Julie White

Julie Savoie White died on February 5, 2024, in Hammond, Louisiana, at the age of 93. Julie was born the third of five children of Adrienne Hotard Savoie and her husband Edwin Abraham Savoie in Houma, Louisiana, on January 6, 1931. She grew up with her two older sisters and her two younger brothers in Bayou Blue and graduated from Terrebonne High School in 1949. Julie attended Charity Hospital School of Nursing in New Orleans and received her RN in 1953. Soon after returning to Houma to work as a nurse, she met Bon Clayton White, Jr., a Tennessean who had moved to Houma to work in the oil patch. They were married in November 1956. By November 1960, they were the parents of three daughters, Susan, Bonnie and Mary.

Julie was smart, independent and funny. While Bon claimed that his daughters got their intelligence from him, we all know Julie was the brains of the family. She was a devoted mother, who gave up her career in nursing to be a full-time mom and ultimately to travel the world by her husband's side. Bon's work for Humble Oil, Exxon and Esso Exploration took them first to New Orleans in 1965, then in 1972 to Stavanger, Norway and in 1976 to London, England. Julie kept the household running smoothly while Bon was often away working offshore or in other countries. Julie and her dear friends, other expat wives, were the glue of the community while their husbands were away. They created a life of camaraderie, adventure and security for their children that we all cherish to this day. After the girls went off to college, Julie joined Bon on far-flung assignments, including Spain, Portugal, northern Norway, China, Australia, Thailand and Indonesia. She was beloved by other expats for her friendship, her resourcefulness and her culinary skills (especially her lemon meringue and pecan pies). She became something of a den mother to young expat wives as they learned how to navigate the challenges and the joys of living overseas, and she was a loving grandma-by-choice to many youngsters growing up far from their own grandparents. Between overseas stints, Julie and Bon made their home in Houston, Texas, until 2003, when they moved to Hammond to be closer to their granddaughters. There was no role in her life that Julie loved more than being Caroline's and Laura's grandma. The girls eagerly took the school bus home to grandma's house most weekdays. A close second was Julie's role as pet parent; Genie, Emma and Angus were some of the luckiest pups ever to have been spoiled by her. In the last years of her life, Julie suffered from Alzheimers' Disease, and her family was grateful for the moments when her loving and witty personality was able to shine through in spite of this terrible disease.

Julie is predeceased by her husband, her parents, her sisters Elise Savoie and Estelle Savoie, her

brothers Ronald "Bud" Savoie and Jimmy Savoie, her sisters-in-law Lucille Savoie, Lexie White, Juanita Wood, and June Pope, her brothers-in-law Stanley White and Hugh Wood. She is survived by her daughters Susan White and her partner Nanette Schoen, Bonnie White and her husband Doug Little, and Mary and her husband Brian Crother; her granddaughters Caroline Michelle and her husband Austin Stoops, and Laura Adrienne Crother and her fiancè Mitchell Johnson; her precious great-granddaughter Adrie Michelle Stoops; her sister-in-law Sandra Savoie, her brother-in-law Albert Pope, and many nieces and nephews. Julie happily included in her family Lloyd Schoen, his wife Crissy and sons Ethan and Gavin; Kyle Wicker; Paul Little, his wife Leah, and sons Henry and Milo; and Rebecca Little Hunt and her children Eilidh and Levi. She was proud to be Mackenzie Root's Louisiana grandma. Julie also leaves behind her wonderful and devoted caregivers, Yolander Dangerfield, Latedyia Muse, and Lequinta Dangerfield, whose loving care and friendship were an amazing gift and blessing in her later years.

Julie's life will be celebrated with a funeral mass at eleven o'clock on Friday, February 9th, 2024, at St. Louis Catholic Church, 2226 Bayou Blue Road, Houma, Louisiana 70364. Visitation will precede the service from 10:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m., with her burial immediately following the mass in the parish cemetery. Those wishing to honor Julie's life are invited to make a donation to the Alzheimer's Association.