Luling woman remembered for her warmth, love of children

Retta Champagne

Audrey Raziano remembers her mother as a woman who opened her doors to everyone and had a special connection with so many children in her community.

“Every day, up until she got to be about 80, she’d be out in the yard and playing ball with all the kids,” Raziano said. “Every generation that came through, she’d play softball with them. After football games, Mama cooked for anyone who wanted to stop by and grab a bowl of the best gumbo ever.”

Retta Champagne passed away March 27, at the age of 90 and after a battle with COVID 19. She was born and raised in Hahnville before she and her husband moved to Edgard following their marriage. They owned a general merchandise store there and raised six kids, three boys and three girls. Later, they moved back to St. Charles Parish and lived in Luling.

Raziano said though her mother came from a big family and raised a large one of her own, she still had time and energy for many, many others as well. Her daily outlook seemed to be the more, the merrier.

“We were always a house full,” Raziano recalled. “Our years growing up were full of family and friends. Holidays, Sundays …  I remember a table cloth my Mom made. Anyone who came over and shared a meal would sign their names on it.”

Raziano and her sisters wore outfits showing off Retta’s personal touch.

“She sewed and made clothes for all three girls,” Raziano said. “We would always have dressed out of the same material. My sisters were gifted with her ability to sew.”

Champagne was proud of her family. Her walls were adorned with photos of her children and grandchildren. Once Raziano and her siblings grew up and found their respective career callings, Champagne spent much of her time babysitting her grandchildren.

“She kept our kids while she worked, which eventually led to her babysitting over 30 bonus grandkids over the years,” Champagne said. “Mama loved kids.”

Champagne lived in Luling Nursing Home over the past three years, where Raziano went to visit her daily. That routine was interrupted once the facility went on lockdown as result of the virus pandemic.

“I was there just about every day. It was rare for me to miss a day to go see her,” Raziano said. “Then when they went on lockdown, you can’t go every day … you can’t go at all. It was the hardest part.”

They maintained contact over the phone, but after Raziano didn’t hear from her mother for some time, she became concerned.

“I spoke with (Champagne’s nursing care workers) and they said on a Tuesday that ‘your mom’s been lethargic, we’re sending her to the emergency room.’

“By Friday, she was gone.”

Raziano and her family couldn’t go to see Champagne due to pandemic restrictions to prevent spread of the virus. But she said she was deeply thankful for the compassion and care Luling Nursing Home caregivers provided her mother.

“Some people don’t get enough credit for what they do, and those people are so compassionate there,” Raziano said. “They would FaceTime me so I could talk to her. They’d be in a room with her … they’d touch her shoulder … she knew somebody was there with her.

“They are a group of unsung heroes. To all of the unsung heroes who touched Mama’s life when we could not, we offer a heartfelt thank you.”

Raziano said she feels in her heart that her mother had closure as she passed on. She described her mother as a woman of strong faith to the end, something Raziano and her siblings drew inspiration from during many difficult periods of their own lives.

“There were many times we needed Mama prayers because we felt she had a direct line with her prayers,” Raziano said. “She prayed the rosary a lot, especially over the last few years.

“We had many conversations over the final days … I feel like Mom had her peace. I really do.”

But for Raziano, closure may take some time. Until the situation with COVID-19 improves enough for the community to begin gathering once again, she and her extended family can not truly come together to grieve Champagne’s loss, nor celebrate her life.

“As hard as it is to lose a parent or any loved one, it’s even tougher with the pandemic situation. The grieving process is different,” Raziano said. “Having a private service, not being able to hug your family, leaving the cemetery and not being able to gather with your siblings and tell stories, and look at pictures, and laugh and cry and go through all of the emotions … I think I can speak for all of us in saying it makes it harder.

“We lean on each other through virtual hugs. We would hear about friends who were going through the same process but as always until it hits home you don’t realize how difficult it is.”

 

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