I met him on a plane when I was returning home from a business trip to Las Vegas. We sat next to each other on the second leg of my trip, from Atlanta to Charlotte.
Not usually one to talk on a flight – I prefer reading – I chatted with Bellard about several things, and the time flew by.
Bellard hails from Ville Platte, La., which is in Acandia Parish, 145 miles west of New Orleans.
“I was raised on a farm and always enjoyed being outdoors,” said Bellard, 55. “My parents instilled in me the value of hard work.”
The second-youngest of six children, Bellard grew up speaking Creole, a form of French.
“When I talk to my mom, we still speak Creole,” Bellard said.
Bellard attended Baton Rouge Southern University for more than two years, then went to work for Gulf States Utilities in 1982. He moved to Lake Charles, La., for his job, staying there until 1998, when he left for a new job in Merrillville, Ind.
“My wife, Emily, who is from Alabama, loved living in the Midwest,” Bellard said.
While there, Bellard obtained his bachelor’s degree from Calumet College and went on to get his master’s from Indiana University.
“It was tough then,” Bellard said. “I’d work all day, then go to school at night. I remember taking my family to Disneyworld and dropping them off for a fun day while I went back to the hotel to work and study.
“But my wife already had a master’s degree, so I had to step up.”
When a new management opportunity presented itself, Bellard went for it. After moving his family to Charlotte in 2004, Bellard commuted to Hamlet, about 60 miles east of Charlotte, for two years. “I wouldn’t recommend that to anyone,” he said.
Bellard currently works out of Charlotte for Power Plant Management Services and travels a lot. His wife works in the health care industry.
For fun, Bellard enjoys hiking and a little golf.
“A group of dads would take our kids to Triple Falls in DuPont Park, and other excursions through the years,” said Bellard. “I treasure those times.”
His older son, Dominick, 34, is married with four children and lives in Houston. Daughter Dana, 27, lives and works in Louisiana, and son Kendall, 19, recently graduated from Charlotte Catholic High School and now attends the University of South Carolina.
The family lives near McKee Road in south Charlotte.
Read more here: http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/03/01/3879010/the-things-you-can-learn-on-a.html#storylink=misearch#storylink=cpy
