Terrebonne Genealogical Society TGS Newsletter Vol. 21 No. 11 Feb. 2002 Visit our home page at http://www.rootsweb.com/~laterreb/tgs.htm

 CONTENTS:
NEXT MEETING | DUES | ELECTIONS | NEWS, ALL KINDS | DEATH

Newsletter Editor Ed Hicks, 5306 Hwy.. 1, Raceland, LA 70394-2033

Membership and/or address changes:
Please send by mail to TGS, Station 2 Box 295, Houma, LA 70360-0295

NEXT MEETING Saturday, February 23, 2002
North Branch Library, Gray, LA 1:00 p.m.

     What a great storyteller Chris Peña is! He had every person in the meeting room enthralled with his stories of Alice Farmer and her journal, and how he heard about her journal from Alice’s granddaughter (yes, granddaughter!) at a recent Civil War meeting. He told us he got so interested in it that he decided to publish the journal, as well as write an introduction. If you are interested in his book, its full name  is The Times and Journal of Alice Farmer: Yankee visitor to Acadiana-New Orleans. It is the true story of a Yankee family (Franklin, Phoebe, and Alice Farmer) who moved south to New Iberia during the fall of 1859.  By the summer of 1862 the Farmer family (who remained loyal to the Union) was forced to flee the Confederate-controlled Teche region and relocate in Union-occupied New Orleans.  While living in New Orleans, young Alice Farmer (1847-1939) and her mother, Phoebe (1814-1895), volunteered as nurses, caring for the wounded and sick among the Union army.  On October 19, 1864 Alice began writing a journal of her day-to-day experiences while living in New Orleans. Part One of the book is Alice's life story and Part Two is the edited journal she wrote. It is available from Christopher G. Peña, C.G.P. Press, 714 Highway 308, Thibodaux, LA 70301, telephone (985) 447-9221 or (985) 493-3888, email <cgp@mobiletel.com> Chris’s other book, which he told us about at an earlier meeting, is Touched By War: Battles Fought in the Lafourche District, which was published in 1998 — another very valuable book for anyone doing research in this area.
 
     Incidentally, if the story seemed familiar to you, it’s because part of it appeared in our own Terrebonne Life Lines in the Fall issue of 1994 (vol. 13, no. 3, p. 1) called “Some of My War Experiences” written by Alice Cary Risley. The article tells of the passage of young Alice Farmer and her mother from their home in New Iberia across the battle lines to New Orleans, some of the trip being by way of the “underground railway.”
 
DUES
     You say you can’t remember if you have paid your dues for this year or not? Check the label on this newsletter. In the upper right corner of the label is your expiration date. It’s always “EX2/28/__” but it’s the last two digits that tell the story. If it says “03" you are in the clear for another year. If you’ve got “02", you owe your dues. Family memberships are $30.00, Individuals $25.00; Contributing members pay $30.00 and Libraries $22.00. We don’t offer lifetime memberships anymore, but if you bought one when they were a good deal (when you and the society were younger), you don’t have to worry about the expiration date. It is automatically updated each year.
 
ELECTIONS
     It’s that time again, when we exercise our right to select the officers and board members for another two-year term. The incumbents are seeking (is that too strong a word?) re-election, so that means that Philip Chauvin Jr. has received the nomination for President, Edgar Hicks for Vice-President, Sheila Rodrigue for Recording Secretary, Jess Bergeron for Corresponding Secretary, and Nancy Wright for Treasurer. Running for member of the Board of Directors are: Essie Cavalier, Patricia Gravois, Daniel Guidry, and Louis Duet.
     Some quotes from our constitution and by-laws may be in order, here. From ARTICLE VI - ELECTIONS: Section 3. Following the nominating committee’s report at the February biennial meeting, an opportunity shall be given for nominations from the floor. Any person nominated must be a member in good standing. The nomination and the second to that nomination must also be made by members in good standing. And Section 5. Officers and Directors shall be elected by a simple majority vote of the members present at the time of voting at the biennial meeting in February. Voting for all officers and board of directors shall be by secret ballot. Finally, Section 6. Each officer shall be elected separately. The Directors shall be elected collectively.
 
NEWS, ALL KINDS
     On 10 February 2002, Whitney and Janice Blanchard Armond celebrated their 40th wedding anniversary. Happy Anniversary y’all! May you celebrate many more!
     Joyce Thedy, longtime member from Metairie sent her wishes on our birthday, last month. “Happy 20th birthday, T. G. S., and may you have many more.”
     Does anyone know the whereabouts of Barbara Whitfield? Her Terrebonne Life Lines was returned. If you see her, ask her to send us $3.00 for postage or pick it up at Jess Bergeron’s house (see phone number, above).
A couple of our members have spent time in the hospital, so we want to send them our prayers and wishes for a speedy recovery. Godfrey Olivier fell when he attended the first parade of the Houma Mardi Gras season. He broke 5 ribs, his sternum, and a clavicle! Godfrey is being cared for in Maison DeVille, Room 323, in case you would like to visit. It’s at 107 South Hollywood Road in Houma, and is the most recent address for a couple of other members of T.G.S. Specifically, Wilma Boudreaux and Edith Patterson can help Godfrey pass the time until he can go home.
     You may remember that I mentioned Lois Burgamy and her husband Carl attending our Christmas social. Well, in January Lois had to be rushed to the hospital and they kept her two weeks. She is home, now, to recuperate, so we will remember her as well as Godfrey in our prayers. Get well soon, y’hear?
 
DEATH
     Our heartfelt sympathies go out to longtime member June Hebert Granger of Loreauville on the loss of her loving husband, Simon J. “Bute” Granger Jr. A native of Loreauville, Mr. Granger died Friday, 23 November 2001 at Our Lady of Lourdes Medical Center in Lafayette. He was a geophysicist with Grant Geophysical and Cajun Exploration. Besides June, he is survived by a son, Gary Joseph Granger; a daughter, Sheila Marie Granger; a step-daughter, Patricia Guillot Gurtner, her husband Richard; two sisters and their husbands, Myrtle G. and Forbus J. Mestoyer Sr. and Anne G. and Lloyd G. Broussard; one brother, Bernie Granger and wife Evelyn, many nieces and nephews and three grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Simon J. Granger Sr. and Felicie Gonsoulin Granger, two brothers, Claude and Holand Granger, and a sister, Beatrice G. Labit.