Kenneth L. Fournet, M.D.

A Funeral Service will be held at 11:00 am on Monday, December 19, 2016, at First Baptist Church of Broussard in for Kenneth L. Fournet, M.D. 89, who passed away on Thursday, December 15, 2016. The family requests that visit hours be observed at Pellerin Funeral home from 5:00 pm until 9:00 pm on Sunday, and continue on Monday at 7:00 am until 10:00 am. Rev. Jessie Charpentier, Pastor Weldon Moak, Rev. Wallace Primeaux, Rev. Dore Langley, and Fr. Bryce Sibley will officiate at the Funeral Service. Interment will follow at Fournet Family Cemetery in St. Martinville. On June 4, 1927, Kenneth Fournet was born in Baton Rouge, attended St. Martinville Elementary and Lafayette High School. In 1945 he was inducted into the army and served as medical corpsman for the Fitzsimmons General Hospital in Denver, Colorado. After the war he earned Bachelors of Science degrees in Chemistry and Biology from SLI and obtained his doctorate degree from the LSU School of Medicine, New Orleans in 1953. He was an active member of the Jenkins Memorial Baptist Church, ordained as the first deacon in 1957, song leader for 56 years, Sunday School Director and a church training leader for 54 years. He was recently honored for his 61 years of commitment and dedication of teaching Gods word at Jenkins Memorial Baptist Church. He was a member of the A.M.A. and the Louisiana State Medical society. He served on the Board of Directors for the Evangeline Players and had been seen in a few dramatic performances. Dr. Fournet earned numerous awards recognizing his tireless and loving service to the community. He was awarded the 2011 Leaders in Philanthropy Award for St. Martin Parish, Kiwanis Outstanding Citizen of St. Martinville and thereby declared that July 11, 2011 was to be known as Dr. Fournet Day, Community Leadership Award by the Woodmen of the World, Humanitarian of the Year from the St. Martinville Chamber of Commerce, recipient of the Key to the City of St. Martinville, and The Global Directory of Whos Who Honors. Dr. Fournet was a practicing Doctor of Medicine, Chief of Staff for the St. Martin Infirmary with an office in St. Martinville practicing for 64 years. He saw patients the Friday before his death. He was elected Coroner of St. Martin parish in 1968 and served until 1988. He was Chief of Staff at St. Martin Infirmary from 1986 until its closure in 1988. He served as House Physician of the St. Martinville Nursing Home from 1989-1996, as well as Ringside Physician for two Boxing Clubs. He is known for his house calls and loving bedside manner. His skills and diagnostic care are known throughout the community to be nothing less than superb. He joked that he would practice until he gets it right, but his patients and those who worked with him knew that he would practice because he was called to do so and has always mixed medicine with Gods will. He is survived by his wife, Patricia Sibley Fournet, sons, Kenneth Fournet Jr. and wife Rachel, Ph.D. of Broussard and Dr. Timothy Fournet and wife Liz of Cookville, TN; daughters Renee Richter and husband Don of Sunset, Carrie Curet and husband John of Harvey, LA, Cheryl Lambert and husband Mark of Lafayette, and Susan Elaine Fournet and husband Flabio Perez of Brooklyn, NY; stepson George R. Jones and his wife Kathie of Lafayette; brothers, Glenn Fournet. Ph.D., Jon Seymour Fournet, and Byron Fournet; 22 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, Phillip Hobson and Leone Livingston Fournet, Sr; his first wife, Elsie Raymona Cooper Fournet; daughter, Cynthia Fournet Moore; son, Ronald David Fournet; grandchildren, Ashley Renee and Michael Gabriel, and brother, Phillip Hobson Fournet, Jr. Pallbearers will be grandsons Ryan Richter, Sean Curet, Andrew Fournet, M.D., Kenneth Fournet III, Joshua Dore, David Fournet, and Samuel Fournet. Honorary pallbearers will be grandsons, E6 Tech Sqt Lee Curet and Aaron Dore and family members Christopher Patin and Ronald Barber. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested memorial contributions to Louisiana Baptist Childrens Home, 7200 Desiard Street, Monroe, LA 71203. Pellerin Funeral Home of St. Martinville, 112 New Market St., St. Martinville, LA 70582, (337-394-9121) is in charge of arrangements.