JEANERETTE—Please join the family in praying for the repose of the soul of Rose Mary Pepper Bergeron Delaune, 86, who was born into eternal life on January 13, 2023.

A Mass of Christian burial will be held at 11 a.m. on Friday, January 20, 2023, at St. John the Evangelist Church by her nephew Fr. David Keegan and co-celebrants Fr. Francis Damoah and Fr. Mark Derise.

Visitation will be held from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m. on Thursday, January 19, 2023, at David’s Funeral Home in Jeanerette, with a Rosary recited by the family at 6 p.m. Visitation will resume from 8 a.m. until the time of service on Friday, January 20, 2023. Burial will be in Beau Pré Memorial Cemetery.

Rose was born on February 14, 1936, in St. Mary Parish on Crawford Plantation to Clarence James and Henrietta Marie Blanchard Pepper, the oldest of two daughters.

Rose was a devout Catholic and member of St. John the Evangelist Catholic Church in Jeanerette where she served as a past Eucharistic Minister. She was a member of the Catholic Daughters, Friends of the Jeanerette Museum and the committee that produced the second volume of the church parish’s cookbook.

Rose received her education from the Religious Sisters of Mercy at St. Joseph School in Jeanerette where she graduated with honors in May 1954. She was chosen as the first Miss Jeanerette in 1954, and attended the Rice Festival in Crowley and the Miss Iberia Pageant and was chosen as first runner-up to Miss Iberia Parish Farm Bureau. She was chosen as Miss Evangeline Baseball, representing the New Iberia Pelicans semi-pro baseball team and attended the Minor/Major League Convention in Houston in December 1954.

She began her career in banking in August 1954 at First National Bank of Jeanerette where she worked in various positions. She resigned in April 1977, and went to work at People’s National Bank of New Iberia (later known as People’s Bank & Trust), where she was promoted a short time later to branch manager of their Jeanerette Branch and eventually became an assistant vice president and branch manager. She held this position until October 1987, when she resigned to move to Irving, Texas. During her career at People’s, she was very active in the community, serving on the Board of the Jeanerette Chamber of Commerce and the Jeanerette Merchants Bureau. She was a co-chair for the Miss Jeanerette Pageant for several years, then chaired it for a few years. She also served as a board member of the American Institute of Banking in Lafayette representing People’s Bank.

In April 1988, she went to work for the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), Division of Resolutions in Dallas, Texas as a research technician and later as an investigations technician. She attended many bank closings, where she received the records of failed banks for the investigations department. She retired from this position on December 29, 2000, and returned to the family homestead in Jeanerette.

After retiring and returning to Jeanerette, Rose and Henry enjoyed working in their yard, especially planting new daylilies each year. Her grandchildren were the greatest joy in her life and she enjoyed going to their school activities, band competitions, football games, award nights and graduations from high school and later from college. Rose was an avid reader, loved to cook, bake and make preserves and had many collectibles. She was a devoted fan of the New Orleans Saints, LSU Tigers and UL Raging Cajuns sports teams.

She is survived by her son Ralph Bergeron II; daughter-in-law and best friend Brenda Provost Bergeron; granddaughter Ashley Rose Bergeron Johnson and her husband Robert Johnson and great-grandson Dominic Robert of Scituate, Massachusetts; grandson Cody Michael Bergeron and his wife Katherine Concepcion Bergeron and great-grandson Elijah James; and great-granddaughters Isabella Rose and Ava Marie of Alexandria. She is also survived by her sister and best friend Sandra Pepper Freeman of Jeanerette; special cousins Donna Pepper of Jeanerette and Richard Doyle and his wife Diane of Elkhart, Texas; goddaughters Beth Bergeron Zagata of West Davenport, New York and Laurel Bergeron Landry of Lafayette; godson Harvey Blanchard Sr. of New Iberia; faithful neighbors and friends Richard, Lorraine and Sherrie Pepper and Hoa and Sandra Tran. Rose was so grateful to these people and her many friends who so graciously helped her since her medical emergency in September 2009, and after her return home in May 2010, and then continued assisting her until her death.

She was proceeded in death by her beloved husband Henry A. Delaune; her parents Clarence and Henrietta Pepper; her brother-in-law Patrick W. Freeman; her first husband Ralph J. Bergeron; her in-laws Pearly Mae and A. S. Delaune and James and Gertrude Bergeron; her nieces Cathy Keegan, Julie Bergeron Leumas and Nancy Bergeron Barron; her nephews James L. Bergeron III and James Leumas; and her beloved cat Tigger.

Ralph Bergeron, Cody Bergeron, Richard Doyle, Robert Johnson, Hoa Tran and Peter Tran will serve as pallbearers.

Honorary pallbearers will be Harvey Blanchard Sr., Dr. Carl Ditch, Dez Hebert and Kirby Hebert.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her memory to Hospice of Acadiana, 2600 Johnston Street, Lafayette, LA. 70503.

Arrangements have been entrusted to David Funeral Home of Jeanerette.