Fishing postmaster Jeanminette passes away

The local sport fishing community lost a dear friend Monday afternoon when Elvis Jeanminette went to be with the Lord at age 57.
Jeanminette, a resident of Jeanerette, was a local celebrity as host of the Top Rod Fishing Show Friday mornings on KANE 1240 AM radio.
The show featured Jeanminette as “Top Rod” and his close friend, Leon Minvielle, known as “The Broken Rod.”
The pair would talk about everything fishing from what’s biting to fishing tackle and techniques. But more than anything, what perhaps stands out most about the affable angler was he was a trendsetter.
During an interview I did with Jeanminette several years ago, the angler said the “bass bug” bit him in 1975, a time when few African Americans competed in local bass club tournaments.
Jeanminette said, “The bass bug bit me in 1975 when I graduated. I got invited into the Atchafalaya Basin Boys Club. They invited you. And you had to be voted in. When I got voted in, I didn’t think I was going to be at first, because I was the first black person around here that wanted to get into some sort of bass fishing organization. If you look at the history of bass fishing locally in this part of the Louisiana, I was probably the first. I didn’t think they were going to accept me, so I was surprised when they did. Clubs were predominately white guys back then. It wasn’t that black guys couldn’t fish; they just didn’t have the interest in competing. But I paid my dues learning to fish and for me it became a passion. Some say it’s like golf — the more you do it, the more you want to do it.”
Though Jeanminette was a competitor, he was also a teacher, never afraid to share a technique. If he had a secret honey hole, it wasn’t secret for long. He would be the first to tell you where the bite was on. He would either invite you to go with him or tell you the coordinates to its location.
Last summer, I received a phone call in the middle of the day while at work that he and Minvielle were slaying the redfish on Marsh Island. When could I get off, he asked, letting me know the bite wouldn’t be on for long.
When I asked where at on Marsh Island, Jeanminette said, “The Worm — my baby — the Worm.”
That Friday, Jeanminette, Minvielle and I left the Ivanhoe Canal heading south towards Marsh Island in slick calm waters. Roughly three hours later, we were heading back north for the Ivanhoe with three limits of Redfish and a basket full of jumbo croakers he grilled for us in his boat shed man cave. He simply wanted to share the wealth and excitement with anyone who loved fishing like him.
Jeanminette had recently retired after 32 years with the U.S. Postal Service where he retired as Lydia Postmaster in Iberia Parish. He also was president of Iberia Bass Anglers Sportsman Club for more than 28 years. Something the angler was proud of was the club’s effort that reached out to young anglers, particularly kids who never had the opportunity to fish.
Jeanminette tournament fished for 37 years. It was only recently that he finished the requirements to obtain his charter boat captain license and began Top Rod Fishing Charters LLC.
Being a guide was something the angler dreamed of. In 2015, that dream was about to become reality.
Jeanminette was also a family man. He and his wife Bernadette were married for 30 years and parents to daughters Tiffany, Kimberly, and Chassidy, married to sons-in-law, Ike, James and Issaic that Jeanminette referred to as “awesome.”
Five grandchildren Isreal, Morgan Gracie, Lil Ike, Madison, and Lil Duce rounded out his family.
Proverbs 27:10 reads, “Better a neighbor nearby than a faraway brother.”
At the post office, on the radio, or on the water, Elvis was everyone’s neighbor and friend. I’ll miss Top Rod. But, if I know Elvis, he and Peter, another fisherman, have probably already hooked up and are planning a day on the water in a place where limits are the norm.
If you wish to make a comment or have an anecdote, recipe or story you wish to share, you can contact John K. Flores at 985-395-5586 or gowiththeflo@cox.net or visit his website www.gowiththeflooutdoors.com.