On July 24, Joan Montegut Williams, founder of Pack & Paddle, passed away. But her legacy will never be forgotten. The wife and mother of five was truly ahead of her time. When she founded the outdoor store in 1974, few women-owned businesses existed. Yet, Williams made it work while rearing her family, until she retired in 1999, selling the shop to her son, John Williams, and his wife Becky. How did she do it? Her son, John, tells her story.
An Atypical Housewife
Born in 1934, Joan Montegut grew up in St. Martinville, graduating from Mercy High School. She went on to graduate from LSU with an accounting degree in 1955 — uncommon for women of that generation. A year later, she married Dick Williams and had five children in five years. As a young mother, she was a typical 1960s housewife — sewing her two daughters’ clothes, joining the Junior League and starting a Supper Club.
But her adventurous side soon surfaced. On a fishing trip to Arkansas’ White River in the 1960s, Dick and Joan discovered the Buffalo River, which “became a spiritual place for our family to discover the outdoors and what outdoor adventuring was about,” son John Williams recalls. The family’s early trips were in aluminum jon boats but quickly progressed to canoes. “Those early trips on the Buffalo were keys to Mom seeing that there was a world of outdoor recreation out there that people in Lafayette mostly were unaware of,” Williams says.
A Born Leader
When her daughters Louise and Cheryll were young, Joan was a Girl Scout leader. Always an overachiever, she became the leader of one of the first female explorer posts. But it was not just any Girl Scout troop. “Mom had a vision — and her visions were never small,” John explains. “The Girl Scout troop became a finely tuned group of girls that could canoe whitewater, camp and sail. And most important of all, they could beat the boys at the SeaScout competitions every time.”
My parents didn’t run Pack & Paddle to make money,” John reveals. “Mom did it to change the world.
When the troop decided that the girls should have some canoes for the explorer post, Joan finagled a Grumman canoe dealership by getting several friends to buy canoes — along with enough for the explorer post. “This planted the seed that maybe an outdoor shop in Lafayette might be a good idea,” John says.
Ahead of Her Time
In 1974, Joan launched Pack & Paddle at 1539 East Pinhook Road — now located less than a mile away at 601 East Pinhook Road — on the bank of the Vermilion River. “Her ability to see what would work in the future and the drive to make it a reality were two things that made Joan who she was,” John reflects fondly. “I think my Dad knew this about her when he went along with the idea of creating a shop selling canoes and camping gear.”
But Joan was driven, as well as resourceful. During Pack & Paddle’s first Christmas season in 1974, people advised her to stock up. Joan warned her children that all of their Christmas gifts would be coming from the store. As usual, Joan had packages wrapped and under the tree. Then about a week before the holiday, the store started getting busy. “One by one, the packages started disappearing from the house,” John recalls.
She passed along her love for adventure to her children. “She could get us kids to do nearly anything, from learning to make fish nets to Morse code to taxidermy,” John explains, “and that Tom Sawyer quality carried over to Pack & Paddle and the residents of Lafayette.”
Joan built Pack & Paddle into a successful business. “She had a passion for introducing people to how wonderful participating in outdoor activities could be in South Louisiana,” John reflects.
Over the years, Joan and Dick led many local trips, as well as excursions to Arkansas, Texas, North Carolina and Maine. The couple also started a bicycle touring company, luring visitors to Louisiana to enjoy its food, culture and easy riding. Joan also founded Cycle Zydeco, which continues to draw riders. “My parents didn’t run Pack & Paddle to make money,” John reveals. “Mom did it to change the world.”
Her Legacy
A few months ago, John ran into Yvonne Saloom at Champagne’s grocery. The two were chatting about Joan, and Mrs. Saloom remarked about how much she had always admired her. When John asked why, she responded, “It was the ’60s and we were all just housewives. Joan showed us what it meant to be a modern woman.”
Joan Williams passed away on July 24, 2021. “She was always about the future and not the past,” John says fondly. “And she always wanted to celebrate life. She embodied the term joie de vivre.”
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