Identified! LA - St Martin Parish, UP5819, hit by truck on I-10, Dec'81 - Michele Elaine Oakes-Gautreaux Boutilier

[victoriarobinson642]

Pedestrian killed on I-10 in south Louisiana 41 years ago identified: 'Very surreal'

After decades of searching for her mom, Angie Jordan found closure Monday afternoon.

www.theadvocate.com

This article gives slightly more context.

DNA samples sent to the LSU FACES Laboratory, Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory and the University of North Texas Health Science Center for Human Identification linked Jordan to the woman who'd been unknown in Breaux Bridge for so long.

"That moment was very surreal," Higgins said. "It still is. It was such a long time in the making."

J was just 4 the last time she saw her mother. She'd been living in motels with her mom and eventually had been dropped off at the home of her mother's best friend in Louisiana.

"She had a huge drinking problem, and she just could never find herself in life," J said. "She never could find her way."

J, now 46, lived with her mom's best friend until she was 6 years old. That's when her caregiver enrolled her in school, and the state started asking questions.

Jordan said she was sent to live in Maine with her mother's sister, who raised her from that point on.

It wasn't until she was about 14 when she began asking questions about her mother. She remembered little about her but had been told by family and friends that she was loved.

"I didn't start actively searching until I was about 14, but I've been actively searching since then," Jordan said. "To know there were people who cared for her in Louisiana after she died — It's absolutely wonderful. I think it's fantastic."

 

[MarziPanda]

I'm so glad that her daughter gets the closure she needed. RIP Michele.

 

[chaddylex]

I am so glad she was finally identified. RIP Michele and glad to know her daughter finally knows what happened to her mom.

 

[Teche]

Pedestrian killed on I-10 in south Louisiana 41 years ago identified: 'Very surreal'

After decades of searching for her mom, Angie Jordan found closure Monday afternoon.

www.theadvocate.com

This article gives slightly more context.

DNA samples sent to the LSU FACES Laboratory, Louisiana State Police Crime Laboratory and the University of North Texas Health Science Center for Human Identification linked Jordan to the woman who'd been unknown in Breaux Bridge for so long.

"That moment was very surreal," Higgins said. "It still is. It was such a long time in the making."

J was just 4 the last time she saw her mother. She'd been living in motels with her mom and eventually had been dropped off at the home of her mother's best friend in Louisiana.

"She had a huge drinking problem, and she just could never find herself in life," J said. "She never could find her way."

J, now 46, lived with her mom's best friend until she was 6 years old. That's when her caregiver enrolled her in school, and the state started asking questions.

Jordan said she was sent to live in Maine with her mother's sister, who raised her from that point on.

It wasn't until she was about 14 when she began asking questions about her mother. She remembered little about her but had been told by family and friends that she was loved.

"I didn't start actively searching until I was about 14, but I've been actively searching since then," Jordan said. "To know there were people who cared for her in Louisiana after she died — It's absolutely wonderful. I think it's fantastic."

I hope one day J. can come down to meet the man who provided his company’s (Pellerin Funeral Homes) funeral and grave services. He also helped to maintain her grave.

 

[Susikatze]

I hope one day J. can come down to meet the man who provided his company’s (Pellerin Funeral Homes) funeral and grave services. He also helped to maintain her grave.

From her social media posts they already met (at least on zoom) and she basically said she won a bonus grandfather with him. She is very grateful for all his work.

What a very sweet end to this bittersweet story. I am happy J got closure. It is the hardest for children of UID because they grow up with guilt and feelings of insecurity and think mom left.

Rest in peace, Michele. you are loved by many.

 

[TootsieFootsie]

MSN

“I was relieved. I didn’t cry. When I hung up the phone, I just sighed and just thought, it’s over, it’s finally over," Jordan added.

She said she wanted closure and she found it. Jordan also spoke about the people of Breaux Bridge and how a local funeral home covered her mother's funeral, burial, and gravestone expenses.

A couple even looked after her mother's grave until they died recently. According to the local sheriff's office, a new resident is keeping the memory of Michele Elaine Oakes alive.

"This is just a reminder of how many good people are still left in this world, and that’s important right now," Jordan said.

 

[imstilla.grandma]

Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier Gautreax

For years, the dead woman was known only as Jane Doe.

Investigators tried several methods to identify her over the decades, but none proved fruitful until earlier this month.

According to an account provided by the family, in 2006 Boutilier-Gautreaux was exhumed and her remains were brought to Louisiana State University Repository for Unidentified and Missing Persons to work her case and extract DNA.

According to an obituary, “Michele was born in Farmington, Maine on October 27, 1955, the daughter of Frank and Ella (Quimby) Oakes. She grew up in Rangeley and Dresden, Maine. She moved to the Lockport area in Louisiana in 1975 with friends where she lived until her death.”

Former Farmington woman identified as Jane Doe killed in 1981

Investigators tried several methods to identify the woman struck and killed by a car, but it was DNA analysis that has now brought closure to the family of Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier-Gautreaux.

www.sunjournal.com

 

[Teche]

Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier Gautreax

For years, the dead woman was known only as Jane Doe.

Investigators tried several methods to identify her over the decades, but none proved fruitful until earlier this month.

According to an account provided by the family, in 2006 Boutilier-Gautreaux was exhumed and her remains were brought to Louisiana State University Repository for Unidentified and Missing Persons to work her case and extract DNA.

According to an obituary, “Michele was born in Farmington, Maine on October 27, 1955, the daughter of Frank and Ella (Quimby) Oakes. She grew up in Rangeley and Dresden, Maine. She moved to the Lockport area in Louisiana in 1975 with friends where she lived until her death.”

Former Farmington woman identified as Jane Doe killed in 1981

Investigators tried several methods to identify the woman struck and killed by a car, but it was DNA analysis that has now brought closure to the family of Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier-Gautreaux.

www.sunjournal.com

Gautreaux is a common name in south Louisiana. I wonder if she married a Gautreaux. The Acadians (Cajuns) traveled from Nova Scotia down the east coast with many settling in South Louisiana.

 

[victoriarobinson642]

Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier Gautreax

For years, the dead woman was known only as Jane Doe.

Investigators tried several methods to identify her over the decades, but none proved fruitful until earlier this month.

According to an account provided by the family, in 2006 Boutilier-Gautreaux was exhumed and her remains were brought to Louisiana State University Repository for Unidentified and Missing Persons to work her case and extract DNA.

According to an obituary, “Michele was born in Farmington, Maine on October 27, 1955, the daughter of Frank and Ella (Quimby) Oakes. She grew up in Rangeley and Dresden, Maine. She moved to the Lockport area in Louisiana in 1975 with friends where she lived until her death.”

Former Farmington woman identified as Jane Doe killed in 1981

Investigators tried several methods to identify the woman struck and killed by a car, but it was DNA analysis that has now brought closure to the family of Michele ‘Mimi’ Oakes Boutilier-Gautreaux.

www.sunjournal.com

Enhanced image from source.

 

[Teche]

View attachment 357230
Enhanced image from source.

She was beautiful.

 

[YaYa_521]

Memorial service being held for 'unknown female' 41 years after death

A Memorial service will be held at St Bernard Catholic Church for Michele “Mimi” Oakes Gautreaux on the 41st anniversary of her death.

www.katc.com

SBM
A gathering of family and friends will also be held on Sunday, December 4, 2022, from 5:00 pm – 8:00 pm at Pellerin Funeral Home, 211 Berard St., Breaux Bridge, LA 70517. [snip] Cards and letters of appreciation in Michele’s name may be sent to: Ray Pellerin, c/o Pellerin Funeral Home, 232 Courthouse St., Breaux Bridge, LA 70517 and/or to St. Bernard Catholic Church, 204 North Main St., Breaux Bridge, LA 70517, for taking a totally unknown stranger, Michele, into their caring hands and giving her a peaceful place to rest.

 

[DeniceDipuma]

Michele "Mimi" Oakes Gautreaux Obituary 1981 - Pellerin Funeral Homes