LEONARD GRAY / L’Observateur / October 28, 2000

LULING – Lena LaCroix is something of a local phenomenon – her friends are legion and her outlook on life is so sweet it’s inspirational.

Affectionately called “Miss Lena” by one and all, she celebrated her 101st birthday Tuesday and has only barely slowed down.

Born Oct. 24, 1899, she’s a living link to a century of River Parisheshistory. One of the 13 children of Geaotano and Frances Busalacci ofPlaquemine, she relocated to the tiny river town of Luling in 1900, where her father opened an ice house.

Filled by her mother with a love for music, little Lena Busalacci started playing piano at age 8 and began assisting her mother in cleaning the St.

Anthony Church when she was 12. When she turned 19 she began playingthe church’s organ for services and only stopped 72 years later at the age of 91.

She married Alphonse LaCroix in the latter days of World War II, and they were together until his death in 1974. In 1976 she began a quarter-century of service in a new career at St. Charles Parish Hospital, playingorgan for services and working on the front information desk.

Though she’s disabled now, she still manages to get to the hospital where LaCroix remains officially on the volunteer list. She can be found sittingin the front lobby and visiting with her many friends there.

LaCroix retains her sharp wit, energetic sense of humor and prodigious memory. She figured she’s likely the parish’s oldest registered voter(Republican), but at her birthday party said she is still undecided on who she will pull the lever for on Nov. 7.”I don’t like either one!” she declared. “I’ll make up my mind when I getthere!” The years have been kind to her, with a host of honors coming her way. In1984 she received the St. Louis Medallion for volunteer service to thechurch. In 1988 she received honors from the Veterans Administration forher hospital work, and in 1993 she was the St. Charles Rotary Club’scitizen of the year.

LaCroix also received the J.C. Penney Golden Rule Award in 1996 and, thefollowing spring, was grand marshal for the Krewe of Lul parade.

When interviewed in 1997, “Miss Lena” commented she “didn’t have time to be an old person.”Her health has slowed her down, but that steel-trap mind remains sharp.

At her birthday party given to her by Dennis St. Amant, she credited herlong life and vitality to watching her diet and eating “plenty of fresh fruit.”Digging into a dish of fresh apples, peaches, bananas and oranges, it was clear she had no plans of going anywhere anytime soon.

Return To News Stories