CCA wiggles out of a jam
June 23, 2016
Arthur Duplantis Jr.
June 28, 2016
Thibodaux native Aaron Caillouet took on many different roles in Lafourche Parish. He was a father, parish president, councilman, educator and more. Caillouet died at the age of 73 last week.
Former Lafourche Parish President Aaron Caillouet, 73, died last Monday.
Mr. Caillouet served as parish president from 1996 to 2000. He also served on the parish council, Thibodaux City Council and Lafourche Parish School Board.
A Thibodaux native and resident, Caillouet taught for 23 years at Nicholls State University as a professor of finance, management and accounting. He retired from his post at Nicholls in 2011, but continued teaching online graduate courses as an adjunct professor for Troy University.
He had four children — Aaron II, Stacy, Shelley and Amber — and a stepson, Chad Toups. His family tree has continued to grow, with Mr. Caillouet welcoming nine grandchildren into the world before his death.
Current and former Lafourche council members recalled their time working with Caillouet, whom they described as a calm, experienced leader who knew how to strike compromises with his colleagues. They said Caillouet’s finance background gave him a strong grasp of the parish budget, and even as a council member, he looked out for the parish as a whole.
Former council member Joe Fertitta sat next to Aaron Caillouet from 2012-16 when the two served on the council. However, they were well acquainted before their time in parish government. While the two were students at Nicholls, Fertitta played in an independent basketball league with Caillouet. According to Fertitta, Caillouet mostly played as a forward and impressed.
“He was quite a few years older than I am, which I didn’t realize at that time. I was in college; I thought he was about the same age. He was a good athlete,” Fertitta said.
District 9 Councilman Daniel Lorraine, who has held his elected post for 32 years, also worked with the former parish president and councilman. Lorraine called Caillouet “one of the best ones I worked with” and a fair leader. During Caillouet’s parish presidency, he ran council meetings as opposed to the council chairman, and Lorraine credited him with working to unite different council members with sometimes conflicting agendas.
“He always ran a pretty good meeting. There wasn’t much arguing when he was around. We got some things done, but we just didn’t have the funding that we have today,” Lorraine said.
According to Lorraine, Caillouet’s open door policy meant the council members were kept in the loop as the parish plan developed.
“You could call up and talk to the man; that was a plus. Some of them, you call, they’re always in meetings. What does that mean? That means they don’t want to talk to you,” the councilman said.
Caillouet chose not to run for re-election after his parish presidency ended. But by 2012, he was back in the fold of parish government, representing District 3 and seated next to Fertitta.
Fertitta said his old friend’s experience as parish president gave him a leg up on the rest of the council, as he already knew the ins and outs of parish government.
Phillip Gouaux, who served with them on the council, agreed Caillouet’s experience as Lafourche’s lead administrator and a finance professor put him ahead of the curve on the parish’s most important document.
“He knew the budget. He knew all about budgetary items and how it works, so that was a big plus for him.
Because a lot of the newer council members, it’s a big learning curve, and he didn’t have that learning curve,” Gouaux said.
Caillouet’s time on the council took a bad turn in the spring of 2014 when he was hospitalized following complications from surgery. Those on the council with him said they noticed a change in Caillouet once he returned. He was slower and had less strength as a result of either medication or the toll his body had taken. However, toward the end of his term Caillouet started to regain his form, according to Gouaux. Caillouet felt well enough to run for parish president again this past fall, although he was unsuccessful in his bid.
While Caillouet did not ultimately get another crack at the head position in Lafourche, his legacy with the parish is intact. The man who wore many different hats in the parish took a calm, mild-mannered approach to governance. Though he did not make a spectacle of the political arena, his fair and upfront personality enabled him to work well with others. According to Lorraine, Caillouet had a way of striking deals for the sake of continued progress.
“He knew a lot of people, and I guess he just had it in him,” Lorraine said. “He knew how to go about doing it, you know? You couldn’t ask for a nicer guy. Likeable man.”
Former Lafourche Parish President Aaron Caillouet died last Monday at the age of 73. He hserved on the Thibodaux City Council, Lafourche Parish School Board and Lafourche Parish Council in his political career.
