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When Mike Guilbeaux retired as North Vermilion High principal in 2008, after 33 years in the public school system, he didn’t plan on another stint in education.
He ended up finding one anyway, one that has lasted a dozen years. So now, Guilbeaux feels the time is right to again head off into retirement.
At the official end of the school year, Guilbeaux will say goodbye to Vermilion Catholic after spending the 12 years at the school, including the past 11 as principal.
“It’s been a good run,” Guilbeaux said of his time at VC. “It’s another journey that has allowed me to grow.”
That journey began in ‘10, after Guilbeaux spent a couple of years working in marketing for Schilling Distributing.
“I probably could have stayed there forever,” Guilbeaux said. “It was a great place, and I enjoyed that time.”
Guilbeaux eventually received an opportunity to join VC as an assistant principal. He said it made sense, as he lives right across the street.
“I had a great 33 years in the public system,” Guilbeaux said. “I enjoyed my time. When I did leave, it was not with the intent of looking for another job in education. I was 56, still young. I came here as an assistant, to kind of help out.
“I was going to stay a couple of years.”
He stayed longer.
“This opportunity has allowed me to give something back,” Guilbeaux said. “That is something that I always wanted to do.”
On Monday, Guilbeaux had the opportunity to speak to his final graduating class. It’s a class that has endured during the past couple of years.
“We had to take them through the COVID(-19) pandemic,” Guilbeaux said. “I like little sayings. When the pandemic started, the saying for the Class in ‘20 was, ‘I believe.’ We believed that we were going to get through it. The next year was, ‘I know.’ We saw the challenges and knew they would be stronger for it. This year was about life lessons, what we learned from it.”
The pandemic affected Guilbeaux’s decision on when would be the right time to leave VC.
“You never know when the right time will be,” Guilbeaux said. “I would think about it. But, then, when the pandemic hit us, I wanted to see it through.”
There were other factors, too. Namely, VC’s acquisition of Mount Carmel, creating Vermilion Catholic, a Legacy of Mount Carmel.
“When we merged with Mount Carmel,” Guilbeaux said, “I felt like I wanted to be a part of that. I wanted to be part of the transition to move forward.”
Guilbeaux is now helping with another transition, that of Dr. Stella Arabi becoming the new principal at VC. That move will be effective July 1.
“That process is going well,” Guilbeaux said.
While that is going smoothly, Guilbeaux admitted there would be some work to do to ease into retirement.
“It will take me a little bit of time to adjust,” Guilbeaux said. “I think one of the things I will miss the most is communicating and planning with others. I will miss talking to kids and talking to parents.
“The people, that is what I am going miss the most.”
Those with whom Guilbeaux has communicated and planned during his 45 years in education is too long to even begin to list.
“Whether it was in Erath, 7th Ward, North Vermilion or VC,” Guilbeaux said, “I have had the opportunity to work with many great people.
“I have made a lot of good friends.”
When he left North Vermilion, Guilbeaux didn’t plan on VC being among his stops. He’s happy he made the decision.
“I have no regrets,” Guilbeaux said. “I have been very blessed.”

Relatives and friends are invited to attend A mass of Christian Burial will be on Saturday, May 28, 2022 at St. Theresa Catholic Church honoring the life of Marietta Trahan Clark, who passed on Monday, May 16, 2022, at the age of 68.
A rosary will be held at 10:15 a.m. with the Mass immediately following at 11:00 a.m. Following the ceremony, a Celebration of Life will be held at St. Theresa Family Center.
A native of Gueydan and a resident of Abbeville, Marietta never met a stranger. Her zest for life and extremely positive attitude were always in abundance. She always placed everyone’s needs before her own and was always willing to help or take charge, when needed. Her love of travel was evident in her always having a bag packed, ready to go. A talented artist, she donated numerous items to raffle for charities or cherished gifts for family and friends. She was a true friend and will be missed by all.
Upon receiving her education degree, Marietta taught Special Education for numerous years, then completing her teaching career in a traditional classroom at the middle school level. It was during this time she was Co-Director of Special Olympics and served as a volunteer for Special Olympics for over 40 years.
Her love of gardening and landscaping led her to join the Abbeville Garden Club, where she presently served as club president. Also, proud of her Cajun French heritage, Marietta was not only a member of the Confrerie’ de Omelette, she rose to the rank of Chevalier. She enjoyed the game of tennis and the camaraderie of the tennis team.
Marietta is survived by her loving daughter, Meggan Mae Clark St. Amant (Sean); brother, Dennis Trahan; brother, Paul Trahan (Charlene); brother, Leonard Trahan (Marcia); sister, Sherry Guidry (David); and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Manson and Esther B. Trahan Clark and Alday Clark; her brother, Russell Trahan; brother, Troy Clark; and sister, Jennifer Trahan Cunningham.
In lieu of flowers, condolences may be made to the family, or by visiting www.muhleisen.com.

When 2023 rolls around, the Vermilion Parish School Board will officially consist of a nine-member school board.
The school board will have an odd number of school board members for the first time ever. On Wednesday, the eight school board members voted 8-0 to add an extra district, bringing the total number of school board members to nine.
The last time the school board changed the number of school board members was around 1990, when it went from a 14-member school board to an eight-member school board.
The North Vermilion area will now have two school board members.
The new district will be called District I, and the new board member’s district will include Indian Bayou Elementary and Meaux Elementary.
District B will have North Vermilion Middle, North Vermilion High School and Cecil Picard Elementary in its district.
Qualifying for all school board seats will be at the end of July, and the regular election is in November.
The nine members will be sworn in at the first school board meeting in January 2023.
Each of the nine school board districts will have around 6,366 residents. However, some districts will have fewer than 6,366 residents while others will have more.
The district with the most population will be District B, with 6,927, 561 more people than it should have.
The district with less than 6,366 people is District A, with a population of 5,802 people, or 564 less than it should have. This district covers all of Gueydan and goes into a small part of the town of Kaplan.
District D, located south of Abbeville and Kaplan, which consists of Forked Island, Pecan Island and Intracoastal City, has a population of 6,484 people.
Abbeville will continue to have two representatives. District E (population of 6,451) is the west side of Abbeville, along with the Comeaux Park Area, behind Vermilion Catholic High School, plus the area by Abbeville High School.
District F (population of 6,580) will consist of north and south of Charity Street up to Herod Elementary and north and south of Martin Luther King Drive.
District H (population 6,205) is all of Erath and Delcambre and south of Erath.
District G (population 6,063) is north of Erath and Delcambre, up to the Lafayette line. It also stops at the east end of the Abbeville City limits.

Christopher Richard is this year’s winner of the Rotary Club of Abbeville’s “What I Want to Be and Why” contest.
Since the contest’s inception in 1949, there have been myriad scientific breakthroughs. Richard, a 2022 Abbeville High graduate, wants to be part of furthering advancements that help others, as he has seen those advancements help someone special to him.
“My sister was born with a cleft palate,” Richard said, “which led to her hearing loss.”
She wore traditional hearing aids for years, which Richard said complicated her medical issues.
“Due to the nature of traditional hearing aids,” Richard said, “her middle ear was unable to receive airflow, causing continued ear infections and repetitive surgeries to insert tubes.”
Richard’s sister eventually became eligible for a surgery that would significantly impact her hearing. She received bilateral Cochlear Baha titanium implants situated behind her ear, allowing the implant to snap on and off.
“This was when I learned that sound is heard better through bone conduction rather than air conduction,” Richard said. “My curiosity grew and led me to do further research.”
Richard learned that a group of biomedical engineers and neuroscientists created the implant.
“From that point on,” Richard said, “my heart has been set on biomedical engineering. I want the opportunity to do exactly what those engineers do, change people’s lives.”
Richard will take the next step in his path to helping others later this year when he attends Northwestern State University in Natchitoches. He will study biology with a biomedical concentration.
“Over the course of my undergraduate college education,” Richard explained, “I will get the opportunity to explore many fields of biology, including cellular and molecular biology, anatomy and microbiology.”
Richard also plans to seek a minor degree in electronics engineering technology. After earning his bachelor’s degree, Richard plans to attend graduate school.
“I will continue my education in the medical field,” he said. “I plan to become a biomedical researcher, and grad school will bring me even closer to this opportunity.”
Richard, the 17-year-old son of Nadine and Chris Richard, made the most of his opportunities in high school. Richard served as an officer in both the Beta Club and the AHS student council. In addition, he played on the baseball team and joined the marching band, for which he earned the opportunity to become a drum major.
Outside of school, Richard volunteered at St. Theresa Catholic Church in Abbeville.
“In my spare time,” he said, “I enjoy photography, exploring new things and spending time with my nieces.”
Richard joined the Rotary’s Interact Club three years ago. During Wednesday’s meeting, Rotary Club President Annette Mudd, the district Interact chair, presented Richard with this award for the Rotary District Level “Interactor of the Year.” That award includes a $500 Scholarship to go with his $2,000 scholarship for “What I Want to Be and Why.”
“His parents have to be extremely proud,” Mudd said. “I know that I am.”
Richard is grateful.
“I would like to extend sincerest thanks to the Rotary Club of Abbeville,” Richard said, “for giving me this opportunity to share my journey.”
Richard intends to help as many people as he can while on that journey.
“I believe that my career path will set me up to make a difference in the world,” Richard said. “I have always enjoyed helping others. This pathway will be the stepping stone I need to do so. Biomedical research is extremely important as it is the only way to create new treatments and solutions for a wide variety of diseases and health conditions.
“It will be my task to work not only to improve healthcare systems, but to minimize the cost of services for people around the world.”