Bourgeois Fishing Charters was started in 1993 by my parents- Theophile and Melissa Bourgeois with a dream and a mission: To build the greatest fishing lodge in Southeast Louisiana and share their passion for the Cajun way of life with the world. What started as a childhood dream was made manifest by two people with a co-signed bank loan, one boat, a leased Suburban, and a prayer. My father’s childhood was spent on the Bayous of Barataria, Louisiana. His young heart beat in perpetual rhythm to the pulse of the bayou. His adolescence was set to the endearing charm of the Southeast Louisiana Marshes-Namely, the Barataria Bay Estuary System, the same labyrinth of fabled bayous, swamps, bays, and marshes once traversed and still haunted by notorious Pirate turned Privateer and namesake of our town-Jean Lafitte. He would spend his childhood learning the ways of the land from his father, my Paw Paw Theophile Jean-Antoine Bourgeois Jr. It was Theophile Jr, my paw paw, who’s houseboat donned the name “Theophile’s Dream” and would be the floating paradise of my father’s childhood that would foster the passion for, and plant the seed of what would someday germinate into a crazy idea to turn an abandoned historic schoolhouse into the 10 bedroom, 10,000 sq. ft world class fishing destination known the world over, equipped with a fleet of eight vessels, a staff of 20 plus dedicated team members-touting an unrivaled immersion into the Cajun way of life; The Cajun Vista Lodge at Bourgeois Fishing Charters. In 2001 my family purchased the building that was once the Barataria Elementary School and began the arduous process of turning this behemoth of a structure into a world class fishing lodge. After many years and various stages of construction, the old bones of the Barataria Elementary School were turned into the Cajun Vista Fishing Lodge and Retreat Center-slowly and surely through persistence and perseverance.