Doris Durand Zappi

Doris “Doll” Durand Zappi, 92, of Lafayette, passed into eternal life at 12:03 p.m., Monday, January 4, 2021, in her home, where she had been lovingly cared for by her family. She was born on February 29, 1928, the sixth of eleven children, to Leonce and Louella Durand, founders of the Pine Grove Canning Company in St. Martinville, LA. Doris attended St. Martinville High School, Dominican College in New Orleans, and Southwest Louisiana Institute (now the University of Louisiana). After college she worked in the family business. In 1956 she married Marcos Zappi and together they lived in the states of Washington, Louisiana, and Mississippi, and the country of Panama. She and Mark had seven children and a very loving marriage which lasted 36 years until his death in 1992. She had an adventurous spirit and a gift for reaching out to others. She made close friends wherever she lived, maintaining contact with those friends throughout their lives. A lifelong Catholic, Doris was devoted to Jesus and his Blessed Mother. The treasure she gave her children was her deep faith, as well as her firm belief in the dignity of every person. She prayerfully encouraged her children and grandchildren with kindness and solid priorities: faith, family, friends, work, fun and self-improvement. She was a person full of joie de vivre, who found her greatest joy in being with her family. She always noticed and respected children, no matter how small. Her sterling example of parenting by means of sacrificial love was a strong guide for her children to follow. Doris was preceded in death by her husband Marcos A. Zappi, daughter Mary Catherine, and parents Leonce and Louella Durand. She is survived by her children: Margaret (Zappi) and husband David Paine, Mark and wife Melinda Zappi, Donna (Zappi) Fox, Diane (Zappi) and husband Michael Hulin, Paul and wife Paula Zappi, and Anne (Zappi) and husband Douglas Williams; grandchildren Llewyn Paine and husband Vitorio Miliano, Nicholas and wife Lucie Paine, Kyle Zappi, Alex Zappi, Jamie Fox, Matthew Fox, Rachel (Hulin) and husband Gabe LaFleur, Vaughn and wife Kristen Hulin, Hayden Hulin, four children of Paul and Paula Zappi, Caleb Williams, Aaron Williams, Joseph Williams, and Bennett Williams; great-grandchildren Quinn and Wells Hulin; sisters Rita Voorhies and Emelina Wetzel; and numerous nieces and nephews. The family extends special gratitude to the kind nurses who helped care for our mother, especially Carolyn Stith, Susan Robin and Virginia Menard. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated for Doris at St. Martin de Tours Catholic Church in St. Martinville, and interment will follow at St. Michael Cemetery. Pallbearers will be her grandsons. Due to the ongoing pandemic, these events will be limited to family only. A memorial celebration of Doris’ life is planned for a future date.