Bienville John Brasseaux, 80, of Beaumont, died Saturday, January 19, 2008 at Harbor Hospice.
Born January 29, 1927 in Church Point, Louisiana to Marius Brasseaux and Elena Labbe’, he was the eleventh child of thirteen children. As a young man he moved to Port Arthur to work in the Gulf Port Shipyard. He joined the Merchant Marines and traveled the world on the SS Indiana. After several years of active duty, he was inducted into the Army. He served as a medic in the eleventh Evacuation Hospital in Sendai, Japan from 1954-56.
He married Sue Louise Barkley and they began their life in Beaumont. He continued his education at Lamar Tech under the G.I. Bill. He began his career as an Optician at Texas State Optical, retiring from American Optical. After retiring from American Optical, he worked for American Distribution in the Dupont warehouse as a night supervisor. After retiring from American Distribution, he opened his own optical shop in Silsbee. Bien was recognized for loyal and faithful service by the American Optical Corporation. He was a certified optician by the American Board of Opticians and was a fellow of the International Academy of Opticians.
Bien was known for his many creations in building and growing a vegetable garden, especially his tomatoes. In the last few years he had a big interest in growing gourds. His gourd patch was large and a conversion topic as people passed by his home built dome. Among other interest were bowling for many years in a league and singing in the Glory Singers at North End Baptist. He also loved to travel, and he and his wife took many trips. The biggest joys in his life were his three grandchildren.
He is survived by his wife of fifty-four years, Sue Barkley Brasseaux; son, Brian and his wife Lisa of Mauriceville; grandson, Brandon and his wife Sarah and great grandson, Tatum of Beaumont; and two granddaughters, Brittany and Brooke Brasseaux of Mauriceville. He is also survived by two sisters, Lena Brasseaux and Beverly Cormier of Church Point, Louisiana.
