FEBRUARY 24, 2020 • MARDI GRAS SOUTHWEST • 47
On January 25, Krewe du Lapin Martele
celebrated their third annual ball. The
magical celebration themed “Fairytales and
Fables” was held at the KC hall in Iowa. The
venue was decorated with magical themes
celebrating the uniqueness of each Krewe
member’s vision of fairytales and fables.
Krewe president Brent Dugas welcomed
everyone and then introduced the night’s
emcee: local celebrity and DJ Russ Conrad
from Gator 99.5. Russ began the celebration
by saying farewell to last year’s Court. The
new 2020 Royal Court includes debutantes
Lauren Petticrew, a senior at Iowa High
School and Abigail Woods, a senior at Jennings
High School.
Flying in on a magic carpet are the Duke
and Duchess of Aladdin, Elizabeth “Mila”
Robichaux Heldt and Joshua Heldt of Iowa.
They have been married for a year, have a
son, Eli and twin boys that are due any day
now! Mila was born and raised in Crowley.
She works as a realtor with Moffett Latter
and Blum and enjoys volunteering with the
Junior Achievement program. Josh’s hometown
is LaCenter, Washington. He works for
the United States Coast Guard as a law enforcement
officer and firearms instructor. He
enjoys volunteering with the Calcasieu Parish
Sheriff ’s Department. They attend Our
Lady Queen of Heaven church and enjoy
going to CrossFit, watching Eli play sports,
hunting with their dog Django, fishing and
going to the gun range.
Coming up from the rabbit hole to make
their debut are the Duke and Duchess of
Alice in Wonderland, Joey and Jill Bourque
of Iowa. Married for 29 years, they are both
from Iowa where they have raised three children,
Thad, Stefani and Ty. Joey is a railcar
maintenance specialist for LyondellBassell.
He enjoys watching LSU sports and hunting.
Jill works for the Calcasieu Parish School
Board as an administrative assistant. She
enjoys learning how to use her embroidery
and silhouette machines as well as other arts
and crafts. They are members of St. Raphael’s
Catholic church and both enjoy spending
time with family and friends.
The Queen of Fairytales and Fables is
Pocahontas, represented by our 2020 Krewe
du Lapin Martele Queen JoAnna Fontenot.
Originally from Moore, Oklahoma, she
is escorted tonight by her husband, John.
Representing her native heritage, the Choctaw
Indian Tribe, JoAnna chose Pocahontas
as her theme. A full-blooded Choctaw, her
father is here in spirit with her as she carries
his medicine stick, which is adorned with
tribal influences and symbols.
Married for 23 years, the Queen and
her husband live in Iowa, have a daughter,
Yimmi and attend Iowa First Methodist
Church. Together, she and John own and
operate Fontenot Farms where they raise
cows, calves and show pigs for 4-H and
FFA. JoAnna enjoys traveling with friends
and family, attending livestock shows
across the United States, going to concerts,
and decorating for events. A fun and lighthearted
person, her passion is spending
quality time with loved ones. Her motto is
“Never ever allow anything or anyone to
steal your joy!”
The new Royal Court led the Second Line
to begin the night of festivities, creating so
many magical memories. The Queen will
reign over our Krewe’s festivities for the 2020
Mardi Gras season. We are proud of our
Krewe and our hometown and wish for many
more years of laughter and magic.