Gaston LeBlanc

Gaston LeBlanc

LAFAYETTE - A Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 1:00 pm on Friday, June 27, 2014 at St. Pius X Catholic Church for Gaston LeBlanc, 95, who passed away peacefully at his residence on Wednesday, 25, 2014 at 4:02 pm surrounded by his family.

Reverend Steven C. LeBlanc, Pastor of St. Pius X Catholic Church will be the Celebrant of the Funeral Mass. Con-celebrant will be Reverend Rex Broussard.

Interment will be in the Lafayette Memorial Park Mausoleum in Lafayette.

Lectors will be Paige Cline Faust and Christian Cline. Eulogy will be read by Lauren McElligott. Gift bearers will be Courtney Back and Katherine Thibodeaux. Jodi Bollich, soloist, will sing "Here I Am, Lord", "Psalm 25: To You, O Lord I Lift My Soul", " I Can Only Imagine", "Just a Closer Walk with Thee", "On Eagles' Wings", and Battle Hymn of the Republic" for the service.

Gaston was born and reared in the Meaux Community of Vermilion Parish. He graduated from Meaux High School in 1937 and attended Southwestern Louisiana Institute (SLI), now the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (ULL) on a basketball and baseball scholarship and was captain of the 1941 baseball team. He graduated from SLI in 1941 with a B.S. Degree in Agriculture. He then entered the Naval Air Force and served in WWII. He was in the service until February of 1945 when he received a medical discharge after being wounded in action in the Mediterranean.

After he was discharged from the service he went to work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, where he served as Assistant County Supervisor and County Supervisor before becoming District Director for the Southwest Louisiana Parishes. He retired in March of 1980 after 40 years of Federal Service.

He received many honors while working as County Supervisor for Farmers Home Administration. He was honored by the LSU Dairy Science Club in 1964 for his outstanding work with the dairy industry in Lafayette Parish and the State of Louisiana. He was also honored by USL as Outstanding Alumni in Agriculture in 1970. He received the Superior Service Award in 1975 from the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture in Washington, DC and he received the Lafayette Civil Service Employee of the year award in 1976.

He organized the Acadian Feed Co-Op which saved the Lafayette Parish Dairyman millions of dollars in feed cost over a period of 20 years. He was the first president of the Louisiana County Supervisor Association. He was a member of Our Lady of Fatima Knights of Columbus, Our Lady of Fatima parish, member of Lafayette Parish Cattlemen's Association, a lifetime member of the parish and national Disabled American Veterans, a member of the retired Federal Employees organization, past member of Mended Hearts of Lafayette, member of ULL Alumni Association, member of Ragin Cajun Century Club, and Lafayette American Legion.

After his retirement he was elected to serve on the Lafayette Parish Soil and Conservation District Board where he served as District Supervisor, a position he held for 20 years. He was a loyal and dedicated employee, and cultivated lifelong friendships with many of his dairyman. He loved his Ragin Cajun sports; he had season tickets to Football, Basketball and Baseball for over 40 years. He loved fishing and spending time at his camp in Butte Larose, where his family and friends gathered often for his fresh fried Sacalait. He treasured the time he spent with his family and his love, gentle spirit, dry wit, and grace will be remembered and missed by them always.

Left to cherish his memories include his wife, Edwina Deano LeBlanc; son, Shelton Jude LeBlanc of Lake Charles; daughters, Deborah Champagne and her husband Terry of Breaux Bridge, and Joyce Prince and her husband Bobby of Lafayette; his ten grandchildren, Paige Cline Faust (Bill), Parrish Cline (Courtney), Christian Cline, Jodie LeBlanc, Justin LeBlanc, Brett Champagne, Kyle Champagne (Jessica), Lauren McElligott (John), Courtney Back (Justin), and Katherine Thibodeaux (Ross). He is also survived by four step-sons, James Hurston III, Gary Hurston, Michael Hurston, and Retired USAF Colonel Edwin Hurston, 8 step-grandchildren, and 5 great grandchildren.

He was preceded in death by his wife of 50 years, the former Alice Joyce Broussard; his daughter, Sherran Ann Cline; his two grandsons, Shane Scott Cline and Todd Thomas Cline; his parents, Jules LeBlanc, and Oretta Stelly; three brothers, Wallace, Dalton, and Melvin; and five sisters, Evelyn LeBlanc, Edna Pierce, Mable Burnett, Melinda Landry, and Melba Fontenot.

The family request that visitation be observed at St. Pius X Catholic Church on Friday, June 27, 2014 from 10:00 am until time of services.

Pallbearers will be Terry Harris Champagne, Roland Robert Prince, Justin Jude LeBlanc, Brett David Champagne, Kyle Andrew Champagne, Raymond James Fontenot, Parrish Ladd Cline and Ricky Paul Landry.

The family would like to give special thanks to Anita Joseph, for her beloved and devoted time spent with him during this last year, we could not have done it without you. We would also like to thank Faye, Brett, Rose and Hospice of Acadiana for their kind and compassionate care.

In lieu of flowers, the family wishes to have donations sent to Hospice of Acadiana, 2600 Johnston Street, Suite 200, Lafayette, LA 70503.

Personal condolences may be sent to the LeBlanc family at www.delhommefuneralhome.com.

Delhomme Funeral Home, 1011 Bertrand Drive, Lafayette, LA is in charge of funeral arrangements.