Fwd: Meet Our Speakers - Guidry & Hebert Reunion
R. Martin Guidry
GUIDRY AND HEBERT REUNION
8 OCTOBER 2022, 9 AM – 5 PM
RAYNE CIVIC CENTER BALLROOM
RAYNE, LOUISIANA
Directions: From I-10 west of Lafayette, exit I-10 at EXIT 87 (Rayne) and go south. At the first red light turn right onto Oak Street. Take the 2nd right onto Gossen Memorial Drive. (There is a sign at the corner that says “Ballroom”.) Stay on Gossen Memorial Drive as it makes a large bend to the left around the Rayne Civic Center. After the bend the road name changes to Frog Festival Drive. Shortly after the bend look to your left and you will see the Ballroom and its parking lot next to it. You are there!!! Come in and join the Reunion!!!
DESSERTS
The Reunion is FREE!! We are providing the meal at noon; however, if you are local and wish to bring a dessert for a few folks, please feel free to do so. We have large industrial refrigerators in the kitchen to keep things cool if necessary. We will have some desserts, but often folks like a little variety in desserts and this is a great way to have it.
MEET OUR SPEAKERS
Art Guidry is a native of the Opelousas, LA area and lives in New York City today. His parents Mathew Millard Guidry and Grace Hebert Guidry were St. Landry Parish educators throughout their lives. As a young boy, Art attended Plaisance Elementary School, which was an historic Rosenwald School that is on the National Historic Register. His father was principal of the school for many years. His mother was a teacher and operated a day care center for young children. Art attended high school in Michigan and college in Pittsburg, PA. Later he received his M.A. from LSU New Orleans in Communications. After serving in West Africa with the Peace Corps, Art returned to the U.S. and joined the Children’s Television Network as a producer of Sesame Street and other children shows. He became the New Orleans area coordinator and was so successful at growing the audience that CTW promoted him to coordinator for LA, GA and FL. In 1976 he was transferred to New York City as Manager of Media Projects and later became the National Program Director for Sesame Street.
After 22 years with CTW, Art retired and became the Census Information Officer for the 1990 Census for New York City and Puerto Rico. In this job he worked closely with the Census Director.
After the 1990 Census was completed, Art joined the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority responsible for train and bus transportation throughout New York City and nearby states. He has had various supervisory and management positions within the MTA where he continues to work today.
Art speaks at colleges and universities regularly and has served as an adjunct professor. He volunteers his time to motivate youth to remain in school, study hard and work to improve their lives.
Art’s presentation is entitled “Seeking My Roots: A Louisiana Creole Genealogical Study from St. Landry Parish”.
Greg Wood attended high school in Sturgis, MI and then attended Notre Dame University and The John Hopkins University. Greg currently lives in Olney, MD. After teaching several years in Maryland public schools, Greg got his “dream job” in 1974 – teaching French and Spanish at Our Lady of Good Counsel High School in Wheaton, MD where he taught for 35 years. On retirement in 2011, Our Lady of Good Counsel High School established the “Gregory A. Wood Award for Foreign Language” to be presented each year to an outstanding foreign language student.
Greg has always had a burning interest in history and has researched extensively his Acadian roots in the Beaubassin, Acadia region. From this grew his interest in researching the French and Acadians in Maryland. In 1978 Greg published his first book The French Presence in Maryland, 1524-1800. Greg then began to concentrate on Acadian history in Maryland and in 1995 published his widely-acclaimed book A Guide to the Acadians in Maryland in the Eighteenth and Nineteenth Centuries. For the last 27 years he has worked preparing his definitive book Becoming the Frenchified State of Maryland which he is releasing this year during the Grand Réveil Acadien.
Greg has received numerous awards for his work on the French and Acadians in Maryland including being inducted as a Living Legend by the Acadian Museum in July 2018.
In his presentation Greg will discuss his new book Becoming the Frenchified State of Maryland.