JEFF ZERINGUE
MANAGING EDITOR / THE DAILY IBERIAN

There is something special about connecting with someone from your hometown. And when this person is discovered to have made New Iberia their new hometown, too, it makes the world a little bit smaller.

Some months ago in a conversation with David Lamothe, we talked about our hometowns. When I told him I grew up in Luling, he immediately knew of a friend who hails from the same town.

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For those who don’t know, Luling is a small, unincorporated river town about 25 miles southwest of New Orleans. Its highlight in history will likely be from Oct. 20, 1976, when 77 people perished after a Norwegian tanker struck the George Prince, a ferry that took commuters across the river from Luling to Destrahan.

Despite the note of tragedy, Luling was a great little rural town in which to grow up.

David told me about his friend Jim Laque who lives in New Iberia. I remembered the surname and recalled Jon Paul Laque, with whom I graduated. He played trumpet in the band in elementary school and was one of the best tenors in high school choir, but then found local fame on the football field. He was good enough to take his talents to college and played defense for Louisiana Tech University.

I knew of Jim. He was the eldest of the Laque boys. He was life guard at the local pool and involved in scouting.

On Sunday, I got a chance to visit with Jim and his wife, Patti, and they got to know the Zeringues.

It was really nice talking about old places and people from Luling, intertwined with life experiences we’ve had over the past 30-plus years. One thing about Jim that I remembered as I, along with a bunch of other little punk kids, would bug him as he watched over the swimmers, he liked to laugh a lot.

He still does. No matter what he shared, joyful or serious, he found something to laugh about. It’s a quality that amazes me in people.

It’s good to know folks from your native town. It’s good to share memories of that town and old times so that when the children are grown and gone, you have someone with whom you can share “the good ole days.”

Thanks, Jim, for the warm welcome.

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A few weeks ago, my daughter wanted to got to an Ayleron concert at St. Joseph’s in Loreauville. The Christian rock band was performing for the second time this academic year and Kathryn just loves it. We decided to take her, so she could spend time there with her friends and enjoy the music.

When it came time to pick her up, I noticed that the crowd had thinned a bit, but there were several youngsters sitting around a table as the band played. In the din of the concert, soft blue and green lights illuminated the youths faces. Was it special effects from the band? No, it was only the light of cell phones as they sat around the table texting.

Now, I’m not sure if they were texting each other. I didn’t have the heart to ask after finding it humorous enough to step outside for a few moments. Things sure have changed since I used to go to middle-school aged dances put on by the church’s youth organization.

JEFF ZERINGUE is managing editor of The Daily Iberian. He can be reached at iberianedit@bellsouth.net.