Joanne Ackal

Published 12:00 am Wednesday, August 25, 2021

Joanne Tourere Ackal, 66, was called to be with her Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Aug. 22, 2021. 

A memorial service will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 28, 2021, at Pellerin Funeral Home, with Rev. William Blanda officiating. Entombment will follow in the Holy Family Cemetery.

A gathering of family and friends will be Friday from 4 p.m. until 8 p.m. at Pellerin Funeral Home. Visitation will continue on Saturday from 8 a.m. until 10 a.m. A Rosary will be prayed at 7 p.m. on Friday.

Joanne was a resident of Baton Rouge and a devout Christian. She attended Mass at both Saint Patrick’s Catholic Church as well as Saint Thomas More Catholic Church. Joanne, also, upon occasion, worked at the Bishop Ott Center serving those in need.

Joanne retired from service as a state employee in the Departments of Agriculture as well as the Louisiana Gaming Division. Upon her retirement from the state, she worked as a licensed realtor for the Dixon Realty agency.

Aside from all of her professional accomplishments, Joanne was an amazing mother and wife. On Jan. 25, 1991, she married Elias Ackal III. During the course of their 30-year marriage, she and Elias had one son, whom Joanne greatly cherished, Beau Elias Ackal.

Joanne is survived by her husband, Elias Ackal III and their son Beau Elias Ackal. She is also survived by five sisters and three brothers as well as their spouses Jane and Thomas Amant II, Dorothy and Arthur Keesing, Geraldine Young, Marie and Gary Starnes, Catherine and Charles Walker, Bernie “BJ” Tourere and his wife Judy, Henry Tourere and his wife Brenda, John “Tiny” Tourere and his wife Sandy as well as countless nieces and nephews. 

Joanne was preceded in death by her parents Regina and Bernie Tourere well as brothers-in-law, Russell Young and Paul Gerald Ackal; a nephew Hank Tourere and father-in-law, Elias “Bo” Ackal Jr. 

Joanne will not only be profoundly missed by her family but also by a multitude of friends and acquaintances who valued her unconditional sincerity, kindness, warmth and genuine concern.  

Pellerin Funeral Home, 502 Jefferson Terrace, New Iberia, LA 70560, 365-3331, is in charge of the arrangements.