Friday's Faces from the Past ~ Thelia Marie Huff Krause

Thelia Marie Huff Krause

Born on September 8, 1920

Daughter of 

Roy L. Huff and Mary Elizabeth Taliaferro

Wife of

Albert Earl Krause, Sr.

Mother of

Linda, Albert Earl, Jr., Peggy, Henry Roy, Walter Markham, and Mary Elizabeth Krause

Died on September 26, 2002

Buried in the Highland Park Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Photograph is courtesy of Mary Krause Bruit 

Wednesday's Child ~ Carrie Ethel Kiper

Carrie Ethel Kiper

Born on February 6, 1896

Daughter of 

William F. Kiper and Olive L. Kiper

Sister of 

Birdie Virginia and William Jasper Kiper

Died on October 1, 1898

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Tuesday's Tune ~ Amazing Grace

In 1779, English poet and clergyman, John Newton published a Christian hymn that would later be recorded by artists from nearly every genre.

John Newton

Among such artists were Mahalia Jackson, Rod Stewart, Aretha Franklin and Johnny Cash.

Amazing Grace

Amazing Grace, how sweet the sound
That saved a wretch like me.
I once was lost but now am found
Was blind, but now I see.




Almost 200 years after John Newton's hymn was published, the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards recorded an instrumental version in 1972 which featured a bagpipe soloist.  This instrumental version holds a special meaning for me as it was played at my father's graveside services upon his request.

In 2009, two hundred and thirty years after it was originally published, Celtic Woman performed their version of Newton's hymn live from Powerscourt House & Gardens in Enniskerry, County Wicklow, Ireland.  I love the imagery of the bagpipe soloist standing atop Powerscourt House at the beginning and at the very end of the video.

Amanuensis Monday ~ The Stories That Should Be Told, Part 24

The following transcription is from a series of recordings my father made in the early 1990s:

I remember hearing the old juke boxes playing up town.  They had a juke box up at Charlie's Nite Club.  They would play it in the late afternoons and nights and you could hear it all over this little village. 

Some of the songs I remember that played on the juke box up at Charlie’s in the late 1930s and early 1940s...

'Is It True What They Say About Dixie'

[father sings]

“Is it true what they say about Dixie? Does the sun really shine all the time?  Do the sweet Magnolias blossom at everybody’s door?  Do folks keep eating possum til they can’t eat no more?  Is it true what they say about Dixie?”

'The Music Goes Round and Around'

[father sings]

“You push that first dial down and music goes down and round and it comes out here.”

'Darktown Strutters’ Ball'

I associate this song with Mrs. Birdie Talbert Krause.  We sang that song at a play we had at school.  Mrs. Birdie always directed those plays at school.  She was a good director and she enjoyed it. 

'Camptown Races'

This was another song I associated with Mrs. Birdie Krause because we sang this in one of our school plays.

Other songs that held special meaning to me...

'Beautiful Dreamer'

I associate this song with Mrs. Estelle Peck.  She played the piano and I played the trumpet.  We played together a couple of times at church and another function.  On one occasion, we played Beautiful Dreamer together. That was back in 1941, 42, or 43.

'Sweet Hour of Prayer'

When I hear 'Sweet Hour of Prayer' I always think of Cousin Eva Gordon and seeing her standing there in church holding the hymnal and singing. Cousin Eva and Cousin Jessie Chisum were Grandma Steele's first cousins.  Eva married Dr. Gordon, Jessie married a McNair.  I remember them taking a big part in church. 

Cousin Eva and Cousin Jessie were not only Grandma Steele’s first cousins, they were Grandpa Steele’s first cousins.  My mother was double kin to them.  They were her double second cousins.

Allye Steele Edmonds

My mother played the piano by ear.  She couldn’t read a note of music. She could hear you whistle or sing or hear something on the radio and she could sit down at the piano and play it.  

She played a lot of songs but one I remember was 'Saint Louis Blues'.

There was an old piano in this house that burned.  That piano was bought for my mother back when she was a little girl.  It stayed in this old house. 

Lucille sitting at Allye's first piano

When we moved to the other house, my mother bought another piano.  I remember back in 1932, seeing them bring that piano in on a dolly.  

Many years later, when Mildred and I moved back in the old Steele house, we moved my mother’s piano over there too.  Both pianos were in the living room and that is where the fire did the most damage.  We lost them both.

Note:  Parts 1-23 of 'The Stories That Should Be Told' can be found in the Tags List on the right-hand side of this blog.

Military Monday ~ John Otto Passman

John Otto Passman

Born on January 24, 1896

Mississippi

Son of 

Benjamin H. Passman and Josephine Lee

Husband of

Allie Stringer

Father of

Mildred, Barbara Nell and John William Passman

Died on May 29, 1950

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Pvt. 1st Class

Co. G, 19th Infantry, 18th Division

United States Army

World War I

Enlisted on May 12, 1917

Honorably Discharged on December 2, 1918

Tombstone photograph was taken by FindAGrave member, Karen Klemm-Pinckard.

Sentimental Sunday ~ Thanksgiving Memories

Thanksgivings on 'The Island' were probably not much different from Thanksgivings celebrated in other parts of the country.  Families gathered and visited.  Thanksgiving dinners were centered around Tom Turkey with several side dishes and desserts.

Mama

Up until a few years ago, I never had to worry about all the pre-Thanksgiving dinner preparations that most women went through.  Finding the perfect turkey, remembering to set the turkey out to thaw a few days prior to the big day, and purchasing the necessary ingredients for all the different dishes to be served.  I never had to worry about all of that because 'She' was still here.

My mother never allowed us to help in the kitchen on Thanksgiving Day or any other day.  Oh, there were times when she allowed my sister and me to grate coconut for her ambrosia or grate cheese for one of her other dishes she had planned for Thanksgiving dinner.   For the most part, she handled everything by herself.  She preferred it that way.

Katie Bowie

That's not to say that she didn't have "help" in the kitchen.  Many Thanksgiving mornings found her in the kitchen surrounded by some of the old colored folks who had been a part of our lives throughout the years. Emily Cooper Thomas and her cousin Mag Cooper, Katie Bowie, Maize Harbor, Alf and Lula Jones, and Scott Cobbins are a few who come to mind.

Most of them simply gathered in the kitchen to visit.  Emily would help with washing dishes and Mag....well Mag was always "busy" but I don't remember her actually doing anything.

Mag was a character.  She mumbled and laughed and danced around the kitchen taking every step my mother took.  Mama never said a word.  She just worked around Mag.


Watching Mag was quite entertaining to me.  Somewhere in between all the mumbling, laughing and dancing, Mag was constantly eating.  I remember one Thanksgiving when Mama and I were going to take Mag home. We went outside to get in the car and Mag went back inside and grabbed a piece of Mama's chocolate pie. She said she was going to put it in her pocket and eat it later because her jaws were just too tired.

Mama was a traditional southern cook.  Thanksgiving dinners usually included a ham to go along with the turkey, ambrosia, cornbread dressing, peas, corn, candied sweet potatoes and dinner rolls.

In earlier years Mama didn't candy her sweet potatoes.  She would peel baked sweet potatoes, mash them up, then add sugar, vanilla, butter and cinnamon. Once everything was mixed up, she would spoon the sweet potato mixture into empty orange halves left over from making her ambrosia.  A marsh mellow was placed on top of each before placing them in the oven just long enough to brown the marsh mellows.

She usually made a chocolate pie for dessert and sometimes baked brownies.  She began making pecan pies in the later years.  Chocolate fudge, buttermilk fudge and divinity were most often saved for Christmas time.

Her pie crusts were always homemade.  I remember waiting patiently for her to finish her pie crusts.  Any overlapping strips cut away from her pie plate went onto a cookie sheet and were baked until lightly browned.

Man, how I loved those plain baked pie crust strips!  No need to sprinkle sugar or cinnamon over them.  They were perfect as they were.

Unfortunately, one of my older brothers liked the pie crust strips about as much as I did so it turned into a competition of who would be there at the moment the strips came out of the oven.

This competitive game continued through the years.



I remember one Thanksgiving back in the 1970s.  Our high school football team had advanced to the state playoffs and the game was to be played below New Orleans on the day after Thanksgiving.

Continental Trailways buses were rented to carry the football team and cheerleaders and pep squad.  The trip took several hours one way.

We ended up losing the game; making the return trip seem even longer. Tired and anxious for the trip to end, my mind turned toward the baked pie crust strips I had wrapped up and hidden before leaving home.  It was like comfort food, if you will.  A sort of consolation prize after having watched my team lose.

It turned out that my hiding place was not so great.  I arrived home to find my baked pie crust strips gone. Yeah, my brother had found my hiding place and he had eaten every one of the strips.

But the story doesn't end there...

Some months later, I was being initiated into my high school honor society and part of that initiation was dressing up like a hillbilly girl.  My ensemble included a straw hat and a long-sleeved red and black checkered flannel shirt.  I cut several inches off the tail of the shirt and the sleeves before shredding the edges. Who knew it was my brother's favorite hunting shirt?

Sunday's Obituary ~ Bruce Edmonds

Obit from Monroe Morning World - Published January 22, 1974

School Board Member Dies in Concordia

Bruce Edmonds, 69, of Sicily Island, died Monday morning at the Concordia Parish Hospital here following a lengthy illness.

Funeral services will be Wednesday at 3 p.m. at the First Methodist Church in Sicily Island with the Rev. James Hodges and Rev. Clois Cole officiating.  Burial will be in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery under direction of Mulhearn's Funeral Home of Winnsboro.  

He was the oldest member of the Catahoula Parish School Board at his death, joining the Board in 1948. He was also a retired cashier for the Sicily Island State Bank and Trust Co. He was a member of the First United Methodist Church, a veteran of World War I, and a member of the Keystone Masonic Lodge No. 213.  He had resided in Sicily Island for the past 45 years.

Survivors include a son, Bruce A. Edmonds, Sicily Island; a brother Charlie Edmonds, Gurdon, AR; five grandchildren and a number of nieces and nephews.

Pallbearers will be Edward Jones, Keith Guice, Marvin Nolen, III, Craig Brooks, Joe Raymond Peace, Ray Golmon, Louis Jenkins and Joe Simmons.

The body will be at the First United Methodist Church from 10 a.m. today until time for services.

Obit from Alexandria Daily Town Talk

Friday's Faces from the Past ~ Addie Mae Cooper Seal

Addie Mae Cooper Seal

Born on May 28, 1902

Daughter of

Joel M. Cooper and Alafair Robbins

Wife of

Walon Marcus Seal, Sr.

Mother of

Walon Marcus, Jr., Bernard Cooper, Billy Pat, and Lester Seal

Died on November 18, 1981

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Family Recipe Friday ~ Sweet Potato Casserole

From the kitchen of Sicily Island resident, Mrs. Annie Rogers Gambrell:

Wednesday's Child ~ Mary Jane Francis

Mary Jane Francis

Born on November 14, 1895

Daughter of

Joseph Strahan Francis and Mary Etta Renfrow

Sister of

Oscar, Eunice, Hulda Annie, Joseph, Jr., Marshall "Marcy", and Dalbert Francis

Died on January 1, 1896

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Tuesday's Tune ~ Smile

With the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays just around the corner, our thoughts often turn to the wonderful memories of past holidays.  Sweet and precious times spent with family and friends.

The holidays are difficult for many us because we're missing someone special.  I chose 'Smile' for this week's Tuesday's Tune because of the message delivered in the lyrics.

Smile though your heart is aching
Smile even though it's breaking
When there are clouds in the sky, you'll get by
If you smile through your fear and sorrow
Smile and maybe tomorrow
You'll see the sun come shining through for you

Light up your face with gladness
Hide every trace of sadness
Although a tear may be ever so near
That's the time you must keep on trying
Smile, what's the use of crying?
You'll find that life is still worthwhile
If you just smile

The music for 'Smile' was composed by Charlie Chaplin back in the 1930s.  In the mid-1950s, John Turner and Geoffrey Parsons added the lyrics and title.  Nat King Cole sang the first release back in 1954.

In the video clip below, Louisiana's own, Harry Connick, Jr. sings his version of 'Smile'.

Amanuensis Monday ~ The Stories That Should Be Told, Part 23

The following transcription is from a series of recordings my father made in the early 1990s:

I've been thinking about the early 1930s when I was a little boy.  Thinking about things like parching and grinding coffee.  Back then you bought your coffee beans and green coffee.  The beans looked kind of like shelled peanuts.

Roasting coffee beans in the oven

My mother and my Grandma Steele would spread those beans out in a flat pan and put them in the oven to parch.  They would take the beans out every once in a while, shake them around in the pan, and put them back in the oven.  It was quite an art to parching coffee beans. They didn't want to parch them too much.  

After the beans were parched, they would take them out and put them over in a little hand grinder.  I woke up many a morning first smelling the coffee beans parching and then hearing that grinder going.

That was back in the days when the bakeries first started having bread that was already sliced.  I remember when we got bread from the bakery and it was just a loaf.  We used bread knives to cut the loaves.

I remember when we had homemade mayonnaise.  I have watched my aunt make homemade mayonnaise many times.  I don't remember all of the ingredients but I do remember eggs, Wesson oil and lemon juice. Hellman's mayonnaise is the closest to the old homemade kind.

Grandma Steele's butter churn

Back in the early 1930s everybody made their own butter. They would put sour milk in a churn that had a basher with a handle on it like a broom handle. The churn or crock would hold about two gallons of milk. Once the milk was poured into the crock, they would churn up and down with that handle.  

At the top, where the handle went down in the crock, flakes of butter would begin to form.  Finally, the butter would be made and they would have to take the butter out and drain the milk off of it.

The butter would be mashed and squeezed and rolled to get all of the milk out then round pads of butter would be made. Now that was delicious! Homemade butter.

Lucille Steele Ogden

There were some wonderful cooks on the Island back in those days. Cakes were made from scratch. Chocolate cakes, caramel cakes and pineapple cakes. My aunt, Lucille Ogden, would make a strawberry cake from scratch.  It had two or three layers of cake with strawberries in between each layer and a whipped cream on top.  Lord, that was good!  

Mrs. Gladys [Kendrick] Saltzman was famous for her caramel cake. Mrs. Vivian [Martin] Enright, Mrs. Laura [Ballard] Chisum and Mrs. Katie [Harris] Coney were great cooks.

I used to watch Grandma Steele make sausage from the hogs that had been killed.  She had a meat grinder. I'd watch her put the meat in the grinder and add the seasonings. She could really make good pan sausage.

Grandma Mollie Steele

I remember there was a smokehouse out in this yard where I live.  I never went inside but I heard them tell how they would hang the meat up and build a fire on the dirt floor.  The smoke from the fire cured the meat.

The smokehouse was closed up until the meat was cured.   I don't know how many days or hours they smoked the meat.  

Makes me wonder how many people alive today would know how to smoke meat.  There was a time, back fifty or sixty years ago, that every man knew how to smoke meat.

A Tater Punk is something you don't see anymore.  It was a little hut where people would lay out their sweet potatoes on dry grass or hay.  They would go to the Tater Punk to get their sweet potatoes to cook.

Everybody made their own jellies and preserves.  Uncle Tom Enright's wife, Lilla, could make the best jellies and preserves.  

Fig Tree blooming in Spring

Most people made preserved pears and some peaches.  Peaches never did grow good in this area.  Up north of us, around Delhi, the peaches did a lot better.  Diseases, insects and the climate in this part of the country kept the peaches from growing.  Most everyone had preserved pears.  

People gathered dew berries and black berries and grew plum trees.  A lot of figs were preserved also.  Figs, muscadines and pears grew good around here.  

One of Grandpa Steele's pecan trees

We've always had lots of pecans.  My Grandpa Steele planted many a pecan tree.

This whole yard was full of pecan trees.  There are pecan trees in my yard now that are 100 years old.  They produce sweet pecans.  

The trees in the swamps surrounding the Island produced bitter pecans.  The hulls on those pecans looked like the hull of a sweet pecan but the nut was a blackish color.

When I was growing up, we had lots of French mockingbirds on the Island.  They had black marks on the sides of their heads that went down to their beaks.  They didn't look like the mockingbirds we see today and they didn't sing.  We called them French Mockers.  I haven't seen one of those birds on the Island in years.

French Mockingbird

The French Mockingbird photograph above is courtesy of Photobiologist.  Robert Smith is a forest and wildlife biologist.  His wife, Kristin, is an ecologist. Their website photo gallery includes beautiful photographs of birds, fish, plants, mammals, and landscapes.  I encourage you to visit their website and enjoy their great work.

Mockingbird in the process of building a nest on the Island, 2010

Note:  Parts 1-22 of 'The Stories That Should Be Told' can be found in the Tags List on the right-hand side of this blog.

Military Monday ~ Ira Christopher Guice

Ira Christopher Guice

Born on October 6, 1896

Son of

Christopher Columbus Guice and Sarah Elizabeth McCarty

Brother of

Charles Eagleston, Christopher, Jr., Henry Eli, Jefferson Monroe, Enos Nathaniel, Abijah Grover, Chester Elmore, Mary Ann, Martha Katherine, John Fielding, Alice, and David Erastus Guice

Husband of

Ophelia Annette Langston

Father of

Carol, William, Blakesley, Augustine, Ouida, and Rex Guice

Died on July 13, 1966

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Pvt, Student Army Training Corps

World War I

WWI Draft Registration, page 1

WWI Draft Registration, page 2

Sunday's Obituary ~ Sheriff John W. Walters

Courtesy of ChroniclingAmerica.com

From FindAGrave member, Claire

Sheriff John W. Walters died on October 22, 1913 and is buried in the Harrisonburg Cemetery in Harrisonburg, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana.

From FindAgrave member, Claire

Back in the Day ~ Dangers of Neglecting a Common Cold

An advertisement for Dr. Williams' Pink Pills appeared in the May 19, 1897 edition of 'The Advocate' in Topeka, Kansas. The subtitle shows 'From the News, Harrisonburg, La.'  A letter from Sicily Island resident, Mrs. A. L. Stafford is quoted in the advertisement.

Courtesy of ChroniclingAmerica.com

Partial transcript:

One should always bear in mind the necessity of exercising a constant vigilance to avoid catching cold. When the temperature in the house is higher than that out of doors, never go out without putting on an additional wrap.  Never sit in a cold room even though you do not feel chilly.  And it is better to suffer a little discomfort from wearing heavy underclothing than to run the risk of a chill.

The following letter from a lady in Sicily Island, La., graphically illustrates the distressing consequences that are liable to follow a simple a cold.

In February, 1896, I had a severe cold which settled on my lungs, resulting in a serious cough.  My appetite failed, and I became so weak that I was scarcely able to walk across the room.  I weighed only ninety-four pounds, and had given up all hope of recovery when I happened to read an article in a newspaper describing some cures effected by Dr. Williams' Pink Pills, and concluded to try them.

I commenced using them, and before I had taken half a box I felt like a new creature. My appetite was restored, my cough grew less, and I was able to sleep soundly at night, which I had been unable to do for months before.

After taking two boxes of the pills I was weighed again and to my astonishment my weight was 113 pounds, a gain of 19 pounds.  Previous to taking the pills I had suffered with cold hands and feet, but now have no trouble whatever from that source.

I can truly say I am now in better health than I have been for years.  The effect of the Pink Pills is wonderful, and I can recommend them in all cases of debility and weakness.  --Mrs. A. L. Stafford

Unsurprisingly, the advertisement does not reveal the ingredients of the "Pink Pills" but it does state the following:

Dr. Williams' Pink Pills contain, in a condensed form, all the elements necessary to give new life and richness to the blood and restore shattered nerves.  They are unfailing(ly) specific for such diseases as locomotor ataxia, partial paralysis, St. Vitus' dance, sciatica, neuralgia, rheumatism, nervous headache, the after effect of la grippe, palpitation of the heart, pale and sallow complexions, all forms of weakness either in male or female.

I have searched for a Mr. A. L. Stafford living in Sicily Island during the late 1890s but have been unable to find documentation.  There is documentation of a Mrs. Amy Lovelace Stafford living in Sicily Island and Catahoula Parish between 1880 and 1900.  Amy was the daughter of John Henry Stafford and Julia Patience Kirkland.  She was first married to John Gilman Peck, Sr., then married David Stafford in 1883.

Could the letter have been from her?

Back in the Day ~ Giant Poplar Trees on the Island

From the April 3, 1908 edition of Winfield, Louisiana's 'Southern Sentinel' under a column titled, 'Pelican Pin Feathers':

Courtesy of ChroniclingAmerica.com

Friday's Faces From the Past ~ Mr. Curtis

Mr. Curtis was the owner of Curtis Drug Store in Sicily Island.

Family Recipe Friday ~ Fudge Bar

From the kitchen of Sicily Island resident, Olga Knight Seal:

Wednesday's Child ~ Oliver Ballard Kendrick

Oliver Ballard Kendrick

Born on June 18, 1898

Son of

William Dudley Kendrick and Maude Jeanette Ballard

Brother of

Gladys (Saltzman) and Sadie (Hardin)

Died on August 17, 1898

Buried in the Old Pine Hill Cemetery

Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana

Amanuensis Monday ~ The Stories That Should Be Told, Part 22

The following transcription is from a series of recordings my father made in the early 1990s:

Bruce, Virginia and Evelyn

My mind is wandering back to the early 1930s and the school.  I remember going to track meets. That was the big thing back in those days.  The 100 yard dash, jumping the hurdles, the mile run and shot putt.  

I remember going to a track meet in about 1932.  I don't think I had even started to school yet. My cousin, Evelyn Ogden and I were standing there on the side of the high school building.  The race track went right by the high school and circled the old 3-story grammar school building.  

The only other person I can remember standing there with us was Mrs. Sadye Nolen, Marvin Nolen's mother.  Everyone enjoyed watching how excited Mrs. Sadye got when the racing began. She would yell, "Run boys, Run!"  

Back in those years there were some great athletes in Sicily Island.  I heard folks tell about them.  I saw some of them years later and people would point them out to me.  I had heard people talk about those athletes all of my life.  

One of those athletes was Nathan "Buddy" Blair.  He went on from Sicily Island to LSU where he was a member of the basketball, track and baseball teams.  After college, he played third base for one of the professional teams.

Buddy Blair

I saw Buddy Blair about two or three years ago when we renovated the old high school building. We had a little ceremony over at the school gym one night.  Cecil Blair, another good athlete, was there as well.  Cecil was a first cousin to Buddy.  Buddy was out in the audience.  

Buddy Blair was a big, tall fellow.  A nice, quiet man.  He was supposed to be the main speaker at the ceremony that night but he had just had a heart attack a few months before and didn't feel up to it.  His cousin, Cecil was the main speaker.

Cecil was younger than Buddy.  When I was in the first or second grade, Cecil was in high school. I remember seeing him play basketball.

A lot of people gave the principal, Mr. Cameron Coney, much of the credit for so many students back in those days going on to be successful in life.  He was a fierce competitor in athletics and it carried over into the classrooms.  The credit given to Mr. Coney was well deserved.

I'm proud of all the students from Sicily Island who went on to be successful in life.  I'm as proud of them as if they were my brothers, sisters or children.  I thank them for the honors they have bestowed upon us here on Sicily Island.

Dr. Martin D. Woodin

Coy Wilton Wynn

There were a good many great teachers back in the late 1920s and early 1930s.  They inspired people.  We had a lot of children who went on after finishing school and did real well.  Not only in athletics but in academics, too.

There are teachers and there are good teachers.

I went to LSU for a semester.  I remember meeting a boy whose last name was Costa.  He was from down around Crowley in south Louisiana.  He found out I was from Sicily Island and asked me if I knew Chisum.  I knew he was talking about Little Emmett Chisum and I answered yes. Costa said he believed Chisum was the best teacher he had ever had.  He went on and on about how interesting Chisum's classes were and how he inspired his students.  Dr. Emmett Chisum was not just a teacher.  He was a good teacher.

Note:  Parts 1-21 of 'The Stories That Should Be Told' can be found in the Tags List on the right-hand side of this blog.

Military Monday ~ A Grateful Nation Remembers

The history and meaning of Veterans Day...

A grateful nation honors the past and current service of the United States Military.  

********************

On this Veterans Day, Roots From the Bayou honors and remembers the service of the following Catahoula Parish soldiers who paid the ultimate sacrifice in the Vietnam War.

War drew us from our homeland

in the sunlit springtime of our youth

Those who did not come back alive remain

in perpetual springtime, forever young

And a part of them is with us always

~Author Unknown

LCPL Jerry Roy Long, Sicily Island, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1946-1967

PFC Budrow Bass, Jr., Jonesville, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1947-1968

SFC Howard Lee Early, Jonesville, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1932-1969

PFC Hubert Aaron Erwin, Jonesville, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1947-1966

SP4 Dave Mayes, Jr., Jonesville, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1940-1965

SGT James Hardy White, Jonesville, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1947-1968

SSGT Jimmy Ronald Walton, Harrisonburg, Catahoula Parish, Louisiana
1943-1970

Photographs and remembrances can be found on the website, Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund.  Please consider donating to this fund.  From their website:

"The Vietnam Veterans Memorial Fund is committed to keeping the stories and lives of the 58,286 men and women on The Wall--as well as all those who made the ultimate sacrifice in service to country--alive for generations to come."