Dr. Edna Gannon Treuting passed into eternal life on November 13, 2017. She was a resident of Mandeville and a former resident of New Orleans, LA.
Edna was born on December 16, 1925 and was the daughter of Clara and Alphonse Gannon. She was married for 37 years to August Raymond Treuting who preceded her in death in 1985.
She was the loving mother of Keith Treuting (Mignon), Karen Stein, Madeline LeBlanc Cottrell (David), Jaime Gonzales (Dave) and the late Jay Treuting. She was the mother-in-law of the late John F. LeBlanc.
She was blessed with ten grandchildren: Jay Treuting (Ali), Kali Reid (Matthew), Kenny Stein (Angela), Taylor Eley (Ben), Ashley LeBlanc (David Curtin), Melissa LeBlanc, Michael LeBlanc (Brittany), Andree Bigner (Bradley), Danielle Gonzales and Lauren Gonzales. She was the proud great grandmother of August, Bridget, Gavin and Charlotte Stein, Benjamin Eley and the future baby Bigner.
Edna loved her twin brother and sister, Bubby (Joseph) and Loretta. She loved her parents and their commitment to their parish. She went to nursing school at Charity and loved the Sisters of Charity who taught there. She named each of her children after a consultation with Sr. Margaret Rose. She was passionate about the premature babies in the neonatal ward and wanted to take every one home with her.
She was very involved with the children’s school and activities. She was home room mom, Girl Scout chaperone, swimming/diving team mom, dancing school mom, and cheerleader mom. She loved to have fun and participated in the Elainians, the Ancient Scribes, Pandora Carnival Club, and her husband’s clubs, Hercules and Eros. The Holy Cross High School Brothers were like family to her. They were always welcome in her home and the family had a close relationship with Br. James McDonald.
After graduating from Charity and practicing nursing there for many years, she took a brief hiatus to raise her 5 children. She returned to teaching at St. Joseph Academy and LSU, and then went back to school as a student herself. She entered Tulane and received her Masters of Public Health and Doctorate in Medical Care Administration from Tulane School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine. She became a professor there, became dean of Nursing at Our Lady of Holy Cross College and went on to become the Chief Nurse of the Louisiana Department of Health. Edna was crazy about her nursing students and loved spending time with them.
She was a trailblazer in the medical field. In 1972, she presented a grant for the Nurse Practitioner Program to the State of Louisiana. Thanks to her research, passion and documentation of the benefits of the program, the Nurse Practitioner program was approved. Today she is known at the matriarch of all the Nurse Practitioners in Louisiana. She considered every NP in the state to be a family member. The Louisiana Association of Nurse Practitioners has established a scholarship in her name in gratitude for her efforts. She was recognized for her many contributions and was a member of Sigma Theta Tau and Delta Omega honor societies.
The death of her son, Jay, in a boating accident in 1981 was a tremendous loss for her and her family. She experienced hardships in her life in the forms of both breast cancer and colon cancer, but anyone who knows her knows that it didn’t slow her down a bit.
Raymond was her hero and her family was her everything. They always came first and were her life’s greatest pride and joy. After reluctantly moving to the Northshore in 1995, she joined AARP at the Mandeville Community center and poured herself into those friendships. She loved line dancing and played an integral role there as president of AARP for 17 years. They came up with countless ways to stay healthy, serve others and generally give back.
When she was asked what her greatest accomplishment was, her answer was always the same: her family. She loved her family dearly. She wrote in her notes: “I loved my life. I loved my family growing up, my dear Raymond, my children and their spouses and my grandchildren. I can’t quite express my appreciation for what everyone does for me to take such good care of me. I thank God.”
Her family thanks God for her and will miss her dearly.
Dr. Treuting’s visitation will be on Thursday, November 16th, 2017 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am at JACOB SCHOEN & SON, 3827 Canal Street, New Orleans. The Funeral Mass will follow at 11:00 am in the J. Garic Schoen Chapel. Please be aware of construction taking place on Canal Street. Interment will be in St. Patrick #1 Cemetery.

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