Maine, not La., gets nod

Despite months of hard work and lobbying, stakeholders were disappointed Sunday when it was announced in Caraquet, New Brunswick, Canada, that the Congres Mondial Acadian in 2014 would be held in the St. John Valley area of northern Maine and southern New Brunswick — an area that identifies itself as Acadia of the Land and Forests.

The announcement meant that the bid prepared on behalf of the state, by a group called Lousiane-Acadie, to hold the 2014 Congres in Louisiana, was unsuccessful.

A large group of Acadiana-based Acadian activists traveled to New Brunswick last week to attend the 2009 Congres and to peddle Louisiana as a great vacation destination.

Fran Thibodeaux, Iberia Parish Convention and Visitor’s Bureau director, said the decision is unfortunate for the area though she remained confident those in New Brunswick promoting the area still would be successful drawing visitors here.

“It’s unfortunate that we didn’t get it,” Thibodeaux said. “The people that worked on it really did a good job and worked very hard on the project. But, there is always next time.”

Ray Trahan, president of Louisiane-Acadie, who was in New Brunswick for the announcement with his wife Brenda Comeaux Trahan, curator-director of the Acadian Memorial in St. Martinville, said holding the next Congres in the state would have been monumental.

Neither could be reached for comment regarding Sunday’s decision.

“Past Congres programming included three major events, over 60 family reunions, festivals, community events, conferences, concerts, etc,” Trahan said recently. “Any community wanting to showcase their identity can  participate.

“The Congres attracts thousands of Acadians from all over the world, more specifically the Canadian  Maritime Provinces, Québec, France and, of course, Louisiana.”

But Thibodeaux said it is “hard to get the event out of Canada.”

In fact, of the four Congres Mondials that have been held in 20 years, only one has been located outside of Canada and that was here in Louisiana in 1999.

Aside from the economic impact, the group also hoped holding the event in Louisiana would further strengthen the French culture and heritage in the area for its youth.

“We owe it to our youth to create an environment where they can grow and blossom within their own culture and speaking their native French language,” Trahan said, “a  catalyst for the survival and durability of our culture.”

Despite tremendous community support and grassroots, Web-based efforts, the first of its kind for a Congres bid, Louisiane-Acadie will have to return to the drawing board in hopes of competing for the 2019 Congres Mondial.