Joseph Carroll Sonnier

Family and friends are invited to attend visiting hours on Saturday, June 13th from 9 am to 12 pm at LAFOND-ARDOIN Funeral Homes, 2845 South Union St, Opelousas, LA 70570 for Joseph Carroll Sonnier, who died peacefully on Tuesday, May 12, 2020 at Passages Hospice in New Orleans. Following visitation, there will be a Rosary at 12 pm followed by the Funeral Service.  Rite of Committal will be held at Bellevue Memorial Cemetery.

Carroll was 78 years old. He was born in Lafayette and raised in Opelousas. He moved from that region, a place he wholeheartedly cherished, to the New Orleans area to make a better life for his family. For the majority of his career, he worked at Avondale Shipyards as a Pipefitter Supervisor until his retirement.

Carroll was the epitome of Cajun, the best qualities-hard work, food and family. He was supportive of those he loved and held them accountable. He would give you the shirt off his back, just don’t dare try to take the shirt off his back.

He possessed a fine combination of generosity and curiosity, always eager to offer an opinion and willing to listen and entertain options. He pursued knowledge till the end through reading and inquisitive conversations with family and friends. He never stopped looking forward.

An avid outdoorsman, Carroll enjoyed trawling, gardening, cooking, camping, watching sports, spending time with family and friends and absolutely anything to do with horses. His love of horses was a constant theme throughout his life. In fact, even a childhood accident that resulted in a lengthy hospitalization at Charity Hospital in New Orleans followed by multiple corrective surgeries throughout his life did not deter his pursuit of caring for those animals. If you wanted to know about a particular horse in a race, Carroll could certainly tell you what you needed to know about the horse and the jockey. He loved owning horses, horse racing, barrel racing, trail rides and even rode horseback in New Orleans’ Mardi Gras parades as well as in the Cajun “Courir de Mardi Gras”.

Cooking was a big part of his life. He made crawfish boils and gumbos fun occasions to visit and chat with family and friends.  He did his best to teach his kids how to make boudin, cracklins, ice cream, and boiled crawfish, crabs and shrimp that somehow made your fingers burn for days.

Carroll had a dry sense of humor and could at times be considered stubborn. He had a fondness for driving slightly on the fast side and there’s a story about him coming home as a teenager with the gear shift in his hand.

His most proud achievement in life was marrying his wife, Pearl Castille Sonnier, who supported him in all of his adventures and through their last days together. He was also very proud and supportive of his children, Stephanie, Kevin and Stephen. He instilled in his children, a sense of adventure, a curiosity with world events, a tremendous work ethic and the importance of creating a healthy work-life balance and the knowledge that they could do and be anything they wanted to be in life.

Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Pearl Anne Castille; his daughter Stephanie Sonnier, his son Kevin Sonnier and his wife Kelli; his grandchildren Maximo Imbornone, Eric Sonnier, Erin Sonnier, Kole Sonnier, Jacob Timothy, Gage Sonnier, and Tatum Sonnier; his sisters Cassie Deville, Mary Lee Vidrine and her husband Jerry, Jeanell (Tiny) Thompson and her husband Jerry, and Connie Guidry and her fiancée Steve Marks and numerous nieces and nephews.

He is predeceased by his son Stephen Sonnier; his grandchild Bella Mouton; his parents Clester and Luday Sonnier, brothers Millard, Jonior, Taylor Sonnier and his sister Terry Stelly.

Family and Friends are invited to sign and view the online guestbook at www.Lafondardoin.com.

LaFond-Ardoin Funeral Home of Opelousas, 2845 South Union Street, Opelousas, LA 70570 (337-942-2638), has been entrusted with the funeral arrangements