Retired 15th JDC Judge Allen M. Babineaux, 79, died Monday, August 23, 2004 in Lafayette. He graduated from the University of Southwestern Louisiana in 1947, Loyola University School of Law in 1950 and National College of State Judiciary, University of Nevada in 1973. A World War II veteran who served in the South Pacific, he served as a representative in the Louisiana State Legislature for Lafayette Parish from 1956 to 1960. He was in the private practice of law until 1972 when he was elected to the 15th JDC, where he served until his retirement in 1996. He was a member of the 15th Judicial District Judges Association, Louisiana State Judges Association, American Judges Association and the Louisiana Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges. Extremely active in promoting the Acadian culture, he was the original director and member of the executive committee Council for the Development of French in Louisiana (CODOFIL), 1985 CODOFIL delegate at the council meeting in Quebec City of the Secretariat Permanent des Peuples Francophones, and represented Louisiana at the First North American French Conference held in Montreal in 1968. He was the recipient of many honors and awards including Phi Kappa Phi Honor Society, Doctor in Jure (honoris causa), University of Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada, and was honorary president for Congrès Mondial Acadien - Louisiane 1999.