The Arlene and Joseph Meraux Charitable Foundation announced today, Lena Randazzo Torres’ 100th birthday, that it is naming the turn-of-the-century house on the nonprofit’s Docville Farm in her honor.
Meraux Foundation President Rita Gue said, “Mrs. Lena was a trailblazer who dedicated herself to public service and community leadership. To show our gratitude for the lasting mark she’s left on St. Bernard Parish, the Meraux Foundation is proud to dedicate the farmhouse where she grew up as the ‘Lena Randazzo Torres Farmhouse.'”
Mrs. Torres was born on Docville in a cottage that stood where the levee runs today and later grew up in the farmhouse yards away, which the Meraux Foundation restored after it was damaged during Hurricane Katrina.
“This is a well-deserved tribute to a woman who is a living legend,” said Sidney Torres, III, Mrs. Torres’ son and a member of the Meraux Foundation board of directors. “I can’t think of a better way to honor her decades of selfless service to our community and celebrate this momentous occasion, her 100th birthday.”
Mrs. Torres will be celebrating her birthday with her family.
Docville is a historic property that stretches from the Mississippi River to Lake Borgne. The Meraux Foundation designated over 130 acres of Docville as an educational and cultural center that hosts art series, workshops, and a number of community events. The nonprofit’s campus features the Lena Randazzo Torres Farmhouse, the Dave Thompson Event Barn, and the Arlene Meraux River Observation Center (AMROC), as well as working stables with livestock, educational installations, and the soon-to-be complete Center for Louisiana Citrus Innovation and Research.
