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Julia and Millard Marcel’s little blue house along the banks of Bayou Dularge is no average home. The space doubles as a makeshift donation center, with boxes of necessities for those less fortunate stacked in the couple’s screened-in patio.
“Show her the pictures,” Millard, 80, urges his wife, 75, as he takes a seat among donations dropped off the day before, a collection of clothing and odds and ends. The photos are of their grandchildren and great-grandchildren – family members who have given them the energy over the last 35 years to continue supporting Angels on Wheels.
Clothes, toys and household items are gathered from anyone willing to give to the cause and stored, when necessary, at the Marcel’s home. It usually doesn’t take long, however, before someone comes knocking looking for a few items to get by.
“We don’t hold on to nothing,” Julia said. “Everything goes. We don’t even really have to have a big room for it. To be honest with you, everything goes so fast that it’s hard to even keep track of it.”
Items are circulated in south Louisiana, as well as to people in Tennessee, Mississippi and Illinois. Friends with connections help transport the necessities to those places.
For years, the couple depended on their wheels to get the items they collect to those who need it most.
The much-loved, well-worn 2003 Grand Caravan experienced its share of problems – transmission and motor replacements and a 2010 accident that caused major damage to the vehicle’s exterior.
But with each obstacle, a helping hand soon appeared. Julia recalls one such encounter with a Thibodaux mechanic when the van quit running.
“He called me up and said, ‘Mrs. Marcel, I want to see your van,’” Julia remembers. “I said, ‘You do?’ He said, ‘I think I can fix it for you.’ I asked how much he was going to charge and he said nothing. He sent a wrecker to pick it up and in two weeks we went to pick it up and we didn’t even recognize it.”
But an accident at Polk Street and La. Highway 311 in Houma this past November brought mobile operations to a halt. The van was totaled after a Chevy Impala crossed the centerline and hit the Marcels head on.
“Now we’re on foot,” Julia said. “People have to come and pick stuff up at my house.”
The Marcels already have eyes on another van, a 2000 handicap-accessible model costing $6,500.
Because Millard is now reliant on a wheelchair due to a host of medical conditions, including spinal stenosis and Parkinson’s disease, the accessibility would be a huge improvement over their previous van.
Despite health concerns and the latest issues with their wheels, Julia refuses to abandon Angels on Wheels.
“You and I are sisters in God’s eyes. Everybody is related. I love giving. I’d give the last piece of clothing on my back if I had to,” she said. “For both of us, if we see a person hungry or thirsty, they get water, they get food. Although we don’t have much of it, we’re willing to share.”
The Marcels are hoping community angels can get the operation on the road. A savings account at South Louisiana Bank on Tunnel Boulevard has been set up in Julia’s name and, through generous donations, roughly $5,500 has been raised. The remainder will buy the van and insurance.
Life without Angels on Wheels is hard for Julia to imagine. Despite all the obstacles, the program is a part of them and with a few more helping hands, she is optimistic the program will be back on the road in no time.
“When the accident happened, people told us, ‘You’re lucky to be alive,’” she said. “I guess God didn’t want this to be over just yet.” •
Julia and Millard Marcel sort donations for Angels on Wheels Monday at their home in Dularge. The couple lost the van that makes their program for the less fortunate possible after a car accident in November.
