is visually impaired, “ if I pass you in the street, I won’t see you, don’t take it the wrong way “. His central vision is blurred, and black spots invade his right eye. “ I learned about my illness, retinitis pigmentosa, at 18 years old. I didn’t really pay attention to it, I was young, free, I only thought about having fun “.
The disease has progressed, especially since 2016, but he maintains his determination, a value instilled in him by his father. “ And also respect for the word given, that’s what comes to me from my Asian culture “. Jean-Pierre Motte was born in 1970 in Saigon, now Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. His grandfather from Lyon was “ a great builder » in Saigon, bridges, roads, water towers. He meets a Vietnamese woman, with whom he has 10 children, including the father of Jean-Pierre Motte, who also marries a Vietnamese woman. “ I lived in Saigon for five years. When the city fell, we had to leave overnight, otherwise they could have killed us, because my father worked for the Americans “.
The family goes into exile in Picardy, where an aunt lives. He only spoke Vietnamese and took French lessons. School is difficult for him, he repeats two classes, and he is “ the only Asian, so I was treated to racist jokes, at the time, I was offended, but I quickly moved on to something else “. His father runs a gas station. In the evening after school, he worked as a gas station attendant from the age of 12. Over the years, he collected tips and discovered travel, the United States, Mexico, Canada. “ It opened my mind, and even today, I love cultural exchange, in my association, there are twelve different nationalities “.
A useful business
He created this association in 2009, with the initial objective of reducing the digital divide. Train the long-term unemployed, the disabled, the most vulnerable, in IT tools. Then, over the years, the missions have expanded, with integration workshops, carpentry, tapestry, sewing (which works in particular for luxury houses), recycling. And to get people who are far from employment back on track, there is a social center where they are helped with housing, administrative files, etc.
Employees stay on average for one year, then find training or another job. “ Integration through economic activity is essential, I am a social entrepreneur. The DNA of entrepreneurship, I received it from my grandfather and my father, I add this desire to be useful to society “. At the end of 2019, the structure was in difficulty. The first confinement falls, “ I then had the idea of sewing masks, we rolled up our sleeves, and that’s what saved us financially, we sold hundreds of thousands of them. The commercial court spoke of a spectacular recovery “.
Urban riots reduce his work to ashes
But last June, a second hard blow. What he had built was reduced to ashes during urban riots following the death of Nahel, killed by a police officer. “ Eight hooded people set the fire. Employees fell into my arms, desperate. Seeing 1.95 m guys crying all the tears in their bodies, it stays with you “. The media spotlight is shed on his association, “ people realized our usefulness, so did elected officials “. Fighting, he finds some locals. Two months later, the structure welcomes employees again. His health takes a hit, stress, anxiety, fatigue accumulate. “ I still have insomnia today, every night I wake up at 2 a.m. “.
The horse, his eyes
But he found refuge in horse riding, discovered by chance in 2016, when the first black spots appeared in his vision. “ I was depressed, I couldn’t accept the illness, my five children, my wife, supported me, and then I caught the horse bug, the sensation, the speed, it was him, my eyes “. He competes, show jumping with a guide, but also para-dressage, of which he becomes French champion. Losing one’s autonomy remains frustrating for the entrepreneur, “ I am dependent on my children, my colleagues, they drive me, they read my emails “, but he remains hopeful in the research into his illness. “ Maybe when I retire, I will be able to watch films and series again, like Star Wars or Star Trek that I love! “.