NEW ORLEANS — More than 1,100 people lined up Thursday morning for nearly three hours to pay their respects to Edgar "Dooky" Chase III.
His funeral mass at Saint Peter Claver Catholic Church was standing room only with nearly 550 people.
His sendoff was traditional New Orleans, with gospel singers and a second line to his famous restaurant.
This is a story best told not in the words of a reporter but in the worlds of those who knew Dooky Chase III the best.
“I mean, he just basically lived for other people. He was a mainstay in the community, on every civic board. Every time I asked him to help the city, and I'm sure every other mayor asked him, he was there,” said former New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu.
“He was involved in so many different boards, so many different community organizations. You want to talk about a real servant to the people of this city, that was Mr. Chase,” said Helena Moreno, city council-at-large member.
“I remember during Hurricane Ida, they called us saying, ‘Hey look, we have all this food. We want to feed y'all.’ And that was every time. Anything that we called on them for, they were there 100 percent, and it goes to show he was a public servant,” said Deputy Superintendent of NOPD Michelle Woodfork.
“The Chase family is just to the restaurant and hospitality industry. So, we started talking to each other years ago about trying to do a culinary school. So, when we got that one going (NOCHI) they were in from word one,” remembers Ti Martin, Commander's Palace co-proprietor.
“Selfless service and committed to collaboration. I don't know anybody he didn't meet that wasn't a friend to Dooky,” noted Retired General Russel Honoré.
"He helped guide a lot of very difficult decisions on a lot of the civic boards. When, of course, people were trying to fight, he'd always bring people back together and always stay focused on what the end game was,” said Landrieu.
“He had a very storied history, you know. He left us a legacy of dignity, courage of determination, and exploration because he didn't see himself as just an African-American, he saw himself as a universalist, humanitarian, a friend to all people,” said Norman Robinson, President-elect of the Bunch Club, the fourth oldest African-American carnival organization in the city. Chase was a member with Robinson.
“And he just was as dear, as dear can be, and everything that you aspire to be as a human. That's who he was,” added Martin.
His nickname was The Prince, and as his son said in the eulogy, “Time for The Prince to go be with The King.
The Chase family asks that you mark his passing with a donation to the Edgar L. “Dooky” Jr. and Leah Chase Family Foundation.
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