More than 100 French culture enthusiasts will flock to the Baton Rouge Country Club this Saturday for a special ceremony honoring the subject of their enthusiasm.
The L’Assemblée Française will hold its 50th anniversary on Quatorze Juillet, or July 14th, a day for national celebration in France.
According to Lillie Petit Gallagher, member and chair of this year’s event, L’Assemblée Française is a social-cultural society founded in 1962 and gives its members the opportunity to speak French with one another, keep in touch and disseminate events of cultural interest to the Francophone community.
Gallagher said members meet three times a year to preserve the French language in Louisiana and bring the community together.
Gallagher also said the society’s annual event first began earlier this week with La Semaine Française.
There is always an event on Quatorze Juillet held by L’Assemblée Française, Gallagher noted, and this year happened to be its 50th anniversary.
The chair defined La Semaine Française, or French Week, as a time to spread the knowledge of the rich French culture and heritage embedded in Louisiana. She said both the mayor of Baton Rouge and the governor of Louisiana declared July 8 to July 14 La Semaine Française.
Gallagher said the celebration will begin with a trolley ride from the Baton Rouge Country Club to the Cathedral of St. Joseph for the reception and presentation of the mayor’s and governor’s proclamations to French Consul Jean Claude Brunet.
She mentioned that the proclamations are statements from the mayor and governor saying that Louisiana and Baton Rouge embrace their cultural heritage and want others to embrace it as well. Senator Dan Claitor will represent the governor, and Constable Reginald Brown will represent the mayor.
After the French mass and reception at the Cathedral, there will be a cocktail hour and Moulin Rouge soir̩e at the Baton Rouge Country Club. The soir̩e will include Manship Theater danseurs Рdancers Рand several French musical selections. It will end with a rendition of La Marseillaise, the national anthem of France that was used during the French Revolution.
Gallagher mentioned L’Assemblée Française would like to establish a scholarship for a student in LSU’s French Studies program in the future. She said Jackie Krutzer, a member of the society, donated her grandmother’s handmade trousseau, which contains traditional 19th century undergarments, to sell to raise money for this scholarship.
The society also wants to assist the Council Of Development Of French In Louisiana program to bridge the $120,000 funding gap from budget cuts.
Robert Lafayette, retired French and education professor at the University, and Louis Curet, former Baton Rouge attorney, founded the Friends of French Studies program at the University. Gallagher said she is a member of both that group and L’Assemblée Française.
Gallagher said she believes learning French in higher education is important because of the rich history, culture and food influences that France has embedded in Louisiana. “Having the ability to speak a second language is a valuable economic asset to anyone,” she said. “French culture is so entwined with Louisiana’s history it would behoove anyone to learn more about it.”
Gallagher said she feels the University’s own French program is so successful because of the leadership and professors in the department. She said it has many scholarships recognized around the world, and when French departments are judged anywhere, they are scrutinized based on the depth and breadth of scholarship of the professors in the department.
Gallagher said the afternoon events in the Quatorze Juillet celebration are free and open to the public. Reservations are required for the dinner and soirée.
 
____ Contact Kristen Frank at [email protected]