A girl and her dog

Rhonda B. LeJeune is an educator and school guidance counselor in Evangeline Parish. She has always loved reading and learning, but it was only recently that she realized she has a knack for writing. The Lovable Huggable Dog ... Lucy Finds Her Purpose, a children’s book, is her first published work. She lives in Ville Platte with her husband, Chris, and their own lovable huggable dog, Chance.
When asked what gave her the inspiration for the book, LeJeune said, “Having a really big white dog at home and seeing him every day.” She was also inspired by reading the book The Wonky Donkey.” “I saw that, loved it, and said ‘I can do that, too.’”
Her book is about a dog at a park, getting into “all kinds of things.” The book is dedicated to her godmother, Lucy, who passed away in 2006. It is also dedicated to the rest of her family.
When asked why the title of her book is not Chance Finds His Purpose?, LeJeune said she wanted to honor her godmother, Lucy. She also said of Chance, “Because he’s too bad,” she laughed. “I took his good qualities and put those in there. Most days he’s huggable.” She has always loved dogs, and Chance is the one she has been closest to.
A few summers ago, when she decided she wanted a dog, she asked her husband and her mother is she should get one. They initially said no, but changed their minds. LeJeune looked in the paper, wanting a German Shepherd but changed her mind when she found an ad for an Anatolian Shepherd/Great Pyrenees. “I looked it up online and it was big and it was beautiful and I wanted it.”
On the way to get the puppy, she and her mom and Chris discussed names. LeJeune wanted to name him Hank. Her mom wanted to name him Chance because, she said, “Poor thing, he’ll be taking a chance living with us.” Her mom was terrified of dogs, but was willing to give him a chance.
Upon arriving at the breeder’s home, LeJeune and her family looked at the beautiful property and saw something in the distance. “I looked over and thought, ‘they have little white horses,’ but come to find out, those weren’t horses. Those were Chance’s parents.” She picked out the puppy she wanted, which was a male. The other male in the litter someone bought and named Hank, according to the breeder. “Whenever she said that, I thought that was a sign from my dad who passed in 2013. He always had to take care of my dogs. I’m sure this time he was like ‘Well I’m not going to be here to take care of it, but I’m going to help you name it, and it’s not going to be named Hank.’ Knowing there was another Hank in the litter, I definitely couldn’t name him Hank, so I named him what my mom wanted to name him: Chance.”
LeJeune is an active member of the Writers Guild of Acadiana and has gained an interest in writing the last few years, mostly writing poetry. She would eventually like to publish a book of poetry. She plans on writing another children’s book based on a poem she wrote called “But Where Will You Be?,” which is about children losing loved ones. The Lovable Huggable Dog ... Lucy Finds Her Purpose can be purchased on Amazon or from LeJeune.