Maurice - A Mass of Christian Burial for Cecil James Hebert, 67, will be held on Thursday, April 19, 2012 at 11:00am at St. Alphonsus Catholic Church in Maurice. Visitation will be held at David Funeral Home in Abbeville from 10:00am to 9:00pm April 18, 2012. The rosary will be recited by Father Joe Breaux, Brenda Desormeaux and Claudine Desormeaux at 7:00pm. The following day the funeral home will be opened at 7:00am until the services. Interment will be at St. Alphonsus Cemetery under the direction of David Funeral Home and Menard Marble and Granite. Cecil James Hebert succumbed to cancer in his beloved family home on April 17, 2012. His birthday was April 8, 1945, and he was 67 years old Easter Sunday. Father Bill Ruskoski, pastor at Saint Josephs Church in Rayne, will be the celebrant of the Mass. Father Bill has been a close religious counselor and friend of the family; since, he was pastor at Our Lady of Holy Rosary Church in Kaplan. At that time, Cecil was principal of Maltrait Catholic School. Father Joe Breaux will officiate as pastor of St. Alphonsus and is a spiritual friend of the family. Father George Simon will also attend as a respected neighbor who lived across from the Hebert family on Placide Road. Cecil James Hebert was born at the Kaplan Clinic on April 8, 1945. He has been a lifetime resident of Vermilion Parish attending Maurice Elementary and graduating from Maurice High School in 1963. At the University of Southwestern Louisiana, he received his Bachelor of Science degree in May 1967 with a major in Vocational Agriculture Education. Cecil earned his Master of Education degree at McNeese State University, majoring in Administration and Supervision and minoring in Health and Physical Education. Louisiana State University was where he received nine hours above his Masters for professional improvement courses. Cecil was a classroom teacher having taught Biology, Science and Chemistry in Lafourche and Vermilion Parishes. He was a secondary teacher who was innovative with many Vocational Agriculture Education projects. He was known to the faculty as Mr. Fix It because of his ability to trouble-shoot and to solve various problems with equipment and machinery. He also won the Louisiana Vocational Agriculture Teacher Idea Unlimited Contest. In 1980, two brothers were killed in an airplane crash, which devastated the Hebert family. Cecil then became a self-employed rice, soybean and crawfish farmer. With his father, Wilbert Hebert, and his only remaining brother, Dane Hebert, they operated and managed a two-thousand acre farm. During the 1980s with the decline in agriculture and the oil field, Cecil did what he could for his family. He owned and operated a White Farm Equipment dealership in Abbeville, was a permit agent for Cajun Exploration Company, was employed as the Administrative Assistant for the Vermillion Parish Farm Bureau Federation, where he was recognized for Best Agriculture Weekly Farm Bureau Report, and worked as Educational Representative for Universal Technical Institute. Cecil was elected to the Vermilion Parish School Board from 1990-1998. At that time, he served as principal of Maltrait Memorial Catholic School in Kaplan for six years. He returned to teaching full-time in Lafayette and Acadia Parishes until 2009 when he retired. Cecils activities included: President of the Vermilion Teachers Association; Teacher of Teachers Award; served on the Board of Directors for the greater Abbeville Chamber of Commerce and the Education Committee; became president of the St. Alphonsus Church Council, was a trustee of St. Alphonsus Catholic Church, was Deputy Knight of the Maurice Knights of Columbus; served as president of the North Vermilion Athletic Booster Club; served on the state and parish Economic Development Committee; became vice-president of the Vermilion Parish School Board, served on the Resolutions Committee of the Louisiana School Board Association and was second vice-president of that association; was appointed to the Louisiana High School Athletic Association Board of Directors; served as Eucharistic Minister at Holy Rosary-Cabrini Catholic Church in Kaplan; and was selected Outstanding Principal in the Diocese of Lafayette. Cecil enjoyed much camaraderie in the Giant Omelette Celebration since its inception in 1985. He served as second Grand Maitre and became Premiere Grand Maitre in 2010. Mrs. Laura Belle Bonin Hebert, Cecils mother, taught her nine children the importance of community involvement and service to God and church. Having come from a large family, Cecil loved people and easily was a giver in life. He was a Frenchman who was always himself---a little rough around the edges. Everyone became an acquaintance and no one was a stranger to Cecil. He knew the true measure of a man was not his accolades on earth, but the legacy a man left behind after death. Above all, he was selfless and showed his intense love for his family and friends. Cecil learned respect for the land upon which he lived from his grandfather, Pierre Hebert, and father, Wilbert Hebert. As a man of principle, he believed family land was a gift to future generations. Survivors include: his wife of 43 years, Gayle Ann Ledet Hebert; his eldest son, Blair James Hebert, and wife Michelle Lege Hebert; his only daughter, Laury Ann Hebert Rush, and husband John Watters Rush II; and his youngest son, Trent James Hebert. His six grandchildren are Avery Claire Hebert, Olivia Grace Hebert, Amelia Grace Hebert, Logan James Rush, Ethan James Hebert, and Madeline Gayle Rush. Four of Cecils nine siblings have survived him: Brenda Faye Hebert Desormeaux and husband Harris; Dane Louis Hebert and wife Lisa; Jan Lee Hebert Meaders and husband David; and Bonnie Jean Hebert Brown and husband Rusty. He was preceded in death by his parents Wilbert Pierre Hebert and Laura Belle Bonin Hebert. Four siblings have died prior to Cecil: John Keith Hebert, Leonard Pierre Hebert, Timothy Jude Hebert and Melissa Ann Hebert LeBlanc. Pallbearers include: Blair, Trent, Dane, Jarod, and Cain Hebert; John Rush; and Jeremy Meaders. Honorary pallbearers are: Keith Desormeaux; Kip Desormeaux; Shelby Meaders; Leonard Hebert; Roland LeBlanc III; Norman Duhon; Percy Broussard, Jr.; Francis Baudoin; Calvin Woodruff; Jerry Terpening; and Gordy Landry. Eulogies will be given by Blair, Dane and Jarod Hebert and Father Bill Ruskoski. Readers selected include Holly Hebert Primeaux, Neysa Hebert Pourciau and Kristie Desormeaux Wright. Laura Paige Hebert will be the altar server. Brenda Hebert Desormeaux, Bonnie Hebert Brown and Linda Baumgarder Dartez will serve communion. The six grandchildren: Avery, Olivia, Amelia, Logan, Ethan and Madeline will bring the gifts. Music will be provided by vocalist Tammy Maturin and organist Tommy Guidry, both family friends. Donations may be made to the American Cancer Society, the Miles Perret Center or the American Heart Association. Special appreciation goes to Lisa Hebert, sister-in-law, and Cindy Hebert, family friend, for hours of selfless help and support. Special thanks goes to all personnel at Our Lady of Lourdes Hospital for their holistic approach with their patients. We appreciate Cecils many doctors, especially Dr. Jason Shumadine, Dr. Scott Neusetzer and Dr. Chancellor Donald. The family also wishes to recognize the loving care given by S.T.A.T. Home Health and St. Joseph Hospice particularly, Sarah Winchell, Lanetta ONeal, Brenda Primeaux, Viola Reed, Esheika Fontenette, Phyllis Allen, Charles and Jennifer Rees, and Casey Robinson. Last but never least, we cannot express the affectionate outpouring of family and friends with their prayers and well wishes for our Cecil James Hebert as he moved from this world to the next. David Funeral Home of Abbeville at 2699 Charity St. (337)893-3777 will be handling the arrangements.
