About Me

I was born and raised in Houma, Louisiana, in Terrebonne Parish, in the heart of French Acadiana. I'd have to go back far beyond living memory, to my great-plus grandfathers, Thomas Buford and Frederick Lottinger, to find a relative who was not born in the Lafourche/Terrebonne area. Then, beyond Thomas and Frederick, I'd have to go way back to the Eighteenth Century to my Acadian and French roots. So, you might say, for all practical purposes that I'm South Louisiana born and bred - and proud of it !!

I graduated from Terrebonne High School in 1954. Joe Allen (Terrebonne, Class of 1952) and I were married in 1956, and we moved to Metairie, where we've lived ever since (Joe is a retired engineer). We have two sons, Joseph West Allen III and Kenneth Lee Allen, and one granddaughter Cassie Lynn Allen - and a cat, Minette. You can see some photos of us here.

Our son, West, age 40, is a carpenter/contractor, and he has done restoration work on some of the buildings in the French Quarter. During the renovation of the Cabildo after the 1988 fire, he helped restore the cupola on top of the building. His signature visible creations are the shutters and the banisters on the cupola.

Ken, age 42, is a seminarian at Notre Dame Catholic Seminary in New Orleans. He has just completed a five-month internship at St. Clement of Rome Church in Metairie. In January, he will become ordained as a permanent deacon, a final step to the priesthood. The first Sunday in June 2004 will be the joyful day for all of us when he becomes a priest.

Cassie, my granddaughter, age 18, is now out of high school, but hasn't decided on her future. She's thinking Allied Health, but has decided to take off at least one semester to think about it. She's also thinking about visiting her other grandmother in San Diego for a short stay.

During my working life, I was a State of Louisiana employee, taking disability retirement from my job as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor in 1995. I was also an organist and choir director at several churches in the Greater New Orleans area over a period of twenty years. Even though I'm "retired" I remain busy, creating web pages, being active in genealogical pursuits and activities, studying early colonial Louisiana history, and writing.

Return to Main Page

Background music from the movie, "Somewhere in Time"