James W. Duck

At 1:00 in the afternoon of November 30, 2018, James William “Sonny” Duck peacefully fell asleep at his home in New Iberia, Louisiana and awoke in his heavenly home. Mr. Duck was born on December 10, 1931 in Ruston, Louisiana to Shelby Lee and Hazel Hearne Duck Funeral services will be held Thursday, December 6, 2018, at 2 pm at Pellerin Funeral Home on Jefferson Terrace, New Iberia, LA, who has been entrusted with the arrangements. Visitation is from noon till 8:30 Wednesday, December 5th and will resume Thursday at 11:00 until service time. Following the funeral, Mr. Duck will be laid to rest at Rosehill Cemetery on West Main Street, New Iberia, LA. Rev. Steve Horn of First Baptist Church in Lafayette, LA will conduct the services. Mr. Duck attended New Iberia High School until his father, who was employed with CLECO, was transferred to Haynesville, Louisiana. While attending Haynesville High School, James played football for the famous Haynesville Tornados and remained a faithful and proud Tornado fan all of his life, often attending their home games, Championship playoff games in New Orleans, and most reunions. Mr. Duck was a businessman and entrepreneur during the World War II era delivering the Daily Iberian on East Main Street via bicycle and bicycle repairman. Upon graduation from Haynesville High, he became a welders’ helper, owner of Duck’s Welding and Fabrication, Duck Industries, and eventually a worldwide Certified Welding Inspector including such places as Brazil, Mexico, China, Korea, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, and others. He was instrumental in assisting in the writing of the Codes for the American Institute of Welding, which are still in effect today, and was a pioneer in offshore platform underwater repairs as a certified diver and underwater welder. His expertise in welding and fabrication was often sought out and requested by not only manufacturers in the United States, but also many foreign countries. In 1962, Mr. Duck built, owned and operated Duck’s Drive Inn on Parkview Drive in New Iberia and Duck’s Fried Chicken on Center Street until 1974. Soon after opening, Duck’s Drive Inn became a favorite teenage destination and is where hundreds of close, lasting bonds of friendship were begun. This was a turbulent period of time in this country due to the Vietnam War and rampant drug use. Because of his close ties to the teens and recognizing the needs in the parish, Mr. Duck was instrumental in forming Teen Rehabilitation Iberia Parish. Many times, Mr. Duck spoke of those friendships as being among the most cherished memories of his life and often “hinted” to reopening Duck’s Drive Inn. Besides Haynesville Tornados football, Mr. Duck was an avid NASCAR enthusiast and co-owner of a stock car. He was also a 32nd Degree member of the local Masonic Aurora Lodge 193 and a Shriner, and was honorably discharged from the U.S. Air Force. Surviving Mr. Duck is his wife of 68 years, Patsy Patton Duck, his son, Mark Duck and wife Cynthia of New Iberia, and his daughter, Linda Duck of Broussard, grandchildren Sommer Cypriano (Philip) of Opelousas, Jennifer Duck, Allyson Duck, Christopher Duck and Benjamin Duck (Abby) of New Iberia, Great grandchildren Grace Braquet and Jacob Cypriano of Opelousas, his sisters Elaine Meek and Brenda Duck, numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his brother Gordon Lee Duck and his grandson Jacob Patton Bowen. Serving as pallbearers will be Benjamin Duck, Kenny Patton, George Reeves, Philip Cypriano, Randy Mounce, and Matthew Dickerson. Honorary pallbearers: Louis Ackal, Stephan Palumbo, Cookie Labauve, Romo Romero, Robert Eppinett, Earl Patton, Keno Patton, Steve Saunders and Mike “Peach” Williams. Pellerin Funeral Home, 502 Jefferson Terrace, New Iberia, 70560 (337.365.3331) is in charge of the arrangements.