Dean was born and reared in Bewick. She graduated salutatorian from Morgan City High School and for two years attended Southwestern Louisiana Institute (SLI), now known as the University of Louisiana Lafayette. Her career began at Holy Cross Catholic Church where she worked for many years as a secretary for the parish and ended with her retirement as an accountant for Marine Electric.
Dean was defined by her boundless gentleness and kindness to everyone. Always queen of our hearts, she was crowned both May Day Queen and Homecoming Queen in school. She loved to read her daily newspaper and always said she teethed on The Times Picayune. She loved sewing, sitting on her patio, tending her pot plants, and enjoying a good cup of coffee. Dean loved the mountains, and even in her eighties, traveled with her daughter to Mt. Magazine State Park in Arkansas to hike trails. Dean was the most selfless of people; her concern for others always outweighed her concern for herself. With a rocking chair in every room of her home, she was always ready to sit and listen if there was anything you wanted to talk about. Everyone who met her, even when she was ill, was left with the unmistakable impression that she was absolutely the sweetest lady.
Dean was a loving mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother and always put her family first. She leaves behind a daughter, Jody Essigmann and her husband Ron of Sugar Land, TX, a son, Gene Barbier and his wife Diana of Berwick, four grandchildren, Wendy Arceneaux and husband Brian of Metairie, Brandon Essigmann and wife Jenny Pan of Houston, Heather Essigmann of Sugar Land, TX and Sarah Dial and husband Hunter of Shreveport, and former daughter-in-law, Cheryl Jones of Patterson. She was blessed with five great-grandchildren: Blake, Addison, Reve, Ethan, and Ella.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Sentive and Florence Landry, her husband, Whitney Barbier, and her brother, S.J. Landry and his wife, Anna.
Family and friends are invited to attend the Visitation on August 4, 2022 at St. Stephens Catholic Church from 11am to 12pm with the Mass of Christian Burial to immediately follow.
In lieu of flowers, donations to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital are greatly appreciated.
