RSS Feed

EMELIE PICKERING

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 1:08pm

Emelie Pickering, 75, a resident of Bayou L’Ourse, passed away Wednesday, July 5, 2017.
She is survived by her children, James Pickering and wife Karla, Tina Hebert and husband Dale, and Steve Pickering and fiancé Felicia Baldwin; grandchildren, Kevin, Curtis and Jami Pickering, TJ Daigle Jr., Savannah Galloway and Leah Dan Pickering; and eight great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her husband, Adrian Pickering; parents, Domnick and Julia Rebardi; four sisters; and three brothers.
No services as per Ms. Emelie’s request.

VELMA BEADLE DAWSON

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 1:05pm

Velma Beadle Dawson, a native of Morgan City, Louisiana, and a resident of Patterson, Louisiana, was called to heaven on July 6, 2017, at the age of 84.
She was a devoted wife, loving mother and grandmother. She will be deeply missed by her husband, Walter F. Dawson Jr.; and two sons, Walter Dawson III and Michael K Dawson Sr. and daughter-in-law Lori G. Dawson.
She is also survived by her brother, Conrad Beadle; sister, Gaydell Alemand; brother-in-law, Thomas Dawson; and sisters-in-law, Betty Dawson and Lillie Beadle. She will be sadly missed by her four grandchildren, Courtny Beard (Randall), Christy Walford (Richard), Melanie Mynes (Matt), and Michael Dawson Jr. Also survived by eight great-grandchildren and a host of nieces, nephews, relatives and friends.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Garrett Beadle and Agnes Gillen Beadle and brother, Raymond Beadle.
Velma graduated from Morgan City High School in 1950. She was employed by The Morgan City Review. In 1953 she enlisted in the WAVES where she met her future husband of nearly 63 years. Her professional life after birthing two sons was dedicated to raising her children and being a supportive wife to her naval career husband.
During the naval years, Velma was fortunate to travel extensively with her husband living in Long Beach, California, Yokohama, Japan, the Washington, D.C. area and Honolulu, Hawaii. She enjoyed retired life traveling to Alaska and many national parks. She was an avid bird watcher, gardener and excellent cook.
No funeral services are planned. She chose to donate her body to medical science and wishes her ashes to ultimately be released from the high scenic overlook in the Rocky Mountains near Estes Park Colorado.

DOROTHY ELAINE DUPLECHIN KIMBELL

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 1:03pm

Graveside services will be held at Ibert’s Memorial Park in Patterson at 10 a.m. Saturday, July 8, 2017, for Dorothy Elaine Duplechin Kimbell, 73, who went to be with the Lord on Wednesday, July 5th, 2017.
“Ms. Dot” lived in Patterson with her husband of 49 years, Terry Lee Kimbell. Ms. Dot was mother to most who knew her and a Godly woman who prayed for all. She was known for speaking her mind, giving wise advice (whether you wanted it or not J) and always having something on the table for those that wanted to share a meal. She touched many lives and will be dearly missed by those she leaves behind. Ms. Dot was carried on Angel’s Wings to those awaiting her in heaven and those of us left are assured that we will see her again with Our Heavenly Father.
She will be missed beyond measure by her husband, Terry; daughters, Brenda Davis, Charlotte McNabb, Pamela Craigo, Terri Kimbell and Mary Elizabeth Wilson; her son, Charles Rayford McNabb; brothers, Leonce, Jerome and Richard Duplechin; sisters, Vernita Ancelet and Wanda Jones; nine grandchildren; 11 great-grandchildren; and four great-great-grandchildren.
She was preceded in death by her father, Duplecie Duplechin; her mother, Esther Foreman; sisters, Louella Suarez and Rebecca Pago; and her brother, Lester Duplechin.
Family and friends may view the obituary and express their condolences online by visiting www.iberts.com.
Arrangements have been entrusted to Ibert’s Mortuary Inc., 1007 Main Street, Franklin, LA 70538, 337-828-5426.

Video is latest flap for 'Cajun John Wayne'

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 1:02pm

LAFAYETTE (AP) — As a pugnacious sheriff’s deputy, Clay Higgins developed a loyal social media following with thumbs-hooked-in-gun-belt anti-crime videos in which he leaned menacingly toward the camera in his Mountie-style hat and warned the criminals of Louisiana’s Acadiana region that they’d best just turn themselves in.
His trash-talking style — in one video he donned body armor and wielded a long gun while calling suspects “thugs” and “animals” — wasn’t appreciated by all and it led to his resignation by the time he had risen to the rank of captain in the St. Landry Parish Sheriff’s Office.
Followed by his election to Congress from the 3rd District, which includes St. Mary Parish.
“He comes across to people as straightforward,” Joel Stelly, owner of a Cajun country restaurant and grocery, said Thursday. “I guess that’s kind of what got him in trouble this time.”
“This time” is a reference to Higgins’ now-retracted video of a trip he made in May to the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration and death camps in Poland, where more than a million Jews were killed in the Nazi genocide.
Higgins struck his characteristic stern and earnest tone in the production, recounting the horrors of Auschwitz while making a pitch for a strong U.S. military. The result was resounding disapproval as far away as Jerusalem and as close to home as a town house condominium in the heart of his district, where 85-year-old Manfred Klepper couldn’t believe his eyes and ears.
“That’s a sacred place,” said Klepper, a Jew who lost relatives to the Holocaust and remembers being terrorized as a child of 6 when Nazis ransacked his home during the “Kristallnacht.” His family fled Nazi Germany in 1940.
“It should never be forgotten,” Klepper said. “But it shouldn’t be made a spectacle of. To me, Rep. Higgins made a spectacle of it.”
Higgins withdrew the video from his Facebook page and issued a statement apologizing for the “unintended pain” Higgins appeared to be a longshot amid a field of seven when he entered the 2016 race for an open congressional seat in the heavily Republican district. He wound up in a runoff with fellow Republican Scott Angelle, then a public service commissioner.
Both aimed for a traditionally conservative Republican electorate.
Angelle was the favorite — and not just because he was a seasoned political veteran up against a novice.
Higgins, 55, had baggage, including three divorces before his current marriage.
A 1991 divorce record included an unproven abuse accusation by his first wife, now deceased. He didn’t just deny the accusation; he said he never knew it had been lodged until it surfaced as the campaign revved up.
Politics was not the only late-in-life career change for Higgins.
Born and raised in the New Orleans area, he worked in the automobile business and served in the National Guard before turning to law enforcement and winding up in Cajun country. Although his tough talk led local news media to dub him “the Cajun John Wayne,” he has said he is of Irish, not Acadian French, descent.
In a 2016 interview, he said he began turning around an admittedly raucous lifestyle — “I worked too much, I drank too much, I didn’t honor my wedding vows” — after a divorce from his second wife and the resulting separation from their children.
For all the furor it caused, the Auschwitz video arguably isn’t the most incendiary of Higgins’ social media posts.
He drew widespread censure last month for a Facebook post that followed a deadly terror attack in London.
“The free world ... all of Christendom ... is at war with Islamic horror,” Higgins wrote, going on to say of terrorists: “Hunt them, identify them, and kill them. Kill them all. For the sake of all that is good and righteous. Kill them all.”
Higgins was unapologetic for that one. “The meaning of candid speech is frequently mischaracterized or misunderstood,” he said then.
Cross likens Higgins’ social media forays to President Donald Trump’s Twitter posts. “They’re perhaps regrettable, perhaps they should be toned down. But, the essential message of Trump and Higgins is still supported.”
The question, Cross says, is whether a more conventional Republican will enter the race when Higgins stands for re-election next year.
And whether the provocative videos and posts come back to haunt Higgins.
“I’m not a campaign media consultant,” Cross said. “But if I were, I think I could find ways to use all that stuff against Clay Higgins pretty effectively.”

Kiwanians donate to schools

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 1:00pm

Submitted Photo
For the fourth year in a row, the East St Mary Kiwanis Club has donated $500 to local schools to help meet the needs of their students. Pictured are Travis Richard, Kiwanis president; Mary Thomas, Wyandotte Elementary; Blane Aucoin, Kiwanian; Shantel Toups, principal at J.S. Aucoin Elementary; Christy Thomas, South Louisiana Technical College Young Memorial Campus; Missy Hebert, Berwick Elementary; Leonard Armato, Kiwanian; Sheryl Gibbons, principal at Hattie Watts Elementary; and Tim Hebert, Kiwanian.

40 years in banking

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 12:58pm

Submitted Photo
M C Bank has a long-standing tradition of recognizing its employee anniversaries. Recently, J. Michael Bourgeois celebrated 40 years in banking. Pictured from left are Larry J. Callais, M C Bank's president and CEO, who presents the 40-year anniversary gift; Bourgeois; and Barton Blanco, executive vice president and chief lending officer. Bourgeois began his career in banking in June 1977 and is now a vice president/commercial loan officer. M C Bank has full-service branch offices in Amelia, Bayou Vista, Morgan City, Lafayette and Youngsville.

Jim Bradshaw: Shell reefs served as natural defense for south Louisiana

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 12:55pm

By JIM BRADSHAW

In the early 1800s, when European nations were constantly fighting each other or threatening to do so, at least one man thought the Acadiana coast was one of the safest places in the world to be.
His name was William Darby, and he was one of the first men to thoroughly survey south Louisiana. He predicted a great future for the Vermilion River and its environs, partly because it offered protection from marauders.
He made his comments in a book published in 1817 with the easy-to-remember title of “A Geographical Description of the State of Louisiana, the Southern Part of the State of Mississippi, and Territory of Alabama; Presenting a View of the Soil, Climate, Animal, Vegetation, and Mineral Production; Illustrative of their Natural Physiognomy, their Geographical Configuration, and Relative Situation; with an Account of the Character and Manner of their Inhabitants; Together with a Map from Actual Survey and Observation, Projected on a Scale of Ten Miles to an Inch, of the State of Louisiana and Adjacent Countries.”
In those days, you could judge a book by its cover.)
“The Vermilion, by its union with the gulph (sic), forms the natural communication of its inhabitants to the sea,” he wrote. “The time is not far remote when many thousands of people will exist on the shores of this river, the fruits of whose industry will be taken to market with much more facility than the present difficult and circuitous route.”
That circuitous route from the Vermilion’s banks to New Orleans markets was via alternately muddy or dusty ruts (some people elevated them to the distinction of “roads,” but not anyone who traveled on them) that led to Bayou Teche, then by flatboat through the Atchafalaya Basin to Plaquemine, then down the Mississippi to New Orleans. The Vermilion couldn’t be easily used because there was a shell reef at its entrance that would not “admit vessels of very considerable burthen,” in Darby’s words. That meant big boats couldn’t get in.
He thought that wasn’t such a bad thing.
“Whether the difficulty of entering not only the Vermilion, but every other river in Louisiana, can be considered an evil, in either a moral or political view, there is much reason to doubt.” Darby wrote.
He liked the idea of rivers that were hard to get into, because he was writing at a time when memories of the War of 1812 were still fresh, when people thought Napoleon was plotting an invasion of Louisiana, when “war continue(d) to distract and distress the world,” and “the European world plume(d) itself more upon its power of doing injury than upon either reason, justice, or humanity.”
With all of that going on, Darby thought that “the more (the) internal parts of our country are fenced by nature, the better. Perseverance will give skill to navigate all our rivers, whilst their shallow inlets and intricate channels will set foreign invasion at defiance.
“The shell banks and deep morasses of Louisiana have always been considered by the writer as a bulwark that will contribute to the safety and happiness of the people,” he continued. “It is an incontrovertible fact that from the mouth of the Sabine to the mouth of the Atchafalaya, not one spot is found where an army of a thousand men could land with its implements of war. ... A small body of (determined) troops on their banks could, by choosing their ground, repel very superior numbers.”
Darby was right about both transportation and defense.
The Abbeville Meridional was able to report in February 1879, some 75 years after Darby’s description, that “Vermilion Bayou is now fairly alive with water craft.”
As for war, Darby’s theory of “a few determined men” had been tested just a few years before his book was published.
A brief biography of J.V. Moss, scion of an early Calcasieu Parish family (William Henry Perrin, Southwest Louisiana Historical and Biographical, 1891) reports that he “was a soldier in the War of 1812, but did not participate in the Battle of New Orleans. He with others were stationed as a guard at the mouth of the Vermilion Bayou during the latter part of the war.”
As we know, the British didn’t make it to New Orleans, and didn’t even try to get to Abbeville, with Moss and his pals and the reefs guarding the way.
We have been invaded by armadillos, nutria, water hyacinths, fire ants and a few other critters, but never by people bringing “instruments of war.” And, technically speaking, the armadillos and their friends have been infiltrators, rather than invaders.
Knowing this, I’m sure you can rest easier tonight.
A collection of Jim Bradshaw’s columns, Cajuns and Other Characters, is now available from Pelican Publishing. You can contact him at jimbradshaw4321@gmail.com or P.O. Box 1121, Washington LA 70589.

Viewing Louisiana from perspective of a Californian

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 12:41pm

By BUCK LEONARDS

NRECA is the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. Its roots go back the Rural Electrification Act of 1936.
It was enacted by FDR as part of the New Deal. It provided loans to rural electric co-ops who then provided electricity to the rural areas and farms, all because the for profit energy companies refused to serve the rural areas due to the cost of running miles and miles of electric lines to serve just a few customers.
The NRECA is still alive and energized!
It has over 900 member co-ops in 47 states providing service to well over 40 million people. That’s only 12 percent of our nation’s population, but they have 42 percent of the distribution lines. There’s no doubt if I were farming back in the 1930’s, I would have been an original board member fighting to get electricity for my family and farm.
Heck, I probably would’ve started a rural publication to help champion the cause!
Being around this group of rural folks, especially the ones from the great state of California, helped me appreciate their state in a different way.
California gets a bad rap viewing it from the television media. We see them as movie stars complaining about global warming while flying around on private jets.
We see their politicians fighting for sanctuary cities when we all know that is harboring illegal citizens and criminals for the sake of their votes. Am I the only one whocringes when Nancy Pelosi steps up to the mic and claims she represents American citizens?
California is much more than that. When you leave the cities, you find hard-working farmers and ranchers just like here in Louisiana.
California leads the nation in agriculture. They grow over half of all the fruits, nuts, and vegetables. They actually grow as much rice as we do here.
Granted, we grow the fluffy, long-grain rice that’s perfect for gumbo and crawfish ettouffe, and they grow sticky short-grain that’s perfect for sushi.
They produce more dairy products than Wisconsin and are second in the nation only behind Texas in beef production.
All told they farm over 200 crops and lead the nation in 66 food crops, valued at over $40 billion annually.
But this leads me to wonder how the rest of the country views Louisiana?
When I introduce myself being from Crowley, Louisiana, the first thing they ask: Is that near New Orleans!
The second is: Do I know Troy Landry?
Do they think every town has a Bourbon Street? Do they think our children are always in jeopardy of being eaten by alligators?
Do they think we are crazy for putting hot sauce on spicy food?
When they watched TV coverage of Hurricane Katrina did they think we are all selfish looters? I certainly hope not.
I hope they view us as a state with a very diverse economy and culture. I hope they see New Orleans not just as a city with Bourbon Street and Mardi Gras but as an important port city that is the beginning and the end of the massive amount of cargo that travels through the Mississippi river.
I hope they realize that alligators are a $35 million dollar a year industry and not a nuisance.
When they put a few drops of hot sauce on their food, I hope they realize that it is a huge industry here.
The McIhenny Co. employs over 200 people in Avery Island and ships Tabasco sauce to 180 countries!
And when they watch TV coverage of our numerous Hurricanes and floods, I hope that they remember the Cajun Navy rescuers and the hard-working lineman restoring power in hostile envi-ronments, and especially neighbors helping out neighbors in need.
My view of California has definitely changed for the better, I hope yours has too. And please don’t think of Cali-fornia as the state that gave us Nancy Pelosi, but rather the State that gave us Ronald Reagan!
Buck Leonards is a farmer in Acadia Parish and publisher of Louisiana Farm and Ranch Magazine.

JOHN PARKER CONRAD SR.

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 11:07am

October 11, 1915-July 6, 2017
John Parker Conrad Sr., 101, died peacefully on July 6, 2017, at his residence in Morgan City. Mr. Conrad was a long-time parishioner of Sacred Heart Catholic Church. He was a kind and gentle man whose generosity to his church, community, family, and friends will long be remembered. Mr. Conrad was an avid outdoorsman who enjoyed hunting and shrimping. He was a beloved husband, father, grandfather and great-grandfather, and will be sadly missed by all who knew and loved him and the many thousands of lives that he touched in his own special way.
Parker Conrad was born Oct. 11, 1915, on Rousseau Plantation in Parks, Louisiana. He was the eighth of nine children and last son of the late Marie Celine Marin and the late James Joseph Conrad Sr. Parker married Shirley Rita Kihneman at Sacred Heart Church in Morgan City, Louisiana, on Feb. 11, 1942. They were happily married for 64 years before her death in 2006.
Parker Conrad was a shipbuilding pioneer and a legend in South Louisiana and beyond. In 1948, he founded Conrad Industries in Morgan City, now with five shipyards along the Louisiana-Texas coast. The Spirit of Morgan City, a shrimp trawler and proud landmark located on the neutral ground in Morgan City, was built by Conrad Industries and donated to the city by Parker.
From age 12 to 17, Mr. Conrad studied to be a Christian Brother at the novitiate of De LaSalle in Lafayette, which formed in him a deeply rooted and life-lasting commitment to others. He returned to the family on Lagonda Plantation, now Bayou Vista, during the depression years. Times were tough for everyone and young Parker pursued many avenues to etch out a living. He farmed sugar cane and rice, he raised and sold chickens and vegetables; he trapped, logged, and fished, and even raised bullfrogs to sell. Finally, after three years of planting rice on what is now Country Club Estates and his income from other business ventures, he had a sufficient down payment on a used insulated trailer truck that he used to haul fresh shrimp, on ice, to New York. This opened the door to another adventure, the shrimp packing business in Morgan City and Cameron. Parker sold the two shrimp packing plants and began renting boats to oil companies. In 1948 he purchased a small shipyard that built wooden shrimp trawlers on the banks of the Atchafalaya River in Morgan City. Prayers and perseverance were rewarded as Conrad Industries celebrated 69 years in operation in April 2017.
Mr. Conrad was a member of the local Chamber of Commerce, St. Mary Industrial Group, Louisiana Shipbuilders, Petroleum Club of Morgan City, Knights of Columbus Council #1373, Louisiana Intercoastal Waterways Association, Louisiana Business and Industry Group, and Chairman of the Board of Atchafalaya Federal Savings Bank. He was a member of the Offshore Marine Service Association, a former Rotarian and Boy Scout Leader, and member of the Central Catholic High School Boosters Club. He was a patron of the United Catholic Education Fund and honored member of the Sister Aiden Society at CCHS.
Parker Conrad was widely recognized for his many accomplishments. In 1965, he was named to the Order of St. Louis King of France; in 1981, he was inducted into the Central Catholic Hall of Fame; in 1982, he received the Medaille Award from the Sisters of St. Joseph; in 1987, Mr. Conrad was named Citizen of the Year in Morgan City; in 1991, he was given the Rotary Club’s Paul Harris Fellowship Award, and the St. Mary Parish Chamber of Commerce awarded him Citizen of the Year in 2010.
Parker is survived by one son, Johnny Conrad and his wife, Mary Lou Brunson Conrad, of Berwick; one daughter, Katherine Conrad Court, and her husband, James K., of Round Mountain, Texas; four grandsons, Daniel Conrad and Rebecca of Morgan City, Glenn Conrad and Kim of Patterson, Kenneth Conrad and Rosalyn of Berwick, and Patrick Court and Nicole of Lakeway, Texas.
Parker’s memory is shared by his 11 great-grandchildren, Danielle, Abigail, Michelle, Alana, Madeline, Parker Charles and Katie Conrad, and Avery, Parker Allen, Jameson and Quinn Court; as well as nieces, nephews, a host of beloved friends and hundreds of Conrad employees.
Mr. Conrad was the son of the late James Joseph Conrad Sr., and the late Celine Marin Conrad. His wife, Shirley Kihneman Conrad; his brothers, Morris Joseph Conrad, Larry Joseph Conrad, Carl Joseph Conrad, James Joseph Conrad Jr. and Edward Gabriel Conrad; and three sisters, Hazel Conrad Koch, Celine Conrad Guillotte and Iris Conrad Derouen preceded him in death.
Pallbearers named to serve are Daniel Conrad, Glenn Conrad, Kenneth Conrad, Patrick Court, Wayne Romero, Doug Derouen, Craig Derouen and David Kihneman. The family will receive friends from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Sunday, July 9, 2017, at Twin City Funeral Home, with a rosary to be recited at 7 p.m. Visitation will resume from 8 a.m. until 9 a.m. on Monday, July 10, 2017, at Twin City Funeral home with a Funeral Mass following at 10 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Morgan City. Parker’s nephew, Bishop Louis F. Kihneman III of Biloxi, Mississippi, will conduct the service. Parker will be laid to rest in the Morgan City Cemetery Mausoleum.
The family would like to thank all of Mr. Parker’s special caregivers for the loving care they provided to him over the years.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be directed to Central Catholic High School, 2100 Cedar Street, Morgan City, LA 70380 to honor the memory of Mr. Parker Conrad.

Conrad Shipyard founder dies at 101

Fri, 07/07/2017 - 11:00am

Staff Report

John Parker Conrad Sr., who founded one of St. Mary Parish’s largest employers nearly seven decades ago, died Thursday at his Morgan City home. He was 101.

Conrad was the founder of Conrad Shipyard.

Visitation will be 5-9 p.m. Sunday and 8-9 a.m. Monday at Twin City Funeral Home, 412 4th St. in Morgan City. Conrad’s nephew, Bishop Louis F. Kihneman III of Biloxi, Mississippi, will conduct the 10 a.m. Monday funeral Mass at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Morgan City.

Conrad will be interred at the Morgan City Cemetery Mausoleum.

According to information submitted by the family for Conrad’s obituary, he was born Oct. 11, 1915. From age 12 to 17, Conrad studied to be a Christian Brother at the novitiate of De LaSalle in Lafayette.

As a young man, Conrad worked at a variety of jobs, including cane and rice farming, trapping, shrimping, and logging.

He saved enough for a refrigeration truck that allowed him to take shrimp to New York. That enterprise led to a shrimp packing business in Morgan City and Cameron.

In April 1948, after selling the packing plants and renting boats to oil companies, Conrad bought a small shipyard that built wooden shrimp trawlers on the Atchafalaya River.

The Conrad Shipyard he founded has now grown to encompass Morgan City, Amelia, Orange, Texas, Deepwater and Deepwater South facilities. The Wall Street Journal recently estimated the company’s payroll at 500.

Conrad builds push boats, tugs, vessels for liquefied natural gas transport, tank barges, deck barges, crew boats, lift boats, barges and other vessels.

In January, the shipyard christened a 55,000-barrel tank barge for Vane Brothers in Baltimore. In June 2016, Young Brothers of Hawaii ordered four new tugs for a combined $80 million. Delivery of the first is due early next year.

Conrad wife of 64 years, Shirley Kihneman Conrad, died in 2006. He is survived by a daughter, Katherine Conrad Court, and a son, John P. Conrad, who has been Conrad’s CEO since 2004.

Conrad's complete obituary appears in this site's News-Obituaries section.