Diocesan Wedding Anniversary Mass Honors 37 couples

By Pamela Seal
Diocese of Lake Charles

LAKE CHARLES –– The annual Diocesan Wedding Anniversary Mass honored 74 spouses on Sunday, May 26 — the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity — in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception. For a combined 1,910 years of marriage, 37 couples registered for the Mass and reception hosted by the Office of Marriage and Family Life.

Couples marking jubilee anniversaries of 25, 50, 55, 60, and 65 years in 2024 received a special blessing by The Most Reverend Glen John Provost, Bishop of Lake Charles. He also blessed their wedding rings as each husband and wife stood facing each other.

“I think there is an important connection between the unity of the Trinity and the commitment a man and woman make in the Sacrament of Marriage,” said Bishop Provost.

Several couples celebrating 65 years of marriage were honored
during the annual Diocesan Wedding Anniversary Mass on
Sunday, May 26, in the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception.
Joining Bishop Provost are, from left, Leroy and Joetta LaPointe
of Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church; John and Joyce Vaughan
of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sulphur; and Melvin
and Louetta LeBlanc of St. Lawrence Catholic Church. Not pictured
are Joseph and Marlene Guillory of Sacred Heart of Jesus
Catholic Church in Lake Charles.

“The love of the Trinity — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — is so genuine, true, lasting and binding that it reveals the Unity of the Three Persons of the Trinity,” he continued. “Human beings are made for love, because God made them, and He is love.”

“Like the Trinity, we exist for love,” the bishop said. “The union of husband and wife in Sacramental Marriage is a precious gift, celebrating the vocation of love lived out in a union of heart, mind, and soul.”

Among the couples honored during the Jubilee Anniversary Mass, several are celebrating 65 years of marriage, serving as a testament to their vocation of love lived out through Holy Matrimony.

• Leroy and Joetta LaPointe were married on August 1, 1959, in Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Lake Arthur by Rev. Ferdnand Gouaux. Theirs was the first wedding for Father Gouaux to officiate at Our Lady of Lake.

Having raised five children, the LaPointes are blessed with a growing family of six grandchildren and two great-granddaughters.

Leroy (85) and Joetta (83) have this advice for young couples just starting out in marriage: “Always be sensitive to your spouse’s feelings in any situation, and always show love.”

A special way the LaPointes share their love – side by side – is through their prayer life together, made even more special with a room in their house created specifically for this purpose.

“When I came home from my Cursillo retreat in 2003, I asked Leroy to build a prayer room in our home,” said Joetta, noting that Leroy had made his Cursillo in 1970. “After the beautiful prayer room was built, we had it blessed, and that is where we share our prayers to the Lord side by side. I treasure that room. Leroy even made a kneeler and large cross.”

• Melvin and Louetta LeBlanc exchanged wedding vows on June 1, 1959, in St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Raymond by Rev. Gerard Koppel, O.S.B.

“Marriage can’t be all for one,” said Melvin, who is 93. “Marriage must be give-and-take.”

Louetta, 87, advises newlyweds to always pray together –– something she and Leroy do together as often as possible by going to daily Mass. It is one of the ways they are helping each other get to Heaven.

“Our Catholic faith has always been something we agree on, and we have grown together in our faith during 65 years of marriage,” said Louetta. In that time, the couple has been blessed with three daughters and four grandchildren.

Longtime members of the East Deanery Serra Club, Melvin and Louetta are doing their part to help foster vocations to the priesthood. Melvin said he is inspired by his wife’s faithfulness to prayer.

“Every day she prays her rosary and says her morning prayers. I try to do that also,” he said.

• John and Joyce Vaughan were married on January 17, 1959, in St. Paul Catholic Church in Elton by Rev. William Frantzen, the same priest who officiated the wedding of Joyce’s parents. Today they are parishioners of Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Sulphur.

Joyce’s devotion to her Catholic faith played an important part in her husband joining her at Mass after many years.

“After 55 years of marriage, I started attending Mass with my wife,” said John. “After attending for three years, Deacon Bud Wagner and Father (Aubrey) Guilbeau were instrumental in my conversion to Catholicism so I could fully participate in the Mass.”

Now that they are retired, the Vaughans attend daily Mass together several times a week and assist in various ministries wherever needed.

Having raised two children and now the grandparents of two grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, they have some advice for couples just starting out in the vocation of marriage.

Joyce had this to say: “Marriage is commitment and a job. Working together, good communication, and setting a budget that you both can manage with your income is very important.”

John added: “Help your wife with activities around the house. Have patience while adjusting to marriage.”

Those celebrating milestone anniversaries in 2024 are:

25 YEARS:

Octave and Gwenna Allen, St. Joseph, DeRidder
Robert and Andrea Boutte, St. Henry, Lake Charles
Tracy and Marissa Hudson, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Lake Charles
Keagan and Melanie LeJeune, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Lake Charles
Chad and Heather Tregle, Christ the King, Lake Charles

50 YEARS:

Anthony and Wanda Durousseau, Immaculate Heart of Mary, Lake Charles
David and Theresa Foreman, St. Raphael, Iowa
James and Joshlyn Foreman, St. Raphael, Iowa
Joseph and Cheryl Governale, St. Joseph, DeRidder
Hoye and Susan Graves, Immaculate Conception, Sulphur
Vincent and Paulette Lupo, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Lake Charles
Charles and JoLynn Marcantel, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Lake Charles
David and Simone Marcantel, Our Lady Help of Christians, Jennings
Alexis and Annie Morrow, St. Joseph, Vinton
James and Janis Pauley, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Lake Charles
Oliver and Donna Richard, Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, Lake Charles