Obituary for Emerite Marie Dugas Badeaux
Mrs. Emerite Dugas Badeaux a resident of Thibodaux, died peacefully and pain free on Thursday, July 23rd, 2020 at the age of 96 from natural causes.
A visitation will be held on Monday, July 27, 2020 from 9:00 AM until service time at Ordoyne Funeral Home. A Funeral Service will begin at 11:00 AM at the funeral home with burial following at St. Joseph Cemetery.
She is survived by her daughters, Marie Badeaux Fournier, Louise Badeaux Soudelier, Michele Badeaux Bullock (Harold); son, J. Paul Badeaux (Frances); sister, Margaret Long.
She is also survived by 8 grandchildren, Jeffrey C. Fournier (Kelly), Chad J. Fournier, Jacques Soudelier, Mark Soudelier, Andre' Badeaux (Rae), Jeremy Badeaux (Cindy), Brent Badeaux, Mikki Guerra (Adam); 1 step grandson, Kevin Bullock (Amy) 14 great grandchildren, 2 step great grandsons, 1 great great grandson as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Charles Badeaux, Jr.; sons, Charles A. Badeaux, III and Rene Louis Badeaux; parents, Ulysse V. and Louise Duhon Dugas; brothers, Irby Dugas, Dr. L.J. Dugas, Col. Meade Dugas, Fred Dugas, Francis Dugas, Sr.; sister, Gertrude Plaisance as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
She was a loving and devoted wife and mother. She was a true patriot to her country and an avid Saints fan. Mrs. Badeaux will be remembered as the owner and manager of Badeaux's Department Store, her career as both a private and public school educator, her furniture finishing business, her flare for artistic design and her amazing gift for growing anything in her flower beds and garden.
The family would like to thank Heart of Hospice, The Lafourche Home for the Aged and Ordoyne Funeral Home for all their kindness and support.
Ordoyne Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Eulogy for Mrs. Emerite:
I would like to welcome you all to this celebration of the life of our mother, Emerite Dugas Badeaux. During this time of Covid, I know it was an effort for you to be here…our family appreciates it. For those who wanted to be here, but couldn’t, we understand & know you are with us in spirit!
Way back in the summer of 1923, Louise Duhon (better known to us as Momie) & Ulysses Dugas (better known as Popie) welcomed this little bundle of joy named Marie Emerite in addition to their already large family. We know that Mom was born in Duson, LA & they somehow migrated here after a few years so that Popie could take on a job at Laurel Valley Plantation as the overseer.
Oh, I could tell bunches of stories about their lives on the Plantation, as we heard them, but I will try to focus mostly on my mom, since that is why we are here to celebrate. All of the events may not be in chronological order, but I hope it is, at least, close.
Mom grew up in a family of 5 brothers & 2 sisters she was the middle sister, but the 3rd to youngest in the whole family of 8. I here tell she was a prissy little girl always wanting to play with dolls & dressing them up…& of course she was “playing madame” beside her beloved dolls! Her older sister Gert was a good deal older than her & was more like her mom… Muggs, the youngest daughter was more into tomboy things & didn’t want to play dolls with her!
Thus, I think, grew Mom’s love for fashion & drawing at a slightly older age then her doll era… in fact, we were told that once she started with drawing, she used every piece of spare paper that she could find & had to resort to drawing her fashions on old window shades that Momie was discarding! We hope we still have her drawings on those old window shades in a scrapbook! She was really talented!
We also have heard stories about how Mom had to learn English when she went to school…Having grown up on a sugar cane plantation with Cajun French speaking parents, that’s all they heard before moving on to the “Thibodaux” schools! Yet Mom was intelligent enough to learn English while studying her other subjects & didn’t miss a beat! Thus, her love for education was born, along with the help of all her older siblings who had all come to value their educations also. It is true that Momie & Popie both had not completed grade school…yet, our grandparents instilled the importance of education to their rather large brood! Mom was destined to later become a school teacher.
Fast forward to Mom & Dad’s introduction & wedding in 1944. One of her brothers was already school friends with my dad (otherwise known as Charles A Badeaux, Jr) & Fred introduced them…well It was love at first sight for my dad, but for mom, it took a little longer. Soon she warmed to him after his very persistent persuasion & the rest is history…she accepted his marriage proposal & they became man & wife.
As they were very good Catholics, the children began to arrive…& arrive they did! Within 8 years or so, they had 6 of us…3 boys & 3 girls! My dad owned the clothing store portion of all the Badeaux businesses called Badeaux’s Department Store. During that time they must’ve worked very hard, because according to my calculations, there was always one or two of us in diapers!
This seemingly happy union was not meant to be for very long, as my dad developed heart trouble and died at age 38 after only 13 years of marriage. My mother was widowed with 6 kids at the age of 33! The oldest child, Charles, was 11 years old & the youngest, Michele, was 4 years old. I was 10 years old & remember the sadness Mom felt…I remember her going to the back door of the house & looking up at the sky & crying…it made me sad, too, because I thought I should do something to help her! I realize that a 10 year old does not have the adult-thinking maturity to be too helpful…but, I just hugged her!
With the aid of Momie, and numerous aunts & uncles, we all survived childhood…alive. The aunts & uncles did whatever they could to help Mom at that time…off we would go to visit our cousins for part of the summer vacation! After all, if you were widowed with 6 “brats”, as she called us when we needed correction, wouldn’t you be happy to have a break from them???!!! Well, we needed the breaks too & welcomed them!
During that time, Mom tried to manage the Clothing Store, so we learned to do household things that kids our ages didn’t even dream of…well, we didn’t dream of them either! By the hardest, Mom taught us responsibility & respect for others. We learned how to share our possessions. We learned how to wash dishes, wash clothes, dry clothes, fold clothes & even cook…as I recall, we all had chores & scheduled times to do them. We learned how to sweep the floor & grocery shop thru the years.
As we got into our teen years, Mom had to give up the store…Mom learned to build a few pieces of furniture…she learned how to repair things to save money…she learned how to reupholster furniture…she was a very frugal woman, that, I believe, she learned from her days on Laurel Valley and watching Momie. There was nothing she couldn’t do…or at least try anything! Oh, how we all learned to respect her for all the accomplishments she made! In between all that, she designed & sewed clothes for us girls to save additional pennies…at first, I didn’t like the idea that our clothes weren’t store bought…but, I came to be so proud that I had a dress like no one else had & how excellent a seamstress she was!
Mom learned to repair & refinish furniture…that, she seemed to like very much & she was very meticulous with it! If something didn’t turn out like she wanted, she would start all over again until it was done to her satisfaction! What an example she set for us…I didn’t understand it all until I was much older! How Mom never got Mother of the Year, I’ll never know…!!
Time for college as some of us were getting to be that age…Charles went into the seminary & finished high school there, then moved to New Orleans…I went to Nicholls for a couple of years & quit…Louise went to college…& guess what? The old mother decided she was going too!!!! She &Louise even had some classes together! Mom stuck to it & got her bachelor’s degree with a double major in English & in French! She graduated Summa Cum Laude & we were even MORE proud of her!!!!
Mom began teaching soon after graduation and taught for a few years at private school & a few years at public school. But, her accomplishments didn’t stop there…she also became an expert fudge maker…oh, she would make peanut butter…she would make pecan…she would make plain chocolate! Many of her nieces & nephews, besides her own kids, loved coming over to eat her fudge! Even that she shared her recipe with some of us, our fudge still doesn’t taste as good as hers!!!!
By this time, some of us were getting married & having children. Oh, how proud she was of all her grandchildren…She let them spend time with her whenever we went on vacation or had to go somewhere for our jobs…she helped to raise a few of them too! She loved them all!!! & they loved her too! Now, the greats & great-greats are here…too bad they will have to listen to our stories about her, instead of experiencing it themselves!!!! But, we will keep telling them!
The tables turned when she had her stroke in 2004 & dementia set in a few years after that. Things then changed & she needed more assistance with everyday tasks! We tried to let her be independent as much as possible, for we wanted her to keep her dignity always. However, I guess some of us spoiled her by doing things for her that she probably should’ve been doing herself…like, pushing her in the wheelchair instead of letting her learn to propel it herself. Her strength & courage were proven over & over again as she got well from each bout of numerous sicknesses…we thought she would live to be 100! But, she made it just shy of her 97th birthday!
Now, God has taken her to be with Him…He was finally ready for her, as we used to tease her about! We are comforted that Mom is finally at peace & pain-free…
Yes, Mom, now you are home where you belong. We know you are reunited with Dad, Charles, & Rene & all your other loved ones…we know ya’ll are partying, no doubt…we will join you someday when God says the same.
And, as I ask Mom what God looks like, I can hear her telling me…”He looks like Drew Brees”!
A visitation will be held on Monday, July 27, 2020 from 9:00 AM until service time at Ordoyne Funeral Home. A Funeral Service will begin at 11:00 AM at the funeral home with burial following at St. Joseph Cemetery.
She is survived by her daughters, Marie Badeaux Fournier, Louise Badeaux Soudelier, Michele Badeaux Bullock (Harold); son, J. Paul Badeaux (Frances); sister, Margaret Long.
She is also survived by 8 grandchildren, Jeffrey C. Fournier (Kelly), Chad J. Fournier, Jacques Soudelier, Mark Soudelier, Andre' Badeaux (Rae), Jeremy Badeaux (Cindy), Brent Badeaux, Mikki Guerra (Adam); 1 step grandson, Kevin Bullock (Amy) 14 great grandchildren, 2 step great grandsons, 1 great great grandson as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
She is preceded in death by her husband, Charles Badeaux, Jr.; sons, Charles A. Badeaux, III and Rene Louis Badeaux; parents, Ulysse V. and Louise Duhon Dugas; brothers, Irby Dugas, Dr. L.J. Dugas, Col. Meade Dugas, Fred Dugas, Francis Dugas, Sr.; sister, Gertrude Plaisance as well as numerous nieces and nephews.
She was a loving and devoted wife and mother. She was a true patriot to her country and an avid Saints fan. Mrs. Badeaux will be remembered as the owner and manager of Badeaux's Department Store, her career as both a private and public school educator, her furniture finishing business, her flare for artistic design and her amazing gift for growing anything in her flower beds and garden.
The family would like to thank Heart of Hospice, The Lafourche Home for the Aged and Ordoyne Funeral Home for all their kindness and support.
Ordoyne Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
Eulogy for Mrs. Emerite:
I would like to welcome you all to this celebration of the life of our mother, Emerite Dugas Badeaux. During this time of Covid, I know it was an effort for you to be here…our family appreciates it. For those who wanted to be here, but couldn’t, we understand & know you are with us in spirit!
Way back in the summer of 1923, Louise Duhon (better known to us as Momie) & Ulysses Dugas (better known as Popie) welcomed this little bundle of joy named Marie Emerite in addition to their already large family. We know that Mom was born in Duson, LA & they somehow migrated here after a few years so that Popie could take on a job at Laurel Valley Plantation as the overseer.
Oh, I could tell bunches of stories about their lives on the Plantation, as we heard them, but I will try to focus mostly on my mom, since that is why we are here to celebrate. All of the events may not be in chronological order, but I hope it is, at least, close.
Mom grew up in a family of 5 brothers & 2 sisters she was the middle sister, but the 3rd to youngest in the whole family of 8. I here tell she was a prissy little girl always wanting to play with dolls & dressing them up…& of course she was “playing madame” beside her beloved dolls! Her older sister Gert was a good deal older than her & was more like her mom… Muggs, the youngest daughter was more into tomboy things & didn’t want to play dolls with her!
Thus, I think, grew Mom’s love for fashion & drawing at a slightly older age then her doll era… in fact, we were told that once she started with drawing, she used every piece of spare paper that she could find & had to resort to drawing her fashions on old window shades that Momie was discarding! We hope we still have her drawings on those old window shades in a scrapbook! She was really talented!
We also have heard stories about how Mom had to learn English when she went to school…Having grown up on a sugar cane plantation with Cajun French speaking parents, that’s all they heard before moving on to the “Thibodaux” schools! Yet Mom was intelligent enough to learn English while studying her other subjects & didn’t miss a beat! Thus, her love for education was born, along with the help of all her older siblings who had all come to value their educations also. It is true that Momie & Popie both had not completed grade school…yet, our grandparents instilled the importance of education to their rather large brood! Mom was destined to later become a school teacher.
Fast forward to Mom & Dad’s introduction & wedding in 1944. One of her brothers was already school friends with my dad (otherwise known as Charles A Badeaux, Jr) & Fred introduced them…well It was love at first sight for my dad, but for mom, it took a little longer. Soon she warmed to him after his very persistent persuasion & the rest is history…she accepted his marriage proposal & they became man & wife.
As they were very good Catholics, the children began to arrive…& arrive they did! Within 8 years or so, they had 6 of us…3 boys & 3 girls! My dad owned the clothing store portion of all the Badeaux businesses called Badeaux’s Department Store. During that time they must’ve worked very hard, because according to my calculations, there was always one or two of us in diapers!
This seemingly happy union was not meant to be for very long, as my dad developed heart trouble and died at age 38 after only 13 years of marriage. My mother was widowed with 6 kids at the age of 33! The oldest child, Charles, was 11 years old & the youngest, Michele, was 4 years old. I was 10 years old & remember the sadness Mom felt…I remember her going to the back door of the house & looking up at the sky & crying…it made me sad, too, because I thought I should do something to help her! I realize that a 10 year old does not have the adult-thinking maturity to be too helpful…but, I just hugged her!
With the aid of Momie, and numerous aunts & uncles, we all survived childhood…alive. The aunts & uncles did whatever they could to help Mom at that time…off we would go to visit our cousins for part of the summer vacation! After all, if you were widowed with 6 “brats”, as she called us when we needed correction, wouldn’t you be happy to have a break from them???!!! Well, we needed the breaks too & welcomed them!
During that time, Mom tried to manage the Clothing Store, so we learned to do household things that kids our ages didn’t even dream of…well, we didn’t dream of them either! By the hardest, Mom taught us responsibility & respect for others. We learned how to share our possessions. We learned how to wash dishes, wash clothes, dry clothes, fold clothes & even cook…as I recall, we all had chores & scheduled times to do them. We learned how to sweep the floor & grocery shop thru the years.
As we got into our teen years, Mom had to give up the store…Mom learned to build a few pieces of furniture…she learned how to repair things to save money…she learned how to reupholster furniture…she was a very frugal woman, that, I believe, she learned from her days on Laurel Valley and watching Momie. There was nothing she couldn’t do…or at least try anything! Oh, how we all learned to respect her for all the accomplishments she made! In between all that, she designed & sewed clothes for us girls to save additional pennies…at first, I didn’t like the idea that our clothes weren’t store bought…but, I came to be so proud that I had a dress like no one else had & how excellent a seamstress she was!
Mom learned to repair & refinish furniture…that, she seemed to like very much & she was very meticulous with it! If something didn’t turn out like she wanted, she would start all over again until it was done to her satisfaction! What an example she set for us…I didn’t understand it all until I was much older! How Mom never got Mother of the Year, I’ll never know…!!
Time for college as some of us were getting to be that age…Charles went into the seminary & finished high school there, then moved to New Orleans…I went to Nicholls for a couple of years & quit…Louise went to college…& guess what? The old mother decided she was going too!!!! She &Louise even had some classes together! Mom stuck to it & got her bachelor’s degree with a double major in English & in French! She graduated Summa Cum Laude & we were even MORE proud of her!!!!
Mom began teaching soon after graduation and taught for a few years at private school & a few years at public school. But, her accomplishments didn’t stop there…she also became an expert fudge maker…oh, she would make peanut butter…she would make pecan…she would make plain chocolate! Many of her nieces & nephews, besides her own kids, loved coming over to eat her fudge! Even that she shared her recipe with some of us, our fudge still doesn’t taste as good as hers!!!!
By this time, some of us were getting married & having children. Oh, how proud she was of all her grandchildren…She let them spend time with her whenever we went on vacation or had to go somewhere for our jobs…she helped to raise a few of them too! She loved them all!!! & they loved her too! Now, the greats & great-greats are here…too bad they will have to listen to our stories about her, instead of experiencing it themselves!!!! But, we will keep telling them!
The tables turned when she had her stroke in 2004 & dementia set in a few years after that. Things then changed & she needed more assistance with everyday tasks! We tried to let her be independent as much as possible, for we wanted her to keep her dignity always. However, I guess some of us spoiled her by doing things for her that she probably should’ve been doing herself…like, pushing her in the wheelchair instead of letting her learn to propel it herself. Her strength & courage were proven over & over again as she got well from each bout of numerous sicknesses…we thought she would live to be 100! But, she made it just shy of her 97th birthday!
Now, God has taken her to be with Him…He was finally ready for her, as we used to tease her about! We are comforted that Mom is finally at peace & pain-free…
Yes, Mom, now you are home where you belong. We know you are reunited with Dad, Charles, & Rene & all your other loved ones…we know ya’ll are partying, no doubt…we will join you someday when God says the same.
And, as I ask Mom what God looks like, I can hear her telling me…”He looks like Drew Brees”!