Authors to speak on Acadian history at Acadian Memorial Festival & Wooden Boat Congrès

Authors Ollie Porche Voelker of Destrehan will discuss her book “Home at Last: An Acadian Journey” and Warren and Mary Perrin of Lafayette will discuss “Acadie Then and Now:  A People’s History” at Saturday’s 12th annual Acadian Memorial Festival and Wooden Boat Congrès in St. Martinville. The event will feature food, music, arts and crafts, theater, demonstrations, children’s activities, a re-enactment and more from 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. in Evangeline Oak Park. The event is free and open to the public.  

Voelker is a retired teacher and educational diagnostician whose interest in genealogy led her to "Home at Last." She is the descendant of several Acadian families who were deported from Nova Scotia beginning in 1755. She is also the author of "A Silver Lining: From Acadie to Louisiana."

Cheré Dastugue Coen is the author of “Forest Hill, Louisiana: A Bloom Town History,” “Haunted Lafayette, Louisiana” and “Exploring Cajun Country: A Historic Guide to Acadiana” and co-author of “Magic’s in the Bag: Creating Spellbinding Gris Gris Bags and Sachets.” She also writes Louisiana romances under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Write her at cherecoen@gmail.com.

Zachary Richard offers 'balanced overview' of Acadian, Cajun history in new book

    UL Press will launch a new book by Zachary Richard this week. The musician, raconteur, poet, historian and friend of French in Louisiana has written “Histoire des Acadiennes et Acadiens de la Louisiane” and will celebrate its publishing beginning at 6 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 27, at the Blue Moon Saloon. The event is free but there will be music by Luke, Zach & Phillip Huval and food by Chef Pat Mould. Feufollet will play after the party for a $10 cover or $5 with purchase of the book.

    The book wasn’t available at press time, but according to Richard on the event’s Facebook page, the book was inspired by an earlier volume published in New Brunswick.
     “I felt that a similar volume would be important for the Acadian/Cajun community of Louisiana,” Richard writes on Facebook. “With the support of the original publisher, Les Editions La Grande Marée, we were able to create a work which shares the same history as the Acadians of the Canadian Maritimes up to the deportation of 1755. At that point, our book follows the route of exile that brought the original Acadians to Louisiana. It studies the evolution of the Acadian community in Louisiana and furnishes a portrait of contemporary Acadian/Cajun culture through its social traditions and artistic expression.”
    Although Richard’s book is intended for French immersion students in Louisiana studies in the eighth grade, “this book is a balanced overview of Acadian/Cajun history and culture,” he writes. “Rich in archival images and captivating photography, this book is a beginners guide to the Acadian/Cajun experience of Louisiana.”