A Nod to the Passing of a Southern Lady and a Pistol

Two Fridays ago when I was preparing to head home for the weekend, very sad news came my way. My mom’s sister, Carrie Louise Lawson Barbato, had left us to meet her maker and rejoin her husband, Joe. Though I liked her first name, she was not so happy with it and would, if she could, spank me for using it here. My dad’s mom was a Carrie Lottie, so precedence existed. It’s really a moot point, as she will always reside in my heart as Weezie.

My mom had her hands full with this rambunctious son and my little sister. From 14 months until her passing at age 39, Kathy was by the ravages of encephalitis left in a persistent vegetative state. My folks cared for her in our home for all of those years. Each summer, thanks to Weezie and Uncle Joe, I was treated to a week in their home to romp and play with my three cousins and attend Joe’s youth golf clinic. For a woman with three active boys of her own, that was a brave and generous act. She made it seem like two fun weeks were crammed into that one. Ask anyone who knew Weezie. She made fun happen that way.

Since Dad passed on in 1998, Mom has not been an adventurous traveler. In 2003, when Suzie and I married up here in Kansas, Weezie signed on to be Mom’s travel companion to make it possible and enjoyable for her to participate in our joyous event.

When Mom had to go through knee replacement surgery several years ago, the procedure was performed in Mobile so Weezie could help her through the first post-surgical weeks. My aunt was notorious for leaving when doctors made her spend too much time in their waiting rooms, so when the wait got a little lengthy she tried to get Mom to leave without seeing her surgeon for her one-year checkup. Not being quite the pistol her big sister was, Mom said, “Louise, I can’t just leave. I came all the way from Baton Rouge for this appointment.”

Anyway, I just thought I should give Weezie a nod of love and respect by remembering her here. The newspapers charge exorbitantly for obit lines, so instead of relisting her passing in the Advocate in Baton Rouge after it had already appeared in the Mobile paper, I decided to do it here. With the luxury of free space, I have shuffled and expanded what was written in Alabama. I also have the advantage of penning this after the memorial service, enabling me to mention touching moments provided by family members who contributed to the celebration of a great woman’s life. Here’s my offering:

Louise Lawson Barbato - A beloved mother, grandmother, great grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend, Louise Lawson Barbato passed away in Mobile, Alabama, on Friday, July 16, 2010. Her life was celebrated by relatives and friends in a memorial service at Mobile Memorial Gardens Funeral Home on the following Monday. Her middle son, Johnny Barbato, honored his mother by playing and singing “Mama Told Me,” a song of his writing about their relationship. Mary Catherine Barbato spoke about the joy, wonder, and inspiration she experienced first as a granddaughter and later as a dear pal of Louise.

Louise and her surviving sister, Jimmie Peterson of Baton Rouge, lost their parents in early childhood and were raised in the Good Samaritan Home and the Baptist Orphanage in McComb and Jackson, Mississippi, before moving to Baton Rouge in their late teens to live with a great aunt, Ruth West Barlow. Louise started a career at Standard Oil, where she met her late husband, Joe. They married in 1949. She raised their three surviving sons, James Joseph, John David, and Jack Lawson, while Joe pursued a career as a golf professional at country clubs in New Iberia and Harahan, Louisiana, before moving to Mobile to operate the Azalea City Golf Course side by side with Louise.

Louise loved cooking and dancing, and excelled in both. Her mastery of the arts of conversation and fun are among many reasons she will forever remembered and sorely missed by those who loved her.

Others who survive her include Jack’s wife, Cathy Watson Barbato and grandchildren Sari Labatut of New Orleans, Jessica Louise Barbato of Virginia Beach, Brittany Danielle Barbato of Jacksonville, FL, and Jessie Jeff Barbato, Jamie Barbato Chance, John David Barbato, and Joseph Eugene Barbato, all of the Mobile area, as well as three great grandchildren.

Finally, I have to mention how deeply moved I was to see how profoundly pained Weezie’s grandson, Joseph, was in his loss and the emotion of the service. To him I say, tread courageously and purposefully through life from this day forward, as the force called Weezie will accompany you always.