Joey Durel
| Lester Joseph "Joey" Durel, Jr. | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Mayor-President of Lafayette, Louisiana, USA | |
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In office 2004–2016 |
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| Preceded by | Walter Comeaux |
| Succeeded by | Joel Robideaux |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
April 3, 1953 Lafayette, Louisiana |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse(s) | Lynne Miller Durel (married 1973) |
| Children |
Nicole D. Hebert (born 1975) |
| Profession | Businessman |
Nicole D. Hebert (born 1975)
Jason Durel (born 1977)
Lester Joseph Durel, Jr., known as Joey Durel (born April 3, 1953), is the former mayor of Lafayette, Louisiana. Elected in 2003, he became only the second Republican mayor of his city and the second person elected as "City-Parish president" of the combined City of Lafayette and Lafayette Parish government. A small businessman, Durel had never before sought or held political office.
Durel ran unopposed for his second term as City-Parish president in the nonpartisan blanket primary held on October 20, 2007.
Durel was born in Lafayette to Lester J. Durel, Sr. (born 1921), and the former Iris Massicot (born 1924). The senior Durel formed the first "Durel's Pet Shop" in 1951, and the business remained in family hands until all the outlets were sold in 2004. Durel, Jr., graduated in 1971 from Our Lady of Fatima High School in Lafayette. Thereafter, he attended the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (then the University of Southwestern Louisiana). In 1975, he procured his Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration.
In 1973, Durel married the former Lynne Miller, also a Lafayette native. They have three children.
A month after he graduated from college, Durel went to work in the family pet shop and opened a second outlet in 1976. He met a private payroll every year until his election as mayor-president. His entrepreneurial spirit led him into several other businesses as well, including Arby's Restaurants. At one time, he managed some 150 employees in eight retail stores. In 1996, he was named the "Sam Walton Small Businessman of the Year."
Durel is a graduate of "Leadership Lafayette Class X" and "Leadership Louisiana." In 2001, his peers named him chairman of the board of the Greater Lafayette Chamber of Commerce. Durel was appointed by former Republican Governor Murphy J. "Mike" Foster, Jr., to the Small Business Task Force and is the past chairman of the Citizens Advisory Committee of Lafayette. He has also been active in Big Brothers/Big Sisters. He is secretary of the board of South Louisiana Community College – and is currently on the UL-Lafayette Athletic Advisory Committee.
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