Jean Vanier, known as a Canadian champion for the disabled, has passed away at the age of 90.

Vanier was the founder of the charity L'Arche, which has chapters around the world and seeks to improve the daily lives and successes of developmentally disabled individuals.

The son of Canada's former governor general, Vanier passed away in Paris Tuesday following a struggle with thyroid cancer. He initially worked as a navy officer and professor before choosing to incorporate his faith into a charity organization.

Jim Lapp, community leader and executive director of L'Arche Winnipeg, says that Vanier will be remembered with gratitude for all he's done for the disabled community.

"It's sad, I think, for all of us, but on the other hand there's just this real sense of gratitude for what he did for all of us and the inspiration he's given to people all around the world."

L'Arche Winnipeg, which was founded after Vanier held a retreat in Gimli, MB in 1973, is comprised of six homes inhabited by individuals with developmental disabilities. Around four individuals and three or four assistants live in each home, something that makes L'Arche unique.

The organization also has its own gathering place, the L'Arche Tova Café.

"Jean Vanier started L'Arche in 1964 when he discovered how bad things were for people with developmental disabilities in an institution outside of Paris, so he welcomed two people out of the institution," Lapp explained. To this day, getting those who live with developmental disabilities remains the primary goal of L'Arche.

"Most of the first people coming to L'Arche Winnipeg came out of the institution and so for them, it was like freedom."

For Lapp, as one in a position of influence, the passing of Vanier may be the end of a life, but it is also the continuation of a legacy of helping people.

"His greatest insight was the gifts of people with developmental disabilities," said Lapp of Vanier. "So after five years of living with them, he suddenly realized, 'they're helping me more than I'm helping them.'

"They're people fo the heart, really, life is about relationships and so they value relationships, but they're also very welcoming, very forgiving, and full of joy. Where we tend to restrain our joy, they don't restrain their joy," the executive director shared.

Lapp encourages people to read the writings of Vanier and connect with L'Arche Winnipeg.

"There's much to be learned from people with developmental disabilities about... the meaning of life."