Central Catholic Hall of Fame will induct three

Central Catholic High School will induct one graduate and two benefactors into the school’s Hall of Fame during a ceremony at 4 p.m. Jan. 12 at the Yvonne Adams Life Center at Holy Cross Church.
The Hall of Fame inductees receiving the Central Catholic High School Lifetime Meritorious Service Award are Brooks Blakeman and Dan Irwin.
The Hall of Fame inductee receiving the Central Catholic High School Athletic Achievement Award is Gerard Byrne.
Brooks Blakeman
Blakeman is a 1965 graduate of Thibodaux College High School (now E.D. White High School). He served the school from 1987 to 1993, during which he became president of the school board.
Through this time, he served as chairperson and co-chairperson for all Central Catholic fundraisers, which include the fair, auction, bingo, and the Shrimp and Petroleum Festival hamburger booth.
As his quintessential contribution, he is credited for helping keep the school open while under threat of closing due to tough financial times. He was also involved in the local community by serving as a youth baseball coach and was a board member at Guaranty Bank in Morgan City.
He is married to Sue Blakeman, father to Stephanie (Patrick), Kristi (Eric), and Byron (Jackie), and grandfather to Brooks, Ana Kate, Ellie Grace, Trey, Susie, Eric, Ruth, and Harry.
Dan Irwin
Irwin is better known as “PawPaw Dan” for having served as assistant baseball Coach at Central Catholic for nearly 20 years. He is a 1966 graduate of Pontiac High School in Pontiac, Michigan, where he played football and baseball. He spent two years in Class A baseball in Michigan before joining the US Army, which led to serving one year in the Vietnam War. He left the Army in 1971 with the rank of staff sergeant and settled in Morgan City.
He volunteered his spare time coaching various levels of baseball in the area. Irwin began keeping the book for baseball games under Coach Pat Pennison before officially becoming a volunteer coach.
He helped guide the program through 11 different coaches which, collectively, have won 5 state championships and 4 state runner-ups. He also assisted other sports programs through his years in various ways, such as filming game tape for the football team.
He is married to Diane; father to Daniel (Susan), James, and David (Heather); and grandfather to Brian, Katie, Jonah, Drew and Peyton.
Gerard Byrne
Byrne is a 1985 graduate of Central Catholic High School. He was a four-year letterman in football and track and field. During his football career, he rushed for nearly 4,000 yards while scoring 49 touchdowns. He earned All-District honors in 1982, 1983, and 1984 while also earning All-Parish and All-State honors in 1984 when he rushed for 1,395 yards and scored 16 touchdowns.
Today, he is married to Gerrie Byrne and father to Caroline and Blake Byrne. He owns a successful maritim equipment rental company and is a faithful supporter of Central Catholic High School.