A&E

Cajun and Zydeco Trivia Night benefits flood ravaged local non-profit Louisiana Folk Roots hosts trivia night fundraiser to help with disaster recovery

by Wynce Nolley

When the Vermilion River overflowed during the historic flooding in August and drowned much of the Vermilionville campus, the Louisiana Folk Roots offices suffered substantial water damage to its hallowed archives, which contained more than 16 years worth of Cajun and Zydeco lore.

“Everything that was in there that could’ve been salvaged they weren’t able to get in there and physically access because there was still water in it and it just wasn’t safe,” says Jesse Guidry, who served as Louisiana Folk Roots president during the massive flooding. “So once the water went away a lot of the stuff that could’ve been saved had mold on it like a lot of the newspaper clippings, a lot of the CDs, shirts, all of that stuff.”

The Louisiana Folk Roots operations have since been moved to the LITE Center and, thanks to the Opportunity Machine, are now working rent free for the rest of the year to help complete their recovery process and get back on solid footing.

“They lost a lot of their merchandise,” Guidry says. “All of their stuff can now basically fit on a very small desk. And there’s still room on the desk. And whenever I saw that, I knew we needed to throw something together.”

The local non-profit is hosting its very first Cajun and Zydeco Trivia Night next Wednesday night in order to help restore the Louisiana Folk Roots offices to their former glory. All of the night’s proceeds will go to benefit its ongoing recovery efforts from damages sustained to their offices, equipment and archives during the recent flooding.

Local culture buffs are encouraged to test their knowledge of all things Cajun and Zydeco by assembling their best team of up to 10 people or sign-up as an individual to be part of a random team.

The trivia contest will consist of five rounds containing 10 questions each with various themes like pairing popular Cajun and Zydeco performers’ stage names with their proper names; Cajun and Zydeco through the decades, where contestants have to name what year notable events in the culture happend; and a “Name That Cajun or Zydeco Musician” category where guests will be given clues about a certain musician’s identity and asked to guess who they are.

Food and drinks will be available for purchase at the bar. And there will be games and raffles in between rounds as well as a dessert auction.

And for people living out-of-town and those who cannot make the event, Louisiana Folk Roots will be streaming the trivia night live so participants can play along virtually with a team of up to 10 or as an individual.

Guidry says that if the Cajun and Zydeco Trivia Night is a success, he hopes to turn it into a regular, annual event to help kick-off the Festivals Acadiens et Créole weekend.

The Louisiana Folk Roots Cajun and Zydeco Trivia Night will be held on Wednesday, Oct. 12, beginning at 6:30 p.m. at Vermilionville’s Performance Center. Registration is $30 for an individual or $300 for a team of up to 10.

To sign up your team, visit LFRCajunAndZydecoTriviaNight.Eventbrite.com. For more information about the event visit LAFolkRoots.org, follow them on Facebook or call (337) 234-8360.