Hazel Talbert Cowan

"Who can fathom your goodness, O Lord? You have taken the fire and out of it fashioned the numberless lamps that decorate the night." Hazel Talbert Cowan, 84, passed away Wednesday, Nov. 25, 2009, at her home in Walker. Hazel never lost her zeal to survive and fought her ill health courageously. Hazel grew up in the country farming community of Swampers. Following a stint as a Navy Certified Welder in New Orleans during World War II, she worked for the Rural Electric Authority in Winnsboro until the mid-1960s. At that time she and her husband, Jesse K. Cowan Sr., started J.K. Cowan Sr. Contracting Co. selling and hauling construction materials (dirt, sand and gravel) in Denham Springs which she headed until the day she passed. She will be missed by her family, friends and everyone who ever had the pleasure of knowing her. She brought adventure to us all with her zest for life and her ability to be plain-spoken. She had a will of iron, a heart of gold and a knack for sharing stories from her past. Hazel Cowan is survived by her only daughter, Dorothy Burt McBride, Baton Rouge; two grandchildren, Darwyn Williams, Baton Rouge, and Russell Williams, Jersey City, N.J.; and two great-grandchildren, Wesley Williams, Wickenburg, Ariz., and Anne Katelyn, Williams, Baton Rouge. She is also survived by two beloved sisters, Mildred Talbert Sullivan, Winnsboro, and her daughter and granddaughter, Sherry Sullivan Martin, Shreveport, and Miriam Martin, New Orleans; and Grace Talbert Hayden, Alexandria, with her family, Janice Hayden McKay, Alexandria, Frankie Hayden Kirkwood, Walker, Abbie Hayden Montgomery and husband Johnny Montgomery, Walker, and Abbie's children, Curtis Baxter and Melissa Baxter, both of Walker. Also survived by Grace's daughter, Mary Hayden Lemoine, Pineville, and her daughter and granddaughter, Elizabeth Lavespere and Natasha Lavespere; and Grace's son, Johnny Hayden, Pollock. Hazel was preceded in death by her husband, Jesse K. Cowan Sr.; and parents Lawrence and Lula Talbert. She was also loved and supported in life by Michael and Janet Grimmer and John Grimmer, Walker, and by her two dear companions, Minnie Johnson, Denham Springs, and Bernetta Scott, Baker. She was loved and protected by the last in a long line of her favored German Shepherds, Bullet. Special thanks to Dr. Edmund Vinci, Dr. Denzil Moraes and Dr. Glen Schwartzberg and their staffs; as well as the wonderful floor nurses at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center. A family service will be held at Providence Memorial Cemetery near the Ward III community in Winnsboro on Saturday, Nov. 28.