Nearly two hundred people gathered Thursday morning in an empty lot in downtown New Iberia, brought there to celebrate the life of a native son and to honor a native daughter, each of whom rose to the heights of their fields.

The cause was a groundbreaking ceremony for the George Rodrigue Park, followed by a ceremony promoting an exhibit honoring former Louisiana Gov. Kathleen Babineaux Blanco in the renovated Doc Voorhies Wing in the Bayou Teche Museum. Blanco grew up in Coteau and was the first female governor in the state.

But the community coming together was not only about the past. It was about the future, about a new park for children in the downtown area. It was about preserving the thirst for public service and teaching through additions to the Bayou Teche Museum.

More than those things, the gathered members of the community, from all sides of the political spectrum, showed that common goals are achievable. Democrats and Republicans, rich and poor, can all get on the same side of a task and push it forward for the betterment of all.