• A 92-year-old line cook continues to work and inspire college students
• The cook has attained local fame and has been featured on news sites because of her impact in the University
• Despite not being able to go to school, she has inspired many students to stay in line and graduate
She’s no ordinary canteen cook.
92-year-old Angelina Narcisse has been serving the students of the University of Louisiana for decades now and she has made such a huge impact on the community that people have been writing about her and NBC Night News and several other websites took notice. NBC featured her on their segment entitled, “Make A Difference.”
After the University’s newly renovated dining hall opened, students immediately looked for Narcisse who naturally greeted them with hugs and warm conversations in French.
She told NBC News that she is probably more excited about the opening of the Cypress Lake Dining Hall than the students.
“I’m 92, and I haven’t seen a place like this nowhere. This is gorgeous,” she gushed. She has been an employee of the University for over 60 years now.
So many of the University’s students look to Narcisse for inspiration and advice. One of those students is Malcolm Greay Jr. Greay is a kinesiology and exercise science student who loves Narcisse like his own grandmother.
“It’s way more than her just giving us food on our plates. I have conversations with her. She asks me how my day is going. She asks me how I’m doing in my classes. It’s just all love,” he told The Advertiser in an interview.
Narcisse has raised 10 kids of her own. What’s admirable is that she has achieved such a meaningful life, despite her not being able to step into school. She never went to school but she hopes that the students in the University of Louisiana achieve greater things than she did. She raised her family through hard work in her evening shifts in the canteen. She continues to work that shift until today.
“I give them good advice. People like to come talk to me because I tell them the way of living. People will feel down, and they’ll come talk to me and leave feeling better,” she said.
She said she plans to continue working in the University as long as she can because she can’t keep still and wants to continue helping out students.
“It’s just me and my little dog at home, and I said, ‘I’m not going to stay here by myself.’ The world closes in on you if you stay in the house too much. So I come here. This is my gym. I come here to get my exercise,” she explained.
She also doesn’t expect people to treat her any different just because she’s 92 years old.
Ed Daugherty, the general manager of Sodexo who is responsible for managing the University’s dining services, said he was shocked when he first spoke to Narcisse.
“She said, ‘I know who you are. You’re the new general manager, and I expect you to be just as tough on me and give me just as much work as you do anybody else.’ That was my first impression and what a great impression, right?”
Daugherty recalled in an interview with The Advertiser.
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