Mayor Andrew “FoFo” Gilich and a party of marauding pirates, traveling aboard a Jolly Roger-flagged Biloxi schooner, are scheduled to invade the City of D’Iberville’s re-enactment of the Landing of D’Iberville Saturday on the north shores of the Bay of Biloxi.
And that’s just the way organizers of “Party with Pierre” want it.
“We wanted to embrace our sister city to the south,” D’Iberville’s Jeff Taylor said with a smile, “and what better way to have them involved than to be the party-loving rogues that they are.”
Added Gilich, tongue firmly planted in cheek: “They asked us to do it, and, of course, we’re all about One Coast. Plus, we love going to Nort’ of the Bay.”
It all takes place to help celebrate Mississippi’s bicentennial and prefaces a huge regional observance, Bicentennial Celebration South, on March 31 and April 1 in Gulfport.
The D’Iberville-Biloxi event, which runs from 1 to 3 p.m. on Saturday, will take place on the D’Iberville shoreline just off Bay Shore Drive, west of the I-110. Visitors will find a host of Colonial re-enactors, including eighth grade history students, and citizens in period attire. The entire event will be commemorated with a bicentennial token and original artwork commissioned by the D’Iberville Historical Society.
Joshing aside, the re-enactment will be a party with a purpose. Taylor, D’Iberville’s city planner, and a committee are working to rekindle a relationship with residents of Montreal.
Attending the event will be the head of the historical society from Longueuil, Canada, D’Iberville’s sister city, and Louise Blais, the consul general of Canada in Atlanta. Albert Naquin, chief of the Biloxi-Chitimacha-Choctaw Indians, the original habitants of the Gulf Coast, also will attend.
“Mississippi is Canada’s largest trade partner and we are honored to have these visitors with us,” Taylor said. “We’re looking to create a solid relationship with the 3.2 million people in the Montreal area, which is where our people came from. You look at the names of the cities in that area and you see Brossard, St. Alphonsus, Morin, Richelieu, Lorraine and so forth. Many of the suburbs are named after founding families we have here. In fact, the historic society representative who came down here a few years ago was named Phyllis Fournier Prefontaine. How many names do you find like Fournier Prefontaine? Those folks belong here on a regular basis, and that’s our goal.”
Added Gilich: “”This will be a fun event to be part of. It’s a way to ritualize our history and celebrate the state’s birthday.”
See the flyer
Visit the Bicentennial website
News and notes
City Council agenda, Take 2: A Bmail on Monday contained an incorrect link to today’s City Council meeting agenda. A dozen measures are on the agenda for today, including the Belle La Vie planned community proposal and a measure to rename a park on Benachi for the late Clare Sekul Hornsby. To see the complete agenda and supporting documents, click here.
Traffic update: To see the current status on streets and infrastructure work throughout the city, click here.
