Donald Landry

Donald P. Landry, 69, a native of New Orleans, La., and resident of Houma, La., died Monday, Aug. 9, 2010.

Mr. Landry, environmentalist, conservationist, family man and former member of the Terrebonne Parish Police Jury, died peacefully Monday in Houma following a year-long battle with liver and kidney disease. He was 69. Landry grew up with a deep appreciation for the beauty and productivity of the coastal wetlands of south Louisiana and Terrebonne Parish. An avid fisherman and sportsman all his life, he recognized early on the myriad of destructive forces laying waste to the fabric of the coastal wetlands. It was his love for these natural resources that shaped his 8-year tenure on the Police Jury, the predecessor of the present Terrebonne Parish Consolidated Government. A two-time recipient of the prestigious National Wildlife Federation Conservationist of the Year award, Landry devoted his public life to environmental consciousness, coastal preservation and restoration. Before his terms on the Terrebonne Parish Police Jury, he formed the South Louisiana Environmental Council, one of the first environmental action groups in South Louisiana. Legendary sea explorer Jacques Cousteau once called on Landry for advice and input on his studies of Louisiana’s massive but disappearing wetlands. In his private life, he was equally devoted to Judy, his loving wife of 49 years, his five children, seven grandchildren and one great grandchild; and a myriad of friends and acquaintances from all walks of life. Born in New Orleans in 1940, Landry was a life-long resident of Houma and worked with his father at the former Landry’s Drugstore on East Main St. He graduated from St. Francis de Sales Boys School in Houma in 1958, attended Loyola University in New Orleans and received his pharmaceutical diploma from the University of Houston School of Pharmacy in 1963. He worked as a pharmacist for 47 years; his last day worked was less than two weeks before he died. Landry is credited with taking a hands-on approach to parish finances as chairman of the Police Jury’s Budget and Finance Committee. He studied and understood the parish budget as much or better than any of his predecessors; and he used this knowledge to obtain funding and support for conservation and community projects. In the early 1980s, before the high level twin span bridges were built over the Intracoastal Waterway in downtown Houma, Landry pushed the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to require that all bridges over waterways in Terrebonne Parish remain open to vehicular traffic during peak traffic hours. Long time Houma residents will remember the daily traffic jams and insufferable waiting that occurred frequently before the Corps finally agreed to his proposal. Those efforts still benefit motorists today, even though the old draw bridges downtown have been replaced by the high-level twin spans. Other bridges that open for boat traffic must remain closed during peak vehicular hours. He also recognized the need and was instrumental in getting sidewalks on the high rise bridges that cross the Intracoastal waterway after taking daily counts of the pedestrian traffic that passed in front of Landry’s Drugstore on Main Street. He also worked to establish and maintain public parks throughout the parish and was instrumental in providing financial support for the annual Christmas Parade. He helped with the formation of the Farmer’s Market in Houma and was a key advocate and public voice of the oral history exhibit at Bayou Terrebonne Waterlife Museum with local filmmaker Glen Pitre. As an avid outdoorsman and fisherman, he was a member of the Terrebonne Black Bass Club and won the Grand Isle Redfish Rodeo for 3 consecutive years among many other fishing awards and trophies. He believed in staying physically fit, and having fun doing it. Landry was an annual participant in many local pirogue races, winning first place many times. He loved paddling through the dense bottomland hardwood forests near Gibson, where he knew the exact location of the few colossal cypress trees left standing after the clear cutting practices of the early 20th century. Long-timers at the YMCA remember Landry’s daily swimming routine, where he enjoyed the exuberance of a miles-long swim in the Olympic pool on an almost daily basis. His life’s work on environmental preservation in coastal Louisiana was the basis of the fictional character “P. Donald ‘Duck’ Landrieu”, a.k.a. “Dr. Duck” in novelist Ken Wells’ Cajun thriller, “Crawfish Mountain”. As in real life, Landry’s character led the efforts against big oil and its shady polluters to expose chemical dumping in fragile wetlands.

He is survived by his wife, Judith “Judy” Atkins; sons, Daniel (Rebecca), Kurt (Laura) and Joel (Michelle) Landry; daughters, Regina (Lonnie) Thibodeaux and Jane-Clair (Steve) Kerin; seven grandchildren, Hayden Landry, Kaitlyn, Kyler and Landon Thibodeaux, and Rebecca, Peyton and Sarah Landry; one great-granddaughter, Davanee Siele; brother, Gordon Landry; sisters, Patricia Armand, Loretta Hetherwick and Arlene Landry; and numerous nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Nolan and Ruby Landry.

The family is asking that in lieu of flowers, that contributions be made to one of the following charities: Smile Train – http://www.smiletrain.org , Heifer International – http://www.heifer.org , Doctors without borders – http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org , National Wildlife Federation – http://www.nwf.org or the National Audubon Society – http://www.audubon.org .

(Chauvin Funeral Home)