Celebrating 250 years of Acadians in Acadiana

The Acadian Memorial and the City of St. Martinville will celebrate the 250th anniversary of the arrival of the Acadians in the Opelousas and Attakapas districts with events on July 28, Aug. 15 and Oct. 8, 2015.
The first Acadians arrived in Louisiana in 1764, but it was in 1765 that the Acadians arrived in the Opelousas and Attakapas Districts.
July 28, a Tuesday, is the Day of Commemoration of the Great Upheaval of the Acadians, as proclaimed in 2003 by the Canadian representative of the Queen of England. On July 28, 1755, the order came down to deport the Acadians from Acadie.
Sylvia Bienvenue, a long-time educator and Acadian Memorial Foundation Board member, will be inducted into the Order of Living Legends. The Foundation selects a recipient each year to be inducted into the Order, established by Warren Perrin and the Acadian Museum in Erath. Since 1997, the museum has recognized and honored those individuals who have helped shape and define the Cajun culture. A reception follows the program.
A new exhibit, entitled “Celebrating 250 years of Acadian presence in the Opelousas and Attakapas Districts – Journey Through Historical Documents,” will open on the same day. Documents from the Grand Pré registers housed at the Diocese of Baton Rouge, St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church and St. Martin Parish Courthouse, will narrate the Acadians journey to their new home in Louisiana. The exhibit continues through the end of 2015.
Saturday, Aug. 15, is the celebration of La Fête Nationale des Acadiens, the National Day of the Acadians and the Assumption, a day chosen in the 19th century by an assembly of Acadians in Canada for its connection to the Virgin Mary, the patron of the Acadians.
The day will begin with the raising of the Acadian flag at City Hall, followed by a reception. All-day activities include a French table, presentations on the links between the Acadian and African cultures and other subjects, videos on Acadian culture, a presentation on the Projet Nouvelle-Acadie, theater in French and other activities. The day ends with music, dance lessons, jambalaya for sale and a parade of banners.
Also on that day, the Rev. Michael Champagne will lead a flotilla of boats celebrating la Fête Dieu du Tèche, a Eucharistic procession beginning in Leonville with a Mass at 8 a.m. and ending with a procession to St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church at 4:45 p.m. More information on this unique event can be found on Facebook at Fete Dieu du Teche or contact Father Champagne at (337) 394-6550 or at fetedieuduteche@gmail.com.
Finally, on Oct. 8, a Thursday, St. Martinville will celebrate the Grand Réveil Acadien. Greg Wood and Marty Guidry will speak in the afternoon about the Acadians of Maryland, followed by a re-enactment of the arrival of the Acadians and a traditional sing-a-long in French.
For more information, go to www.acadianmemorial.org, or “Acadian Memorial” on Facebook. The phone number is (337) 394-2258, email info@acadianmemorial.org.