Lola Walker Dunahoe

A service celebrating Lola Walker Dunahoe will be held at 10 a.m. Monday, Sept. 30, at First Baptist Church—Natchitoches, led by Bro. Thomas Rush. Former Senator Louie Bernard will share reflections on behalf of the family. Interment will follow at the American Cemetery, under the direction of Blanchard-St. Denis Funeral Home. Her family will receive friends from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m. Sunday, Sept. 29, at the Church, located at 508 Second St.

 Mrs. Dunahoe, 74, died on Tuesday, Sept. 24, in Houston, TX, following a brief illness.

 A native of Baton Rouge, LA, she was the youngest of five children born to Thelma Penington Walker. She moved to Natchitoches with her mother during her junior high school years and graduated with honors from Natchitoches High School in 1968, and in 1971 she earned the bachelor of science degree in mathematics education and the bachelor of science degree in biology, both with honors, from Northwestern State University. 

 Mrs. Dunahoe met her soulmate, Otis Edwin Dunahoe, both sophomores at NHS, in Fall 1966 when they were serving as school orientation leaders. They were forever inseparable, marrying on April 10, 1971, in Natchitoches.

She began her career as a mathematics teacher at Istrouma Junior High School in Baton Rouge while her new husband completed his law degree. When they returned to Natchitoches, she taught mathematics at Natchitoches-Central High School for two years, and then, over the next years, their family grew from two to five.

Though she left the traditional classroom to become a full-time mother, her love for education never wavered. Mrs. Dunahoe served as a member and officer of several educational, philanthropical, preservation, and service organizations, including Natchitoches Historic Foundation, the Association for the Preservation of Historic Natchitoches, St. Denis Garden Club, and chapters AU and BK of the PEO Sisterhood. Her priority always centered on First Baptist Church, particularly its children and music ministries. In 2018, she co-chaired its $2.5 million restoration project.

Mrs. Dunahoe’s tenure as member, president, and sustainer advisor of the Service League of Natchitoches led her to later chairing the total restoration of the Prudhomme-Rouquier House, built in 1790; the solicitation and awarding of a $366,000 Save America’s Treasures grant that funded the restoration; and then the creation of the Prudhomme-Rouquier House Foundation, serving as its first president. 

She was president of the NSU Foundation during Northwestern’s first capital campaign, which began with a goal of $18.84 million and raised $32 million to enhance the institution.

In 2011, Mrs. Dunahoe was appointed chair and CEO of the Board of Trustees of the Mary R. Gallaspy Charitable Trust No. 2. Through her leadership, assets of the Trust have more than doubled, and over $11 million has been distributed and awarded to over 3,000 NSU students. 

In 2016, Gov. John Bel Edwards appointed Mrs. Dunahoe to the Board of Supervisors of the University of Louisiana System in the management board that oversees NSU and eight other state institutions. During her two-term tenure, she participated in the selection of eight university presidents across the state, three of those being Northwestern president

Always, Northwestern’s position and success were her passion. In 2021, she was honored with the Northwestern State University Distinguished Alumna Service Award; and in 2022, Mrs. Dunahoe was inducted into the NSU Alumni Hall of Distinction--The Long Purple Line, the highest honor bestowed upon a Northwestern alumnus.

One of the cornerstones of Mrs. Dunahoe’s legacy will always be the St. Denis Art League, where she served for nearly 50 years as a director and then chair of its annual Spring Festival, which annually recognizes young ladies and gentlemen in their senior year of high school.

Mrs. Dunahoe leaves Edwin, her husband of 53 years; her daughter, Ashley Renee Dunahoe Reynolds and husband, Jason, of Waco, TX; her sons, Jason Edwin Dunahoe and wife, Lexie, of Houston, TX; and Jared Ryan Dunahoe and his wife, Danielle, of Natchitoches; her nine grandchildren, including Lily, Sydney, and Abby Reynolds, of Waco; Emma, Marshall, Barrett, and Amelia June Dunahoe of Houston; and Jefferson Walker and Ann-Marie Dunahoe of Natchitoches; her sister, Mary Walker Norwood of Dallas; and several nieces and nephews, including her very special niece, Beth Bratten of Murfreesboro, TN.

Mrs. Dunahoe was preceded in death by her mother; her brother, Ray Walker; and sisters Betty Walker Trosclair, Dorothy Walker Rahm; and her mother-in-law, Janetha Walton Dunahoe, with whom she shared a most special bond.

Serving as pallbearers for Mrs. Dunahoe will be Melvin Braxton, Dr. Steve Brown III, Jerry Forest, Dr. Steve Horton, Dr. Randall Keator II, Dr. Drake Owens, Lee Posey, and Dr. Dan Seymour.

Those who wish to celebrate her memory may support the Lola Walker Dunahoe Scholarship through the NSU Foundation, or First Baptist Church—Natchitoches.