RSS Feed

During the same week students went through the interview process for their top yearly accolades, the Vermilion Parish School System announced the honorees who help make those students so successful.
Earning recognition as Vermilion Parish Teachers of the Year are Herod Elementary School’s Darbi Conca, Erath Middle School’s Amy Suire and North Vermilion High School’s Jacqueline Alleman.
Conca is in her third year as a third-grade teacher at Herod Elementary in Abbeville.
“It’s a great honor to have been chosen for this award,” Conca said. “I am so blessed to work for the Vermilion Parish School Board because of the ongoing support that they provide to their teachers as well as having so many other wonderful educators to collaborate with.
“I know that I wouldn’t have been considered for this award if I didn’t have the most amazing students who rise to my high expectations every day.”
Conca said she became a teacher to help make a positive impact in her students’ lives. Herod Principal Lysonia Robertson said that is evident in the work Conca puts in each day.
“She is an intelligent and hard working teacher,” Robertson said. “She works diligently to plan and prepare lessons for her students and spends many hours outside of the 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. workday studying content and analyzing student data. I strongly believe she wants what’s good for children and her goal is to do what is right for them.
“Mrs. Darbi is an extremely compassionate teacher. She cares for her students and encourages them to work hard even when the work is hard.”
Suire is a 7th grade English Language Arts and Social Studies teacher at EMS.
“The honor is such a special validation of my accomplishments in my teaching career,” Suire said. “It has challenged me to exceed my own expectations!”
Melanie Alleman, a fellow teacher at Erath Middle, said Suire is “most deserving” of this honor.
“She is an incredible educator who has greatly impacted the lives of countless students,” Alleman said. “Amy always goes the extra mile to ensure that her students have a variety of activities to keep them engaged and excited about learning.
“She is very caring, compassionate and treats each child as if he or she were her own.”
Jacqueline Alleman is an English teacher at NVHS.
“It fills me with gratitude to be recognized for what I love doing. For me, the top honor in teaching is watching my students blossom,” Alleman said. “I feel rewarded every day just by knowing that my students, their families, and my colleagues trust that I am doing everything I can to help our kids learn and grow. Ultimately, my job is to ensure our future. And so, I believe in kids. I believe ALL students can and will succeed. In this career, failure is not an option. This is just what teaching is.
“I’m honored to represent Vermilion Parish. We are Vermilion!”
Jeri Landry, who works with Alleman at North Vermilion, said Alleman is indeed one of the best in Vermilion.
“Ms. Alleman finds the courage and inner strength to encourage her students to become the best they can be,” Landry said. “She does not accept mediocrity from herself, nor will she accept it from her students.”

According to Vermilion Parish Sheriff Mike Couvillon, a person has been identified and arrested for stealing mail out of mailboxes throughout
Vermilion Parish. Through video surveillance and a complaint of Unauthorized Use of a Access Card, detectives were able to identify a white in color, four door vehicle and a white female who had been stealing mail from one mailbox and then replacing in other mailboxes as a rouse to steal more mail.
Sheriff Couvillon says that with the assistance of the Iberia Parish Sheriff’s Office, Detectives were able to locate and arrest the following suspect:
Arrested was Chasity Sturm, 33, of New Iberia.
She is charged with 10 counts of Theft and Unauthorized Use of an Access Card.
Her total bond is $1,500.
The investigation is ongoing and additional charges are anticipated from Vermilion Parish and the Broussard Police Department. The investigation will also be forwarded to the US Postal Inspectors Office for a Federal Investigation.
Finally, Sheriff Couvillon would like to thank the residents of Vermilion Parish for being aware of what is going on in their neighborhoods and says that when reporting suspicious activity to Law Enforcement in a timely manner it is often a key component in solving these types of crimes.

December 3, 1926 ~ November 27, 2017

ABBEVILLE — A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 AM on Tuesday, December 5, 2017 at St. Theresa of the Child Jesus Catholic Church honoring the life of Ussay Marie Pellerin, 90, who died Monday, November 27, 2017.
She will be laid to rest at Our Lady of Lourdes Cemetery with Reverend Greg Cormier officiating the services.
Mrs. Pellerin loved children and had a genuine rapport with them which was shown in her 28 years as an elementary public school teacher and many years as a religion teacher at St. Therese’s Catholic Church. She was a member of St. Therese’s Altar Society, the Third Order of Mount Carmel and the Catholic Daughters of America. During her time of service to the church she was recognized for her dedication to parish work by being honored with the Bishop’s Medal. Mrs. Pellerin loved animals; after her Sparkey passed away she cared lovingly for many foster dogs and adopted an abandoned cat. She had a zest for living, enjoying water aerobics and line dancing. She shared that joy of dancing through her line dancing group that entertained many at local nursing homes.
Ussay is survived by her daughter, Darlene Broussard; two grandsons, Chad (Jennifer) Broussard and Scott (Chelsea) Broussard; great grandsons, Cole and Rolan Broussard; daughter-in-law, Caren (Doug) Broussard Levy; brother, Ulysse "Bill" (Wilda) Menard; nieces, Karen (Fred) Schexnayder, Denise (Dave) Roy and Rochelle Menard; nephews, Greg and Ronnie Menard; great nephews, Colin Menard and Brison Menard. She is also survived by her dear friend Terry Touchet, who through his care and devotion, was like an adopted son to her.
She was preceded in death by her son, Roland Broussard; parents, Elie and Edith Menard; and husband, Lloyd Pellerin.
The family requests that visiting hours be observed at Vincent Funeral Home - Abbeville, 209 S. St. Charles St., on Monday, December 4, 2017 from 4:00 PM until 8:00 PM with a rosary being prayed at 6:00 PM; Tuesday, December 5, 2017 from 8:00 AM until 9:45 AM.
The family would like to express their appreciation to all of Mrs. Ussay’s caregivers, especially Jeannie, Tina, Jania, Sylvia and Kathelen.
Condolences may be sent to the family at www.vincentfuneralhome.net.
All funeral arrangements are being conducted by Vincent Funeral Home of Abbeville, (337) 893-4661.

NEW IBERIA — A Home-going Celebration will be held for Albert Antoine, Sr. 91 at 1:00 P.M. Saturday, December 2, 2017 at Fletcher Funeral Home Chapel with Rev. Maria St. Julien officiating.
He will await the resurrection in Heavenly Rest Cemetery in Jeanerette, LA.
Visitation will be held on Saturday at the funeral home commencing at 8:00 A.M. until time of service.
A resident of Jeanerette, LA, he passed at 2:05 P.M. Thursday, November 23, 2017 at his residence.
He leaves to cherish his fond memory, his wife, Victoria Triche Antoine of Jeanerette, LA; three daughters: Cynthia Antoine of Franklin, LA, Rebecca Gibson (Jackie) of Jeanerette, LA and Vickie Gibson (Robert) of New Iberia, LA; one son, Albert Antoine, Jr. of Jeanerette, LA; two sisters: Evelyn Lewis Antoine and Faye Antoine; one brother, Alfred Williams; one sister-in-law, Shirley Williams; step-mother, Lovenia Lewis Antoine all of Jeanerette LA; two step-sisters: Cynthia Jones of Columbus, OH and Anna Lewis of Lafayette, LA; one step-brother, Jerald Lewis of New Iberia, LA; 18 grandchildren, 20 great-grandchildren, 3 great-great grandchildren and a host of nieces, nephews, numerous relatives and friends.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Sidney and Ernestine Bradley Antoine; one daughter, Linda Faye Williams, one brother, Colbert Williams, two grandchildren: Donald Williams and Emile Williams; two great-grandchildren: Arianna Maxie and Quincey Mouton; one step-sister, Helen Shanette and a sister-in-law, Dora Williams.
Active pallbearers will be Albert Antoine, Jr., Robert Gibson, Sr., Robert Gibson, Jr., Paul Antoine, Gaspard Williams and David Williams.
Honorary pallbearers will be Alfred Wiles, Aaron Antoine, Jackie Ray, Rickey Webster, Butler Jackson and Earl Williams.
Funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Fletcher Funeral Home 609 West Admiral Doyle Drive New Iberia, LA 70560.
Condolences may be expressed at www.fletcherfuneralhomes.org.