Support Vets

Anyone who is looking for an eager dance partner with almost 100 years of life experience can find Melvin Hebert every Friday night at Jack’s on Barrow Street.

Hebert, 98, arrives around 7:30 or 8 at the bar, and then the night is his. He’ll spend the next few hours ballroom dancing with friends and strangers alike.

Jackie, Melvin’s daughter, will sit at the bar and watch her father glide to the music. While she is her father’s ride home, Jackie is never in any rush when it comes to her father’s pastime.

“He’s always checking his watch. He’ll look at me, and I’ll just say, ‘Whenever you’re ready.’ Because that’s his night,” Jackie said.

Andrus, Melvin’s son, said that his father, even with aching knees, keeps finding a way to get out to Jack’s.

“He’s got some kind of lubrication like WD-40 that the doctor gave him. He puts that on his knees, and he rests all day for [Fridays],” Andrus said.

Melvin, who lost his wife, Mae, in 2006, credits his Friday nights at Jack’s for his ability to keep going on. He advised all those in life to find something to look forward to, like he has with his nights dancing.

“I’ve become so acquainted with so many of these young people, that it’s become part of my life. If it stopped, then part of my life would end,” Melvin said.

The near centenarian is not just a dancer, however. Melvin, a native of Kaplan, found himself in the bayou by way of World War II. A teacher in Pecan Island at the time of the Pearl Harbor bombing, Melvin’s school exempted him from service for a year. When that year ended, Melvin signed up with the Coast Guard, where he was assigned to telephone watch. According to Melvin, his commanding officer’s orders were simple yet harrowing.

“He said, ‘Melvin, if you hear anything contrary to the safety of this country, you let us know,”‘ Melvin recalled.

After being on telephone watch for the Coast Guard, he was sent to boot camp. There, the French he learned growing up in Kaplan made him a prime target to aid the U.S. effort in Houma.

“So I went to the boot camp, and the commanding officer came and says ‘Anyone who can talk, write and read French, raise your hand,”‘ Melvin said. “Well I want to go to the front, so I raise my hand. So he says go and pack up, and a truck came and picked us up, and we landed in Houma, instead of France. I was disappointed,” he says, chuckling.

During his time in Houma, Melvin helped certify residents in the area, as the baptismal certificates were written in French. He was to be wary of Germans coming to the bayou, as German U-boats had sunk ships in the Gulf of Mexico. During his time in Houma, Melvin met Mae, before he was reassigned as a bugler in New Orleans until the war ended.

After the war, Melvin wished to go back to his home parish of Vermillion, but his wife was not ready to leave Terrebonne. Melvin soon found himself as principal at Boudreaux Canal Elementary. He served in the same capacity at Bourg Elementary after that before finishing at Oaklawn Junior High.

Melvin said that some Friday nights at Jack’s can end up sparking a memory of his teaching days via the dance floor.

“I have students that I’m dancing with from most of these schools. They come in and say ‘Mr. Melvin, do you remember a problem at Oaklawn or Bourg School?’ And I say, ‘I sure do,”‘ Melvin said.

Judy, Melvin’s oldest child, said that

during his time as principal, Melvin “saw those kids more than he saw us.” Now that he doesn’t have the demanding work schedule of a principal, he can take time to do what he pleases. Judy said that her father’s current Friday night routine would not have sat well when he was heading schools.

“Being a principal most of his life, he couldn’t have done stuff like that. Because at that time, what you did was in the mouth of everybody. So now he’s old enough that he can do stuff like that and enjoy his life,” Judy said.

The people Melvin has met at Jack’s have taken to watching over him on Friday nights. According to Andrus, those people sit close by and watch out for danger.

“That’s his posse. These people watch over Daddy, they make sure he doesn’t trip or fall, or that nobody drunk bumps into him,” Andrus said.

However, it’s not just falls that his posse is on the lookout for. According to Melvin, they’re also looking out for his immune system.

“They said, ‘you see that woman, Mr. Melvin? Don’t dance with her, she’s sick. She’s coughing,”‘ he said.

During his time at Jack’s, Melvin came across Charles “C.J.” Christ, the director of the Regional Military Museum, also on Barrow Street. Melvin said that he ended up dancing with Christ’s wife, and last year they told him about an event they were planning at the museum soon.

That event was the museum’s first annual fundraiser, featuring a USO-style show and dance. Melvin paid the $40 fee to enter last year, and said he plans to be there this year as well. Melvin recalls how last year’s emcee Courtney Boe made him the star of the night at that show.

“So the curtain opened, and I saw that beautiful woman come sit right down next to me. I said, I can’t believe this. The music started, she caught me, kissing me, and I had to dance with her,” Melvin said. “All these other guys said, ‘Well what you have that we don’t have?’ Well, I can’t tell you. I enjoyed that night, I’ll tell you.”

Melvin’s good fortune that night didn’t end there, though. While Melvin’s original military garb didn’t quite fit him anymore, Andrus found a similar getup at an army surplus store in Gonzales for $20. At the end of the night, a certain Kaplan native had won the show’s costume contest.

The organizers for this year’s fundraiser on Nov. 13 are excited for another great night. Marena Pizzolatto, who set up last year’s event, said that this year’s will feature a silent auction, another costume contest, free dance lessons and a dance contest at the end of the night. She said that while last year’s event focused on WWII, this year’s event will have a broader scope, with music from different generations.

“You know, World War II gets a lot of attention, but the other wars don’t, and veterans kind of don’t, and we’re hoping to include them and include their music and help them feel valued as well,” Pizzolatto said.

Julie Falgout is in her first year of working with the fundraiser. She said that the event’s primary goals are to honor our veterans and raise money to keep the museum going. She describes the museum as a special place for those that have served.

“One of the unique things that they’ve done, it’s almost become like a place of refuge for old veterans. When they go, some of them they don’t even say anything. It’s just being there with other vets, they know ‘he knows what I went through,”‘ Falgout said.

Harking back to USO tradition, the night will end with breakfast served. The food will be provided by the next Terrebonne Parish President, Gordon Dove. Last year, Dove personally provided it from his Copeland’s restaurant, and Pizzolatto said that he is set to serve the meal again this year.

Pizzolatto hopes that this event can also make more people aware of just how special an experience the museum is.

“I think we have a gem with that museum here, and I just wanted to bring more people in. The more people that you get into the museum and see how wonderful it is, the quicker the word spreads,” Pizzolatto said.

Matt Porche is a board member at the museum. He said that what makes it special is how “hands-on” it is. The vehicles in the museum are all operational, and visitors can take rides on them.

“Whether it be high school kids, or junior high kids or veterans, or people that are interested, just history buffs, you can get a feel for what it was like to hit the beaches of Normandy,” Porche said. “You can actually get in a boat very similar to the same boats that hit the [beach with the] front door open and the bullets were raining in. And you can only imagine how much, as far as the horrors those guys went through.”

Melvin said that Houma is lucky to have such a special place right in its backyard. According to him, it captures what went on in different wars, and helps visitors understand what soldiers today are going through.

Those wishing to attend the show can call 985-873-8200.

Support Vets

Melvin Hebert at first annual Regional Military Museum USO-Style Fundraiser. Hebert, who won the costume contest last year, said he plans on attending the event again this year.

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