Emelda (Duvieilh) Remond Klotz finally retired from Lamb of God Lutheran Church in Slidell, LA, in January after a bout with pneumonia. Her target date was June 2018, when it would have marked 70 years of service to congregations in praise to the Lord.
She and Marie (Gebauer) Briwa (one of her childhood friends) started at Mt. Calvary Lutheran Church in 1948. They still keep in touch. Marie continued to play at St. Matthew and Mt. Olive, Metairie, LA, for 24 years and retired at the end of 1993. They were coached by Mr. Richard Wismar of St. Paul Lutheran Church to learn the liturgy, and they were given a book to learn the pedals. Emelda served for seven years at Mt. Calvary.
After marrying Frank Remond of Christ Lutheran (whom she met through the Walther League), Emelda continued to serve at Lutheran churches wherever Frank’s job brought him in New York, Florida, and two in California. In 1972, they moved back to Louisiana where she served at Bethany and Lamb of God in Slidell, as well as the Village Church in Lacombe. She also played in Waveland and Picayune.
In 1998, Frank, who passed away in 2001, bought her an organ so she could prepare for services at home. This organ, a grand piano, and a stack of music along with other things were lost in Hurricane Katrina. Years later when Emelda was looking for an organ, Becky Schultz, who was also an organist at Lamb of God, and her husband, Rev. Kurtis Schultz, told Emelda about an organ that was in storage for a few years which she was able to obtain. Emelda still has the organ and enjoys using it. Incidentally, her husband, Joe Klotz, who she married in 2008, gave away his dining room set so she could have room for her organ and small piano.
