Mr. Robert Edward “Ed” Blanchet died in his home in Meaux, Louisiana on the morning of December 8, 2006 at age 83.The son of Otis and Mable Stauffer Blanchet of Abbeville, he is survived by his wife of 57 years, Catherine Brookshire Blanchet, seven children; four sons, Harry and his wife Peggy of LA, Edward of Santa Barbara, CA, Benjamin and his wife Anne of Meaux, LA, William and his wife Donna of Boulder, CO, and three daughters, Julie A. Blanchet of Broomfield, CO, Altha B. Robin and husband Greg of Austin, TX, and Celia Blanchet-Chua and husband Peter of Santa Barbara, CA, 11grand children and 2 great grand children, as well as by one sister, Polly Blanchet Miller, of Mouton Cove and a sister in law, Myrtle Blanchet. A World War II veteran, he signed up for the duration immediately following Pearl Harbor, and served in the Navy in the Pacific as a medical corpsman of an LST. He was in Tokyo Bay ahead of the signing of the armistice. Following the war, he competed his education, which ultimately included Masters degree in Education and in Math from LSU and USL, respectively. His professional career included positions at Meaux High School and Kaplan High School and LSU Eunice. With his wife, Catherine, he founded and ran the Blanchet School in Meaux, which was an open classroom, twelve-grade school that provided education for gifted students. He embodied the principle that education was a profession, not a job, and as a result did not always see eye-to-eye with the Vermilion Parish School Board. An active participant in Catherine's work as a collector and teacher of Cajun culture, music and dance, he also was active in the Abbeville Masonic Lodge (32nd Degree), Indian Bayou Methodist Church, and the Thursday scramble at the Abbeville County Club. Visitation will be held from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. Sunday, December 10, 2006. Visitation will resume Monday, December 11, 2006 at 9:00 a.m. until time of services. Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. at Indian Bayou Methodist Church. Burial will be held in Graceland Cemetery.
