Hartwell A. Lewis

Hartwell A. Lewis, 79, a native of Abbeville and resident of Houma, died Monday, March 12, 2007. Visitation will be from 8:30 a.m. to service time Saturday at First United Methodist Church. Memorial service will be at 10:30 a.m. Saturday at the church. He is survived by his beloved wife, Mentor Pourciau Lewis of Houma; one daughter, Laura Lewis Millet and husband, Ken Millet, of Overland Park, Kan.; one son, Hartwell A. Lewis Jr. and wife, Sally Stafford Lewis, of Coppell, Texas; two grandchildren, John Lewis Millet and Amanda Barrow Millet; one great-grandchild, Andrew Millet; and two sisters, Alberta Lewis De Mary and Ida Lewis Cuccio. He was preceded in death by his parents, William Slaughter Lewis and Laura Lee Lewis; two sisters; and five brothers. He was born on March 18, 1927, and lived on a rice farm near Abbeville. He served in the U.S. Navy in Naval Intelligence and then attended Southwest Louisiana Institute where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration. During his time at Southwest Louisiana Institute, he was recognized by the Blue Key Honor Society, Who’s Who Among Students and served as president of Westley Foundation and S.P.A. Fraternity. In 1952 he moved to Houma and worked for Burroughs Corp. Shortly after settling in Houma, he joined the C.R. Patterson Insurance Agency and helped to grow the agency. The company was later sold to Harlan Insurance Services Louisiana and later to Bayly-Martin & Faye, where he served as vice president in both companies. During the past 35 years, he served as president of Capital for Terrebonne, a venture capital corporation. He took pride in nurturing new business opportunities in Terrebonne Parish. Because Hartwell had a great love for his community, he had a strong desire to make a difference by investing his time and talents in a variety of organizations. He served on the board of directors of Terrebonne General Medical Center, United Way for South Louisiana, the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce, Terrebonne Historical and Cultural Society Inc., Perkins School of Theology, Dallas, and First United Methodist Church. He was a member of the team that founded Progressive Bank and Trust Co., supporting the executive and loan committees. He served as president of the Louisiana Association of Insurance Agents, Houma Rotary Club, YMCA, Terrebonne Independent Insurance Agents, Tri-Parish Life Underwriters, Bayou Board of Realtors, Private Industry Council, Houma Golf Club, Methodist Men and vice president of the Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce. He has been a member of the Grand Lodge of the State of Louisiana Free and Accepted Masons for more than 50 years. In 2000, he was named The Houma Courier’s Millennium Most Useful Citizen. He loved spending time with his family, fishing in the beautiful wetlands of Louisiana with his friends, rafting down whitewater rivers and creating stained and sculpted wood art. His glass art has graced the chapel of TARC on the Houma Naval Base, the First United Methodist Church and is held in numerous private collections.