NEXT MEETING:
      August 28, 2010 — 1:00 p.m.
      Main Branch Library: 151 Library Dr. Houma , LA

This meeting will be upstairs in the genealogy room.

Do you believe that the Holocaust happened? There are people that say it did not happen, but Nella Melancon knows that it did. She was born in Trieste , Italy in 1933 and then WWII started when she was about 9 or 10 years old. She lived about 2 blocks from La Risiera; this was one of the gas chambers the Nazis used to kill the Jewish people. They started counting the planes coming in, then the houses started coming down all around them, so they ran to the mountains. Mussolini would give packages for Christmas gifts. The package she received had 2 dolls, one of Mussolini and one of Hitler, her dad wanted her to get rid of them, but her mother said let her keep them. She kept them hidden in her drawer. One day the German soldiers came to their house looking for her uncle, whom they believed killed a German soldier. The family kept telling the soldier they did not know where he was. They started searching the house with plans to kill them, when they found her dolls; they decided not to kill them. She says these dolls saved their lives that day. They took her father from his job on the docks and when he did not come home her mother went to look for him and she found out what happened to him. The Germans had him digging ditches and putting the dead in the ditches in Germany . Then one day he managed to escape with the help of a doctor, by faking an eye disease called Trachoma. He traveled, without any shoes, at night and hid during the day and when he finally made it home his feet were very raw. Then the Americans started coming in then things would be different. She came to the United States as a war bride of the Korean War. She married an American soldier and move to Texas . She kept this hidden in her heart until she got tired of hearing that the holocaust did not happened. She decided it is time to tell her story and to let people know that these things really did happened. She sang us a very beautiful Italian song. You should have been there to hear her life story.

WOW! I just got back from the Lafourche Heritage Society 34 th annual seminar. There were some wonderful speakers. First we had Claire MIRE BETTAG she spoke on Civil Law Concepts and Genealogy. To properly interpret some records, genealogists will need to determine which system or code was in effect at a particular time or place. Common law found in England and in much of the English-speaking world, there is no written code. Civil law is codified law, rooted in ancient Roman law, and has been adopted in many countries throughout the world. Louisiana adopted Civil Code promulgated by Napoleon. Civil Code is private law that regulates personal relationships among private citizens. Then she spoke on French notarial records. Notaries function much like contract lawyers in civil law societies like France , Spain , Italy and other countries. They create legally binding “authentic acts” such as marriage contract, wills, successions, and many other acts. We had a very scrumptious lunch and dessert. After lunch Richard Condrey spoke on the Louisiana 's historical ecology. This is one speech you should have heard if you are interested in saving the land that you are currently living on. The last speaker was Nathalie Dajko; her speech was on the French language of the Lafourche Basin . She spoke to over 100 French-speaking people and studied the differences in the way each group of people said the same word or sentence. She has come up with three different versions of the French language; Colonial French, which she also called Plantation French; Louisiana Creole or Louisiana Regional French and Cajun French that most of the Native American people speak. This was a great seminar.

DEATHS

ANDRY Capt. Walter Gilbert Andry, age 86, retired U.S. Navy, a 32-year resident of Slidell , LA , passed away peacefully at home and entered eternal life on Tuesday, July 27, 2010 . Loving husband of Bernice Castille Andry for 57 years. Loving father to Jeanne Lang (Frank, deceased), Denise Troxler (Scott), Diane Soignier (Bob), Walter, David (deceased), Christopher, Stephanie Sage (Sean); grandfather of Colleen Lang Thayer (Damon), Matthew Lang, Robert Soignier; Kaitlin, Dominique and Jacquelyn Andry; Ryan, Natalie and Daniel Sage; and great-grandfather of Sasha and Lila Thayer. Preceded in death by his parents: Walter G. Andry and Bertha LeBoeuf Andry; six brothers: Walter, Malcolm, Ernest, Bert, Aiden, Noel; and one sister, Laura Louise. Born in New Orleans on September 20, 1923 , he was a graduate of Behrman High and earned a BBA from Tulane University in 1943. He began his 31-year naval career at the Navy Supply Corps School at Harvard University . During WWII, he served as an officer aboard the Destroyer Escort USS John C Butler (DE-339) in the Pacific. The ship earned five battle stars for her role in the crucial campaigns to liberate the Philippines and capture Iwo Jima and Okinawa . The Butler's other decorations include the Presidential Unit Citation for her valiant action against heavy Japanese surface ships in the Battle off Samar, and the Navy Unit Commendation for shooting down five of six kamikaze attack planes while on picket duty at Ie Shima. After the war he returned to Tulane where he earned his law degree, and went into the Navy reserve. He was recalled to active duty at the beginning of the Korean Conflict. For the rest of his Navy career as a legal officer, he was stationed throughout the U.S. and the Philippines . After retiring, he worked at the Stennis Space Center in Bay St. Louis where he was a staff attorney for the Naval Oceanographic Office for 10 years. He enjoyed helping with community events with the Knights of Columbus, for more than 50 years, including Slidell Council 2732 for more than 30 years. Relatives and family friends are invited to attend the visitation at St. Margaret Mary Catholic Church, 1050 Robert Blvd. , Slidell , LA on Wednesday, August 4th, 2010 at 9:30 a.m. with the Funeral Mass beginning at 11:00 . Burial will be at Westlawn Cemetery , Gretna , LA. In lieu of flowers, masses preferred, or donations to the American Cancer Society or St. Joseph Hospice ( Covington ). Honaker Funeral Home is handling arrangements. To sign and view the family guest book, please visit www.honakerforestlawn.com .

BOOK SUGGESTIONS

If you cannot find a book in the genealogy department at the Terrebonne Parish Library let Sondras Saucier know the title, author, and price and where the book can be purchased. She will get the information to Judy so that the library can purchase the book. Sondras can be reached at (985) 688-6792 leave her a message & why you are calling or email her at svbs3@yahoo.com .

We want to thank our great and wonderful hospitality angels; Marcie Cavalier, Dorothy Bergeron, Blanche Brown, Sandra Boudreaux, Eloise Brunet, and Mrs. T for the delicious treats that your bring to our meetings. If you brought any treats and you are not mention please forgive me. I have tried to find out who made all the scrumptious treats. We welcome anyone to bring a treat or two to our meetings. We love to eat!!

QUARTERLY REPORT

Thank You, Thank You to Phil Chauvin, Essie & Marcie Cavalier, Patty Whitney, Lou Ostheimer, Jeanette Boudreaux, Blanche Brown, Cecile Boudreaux, and Rene' Vidal for the articles you sent for the quarterly. I am currently indexing the fall quarterly to have it ready for the October meeting. I need more articles for the winter quarterly. Please send me your family charts, stories, or any genealogical articles for the quarterly. Send these to me as an attachment to your email. My information is at the to of this newsletter.

GO PAPERLESS

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