[StBernard] St. Bernard Courthouse and Los Islenos Museum will present Christmas celebration Dec. 8

[Westley Annis]

St. Bernard Courthouse and Los Islenos Museum will present Christmas
celebration Dec. 8
Print NOLA Community By NOLA Community 
on November 27, 2013 at 7:05 AM, updated November 27, 2013 at 7:18 AM

The restored historic St. Bernard Parish Courthouse, 1201 Bayou Road, and
Los Islenos Museum Complex, 1345 - 1357 Bayou Road, both in St. Bernard
Village, is now festively decorated for the holiday season.

A holiday program will be held Dec. 8 at 4:30 p.m. at the courthouse. A
concert of holiday music will be presented by the Chalmette High School
Brass Band and Jazz Ensemble at 4:30 p.m. The Chalmette Jazz Ensemble will
lead a second line procession from the courthouse to Los Islenos Museum
Complex about 5 p.m.

A concert of holiday music will follow on the grounds of the museum complex.
Musical and vocal groups from St. Bernard Middle School, LaCoste Elementary
School, Gauthier Elementary School and Davies Elementary School will
perform.

A bonfire will be lit on the grounds of the museum complex about 6 p.m.
Anthony A. Fernandez Jr. will provide hay rides with Santa Claus on the
grounds. Hot dogs, homemade chili, soft drinks and water will be sold after
the program. Los Islenos Society will provide hot chocolate, hot apple cider
and cookies free of charge.

Parish President David Peralta is subsidizing the decoration of the
courthouse. Los Islenos Society, directed by Christmas Committee Chairperson
Kathy Serpas Ziegler, will decorate the museum.

Toledano and Wogan architectural firm designed the courthouse in 1914.
Construction was completed in 1915 and the courthouse opened for business
two months before the catastrophic 1915 hurricane. This courthouse remained
in use as the seat of St. Bernard Parish until 1939 when it moved to
Chalmette. The facility reopened as a school in 1940 and remained in use as
St. Bernard School, St. Bernard High School, P.G.T. Beauregard High School
and, finally, P.G.T. Beauregard Middle School until 2005. About $8,000,000
in FEMA funding was spent to restore the courthouse after Hurricane Katrina.

"I am happy to support the decoration of this important parish landmark for
Christmas,"  Peralta said.

The museum complex will be decorated, too. Nicholas Ducros "Duke" Collins
and his wife, Lucy, will decorate the Louis Alfred Ducros, M.D. Historical
Museum and Research Library; Dorothy L. Benge and Karen Dauterive will
decorate Los Islenos Museum; Clem and Paula Mackles will decorate Los
Islenos Center; Cinda Melerine will decorate the Trapper's Cabin; Joann
Messa will decorate the Coconut Island Barroom; Kathy Serpas Ziegler,
Catherine Ybarzabal Serpas, Amy Gonzales and Shannon Joachim will decorate
the Estopinal and Esteves Houses; Melanie Ybarzabal Koons will decorate the
Cresap-Caserta House; the picnic pavilions will be decorated by Rhonda
Rodriguez Hannan and exterior grounds lighting will be provided by Los
Islenos Society President Lloyd "Wimpy" Serigne and his wife Doris Serigne.