Acadiana Profile April-May

Voyages: Outdoor Recreation

all over the Sportsman’s Paradise

Top Lawyers pg. 51

Trailblazers

Acadianians making an impact throughout the region Trampoline Gymnast Savannah Vincent Thompson Hydroponic Farmer Kohlie Frantzen

Poet Alex “PoeticSoul” Johnson

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april/may VOL u m e 3 8 n u m b e r 0 2

l agniappe......................................... 06

A Little Extra

food+drink sur le menu . . .................................... 30

note de l’editeur............................10

Editor’s Note

features

Crawfish Connection Where to go for crawfish dishes right now

lettres d’amour . . ............................ 12

Red Brick Road Following the path to higher learning and purpose, then coming home again nouvelles de villes.......................14

News Briefs

de l a cuisine.. .................................. 32

The Herbalist Fresh herbs transform seasonal dishes recettes de cocktails................. 34

Cantaloupe with a Kick Spring gets sweet and salty with cocktails at Milano’s Patio in Houma voyages............................................ 36

Wild at Heart Nature lovers have plenty to love at parks, lakes, trails and camps all over the Sportsman’s Paradise

culture les artistes..................................... 68

home+style l a maiso n.. ........................................ 20

Passion Project Iberia Parish architect brings the outside in to create a modern masterpiece p our l a maison. . ............................. 2 4

Command Central Blur the lines between ‘home’ and ‘office’ for a hardworking space in the middle of the action À l a mod e ......................................... 26

Haute Stuff Spring forward with light and airy fashion

Full Circle Lafayette illustrator Kody Chamberlain creates the 2019 Festival International de Louisiane poster and pin, leaving his own personal mark on his hometown cultural tradition les personnes.. ............................... 70

Sixty-third Verse, Same as the First Legendary Cajun musician T.K. Hulin of St. Martinville isn’t going to let a little thing like age slow him down en franç ais, s ’il vous pl aît.........7 2

Cœur de pirate Jean Lafitte : l’homme, le mythe, la légende

38

51

Trailblazers

Top Lawyers

Acadianians making an impact throughout the region

332 Lawyers in 42 Specialties + Toughest Cases

by FRITZ ESKER , C H ER É C OEN a n d ALI C E P H ILLIPS p h oto s by r o m e r 0 & r o m e r o

to u g h e s t c a s e s by fr i t z e s k e r p o r t r a i t s by r o m e r o & R o m e r o

What is your favorite outdoor activity? lagniappe

awards

A Little Extra

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EDI TORIAL E d i to r i n C h i e f

Learn French

M a n ag i n g E d i to r

le marais

A s s o c iate E d i to r Co py E d i to r

(n.) swamp example: De nombreaux oiseaux vivent dans le marais. translation: Many birds live in the swamp.

A rt D i r ecto r

“I love riding my cruiser bicycle around, because is so peaceful, and I burn calories while seeing things I wouldn’t normally see driving.”

Rebecca Taylor

Acadiana is an oasis of wildlife making it a popular destination for both birdwatchers and adventurists. The Atchafalaya Basin, the largest and last great river basin, covers 860,000 acres of swamps, lakes and water prairies in Acadiana. The swamp is a birdwatcher’s paradise with over 300 species of birds and home to the largest nesting concentration of bald eagles in the south-central United States. Kayak and canoe rentals allow visitors to paddle through the swamp amid Spanish moss and live oaks. There are several different routes fit for novices and experts alike. atchafalaya.org

Ashley McLellan

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2018

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“I enjoy going to Girad park to read or have a small picnic with my friends while my dog runs around.”

Gold Magazine Photographer

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DID YOU KNOW?

Atchafalaya Basin

Errol Laborde

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mar keting E ve n t Co o r d i nato r

“I love family bike rides through the Saint Streets to downtown Lafayette. It’s the perfect way to cruise the Azalea Trail (or whatever’s blooming) and good food or live music is always waiting at our destination.”

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1 1 0 V eterans B lvd . / S u ite 1 2 3 / M etairie , L A 7 0 0 0 5 / ( 5 0 4 ) 8 2 8 - 1 3 8 0 / ( 8 7 7 ) 2 2 1 - 3 5 1 2 1 2 8 D emanade / S u ite 1 0 4 / L afay ette , L A 7 0 5 0 3 / ( 3 3 7 ) 2 3 5 - 7 9 1 9 e x t. 2 3 0 Acadiana Profile (ISSN 0001-4397) is published bimonthly with a special issue in September by Renaissance Publishing LLC, 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005 (504) 828-1380 and 128 Demanade, Suite 104, Lafayette, LA 70503 (337) 235-7919 ext. 230. Subscription rate: One year $10; Foreign Subscriptions vary. Periodicals postage paid at Lafayette, LA, and additional mailing entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Acadiana Profile, 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005. Copyright 2019 Renaissance Publishing LLC. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the publisher.

The trademark Acadiana Profile is registered. Acadiana Profile is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos and artwork, even if accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. The opinions expressed in Acadiana Profile are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the magazine or owner.

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

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note de l’e di teu r

Inspir ation, I’ ve le arned, c an come from jus t about any person, pl ace or thing

and at just about any time. As a writer and artist, I turn to the greats in my fields, such as writers Kate Chopin and Ernest Hemingway or photographers Dorothea Lange, Walker Evans and William Christenberry (who also was a painter and sculptor). Spiritually, I look toward contemporary leaders, including Pope Francis and the Dalai Lama. My parents, grandparents, other family members, friends and teachers have of course inspired and influenced me in 1,000 different ways and probably more so than any of the aforementioned more wellknown people. As much as it behooves and moves us to have someone at the top of their industry or craft to look up to, those closest to us both personally and geographically will likely always have the greatest, most direct impact on our lives. Which is one of the many reasons I’m excited to introduce a new annual offering — Acadiana Profile’s Trailblazers.

Over the past several months, we’ve talked to everyone we know and explored the region in search of Acadianians who are making a big impact in their industries, communities and, perhaps, even the country or the world. Each one is making a difference in their respective areas and inspiring the people around them day in and day out with their passion, drive and talent. Reading their profiles not only left me feeling better about Acadiana, to be sure, but also, better about life in general. To say that we live in troubling and sometimes downright confusing times is an understatement, but knowing there are people out there like our inaugural class of Trailblazers gives me hope for the future and, thankfully, the present.

My hope is that with this installment — and each year when we find new people to celebrate — we’ll all be reminded to look directly around ourselves for those folks we can look up to, seek out for wisdom and inspiration, and to thank for their hard work and dedication. On that note, thank you to the 2019 Acadiana Profile Trailblazers. We loved learning your stories and are thrilled to share them with our readers.

Cheers!

M e l a n i e Wa r n e r S p e n c e r , M anaging E ditor

c o n ta ct mel a n i e / 5 0 4 - 8 3 0 - 1 3 8 0 . M e l a n i e @ A c a d i a n a P r o f i l e . c o m .

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

editor’s picks

Well-Read The fourth annual Books Along the Teche Literary Festival in New Iberia is April 5-7 and celebrates the impact of literature on the region with readings, jazz cocktail parties, a book fair and panel discussions.

Satisfy Cajun cuisine cravings with a seafood cooking demonstration and local food vendors. On Saturday, get tickets for the symposium with featured speaker Rebecca Wells, author of the celebrated Southern story, “Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood.” booksalongtheteche-literaryfestival.com

Seize the Day! Downtown Lafayette espresso and gelato bar, Carpe Diem recently expanded its offerings and got a new look. As reported in The Current, the shop — which was purchased by the owners of nearby Pamplona Tapas Bar — now has a liquor license and changed its name to one better suited to its more mature menu ­— Carpe Diem Café & Wine Bar. Mornings at the newly renovated Carpe Diem include pastries and fresh Cuvée Coffee from Austin, while a later crowd can enjoy desserts and a glass of red and white wine or champagne before or after dinner. The café is expanding its hours opening at 7 a.m. on weekdays and closing at 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. facebook.com/ CarpeDiemCafeWine/

C ompiled b y A lice P hillips

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lett res d’amo u r / P e n n ed by a d if f e r e n t aut ho r in ev e ry iss u e

Red Brick Road Following the path to higher learning and purpose, then coming home again

By M a r i e E l i z a b e t h O l i v e r illu s t r at i o n b y C h r i s t i n a B r ow n

In one of my e a rlie s t memorie s , I ’m

toddling around the concrete edges of the Girard Park duck pond, looking up at my father. He’s in his 20s, with a backpack slung over his shoulder.

The specific details are as murky in my conscious as the water itself — littered with floating bits of Evangeline Maid bread. But the feeling of contentment I experienced in that place, in that moment, has never left me.

Which is perhaps why when he led me around that campus again 15 years later, I knew deep down it was not the right time to indulge my teenage wanderlust. My decision to attend college in the same community where I grew up had nothing to do with a lack of ambition, but instead, the deep connection I felt when walking in the shadows of those live oaks and humble red bricks.

Like so many people in Acadiana, the University of Louisiana at Lafayette is not a place I was first introduced to on a college tour. It’s a familiar footpath, flooded with personal memories of childhood alligator spotting, cross country meets and science fairs. It’s the place my parents and so many of my aunts, uncles and cousins pursued degrees before me. From my first day of class, wandering across walkways honoring generations of graduates, I knew I was rooted in something bigger than myself.

My time as an undergraduate shaped me in ways that would never fit within the word count of one essay. Most significantly, however, I simultaneously discovered my life’s vocation and my life partner. I don’t know where I would be if I had not followed the mystical breadcrumbs leading me to that perfect place at that perfect time.

It’s a familiar trope, but the ink barely dried on my UL diploma before I packed up and drove north, chasing my big city dreams. As the dreams slowly materialized into realities, the distance never got easier. We soothed our homesick Cajun souls with our grandmothers’ gumbo recipes, FedExed king cakes and frozen boudin. I blared the Figs and Red Stick Ramblers albums on repeat, praying the warm, southern rhythms and lyrics about bayous and

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

sugarcane could somehow melt the seemingly never-ending ice and snow.

It took 13 years and 10 changes of address to end up right back where I started. Now as an adjunct instructor in the UL communication department, my office is only a few doors down from the theater where my husband and I shared a first date. Our daughters revel in any opportunity to scoot around Cypress Lake or scatter oats for the Girard Park ducks.

(Forgive me, Father, for all that bread.)

Upon my return, I have an even greater appreciation of this hallowed ground. Not only the nostalgia embedded in each stretch of sidewalk, but the university’s significance to the future of our local economy and the preservation of our precious South Louisiana culture.

Crossing the colorful sea of faces on St. Mary Boulevard between morning classes, I find myself getting the same adrenaline rush I’ve felt walking through crowded streets in Manhattan or Downtown D.C. Among the backpacks and earbuds is a tangible sense of purpose and potential. And there’s nothing like looking down at your own name inscribed on a weather-worn, vermilion brick to realize you are finally back home. n About the author: Marie Elizabeth Oliver is an independent journalist living in Lafayette. She previously worked as an editor at The Washington Post and Better Homes & Gardens. Her writing has been published by Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Parents, ELLEDecor and CNN.

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no uvelles de v i lles

n e w s by L i s a L e B l a n c- B e r r y c a l en da r by K e l ly M a s s i c ot

New Era for Nottoway Iberville Parish

calendar

New Orleans hotel magnate, Joseph Jaeger Jr., whose notable properties include the Omni Royal Orleans, Mardi Gras World and the Joy Theatre, has scooped up the South’s largest antebellum mansion, the 64-room Nottoway Plantation Resort in White Castle, for $3.1 million plus furnishings.

april Check out these events around the town.

❶ Boggy Bayou Festival

April 4-6. Ville Platte. The Boggy Bayou Festival has all of the crowdpleasing elements the people want in a town festival. The festivities include live music, Cajun and Creole cuisine, arts and crafts sold throughout and, of course, a carnival. facebook.com/ boggybayoupineprairie

Cypremort Point

State Parks Getting Spiffed Up

❷

Cypremort Point and nine other Louisiana state parks are getting upgraded in preparation for the summer season.

The Louisiana Office of State Parks is working to make beaches more appealing so locals can enjoy staycations within the state (crt.state. la.us/louisianastate-parks).

Scott Boudin Festival

April 5-7. Scott.

Each year, the city of Scott celebrates its Cajun heritage with a festival dedicated to Cajun cuisine and boudin.

In addition to the food, festivalgoers can enjoy authentic Zydeco music and a fireworks display on opening night. scottboudinfestival.com

❸ Downtown Lake Charles Crawfish Festival

April 12-14. Lake Charles. This annual crawfish festival brings over 10,000 pounds of crawfish to Lake Charles. Like every good festival, in addition to the crawfish, guests can participate in the Crawfish Scoot 3k or 5k race and enjoy live music and the Queen’s Pageant. downtowncrawfest.com

Book of the Year Houma

For Cigar Aficionados Two Terrebonne Parish sheriff’s deputies, Joe Creppel and Stephen Landry, have partnered to open the new D.S. Fine Cigars on Enterprise Drive in Houma. The high-end cigar lounge, which features a humidor, is the only one of its kind in Houma.

The partners say they got tired of traveling to New Orleans just to enjoy a cigar lounge. d.S. fine cigars /

facebook .com/dsfinecigars

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH) has selected “A Cajun Girl’s Sharecropping Years” as the 2019 Humanities Book of the Year. Author Viola Fontenot (a native of Acadian Parish) and the other LEH awardees are being honored at the 2019 Bright Lights Awards Dinner hosted at ULL on April 4.

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no uvelles de v i lles

n e w s b y L i s a L e B l a n c- B e r r y c a l en da r by K e l ly M a s s i c ot

Going Fast Lafayette Contemporary Christian singer and songwriter, twotime Grammy winner and Lafayette native Lauren Daigle (“You Say”) is extending her sold-out “Look Up Child” world tour with 19 additional stops, including a third date slated for Lafayette on July 7 with accompaniment by the Acadiana Symphony Orchestra (ticketmaster.com).

calendar

May Check out these events around the town.

❶ Louisiana Pirate Festival

May 2-5. Lake Charles.

Chosen as a Top 20 Event by the Southeast Tourism Society, this pirate-themed festival has something for everyone. Not only will pirate ships land along the shoreline, but also the mayor of Lake Charles will even be made to walk the plank. louisianapiratefestival.com

Iberia, St. Mary Parishes

Sugarcane on the Rise Sugarcane acreage in Acadiana is likely to increase in 2019 after the successful 2018 harvest, LSU AgCenter specialists have predicted. Acreage in Pointe Coupee Parish increased by 14.5 percent last year. Its cane production this year has the potential of displacing Iberia Parish as the leader.

❷ Breaux Bridge Crawfish Festival

May 3-5. Breaux Bridge. Mountains of crawfish and three stages dedicated to Cajun, Zydeco and swamp pop music fill this three-day festival. In addition, the weekend includes a crawfish race, dance competitions, a crawfish etoufée cook-off and a crawfish eating contest. bbcrawfest.com

Allons Danser!

❸ Southern Garden Festival

May 3-4. Lafayette.

The Southern Garden Festival is a two-day event in which proceeds go to help homeless families served by Family Promise of Acadiana.

Friday’s events include dinner and dancing, as well as a silent auction and artist demonstrations. Day two includes live music, boat tours and more. familypromiseacadiana.org

Lake Charles

A Balloon Fest Debut A new event is coming to the Lake Charles area this summer featuring balloon rides. The two-night Southwest Louisiana Balloon Festival (July 19-20) will include tethered hot air balloon rides, an international beer tasting, barbecue cookoff, music, dancing, a kids carnival, fireworks and balloon glows lighting up the night sky at Chennault International Airport . southwest louisiana balloon festival / SWLAballoonfest.com

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Lafayette The sizzling international line-up for Festival International de Louisiane (April 24-28) brings the legendary Ethiopian Girme Bèyènè returning to the spotlight after a 25-year hiatus in exile, joining the world-famous touring French group Akalé Wubé for some Ethiopian groove.

Hailing from Haiti is Moonlight Benjamin who introduces her new, explosive style known as voodoo trance that melds Caribbean rhythms with blues. (festivalinternational.org).

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I n s p i r at i o n , d ĂŠc o r at i o n e t a cc e s s o i r e s ch i c p o u r l a v i e

Th e e xt e r i o r o f t h i s mo d e r n h om e i n i b e r ia pa r i s h is made with C i n d e r b lo c k s a n d co r r u gat e d m eta l , b u t e xu d es wa rmt h a n d st y l e

home+style / l a m a iso n

Passion Project Iberia Parish designer brings the outside in to create a modern masterpiece

By M a r i e E l i z a b e t h O l i v e r ph oto s by h ay l e i s m i t h

Designer Joel Bre aux spent al mos t

a decade conceptualizing and building his one-of-a-kind residence, which doubles as a physical metaphor of his design philosophy.

“Most people think of architecture as protecting you from the world,” says Breaux. “I see it as trying to connect you to the world.”

Built eight feet off the ground next to a sugarcane field in Iberia Parish, the structure’s corrugated-metal facade could easily be mistaken for a boat shed.

That’s not an accident.

Breaux says he chose the metal for its raw beauty, but also because he noticed it as a ubiquitous material being used in structures throughout rural Acadiana.

“That corrugated metal was the starting point in my mind,” says Breaux. “They create a module and a system.”

The home’s interior plays off this ethos and juxtaposes ample natural light with concrete block walls. But the real treasure lies within Breaux’s keenly curated collections — everything from midcentury modern furniture he scored on Craigslist to rare Russel Wright ceramic dinnerware.

“The stuff I have is like a museum collection,” says Breaux. “The rooms are actually almost like galleries. You can change the vibe in the room by switching out things from storage.”

His walls pay homage to local artists, his mother (a painter for more than 35 years), photographer Leo Touchet, as well as designs by his business partner BJ Krivanek, with whom

Breaux’s furniture collection is the result of more than 20 years of vintage shopping, “long before that was cool.” He calls the current arrangement a perpetual work in progress — he says he is constantly buying and trading pieces out. He shakes his head as he recounts some of the bargains he’s scored, which he calls “criminal.” Among his treasures: a set of Florence Knoll chairs he bought for $5 each from Tulane University and a Neil Nehrbass sofa, given away for nothing.

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

(Left) TXXXXX

A floor-to-ceiling picture window in the home’s living space frames an adjacent sugarcane field. Breaux says when the sugarcane is at its full height, it’s at the level of his bamboo floor.

“There’s a continuity, it’s like you’re just on it,” he says. Although the home occupies a modest 1,200 square feet, Breaux’s design accomplishes a wide-open feel by thinking creatively: “The ceiling doesn’t meet the wall. You don’t have a rigid definition of what the space is, so it stops you from forming that picture in your mind of the size of the space.”

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

details Project Designer Joel Breaux

he produces text-based public art installations Breaux says design is his vocation and his home serves a testament to his beliefs. Most across the United States. Evidence of Breaux’s passion for music is peppered throughout importantly, it showcases his intentional use of the 1,200-square-foot space, most notably an raw materials and building methods. enviable stockpile of vinyl records. Breaux, a “Everything I make, I try to make so that it’s native of Loreauville, says it took moving to brutally honest in its construction,” says Breaux.

California for him to learn to play the accor- “And not just honest, but somehow poetic, and dion and fiddle. Despite despite his long run it becomes part of the language and it’s comas an accomplished Cajun musician however, municative.”

We’re all ears. n he insists it’s only a hobby.

Interiors & Construction Management Lisa Bourque Fabrication & Construction BRODesign Fabrication Assistants Karl Breaux, Ben Davis Construction Assistant Miguel Lasala Engineering Consultants Brian Patin, Ray Desormeaux

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home+style / p o u r l a m a iso n

Command Central Blur the lines between ‘home’ and ‘office’ for a hardworking space in the middle of the action how to

by M a r i e E l i z a b e t h O l i v e r ph oto by R o m e r o & R o m e r o

Create an integrated home workspace

There’s a reason most of your

work (and mail) gets tackled at the kitchen table. Despite the best intentions of tidying up, without an organization system in place, your home’s highest-trafficked area defaults as command central. Hello, piles of paper.

Lafayette designer Lisa Bourque recommends taking a step back and thinking about how you use your space, then designing around that function — rather than the other way around.

Bourque recently created a utilitypacked gem of a home office camouflaged within a client’s open kitchen and dining room. Her secret?

“Being tight about the function,” says Bourque. “Make sure everything has a home.”

By “home,” she means tucked out of view; not a cord in sight. Bourque says you don’t need a ton of extra room to create an aesthetically pleasing workspace. It’s more about narrowing down the minimum amount of tools you need to get the job done.

For example, her client only required a sliver of counter space to fit her laptop, but her big investment came in the form of custom file cabinets.

Bourque recommends thinking about your workspace in terms of two distinct zones: one for short-term tasks and one for long-term storage. Depending on your space, these zones might be in two totally different locations.

“Typically what people are missing is the storage,” says Bourque. “All of the extra papers must live somewhere else; in a drawer or even in a plastic bin.”

Bourque says the goal, especially in an open, multifunctional room, is to create a “homogenous line for your

❶

Determine your highest priority tasks and the tools you need to accomplish them.

❷

Work within the space you have to find hidden homes for each essential item.

❸

Create two zones: One accessible for shortterm tasks and one for long-term. tasks

❹ eye to focus on.” Meaning, you want your guests to notice that great piece of art on the wall, not your dust-gathering printer.

But it’s not just about impressing visitors. The key to creating a space you’ll want to return to again and again is integrating something that visually inspires you, says Bourque, whether that’s a nicely framed painting, a picture window, or a magnet board filled with your kids’ craft projects. n

Lisa Bourque Designs / lis abourquedesign.com. lis a@lis abourquedesign.com.

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

about the designer Lafayette designer Lisa Bourque of Lisa Bourque Designs brings a contemporary flair and sense of personalization to her residential and retail projects.

Bring in an inspirational focal point.

❺

Reassess often to make sure your workspace is working for you.

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home+style / a l a mo d e

Haute Stuff Spring forward with light and airy fashion

by A s h l e y H i n s o n photo by R o m e r o &

Romero

Rainbow Connection One of our favorite trends harkens back to the ‘30s and ‘40s: the matching playset. Think of it as a romper that isn’t as hard to take off! This colorful set from Maven Womenswear contains all the colors we reserve for spring and early summer in a lightweight fabric and easy, breezy cut. This set is perfect for a day trip, brunch or date at the park.

m av e n w o m e n s w e a r / 2 0 1 S ettlers T race B LV D . L afay ette . 3 3 7 - 7 0 4 - 2 6 6 8 . m av e n w o m e n s w e ar . c o m

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Good as Gold This pelican cuff from MIMOSA Handcrafted is a gorgeous way to show your Louisiana pride without the kitsch. The gold-plated brass features wings that fan out like sunrays.

It’s a statement piece that doesn’t scream, “Look at me!” But when someone does, it’s hard to look away from the details.

Wear one on each wrist to feel like Wonder Woman.

m i m o s a H a n d c r a f t e d / m i m o s aha n dcra f t e d . c o m

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Ça c’est bon

Tom ato soup with b a s i l R ec i p e o n pag e 33

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fo o d+dr i nk / s u r l a m e nu

Crawfish Connection Where to go for crawfish dishes right now

by J y l B e n s o n ph oto s by J o V i d r i n e

Th e p r a i r i e s o f Ac a d i a n a a r e

Louisiana's heaviest producers of both rice and crawfish. Together, the two crops constitute Louisiana's happiest agricultural marriage, bringing in an annual bonanza that exceeds $450 million in sales.

Louisiana may be the third-largest rice producing state in the United States, but globally, it's number one in crawfish production.

In early spring, when crawfish emerge from their underground winter habitats, they take refuge almost anywhere there is standing water. The earliest commercial fishery of the crustaceans developed in the Atchafalaya River Swamp in the 1940s. Nets were replaced with traps, and rice farmers began to take notice of a symbiosis, when their flooded rice fields provided a perfect place for crawfish's peak springtime spawning.

When the demand for crawfish exploded in the late 1970s La Bam Breme and early '80s farmers determined that by using the same Fried eggplant, land, equipment, pumps and grilled catfish, farm labor, they could rotate crab cake, fried shrimp, and commercial crawfish farming then topped with rice cultivation and double with andouille their profit per acre annually. If cream sauce. crawfish were not already naturally present in their flooded rice fields, only one batch of crawfish stock was needed to begin a never-ending annual harvest.

The results are astounding. Rice farmers have found that post-harvest rice fields provide the ideal forage for crawfish, which will also eat snails and insects —providing the farmers with both a natural insecticide and pesticide. The biomass left behind by the harvested crawfish serves as fertilizer when the new crops of rice are planted. n

Crawfish Town USA / 2815 Grand Point Highway. Henderson. 337-667-6148. crawfishtownus a .com Hawk's / 415 Hawks Road. Rayne. 337-788-3266. hawkscrawfish.com Wayne Jacob’s Smokehouse and Restaurant / 769 A W. 5th St. Laplace. 985-652-9990. wjsmokehouse.com Yellow Bowl Restaurant / 19466 Highway 182 W. Jeanerette. 337-276-5512

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menu

CRAWFISH Crawfish season starts in late February or early March and ends sometime around June. Crawfish size and availability is dependent on rain and temperature. More rain and warmer temperatures lead to larger crawfish size and quantity. Here are three places to get in on some crawfish action.

❶

❸

The Connoisseur’s Boiled Crawfish

Old Fashioned Crawfish Bisque

Hawk's is open only during the height of crawfish season from roughly early February until the middle of May when the most select crawfish are available. During this brief window in time the restaurant moves an average of 7,000 pounds of boiled crawfish a day and every batch is boiled and seasoned to order. There is a map on the restaurant's website but employees are accustomed to lost souls calling again and again as they try to find their way to the place in the middle of nowhere.

People will drive hundreds of miles to experience meat that is pearly white with golden yellow fat. Go there.

According to Janice "Boo" Macomber, a masterful private Cajun chef and author of “Tastes, Tails & Tales, with The High Priestess of the Bayou,” “the best crawfish bisque you ever want to eat — the old fashioned kind that's such a pain in the ass to make — comes from the Yellow Bowl on Highway 82 in Jeanerette."

Others passionate for the laborintensive bisque head to Wayne Jacob's Smokehouse Restaurant in Laplace for that real deal, nearly impossible to find crawfish bisque made with stuffed heads. It is offered on Thursday, Friday and Sunday at WJ's during Easter week.

❷ La Bam Breme at Crawfish Town USA in Henderson

This towering concoction of fried eggplant, grilled catfish, a crab cake, fried shrimp, and oysters presented all threaded together; during crawfish season the dish is served atop a pool of etouffee crowded with plump crawfish tails.

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fo o d+dr i nk / d e l a c u is in e

The Herbalist Fresh herbs transform seasonal dishes

by M a r c e l l e B i e n v e n u ph oto & st y li n g by E u g e n i a Uh l

This is the time of ye ar I pl an me al s

around what I can find in my garden or at local farmers markets.

Fresh herbs — sweet basil, mint, thyme, rosemary, oregano, chives, lemon balm — are flourishing. Creole tomatoes are abundant at the farmers markets and my tomatoes (green, red, orange and purple) as small as marbles are thriving on the vines. The warm weather makes it ideal to dine alfresco either on my big, screened-in porch overlooking Bayou Teche or on my patio made lush with ferns and semi-tropical plants. n

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

starter

TIP The shortbread can be made ahead and stored in an airtight container until ready to use.

Tomato Soup with Basil

❶ Heat 1 teaspoon olive oil in a large saucepan pot over medium-high heat.

Add 1 link sweet Italian sausage (removed from the casing and crumbled) and cook, stirring, until it is browned, about 10 minutes. Add 1 large leek (white and pale green parts only, well rinsed and thinly sliced), 1 teaspoon minced garlic, 1 medium rib celery (thinly sliced) and 1 cup chopped yellow onion and cook, stirring, until vegetables are lightly golden, about 10 minutes.

❷

TIP Serve the rosemary shortbread with macerated seasonal berries such as blackberries, blueberries and strawberries.

Add a pinch or two of sugar, 2 pounds fresh, ripe tomatoes (peeled, seeded and chopped) and 3 cups beef broth.

Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to medium-low. Cover and cook until mixture thickens, about 30 minutes.

Remove from heat and let cool for about 10 minutes.

➌ Puree soup in batches in a food processor or blender. Return to pot. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Heat soup over medium heat. Add 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 4 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil leavesl and hot sauce to taste (optional).

When soup has heated through, about 5 minutes, serve garnished with basil.

main course

dessert

Shrimp Scampi, My Way

ROSEMARY SHORTBREAD

This is easy to put together if you have all of your ingredients measured out and at hand. The French refer to this as “la mise en place.”

(Everything in its place.)

①

makes 4 - 6 servings

2 pounds medium shrimp, peeled and deveined ¾ pound linguini or angel hair pasta 1½ sticks butter 2 tablespoons minced garlic ¾ cup white wine ¼ cup heavy cream ¼ teaspoon salt ⅛ teaspoon cayenne ¼ cup chopped fresh parsley 2 tablespoons minced chives pinch or two freshly-ground black pepper

1

Cook linguini or angel hair pasta, drain (reserving ½ cup of pasta water) and set aside. Toss pasta with pasta water to prevent it from sticking together.

2

In a large skillet, heat butter over medium heat.

Add garlic, and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add wine and cook, stirring, over medium heat until it reduces by half, about 5 minutes.

3

Add cream and whisk to blend.

Add shrimp and cook until they turn pink, 3 to 5 minutes. Season with salt, cayenne and black pepper.

4

Rosemary is very aromatic and can be intense but I think you’ll find this rosemaryflavored shortbread a real treat.

To serve, drain pasta (if there is extra liquid with the pasta), then combine it with sauce, tossing to coat evenly.

Garnish with parsley and chives.

Beat 1 cup butter (2 sticks), softened at medium speed with an electric mixer until creamy. Gradually add ¾ cup confectioners’ sugar, (sifted) and ¼ cup cornstarch, beating well.

Stir in 1¾ cups all-purpose flour and 1 tablespoon minced fresh rosemary.

Dough will be stiff.

②

Divide dough in half. Shape one portion of dough into a 6 ½-inch circle on an ungreased baking sheet.Crimpedges with a fork. Gently cut the dough into 8 wedges, but do not separate.

③

Repeat procedure with remaining dough.

Cover and chill for 1 hour.

④

Bake at 300 F for 30minutes,oruntil barely browned.

Cool for 5 minutes on baking sheets, then gently remove wedges to a wire rack to cool completely.

Makes 16 wedges

Makes 6 servings

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fo o d+d rin k / r ec ettes d e co c kta ils

Check out Two for One Martini Tuesdays Bartenders whip up everything from dessert martinis to the Salted Cantaloupe and fanciful spritzers fizzing with champagne

“There’s no cantaloupe in the Salted Cantaloupe per se, but it comes out tasting just like a cantaloupe with a kick,” says bar manager David Angbrandt. He blends fruit juices with spirits for the smooth and sassy, honey-rich effect.

Cantaloupe with a Kick Spring gets sweet and salty with cocktails at Milano’s Patio in Houma

by L i s a L e B l a n c- B e r r y ph oto by R o m e r o & R o m e r o

While sipping Angbrandt’s Salted Cantaloupe, patrons nibble on rising star Chef Patrick Trahan’s evolving appetizers such as almond duckling strips with sesame ginger sauce and blackened tuna with fried spinach and cane soy vinaigrette.

Milano's Patio / 314 belanger st., Houma . 985-879-2426. milanohouma .com.

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Mil ano’s sleek

cocktail lounge, The Patio, draws the Houma night crowd for its martini menu and creative craft cocktails.

Patrons can order food at the bar while enjoying such favorites as a Blueberry Lemondrop, McDale’s Ski Lift, Elderflower Spritzer and the new Salted Cantaloupe, which was named for its flavor.

Ever since the Thibodaux native (and the former executive sous chef of MoPho in New Orleans) started recasting Milano’s classic Italian menu with a broader range of Asian flavors, people have been lining up for the new chef’s taste adventures and Angbrandt’s new cocktails on weekends, when live music flows from the bar. n

recipe

Salted Cantaloupe

Combine 2½ ounces Grey Goose Le Melon, ½ ounces Malibu Coconut Rum and a splash each of pineapple juice, orange juice and cranberry juice and shake well with ice, strain and pour into a martini glass.

Garnish with a salted rim and a cherry or orange slice.

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fo o d+dr i nk / voyag es

Wild at Heart Nature lovers have plenty to love at parks, lakes, trails and camps all over the Sportsman’s Paradise

By C h e r é C o e n

V i s i t o r s c o m e t o G r o s s e S ava n n e

Lodge for the excellent hunting and fishing but on this crisp spring morning we came to shoot birds. Our weapons of choice, however, were cameras.

Louisiana is known as Sportman’s Paradise — and with good reason. The state offers unique fishing and hunting opportunities, not to mention all varieties of boat sports, but also chances to commune with nature, whether viewing migratory and resident birds, hiking through various ecosystems or paddling diverse waterways.

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

One of the best ways to enjoy Louisiana’s diverse landscape is the circuitous route along the Creole Nature Trail All-American Road.

Visitors can access the trail from Interstate 10 in Sulphur, heading south to enjoy numerous trails and boardwalks with up-close viewing of alligators, dozens of bird species and other wildlife. The trail’s seven Gulf beaches along Louisiana Hwy. 82 offer fishing, swimming and shelling and the Cameron Jetties are home to some of the best fishing in Louisiana.

The protected Peveto Woods Sanctuary in the southwest corner remains a bucket list for birders.

A good place to lay your head after enjoying the Creole Nature Trail is Sam Houston Jones State Park north of Lake Charles. Louisiana has recently invested $3 million to upgrade the park.

For those who love the outdoors but prefer screened windows and a comfortable bed, Palmetto Island State Park south of Abbeville remains the new kid on the block, so cabins are only a few years old, offering full kitchens

and living rooms and easily sleeping eight.

Many of Lake Fausse Pointe State Park’s cabins have reopened since the 2016 flood and have been refurbished.

Toledo Bend Reservoir continues to be named the No. 1 Bass Lake in the Nation by Bassmaster Magazine and hosts several bass tournaments each year. In addition to the Cypress Bend Golf Resort, Spa & Conference Center, there are numerous private cabins and lodges and two Louisiana state parks.

“We have about 90 single home and camp rentals on Toledo Bend,” said Linda Curtis-Sparks, executive director of the Sabine Parish Tourist & Recreation Commission.

Bo Dowden & Associates Real Estate, for instance, rents more upscale accommodations, including units at Bailey Bluff, right on the lake.

Back to Grosse Savanne and that early morning visit with birds. Glossy and whitefaced ibis protected nests filled with chicks.

Other birds flew overhead and alligators swam through the marshes, an up-close and personal view at Louisiana wildlife led by conservation specialist Bobby Jorden.

Grosse Savanne offers these eco-friendly tours through restored wetlands on its 50,000 acres of private lands, along with year-round waterfowl hunting and fishing trips with overnight accommodations and meals.

Southwest Louisiana sits inside the Central and Mississippi Flyways so millions of birds fly through the area during the fall and winter months. Hunters and birders alike revel in the experience.

“Grosse Savanne is one of the top two or three lodging accommodations for hunting and fishing in the state,” said Kyle Edmiston, COO of the Southwest Louisiana Convention & Visitors Bureau. n

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trailblazers

Acadiana is a region steeped in history, culture and tradition and its people are known for their irrepressible and entrepreneurial spirit. It is with this idea in mind that we created the Acadiana Profile’s Trailblazers. Some of the honorees are people you’ve come to know for accomplishments in their industry or in the community.

Others are either newer to their professions or have struck out on a new path — in either case, they are making waves. Acadiana Profile is thrilled to honor these trailblazing Acadianians and highlight the work they are doing in this one-of-a-kind place.

by FRITZ ESKER, CHERÉ COEN and ALICE PHILLIPS photographs by ROMERO & ROMERO ac adianaprofile.com 39

he accomplishments and struggles of African-Americans have been left out of Acadiana’s history books, but Dr. Phebe Hayes is working hard to change that.

Hayes, who worked at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette as a professor of communicative disorders and as the dean of the College of General Studies, retired in 2013 to care for her ailing father. After her father and her twin sister died in close succession, Hayes felt the need to get back into the community.

She volunteered at the local public library.

During her time at the library, Hayes came across a book about the great physicians of Iberia Parish from 1859-1959. The book only contained the names of white men. Hayes remembered her older relatives talking about the wonderful African-American doctors in the area during their childhood. But the text in the library was written during the Jim Crow era, when there was a concerted effort to keep evidence of African-American progress from the historical record.

Hayes used her academic research skills to learn more about these doctors and educate her fellow Acadians about them. She also founded the Iberia African-American Historical Society.

The research unearthed over 20 black physicians with ties to Iberia Parish, including the remarkable Dr. Emma Wakefield-Paillet, the first black woman to graduate with a medical degree in Louisiana. Wakefield-Paillet was born in New Iberia, but practiced in New Orleans.

Hayes helped raise over $2,000 for a historical marker commemorating Wakefield. The marker went up on Nov. 3, 2018.

Another project Hayes is working on is garnering more recognition of the African-American military veterans in Acadiana.

Her father was a Korean war vet and she said African-American cemeteries in the area are full of military markers on graves. She hopes to give these men their due and create a database where people can research them.

Hayes’ efforts have been embraced by the community so far. She described the feedback she has received for her work as “incredibly supportive.”

T

“It is not a black history that’s being told; it is our shared history. If you only tell part of it, it’s not true history.”

P H E B E H AY E S 40

acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Hayes emphasized that her goal is not to remove anyone from the history books or remove any books from library shelves. She simply wants to include missing information from the current historical record, which will in turn provide Acadiana residents with a broader and more accurate picture of their history.

“It is not a black history that’s being told; it is our shared history,” Hayes said. “If you only tell part of it, it’s not true history.” —FE

Bonin’s unique Southern landscapes include haunting colors and dreamy bayous, images in which the viewer can sense movement and emotion. Bonin began her art career as protégé to the celebrated Acadiana artist Elemore Morgan Jr. during her time earning both a bachelor of fine arts and a bachelor of arts in French from the University of Southwestern Louisiana, now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette. She’ has also studied at L’Université Catholique de l’Ouest, Angers and Paris, and took advanced studies from Bennington rtists develop what some call a College, the Massachusetts School of Art “voice,” a signature style that and Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado. appears in everything they do. It Her work has been represented and sold requires trial and error or some- worldwide and local collectors include Roger times, as in the case of Melissa Ogden, Emeril Lagasse, Blake Lively, Ryan Bonin of New Iberia, a time to let go.

Reynolds and Christian Jules LeBlanc.

“I started to choose the actual physical moveLast year, Bonin participated in “Une Place ment of my body when I was painting,” Bonin à la Table — A Place at the Table” exhibit celexplained. “I simply chose joy and whatever ebrating the 50th anniversary of the Council brought me joy.” for the Development of French in Louisiana.

It makes sense for a South Louisiana woman Bonin’s most recent art series includes of French heritage who loves to dance.

“L’Ombre d’oreé: Nature as Metaphor for the

A

Deportation of the Acadians” and “After that I said, ‘You know (lef t to what, I’m doing everything on “The Francophone Feminine Voice right ) Dr. of Louisiana,” which includes a my bucket list,’” Bonin said.

Phebe Hayes, portrait of the Baroness de PonShe’s delving deeper into her M elissa Bonin poetry, she explained, writing talba of New Orleans. and Greg in both French and English. In Bonin is also a recognized Brown May, she’s heading to Italy for a French poet, having studied French in both her native Louisiana and residency. abroad. Her French poetry will Just last week, with her feet appear in upcoming publications healing well, she danced. —CC of “Feux Follets” with ULL and “Oh Malheureuse!” a collection of French writing for Louisiana women by Louisiana women. op’s Midnight Heat is a family-run hot Her list of accomplishments includes sauce business influenced by Greg lecturing art and poetry at the Cabildo LouiBrown’s love of gardening. Brown siana State Museum, representing the state of grew up in Richie close to family and Louisiana at events in California, serving as friends who inspired his hobby. mansion artist for Louisiana Gov. Kathleen “My grandfather had an orchard and a garden Babineaux Blanco and being named to Women and my dad would allow me to do gardening Who Mean Business in 2015. with them,” Brown said. “One of my neighbors, Bonin operated her own gallery on Maga- that I lived around as an adult, always had a zine Street in New Orleans but had to change big garden. So, I would visit with him and talk course when she broke her feet three years ago. to him about gardening. That’s how I learned However, that hasn’t detoured her from her art. about most of what I do in my garden.”

P

Brown grows the peppers for his hot sauce in his garden in Richie. Each $5 bottle contains one type of pepper out of the six he grows.

Habaneros, banana peppers and jalapeños are just half of the types of peppers used by Brown.

“The Midnight Heat seems to be the most popular flavor,” he said. “It’s a jalapeño pepper.

Midnight Fire is a habanero pepper. Midnight Blaze is a scotch bonnet. Ghost is ghost pepper and then I also have hot banana pepper.”

It takes several months for the peppers to reach the perfect ripeness. Brown typically begins planting the peppers in March and then waits until just after June to pick the plants.

“I don’t pick any of my peppers unless they are red or, for the habanero’s case, they turn orange,” Brown said. “From there, I typically vacuum pack them and then cook them for about three hours for a batch of hot sauce.”

While the family enjoys the hot sauce in their own homes, they also help with sales of the popular sauce.

“I have a daughter, Anya, who was previously living in Wimberley, Texas,” Brown said. “She

ac adianaprofile.com 41

“The threats a lot of farmers face are based on variables they cannot control, like the weather.

We mitigate the risk of conventional farming.”

K O H L I E FR A NT Z E N

was involved in telling people and selling the hot sauce in the Texas area. My other daughter, Megan, travels and sings with [the band] T’Monde. I told them to take some while they traveled to different events to sell the hot sauce.

That has actually been a great marketing tool to get the hot sauce out in different areas.”

Pop’s Midnight Heat has captured the hearts and taste buds of Acadianians and has even started selling across the country.

Brown’s time at cook-offs, farmers markets and festivals has led to it being sold in Minnesota, Maryland and California.

Brown busies himself with other jobs as the senior environmentalist at Boardwalk Pipeline and enjoys hunting when he is not gardening or cooking up a batch of hot sauce. —AP

M

ost lawyers don’t transition from the legal world into the agricultural world, but that is exactly what Kohlie Frantzen, founder and managing member of Helical Outposts, did.

Frantzen’s journey to becoming “an accidental farmer” began when a friend invited him to California to learn about a program designed to train combat vets to become farmers. The introduction into sustainable farming was an ah-ha moment for Frantzen.

Community farming can also provide healthy produce to food deserts, which are all too common in Louisiana. Food deserts are neighborhoods without easy access to food, especially fresh produce. Often, people in these neighborhoods eat processed foods of the kinds one can find in dollar stores or convenience stores. Frantzen said one of Helical’s earliest clients was St. Joseph’s Diner in Lafayette, which serves people affected by poverty and homelessness.

Hydroponic farming, the kind practiced by Frantzen points out that farmers in the Helical Outposts, has some advanUnited States are aging quickly tages over traditional farming. and suffer from a high suicide Even the most skilled farmers rate. If this country is going to (le ft ) will suffer serious setbacks when grow its own food, then more KO H L IE events like the 2016 floods or the people need to follow Helical’s FRANTZ E N 2018 freeze occur. But hydroponic lead. Frantzen hopes the combi(R IG H T ) farming is done in a controlled nation of farming plus technology, C L AR E COO K environment, protected from the minus the hazards typically assoelements and insects (there is no ciated with farming will appeal to soil involved). The plants receive young people. necessary nutrients 24 hours a day, “If we’re going to get the next seven days a week. As a result, they grow faster generation into growing food, we’re going to than crops planted the traditional way. have to make it at least as sexy as Snapchat,” Helical’s hydroponic farm uses 80 percent Frantzen said. —FE less water, 90 percent less land, and produces the equivalent of as much as 3 acres of organic farm soil in as little as 5,000 square feet. It also afayette native Clare Cook is has satellite internet access and a water filtration helping Acadiana residents get in system. touch with their inner artist at “The threats a lot of farmers face are based Basin Arts, a collaborative arts on variables they cannot control, like the space in Downtown Lafayette. weather,” Frantzen said. “We mitigate the risk Cook journeyed to New York City to pursue of conventional farming.” an MFA in dance from NYU. After graduating, Helical’s goal is to bring community she had success as a dancer and choreographer. farming back in a sustainable way. Frantzen But eventually, Cook and her husband, also a said that hydroponic farming requires work, Lafayette native, wanted to come home to be but that he is proof that people from all walks closer to family. When she returned to Lafayette, of life can learn how to do it. And there is a she wanted to find a place where she could demand for the food. Local restaurants crave develop her own art and nurture her creativity. healthy fresh produce.

She figured that if she was looking for a place

L

like that, then others in the area must be as well. So in August 2016, she opened Basin Arts.

“It felt like a good opportunity to share things I’ve learned with the community,” Cook said.

It’s hard to describe everything Basin Arts does in a paragraph. There are five artists-in-residence who have studio space in the building. There is an arts classroom on site.

There are also drop-in dance classes for skill levels ranging from beginner to professional, similar to how gyms have drop-in fitness classes or yoga studios have drop-in yoga classes. In addition, Basin Arts has its own professional dance company. The company will put on a performance in 2019 called “Sports Suites,” a dance show inspired by, well — sports.

Cook started the BARE Walls program to help local painters. Painters, like almost all artists, want to be paid for their work but often find themselves receiving offers to display their work simply for “exposure.” Businesses pay a subscription fee to the service, and they can choose art every three months from local artists to display in their businesses. The artists take home 50 percent of the proceeds. It is not as much as a sale to a private collector, but it still puts money in artists’ pockets while giving them exposure.

BARE Walls is also helpful to businesses.

Some small businesses may not have the money to purchase artwork from galleries, but still want to beautify their spaces. The program gives them an affordable option that also showcases the work of local artists.

“It felt like a good opportunity to share things I’ve learned with the community” C L A R E C OO K

ac adianaprofile.com 43

The work remains challenging and exciting for Cook. She loves the variety, the creativity and the collaboration with other artists.

“Every day, every week, every month is different,” Cook said. “The heart of Basin Arts is that it’s creating a very open dialogue about creativity and the value of the arts. It helps people tap into their own creativity.” —FE

E

arlene Broussard Echeverria hails from Marais Castille, a region located between Kaplan and Gueydan. Naturally, her first words were not English.

“I spoke French as a first language and learned to speak English when I went to Kaplan High School in 1955,” Echeverria explained. “I have continued to speak the French I learned in Vermilion Parish. It’s beautiful French and very precious to me.”

Which is why Echeverria dedicated her life to preserve, honor and inspire respect for the authentic Cajun variants of French.

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Echeverria lived for a time in New Orleans but returned to Acadiana and it was her reintroduction to home that inspired her to share Cajun French with the community for residents to feel proud, see their language as value and to highlight the uniqueness of the region.

In the 1990s, she was a French announcer on KRVS and was artistic director of Le Théâtre Cadien in which she wrote several plays in Cajun French.

“With Théâtre Cadien, people would see or hear French on the stage,” Echeverria explained. “It would inspire them to speak French and be proud of being Cajun.”

Echeverria has also worked as a translator for the children’s book “Cajun Folktales” by Celia Soper, published poetry and taught French in Vermilion Parish, the Academy of the Sacred Heart and LSU. In 1996, she started the literary project ABC 2,000 to teach 2,000 Cajuns “to read what they know how to say” by the year 2000. And for several years Echeverria headed the Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL).

“You can’t speak of it in isolation. It’s a huge tapestry.

You need to see and be proud of it through stage, radio, music and by reading books.”

E A RL E N E B RO U S S A R D E C H E V E RR I A

“You can’t speak of it in isolation,” Echeverria said of one effort to advance Cajun French in America. “It’s a huge tapestry. You need to see and be proud of it through stage, radio, music and by reading books.”

For her work, Echeverria received numerous honors, including the Ordre des Francophones d’Amérique from the Conseil de la vie française en Amérique of Canada, the Ordre des Palmes Académiques from France and a Rockefeller Foundation Fellowship.

Today, Echeverria is leading a literary French table in Lafayette to teach those who speak Cajun French a chance to read the language.

“The average Cajun doesn’t have instruction in French,” she said. “It’s another extension of what I’m doing, helping people to learn to write in French. If you know how to read, you can read a story to your grandchildren, to participate more.”

Echeverria ties everything she does to her roots, defending the Cajun she learned and spoke growing up.

“I’m not going to be embarrassed about the French I learned from my mother and father,” she stated emphatically. —CC

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he Blue Monday concert series has brought people of all ages together with live music and purpose for two years. Jonathan Williams, Acadiana native and founder of the event, attributes his inspiration to his love of the area and people.

Growing up, music became a large part of Williams’s life.

“Music always inspired me,” Williams said.

“My mom passed away a couple of years ago.

When we cleaned the house on Sundays, she taught me to dance.”

“When I was made aware for the need of local musicians and artists to have life care services,” Williams said. “I felt like we owed it to them to help them. These are the ones that created our entire Acadiana culture.”

The event is held every second Monday of the month at the Rock’n’Bowl in Lafayette. The

crowd of typically 150 people enjoys tunes from local musicians and can even taste some of Williams’ cooking with the “Blue Plate Special.”

“Not only do they get an amazing show by some of the best musicians we have in this area but people come with a purpose and a very positive attitude. It’s such a diverse group of people. It feels like you’re at your grandma’s house,” Williams said.

Williams wanted to create a space for older people to feel comfortable to come to as well.

He has always connected with the older community and opened Quality of Life Services in 2014 with his wife, Kathryn. Quality of Life Services provides day-to-day care of the elderly with services like basic computer assistance, simple meal preparation, sitter services and in-home safety checks.

Blue Monday is a way for the public to help provide these services as well as interact with the elderly community.

“I believe everyone that comes to Blue Monday knows they are there for a purpose.

So, when they come, they know that their presence is part of something,” Williams said.

Blue Monday has become a large part of local artists’ and Williams’ lives and continues to flourish. Musicians gather together each month to connect and grow while supporting the Blue Monday mission. —AP

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hythm and blues singer Gregg Martinez has been singing since he can remember. A winning high school talent show performance drove him into fame with his peers, and he has not stopped since.

“I grew up on a farm and my mother loved to tell stories that I sang to the cows,” Martinez said. “But, my first solo in public was at church.

At midnight mass, I sang ‘Silent Night’ when I was eight years old. So, I never stopped singing.

I started singing for a living when I got out of high school.”

With influences of Sam Cooke, Marvin Gaye and local Louisiana legends T.K. Hulin and GG Shinn, Martinez’s voice continued to grow since his first performance. He attended his first two years of high school in seminary school in Cincinnati before returning home to Cajun country.

“Junior year I was back in Lafayette,” he said.

“Nobody knew I sang. I didn’t know anybody at the school when I went there. In the spring, we were having an event and some moms knew I sang at weddings.

They asked me to sing in front of the (le ft to entire student body. I was terrified. ri g h t ) But, that day changed my life. I was E ARLE N E popular the next day and about a BRO U S S AR D week later I had a prom date and I E cheve rria , said, ‘You know what? I think I’m J ONAT H AN going to do this.’”

W ILL IAMS Martinez first professionally sang AN D GRE GG at local Lafayette restaurant Chez MART IN E Z Pastor, now the Blue Dog Café, when

ac adianaprofile.com 45

he was 18 years old. With little to no experience, Martinez (lef t ) played there for two years SAVANN AH before starting his own band VI NSANT and performing and living all THOM PSON over the country. He spent (RI GHT) ALEX the ‘80s in New Jersey before “POETI C SOUL” returning home again.

JOHNSON His style has been described as swamp pop, bayou blues and blue-eyed soul and has remained the same throughout his career.

“I’ve changed direction many times,” he said.

“It probably hurt my career listening to what other people said I should be doing. I was always singing blue-eyed soul and R&B. But, in the ‘80s, we did top 40 dance music. To make a living, that’s what everyone was doing.”

In February 2019, Martinez was inducted into the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. He credits his honor to his body of music as a whole rather than his lack of national hit records. His band, The Delta Kings, is on tour this spring. Recently, Martinez began playing an acoustic duo with his son performing in New Orleans and the surrounding area.

“It’s been almost 13 years since I’ve been back home and I’m still so happy to be here,” Martinez said. “I really love where I’m from.” —AP

I

n 2012, Lafayette trampoline gymnast Savannah Vinsant Thompson made one of her most cherished dreams come true when she represented the United States in the Summer Olympics in London. In 2015, she made one of her oldest dreams come true when she opened her own trampoline gym, Hangtime TNT Gymnastics, in Scott.

Even though Thompson wanted to own a gym since she was 7 years old, she still was a little hesitant to open Hangtime. She credits her husband, Christopher, for the extra encouragement and support she needed to take the leap and open the gym. It opened in 2015, but moved into its current location in 2016. It serves children ranging from 18 months old to 18 years old.

While Thompson was running the gym, she made a foray back into the world of trampoline gymnastics as a competitor. She initially retired in 2013, but she came back and finished in first place at nationals in 2018. She was offered a spot on Team USA, which would be the first step towards qualifying for the 2020 Summer Olympics. However, Thompson declined. She wanted to focus on her family and her business, and she felt winning the nationals was a nice way to end her career as a trampoline gymnast.

Part of Thompson’s teaching philosophy is to communicate with the children on their level. While discipline and structure is important, it is also important for the children to be able to express themselves. It’s critical to make things fun for children who are shy and tentative and for children who are more confident and assertive.

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“We try to channel our inner child,” Thompson said. “We ask ourselves ‘If you were 5, 6, or 7, what would be fun for you?”

The fun aspect is important, but so are basic skills and safety. It is not easy to learn how to control one’s body when flying through the air above a 17-foot by 11-foot rectangular trampoline. Students have to focus and listen to instruction. While it is challenging to work with groups of children, it is intensely rewarding work for Thompson. Seeing the students grow and learn while having a good time is a lot of fun for everyone. “[The children] are so full of life and joy.

It’s such an honor to be able to make a mark on their lives,” Thompson said. “They teach us so much more than we teach them.” —FE

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lex “PoeticSoul” Johnson believes that children should be taught two things: to breathe and to cope with circumstances, whatever they may be. Growing up in Lafayette and needing help during adolescence, she could have used both lessons.

“I feel myself rising every day, slowly but surely, and sometimes not so slowly. I feel motivated.

I feel like I have been making a difference.”

A L E X “ P O E T I C S O U L” J O H N S ON

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“The best stories are the ones where I’m answering a question for myself.”

CHRISTIAAN MADER

“I would have loved to have had someone there to love me unconditionally,” she said.

Johnson dedicates her life to helping others, specifically young people navigating the rough waters into adulthood. She has served as host and organizer in the annual literary Festival of Words,” was a featured panelist on “Language of the Unheard: Rural Children of Color” during the 2016 Split this Rock Poetry festival in Washington, D.C. and leads Lyrically Inclined spoken word performances every third Tuesday in Lafayette.

Johnson’s poetry has been featured in The Southern View Magazine and she has published an album of her spoken word performances titled “Scattered Thoughts.” She has performed at the Acadiana Center for the Arts and Cite des Arts in Lafayette, at Nuyorican Poets Café in New York, 100,000 Poets for Change and You Got Served in Chicago. She has been featured in the Blood Jet Poetry Series in New Orleans and as a featured poet for the Unlikely Saints tour in 2016.

Recently, Johnson empowered youth at the Lafayette Parish Juvenile Detention Home to create a poem titled “Eyes of the Sun,” which will later be made into a mural at two Lafayette locations, funded by the 24 Hour Citizen Project. Because the incarcerated youth cannot be seen in public, Johnson is working with the Lafayette community to design and paint the murals which will carry their words.

“This is our payment back to [the youth],” she said.

Johnson has also worked with youth in rural areas to expose them to the literary arts, in organizations such as Festival of Words Cultural Arts Collective, Project S.O.U.N.D. and The Thensted Center of Grand Coteau.

For her work, she has received the ABC Fund 2018 ICON Rising Star Award.

“I feel myself rising every day, slowly but surely, and sometimes not so slowly,” she said with a smile. “I feel motivated. I feel like I have been making a difference.”

When she meets some of the youth she mentored in prison, she realizes she taught them the two things she believes most adolescents need growing up.

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Independent shut down. But Mader asked if he could keep The Current C H R IST IAAN brand and The Independent granted MADE R him permission to do so. Mader (R IG H T ) KAT IE started The Current in its current H E BE RT (no pun intended) incarnation in April 2018. hristiaan Mader is The website’s stated mission looking to fill a news is “to understand the people and void in the Lafayette area with The forces that move Lafayette.” Mader felt that Current news website.

Lafayette residents were being left out of the Mader, a Lafayette native, has a degree in information loop on many issues that were journalism from Emory University. Writing affecting the community. He is particularly always came naturally to him, but his first proud of reporting that revealed the city of dream was to be a rock star. After graduating Lafayette was trying to privatize management in 2006, he even toured as a musician for a of the city’s public utility system.

“People aren’t getting the information they while. But he began freelance copywriting to make extra money and then entered the world need and the analysis they want,” Mader said. of journalism.

While studies show that many people in The Current was originally a culture mag- the social media era consume national news azine printed by The Independent in 2017. based on how much it confirms their preexHowever, three months after its start, The isting beliefs, it is easier to attract people of “I often see juveniles and their idea of life is no longer one of stress and chaos,” she said. “I’ve helped them cope. And cope is a strong, powerful tool.” —CC

C

(le ft )

all political ideologies on local news stories because these issues affect them in more tangible ways. A general philosophical debate about taxation is different than an article about a possible tax increase to improve roads in the area. The 35-year-old Mader acknowledges that it’s impossible for humans to entirely avoid subjectivity, but that news outlets can still strive for fairness in coverage.

Journalism is not an easy career to pursue in the current media landscape. As of the writing of this profile in March the business model for The Current was a combination of underwriting, memberships and advertising, similar to a nonprofit. Mader said however that soon, he was planning to announce that The Current is filing for full nonprofit status.

“We feel like it has legs because of the response we’ve gotten [from the community],” Mader said.

Providing Lafayette with quality local news coverage is a labor of love for Mader. He enjoys

talking to and meeting new people. Lastly, the work allows Mader to satisfy his natural curiosity.

“The best stories are the ones where I’m answering a question for myself,” Mader said.—FE

U

niversity Hospital and Clinics is the primary hospital for many Lafayette residents, especially those using Medicaid and those who are underinsured. But in 2018, the hospital’s future was very much in doubt due to a state budget crisis.

However, Katie Hebert, CEO of University Hospital and Clinics, started a grassroots effort to save University, and it succeeded.

In 2018, when Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards was trying to balance the budget, there was serious discussion about cutting off funding to University. The results would have been catastrophic for many people. About 800

employees would have been out of work. 55,000 patients would have needed a new hospital.

Of those 55,000 patients, more than half use Medicaid. University’s willingness to treat Medicaid patients is an important distinction. Many doctors will not accept Medicaid because the reimbursement is so low. If University closed, there would have been no care for Medicaid patients in the area.

“The care that we provide…the work that we do here is so important because of the number of patients we see,” Hebert said.

UHC’s closure would not have simply affected its patients. Aside from its importance as a healthcare provider, it is also a teaching hospital that helps train doctors and nurses.

There is a shortage of healthcare providers in the country, and UHC helps to rectify that. Hebert, a St. Martinville native who has worked in healthcare administration since 1994, is particularly proud of the way UHC educates future physicians, some of whom may work at the hospital one day.

“When I need [doctors], I want to be sure we have the best,” Hebert said.

If the state closed UHC, it would have also flooded the remaining hospitals with over 55,000 new patients. The state’s already overworked healthcare system would have received even more strain.

Hebert started the Save UHC campaign.

The initiative aimed to increase public awareness of all the good the hospital did. They set up tables outside of all of the hospital entrances, handed out flyers, and spoke to patients about what the state was considering.

They encouraged people to send emails and letters to state legislators. There was also a social media campaign with the #SaveUHC hashtag. More than 1,000 people ended up participating.

The deluge of support worked. Governor Edwards eventually came to UHC and spoke of its value to the Lafayette area and the state itself. The hospital would be saved.

“I’m just real passionate about caring for our patients and providing resources for them,” Hebert said. —FE

“When I need [doctors], I want to be sure we have the best.”

K A T I E H E B E RT

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Top Lawyers 332 Lawyers in 42 Specialties + Toughest Cases toughest cases by fritz esker portraits by romero & romero

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Administrative/ Regulatory Law Jeffrey David Lieberman Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2349 Leslie J. Schiff Schiff, Scheckman & White LLP 117 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-942-9771

Admiralty & Maritime Law Norman E. Anseman III Kraft Lege Anseman LLC 600 Jefferson St. Suite 410 Lafayette 337-706-1819 Glenn Armentor The Glenn Armentor Law Corporation 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-233-1471 Richard C. Broussard Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323 Jeffrey K. Coreil NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 Blake R. David Sr. Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323

Kenneth W. DeJean Law Offices of Kenneth W. DeJean 417 W University Ave. Lafayette 337-235-5294 Richard J. Hymel Mahtook & LaFleur 600 Jefferson St. Floor 10 Lafayette 337-266-2189 Robert M. Kallam Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Cliffe E. Laborde III Mahtook & LaFleur 600 Jefferson St. Floor 10 Lafayette 337-266-2189 Jerome H. Moroux Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323 Francis X. Neuner Jr. NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 Edwin G. Preis Jr. Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 John L. Robert III Larif Insurance Agency LLC 810 Crescent Ave Lockport 337-534-3459

METHODOLOGY Each year, Acadiana Profile publishes its Top Lawyers list, along with the stories of compelling cases fought by three of the year’s qualifying lawyers. In determining the Top Lawyers of Acadiana we use Professional Research Services, a Detroit-based survey company. The voting for the PRS survey to determine the 2017 top attorneys for Acadiana Profile magazine was open to all licensed attorneys in the Acadiana, Louisiana market area.

Each attorney was asked which attorney, other than himself or herself, he or she would recommend in the Acadiana area. Each attorney was allowed to recommend up to three colleagues in each given legal specialty. Once the online nominations were complete, each nominee was carefully evaluated on the basis of the survey results, the legitimacy of their license and their current standing with the State Bar Association of Louisiana. Attorneys who received the highest number of votes in each category are reflected in the list by legal specialty.

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My toughest case

Derriel McCorvey A star in the courtroom and on the gridiron for LSU, Lafayette attorney Derriel McCorvey represents clients from around the country in personal injury, mass tort and other cases.

T

he 48-year-old McCorvey’s most memorable case came after the tragic 2011 death of kindergartener La’Derion Miller in Milton. Miller was being picked up by his school bus and the driver, who was running late and in a hurry, closed the door on Miller’s arm. Miller was dragged for a while before falling and being crushed by the wheels of the bus. The boy would die of his injuries.

Miller’s parents were not married, but filed separate lawsuits. At the time, the law was unclear on whether or not a biological father could file suit in such a case. La’Derion’s father, Marcus, was an active dad who paid child support. Marcus came to McCorvey for help in arguing for his rights as a father. The case went all the way to the Louisiana Supreme Court, who ruled in Miller’s favor and granted him financial compensation.

The case was memorable for McCorvey in part because he had a child close to La’Derion’s age. He was moved by Marcus Miller’s plight as a father and it was rewarding for McCorvey to help Miller find some vindication. “[Marcus Miller] not only lost his son, but he had to prove to the world that he was the father,” McCorvey said.

McCorvey also participated in the landmark class action suit by former professional football players against the NFL for the league’s negligence in addressing long-term health issues related to concussions. McCorvey and a team of lawyers negotiated a landmark settlement that will remain uncapped for the next 60 years.

That issue was close to McCorvey’s heart because he had a distinguished football career for LSU as a strong safety from 1988-93, receiving Academic All-America SEC honors from 1991-93. He signed a free agent contract with the Indianapolis Colts upon graduation. When he did not make the final cut, he enrolled in law school at the Southern University Law Center the following week. He graduated from Southern in 1998.

Regardless of the type of case McCorvey is working, he believes the rewarding part of his career always comes back to the same point: helping others. He says the clients he has met and worked with over the years have become a part of his family. “[The law] is a profession where you can truly help people in so many different ways,” McCorvey said. “My biggest goal is to get my client back to 100 percent.”

When he is not practicing law, McCorvey enjoys hunting and fishing and spending time with his wife Raquel and their blended family.

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My toughest case

Cynthia Sonnier Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP 100 E. Vermilion St. Suite 300 Lafayette 337-326-5778

Elena Pecoraro

Randall K. Theunissen Allen & Gooch 2000 Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 400 Lafayette 337-291-1000

As an immigrant from Santiago, Chile, Lafayette attorney Elena Pecoraro brings a unique perspective to the naturalization process she uses to help her clients in immigration cases.

A

fter becoming an American citizen as a teenager, Pecoraro studied chemical engineering at LSU. But after graduating, she put aside her initial plans of going to med school to try law school instead. She enjoyed articulating her thoughts and opinions on issues.

Most of Pecoraro’s immigration clients are people who are in the United States legally and who simply want to modify or extend their visas. Occasionally, she will get a call from someone who is in the country illegally while working for American citizens, and Pecoraro guides them to resolve their problems according to the law.

“We’re trying help people be here legally, and do the right thing,” Pecoraro said.

One of Pecoraro’s most memorable clients was a woman who was seeking asylum in the U.S. In her home country, the woman was subjected to discrimination and persecution for being a woman. Pecoraro admired her client’s bravery in sharing the horrors she endured and taking such a risk in coming to the U.S. It was such a scary situation that Pecoraro cannot even reveal where her client was from because of the fear of reprisals. The client is a well-known figure in her native land, so the need for secrecy and discretion is paramount. Pecoraro successfully argued the woman’s case and she has been in America for over five years.

Pecoraro said the safety the U.S. offers people is something many of its native citizens take for granted. When Pecoraro was born in Chile, it was a dictatorship under Augusto Pinochet. Many asylum seekers are fleeing similarly difficult situations in their countries.

“People go through so much and are desperate to be in a place with certain protections and rights,” Pecoraro said.

While Pecoraro does a lot of work in immigration law, it is not the only type of law she practices. Perhaps, unsurprisingly for a chemical engineering major, Pecoraro is drawn to environmental defense and toxic tort litigation. She has worked at defending railroad companies after train derailments. She said many Americans have the misconception that corporations are indifferent to the environment and the effects of environmental issues on citizens.

“I have been blessed to work with railroad companies who truly do care about the environment,” Pecoraro said.

When Pecoraro is not practicing the law, she enjoys spending time with her husband, daughter and Australian Labradoodle. She is an avid world traveler who enjoys experiencing different cultures, recently visiting Thailand and Singapore.

Douglas W. Truxillo Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Jonathan Lawrence Woods Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Bob F. Wright Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878

Alternate Dispute Resolution David S. Cook David S. Cook, APLC 313 Beverly Dr. Lafayette 337-234-4155 Pat Juneau Juneau David, APLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 202 Lafayette 337-269-0052 Thomas R. Juneau Sr. Juneau David, APLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 202 Lafayette 337-269-0052 Andrew D. McGlathery III Stockwell, Sievert, Viccellio, Clements & Shaddock, LLP One Lakeside Plz. Floor 4 Lake Charles 337-436-9491 Bernard H. McLaughlin Jr. McLaughlin McGlathery Mediation 713 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-310-1609 Gregory E. Voorhies Attorney at Law 224 Saint Landry Suite 3A Lafayette 337-237-9708

Appellate Practice James H. Gibson Gibson Law Partners, LLC 2000 Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 400 Lafayette 337-761-6250

Lawrence P. Simon Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323 Melissa L. Theriot NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000

Banking and Finance Law Julie Schmidt Chauvin Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2307 Billy J. Domingue Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2342 Steven G. Durio Durio, McGoffin, Stagg & Ackermann, P.C. 220 Heymann Blvd.

Lafayette 337-233-0300 Joseph P. Hebert Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2348 Craig A. Ryan Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660

Bankruptcy and Creditor Debtor Rights/Insolvency and Reorganization Law Harold L. Domingue, Jr. Harold L. Domingue, Jr. 711 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-234-6003 Joseph P. Hebert Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2348 Armistead M. Long Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 Craig A. Ryan Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660

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Gerald H. Schiff Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132

Bet-the-Company Litigations Francis X. Neuner Jr. NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000

Commercial Litigation Joseph C. Giglio Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2311 Michael D. Hebert Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 William E. Kellner Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2321 William E. Kellner Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Steven C. Lanza Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Seth T. Mansfield Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 Henry C. Perret Jr. Perret Doise L.L.C 1301 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-593-4900

Commercial Transactions/LLS Law Julie Schmidt Chauvin Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2307 Billy J. Domingue Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2342 Jeremy A. Hebert Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987

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James L. Pate NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000

Construction Law Kyle Beasley Plauché Smith & Nieset, LLC. 1123 Pithon St. Lake Charles 337-463-0522 Richard D. Chappuis Jr. Voorhies & Labbé 700 St. John St. Floor 5 Lafayette 337-232-9700 F. Douglas Gatz Jr. Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP 100 E. Vermilion St. Suite 300 Lafayette 337-205-4531 F. Douglas Ortego Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 James T. Rivera Scofield & Rivera, LLC 100 E. Vermilion Suite 301 Lafayette 337-235-5353 Emmett C. Sole Stockwell, Sievert, Viccellio, Clements & Shaddock, LLP One Lakeside Plz. Floor 4 Lake Charles 337-436-9491 Terry Thibodeaux The Thibodeaux Law Firm, LLC One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1220 Lake Charles 337-433-5523 Kyle M. Bacon Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7706 Billy J. Domingue Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2342 Joseph C. Giglio Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2311

Criminal Defense Non White-Collar Alfred F. Boustany II Boustany Law Firm 421 W. Vermilion St. Lafayette 337-261-0225

acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

My toughest case

David S. Cook Sometimes people need disputes settled, but they want to avoid a trial, the stress, the drawn-out time frame and the risk of losing.

This is where mediators like Lafayette attorney David Cook enter the picture.

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ook’s introduction to mediation came in 1992. At the time the process was still relatively unheard of in Louisiana.

Cook represented a driver and his insurance company following a disastrous 36-car accident on Interstate 10 near Sulphur. The case was so massive that they needed to rent a hotel ballroom just to fit all of the relevant players during depositions.

Someone suggested mediation. A mediator was brought in and after two days, the parties reached a settlement. Cook was flabbergasted that such a complex case could be amicably resolved so quickly.

After that case, Cook transitioned into mediation. While it was once uncommon, mediation is now popular and the field is competitive. So, Cook does mediation work and also serves as an attorney chairman on medical review panels. If a doctor is sued for malpractice in Louisiana, the claim must be brought before a panel of doctors who decide whether or not it can go forward. Cook does not vote on these cases. His job is more like that of a judge in a jury trial. He organizes evidence, sets up deadlines, rules on conflicts of interest and reminds the doctors of their legal obligations.

The 66-year-old Cook enjoys the mediation and chairman work because he feels it suits his nature better than litigation. He has always been a person who sees both sides of an issue, and that tendency serves him well in his current positions.

“I feel like what I’m doing for a living is entirely consistent with my personality,” Cook said.

The work is rewarding for Cook because people are happy at the end of mediations. Cook has handled a wide variety of mediations, including personal injury, age/race discrimination and sexual harassment. Eighty five -to nintey percent of them are settled in one day. When it’s over, the parties no longer have a dark cloud of uncertainty hanging over their heads. They are able to move on with their lives.

When Cook is not practicing the law, he spends time with his wife, Nanette Cook, a member of the Lafayette City-Parish Council, and their five children (ages ranging from 24-34).

“The best thing in my life is my wife and my children,” Cook said. “I’ve had a pretty decent life.”

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top law y ers

Todd S. Clemons Todd Clemons & Associates, APLC 1740 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-477-0000

Michael D. Skinner Skinner Law Firm, LLC 600 Jefferson St. Suite 810 Lafayette 337-354-3030

Donald D. Cleveland Donald D. Cleveland, APLC 819 St. John St. Lafayette 337-205-0319

Kevin Stockstill Stockstill White Collar Criminal Defense 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-262-0203

Thomas Lawrence Lorenzi Lorenzi & Barnatt, L.L.P. 518 Pujo St. Lake Charles 337-513-0886 Patricia C. Manetsch The Sanchez Law Firm, LLC 1200 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-4405 Allyson M. Prejean Barry Sallinger 820 E. St. Mary Blvd.

Lafayette 337-235-5791

Criminal Defense Non White-Collar Barry J. Sallinger Barry Sallinger 820 E. St. Mary Blvd.

Lafayette 337-235-5791 Walter M. Sanchez The Sanchez Law Firm, LLC 1200 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-4405 Kevin Stockstill Stockstill White Collar Criminal Defense 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-262-0203

Criminal Defense White Collar Todd S. Clemons Todd Clemons & Associates, APLC 1740 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-477-0000 Thomas Lawrence Lorenzi Lorenzi & Barnatt, L.L.P. 518 Pujo St. Lake Charles 337-513-0886 Walter M. Sanchez The Sanchez Law Firm, LLC 1200 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-4405

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Donald W. Washington Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7614

Elder Law Steven M. Jankower Jankower Law Firm, LLC 110 Exchange Pl. Suite 101 Lafayette 337-289-1745 David L. Sigler Sigler & Raglin Attorneys at Law, APLLC 630 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-439-2033

Eminent Domain and Condemnation Law James J. Davidson III Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 Michael D. Hebert Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987

Employee Benefits Law Joel P. Babineaux Babineaux, Poche, Anthony & Slavich, LLC 1201 Camellia Blvd.

Floor 3 Lafayette 337-984-2505 Kyle L. Gideon Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 Robert E. Rowe Rowe Law Corporation 113 Oil Center Dr. Lafayette 337-266-9626

acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Energy Law George Arceneaux III Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2332 William F. Bailey Randazzo Giglio & Bailey LLC 900 E. Saint Mary Blvd.

Suite 200 Lafayette 337-291-4900 Turner Brumby Veron, Bice, Palermo & Wilson, LLC 721 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-513-4436 Robert L. Cabes Milling Benson Woodward L.L.P. 101 La Rue France Suite 200 Lafayette 337-232-3929 Susan A. Daigle Daigle Rayburn LLC 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1200 Lafayette 337-234-7000 Bob J. Duplantis Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 Patrick W. Gray Johnson Gray McNamara, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 900 Lafayette 337-412-6003 James N. Mansfield III Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2340 Samuel E. Masur Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 Jennifer E. Michel Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP 100 E. Vermilion St. Suite 300 Lafayette 337-205-4739 James R. Nieset Plauché, Smith & Nieset, PLC 1123 Pithon St. Lake Charles 337-463-0522

Patrick S. Ottinger Ottinger Hebert 1313 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-232-2606

Paul J. Hebert Ottinger Hebert 1313 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-232-2606

Edwin G. Preis Jr. Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062

Penny Leonard Malbrew Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2364

Matthew J. Randazzo III Randazzo Giglio & Bailey LLC 900 E. Saint Mary Blvd.

Suite 200 Lafayette 337-291-4900 Jamie D. Rhymes Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2360 April L. Rolen-Ogden Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2330 Bryan D. Scofield Scofield & Rivera, LLC 100 E. Vermilion Suite 301 Lafayette 337-235-5353 Lawrence P. Simon Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323 Randall C. Songy Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660

Environmental Law George Arceneaux III Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2332 Turner Brumby Veron, Bice, Palermo & Wilson, LLC 721 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-513-4436 Hunter Adams Chauvin Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2354 Patrick W. Gray Johnson Gray McNamara, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 900 Lafayette 337-412-6003

Thomas M. McNamara Johnson Gray McNamara, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 900 Lafayette 337-412-6003 William B. Monk Stockwell, Sievert, Viccellio, Clements & Shaddock, LLP One Lakeside Plz. Floor 4 Lake Charles 337-436-9491 J Rock Palermo III Veron, Bice, Palermo & Wilson, LLC 721 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-513-4436 Matthew J. Randazzo III Randazzo Giglio & Bailey LLC 900 E. Saint Mary Blvd.

Suite 200 Lafayette 337-291-4900 Jamie D. Rhymes Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2360 Gary J. Russo Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7610

Family Law James D. Bayard Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Alfred F. Boustany II Boustany Law Firm 421 W. Vermilion St. Lafayette 337-261-0225

Valerie Gotch Garrett Valerie Gotch Garrett, A Professional Law Corporation 701 N Pierce St. Suite B Lafayette 337-232-1600 Rachel B. Godley Rachel B. Godley, Attorney at Law, LLC 511 Shore Dr. Suite 2 Youngsville 337-456-3457 Frank A. Granger Frank A. Granger, APLC 1135 Lakeshore Dr. Floor 6 Lake Charles 337-439-2732 Steven W. Hale Hale Law Firm 1735 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-426-1071 Helen Popich Harris Helen Popich Harris APLC 321 W. Main St. Suite 2-D Lafayette 337-291-6092 Philip C. Kobetz Attorney at Law 120 Representative Row Lafayette 337-291-1990 Gregory Alan Koury Koury & Hill, LLC 1417 W. University Ave. Lafayette 337-889-5409 Richard D. Mere Richard D. Mere: Attorney at Law 701 Johnston St. Lafayette 337-269-5555 Bhyllie J. Mouton Mouton and Mouton, LLC 905 The Blvd.

Rayne 337-334-8600 M. Scott Ogden Jr. Fuerst, Carrier & Ogden 130 West Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-436-3332

David L. Carriere The Law Offices of David L. Carriere 322 S. Market St. Opelousas 337-948-6217

Dona Kay Renegar Veazey Felder & Renegar LLC 2 Flagg Pl. Lafayette 337-446-2709

Bradford Hyde Felder Veazey Felder & Renegar LLC 2 Flagg Pl. Lafayette 337-446-2709

Walter M. Sanchez The Sanchez Law Firm, LLC 1200 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-4405

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Diane A. Sorola Law Office of Diane Sorola 402 W. Convent St. Lafayette 337-234-2355 D. Reardon Stanford Hoyt & Stanford, LLC 315 S. College Rd. Suite 165 Lafayette 337-234-1012 Susan Theall The Theall Firm, LLC 1304 Lafayette St. Lafayette 337-263-9000 Chris Villemarette Chris Villemarette, Trial Lawyer 3404 Moss St. Lafayette 337-205-9826

Health Care Law Charles J. Boudreaux Jr. Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7600 Nadia de la Houssaye Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7634 Elena Arcos Pecoraro Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 Michael D. Skinner Skinner Law Firm, LLC 600 Jefferson St. Suite 810 Lafayette 337-354-3030 Douglas W. Truxillo Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Donald W. Washington Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7614

Immigration Law Anna Maria Grand Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233

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Elena Arcos Pecoraro Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233

Insurance Law Emily C. Borgen Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2353 Charmaine B. Borne Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Patrick J. Briney Briney Foret Corry, LLP 413 Travis St. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-4070 Michael P. Corry Sr. Briney Foret Corry, LLP 413 Travis St. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-4070 Robert J. David Jr. Juneau David, APLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 202 Lafayette 337-269-0052 Lamont P. Domingue Voorhies & Labbé 700 St. John St. Floor 5 Lafayette 337-232-9700 Tabitha R. Durbin Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP 100 E. Vermilion St. Suite 300 Lafayette 337-205-4740 Charles J. Foret Briney Foret Corry, LLP 413 Travis St. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-4070 John A. Jeansonne Jr. Jeansonne & Remondet, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 1100 Lafayette 337-237-4370 Catherine M. Landry Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Mark A. Lowe Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2335

acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Ian A. Macdonald Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7617 John E. McElligott Jr. Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 James L. Pate NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 L. Lane Roy Brown Sims 600 Jefferson St. Suite 800 Lafayette 337-484-1240 Patrick Wartelle Leake & Andersson LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 603 Lafayette 337-233-7430

Intellectual Property Law Jesse D. Lambert Law Office of Jesse D. Lambert, LLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 111 Lafayette 337-232-5006 Blair B. Suire Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7648 Robert L. Waddell Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7623

Labor and Employment Law Joel P. Babineaux Babineaux, Poche, Anthony & Slavich, LLC 1201 Camellia Blvd.

Floor 3 Lafayette 337-984-2505 Robert J. David Jr. Juneau David, APLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 202 Lafayette 337-269-0052

Greg Guidry Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. 325 Settlers Trace Blvd.

Suite 201 Lafayette 337-769-6583 Jeffrey A. Riggs Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP 100 E. Vermilion St. Suite 300 Lafayette 337-205-4532 Scott J. Scofield Scofield, Gerard, Singletary & Pohorelsky 901 Lake Shore Dr. Suite 900 Lake Charles 337-433-9436 James E. Sudduth III Sudduth & Associates, LLC 1109 Pithon St. Lake Charles 833-783-3884

Land Use and Zoning Law Jonathan Roy Davis Turnkey Title 91 Settlers Trace Blvd.

Bldg. 1 Lafayette 337-326-4830

Legal Malpractice Law James H. Gibson Gibson Law Partners, LLC 2000 Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 400 Lafayette 337-761-6250 Alan Whittington Stewart Gibson Law Partners, LLC 2448 Johnston St. Lafayette 337-761-6250 Scott Webre Webre & Associates 2901 Johnston St. Suite 307 Lafayette 337-237-5051

Richard T. Haik Jr. Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483 Kristie M. Hightower Lundy Lundy Soileau & South, LLP 501 Broad St. Lake Charles 337-439-0707 Robert M. Kallam Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Amy Allums Lee Johnson Gray McNamara, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 900 Lafayette 337-412-6003 Derriel C. McCorvey McCorvey Law, LLC 102 Versailes Blvd.

Suite 620 Lafayette 337-291-2431 Patrick C. Morrow Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483 James P. Roy Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878 James P. Ryan Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483 Elwood C. Stevens Jr. Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878

Medical Malpractice Law

Mass Tort Litigation/Class Actions

Charles J. Boudreaux Jr. Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7600

Digger Earles Laborde Earles Law Firm 203 Energy Pkwy.

Building B Lafayette 337-376-5443

Alan K. Breaud Breaud & Meyers, APLC 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1101 Lafayette 337-266-2200

David S. Cook David S. Cook, APLC 313 Beverly Dr. Lafayette 337-234-4155 J. Michael Fussell Jr. Ottinger Hebert 1313 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-232-2606 Marc W. Judice Judice & Adley 926 Coolidge Blvd.

Lafayette 337-235-2405 Jim Lambert Jim Lambert Law Firm 315 S. College Suite 146 Lafayette 337-446-2766 Derriel C. McCorvey McCorvey Law, LLC 102 Versailes Blvd.

Suite 620 Lafayette 337-291-2431 Sera H. Russell III The Law Office of Sera H. Russell, III 111 Mercury St. Lafayette 337-205-9786 Michael H. Schwartzberg Vamvoras, Schwartzberg & Antoon, LLC 1111 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-1621 Kenneth D. St. Pé Kenneth D. St. Pé, Professional Law Corporation 311 W. University Ave. Suite A Lafayette 337-534-4043 Todd Alan Townsley The Townsley Law Firm 3102 Enterprise Blvd.

Lake Charles 337-377-0584 Scott Webre Webre & Associates 2901 Johnston St. Suite 307 Lafayette 337-237-5051

Mergers and Acquisitions Law Julie Schmidt Chauvin Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2307 Billy J. Domingue Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2342

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Brandon W. Letulier NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 Samuel E. Masur Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 William P. Stubbs Jr. Stubbs Law Firm 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-9755

Mortgage Banking Foreclosure Law Joseph P. Hebert Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2348

Municipal Law Michael D. Hebert Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987

Natural Resources Law Patrick W. Gray Johnson Gray McNamara, LLC 200 W. Congress St. Suite 900 Lafayette 337-412-6003 Jeffrey David Lieberman Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2349 Penny Leonard Malbrew Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2364 James N. Mansfield III Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2340 Matthew J. Randazzo III Randazzo Giglio & Bailey LLC 900 E. Saint Mary Blvd.

Suite 200 Lafayette 337-291-4900

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Lawrence P. Simon Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323

Oil and Gas Law Vanessa Waguespack Anseman Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323 George Arceneaux III Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2332 Gregory George Duplantis Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 J. Michael Fussell Jr. Ottinger Hebert 1313 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-232-2606 Christopher P. Ieyoub Plauché, Smith & Nieset, LLC 1123 Pithon St. Lake Charles 337-436-0522 Jeffrey David Lieberman Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2349 Samuel E. Masur Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132

Gary J. Russo Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7610 Lawrence P. Simon Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323 Paul B. Simon Gordon, Arata, Montgomery, Barnett, McCollam, Duplantis & Eagan, LLC 400 E. Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 4200 Lafayette 337-237-0132 Randall C. Songy Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660

Personal Injury Litigation Glenn W. Alexander Glenn W. Alexander, LLC 713 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-494-4398 Bennett Boyd Anderson Jr. Anderson, Dozier, Blanda & Saltzman 2010 W. Pinhook Rd. Lafayette 337-233-3366

T-Claude Devall Hoffoss Devall, LLC 517 W. College St. Lake Charles 337-221-0230 James Domengeaux Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878

Jerome H. Moroux Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323

Stephen C. Gaubert Stephen C. Gaubert | A Professional Law Firm 600 Jefferson Blvd.

Suite 1202 Lafayette 337-354-3000

John Michael Morrow Jr. Morrow, Gates & Morrow, LLC 613 Main St. Opelousas 337-942-6529

Thomas John Gayle Gayle Law Firm LLC 713 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-494-1220 William L. Goode The Goode Law Firm A Professional Law Corporation 812 Johnston St. Lafayette 337-234-0600 W. Taylor Hale Hale Law Firm 1735 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-426-1071

Bart Bernard Bart Bernard, Injury Lawyers 1031 Camellia Blvd.

Lafayette 337-900-9000

Jacob Houston Hargett Gaar Law Firm 617 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-366-0982

Jamie B. Bice Veron, Bice, Palermo & Wilson, LLC 721 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-513-4436

Lee Hoffoss Jr. Hoffoss Devall, LLC 517 W. College St. Lake Charles 337-221-0230

Richard C. Broussard Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323 Kevin L. Camel Cox, Cox, Filo, Camel & Wilson 723 Broad St. Lake Charles 337-436-6611

Catherine M. Landry Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062

Jamie D. Rhymes Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2360

Todd S. Clemons Todd Clemons & Associates, APLC 1740 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-477-0000

April L. Rolen-Ogden Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2330

Blake R. David Sr. Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323

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Ben L. Mayeaux NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000

James S. Gates Morrow, Gates & Morrow, LLC 613 Main St. Opelousas 337-942-6529

Cliffe E. Laborde III Mahtook & LaFleur 600 Jefferson St. Floor 10 Lafayette 337-266-2189

Matthew J. Randazzo III Randazzo Giglio & Bailey LLC 900 E. Saint Mary Blvd.

Suite 200 Lafayette 337-291-4900

Miles A. Matt Law Offices of Matt & Allen 1026 St. John St. Lafayette 337-237-1000

Patrick C. Morrow Jr. Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483 William P. Morrow Morrow, Gates & Morrow, LLC 613 Main St. Opelousas 337-942-6529 James P. Roy Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878 Leslie J Schiff Schiff, Scheckman & White LLP 117 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-942-9771 Eulis Simien Jr. Simien & Simien, LLC One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1270 Lake Charles 337-436-2121 Ken Spears Spears and Gary Law Firm, LLC One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 900 Lake Charles 337-513-4333

Terry Thibodeaux The Thibodeaux Law Firm, LLC One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1220 Lake Charles 337-433-5523 Glen D. Vamvoras Vamvoras, Schwartzberg & Antoon, LLC 1111 Ryan St. Lake Charles 337-433-1621 J Michael Veron Veron, Bice, Palermo & Wilson, LLC 721 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-513-4436 Jason Matthew Welborn Gaar Law Firm 617 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-366-0982 Jonathan Lawrence Woods Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Bob F. Wright Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878

Product Liability Litigation Nicholas A. Blanda Anderson, Dozier, Blanda & Saltzman 2010 W. Pinkhook Rd. Lafayette 337-233-3366 Richard C. Broussard Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323 Blake R. David Sr. Broussard & David 557 Jefferson St. Lafayette 337-233-2323

Kilburn Landry The Johnson Firm 910 Ford St. Lake Charles 337-433-1414

Elwood C. Stevens Jr. Domengeaux Wright Roy & Edwards, LLC 556 Jefferson St. Suite 500 Lafayette 337-291-4878

Anthony M. Fazzio Fazzio Law Firm 4906 Ambassador Caffery Pkwy.

Suite 1000 Lafayette 337-366-0919

Matthew E. Lundy Lundy Lundy Soileau & South, LLP 501 Broad St. Lake Charles 337-439-0707

Randall K. Theunissen Allen & Gooch 2000 Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 400 Lafayette 337-291-1000

David R. Frohn MG+M 2201 Lake St. Suite 106 Lake Charles 337-419-1929

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Thomas R. Juneau Sr. Juneau David, APLC 1018 Harding St. Suite 202 Lafayette 337-269-0052 Robert M. Kallam Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 L. Lane Roy Brown Sims 600 Jefferson St. Suite 800 Lafayette 337-484-1240 Mandy A. Simon Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Todd Alan Townsley The Townsley Law Firm 3102 Enterprise Blvd.

Lake Charles 337-377-0584

Professional Marketing Law William B. Monk Stockwell, Sievert, Viccellio, Clements & Shaddock, LLP One Lakeside Plz. Floor 4 Lake Charles 337-436-9491

Railroad Law Harry K. Burdette The Glenn Armentor Law Corporation 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-233-1471 Kevin M. Dills Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 Grant Fulton Freeman Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 Kyle L. Gideon Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 John E. McElligott Jr. Davidson Meaux 810 S. Buchanan St. Lafayette 337-237-1660 Elena Arcos Pecoraro Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233

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James P. Ryan Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483

Real Estate Law Kyle M. Bacon Jones Walker LLP 600 Jefferson St. Suite 1600 Lafayette 337-593-7706

H.L. “Rye” Tuten III Tuten Title & Escrow LLC 326 Settlers Trace Suite 101A Lafayette 337-524-1703 Joan D. Wallace Turnkey Title 91 Settlers Trace Blvd.

Bldg. 1 Lafayette 337-326-4830

Tax Law

Michael D. Carleton Chaffe McCall, LLP One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1750 Lake Charles 337-419-1825

Roy Bergeron Jr. Simien & Simien, LLC One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1270 Lake Charles 337-436-2121

Jean-Paul Coussan Andrus Boudreaux 1301 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 401 Lafayette 337-984-9480

Jean C. Breaux Jr. Breaux & Stelly Law Firm, LLC 413 Travis St. Suite 100 Lafayette 337-233-4447

Katherine E. Currie Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 Elisa Devall Davis Turnkey Title 91 Settlers Trace Blvd.

Bldg. 1 Lafayette 337-326-4830 Jonathan Roy Davis Turnkey Title 91 Settlers Trace Blvd.

Bldg. 1 Lafayette 337-326-4830 James P. Doherty III Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 Billy J. Domingue Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2342 Thomas John Gayle Gayle Law Firm LLC 713 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-494-1220 Joseph C. Giglio Jr. Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2311 Jeremy A. Hebert Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 C. J. Miller Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2323

acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

Cary B. Bryson Bryson Law Firm, LLC 515 W. Convent St. Lafayette 337-233-4210 Patrick “Con” Cotter Con Cotter, LLC 146 Teche Lafayette 225-614-7493 Ted W. Hoyt Hoyt & Stanford, LLC 315 S. College Rd. Suite 165 Lafayette 337-234-1012 Lawrence L. Lewis III Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660 Robert E. Rowe Rowe Law Corporation 113 Oil Center Dr. Lafayette 337-266-9626 Russell J. Stutes Jr. Stutes & Lavergne, LLC 600 Broad St. Lake Charles 337-433-0022 Chris A. Verret Attorney at Law 325 Audubon Blvd.

Lafayette 337-237-4600 H. Aubrey White III Stockwell, Sievert, Viccellio, Clements & Shaddock, LLP One Lakeside Plz. Floor 4 Lake Charles 337-436-9491

Lester J. Zaunbrecher Allen & Gooch 2000 Kaliste Saloom Rd. Suite 400 Lafayette 337-291-1000

Transportation Law Jeffrey M. Bassett Morrow, Morrow, Ryan, Bassett & Haik 324 W. Landry St. Opelousas 337-948-4483 Richard D. Chappuis Jr. Voorhies & Labbé 700 St. John St. Floor 5 Lafayette 337-232-9700 Grant Fulton Freeman Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 Anna Maria Grand Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 Richard Kennedy Sr. Law Offices of Richard R. Kennedy 309 Polk St. Lafayette 337-232-1934 Kevin P. Merchant NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 Elena Arcos Pecoraro Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 Bryan D. Scofield Scofield & Rivera, LLC 100 E. Vermilion Suite 301 Lafayette 337-235-5353

Trusts And Estates Donald A. Capretz Donald A. Capretz, APLC 1011 Coolidge St. Lafayette 337-326-4738 Michael D. Carleton Chaffe McCall, LLP One Lakeshore Dr. Suite 1750 Lake Charles 337-419-1825 Julie Schmidt Chauvin Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2307

Lawrence L. Lewis III Onebane Law Firm 1200 Camellia Blvd.

Suite 300 Lafayette 337-237-2660

Brian J. Lindsey Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062

David L. Sigler Sigler & Raglin Attorneys at Law, APLLC 630 Kirby St. Lake Charles 337-439-2033

Mark A. Lowe Liskow & Lewis 822 Harding St. Lafayette 337-267-2335

William P. Stubbs Jr. Stubbs Law Firm 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-9755 Chris A. Verret Attorney at Law 325 Audubon Blvd.

Lafayette 337-237-4600

Workers Compensation Law Glenn J. Armentor The Glenn Armentor Law Corporation 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-233-1471 Charmaine B. Borne Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062 Shannon Dartez The Glenn Armentor Law Corporation 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-233-1471 Thomas A. Filo Cox, Cox, Filo, Camel & Wilson 723 Broad St. Lake Charles 337-436-6611 Stephen C. Gaubert Stephen C. Gaubert | A Professional Law Firm 600 Jefferson Blvd.

Suite 1202 Lafayette 337-354-3000 Anna Maria Grand Pecoraro Law 95 Woods Crossing Suite 100 Lafayette 337-266-2233 James D. Hollier NeunerPate 1001 W. Pinhook Rd. Suite 200 Lafayette 337-237-7000 Catherine M. Landry Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062

Seth T. Mansfield Becker & Hebert, LLC 201 Rue Beauregard Lafayette 337-233-1987 Stephen M. Morrow Sr. Morrow, Gates & Morrow, LLC 613 Main St. Opelousas 337-942-6529 Dona K. Renegar Veazey Felder & Renegar LLC 2 Flagg Pl. Lafayette 337-446-2709 Mark L. Riley The Glenn Armentor Law Corporation 300 Stewart St. Lafayette 337-233-1471 Jonathan Lawrence Woods Preis PLC 102 Versailles Blvd.

Suite 400 Lafayette 337-237-6062

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L a fay et t e illust r ato r ko dy cham b e r lai n

c u ltur e / l es a rt ist es

Full Circle

“So you think, ‘Wow, this crazy clash of cultures and influences is happening at this very moment.’”

From that, Chamberlain’s poster theme took Lafayette illustrator Kody shape – a creative process he calls “Making Chamberlain creates the Clay,” in homage to classic sculptors. The word 2019 Festival International de “Fusion” stood out from his aforementioned 2018 Festival snapshot, as did the word “DesLouisiane poster and pin, leaving tination” in that downtown Lafayette becomes his own personal mark on his this harmonious confluence of global reprehometown cultural tradition sentatives matched with the locals of Acadiana – unconventional homecoming, if you will.

by W i l l K a l e c p o r t r a i t by R o m e r o & R o m e r o After requesting copies of every Festival poster of the past – since he was convinced someone must have done this before – and confirming the idea was original, ChamberNot to sound cool or lik e some lain created the shape of the poster from an annoying hipster talking about an overhead abstract map of downtown Lafayette, Indie band “you’ve probably never highlighted by two swirling epicenters that heard of,” but Kody Chamberlain festivaled draw in the eyes – the fountain at Parc Sans at Festival International before it was the Souci and a map compass. The abstract map hugely attended event it is today.

Back then (1991, to be specific), the Lafay- is surrounded by illustrations done in Chamette illustrator whose art appears in comics and graphic novels published by industry titans like Marvel, DC, Dark Horse and IDW was just a college kid playing in a World Music ensemble orchestrated by Professor Adam Mason, the Director of Percussion Studies at UL back in the day.

There’s a good chance that back in 1991, Festival International-goers heard Chamberlain and the rest of the band (developed through UL) perform. If you were hungry, you might have even seen him perform.

“We weren’t on any of the main stages,” Chamberlain clarifies in self-deprecation, “but we were in the little food court area.”

Fast-forward close to three decades later, and Chamberlain’s talents are once again magnified underneath the Festival International spotlight as he was named the Official Visual Artist for the 33rd annual event – a distinction he calls “an honor” and credits his wife, Kristie, for making come true since she stayed on him and made sure he submitted for consideration before the deadline.

As the festival’s visual artist, Chamberlain created the 2019 poster and pin – a unique project that required the 46-year-old to chronicle back through all the years and all the one-of-a-kind experiences the event blessed him with for inspiration.

“Every project I do is different and requires a bit of a different approach,” Chamberlain says. “So for Festival, I just took a step back and thought about, ‘What’s Really True About Festival?’ And I remember back to last year – I was standing in front of a Chinese throat singer group, and on stage with them was a hip hop group beatboxing, and I was eating a gyro.

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berlain’s signature style of singers, dancers and other international performers.

“It’s one of the few festivals where the world comes to you,” Chamberlain says of Lafayette’s signature cultural event. “You don’t have to leave home to get an incredible experience, to see so many cultures. And that concept – with the Festival being a World Music festival – played right into the poster design.” n

Stay Posted: The poster and pin at Festival International have been part of the event’s tradition since its inception, a fun way to fundraise and recognize the robust talents of local artists – such as Kody Chamberlain this year. For those going to Festival, the poster can be purchased at various merchandise kiosks throughout downtown Lafayette.

Can’t make it this year? No worries. Chamberlain’s 2019 Festival poster can be purchased at festivalinternational.org/product-category/posters.

c u ltu r e / l es p e rso n n es

Sixty-third Verse, Same as the First Legendary Cajun musician T.K. Hulin of St. Martinville isn’t going to let a little thing like age slow him down

by W i l l K a l e c p o r t r a i t by R o m e r o & R o m e r o

Nowa days when it com e s to lo c a l

music legend T.K. Hulin, it seems all anybody wants to ask about or write about is his age – a footnote as rude as it is irrelevant.

“People wonder when I’m gonna stop but, oh my god, I don’t know how I’d get along without it? I’ve been doing this since I was 13 years old and I’ve loved every minute of it,” Hulin says in a homegrown accent impossible not to place. “I can’t wait to get on stage and sing for the people.

“It’s in the blood. It’s been in the blood for years and it’s gonna stay in the blood until I die.”

If vocal enthusiasm is any sort of medical indicator of anticipated longevity, Hulin’s “final verse” isn’t coming anytime soon. Months away from his 76th birthday and 63 years into a decorated singing career that began inside the famous J.D. Miller Studios in Crowley where he recorded his first hit single, “Many Nites,” Hulin still speaks of music with the same genuine passion and boyish glee he did back when he was banging two sticks on an empty can of salad oil inside his daddy’s barn.

Hulin’s 2019 performance calendar is already filled with dates, including gigs at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Music Festival on May 5, and a spirited concert with Ryan Foret, Gregg Martinez and The Delta Kings at the Strand Theater in Jennings on June 23.

“I never burned out because the reactions of the people when I’m on stage still keep me going,” Hulin says. “I mean, where else are you gonna get that? So, I’m gonna keep on doing it.”

Perhaps Hulin’s persistence to perform is derived from the fact that spotlight was almost stolen from him in 2012. During a routine doctor’s visit, nodules on Hulin’s thyroid were

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True love T.K. Hulin has no intention of slowing down.

Music is his passion and after having a near miss on losing his voice, he doesn’t take it for granted.

spotted and required immediate removal via surgery. The procedure put Hulin’s signature sultry voice on the shelf for an extended period of time, but much like a baseball pitcher who throws harder after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Hulin claims his post-op voice is way better than his pre-op voice.

“Was it a terrible six weeks?” Hulin re-asks a question asked to him. “My God, I love to talk, so after three weeks I said, ‘Man, I can’t take this anymore! I gotta call somebody and I’m gonna whisper.’ Well wouldn’t you know, the person on the other end kept saying he couldn’t hear me. I told him, ‘I know, I just had surgery.’ I’m not sure if he heard that or not because he hung up on me. Man, was it miserable.”

Blessed with an ability to tell a story – oh, and sing a song, obviously – Hulin’s performance on stage isn’t an act. That’s just who he is and has always been, an affable old friend who just so happened to provide the soundtrack to many of your life’s chapters, like with his 1978 hit “As You Pass Me By (Graduation Night)” that’s still played every May when Acadiana-area high school students flip the tassel on their mortar board from front-right to front-left. While on the mic, Hulin brushes away the imaginary border dividing stage and crowd by interacting with the audience, charming them with a trademark self-deprecating sense of humor that inspired him to change the name of his back-up band

from “The Lonely Knights” to “Smoke” after his old nightclub on Highway 31 burned down in 1971.

Ever true to himself, Hulin’s singing style and performance playlist remains unchanged, even now as a musician who is in what some might consider the winter of his career.

Without regret, his career didn’t (and won’t) have stages, phases or evolutions. The influence of musical inspirations Sam Cooke and Otis Redding is still just as recognizable today as it was way back when.

“To me, that was my kind of music – and it still is today,” Hulin says. “The swamp pop is still popular, and that’s what I do: swamp pop and rhythm and blues. I love that soul. You got to feel it. Nobody can tell you how to sing [that music]. Either you have it, or you don’t.

“The few people who are still living, they love it,” Hulin continues with a laugh. “There’s nothing like playing local. These are the locals – they were raised on my music and they come out to see me, and it takes them back and it takes us both back, really. Like in Jennings, you got 400, 500 people in that tiny theatre, and they clap after every song.

“Wow, that adrenaline turns me into a monster. Yeah, a good monster.” n

timeline

T.K. Hulin Through The Years

1943

1957

1963

1967

1976

On Aug. 16, Alton James Hulin is born in St. Martinville, the son of Irene and Eli Hulin.

The nickname T.K. came from an uncle, although Hulin still has no clue of the meaning behind it.

At age 13, Hulin records his first hit, “Many Nites” in Crowley.

Hulin records the song, “I’m Not a Fool Anymore” with his Lonely Knights band.

That hit caught the attention of Mercury Records which signed him and sent him on tour.

Hulin opens “T.K.’s Nightclub” on Highway 31 in St. Martinville.

The popular club was the top weekend spot in St. Martin Parish for years until it burned down in 1971.

Hulin released the hit song “Alligator Bayou” on Booray Records of Lafayette.

ac adianaprofile.com 7 1

c u ltu re / e n f ra nç a is, s ’il vo us p l a ît

Cœur de pirate Jean Lafitte : l’homme, le mythe, la légende pa r Dav id C her amie

années 1770, peut-être quelque part en France, peut-être à Saint-Domingue, peutêtre ailleurs. Il est mort en 1823 ou en 1827 ou peut-être en 1857, en Honduras, au Mexique ou Dieu sait où. Il aurait grandi dans la Baie Baratarie; il aurait passé sa jeunesse sur les bateaux de son père. Ses grands-parents auraient fui l’Espagne parce qu’ils étaient juifs.

Au fait jusqu’en 1804, on sait peu de choses sur le flibustier le plus célèbre, Jean Lafitte, quand on le retrouve sur son bateau, La sœur chérie, avec lequel il importe illégalement des esclaves en Louisiane du tout nouveau pays d’Haïti. Lui et son demi-frère Pierre s’installent à Baratarie, dans un endroit qu’on appelle le Temple, où ils commandent des milliers d’hommes et établissent un empire bâti sur la contrebande, la piraterie et la traite des Noirs. Grandissant à quelques encablures de là, j’ai toujours entendu parlé des trésors enfouis en bas d’un arbre, protégés par le fantôme d’un pirate sacrifié.

Lafitte relève autant de la légende que de l’histoire, sinon plus.

Il est surtout connu pour le coup de main décisif que lui et ses hommes ont porté à Andrew Jackson lors de la Bataille de la Nouvelle-Orléans à la fin de la Guerre de 1812, malgré le fait que seulement quelques semaines avant, les considérant comme des bandits sans foi ni loi, les commodores américains Patterson et Ross les avaient attaqués, saisissant leur butin. Pour le remercier une fois que la victoire garantissant la préservation de l’indépendance américaine face à l’Angleterre était acquise, Jackson a demandé un pardon pour Lafitte et ses hommes, ce que le Président Madison a donné. Ensuite, il quitte la Louisiane pour toujours et en 1816 s’installe dans une autre colonie de flibustiers plus à l’ouest sur la côte, devenue aujourd’hui Galveston. Deux ans plus tard, un ouragan décime la côte et Lafitte la quitte peu de temps après. Ensuite, on perd sa trace et il disparaît dans la légende.

Certains racontent qu’il est en Angleterre dans les années 1840 où il aurait rencontré deux jeunes Allemands nommés Marx et Engels.

Ces derniers lui auraient parlé de leurs théories sur le capitalisme et la classe ouvrière. Intéressé par ces idées, Lafitte les aurait subventionnés pendant qu’ils travaillaient sur Le Manifeste communiste. Jolie histoire, mais on ne sait Il est né quelque part dans les

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acadiana profile april/m ay 2019

pas comment l’homme qui a sauvé la jeune république américaine a fini ses jours.

Tant qu’il est vrai qu’on a plus à craindre de nos jours des pirates qui voguent sur Internet plutôt que sur le Golfe du Mexique, on n’est pas complètement débarrassé de ces loups de mer. Si on est un peu nostalgique de cette idée romantique qu’on se fait de Jean Lafitte et ses émules, on peut toujours aller au Festival

louisianais des Pirates au Lac Charles au mois de mai. On y verra « Jean Lafitte et ses boucaniers » tenter de capturer la ville, au grand plaisir des spectateurs et des charités que ce festival soutient. n

english translation / ac adianaprofile.com