Acadiana Profile August-September 2017

Cool Jobs: 5 Acadians follow their professional bliss

Hospitals of Acadiana: Plus innovations in procedures, care, devices and facilities

Down the Bayou

FROM PORT BARRE TO LAKE FAUSSE: KAYAKING BAYOU TECHE pg. 38

features Célébrer le mode de vie acadien

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Cool Jobs From fashionistas to gardeners and furniture makers to illustrators, there are those who forge their own path, both early on and after they’ve moved on from other endeavors.

By ashley hinson, denny culbert and lisa leblanc-berry

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Acadiana hospitals Plus Innovations in care, procedures and devices Article by Will Kalec and list compiled by Ashley Hinson

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A journey down the bayou From Port Barre to Lake Fausse: Kayaking Bayou Teche written and photographed by denny culber

contents august/september 2017 | volume 36, number 4

6 lagniappe

A little Extra 8 note de l’editeur

Editor’s Note 10 nouvelles de villes

News Briefs 10 le visiter

Calendar of Events

food+drink 23 sur le menu

Burger Kings: From standard to outrageous, Acadiana has an all beef pattie for everyone 26 de la cuisine

Mayo Daze: Creamy, dreamy homemade mayo elevates sandwiches, sauces and salads 30 recettes de cocktails

home+style

It’s Tiki-Tini Time: Enjoy a blast of cold air and refreshing end-of-summer cocktails with a tropical kick

13 la maison

Of Formality and Function: A designer brings a Breaux Bridge couple’s dreams full circle 18 pour la maison

Desert Dreams: Toss pillows with Southwestern flair ease the transition from summer to autumn 20 À la mode

She’s Got Baggage: There’s a lot to unpack here

culture 67 les artistes

The Man Behind The Mask: Abbeville photographer Leo Touchet shares tales from the road at Acadiana Center for the Arts exhibit 72 la musique

Legacy Lost: Musician Sean Ardoin remembers vibrant Miller’s Zydeco Hall of Fame in Opelousas

On the Cover 76

Photographer and writer Denny Culbert finds a favorite new hobby during his first long-distance kayaking trip on the Bayou Teche. The five-day adventure offered scenery, wildlife, good eats and friendly locals, as well as exercise and fresh air. What more does a man need?

les personnes

Homecoming: McNeese State assistant coach Kerry Joseph begins a new chapter in life 80 en français, s’il vous plaît

La Chevrette Toute-Puissante: le Créole aux oiseaux

lagniappe

Learn French Sentier de randonnée (n) hiking trail: a specially designed footpath for hikers to use, generally through rural, wooded or naturally preserved areas.

How do you enjoy late summer/early fall outdoors in Louisiana?

Editor in Chief Managing Editor Associate Editor Copy Editor Art Director Lead Photographer Web Editor

Errol Laborde Melanie Warner Spencer Ashley McLellan Liz Clearman Sarah George Danley Romero Kelly Massicot

“Gardening and Vice President of Sales Colleen Monaghan sprucing up our backyard terrace (504) 830-7215 takes up most of my

Colleen@acadianaprofile.com time after work and

Sales Manager Rebecca Taylor on weekends.”

(337) 298-4424 (337) 235-7919 Ext. 230 Rebecca@acadianaprofile.com

Director of Marketing & Events Cheryl Lemoine

Event Coordinator Whitney Weathers

digital media associate Mallary Matherne For event information call (504) 830-7264

Production manager Jessica DeBold Production Designers Monique DiPietro Demi Schaffer Molly Tullier Traffic Coordinator Topher Balfer

Distribution Manager John Holzer

office manager Mallary Matherne

Subscription Manager Brittani Bryant “Sitting by the For subscriptions call (504) 830-7231 water with a thick

book and a strong Chief Executive Officer Todd Matherne drink.”

President Alan Campell

Executive Vice President Errol Laborde

“I usually take a weekend trip to Grand Isle with my kayak in tow and camp on the beach.”

example: Acadiana State Park Nature Trail dispose de six milles de sentiers de randonnée qui traversent des collines, des forêts et des zones humides. translation: Acadiana State Park Nature Trail has six miles of hiking trails that run through hills, forest and wetlands.

Did You Know?

While mountain biking in mostly flat Louisiana might make as much sense as ice skating in Opelousas, Acadiana actually has the only true dedicated mountain bike trail in the entire state.

Mountain Bike Acadiana, formed in 2012, has nearly four miles of off-road challenges, turns and paths for cyclists of all skill levels. Maintained by a dedicated group of biking volunteers, the course is updated regularly, events and races for enthusiasts from across the area. Membership and sponsorships are available, with 100 percent of dues and donations going back to the group for trail digging, poison ivy killing and course building.

Mountain Bike Acadiana trails are located within Acadiana Park Campground, just outside of Lafayette. Visit www.MTBAcadiana.org, for more information.

— Ashley McClellan

Behind The Scenes

2016 AWARDS Award of Merit to Melanie Warner Spencer for Single Story Award of Merit to Danley Romero for Single photo Bronze to Will Kalec for Magazine Writer of the Year Bronze to Danley Romero for Portrait Series Silver to Denny Culbert for Photo Series Gold to Denny Culbert for Magazine Photographer of the Year Gold to Sarah George for Art Direction of a Single Story Gold to Sarah George for Overall Art Direction Finalist for Magazine of the Year

When testing lighting, lead photographer Danley Romero often enlists the help of his children.

Here is Michael standing in for Coach Joseph at McNeese Stadium. See the final image on page 76.

Renaissance Publishing LLC • 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123 • Metairie, LA 70005 • (504) 828-1380 • (877) 221-3512 128 Demanade, Suite 104 • Lafayette, LA 70503 • (337) 235-7919 ext. 230

Acadiana Profile (ISSN 0001-4397) is published bimonthly 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 2017 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 august/september 2017

Like us on Facebook (facebook.com/acadianaprofile) and follow us on Twitter (@acadianaprofile) for daily updates, happenings in the area and other news! Please consider our planet and recycle this (and every) magazine.

note de l’editeur

sales team

Not long ago my husband Mark and I enjoyed a Quantum Hop IPA and an

Acadie farmhouse ale, respectively, on the covered patio at Bayou Teche Brewing while chatting with a couple of guys who were out on a bicycling adventure. After a brief rain shower and upon the urging of Laurin Knott who was working the taps that day, we took a walk down the driveway, past the Knott family’s various houses (the brewery is located on the family property) and ambled down a bit from the floating dock to the banks of the brewery’s namesake waterway. In less than a minute, the conversation turned to how fun it would be to kayak to the brewery, much like the bicyclists who cycled in from Lafayette. I’m a fan of combining my exercise and outdoor activities with leisure activities and this sounded like the best of all worlds. Needless to say, when contributor Denny Culbert told us he was planning a trip down the bayou, we wanted to tag along, even if only vicariously through his words and photos.

Ride along with Culbert on his five-day journey from Port Barre to Lake Fausse on page 38. Culbert offers up gorgeous scenery, paired with tips on what to bring, where to stay when you aren’t camping and where to eat, saving us the legwork of plotting and planning the trip ourselves. The scenery alone is worth it, but boy am I excited about the prospect of trying the boiled crabs and shrimp at T-Bob’s Seafood in Jeanerette.

Naturally, I would never want to jinx anyone, but if you happened to run into a healthcare emergency while out on your kayaking expedition, Acadiana has you covered. The hospitals in the region are innovators in advanced care, procedures, devices and facilities, as you’ll learn on page 51 in our annual Hospitals of Acadiana feature.

Speaking of adventures, are you looking for a new career? Each year we search for people making their living by following their dreams. Our Cool Jobs profiles on page 32 includes artists, clothiers and an alligator leather artisan, to name a few, to offer up ideas for your next professional chapter.

All-in-all this issue is fun-filled and inspiring, even if you decide to just enjoy it while kicked back in your air conditioned living room, rather than brave the heat in a kayak. Heck, you can even arrange to take it all in while having ice-cold craft beer and a mess of boiled crabs. We won’t tell.

Melanie Warner Spencer, Managing Editor (504) 830-7239 | Melanie@AcadianaProfile.com P.S. In the June issue, we reported that Michael Verret of White Fox restaurant in Breaux Bridge traveled to Japan. While he was indeed considering a visit to that country, he did not ultimately go. Additionally, the address of White Fox restaurant is 240 West Mills Ave., Suite 112, and it opened in 2016. We regret the errors.

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

Rebecca Taylor Sales Manager (337) 298-4424 (337) 235-7919 Ext. 230 Rebecca@AcadianaProfile.com

Colleen Monaghan Vice President of Sales (504) 830-7215 Colleen@AcadianaProfile.com

nouvelles de villes

by lisa leblanc-berry

calendar

around acadiana Bon temps in and around Cajun Country Delcambre, Gueydan, Morgan City, New Iberia, Mamou

Dancing Time

Lafayette

Acadian Triumph

Cirque on Ice

Nova Scotia’s new lieutenantgovernor recently took office, the province’s first Acadian to represent the Crown centuries after the Expulsion.

Arthur LeBlanc, sworn in as the 33rd lieutenantgovernor at Province House, said the deportation of his ancestors is a dark period in Nova Scotia’s history but the Acadians are a resilient people.

Cirque du Soleil is venturing into uncharted territory when they bring Cirque du Soleil Crystal: A Breakthrough Ice Experience to the Cajundome October 5-8. The troupe is pushing the boundaries again by combining outstanding skating and sliding with remarkable acrobatic feats that defy the imagination.

Cirque has 1,300 performing artists from 50 different countries. cirquedusoleil.com

The Delcambre Shrimp Festival celebrates the shrimping industry Aug. 16-20 with delicious local creations made with big, luscious shrimp fresh from the docks plus a boat parade, pageants and a lively faisdo-do. Head to the “Duck Capital of the World” for the Gueydan Duck Festival Aug. 24-27 and enter the duck and goose calling contest, cooking contests and the duck dash, then enjoy the great food, live bands and a parade. Pass a good time Labor Day weekend at Morgan City’s Louisiana Shrimp and Petroleum Festival Aug. 31-Sept. 4 featuring zydeco, Cajun and country music.

Live music is the highlight of the Mamou Cajun Music Festival Sept. 15-16, which includes the adorable youth pageants (ages 0-12) at the Mamou Skating Rink Recreation Center. New Iberia’s Sugar Cane Festival Sept. 20-24 kicks off with Farm Fest at the Shadows, and includes car, flower, art and photography shows, sugar cane exhibits, a 4H livestock show and sale, sugar cookery contests, a carnival and bands that will surely get you on your feet.

by kelly massicot

August 1. National Night Out. Sulphur. sulphur.org 4. Firefighter Cancer Support Network Benefit Concert. Lafayette.

11. Krewe of Hercules Fishing Rodeo.

Houma. facebook.com/Herculesrodeo 11-12. Cameron Fishing Festival.

Cameron. facebook.com/CameronFishingFestival 12. Lost Bayou Ramblers CD Release Party. Lafayette. bluemoonpresents.com 17-19. Le Cajun Festival. New Iberia. cajunfrenchmusic.org 18. Concerts at Couret Farms Dustin Sonnier. Lafayette. facebook.com/ConcertsAtCouret 19. Arts & Crabs Fest. Lake Charles.

19. 2017 Games of Acadiana. Lafayette. milesperret.org/Fundraisers/ games-of-acadiana 20. MPCS Triathlon. Lafayette. milesperret.org/Fundraisers/mpcs-triathlon 24. SOWELA’s Taste of Lake Charles.

Lake Charles. sowela.edu/taste 25. Downtown Live After 5 - Nashville South. Houma. tpcg.org

September 1-2. Louisiana Zydeco Music Festival.

Opelousas. zydeco.org 8-10. TaWaSi Antiques and Collectibles Show. Thibodaux. tawasi.net 9. Boudin Wars. Sulphur. facebook.com/BoudinWars 16. Rebel Run 5k. Sulphur.

21. Farm Fest. New Iberia. shadowsontheteche.org 22. Downtown Live After 5 - Blue Eyed Soul. Houma. tpcg.org

Lake Charles

Roll of the Dice It’s a good time to go gambling in style and maybe work in a little golf vacation.

Golden Nugget (which has a beautiful 18-hole golf course on its $700 million property) recently opened its new 350room hotel tower with each

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room measuring over 500 square feet, enhanced with oversized tubs and large walkin showers. L’Auberge Casino Resort also completed a multi-million-dollar renovation of its 10 luxury Garden Suites (which come with private VIP check-in), and also added the new L Bar, an elegant spot with hand-crafted cocktails.

Meanwhile, Delta Downs

acadiana profile august/september 2017

Racetrack Casino and Hotel in Vinton is undergoing a $45 million expansion, including the new Rosewater Grill and Tavern, which is now open; work continues on the new 167 guest rooms and suites.

Isle of Capri recently finished renovating the snazzy concert venue as well.

22-23. Best of the Bayou Music Festival. Houma. bestofthebayou.la 23. Movies in the Parc. Lafayette. downtownlafayette.org 29. Sesquicentennial Exhibit Opening.

Lake Charles. visitlakecharles.org 29. Sesquicentennial Community Celebration. Lake Charles. visitlakecharles.org 30. Movies in the Parc. Lafayette. downtownlafayette.org

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home+Style Inspiration, décoration et accessoires chic pour la vie

la maison

of formality and function A designer brings a Breaux Bridge couple’s dreams full circle

By Lisa LeBlanc-Berry | Photos by chad chenier

Robin Foti’s ample closet includes a hair washing station and is illuminated by three cascading chandeliers.

home+style

la maison

The design concepts for Robin and floyd

Foti’s new home in Breaux Bridge integrate elegance and formality. Robin has a flair for glamour. Floyd’s objective was to give his wife her dream home.

Husband and wife team, Beau and Lisa McDaniel of C.Mac Construction and Antiquity, brought their talents as builders and designers to the project. Plans for the sprawling Italianate house were drawn by Glenn Angelle and Dionne Sonnier of Angelle Architects.

“I remember the day we first saw the initial sketches for the house,” says Lisa. “Beau and I sat at a conference table with the architects and homeowners, painstakingly trying to hide our excitement. The details of this home were so spectacular, it was nearly impossible to suppress our enthusiasm. The form and function would dictate our décor choices.”

The artisanal staircase and second story loggia pay homage to classical European architecture, as does the Pietra Calacatta tile flooring that runs throughout the home.

Concrete columns support both the front and rear overhangs, in addition to numerous interior rooms.

“True to her energetic personality, Robin loves anything that sparkles. So we integrated crystal, cut glass and mirrors at every turn,” says Lisa. “Gold and silver accents were a must from my perspective, if for no other reason than to see the twinkle these dashes of glitz and glam brought to Robin’s delighted blue eyes.”

For the living room, Lisa used a combination of Marge Carson, Theodore Alexander and EJ Victor furnishings. The romantic master suite is adorned with a French-inspired Calais mantel and Michael Amini furniture that lends a touch of elegance.

The concept of polarity is evident in almost every room. Crisp white finishes are contrasted with bold black accents.

“Take for instance the ornate white kitchen cabinetry by Dreamworks Custom Cabinets,” Lisa says. “These are paired with deep black granite countertops. Gracing the view from the kitchen and formal living room with 18-foot ceilings is the turned and suspended grand staircase. It demonstrates another example of polarity with its intricate black and gold floral motif railing.”

The feminine curve of the white staircase marries well with the black granite underfoot from Precision Stone and Granite. A delicate five-foot crystal chandelier enhances the glamour.

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

top The dramatic staircase echoes the black and white motif throughout the adjoining, open living areas. “Our color theme was contrast,” says designer Lisa McDaniel. “Robin appreciates the polarity of various shades of white paired with black.” bottom Crystal chandeliers can be found in every room of the residence. right The Maitland-Smith dining table accommodates the Foti’s love of entertaining.

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The top of the staircase trails to a dramatic Juliette balcony, which overlooks most of the house. Both interior and exterior railings demonstrate the craftsmanship of award-winning artisan, Randy LeBlanc.

His custom iron work in the Foti home earned second place in a recent national ironworks competition.

In this belladonna of a home, crystal chandeliers grace every room, including the master bedroom and bath.

“Robin’s Hollywood-glam-style closet shimmers from the light of three cascading cut-crystal chandeliers,” says Lisa. “The ceiling literally drips with jewels, as do the heavy velvet draperies in the adjoining master bedroom. There’s a sparkle everywhere one looks, which is exactly what Robin wanted in a home.”

Situated along the back avenue of Breaux Bridge’s newest neighborhood, The Lakes, the charming residence sits on a ridge of the Bayou Teche, and is surrounded by oak and cypress trees.

The Foti family is currently installing an outdoor entertaining area near their new house. It’s designed to accompany the existing loggia and outdoor kitchen.

The new addition features a pool, tanning decks, gas fire urns, a pergola and a swim-up bar. Designed to mimic resortstyle living, it is perfectly positioned with views of the home’s living and entertainment rooms and the upstairs bedroom.

“I realized very early on in my dealings with Robin that our goals were identical, to create something beautiful and on budget, and to breathe life into her dream home. And that’s exactly what we did.”

A former accountant, Lisa pays particular attention to keeping within the budget for her interior design clients.

“The most rewarding aspect of this project was that Beau and I helped fulfill a dream for the Foti family,” Lisa says.

“Their home is the end result of decades of hard work, and they have so much to be proud of. Amazingly, not a single work day passed when the Fotis didn’t thank us.

That kind of gratitude was life-changing for Beau and me.”

Robin selected Michael Amini furniture when designing the opulent master suite. The Foti family prepares elaborate dinner parties in their gourmet kitchen, which opens onto a grand, elegantly furnished living room with 18-foot ceilings, stately columns, abundant natural light and splendid views of the treelined property from its massive windows.

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home+style

pour la maison

desert dreams

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Toss pillows with Southwestern flair ease the transition from summer to autumn by ashely hinson photo by romero & Romero

Who says you can’t

incorporate some color into autumn? Transition your home from summer into fall with an enticing combination of prints and patterns that evoke summer festivals and autumnal textures.

1. Add some sunshine with this Indian cotton and polyester throw pillow by Loloi. Paul Michael Company, 1800 Kaliste Saloom Road, Lafayette. 337-981-1289; paulmichaelcompany.com

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2. This handcrafted cotton and linen Villa pillow features a fun print in primary colors that makes the transition to fall easy.

Paul Michael Company.

3. Black and white decor is timeless, and this cotton and linen down-filled pillow from Villa is no exception. Paul Michael Company.

4. This kilim woven wool and cotton pillow was handmade in Turkey. Swags Studio, 1116 Coolidge St, Lafayette. 337-2371732; swagsstudio.com 5. A neutral pillow in varying textures of faux satin and cotton can soften a bohemianinspired space. The Royal Standard, 2015 Johnston St., Lafayette. 337-289-1144; theroyalstandard.com

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When mixing and matching throw pillows, don’t just consider color also take texture, size and shape into account.

Make sure to vary each of these for optimum visual interest.

6. Mixed prints are a must, and this down-filled linen throw pillow combines beading and a funky zigzag pattern. Bassett Home Furnishings, 501 Acadiana Mall Circle, Lafayette. 337-7351000; bassettfurniture.com

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home+style

À la mode

she’s got baggage There’s a lot to unpack here by ashley hinson | photo by romero & Romero

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When it comes to bags,

summer 2017 staples such as tassels, pebbled textures and fresh shapes will work their way into fall in warm but muted tones. Classic and lush, dense leathers in unexpected colors take on non-traditional forms, and pliable vegan leather pieces will make you question if you want the real thing.

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1. A Woodstock-worthy purse with sweet woven detailing? Yes please.

Make the look happen in luxe, tan or vegan leather with the Madison Stewart tote. BeLush Boutique, 101 Settlers Trace Blvd., Suite 1002, Lafayette. 337-288-9349 2. Minor History makes minor changes to simple design that modernize a piece, like this olive green fold-over bag. The pebbled leather purse comes complete with delicate golden zipper and hidden magnetic closure. Genterie Supply Company, 408 Jefferson St., Lafayette. 337-402-3833.

Genterie.com

acadiana profile august/september 2017

3. This perforated tan, black and white tote works as both a beach bag and a purse. The vegan leather Urban Expressions bag also comes with a small black wristlet. Maven Womenswear, 201 Settlers Trace Blvd., Suite 2021, Lafayette. 337704-2668. TheMavenStore.com 4. Here comes the sun, in the shape of a flask, from Minor History. The adorably lush gold crossbody comes in the very on-trend circle shape, perfect for nights out.

Genterie Supply Company.

5. A black bucket bag is a chic necessity. This black vegan leather purse has a laid-back drawstring closure and doubles as a backpack for all your end-ofsummer festivals. Score. Maven Womenswear.

6. Can’t decide if you want to stay refined or make a statement?

You won’t have to. With its sharp angles, textured surface and cognac vegan leather, this clutch prominently features a detachable tassel. Maven Womenswear.

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food+drink Ça c’est bon

The Juicy Lucy from Bread & Circus features two giant hand-made patties of locally-raised grass-fed beef formed around a block of sharp Cheddar cheese. The fat from the cheese helps the beef retain moisture.

sur le menu

burger kings From standard to outrageous, Acadiana has a burger for every palate

by Jyl Benson Photos by denny culbert

As satisfying as Cajun

food may be sometimes cravings hit for simple, familiar pleasures, such as an outstanding burger, particularly in the summertime when a casual attitude prevails (necessitated by the unrelenting heat) and no one will cast a sidelong look your way if you roll up your sleeves, put your elbows on the table, and eat with your hands. Just take care to have a napkin at the ready to catch the juices as they run down your chin.

food+drink

sur le menu

The Little Big Cup’s all beef patty is served dressed between two cakes of macaroni and cheese coated in Panko bread crumbs and then deep fried.

I am of solid belief that when it comes to burgers, good things tend to come from small, tightly-packed places where handmade is the rule and high turnover ensures freshness.

Moo-Noo’s Grill, a hole in the wall in Erath, is just such a place and it gets the seal of approval from my friend Boo Macomber, High Priestess of the Bayou, and one of my go-to sources in Acadiana.

The burger patties are made of high-quality beef, hand-formed into large, ragged slabs and cooked on a griddle before they are placed, juicy and dripping, between the layers of a fresh bun. Hearty eaters can order a double burger with two patties. Be forewarned: these burgers will not win a beauty contest. But for flavor Moo-Noo’s burgers are tough to beat. If you’re skipping bread consider a visit on a Thursday when the plate lunch special is a hamburger steak topped with grilled onions and served with mashed potatoes, gravy, corn on the cob and a garden salad.

Bread & Circus Provisions also meets my litmus test for being a physically small space with foods that pack a wallop of flavor. Best known for his Neapolitan pizza, lovingly crafted charcuterie and wonderfully wacky condiments (cherry ketchup anyone?), Chef Manny Augello’s burgers are every bit as exceptional as anyone would expect them to be and his Juicy Lucy is currently the talk of Acadiana. He’s known for his farm-to-table approach and employs that here with two giant hand-made patties of locally-raised grass-fed beef formed around

Moo-Noo’s double burger is hand-made, griddle cooked and juicy.

Stock up on napkins.

a block of sharp Cheddar cheese. The fat from the cheese helps the beef to retain moisture and the fats from both combine to volcanic effect. I advise cutting this burger in half before tucking into your meal. There is simply no way to get your mouth around the thing with anything resembling grace or dignity. How convenient for Augello that Poupart’s Bakery is right across the street, the brioche buns are the perfect vehicles for the delivery of this meaty bomb.

Situated on the banks of Bayou Fuselier in Arnaudville, The Little Big Cup offers an extensive menu encompassing weekend brunch, as well as lunch and dinner, but the multi-level deck outside over the water is the ideal setting for a burger. While I go for the classic affair with the addition of bacon

on a soft, fresh bun with a side of waffle fries, there’s also an utterly crazy affair of an all-beef patty served dressed between two cakes of macaroni and cheese that have been coated in Panko bread crumbs and deep fried, then employed as a “bun.”

Bonus Bite Are you having a gathering where you will be griddling or grilling your own burgers?

The Eunice Superette is supplied by its own slaughterhouse. While this is a fully-stocked grocery store, the focus here is definitely on the meat. The staff butchers are skilled in advising on custom orders and all of the beef here is grass-fed. Don’t leave without some of their excellent boudin for the grill and cracklin to munch on while you cook.

Bread & Circus Provisions 258 Bendel Road, Lafayette, 337-408-3930, bandcprovisions.com Moo-Noo’s Grill 209 E Lastie St., Erath, 337-9376971 The Eunice Superette 1230 West Laurel, Eunice, 337-546-6042, eunicesuperette.com The Little Big Cup: 149 Fuselier Road, Arnaudville, 337-754-7147, littlebigcup.com

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food+drink

de la cuisine

mayodaze Creamy, dreamy homemade mayo elevates sandwiches, sauces and salads by marcelle bienvenu photo & styling by eugenia uhl

Homemade mayonnaise is

a favorite and this summer I needed no excuse to make it. As far as I’m concerned, homemade mayonnaise is a must for my potato salad. It is also delicious when spread on a Creole tomato sandwich made with soft white bread. It gives respect to the lowly chicken or tuna salad, and it makes a simple ham and Swiss cheese sandwich a treat for lunch. My husband Rock says my mayonnaise

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

makes his homemade pimento cheese sublime. Yep, that’s the word he uses. He also claims there is nothing better than homemade mayonnaise to perk up deviled eggs or shrimp salad with which to fill a buttery half of an avocado. And oh, what it does to a BLT. Making mayonnaise brings back great memories of my mother whipping up her own concoction either by hand (a drop of oil at a time) or with a jar-like mayonnaise mixer that had a concave lid with a small hole in the center, accommodating a wire plunger. The egg and vinegar (or lemon juice) was put into the jar, and the oil was dripped in, a little at a time, while the plunger agitated the mixture until it emulsified.

A few years ago, a reader called me to tell me he had such a gadget, and in fact had several since his father had at one time been a salesman for the Wesson Oil Company. He graciously sent me three. A few weeks ago, one of my great nephews came for a visit while I was making a batch of mayo with my mayonnaise mixer. He was shocked that we were making mayonnaise from scratch since he mistakenly believed the stuff only came in a jar from the supermarket. He gleefully slathered some of the finished product on his ham sandwich and declared it amazing.

Of course, mayonnaise can be easily made in a food processor or electric mixer, thus making it even easier to indulge in the tart, creamy condiment.

As we bid farewell to summer, you might want to have a fling with your own batch of homemade mayonnaise.

One word of advice: since the mayonnaise is made with raw eggs, it’s best to use it within 48 hours, and the elderly and very young children should avoid it.

Mama’s Mayonnaise 1

large egg

1

tablespoon vinegar or fresh lemon juice

1

cup vegetable oil

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

pinch of sugar

In an electric blender or food processor blend the egg and the vinegar or lemon juice for about 30 seconds. Add the sugar and pulse a couple of times. With the processor running, slowly pour the oil through the feed tube. The mixture will thicken.

Season with salt and pepper and pulse once or twice to blend. Transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes before using.

Makes about 1 ¼ cups

Blender Mayonnaise 1 large egg 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice ½ teaspoon dry mustard ½ teaspoon salt ¼ teaspoon freshly ground

black pepper 1

cup vegetable oil

pinch of sugar

several dashes of hot sauce

In a blender, put the egg, lemon juice, mustard, sugar, salt, black pepper and hot sauce and blend for 30 seconds on high speed. Then with the motor running, pour in the oil in a slow, steady stream. The mixture will thicken as the oil is added. If you like, you can add two cloves of crushed garlic, or finely chopped fresh herbs to give the mayonnaise an added spark. Store the mayonnaise in an airtight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Makes about 1 cup

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De la cuisine

Calvados Mayonnaise If you want to walk on the wild side, try this mayonnaise flavored with a bit of Calvados, the French apple brandy, and slather it on cold pork or beef tenderloin tucked into slices of crusty French bread.

Have a clean bowl with a rolled towel wrapped around the base to prevent it from skidding around as you whisk.

1 large egg yolk 1 tablespoon Dijon mustard 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar 1 cup vegetable oil 1-2 teaspoons Calvados

(according to your taste)

a few drops of fresh lemon juice

pinch or two of salt

freshly ground black pepper

Whisk together the egg yolk, mustard, vinegar and salt.

Whisk in the oil, drop by drop, gradually increasing it into a thin stream until the mixture thickens. Gently whisk in the Calvados, lemon juice and pepper to taste. Store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

Makes about 1 cup

Salsa Mayonnaise When I have an abundance of homegrown tomatoes, this is a real treat. This salsa mayonnaise is delicious with shrimp, grilled chicken or fish.

2 ripe medium-size tomatoes,

peeled, seeded and diced 1 teaspoon fresh lime juice

(or more to taste) 1 teaspoon distilled white vinegar ¼ teaspoon salt 1 tablespoon minced fresh cilantro 1 teaspoon minced jalapeno (optional)

several drops Tabasco or other hot sauce

1

batch Blender Mayonnaise

Combine all the ingredients in a glass bowl and mix. Fold in the mayonnaise. Chill until ready to use.

Makes about 1½ cups 28 |

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Shrimp with Curry Mayonnaise This is an easy and delicious recipe for an appetizer.

2 pounds medium-size shrimp,

peeled and deveined 1 lemon, halved 2 teaspoons salt 1 teaspoon cayenne pepper ¾ cup mayonnaise 1 tablespoon minced shallots 1 teaspoon curry powder 1 teaspoon dry mustard 1 teaspoon tarragon vinegar

salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the lemon, salt, and cayenne. Add the shrimp and return the water to a boil.

Remove from the heat, cover and let stand for 5 minutes. Drain and spread the shrimp on a shallow platter to cool. Refrigerate until completely chilled.

Combine the mayonnaise, shallots, curry, mustard, and vinegar in a bowl. Whisk to blend.

Season with salt and pepper.

Put the shrimp in a large bowl and add the curry mixture. Toss to coat evenly. Serve immediately or store in the refrigerator until ready to use. Serve with party crackers or thin slices of toasted French bread.

Makes 6 to 8 appetizer servings

Sauce Ravigote This is simple but tasty recipe for an appetizer. The word “ravigote” comes from the French word “ravigoter, which means to invigorate. The sauce pairs well with shrimp, crabmeat and lobster.

Combine ¼ cup finely chopped parsley, 2 tablespoons finely chopped green onions, ½ cup capers, drained, ½ cup mayonnaise, ¼ cup Creole mustard, 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce, 1 teaspoon prepared horseradish and hot sauce to taste in a bowl and stir to blend. Store in an airtight container and refrigerate until ready to use.

Makes about 2 cups

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food+drink

recettes de cocktails

tiki-tini time Enjoy a blast of cold air and refreshing end-of-summer cocktails with a tropical kick

By Lisa LeBlanc-Berry photo by romero & romero

As summer winds down and we

deal with the height of hurricane season, it’s time to break out the tiki torches and whip up some end-of-summer Tiki-Tinis. If the heat remains unbearable, enjoy your Tiki-Tini in a deliciously cold living room, preferably with a pool view to extend the vacation fantasy.

In south Louisiana, you never know what to expect this time of year, so it’s always a good idea to optimize summer’s last kiss. Soon, we could be scrambling for batteries, boarding up the place and spending long stretches cooped up with interlopers with whom you’d rather not party.

The Tiki-Tini was recently created by mixologist Jordon Morello at the elegant Fremin’s Restaurant in Thibodeaux. Centered by a beautiful old mahogany bar that once anchored the former apothecary housed in the historic building, Fremin’s serves delicious chargrilled oysters, seafood Napoleon, and other amazing appetizers at the bar with your cocktails, which are the best in town.

This special martini cocktail, perfumed with notes of fruit, has hints of the Caribbean’s Laraha Orange. It’s one sip away from tropical paradise. Although your summer days of overlooking those palm tree-lined beaches may be over, serve this seductively blue-hued, sweet concoction and you’ll be transported to blue oceans and blue skies. Once the buzz kicks in, of course.

Tiki-Tini In a shaker combine ¾ oz. vodka, ½ oz. rum, ¼ oz. Triple Sec, ½ oz. Blue Curaçao liqueur. Splash each of cranberry and pineapple juices and a splash of simple syrup. Rim glass with sugar. Garnish with orange wedge and maraschino cherries.

Fremin’s Restaurant & Catering 402 West Third St., Thibodaux. 985-449-0333. fremins.net

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When dreaming of a cool career, there are myriad options. From fashionistas to gardeners and furniture makers to illustrators, there are those who forge their own path, both early on and after they've moved on from other endeavors. This year, we found five people with envy-inducing jobs that'll have you asking: What do I want to be when I grow up?

Cool Jobs photos by romero & romero

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

I try to put humor in, humor or a clever twist. I kind of think of that as my style.

I'm Gravy, woof

By Design Burt Durand draws crowds in Lafayette and beyond with colorful album art

By Ashley Hinson

or Dirty Coast T-shirts, Durand works full time as head art director of BBR Creative in downtown Lafayette. He’s at the helm of idea creation and execution, and that approach spills over into his personal work, designing the logos for the C. Wolf Barber & Shop, Rêve Coffee Roasters, Community Coffee and Burgersmith.

Durand also contributes to the music scene with colorful fliers and album art for local acts like Lost Bayou Ramblers, Sean Bruce, the Rayo Brothers and many of J. Burton’s projects, such as FIGHTS and Talker. His work garnered national acclaim when his Cracklin Festival T-shirt for Parish Ink — depicting a monstrous pig that resembles the Kraken, a sea monster, being cooked in a pot that resembles a turbulent ocean with “Release the Cracklin” brandished across it — won the illustrative journal Communication Arts’ 2016 Illustration Competition.

Durand’s work is sharp but fluid, and he takes inspiration from artists like Jeff Smith and his Bone comic and Calvin and Hobbes author Bill Watterson, both of whom merge their illustrations with well-crafted stories.

“I try to put humor in, humor or a clever twist,” he said. “I kind of think of that as my style. There are so many artists and illustrators, painters, that are better than me. But maybe there’s something I can do to differentiate myself, to add a clever twist or clever concepts.”

Durand’s next project is a mural for Dat Dog’s Lafayette location at 201 Jefferson St. Its corner spot on the edge of downtown secures llustrator Burt Durand’s the mural’s position to greet Lafayette visitors drawings, logos, cartoons and coming from the Evangeline Thruway. He fliers share the common thread also wants to eventually do a portrait series of acute design and of Lafayette creatives. playful, kinetic energy.

To keep churning out commissionHis designs have become ubiquitous Durand’s work is sharp based and client-focused work, but fluid, and he takes in Acadiana because he never stops inspiration from artists Durand said he stays inspired by like Jeff Smith and working. looking at award-winning work in his Bone comic and “My work ethic is to always be the design and advertising fields, Calvin and Hobbes Bill Watterson, creating, whether it’s drawing or author and seeing people do what they love both of whom merge their illustrations with music, or writing or even cooking,” within the community. well-crafted stories.

Durand, 34, said. “It's always good “There’s cool work out there, and to be doing and making something.” everyone keeps all that love and passion When he isn’t freelancing his drawings around them,” he said. “It’s kind of hard not for Time Out New York, Dollar Shave Club, to stay inspired.”

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P

istache owner Alyce Ray,

29, knew she didn’t want to be behind a desk forever.

Acquiring the shop has fostered her obsession with St. Landry Parish and contributed to the growing number of women-owned businesses in historic Grand Coteau.

A native of Opelousas, Ray discovered the shop when she stepped into Pistache’s equally southern and feminine sister store, The Kitchen Shop, between leaving office life and beginning a stint as an au pair in Italy.

Ray met then-Pistache owner Nancy Brewer, and the two quickly bonded. Ray worked in

Southern Charm Shop owner Alyce Ray brings bohemian style to Grand Coteau

By Ashley Hinson

This shop is very feminine. It’s for everyone, from birth to a 90-year-old woman.

I'm D'Artagnan, meow

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the shops during holidays and special events, and bought the shop last year.

Ray maintained and expanded upon Brewer’s vision of modern southern womanhood by keeping her vintage-inspired A-line dresses, white cotton tops with lace detailing and old-fashioned nightgowns, and added jewelry and accessories inspired by nature, Gunne Sax-influenced wedding gowns, bridal combs and vines, and handmade Indian embroidery.

Her pieces appeal to bohemian young women who, like Ray, draw inspiration from traveling and collect vintage dresses.

She hangs her cotton and linen items from wrought iron gazebos. Shop cats D’Artagnan and Blanche meander between the boutique to the courtyard and back again.

“This shop is very feminine,” she said. “It’s for everyone, from birth to a 90-year-old woman.

They’re breathable fabrics that are appropriate for our climate, 100 percent cotton garments that are lightweight and breathable year-round.

It spans generations; a granddaughter comes in with mother and grandmother, and each could find something to wear.”

Grand Coteau is most known for its boarding school, Academy of the Sacred Heart, and the Jesuit Spirituality Center at St. Charles College. Ray said the idyllic girls school and the college’s retreats attract women from the world over in addition to A native of Opelousas, Ray Acadiana residents. discovered the “Grand Coteau has shop when she stepped into always been a charming Pistache’s equally southern and and special place to me. feminine sister Whether going to the store, The Kitchen Shop, between academy for any kind of leaving office life sporting event, or pick ing and beginning a stint as an au pair up a gift at kitchen shop, in Italy. Ray met then-Pistache owner I just felt a connection to Nancy Brewer, and this place in my soul.” the two quickly bonded.

The town is flush with feminine businesses, too: local wedding staple Root Floral operates a few feet away, Petit Rouge antique shop is next door and a new salon and lipstick bar, Dollface, opened down the road. Ray said she wants to eventually collaborate with other locally owned ventures by making Grand Coteau something of a bridal hub.

Ray will celebrate her first year as owner this fall, and she said she spent her first year learning. In the future, she would like to incorporate vintage items, host events in the courtyard, and maybe open a second location that has similar charm and strong ties to tradition.

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Pick and Grin New Iberia orchard owner Eddie Romero shares the fruits of his labor

If I won that Powerball and had one or two hundred million dollars, the first thing I’d do is try to build a big fence around this place so no one could see the good time I’m having here.

By Denny Culbert

E

ddie Romero’s Orchard just might be one of Acadiana’s best kept secrets…sort of.

“I don’t advertise, it’s all still word of mouth,” says Romero.

But during peach season and blackberry season, those in the know arrive in droves to pick their own fruit in his backyard orchard. In the past decade Romero has trained a Cornell student on the art of pruning muscadine vines, entertained bus loads of French tourists with his “clean jokes,” and has enthralled horticulturists from all parts of the globe with his personal slice of heaven near New Iberia.

His pick-your-own operation has been in full swing since his retirement from the Department of Energy in 2006.

“This investment back here is my 401k,” says Romero of the fruit trees that started as a hobby Romero shows no in 1986. signs of slowing “I knew what I wanted to down, as he breezes between rows of do when I retired,” he says. grape vines full of plump green and “I wanted to have some purple bunches and fruits behind my house a pair of speakers blare his favorite that I could pick and give Cajun tunes from a to my friends, but it got stereo in the barn.

He continues to so big and I only have so learn something many friends, you know? new each day and grow experimental Then I started selling and I varieties of plants. said man, this is the thing!”

At 74, Romero has bounced back from hardships including a multi-million dollar business sunk by the real estate market crash of the 1980s, a battle with prostate cancer and even the occasional citrus thief. He attributes his current health and wellness to his fruit.

•

“I drink five ounces of blackberry juice every day, and today I feel great,” he says.

He shows no signs of slowing down either, as he breezes between rows of grape vines full of plump green and purple bunches and a pair of speakers blare his favorite Cajun tunes from a stereo in the barn.

Romero continues to learn something new daily and grow experimental varieties of plants.

“No one knows it all except for the Good Lord,” he says. “He knows what He’s doing.

Now if only He would give me those lotto numbers.”

“If I won that Powerball and had one or two hundred million dollars, the first thing I’d do is try to build a big fence around this place so no one could see the good time I’m having here,” he says. “Then I’d probably just go back to the same thing I’ve been doing.

Get up at 6 a.m., drink my coffee, eat my breakfast and then come out back and play.

If I tried to be different, I’d probably die.”

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Satchels of Substance

I use rich leathers in conjunction with restored alligator skins to create leather goods at a more affordable price point.

Lafayette leather goods designer Alexandra Warren’s brand of alligator chic

By Lisa LeBl anc-Berry

F

or decades, alligator purses and other such luxury satchels have served as status symbols carried by people with social authority. Prized for their durability, rarity, symmetrical patterning, elegance and texture, they can be pricey.

FinancesOnline listed a $250,000 Cleopatra clutch made of metallic silver alligator hide accented with diamonds by Lana Marks as one of the 10 most expensive handbags in the world.

Since Louisiana has the highest alligator population in the U.S., and it’s the nation’s largest purveyor, major European fashion houses such as Gucci, Louis Vuitton and Versace buy most of Louisiana’s alligator skins each year. Lafayette’s expanding Mark Staton Co. is on equal footing due to their “insider” connections with local farmers and trappers who provide the state’s finest exotic skins for their product lines.

Alexandra Warren is one of their soughtafter designers handling the challenging, meticulous custom work orders.

If you want to order one of Warren’s exquisite custom alligator handbags at Mark Staton Co. the wait is around four months.

Her job includes product manufacturing and development, but the Lafayette native’s specialization is in handbags. In fact, it’s her passion. Warren’s bachelor’s degree in Fashion Design helped her learn the tricks of the trade at Mark Staton.

“I’m preparing orders to be delivered by Christmas,” Warren says. “On my weekends,

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or when I can find a spare moment, I work on skins “without a clue about what to do with my own line of exotic leather goods geared at them,” Warren says. She helps conceptualize a lower price point called Floodline. their ideal luxury items from start I’ve partnered with Mark Staton to finish.

Since Louisiana has the to create my own line, which is highest “I couldn’t feel luckier to have alligator population in the U.S., and it’s the purely my design aesthetic. I use discovered this job’s existence in largest purveyor, rich leathers in conjunction with nation’s my own back yard,” Warren says. major European fashion houses such as Gucci, restored alligator skins to create “I’m constantly learning. Alligator Louis Vuitton and Versace leather goods at a more affordable leather is one of the most expensive buy most of Louisiana’s alligator skins each year. price point.” to work with, and it’s such a valuable Now that Louisiana’s alligator local resource. When I think of my hunting season is starting up (late August future, Mark Staton will always be a part of until the end of September), more and more it. They are like family.” people will be showing up with their alligator

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O

n a Saturday morning, while sipping dark roast coffee in her back yard, Katherine Gooch was pondering new designs for a screen door.

She suddenly jumped up, grabbed a roll of tin roofing, threw it down in her driveway and began running over it with her pickup truck, again and again.

“My neighbors must think I’m nuts,” Gooch says. “They saw me driving five feet forward and five feet backward over and over and over again, just running over this poor piece of tin.

But the old door was going to be trashed.”

Just before the tin roof throw-down, Gooch had a fleeting epiphany about a discarded old pecky cypress door she was harboring for reuse. It had splintered and broken panels, but would serve as an ideal base for the new

I’ve always been one to love a treasure hunt. I enjoy the thrill of discovering hidden gems.

Treasure Huntress Reuse of objets trouvé inspires Breaux Bridge furniture maker Katherine Gooch’s artful adaptations

By Lisa LeBl anc-Berry

screen door commissioned by a Lafayette landscape architect.

She decided to remove the panels and replace them with corrugated tin and screens rimmed with vibrant inlays for added dimension. The finishing touch would be the neck of a splendid old violin for the door handle, something gleaned during her “treasure” hunting forays near the bayou.

Before Gooch started having such cosmic flashes of furniture design genius, she was known for other attributes in Miami, where she resided for 30 years. A former graphic artist, she was held in high regard as a photographer, guitarist, mixed media artist and as an accomplished gourmet chef.

She moved back to Acadiana five years ago, and purchased a charming Cajun cottage in downtown Breaux Bridge. Gooch’s contagious sense of humor that attracts admirers in Pont Breaux is a happy side effect of her relentless experimentation in art and in life.

Recently self-taught in the art of carpentry, the Vermilion Parish native is successfully designing furniture and lighting as a sideline.

Her regular gig involves the acquisition, repurposing and selling of vintage items at a booth she rents in Bayou Town, a quaint multi-vendor antiques and collectibles market located in downtown Breaux Bridge.

It isn’t often that someone describes their job as a “total blast.” Gooch’s work-related superlatives are at once refreshing. She employs graphic art sensibilities with creative carpentry and a playful When designing spirit to fashion functional art interior with a twist. Her preferred architectural elements materials are vintage items and for her new discarded rubbish she finds cottage, Gooch built a four-footalong country roads bordering tall row of giant piano keys the Bayou Teche. from salvaged “To me, changing the scalloped wooden boards, intended use of something adding a dramatic border into a new function in a clever to her kitchen. way is ultra fun. Like taking an old fishing reel, for example, and turning it into a retractable clothes-line for delicates. I’ve made pendant lighting out of chicken feeders, a kitchen knife magnetic strip out of an old train pressure gauge, gate pulls out of antique wrenches, and shelving out of the fold-down lid of an old upright piano.

“When someone compliments something I’ve repaired, shined up or built upon, they evidently appreciate the beauty, and this makes what I do seem worthwhile. It’s like a meeting of the minds with total strangers who often become friends, and it’s a total blast.”

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A JOURNEY DOWN THE BAYOU FROM PORT BARRE TO LAKE FAUSSE: KAYAKING BAYOU TECHE

F

ive days of constant paddling in the Louisiana sun can be rewarding, full of surprises, and at moments a little maddening — especially for a first-time long-distance kayaker. That was me. In May of 2016, I embarked on a journey down the Bayou Teche with my friend Jesse Guidry for part birthday celebration and part documentation of the waterway. Jesse, the birthday boy, is an avid paddler and has more than a few bucket list trips on his list, so I was happy to help him cross off this Bayou Teche journey. I, on the other hand, was limited to just a few floats looking for alligators in Lake Martin in my paddling history. Paddling the waterways of southwest Louisiana became my favorite hobby after this trip and inspired me to buy my first kayak.

On a beautiful blue-skied morning, we loaded our crafts (heavy with supplies for any situation plus my camera gear) into

the water at the Port Barre boat launch and set our course for Arnaudville, where we would spend our first night in a newly restored and updated 1890s Cajun/Creole cottage on the banks of the Teche. Beyond living in a piece of floating plastic in the middle of the bayou for days at a time, we weren’t exactly roughing it.

We ate steak, drank good whiskey, found an unexpected boiled seafood joint, devoured the best fried catfish in Breaux Bridge, and never had to sleep outdoors. Every night we were able to find suitable accommodations to rest our weary bodies.

The wildlife, ever-changing landscape, and views that can only be experienced from the bayou made the five-to-10-hour days of paddling visually engaging (and helped take my mind off the need to be constantly paddling to make our daily destination before nightfall). As my skin browned in the mid-day sun, I could feel my arms, chest and shoulders strengthen from W R I T T EN the rhythmic strokes that & P H O TO pulled my kayak forward in the still waters of the GR A P H ED bayou. At times it felt as B Y DE N N Y if we were in the middle of C UL BE RT the Amazon jungle while at other stretches of our journey beautiful homes and backyard pig farms graced the horizon. The few people we did see along the river were happy to see the Teche being utilized and gave a friendly wave as we glided by. Countless pairs of cardinals (they mate for life) crossed our path, along with snakes, nutria rats, great blue herons, egrets and an alligator or two. We were even treated to a display of aquatic acrobatics by a group of guys with a fast boat and wakeboard.

The final day of the trip and possibly the most rewarding, partially because it was the end and partially because of the magical giant cypress trees we paddled between on the edge of Lake Fausse Pointe, wasn’t part of our original plan. We left the Bayou Teche on a whim at Charenton to travel north into the Atchafalaya Basin Spillway, past Grand Avoille Cove and across the lake into Lake Fausee Pointe State Park. Right at the end, we caught a perfectly-timed spring shower to cool us after a full day of exploration. Thanks to those five days on the bayou I have a much greater appreciation for what the waterways of Acadiana have to offer. As you get out and explore this summer, hopefully you’ll find me in the shade of the cypress forest floating in my favorite piece of plastic.

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What to Bring I completely overpacked on my first paddle trip.

This list is my essential, in no particular order:

At least a half gallon of water for drinking per day, especially in the spring and summer (this can be replenished daily) // Sunscreen // Whiskey, one good bottle ought to do it // Protein-rich snacks like canned fish, smoked or cured meats, and nut butters for between meals // One good pocket knife that can cut both meat and rope // Coffee grounds and stovetop coffee pot // One can of your favorite Cajun seasoning mix and a small bottle of hot sauce (you never know when you'll encounter bland food) // Water shoes or sandals // One good pair of shoes for walking around towns and going out to dinner // One respectable set of clothes if you plan on dining out at night // One thin T-shirt for each day you’ll be on the water // Three pairs of comfortable shorts // Camera plus extra batteries and memory cards // Binoculars for nature watching // Dry bags and/or watertight cases in which to pack everything // Flashlight or headlamp // At least one likable paddling partner (unless you're looking for solitude, which can easily be found on the Teche)

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

Port Barre to Arnaudville The Bayou Teche is narrow with lush forests on each bank for large stretches in this section of St. Landry Parish. It felt as if we were floating through the jungle with the tree limbs reaching out over the water to create a shaded tunnel heading south. We saw egrets feeding on snakes and frogs along the banks as we became acclimated to life on the water. The end of our first day was rewarded with a sno-ball at Wyble’s before retiring to the recently relocated and renovated Cajun Creole Cabin with a back porch overlooking the Teche.

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

Arnaudville to St. Martinville The longest stretch of the trip was full of glimpses into backyard farms, a Little Blue Heron sighting, and a show of aquatic sportsmanship. We took a short break in downtown Breaux Bridge to refuel with crispy deep-fried seafood at Le CafĂŠ. Cruising into our port for the night at dusk, we docked near the bridge in town and hauled our gear a few blocks to an old church that had been converted to a home.

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Where to stay Hotels, Cabins and Bed and Breakfasts Arnaudville Cajun Creole Cabin airbnb.com/ rooms/11857463 Breaux Bridge Bayou Cabins bayoucabins.com or Bayou Teche Bed and Breakfast bayoutechebedandbreakfast.com St. Martinville A church built in 1904 that was converted to a home airbnb.com/ rooms/14252930 or The Old Castillo Bed and Breakfast oldcastillo.com New Iberia Bayou Chateau airbnb.com/ rooms/9203908 Charenton Cypress Bayou Casino (This stop requires extra planning because the casino is not on the bayou and is potentially good end point for the trip.) cypressbayou.com Lake Fausse Pointe State Park Campground or Cabins crt.state.la.us/ louisiana-state-parks/ parks/lake-faussepointe-state-park

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St. Martinville to New Iberia A portage around the oldest operating lock and dam in the Mississippi Delta is one of the challenges facing a paddler on this segment of the bayou trail. If you give the St. Martin Parish Government a call 24 hours in advance you can be locked through (or assisted in passing), rather than portaging around the dam. (337-394-2200)

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

New Iberia to Charenton The water widens in this stretch of the bayou with both industry and neighborhoods increasing along the banks lined with elephant ear and cattail. On our lunch stop in Jeanerette we discovered the boiled crabs and shrimp at T-Bob’s Seafood. We also picked up a fried pork chop at The Coffee House, which serves up plate lunches rather than cold brew. Jeanerette is home to LeJeune’s Bakery that has been baking French bread and ginger cakes since 1884.

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Where to eat Meat, Fowl, Fish and Shellfish Port Barre Boudin and the famous Jalapeño Sausage and Cheese Bread at Bourque’s Supermarket Leonville Champagne’s Marche for fried chicken Arnaudville Little Big Cup // Wyble’s Fireworks and SnoBalls // Russell’s Food Center Breaux Bridge Le Café for fried catfish and shrimp St. Martinville The St John Restaurant New Iberia Fromage for Grilled Cheese // Bojangles Sushi and Oysters for raw seafood and a martini Jeanerette T-Bob’s for boiled crabs // The Coffee Shop (not actually a coffee shop) for a fried pork chop plate lunch Charenton Mr Lester’s Steakhouse in Cypress Bayou Casino (This stop requires extra planning because the casino is not on the bayou

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Charenton to Lake Fausse The final day of the tour we paddled into the Charenton Drainage and Navigation Canal headed north across Grand Avoille Cove and into Lake Fausse Pointe State Park. The cypress forest on the edge of the lake was the most stunning natural wonder that we encountered in the five days on the water.

Floating in awe among the centuries-old giant trees we spotted wildlife ranging from alligators to fishing osprey.

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AC AD I AN A

HOSPITALS + Innovations in care, procedures, facilities and devices

Article by Will Kalec and list compiled by Ashley Hinson

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I n Ac a d ia n a , th e hospitals a n d th e i r

staff evolve to meet the ever-changing healthcare needs of the people of the region. For the 2017 Acadiana Profile Hospitals of Acadiana, we've researched what's new and who is specializing in what so you can determine when and where to get the best treatment. Also this year, we focused on the innovations in the care, procedures, facilities and devices that are putting Acadiana hospitals at the forefront of the medical profession. — Melanie Warner Spencer

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Advanced Care Acadiana attracts medical professionals who are at the top of their profession

Acadia Parish Acadia General 1305 Crowley Rayne Hwy. Crowley alh.org (337) 783 -3222 The nonprofit Acadia General serves Acadia Parish as part of the Lafayette General Health system with 140 beds. The nonprofit facility has a 24-hour Emergency Department in addition to acute medical and surgical care in oncology, orthopedics, gynecology, podiatry, radiology, and vein therapy. Offsite, Acadia General has two outpatient service facilities in The Center for Wound Care and Hyperbaric Medicine and Acadia Central Imaging.

Allen Parish Allen Parish Hospital

S

Symptoms of nostalgia enveloped Nettie Bruno

as she walked into Opelousas General Hospital on May 30, 2017, a far cry from the excitement, nerves and angst the mother-to-be likely experienced when she passed through these doors 60 years ago to the day.

To facilitate its first-ever patient, doctors at the thennew hospital opened two hours earlier than intended, shepherding Bruno through the birth of her son, Andre.

Back then, a concrete walkway out front hadn’t yet been laid, so Bruno — and all of the other hospital patients that followed her on opening day — carefully stepped over a series of wood planks to the entrance. Phone calls, of which they weren’t many, were handled by an actual switchboard operator. The entire operation consisted of 20 beds contained inside a small, three-story building, which was more than suitable considering a little more than 100 patients total were treated in all of 1957.

Certainly, times have changed — a sentiment echoed by many who attended Opelousas General’s anniversary party.

Today, Opelousas General Health System’s thumbprint is spread across three campuses. Its maximum patient occupancy is more than 10 times what it was on Day One. The entire medical staff is 200 people deep and is supported by roughly 1,000 total workers making the care provider one of the largest employers in St. Landry Parish.

The scene at Opelousas General — a quantum shift between then and now — lends itself as a microcosm of the exponential growth witnessed in the medical field throughout Acadiana in the last decade. Once just a societal necessity, medicine in Acadiana today is a vital economic piston throughout the region that provides an essential economic buoy given the unpredictability of the energy sector. State-of-the-art facilities and equipment normally reserved for large metropolitan areas have blossomed in towns like Lafayette, Lake Charles, Houma and Abbeville, thus attracting both capable and innovative medical minds.

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acadiana profile august/september 2017

108 Sixth Ave. Kinder allenparishhospital.com (337) 738-2527 Allen Parish Hospital is an acute and specialty care hospital that serves the tri-parish area of Allen, Beauregard and Jeff Davis parishes.

Located in Kinder, APH offers respiratory care, physical and occupational therapy, a cardiology clinic, 24-hour emergency services, and more. Available home services include post-op care, physical therapy, speech therapy, nursing care, diabetic and blood pressure testing and monitoring.

The hospital provides group and individual therapy and professional counseling in its psychiatric recovery unit for mental illness and addiction. APH also works with the National Alliance on Mental Illness, which provides a free Family-toFamily Education Program that covers everything from medication side effects to current research on mental illness causes.

Oakdale Community Hospital 130 Hospital Drive Oakdale oakdalecommunityhospital.com (318) 335-3700 This 60-bed hospital offers both inpatient and outpatient services, including emergency, imaging, laboratory, cardiology, nutritional, cancer management, physical therapy, respiratory care, family health, and women’s services. The hospital is accredited by the The American College of Radiology,

and its certified mammography unit uses low-energy rays to detect abnormalities. The hospital currently ranks in the top percent in Louisiana for heart failure treatment and offers a variety of non-invasive heart services. Oakdale Community Hospital also offers two family health clinics in Oakdale and Elizabeth, Louisiana.

Ascension Parish St. Elizabeth Hospital 1125 West Hwy. 30 Gonzales steh.com (225) 647-5000 The faith-based, nonprofit St. Elizabeth Hospital is one of four hospitals in the Franciscan missionaries of Our Lady Health System, a five-hospital system that serves almost 60 percent of Louisiana residents with 1,800 beds.

It has partnered with the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center for radiation oncology and has accredited cardiopulmonary services including respiratory therapy, cardiac testing, an MRI center and a telemetry unit. The hospital also operates a community clinic in Gonzales, providing services to patients ten and older who are uninsured or underinsured. St. Elizabeth was recently named the Hospital of the Year by the Louisiana State Nurses Association for the fifth time in addition to myriad accolades from the healthcare community, including being named one of the 100 Best Places to Work in Healthcare® by Modern Healthcare Magazine.

Assumption Parish Assumption Community Hospital 135 Hwy. 402 Napoleonville ololrmc.com/pages/assumption.aspx (985) 369-3600 Assumption Community Hospital is a critical access hospital in with 15 beds. It operates as a nonprofit hospital and is a branch of the Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center. Outpatient services include a smoking cessation program, breast cancer screenings and mammograms. As part of their community outreach, Assumption Community Hospital also provides health fairs and health screenings to Assumption Parish residents.

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Calcasieu Parish Christus St. Patrick Hospital

Procedure Innovations

used the Spectranetics System to remove a blood clot.

“These cases were complex, but we were able to achieve 100 percent clinical success,” Perhaps the greatest Dr. Walker says. “This outreach is an invaluable opportunity to share our knowledge and testament to the medical technologies with the medical community in procedure innovations China that has a patient population with a high taking place within and growing rate of peripheral arterial disease.”

Much closer to home, in the spring of 2017, Acadiana is that they’re doctors at Lafayette General became the second not solely confined to group of medical professionals in the state of Louisiana to perform full knee-replacement the imaginary borders surgery using MAKO technology. In layman’s of the region terms, a “MAKOplasty” is a patient-specific, robotic-arm procedure that enables surgeons to leave vital tissue and ligaments unharmed during joint replacement. Previously, MAKO had only been used in partial kneereplacement surgeries.

After a CT scan of the knee is taken, MAKO software creates a 3D surgical plan (the specifics of the surgical plan vary from patient to patient). From there, during the operation, the surgeon guides the robotic arm step-by-step within the mapped-out area of the knee defined by MAKO in its preoperative plan, thus protecting the structural integrity of parts not needing repair. Dr. Don Yeager of Lafayette General has become so proficient in using the robot that he’s now instructing other D r . C raig Wal ke r — who f o u n d e d th e surgeons in Louisiana how to fully utilize the pioneering Cardiovascular Institute of the MAKO system.

South in 1983 as a one-doctor show in Houma Lafayette General advanced medical proceand watched it swell to a multiple-location, dures in Acadiana this May when Dr. Alan world-renowned practice that champions Appley performed a first-of-its-kind frameless research and state-of-the-art care Deep Brain Stimulation procedure Mako — visited China in November 2016 Technology. — a process used to treat symptoms and performed that country’s first Left to right: of Parkinson’s such as tremors, stiffTotal Hip, use of laser and drug-coated balloon ness and slowed movement — using Total Knee technology in a limb-saving procedure Medtronic’s Nexframe with O-Arm. and Partial needed because of a blocked artery.

The technology affords the surgeon Knee In addition to performing the procea navigational component, so that the dures, Dr. Walker also conducted a instruments used in the procedure can series of instructional lectures around proper be tracked through the body in real time. operating methods of Spectranetics CVX-300 Previously, a pre-DBS surgery was required Excimer Laser System (the same system used before the procedure itself so that the surgeons at the CIS in Louisiana). could place assistance markers. Our Lady of In one case at Beijing’s Xuanwu Hospital, a Lourdes is now also performing procedures 70-year-old patient with a low-limb blockage using the robotic arm. was able to have her leg saved when Dr. Walker

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524 Dr. Michael DeBakey Drive Lake Charles christusstpatrick.org (337) 436 -2511 Named for the patron saint of Ireland upon the insistence of Dr. John Greene Martin, Christus St. Patrick Hospital was dedicated on St. Patrick’s Day in 1908 and joined the Christus Health system in 1999.

The hospital offers many services, including neurology, women's, pediatric,lgeriatric and behavioral health services. It also houses a rehabilitation center and offers lung cancer screenings. The facility is home to the Dubuis Hospital of Lake Charles, which provides care to patients with complex medical issues that require extended acute care hospitalization, such as wound care, rehabilitation, and ventilator dependency.

Lake Charles Memorial Hospital 1701 Oak Park Blvd.

Lake Charles lcmh.com (337) 494-3000 As the only full-service community hospital in Lake Charles, Lake Charles Memorial Hospital also serves as the largest communityowned nonprofit healthcare system in southwest Louisiana. The hospital has four campuses: Lake Charles Memorial Hospital, Lake Charles Memorial Hospital for Women, Memorial Specialty Hospital and Moss Memorial Health Clinic.

Specialty care services include inpatient and outpatient services, as well as a full-service trauma and emergency department and urgent care facility. A full range of diagnostics and pathology services available include CT scanning, ultrasound, nuclear medicine, MRI, endoscopic, cardiovascular and cancer diagnostics, ENT, urology, psychiatry, rehabilitation, orthopedic and sports medicine, obstetrics, gynecology, neurology, internal and pain medicine, pediatrics and more.

Lake Area Medical Center 4200 Nelson Road Lake Charles lakeAreaMC.com (337) 474-6370 This 88-bed full-service acute care hospital offers inpatient, outpatient, medical and surgical care for men, women and children. With more than 200 physicians on the medical staff, LAMC’s specialty services include cardiology, labor and delivery, a level III neonatal ICU. Surgical services include robotics,

Device Innovations Game-changing equipment impacts life for Acadiana patients

and urology. The hospital also has a 24-hour Emergency Department.

Lake Area Medical Center is an accredited Bariatric Surgery Center, offering a specialized weight loss program. It also serves patients at the Grand Lake Medical Clinic, Lake Area Physicians and Surgicare of Lake Charles, an ambulatory outpatient surgical center.

West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital 701 Cypress St. Sulphur wcch.com (337) 527-7034

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Co n si d e r i n g so f tball coac h e s co n d u c t m u c h

of their business in a cloud of dust and dirt, officials at University Hospital & Clinics in Lafayette felt Michael Lotief - the skipper of the nationally-ranked Ragin Cajuns squad - was the perfect candidate to receive a state-of-the-art tracheotomy valve. The manufacturer agreed.

In fact, Lotief became the first person in the country to be outfitted with the ProTrach DualCare, a valve that maintains the natural heat and moisture in the lungs of patients with tracheostomies, enabling them to speak. The new valve is also a hygienic barrier between the lungs ProTrach and the elements. Lotief underwent a DualCare tracheotomy in August 2015.

Amos Medical, the developer of the valve, receives feedback from UHC on Lotief ’s experience with the device.

“In athletics, everybody wants to win all the time,” Lotief told UHC officials right after the installation. “When you face adversity, struggle and sometimes even failure, that’s when you need your support structure….It’s good to see these people took an interest in my care.”

With that said, not every device innovation is necessarily designed for the betterment of just the patient.

For instance, the Cardiovascular Institute of the South and Opelousas General Health System equipped its cardiac catheterization lab with a Biotronik Zero-Gravity Suspension Radiation Protection Unit — an innovation that guards against radiation exposure when cardiologists are operating.

The unit is mounted to the ceiling and affords up to a 100 percent reduction in radiation exposure compared to an old-fashioned lead apron or movable shields. Therefore, it also protects physicians from neck and back strain over time cause by wearing weighty lead protective gear. Dr. Kalyan Veerina, an interventional cardiologist, calls the device a “game changer.”

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The 107-bed West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital was honored with the 2016 Women’s Choice Award ® for America’s Best Hospitals for Patient Safety, and earned an A grade in the Spring 2016 update to the Hospital Safety Score by The Leapfrog Group, which rates how well hospitals protect patients from accidents, errors, injuries, and infection. The hospital offers an array of healthcare services, including cancer care, cardiology, breast health, emergency medicine, radiology and imaging, pediatrics, and more. It recently launched the area’s first specialized program for breast cancer patients, designating a single nurse or other health professional to help patients navigate the path to recovery.

WCCH also has a sleep center and both cardiac rehabilitation and cardiology services, along with servicing rural health clinics in Hackberry, Vinton and Johnson Bayou. Equestrian-based care services are also available through the Genesis Therapeutic Riding Center for patients with developmental disabilities or brain injuries. WCCH also participates in Shots for Tots to provide inexpensive or free immunization for children.

Evangeline Parish Mercy Regional Medical Center 3501 US-190 Eunice acadianmedicalcenter.com (337) 580-7500 800 E. Main St. Ville Platte mercyregionalmedicalcenter.com (337) 363-5684 The nonprofit Mercy Regional Medical Center formed when Ville Platte Medical Center and Acadian Medical Center merged in 2010 and now serves more than 97,000 patients annually under LifePoint Hospitals. Between the two campuses in Eunice and Ville Platte, the hospital offers a 24-hour emergency room, a cardiology center, pain management, imaging, dialysis, gastroenterology,

gynecology, obstetrics, oncology and more. The Joint Commission accredited both facilities, which received Top Honors from LifePoint Hospitals for delivering quality care and ensuring fiscal responsibility.

Savoy Medical Center 801 Poinciana Ave. Mamou savoymedical.com (337) 468 -0346 Located just outside the heart of Mamou, the 176-bed Savoy Medical Center is an acute care facility that is adjacent to the Savoy Cancer Center. It services patients within a 30-mile radius, specializing in behavioral health, oncology, and rehabilitation. Savoy designates 34 beds for its psychiatric facility and 10 beds for intensive care. The hospital is accredited by the Joint Commission and accepts both Medicare and Medicaid.

Iberia Parish Iberia Medical Center 2315 E. Main St. New Iberia iberiamedicalcenter.com (337) 364-0441 After acquiring Dauterive Hospital and transforming it into its North Campus in 2016, Iberia Medical Center now operates as the only hospital in New Iberia. The hospital is constantly growing and evolving, and recently added a hepatology clinic, inpatient surgery, and a cancer center to its North Campus. IMC is a full-service, acute care hospital, providing surgical, obstetrical, gynecological, pediatric, and emergency services, critical care, cardiac care, gastroenterological care and outpatient diagnostics. The facility also operates an outpatient rehabilitation center, the Advanced Wound Center and the Jeanerette Rural Health Clinic, and partners with Acadiana Diagnostic Imaging.

In 2014, it earned the Women’s Choice Award for providing outstanding patient experiences by Women Certified.®

Jefferson Davis Parish Jennings American Legion Hospital 1634 Elton Road Jennings jalh.com (337) 616-7000 The Jennings American Legion Hospital is the only American Legion Hospital to be fully accredited by the Joint Commission. It houses the only cardiac catheterization lab between Lake Charles

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Facility Innovations Capital improvements provide state-of-the-art care in Acadiana

and Lafayette, where Jennings American Legion Hospital can offer interventional procedures along with nuclear stress testing and echocardiograms for those who have recently undergone heart procedures. The 24,000-squarefoot medical office building and 32,000-square-foot patient tower allow JALH to provide patients with an emergency room, cardiology unit, surgical care, maternity ward and radiology services as well as a web nursery for families to view newborns. The hospital also offers a one-day Safe Sitter class for aspiring babysitters between 11 and 14 years of age.

St. James Parish St. James Parish Hospital 1645 Lutcher Ave. Lutcher sjph.org (225) 869-5512

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J u st m o r e tha n a d e c a d e ago, L a k e Cha r l e s

Memorial Hospital sparked an ambitious capital improvement campaign to the tune of $166 million. In that time, the 314-bed facility underwent renovations and expansions to its cath lab, operation rooms, pediatrics center and its gastroenterology center, not to mention support services like the cafeteria.

The most ambitious facet of this medical makeover focused upon updating LCMH’s emergency room — a unit housed within Southwest Louisiana’s largest health system that handles up to 200 patients daily. As to not disrupt patient care, planners divided the renovations into four phases (currently, builders are in Phase Three of the overhaul.)

Phase Two, which concluded in October 2016, enlarged the waiting area, two triage stations and the fast-track area, along with increasing the number of beds. As ER Manager Jon Grays says, “All of this is intended to improve the flow of patients and the waiting times due to the increase of patient volumes throughout the years.”

Once all phases are complete, the ER renovation will cost $14.5 million.

Additionally, Lake Charles Memorial broke ground last September on a $19 million Behavioral Health Hospital — construction higher-ups felt it was a necessity so that patients will no longer have to clog up an already busy emergency room for behavioral health services. Located near the current Memorial Hospital for Women campus in South Lake Charles, the new behavioral center will officially be called the Archer Institute to acknowledge a large contribution made by local psychiatrist Dr. Dale Archer, Jr. When completed, the facility will span 65,000 square feet and feature 102 beds.

Down the road in Lafayette, the Sleep Center of Acadiana opened in March 2017, headed by Dr. Adam Foreman and Dr. Kevin Hargrave. The facility houses six rooms for comprehensive sleep studies and is capable of conducting EEGs, Multiple Sleep Latency Tests, and Maintenance of Wakefulness Tests.

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This nonprofit hospital, according to its motto, is “large enough to serve, small enough to care.” The cardiopulmonary department serves every age group, and the radiology department provides ultrasounds, digital mammography, fluoroscopy, nuclear medicine and bone density testing. The facility has a 25-bed Acute Care Center Department, a 24-hour Emergency Department, rehabilitation services, and a sleep center that focuses mostly on sleep apnea. St. James Parish Hospital also provides general, orthopedic, endoscopic and ophthalmological surgeries, along with wound care for ulcers, infections and skin grafts. The hospital also has new therapy hours, from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., and frequently hosts elderly coffee socials.

St. John the Baptist Parish Oschner Health Center River Parishes 502 Rue de Sante LaPlace ochsner.org/locations/ochsnerhealth-center-river-parishes (985) 652-3500 River Parishes Hospital provides comprehensive care services throughout all life stages through primary care and specialty appointments. The cardiac center has a comprehensive program, including echocardiography, an exercise testing vascular laboratory and nuclear studies. The gastroenterology department treats gastroenterological organs and liver diseases, including Hepatitis B and C. It also provides services out of an occupational medical center in LaPlace to treat work injuries and illnesses, as well as smoking

cessation assistance. Surgical specialties include procedures for the head, neck, bladder, and breasts, in addition to neurology and gynecology.

Lafayette Parish Heart Hospital of Lafayette 1105 Kaliste Saloom Road Lafayette hearthospitallaf.net (337) 470-1000 An affiliate of Our Lady of Lourdes, The Heart Hospital of Lafayette is faith-based and entirely focused on and designed for the cardiovascular health of its patients. The hospital has a 24-hour Heart Emergency Center and a Chest Pain Center, where patients are taught to recognize and react to the early symptoms of heart attacks. The Heartsaver CT scanner scans the heart to uncover heart disease at its earliest stages, and the HEARTVantage free wellness program is the only free nationally accredited specialized care facility that focuses on heart health for patients. Its accolades include being recognized in 2014 by the Veterans Health Association as a Hospital Engagement Network Top Performer, and earning the Top Performer on Key Quality Measures® by the Joint Commission.

Lafayette General Medical Center 1214 Coolidge St. Lafayette lafayettegeneral.com (337) 289-8088 Lafayette General Medical Center is the largest full-service hospital in Acadiana, and serves as the flagship facility of the Lafayette General Health System.

It has received accolades for its neurosurgery, vascular surgery, carotid surgery, prostatectomy, orthopedic services and surgeries, and was the first hospital in Acadiana to perform an open-heart surgery and a craniotomy. The hospital also houses centers for cancer, bariatric surgery, chronic care, neurology, strokes and orthopedics. It was the first telemedicine clinic in the area, and received a $250,000 donation from the James M. Cox foundation to expand its telemedicine services to provide services for St. Martin Parish students.

Lafayette General Surgical Hospital 1000 W. Pinhook Road, Suite 100 Lafayette (337) 289-8095 Lafayette General Surgical Hospital is a short-stay hospital owned in part by the physicians that work

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there. It specializes in surgical and pain management services.

Services include imaging, MRI, acid reflux treatment, BAHA hearing implants, radiology, EKG and lab services. Since its opening in 2004, the hospital has established a strong reputation and presence in Acadiana and has received full Joint Commission accreditation and won multiple awards. Lafayette General Surgical Hospital’s specialties include urology, orthopedics, ENT, ophthalmology, cosmetic surgery, gynecology and pain management.

Lafayette Surgical Specialty Hospital 1101 Kaliste Saloom Road Lafayette lafayettesurgical.com (337) 769-4100 Built in 2004, Lafayette Surgical Specialty Hospital is physicianowned and cares for 8,000 cases annually. It was named Hospital of the Year by the Louisiana Nurses Foundation for four consecutive years and named

by WomenCertified.com as one of the top 100 hospitals for patient experience. Specialties include neurosurgery, as well as orthopedic, ENT, general, urological, gynecological and plastic and reconstructive surgeries, along with pain management, radiological and magnetic resonance imaging.

Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center 4801 Ambassador Caffery Pkwy.

Lafayette lourdesrmc.com (337) 470-2000 Founded by the Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady in 1949, Our Lady of Lourdes employs more than 400 physicians and moved to its new main campus on Ambassador Caffery Parkway last year, which was the largest building project in the history of Lafayette. Lourdes houses the region’s only burn center for comprehensive burn care for both minor injuries and chemical and electrical burns. Other services include a cancer center, one of five stroke centers of excellence in the state, a chronic kidney disease clinic, wound care center and after-hours clinics in Lafayette, Breaux Bridge and Carencro.

Park Place Surgical Hospital 4811 Ambassador Caffrey Pkwy Lafayette parkplacesurgery.com (337) 237-8119 The physician-owned Park Place Surgical Hospital, after 60 |

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joining with Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center in 2003, has 36 doctors who perform colon, rectal, ENT/ otolaryngology, general, OB/ GYN, plastic, vascular and orthopedic surgeries along with occupational and speech therapies. Park Place was announced as one of America’s 100 Best Hospitals for Patient Experience by the Women’s Choice Award ® for 2016. It is also the official surgical provider for the University of Louisiana at Lafayette Ragin’ Cajun Athletics.

Lafayette General Southwest 2810 Ambassador Caffery Pkwy.

Lafayette lafayettegeneral.com/ our_facilities/main_facilities/ lafayette_general_southwest. aspx (337) 981 -2949 This facility, formerly known as the Regional Medical Center of Acadiana, serves as an extension of Lafayette General Medical Center’s main campus in the Oil Center. Lafayette General Southwest operates as a fullservice acute care hospital that is licensed for 131 beds.

University Hospital 2390 W. Congress St. Lafayette lafayettegeneral.com (337) 261-6000 University Hospital & Clinics is a full-service acute care hospital and serves as Acadiana’s Primary graduate medical education center. UHC offers charity care to patients who meet financial eligibility to receive treatment at no or low cost. Lafayette General Medical Center took over the 117-bed acute care facility in 2013. The hospital offers a free screening program to women through a grant funded by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and free breast screening mammograms for eligible patients. In addition to the full-service hospital, University Hospital offers a variety of specialized clinics.

Women’s & Children’s Hospital 4600 Ambassador Caffery Pkwy.

Lafayette womens-childrens.com (337) 521-9100 Located on the campus of Regional Medical Center of Acadiana, Women’s & Children’s has become one of Louisiana’s leading healthcare institutions exclusively dedicated to women and children. It began as strictly a birthing hospital, and has expanded to become

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the second-largest birthing hospital in the state. Some of the available services include emergency and intensive care, fertility and pediatric care, surgical and imaging services, and rehabilitation.

utilizes a collaborative patientcentric approach to treat back and neck pain. Healthgrades awarded the hospital with its 2017 Patient Safety Excellence Award and its Outstanding Patient Experience Award.

Lafourche Parish

St. Charles Parish

Lady of the Sea General Hospital

St. Charles Parish Hospital

200 W. 134th Place Cut Off losgh.org (985) 632-6401 Lady of the Sea General Hospital caters to patients in South Lafourche through the main campus and medical clinics in Larose, Golden Meadow and Cut Off. Through a partnership with the Cardiovascular Institute of the South, Lady of the Sea provides cardiology and cardiopulmonary services to the area. Other services include diabetes support, home health, an intensive care unit, a renal dialysis center, wound care, and an after-hours clinic for illnesses, injuries and infections.

The hospital has two community pharmacies: one located inside its Cut Off Medical Clinic by the facility, and one located inside Frank’s Supermarket in Larose on Highway 3235.

Ochsner St. Anne Hospital 4608 Hwy. 1 Raceland ochsner.org/locations/ochsnerst-anne (985) 537-6841 This hospital offers its services to residents of Lafourche Parish and surrounding areas. The facility provides services that include a full-services emergency department, stroke care, an intensive care unit, and surgical specialties such as orthopedics, urology, pain management, and general surgery. It also has maternity suites with 4-D ultrasound, low-dose CT scanning, and a blood donor center.

Thibodaux Regional Medical Center 602 N. Acadia Road Thibodaux thibodaux.com (985) 447-5500 Serving the residents of Thibodaux, Thibodaux Regional Medical Center specializes in cancer treatment, women’s health, sports medicine, heart and vascular care, wellness, and weight management. The hospital also has its own Spinal Center of Excellence, which

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1057 Paul Maillard Road Luling ochsner.org/locations/ st-charles-parish-hospital/ (985) 785-6242 Located in Luling, St. Charles Parish Hospital is a nonprofit 59-bed acute care facility. This state-run hospital specializes in emergency medicine, primary care, podiatry, diagnostic imaging and dialysis options.

It is fully accredited by the Joint Commission on Accreditation of Healthcare Organizations.

St. Charles Parish Hospital also operates the Plantation View Medical Offices in Destrehan to provide specialties for primary care, internal medicine, women’s health, pediatrics, urology, and more.

St. Landry Parish Opelousas General Health System 539 E. Prudhomme St. Opelousas opelousasgeneral.com (337) 948-3011 Opelousas General Health System is a 209-bed full-service hospital that serves St. Landry Parish residents and those in the surrounding communities.

Hospital specialties include anesthesiology, cardiology, dermatology, gastroenterology, emergency medicine, radiology, sleep medicine, family medicine, and more. The hospital also provides an annual free community health fair.

St. Martin Parish St. Martin Hospital 210 Champagne Blvd.

Breaux Bridge (337) 332-2178 Run by Lafayette General Health, St. Martin Hospital is a nonprofit critical-access hospital that provides inpatient acute care, a rehabilitation unit and the only 24-hour emergency care to St. Martin Parish. Through the Susan G. Komen Foundation, the hospital provides free breast cancer screening mammograms for eligible patients.

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St. Mary Parish

Terrebonne General Medical Center

Franklin Foundation Hospital

8166 Main St. Houma tgmc.com (985) 873-4141

1097 Northwest Blvd.

Franklin franklinfoundation.org (337) 828 -0760 Serving the western St. Mary Parish, Franklin Foundation Hospital is a 22-bed critical access hospital that has 24-hour emergency services, cardiovascular rehabilitation, nutritional services, wound care, a four-bed intensive care unit, inpatient and outpatient surgery, radiology services, physical therapy, respiratory care, and more. The hospital also has a family care center in Baldwin.

Teche Regional Medical Center 1125 Marguerite St. Morgan City techeregional.com (985) 384-2200 This facility on the east side of Acadiana serves Morgan City, Berwick, and Patterson.

Teche Regional Medical Center provides emergency care, women’s services, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services, an intensive care unit, surgery, radiology, and cardiopulmonary services. The hospital has a heart catheterization laboratory, a sleep laboratory, and an intensive care unit.

Terrebonne Parish Physicians Medical Center 218 Corporate Drive Houma physicianshouma.com (985) 853-1390 This 30-bed hospital offers a full range of surgical and ancillary services. Physicians Medical Center provides general surgical services, gynecological services, emergency medicine, family practice, orthopedic services, pain management, gastroenterology, dermatology, pediatric care, plastic surgery, urology, and bariatric surgery.

The hospital receives many international patients due to many of its 100-plus physicians marketing their services worldwide. PMC also offers acupuncture.

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Terrebonne General Medical Center is a public, nonprofit health care system that opened in 1954 and has since grown to house 321 beds. The hospital has a women’s center that focuses on breast health, and also houses the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center, inpatient and outpatient rehabilitation services, and provides emergency care. It is home to one of the state’s few accredited stroke programs and was recently reissued its accreditation from the Joint Commission for its Neonatal ICU. IN 2016, it received the Women’s Choice Award ® as one of America’s best hospitals for orthopedics.

Vermilion Parish Abbeville General Hospital 118 N. Hospital Drive Abbeville abbgen.net (337) 893-5466 The 60-bed Abbeville General Hospital provides a wide range of medical care, emergency, respiratory, and surgical services. The facility also has a therapy center, a 24-hour laboratory, a behavioral medicine center. Offsite services include an imaging center and telemedicine.

Abrom Kaplan Memorial Hospital 1310 W 7th St., (337) 643-8300 lafayettegeneral.com/ our_facilities/main_facilities/ abrom_kaplan_memorial_ hospital.aspx As a general acute care facility, Abrom Kaplan Memorial Hospital serves its patients with general surgery, pediatrics, nuclear medicine, radiology, CT scanning, ultrasound, endoscopic and colonoscopy procedures, rehabilitation, inpatient psychiatric services, and more. It has 35 beds, and its emergency department is open 24 hours a day.

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culture Joie de vivre

les artistes

the man behind the mask Abbeville photographer Leo Touchet shares tales from the road at Acadiana Center for the Arts exhibit

By William Kalec Portrait by romero & Romero

Though it may sound

trite, the camera offered Leo Touchet a window to the world that stretched far beyond the farms and two-lane roads of Abbeville, a small town now and an even smaller town during Touchet’s formative years.

Through a viewfinder Touchet saw a child dressed in tattered clothes inside a Honduran schoolhouse peeking over the shoulder of his classmate for a homework answer; two representatives of different generations sitting side-by-side on a Rockefeller Center bench; and an elderly couple staring at their racing forms at the old Evangeline Downs back in 1973.

culture

les artistes

Together, these pictures represented three images from Touchet’s portfolio selected from a pool of 500,000, all taken between 1965 and 1994, and displayed this summer at the ACA exhibit “Leo Touchet: People Among Us.” For two months, friends and museum curators went through Touchet’s expansive catalog, narrowing down candidates until there were 34 images, to cover four walls.

“However, a number of those they left out were some of my favorites, so I slyly put them back in,” Touchet says.

As captivating as those exhibit images are, reducing Touchet’s camera to nothing more than his “ticket” is a bit generic and unjust. The seasoned photographer, reflecting on a 40-year career and upcoming second act inspired by Sir Elton John’s recent photo acquisition, now understands that for him the camera was cover for a shy, introverted young man, allowing time for the eccentric storyteller within to blossom.

“In a sense, the camera became like a mask for me,” Touchet says. “Using the camera, and having it between me and whatever I was looking at, I had a mask on.

That’s kind of the way I felt about it. I was always aware that there was more out there beyond what I grew up around, but I would have never seen it without a camera. But not because I couldn’t go there, but because I wouldn’t have had, I guess, the confidence to do it without the camera.”

The story of how Touchet became a photographer hints at the romanticism of a bygone era, before everyone carried cameras around in their pocket and when photo captions didn’t include hashtags. In 1964, Touchet was a disillusioned employee at an industrial design firm on Park Avenue in Manhattan. One day, he went to the Museum of Modern Art and paid particular attention to a photography exhibit.

“That was on a Sunday,” Touchet says.

“On Monday I went out and bought a camera.”

From there, Touchet met the photo editors of LIFE Magazine — the photographer’s Carnegie Hall back then

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— through a guy he became friends with at a bar (true story). That chance encounter led to a plum gig photographing in Vietnam for UNICEF, making him one of about two dozen capturing the infant moments of the struggle between the split nations.

In 1972, Touchet met his idol, French photographer Henri Cartier-Bresson, who actually criticized him for mirroring his style.

“Well, I learned from your stuff,” Touchet responded to the Frenchman. “That’s what happens.”

Cartier-Bresson smiled, then later suggested Touchet return home and capture images of his own Cajun people. Touchet followed the advice, which is why much of his photo catalog looks so familiar to Acadians.

Throughout the years, Touchet’s images — a few of which he captured despite having a gun to his head and a knife at his neck — appeared in LIFE, TIME, The New York Times, The Washington Post, Fortune, The Boston Globe and U.S. News & World Report. Ultimately, when

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programs like Microsoft Corbis crushed the economic viability of Touchet’s decade-long hustle, he put down the camera and started a woodworking practice in the later 1990s and early 2000s.

“The thing about it is, your own eyes can always see more than the camera allows you to see,” Touchet says. “And when I put it down for a while, I put photography out of my mind, because if I kept it there it’d be somewhat depressing. I concentrated on other things, because I knew I couldn’t make a living [on photography] anymore.

But I never lost the urge to photograph.”

The now grizzled camera vet is getting back into the swing of things recently, capturing images while vacationing in the Olympic Peninsula of Northwest Washington.

“What I miss — yeah sure, the travel — but it’s mostly the unknown,” Touchet says. “That’s what I missed. Everywhere you turn, it’s something new. Whereas, when you’re say wood-working, you’re in one place, seeing the same things even if you’re still creating.”

“Pictures are everywhere, that’s the easy part,” Touchet says.

“I looked at the world in a whole different way once I got that camera,” Touchet says. “Before, I just wanted to go see places.

Now, with the camera, I wanted to go places and do things.”

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culture

la musique

legacy lost Musician Sean Ardoin remembers vibrant Miller’s Zydeco Hall of Fame in Opelousas

By Michael Patrick Welch | Photos by Leslie Westbrook

In 1946, Eddie Richard, the Creole

owner of the largest amount of land in St. Landry Parish at the time, bought his six grown children their own dance hall as a gift. Like some Creole king, Richard ordered command performances near the family home at Richard’s Hall on Highway 190, mostly from artists playing French “La La Music,” as zydeco was then called.

Because of Richard’s, few argued whenever Opelousas, Louisiana called itself the “zydeco capital of the world.” But as of this year, the club is gone, possibly forever.

Though not the swankiest dance hall, and only large enough to fit 350 people on the dance floor, Richard’s re-opened as Miller’s Zydeco Hall of Fame in 2008, but was gutted by a fire this year in April.

“Playing at Richard’s was a thing we all aspired to do,” says 48-year-old “alternative Creole” musician Sean Ardoin, whose family drove often from Lake Charles to Richard’s in his youth. “I have seen it from both perspectives. I saw a lot of concerts at Richard’s, and also three generations of my family have played there: my grandfather, my father Lawrence Ardoin, and now me and my brothers.”

In terms of what the fire means for the Ardoins and the future of zydeco in the Acadiana area, Sean runs off a list of important zydeco venues — Ki-Ki and Slim’s Y in Opelousas, the Offshore Lounge (Lawtell), Hamilton’s (Lafayette) and Dauphine’s (Parks) — all now relics of the past. “All of them, closed. All our iconic dancehalls of zydeco are gone.”

Clifton Chenier drew the initial huge crowds that put Richard’s on the zydeco map. All of the greats performed there, from Zydeco Force, to Boozoo Chavis and Terrance Simien. Many live albums were recorded at Richard’s, by the likes of Nathan Williams and John Delafose, who in 1994 suffered a heart attack while resting right after a gig at the storied dance hall.

He died that evening.

Richard’s also became important to the fabled “chitlin circuit” of underground clubs that employed black musicians during segregation. As such, the club hosted nonzydeco acts such as legendary bluesmen John Lee Hooker and B.B. King.

More recently, younger acts like Keith Frank and Sean Ardoin’s brother Chris Ardoin have helped keep the place’s reputation alive.

Photographs courtesy The Acadiana Advocate acadianaprofile.com

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“My brother Chris played Richard’s quite a bit right when he was getting really hot,” says Sean Ardoin, “But no one could beat Beau Jocque. The only person I’ve seen really pack Richard’s out is Beau Jacque. At his height of popularity, he’d have the entire club full, plus with another 500 people outside dancing to that boom, boom-boom, boom-boom, boom-boom sound, that ‘double clutching’ beat.”

Beau Jocque even recorded a song in honor of the place, “Richard’s Club,” with

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the lyrics, “We are going to Richard’s Club/ that’s the place that the people love/That’s where they all like to go/Listen to Beau Jocque zydeco”.

“So that was everybody’s pipe dream,” says Sean Ardoin, “We were gonna pack it out like Beau Jacques. But no one ever did.

And now I guess no one ever will.”

Sean Ardoin, who played the club only once following its ownership switch and rechristening as Zydeco Hall of Fame, describes the particular rush of performing

on that tiny, hot stage, which remained unchanged throughout its long life.

“The stage was only a foot high and the ceiling was just seven feet,” he says. “It was just a straight shot shotgun house, and even if it had A/C in there, you wouldn’t have been able to keep it cool in there when everyone was packed in dancing.

“And it was all wood so it sounded great.

There were even handmade wooden chairs and wooden tables. The whole outside was wood, everything. So going up in flames — yeah, if it caught fire there was no way…”

He trails off.

Dance hall researcher John Sharp said something similar in New Orleans’s Gambit Weekly in the days after the fire.

“The building was built with good, old sturdy wood,” said Sharp. “Once a little bit of it caught fire, that’s a lot of fuel. Now, it’s a gutted big black hole.”

A family dispute between Richard’s descendants closed the club down in 2006.

Dustin Miller reopened it in 2008 as Miller’s Zydeco Hall of Fame, but to Sean Ardoin it didn’t feel the same.

“They kept the vibe, they just cleaned it up a little bit,” he says, but explains that zydeco music had left the clubs a long time ago, and could now mostly be seen and heard only at trail rides. “The zydeco scene that had beenin the clubs was all but dead even by the time Mr. Richard died.

They had weekend shows at first but then it became sort of by appointment only.”

Ardoin says the only great zydeco club left is El Sido’s in Lafayette, owned by Zydeco Cha-Chas bandleader Nathan William’s brother Sid Williams.

“El Sido’s is not as old as Hamilton’s but it’s been around for at least 37 years, and it’s a great place.”

The reason for the fire at Zydeco Hall of Fame has still not been determined.

Reports state that “a local band” had practiced in the club an hour before the blaze began. Current owner Miller at first told reporters he would not re-open, but sounded conflicted when he told The Daily Advertiser, “I’ve been going there since I was young, even before I was supposed to be in there. You didn’t grow up in this town without going there.”

Following days of intense community outpouring, Miller later told The Advertiser he’s rethinking his decision.

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culture

les personnes

homecoming McNeese State assistant coach Kerry Joseph begins a new chapter in life

By William Kalec | Portrait by romero & Romero

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The road well-traveled

took Acadiana Prep football legend Kerry Joseph to four countries, two continents, three leagues (one since defunct), eight teams (one since folded), and even a boomerang-ish switch from offense to defense then back to offense, which ultimately brought him to a destination he would have reached had he just stood still 22 years ago: home.

“I never thought about it, but yeah, it’s funny how that worked out,” says the secondyear co-offensive coordinator at Football Championship Subdivision traditional powerhouse McNeese State, Joseph’s alma mater. “But it’s been a blessing — a blessing working for [head coach] Lance Guidry, who was my old college roommate. He’s given me the chance and I’m running with it. My wife even told me, ‘I think coaching is what you’ve been called to do’.”

According to the numbers, she’s right.

In 2016, Joseph’s first season as wide receivers coach/ co-offensive coordinator at McNeese, the Cowyboys’ offense averaged 32.0 points and amassed 441.3 yards per game, 304.2 of which came via the passing attack, which was good for second-best in the Southland Conference. Speaking on the eve of the upcoming season with the enthusiasm of a guy who knows his quarterback returns and will be dispensing the ball to a wide receiver corps seven or eight players deep, Joseph can’t help but steer the conversation towards this bright future even when answering questions about his playing past.

“You look at the game differently as a coach, and that’s something I began doing those last three years in Edmonton [in the Canadian Football League] — viewing from a coach’s perspective, really for the first time,” Joseph says.

“And it’s not that I learned what to do, it’s that I learned what not to do…because every

instruction you give, the tone you choose to deliver it, what the message consists of and how easy it is to understand matters.

So much of what you need to know as a coach is psychological. You can have the best game plan, the best strategy, but if it’s not presented in the right way, it doesn’t matter. It doesn’t work.”

If Joseph’s name sounds somewhat familiar for a guy whose legacy was largely cemented in the anonymity of Canadian professional football, there’s a reason.

In the late 1980s-early 1990s, Joseph was a Friday-night phenom behind center at New Iberia High School. Not surprisingly, scholarship offers from the SEC, SWC and Big 8 came pouring in, but none afforded Joseph the opportunity to play quarterback because of his height (or lack of it), so he signed at McNeese State and spent the next four years littering the record books with his name. To this day, Joseph remains the school’s career leader in passing touchdowns.

Despite immense collegiate success, Joseph remained a few inches shorter than the NFL ideal when it came to quarterbacks, so he transitioned into a bit of a human Swiss Army Knife with cleats. With the Washington Redskins, he moonlighted as a running back but that didn’t stick. The next year, the Seattle Seahawks signed Joseph and converted him to defensive safety, where he played four seasons and recorded three career interceptions.

In 2003, Canada came calling. The Ottawa Renegades offered Joseph the opportunity to play quarterback, sparking a decade-long career up north that resulted in a championship, an MVP season and a reason for New Iberia to throw a parade and give Joseph the key to the city in 2008. All that fanfare amounted to squat when Joseph searched for a transition from

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les personnes

the field as a player to the sidelines as a coach.

A process he simply calls “a grind” began officially in 2014 when Joseph completed a three-week coaching internship with the New Orleans Saints. From there, Joseph attended the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama (a scouting combine, but also a huge networking event) and the American Football Coaches Association convention, all while working with Nike’s Elite 11 high school quarterback academy and offering personal training on the side.

“When you’re looking for a job, and you’re at coaching conventions, it’s hard to get people to talk to you,” Joseph says.

“Now that I have a job, when you go, everyone wants to talk to you. That’s just how it works. That’s why I’m so thankful for the opportunity. And now that I have it, you try and make the most of it.

“I said from day one I wouldn’t be one of those coaches screaming and cussing,” Joseph says. “Sure enough, that didn’t last.

There were times when my position guys tried me, and it got a little heated. I had to engage with them and let them know, ‘this is real’.”

Because of Joseph’s equity in the region, he’s assigned to recruit the well-stocked high schools in and around Lafayette — programs now run by some former teammates and former opponents — which creates plenty of trips down memory lane as Joseph attempts to restock McNeese’s roster with talent from a vital area.

Currently, 28 players on McNeese State’s football roster hail from the 22-parish Acadiana region.

“It all comes down to a matter of trust,” Joseph says of both finding new players and teaching current players. “Do these guys trust you? And can I trust them, and can the man next to them on the field trust them to do what’s expected. And I think it helps break the ice that when these kids look at me, they know I’ve been somewhere where they want to go…I don’t make it all about me, because there are guys here that could [not] care less about what I’ve done — and really, I like that. ‘It’s not about your past career. What can you do for me?’ But they all wanna get there — playing in the NFL, earning a living playing this game.

“So it’s not who I am that earns their respect, but where I’ve been that earns that respect. ‘How did you get there? Because that’s where I want to be’.”

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culture

en français, s’il vous plaît

la chevrette toutepuissante le Créole aux oiseaux par david cheramie

Quand on s’appelle Cheramie,

il est difficile de nier ses origines du Bayou Lafourche et encore plus difficile de se promener sans couteau de poche. Je m’explique. Les hommes Cheramie ont la réputation d’avoir toujours une arme blanche sur eux. On peut croire que c’est dû à une fâcheuse habitude d’être paré pour une bataille farouche à tout moment, ce qui n’est pas forcément faux, mais je le tiens de source sûre que cela vient d’un héritage familial tout à fait honorable et même noble. Mon grand-père, comme plusieurs membres de sa famille, était un pêcheur de chevrettes. Il avait un bateau qui s’appelait, pour une raison qu’on n’a jamais pu m’expliquer, Little Italy. Les Cheramie se sont étendus vers Delcambre et Caméron comme d’autres parce qu’on avait besoin de trouver d’autres zones de pêches, tellement il y avait de compétition pour ce petit délice. À beaucoup d’égard, le développement de la vie économique du sud de la Louisiane dépendait de l’habilité avec laquelle les capitaines des bateaux de pêche sillonnaient les eaux chaudes du Golfe du Mexique à sa recherche.

Plus tard, ces talents ont pu se transférer vers les chantiers navals, comme Higgins Shipyard, où mon grand-père a piloté les bateaux Higgins sur le Lac Pontchartrain en les

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testant pour le Débarquement en Normandie. Ou encore d’autres qui sont allés construire et desservir les plateformes pétrolières dans la Mer du Nord, affrontant les houles qui peuvent atteindre des hauteurs montagneuses. D’autres légendes locales racontent que pendant la Prohibition, les pêcheurs de chevrettes étaient particulièrement efficaces à transporter de l’alcool sans se faire prendre, mais ça c’est une histoire pour un autre jour.

Tandis qu’on peut s’étonner qu’il existe un festival dédié à la fois aux chevrettes et à l’industrie pétrolière, comme à Morgan City, en Louisiane on comprend l’équilibre délicat qui existe entre les deux. Même s’il est parfois perturbé, on ne peut pas nier l’importance capitale que ces deux activités jouent dans l’économie et même la culture. Néanmoins, considérons la chevrette un instant. Son nom est synonyme de petitesse, mais elle est toute-puissante. Elle comprend plusieurs espèces, mais seulement deux sont pêchées dans l’eau salée du golfe: la chevrette brune et la chevrette blanche.

Chacune est associée avec une

acadiana profile august/september 2017

des deux saisons de pêche : la saison de mai et la saison d’août, respectivement. Normalement, l’une chasse l’autre. C’est-à-dire qu’une fois les petites chevrettes blanches apparaissent dans les filets avec les brunes, on ferme la première saison et on attend que les blanches atteignent une taille suffisante pour ouvrir la deuxième. Il ne faut pas avoir un œil d’expert afin de les distinguer, même si elles sont semblables. La chevrette blanche est facilement reconnaissable à la couleur verte au bout de sa queue. Aussi les blanches sont un peu plus grandes et leur goût mieux apprécié par certains.

La chevrette commence et finit sa vie, si elle peut compléter le cycle, dans le golfe. Les adultes pondent leurs œufs là, les brunes toute l’année, les blanches seulement sous la stimulation de la bonne température. Les courants et les marées poussent les larves vers les estuaires où elles continuent leur croissance vers l’âge adulte. À chaque étape de sa maturation, la chevrette et à la fois proie et prédatrice, tenant une place essentielle dans la chaîne alimentaire. Elle contribue à

la bonne santé des estuaires en mangeant le détritus et la matière organique en décomposition dans les eaux saumâtres.

Une fois la maturité atteinte, la chevrette retourne aux eaux ouvertes du golfe où les pêcheurs et leurs filets les attendent.

Par la suite, les acheteurs, les revendeurs et éventuellement les consommateurs, que ce soit les individus ou les restaurateurs, acheminent ce don de la nature vers les cuisiniers qui préparent les gombos, les po-boys, les étouffées et les autres merveilles culinaires.

Alors, pourquoi les Cheramie, ces grands pêcheurs de cette petite crustacée, avaient toujours un couteau dans la poche? Tout simplement pour découper les filets avant de se noyer si jamais ils tombaient par-dessus bord.

Plus précisément mangeur que pêcheur de chevrettes, mais un peu batailleur quand même, j’utilise un couteau qui sert plutôt à défendre mon assiette contre les gens qui pensent que je voudrais partager cette grande richesse.

For an English translation, visit acadianaprofile.com.