Marlene Babin Albro

Marlene Babin was born in New Orleans on August 3, 1936 to George J. Babin and Ora May Fiegel Babin. She was the oldest of five children, having two younger sisters, Royce and Margaret ("Ray"), and two younger brothers, Ernest and George Jr ("Roy"). The family lived in a double shotgun house on Laurel Street, next door to their dear Grandma Fiegel (who lived long enough to meet many of her great-grandchildren). Marlene loved to tell of riding the Magazine Street bus - her father was a NOPSI bus driver - all the way downtown to go to the "pictures" for 5 cents.

While still in high school, Marlene met her future husband, John Albro Jr., at a backyard dance. They were both dating other people at the time - but that didn't last for long! They soon started seeing each other and married on January 29, 1955. Together they founded and ran numerous businesses in the Irish Channel including a bar, a neighborhood grocery, and even a donut business.

That entrepreneurial spirit had to take a backseat in 1969, however, when they welcomed their only child Anissa into their lives. You see, the baby reportedly HATED being in the bar or the grocery and would cry every time Marlene brought her into either (upon hearing this story in her teen years, Anissa could not believe she was the reason for not having a bar in the family - that would have been very helpful for her social life!). In addition to being a devoted mom, Marlene still stayed very busy outside the home, working at several different shops along Magazine Street, serving in the PTA, and belonging to several social clubs including the Eleventh Ward Ladies Club and The Clique Club. Following his retirement, she and John went on to organize and lead group bus tours with a loyal following of family and friends.

In 2003, Marlene lost her beloved husband to cancer. It was then that she did one of the bravest things of her life - she moved away from her cherished hometown to be near Anissa and her husband Lee in Austin, Texas. Her first year there was not easy as she had both a hip replacement and a quintuple bypass. But she didn't let that stop her from making a new life for herself in Austin. She became a parishioner and member of the Senior Women's Club at St. Louis Catholic Church and a regular at water aerobics at the nearby gym (much to the surprise of all who knew her since she didn't know how to swim and had always been scared of the water). And she made dear friends with whom she went to the movies every weekend - though it now cost much more than that 5 cents!

If Marlene ever questioned whether moving to Austin had been the right decision, all doubt was erased from her mind with the birth of her adored granddaughter, Evan Louise. She was a natural in the role of "Memaw" and hosted Evan almost every Saturday night for pizza and movie nights.

When she first moved into a senior living facility in 2017, Marlene quickly went about making new friends and getting involved in bingo and the decorating committee. In the last few years though, as her memory started to fade more and more, she didn't get out as much. If you asked if she'd like to go out to do something, she would usually reply that she was "contented" to stay home and watch the old classic movies that she loved so much. Marlene was true to herself and the loves of her life - John, Anissa, Evan and the movies! - right up till the end.

In addition to her parents and her husband, Marlene was preceded in death by her siblings Ray Gatti and Roy Babin. She is survived by her daughter Anissa Allbritton, son-in-law Jack Lee Allbritton Jr, granddaughter Evan Allbritton, sister Royce Bowman and brother Ernest Babin, as well as a host of nieces, nephews, and cousins. She will be sorely missed, especially at family holiday get-togethers (where you could always count on her to tell you exactly what she thought of your outfit and/or latest hairstyle - always with a wink and a chuckle!). But we are thankful for and will take comfort from the many years of good memories we shared.