Change in store for east Houma recreation board
February 20, 2019All Hail Carnival Spirit
February 20, 2019
It was a sunny morning on February 7, 2019 when Melvin Hebert slipped away leaving behind a grieving family and community of friends. How does one describe the impact of a 101- year-old local icon? How do you take the measure of a man who had to adapt to phenomenal changes over a century of life? You ask the people who knew him.
Judging by the responses, Melvin was a kind, soft-spoken and gentle man with an infinite amount of compassion and patience. He had a job he loved as an educator for 35 years. He was put in a position to mold young minds, and the evidence of his powerful and positive imprint is in the testimonials of former students eager to voice their personal narratives.
“Mr. Melvin kept me in order,” says Lance Stringer, one of those former students at Boudreaux Canal Elementary. Jimmy Burton was another. “Mr. Melvin was my principal at Oaklawn. He was one of the nicest people. One day I got put out in the hallway of Mrs. LeBleu’s English class. I was dyslexic and always in trouble. I wasn’t a bad student, I was a struggling student. Back then they didn’t know about dyslexia. Mr. Melvin came along and saw me sitting there. He told me to go sit in his office till the end of the period, then just go on to my next class.” For Jimmy, that simple gesture became a long term memory. Melvin did not degrade or berate him, and Jimmy grew up to be a successful businessman. A good education for everybody was important to Melvin. You can sense how he passed that on to his students when Jimmy beams with pride as he boasts about his own child with a PhD in psychology.
Former student Bryan Leicher writes from Orange, California about his years at Oaklawn (1967-70). “Funny how, over time, you realize how certain people have been a positive influence on your life though you barely knew them but saw them daily. He’s one of my most memorable teacher/principals. The older I am, the more I realize what a good witness he was.”
Colleagues also fondly remember Melvin. Hayes Badeau, who taught all of Melvin’s children, said “We called him Mr. Peepers” after a character in a television series played by actor Wally Cox. The plot of the series, which aired in the early 50s, revolves around the misadventures of a junior high school science teacher.
Rose Marceau was a supervisor for the school food services. Her job was to visit all the parish schools to oversee the lunch programs. Rose married J.B. Marceau who, like Melvin, was a native of Kaplan, Louisiana so they always had something to discuss besides the “lunch menu.” Though the Marceaux’s had to make a trip to Kaplan on the day of Melvin’s wake, they hurried back so Rose could participate in a presentation by the Terrebonne Parish Retired Teacher’s Association honoring Melvin’s years of service as an educator. It was a career that started in a tiny school on Pecan Island in 1939 and ended when he retired as principal from Oaklawn Junior High School.
Sandra LaRose was principal at Bourg Elementary during it’s 100th Anniversary in 2014. She was familiar with Melvin’s grandson, Joshua Lottinger, a student of hers in her teaching days. During the school celebration she was delighted to pose for photos with Melvin who had been principal at Bourg Elementary from 1955-1960. Another significant photo from that day featured Melvin with 3 generations of Bourg students, his daughter, Jackie LeBoeuf, his grandson Joshua, and his great granddaughter, Lexi Lottinger.
Friends were important to Melvin, and he loved to socialize, but when Mae, his wife of 76 years became ill, he was her dedicated caregiver. Several months after she passed on Mother’s Day 2006 Melvin popped in at Jack’s Bar to see his granddaughter, Julie Whitney, who bartended there. He was 90 years old. That’s when he met what would become his posse, a group of caring friends who looked out for him, who danced with him, who helped him celebrate his birthday every year with a legendary potluck bash.
Charles Sr. and Iva Lou Degate were part of Melvin’s posse at Jack’s. Speaking for the group, Iva Lou writes this memorial “Mr. Melvin, you were one special man in our lives. We will miss you, but all the special memories will be kept in mind and talked about.” He may have been a centenarian, “ but he lived like he was 30,” said Jeanita Melancon. Niece, Brenda Johnson, remembers her lively Uncle Melvin as well. “When I was 7 we could hear Uncle Melvin’s music from across the road on a Friday night. We’d knock on the door, and Uncle Melvin would grab me and start twirling me around. “Dance with me Brenda,” he’d say “and I did till I think I was 10 years old.”
Melvin’s job was his passion. His friends were the people he loved to be around for company and laughter, for chatting and dancing, for a mutual caring and sharing. His faith in God was deep and eternal. And to his family, he was the sun around which they orbited. In turn, his 3 children, Judy, Andrus and Jackie were his raison d’etre.
Daughter Jackie LeBoeuf could rattle off a dozen Melvin aphorisms in a minute. Words to live by. Words that Melvin did live by. Uplifting words like “Tomorrow is another day.” Words about manners, “Always say something nice to people.” Profound words about life, “It’s the dash between those numbers that’s most important.”
Grandson Jason Pitre remembers a tough time in his life when two of Melvin’s maxims gave him comfort. “Never let anyone make you feel less than,” and “You pick the tune you want to dance to.”
GranddaughterJulie Pie Whitney “just wanted to spoil him.” They shared such a special bond that she quit her job to help care for him. “Time goes and we go with it,” was her favorite quote by Melvin. Not a public speaker by nature, Julie feels Melvin gave her the courage to speak at his funeral. “He never had an unkind word to say to anyone in front of your face or behind your back. Being with him till the end was important to me because he was the most honorable man I ever knew.”
All these people, the family, the friends, the colleagues, the former students paint a picture of a man of almost mythical goodness, but the truth is Melvin Hebert was an anomaly. He was a truly decent man in a world that seems to place little value on decency anymore. He believed that each generation should improve upon the last. With that in mind, during the last week of his life, he dictated a single letter to his great granddaughter, Lexi Lottinger. She gave her permission to share a part of it. “I strongly believe in a good education. It determines where you will go in life. I love you my sweet child, and no matter what happens, I’ll always be with you.” He could only manage to sign it with a shaky X. Melvin’s mark. Melvin Hebert has certainly left his mark on the people who lived in his world or even on the edge of it. It would be hyperbole to suggest that, at the moment of his death, the world stopped spinning, but the extermination of his bright light has certainly added to the darkness. It was a sunny morning on February 7, 2019 when Melvin Hebert slipped away leaving behind a grieving family and community of friends. How does one describe the impact of a 101- year-old local icon? How do you take the measure of a man who had to adapt to phenomenal changes over a century of life? You ask the people who knew him.
Judging by the responses, Melvin was a kind, soft-spoken and gentle man with an infinite amount of compassion and patience. He had a job he loved as an educator for 35 years. He was put in a position to mold young minds, and the evidence of his powerful and positive imprint is in the testimonials of former students eager to voice their personal narratives.
“Mr. Melvin kept me in order,” says Lance Stringer, one of those former students at Boudreaux Canal Elementary. Jimmy Burton was another. “Mr. Melvin was my principal at Oaklawn. He was one of the nicest people. One day I got put out in the hallway of Mrs. LeBleu’s English class. I was dyslexic and always in trouble. I wasn’t a bad student, I was a struggling student. Back then they didn’t know about dyslexia. Mr. Melvin came along and saw me sitting there. He told me to go sit in his office till the end of the period, then just go on to my next class.” For Jimmy, that simple gesture became a long term memory. Melvin did not degrade or berate him, and Jimmy grew up to be a successful businessman. A good education for everybody was important to Melvin. You can sense how he passed that on to his students when Jimmy beams with pride as he boasts about his own child with a PhD in psychology.
Former student Bryan Leicher writes from Orange, California about his years at Oaklawn (1967-70). “Funny how, over time, you realize how certain people have been a positive influence on your life though you barely knew them but saw them daily. He’s one of my most memorable teacher/principals. The older I am, the more I realize what a good witness he was.”
Colleagues also fondly remember Melvin. Hayes Badeau, who taught all of Melvin’s children, said “We called him Mr. Peepers” after a character in a television series played by actor Wally Cox. The plot of the series, which aired in the early 50s, revolves around the misadventures of a junior high school science teacher.
Rose Marceau was a supervisor for the school food services. Her job was to visit all the parish schools to oversee the lunch programs. Rose married J.B. Marceau who, like Melvin, was a native of Kaplan, Louisiana so they always had something to discuss besides the “lunch menu.” Though the Marceaux’s had to make a trip to Kaplan on the day of Melvin’s wake, they hurried back so Rose could participate in a presentation by the Terrebonne Parish Retired Teacher’s Association honoring Melvin’s years of service as an educator. It was a career that started in a tiny school on Pecan Island in 1939 and ended when he retired as principal from Oaklawn Junior High School.
Sandra LaRose was principal at Bourg Elementary during it’s 100th Anniversary in 2014. She was familiar with Melvin’s grandson, Joshua Lottinger, a student of hers in her teaching days. During the school celebration she was delighted to pose for photos with Melvin who had been principal at Bourg Elementary from 1955-1960. Another significant photo from that day featured Melvin with 3 generations of Bourg students, his daughter, Jackie LeBoeuf, his grandson Joshua, and his great granddaughter, Lexi Lottinger.
Friends were important to Melvin, and he loved to socialize, but when Mae, his wife of 76 years became ill, he was her dedicated caregiver. Several months after she passed on Mother’s Day 2006 Melvin popped in at Jack’s Bar to see his granddaughter, Julie Whitney, who bartended there. He was 90 years old. That’s when he met what would become his posse, a group of caring friends who looked out for him, who danced with him, who helped him celebrate his birthday every year with a legendary potluck bash.
Charles Sr. and Iva Lou Degate were part of Melvin’s posse at Jack’s. Speaking for the group, Iva Lou writes this memorial “Mr. Melvin, you were one special man in our lives. We will miss you, but all the special memories will be kept in mind and talked about.” He may have been a centenarian, “ but he lived like he was 30,” said Jeanita Melancon. Niece, Brenda Johnson, remembers her lively Uncle Melvin as well. “When I was 7 we could hear Uncle Melvin’s music from across the road on a Friday night. We’d knock on the door, and Uncle Melvin would grab me and start twirling me around. “Dance with me Brenda,” he’d say “and I did till I think I was 10 years old.”
Melvin’s job was his passion. His friends were the people he loved to be around for company and laughter, for chatting and dancing, for a mutual caring and sharing. His faith in God was deep and eternal. And to his family, he was the sun around which they orbited. In turn, his 3 children, Judy, Andrus and Jackie were his raison d’etre.
Daughter Jackie LeBoeuf could rattle off a dozen Melvin aphorisms in a minute. Words to live by. Words that Melvin did live by. Uplifting words like “Tomorrow is another day.” Words about manners, “Always say something nice to people.” Profound words about life, “It’s the dash between those numbers that’s most important.”
Grandson Jason Pitre remembers a tough time in his life when two of Melvin’s maxims gave him comfort. “Never let anyone make you feel less than,” and “You pick the tune you want to dance to.”
GranddaughterJulie Pie Whitney “just wanted to spoil him.” They shared such a special bond that she quit her job to help care for him. “Time goes and we go with it,” was her favorite quote by Melvin. Not a public speaker by nature, Julie feels Melvin gave her the courage to speak at his funeral. “He never had an unkind word to say to anyone in front of your face or behind your back. Being with him till the end was important to me because he was the most honorable man I ever knew.”
All these people, the family, the friends, the colleagues, the former students paint a picture of a man of almost mythical goodness, but the truth is Melvin Hebert was an anomaly. He was a truly decent man in a world that seems to place little value on decency anymore. He believed that each generation should improve upon the last. With that in mind, during the last week of his life, he dictated a single letter to his great granddaughter, Lexi Lottinger. She gave her permission to share a part of it. “I strongly believe in a good education. It determines where you will go in life. I love you my sweet child, and no matter what happens, I’ll always be with you.” He could only manage to sign it with a shaky X. Melvin’s mark. Melvin Hebert has certainly left his mark on the people who lived in his world or even on the edge of it. It would be hyperbole to suggest that, at the moment of his death, the world stopped spinning, but the extermination of his bright light has certainly added to the darkness.
