Interviewer(s): S. Kennedy. Dulac, LA

Affiliation: University of Arizona

I met with Mr. Kirby Verret at his house which is raised on stilts, and it is necessary to climb several stairs to get to the front door. Kirby Verret is originally from Bayou Dularge, Louisiana, and has lived in Dulac in Terrebonne Parish most of his life. He is Houma Indian and worked his way through college as an employee of Delta Iron Works. He learned all types of work in the oil field, and after college he transferred to Delta Mud and Chemicals. He worked offshore in platform fabrications, specializing in drilling fluids. Later, he became an insurance agent, and in 1979 became involved in Indian Education. Today, he still works with kids through the Indian Education program, is the pastor for the Methodist Church in Dulac, and is the Dulac representative on the United Houma Nation Tribal Council. Kirby considers himself an activist on behalf of the Houma and the poor, and says that sometimes there just needs to be someone to hold open the door so that others may pass through and experience greater opportunities.