By: HEATHER BOGARD
Associate Editor
TONY MARKS
Editor
Local artist Lacey Manuel Vidrine recalls, “In the last year or so I’ve been very intrigued by the ‘mou-vement’ that’s taking place in Mamou. My-mother in-law is from Mamou, my late father-in-law had a well known business there, and after Evangeline Parish consolidated schools in 2005, my husband attended school at Mamou High School. So although I’m not originally from Mamou, the Mamou-ians have taken me under their wing and have officially ‘adopted’ me, as they like to say.”
She adds, “I’ve donated paintings to the annual Savoy Cancer Center Mardi Gras Benefit for the last few years, so my artistry was showcased in Mamou from there; and ever since then I’ve taken on projects to help with the town makeover, such as creating stage backgrounds for the MHS band performances and the MHS football press box lettering and silhouettes.”
Vidrine was contacted by a dear friend who is in the Mamou Rotary Club a few months ago following a meeting, and one of the discussions during the meeting involved restoring the Three Little Cajun Pigs and wolf on the corner of South Street and Highway 13, and the friend and asked if she was interested. Vidrine shares, “I was absolutely honored, so of course I accepted.”
She recalls, “Apparently the wolf had been stolen a few years ago, so I needed to recreate and entirely new wolf, along with giving the iconic pigs a little TLC due to years of being out in the weather. The pigs were taken down around mid-August and brought to my house. They were much larger than I expected because you can’t really tell how big they actually are from the highway but they’re around seven feet tall, so I was very surprised.”
Vidrine continues, “Two of the pigs were in good enough shape for me to clean up, sand and repaint over the original painting. However, the third one was in really bad shape, so I had to completely recreate it by looking at pictures of it’s original state.”
Vidrine saved the wolf for last, as it took her a few days to figure out a design for the big bad wolf because she says, “I had nothing to go off of except very vague memories of him being there as a child.”
It took Vidrine about five days to complete the whole gang, and once the town picked them up from her house, they went straight to South Street to bring them back home to be showcased to Mamou natives and highway travelers. She humbly says, “I can’t take credit for the originality of the pigs, though. I don’t know who the original amazing artist was, but they created the Cajun musical instrument idea and I simply brought them back to life.”
“Growing up,” Vidrine says, “I absolutely loved seeing the pigs when we’d drive by Mamou. Everyone knew of the three little pig house in Evangeline Parish. I’ve heard many stories about how the pigs came about, so I’m not sure of their true original history, but the one thing I know for sure is that the late Mr. Elvin Reed, who was loved and adored by the Mamou community, came up with the idea.”
She admits, “I knew the pigs were very special to Mamou, but I didn’t realized how special until they were restored and brought back home. I’ve seen so many pictures and posts on social media from Mamou natives since they’ve been restored, and they’ve all been so incredibly positive and supportive of the restoration. There’s also been many comments from Mr. Elvin’s family members describing how happy he would be if he were here to see it.”
The original idea for the Three Little Cajun Pigs, located at the Town of Mamou gas office at the intersection of La. Highway 13 and La. Highway 104, came from Reed. In a 2018 interview with the Ville Platte Gazette, on the scene, Reed said, “Everybody for years and years has said it’s the Three Little Pigs’ house because it looks like the Three Little Pigs’ house.”
Reed’s wife, Nary, back in 2018, said the idea stemmed from reading the story to their children, who would tell her the building looked like the three little pigs’ house.
Reed then approached the Mamou Rotary Club about the project and pushed for it to be done. The scene was first placed at the location around 20-25 years ago. Reed stated, “The town was very favorable of us, but we had a lot of trouble from the state. We had to get a permit and everything to dig because of the gas pipes around there. It took quite a while for us to get approved by the state.”
Another set of obstacles came from within the Mamou Rotary Club on how to finance the project. As Reed explained, “the Rotary Club was kind of hesitant about using money to make the three little pigs, so I made an LSU football pool. For the second set of signs, we made two pools and got $1,000. I said that money was going to reinstall the Three Little Pigs. They kind of grumbled, but they let me do it.”
Over the years, the pigs had to be replaced because, a couple of years after they were first installed, strange disappearances started occurring. “The signs remained on the grounds there for about two years,” said Reed, “and then people stole them. “The signs were found by the police department, or so they told us. Nobody ever wanted to talk about it. The signs were kind of broken, so Gervis Bihm Jr., repaired them for us. We put them back up, and they lasted another two years before they were stolen again on graduation night. It always happens during graduation.”
After the signs were stolen for the second time, Bourque’s Signs made one sign with all the Three Little Pigs and another welcome sign. “We figured if we do it this way then people wouldn’t be able to steal them because Bourque’s put these posts in cement and used bolts that you could not unscrew,” said Reed. “But, people found a way to steal the posts.”
The signs were found about five years later in the canal. Reed said, “Somebody was fishing for turtles in the mud and found the signs in the mud, but the signs were all rusty and broken. Rotary just let it go and said we won’t do it again.”
Reed, in the 2018 interview, then said the site became a tourist attraction over the years. “I see people park on the side of the road, and I’ve watched them walk down and take pictures,” he said. “And, we have a big light shining that Cleco furnished on a post, so at night it’s very visible.”
Nary added, “I’ve seen cars park and kids get out of the cars to go play and touch the signs.”
She continued, “There’s a lot of apathy in Mamou. The Three Little Pigs, hopefully, will give the people a little pride in their town.”
Vidrine proudly says, “I am so incredibly honored to be able to contribute to the ‘Mou-vement’ and everything that it stands for. The Mamou that I knew growing up and for the last 10 years is not the same Mamou now. I’ve never seen such an incredible effort made by so many people. It’s not just a few that are working towards improving Mamou, it’s everyone in Mamou. So many volunteers are stepping up to the plate because that’s how much the town means to them. The fact that I was able to restore such an iconic symbol to the members of the town is so special and I’m forever grateful for the unconditional acceptance, love, and support from the Cajun Music Capitol of the World.”
Mayor Leisa Deshotel is excited to have the pigs back where they belong and says, “It was a goal to bring the pigs and wolf back to Mamou. The wolf went missing for about four years and the pigs needed to be refreshed and new posts placed. We were pleased Lacey agreed to take on the project.”
This iconic scene and part of Mamou’s history was restored just in time to celebrate the Mamou Cajun Music Festival, which will be held September 15-16, at the Mamou Recreational Center. The event will feature food, fun and games for the whole family. Artists scheduled to perform at the festival include Wayne Toups, Jamie Berzas and Cajun Tradition, Steve Riley and the Mamou Playboys, Geno Delafose and French Rockin’ Boogie, and Don Fontenot and Le Amis de la Lousiane and many more. This year’s honoree will be Taunte Sue from Fred’s Lounge.
Visit the Mamou Cajun Music Festival Facebook page for more details and entertainment line up.
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