jewel bush
The case of Terrilyn Monette has sparked discussion regarding the rules of engagement for a night out on the town with friends and has caused groups of gal pals to establish a code.
One of the things that drew us to this incident is that so many of us could identify with Monette. She was one of us; a professional woman out celebrating an accomplishment, her Teacher of the Year nod. She could have been a member of our girl posse. Or on any given night we could have been Monette.
The 26-year-old California woman was last seen on March 2 in the parking lot of the Lakeview bar, Parlay’s. She allegedly told her acquaintances that she was going to take a nap in her car before driving home because she had been drinking. These acquaintances left her alone — a grave mistake — in her car in a parking lot in the wee hours of the morning.
On Saturday, her car was pulled from the waters of Bayou St. John near the corner of Harrison Avenue and Wisner Boulevard bringing closure, if you can call it that, to the three-month long search for the rising educator. Monette’s body was still in the driver’s seat. The coroner ruled the cause of death drowning.
This is no public service announcement on the perils of drinking and driving nor am I casting blame or attempting to make Monette a poster child of sorts. Monette’s death, this unspeakable tragedy, is a devastating loss for a family and the nationwide community who joined in the search for a young elementary school teacher who moved to the Gulf Coast from the West Coast to do good.
This is a lament for Toni Enclade, a bereaved mother, who after publicly searching for her daughter is now publicly mourning the death of a child.
This is also a reminder: leave no friend behind.
jewel bush, a New Orleans native, is a writer whose work has appeared in The (Houma) Courier, The Washington Post, The Times-Picayune, New Orleans Homes & Lifestyles Magazine, and El Tiempo, a bilingual Spanish newspaper. In 2010, she founded MelaNated Writers Collective, a multi-genre group for writers of color in New Orleans dedicated to cultivating the literary, artistic and professional growth of emerging writers. She is currently communications coordinator for Service Employees International Union Local 21LA. Her three favorite books are Their Eyes Were Watching God, The Catcher in the Rye, and Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret.
An important reminder…and an exhausted driver can be as impaired as a drunk one. My condolences to her family.
Friends should watch out for each other !!!
Hi Jewel,
This was a well written article and I thank you for promoting awareness to Terrilyn’s unfortunate incident.
Well said, indeed.