July 25, 2011

DEPORTATION OF THE ACADIANS


Cermony marking the deportatio​n of the Acadiens

Translation of the French from below:
On Thursday July 28 at 5:30 pm there will be a cerermony in Dieppe, NB at the Odysee Monument on Champlain Street. There will be a display of history, music, and there will be a laying of flowers in memory of our ancestors.

Sent: Sunday, July 24, 2011 11:53 AM
Subject: Cérémonie de commémoration
Il y aura une cérémonie marquant la déportation des Acadiens le jeudi 28 juillet à 17h30 au Monument de l'Odyssée sur la rue Champlain à Dieppe. Brin d'histoire, musique, recueillement à 18h et des fleurs seront seront disposées en mémoir de nos ancêtres. Tous sont les bienvenus.
--
Donald Boudreau
Secrétaire-Trésorier
Fédération des Associations de Familles Acadiennes Inc.
307, rue Amirault
Dieppe  NB   E1A 1G1
fafa.acadie@gmail.com
http://fafa-acadie.org
Téléphone: (506) 532-8019

July 20, 2011

LAFOURCHE HERITAGE SOCIETY

The Lafourche Heritage Society invites you to attend its 35th Annual History and Genealogy Seminar

 Saturday, August 6th

The thirty-fifth annual seminar on history and genealogy will be held by the Lafourche Heritage Society on Saturday, August 6, 2011, at the Envie Restaurant and Banquet facility in Thibodaux. The day’s activities will begin with registration and coffee at 8:30 a.m., and will close after the last speak...er, at 3:00 p.m. The seminar will have two morning sessions, a buffet lunch, and two afternoon sessions. There will be breaks between sessions for visits to book vendors. Speakers scheduled for this event are Dr. Christopher Cenac, Sr., Neil Guilbeau, Emilie Leumas, and Jay Schexnaydre.
Christopher E. Cenac, Sr., M.D., is a native of Houma. Several years ago, Dr. Cenac began compiling years of research on the Cenac family into a book for his family. His presentation will highlight some of the documents and photographs he discovered in his research. His presentation is entitled “The History of the Cenac Family and the Early Oyster Industry in Terrebonne Parish.”

Neil J. Guilbeau is a native of Sunset and is the Assistant Archivist at Nicholls State University. One of Neil’s current projects for the Nicholls Archives is interviewing local veterans on their experiences in the armed forces. His presentation will be “U.S. Veterans of Southeast Louisiana: An Oral History,” which will highlight some of the veterans interviewed thus far.

Emilie “Lee” Gagnet Leumas, PhD, is Director of Archives and Records for the Archdiocese of New Orleans and former Archivist for the Diocese of Baton Rouge. She is the current president of the Association of Catholic Diocesan Archivists. Lee’s presentation will be “Catholicism and French in Louisiana”

Jay M. Schexnaydre is a native of Convent. He is a genealogist and an assistant manager at Laura Plantation in Vacherie. He is currently the president of the Genealogical Research Society of New Orleans. He has compiled family trees for several of the families along the Mississippi River and has made several trips to the Family History Library for research. His topic will be “Old Creole Families of River Road.”
The seminar will be attended by book vendors offering history and genealogy selections. The Society will also have its publications available for purchase including Lafourche Country III which was published in 2010. Participants and members are invited to bring their family history charts.

To pre-register, please send your name and check in the amount of $28 (each participant) to the Lafourche Heritage Society, P.O. Box 913, Thibodaux, LA 70302. Only participants who pre-register will be included in the count for a buffet lunch. Same day registration for the seminar will be accepted at the door, but will not include lunch. The deadline to pre-register is August 3, 2011. Book vendors will be welcome at no additional cost; however, these will need to pre-register and reserve a table in advance. For further information, please contact any of the following:

Clifton Theriot at 985-448-4621, clifton.theriot@nicholls.edu

Patty Whitney at 985-447-7318, pattywhitney@hotmail.com

July 19, 2011

JULY 28TH--DAY OF REMEMBRANCE


In Halifax, Nova Scotia on July 28, 1755 British Governor Charles Lawrence signed the deportation order setting in motion Le Grand Derangement.  “From 1755 to 1763 it is estimated by historians that 7,000 – half of the entire ethnic population of the Acadians – perished during their diaspora from disease, starvation, and neglect, as well as from violence by the British.”

          “In 2003, Queen Elizabeth II signed the Royal Proclamation decreeing that every July 28th the world should pause to remember the suffering of the Acadians during the Acadian exile.”  By symbolically declaring an end to the Acadian exile, the Royal Proclamation stated: “...we acknowledge these historical facts and the trials and sufferings experienced by the Acadian people during the Great Upheaval.”

       Brenda Comeaux Trahan, Curator Director of the Acadian Memorial invites all Louisiana Acadiana/Cajuns and friends to join in the event which is dedicated to the memory of the Acadian victims who died during the years of the deportation.  A commemorative mass of reflection by Father Rusty Richard at 7:00 p.m. will be held in the mother church of the Acadians, "St. Martin de Tours".  At the conclusion of the service, the church bells will toll during a solemn "candle light" procession of the congregation to the Acadian Memorial Deportation Meditation Garden for prayers under the Deportation Cross. 

          As part of the day’s events, at 6:00 p.m. at the Acadian Memorial in St. Martinville, the Acadian Museum will honor Ville Platte native and St. Martinville resident Janie Bulliard by inducting her into the “Order of Living Legends.”  Janie with co-founder Patricia Resweber, served on the St. Martinville Tourism Commission that established the Acadian Memorial. She chaired the committee that researched and created the Wall of Names and assisted artist Robert Dafford in designing the mural 'The Arrival of the Acadians in Louisiana'. She currently serves on the Centennial Celebration committee commemorating 100 years of the founding of Evangeline Parish including a bronze statue of Longfellow's heroine, the Parish namesake to stand on the courthouse grounds.

(Some information was taken from a letter submitted to the editor July 2008)

July 10, 2011

"IN GOD IS OUR TRUST!”



O thus be it ever when free-men shall stand
Between their lov'd home and the war's desolation;

Blest with vict'ry and peace, may the heav'n-rescued land
Praise the Pow'r that hath made and preserv'd us a nation!
Then conquer we must, when our cause it is just,
And this be our motto: “In God is our trust!”
And the star-spangled banner in triumph shall wave
O'er the land of the free and the home of the brave!

Read more:
The Star-Spangled Banner — Infoplease.com

July 07, 2011

GUMBO ROOTS


Since the West Bank evolved with people from far and wide, the extent of our research includes everywhere. You may join this free group (must click "Join This Group" and set up your membership, then sign-in each time you visit) to contribute information, discuss genealogy, make queries, post genealogical or heritage events, lurk, or just browse the links and our calendar to the left. If you wish to join our official society, the $20 dues may be sent to us at P.O. Box 872, Harvey, LA 70059-0872. The membership year begins June 1st, meetings are held at 1:00 pm on varied days of the month since Katrina when we can get the meeting room (check the calendar on this group site for exact dates). When we cannot get the meeting room, we have research meetings in the LA History and Genealogy room at West Bank Regional Library at 11 a.m. Our quarterly publication, Gumbo Roots, is included with the membership fee. The meeting venue is still subject to change due to library scheduling practices, so be sure to watch our calendar for place and dates.

"If you cannot get rid of the family skeleton, you may as well make it
dance." --George Bernard Shaw

July 02, 2011

HAPPY JULY 4TH!

This is my song, O God of all the nations,
a song of peace for lands afar and mine;
this is my home, the country where my heart is;
here are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrine:
but other hearts in other lands are beating
with hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.

My country's skies are bluer than the ocean,
and sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine;
but other lands have sunlight too, and clover,
and skies are everywhere as blue as mine:
O hear my song, thou God of all the nations,
a song of peace for their land and for mine.

This is my prayer, O Lord of all earth's kingdoms,
thy kingdom come, on earth, thy will be done;
let Christ be lifted up 'til all shall serve him,
and hearts united, learn to live as one:
O hear my prayer, thou God of all the nations,
myself I give thee -- let thy will be done.

Jean Sibelius (1899)