Louis Eduardo Garcia departed this life on January 15 2019 at University Hospital in New Orleans. Born on May 22 1946 in Montreal, Canada, he was a loving son to his parents, Louis N. Garcia and Edith Mulroy, and a loving brother to his sister, Carmen Garcia, all of whom predeceased him. He was a devoted father to his son Alberto Garcia and daughter-in-law Jennifer Maravegias, a doting grandfather to Tommy Garcia, and a fond companion to his partner, Mary Anne Witte. Also survived by his brother E. Marvin Thompson and nephew Raymond Garcia, former wife Meredith Garcia, devoted friends Barbara Mac Phee, Paul Albares, and Tim Dilligan and many other loving friends and former students. A 1961 graduate of St. Anthony of Padua School and a 1965 graduate of Redemptorist High School, Louis was devoted to the people and culture of New Orleans, especially the Irish Channel, where he had lived as a child. Having completed a B.S. in Biology at Southeastern Louisiana State College and a M.S. in Physiology at LSU, he worked for a year in the Tulane laboratory of Nobel Laureate Dr. Andrew V. Schally. Realizing that his true passion was for teaching, in 1974, he returned to the Irish Channel to work and live, teaching science and coaching the soccer team at Redemptorist High School [later Redeemer High School in Gentilly]. In 1993, he was a founding faculty member of the New Orleans Center for Science and Mathematics [“Sci-Hi”], where he taught until his retirement in 2015. During his many years as a teacher, he not only instilled in his students a love of science, but also a love of nature, organizing canoe trips, sailing trips, and trips to Ship Island with his students. He was the leader of two Boy Scout troops, one at Sacred Heart of Jesus Parish and one at St. Stephen School, and especially loved taking his scouts on camping trips and canoe trips. Louis was an avid fly fisherman and spent many happy hours canoeing on Bayou St. John, where many bass and sunfish succumbed to his lures. Sailing was another of his passions, berthing his boat in Irish Bayou and making frequent trips to the barrier islands of the Louisiana and Mississippi Gulf Coasts. As a resident of the Irish Channel, he joined the Corner Club and greatly enjoyed marching with them on Mardi Gras and St. Patrick’s Day, and also spent many evenings at Pete’s Out in the Cold Bar. In retirement, he enjoyed reading, walking in Audubon and City Parks, and traveling on Amtrak’s City of New Orleans to visit his son and his family. Louis was a loving husband, father and grandfather, a devoted friend, and a dedicated and inspiring teacher to generations of high school students. Funeral services [through Leitz-Eagan] will be held on Wednesday, February 20, at St. Mary’s Assumption Church, 923 Josephine St., New Orleans with visitation at 11:00 AM followed by a Mass of Christian Burial as 12:00 noon.
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