Interview by: Laura Ek

Affiliation: University of Arizona

I was referred to Mr. Don Begneaud by Aaron Broussard, one of Don’s employees at Begneaud’s manufacturing. He is the founder and owner of Begneaud’s, a local company that does high precision metal work repairs and artistic creations.

Don Begneaud was born and raised in Lafayette, Louisiana. He graduated from a catholic high school. In his sophomore year of high school, he began welding for ARC welding company. He currently lives in Vermillion parish. Before beginning his company, he worked offshore as a welder for a company called Skids. His parents were adamant he attend university, so he went back to ULL as an industrial tech major. He did not complete his degree, and left college to work for himself. Don founded his company in 1978, and has continued strongly since. He speaks about the new technologies he’s brought in (mainly lasers) and how they’ve expanded the business.

Mr. Begneaud talks about his positive perspective on life; something he attributes to the way of life around here. He discusses his company and other companies, how they got through the bust, and what Lafayette looks like today. He also mentions the generation gap he sees today, how he is addressing it through the “TICE” high school program and his role in the Lafayette community as an employer and through outreach work he and his wife do.