May 17, 2020 was a sad day for Jefferson Parish, the City of Gretna and the Westbank in general with the passing of the Honorable Henry Garland Sullivan Jr., a Judge to the Louisiana 24th Judicial District Court “Division M” since 1996. His tenure on the bench included his appointment as Chief Judge in 2008.
The community grieved with his loving wife of 32 years, Judy Jambon Sullivan and his children, Kathleen Sullivan Couvillion, Lauren Sullivan Havrylkoff, Alicia Hindelang Austin and Henry G. Sullivan III. His grandchildren whom he loved and adored included Evan Michael Schiavi, Sean Patrick Sullivan, Michael James Tebbe, Christopher Henry Tebbe, Morgan Sullivan Tebbe, Mason Jude Austin, Davis Hartford Austin and many loving step great grandchildren.
Sean Patrick Sullivan, Mason Austin and Davis Austin live in Birmingham and always loved coming to see their Pop in “Greatna.”
Lots of sadness! The Sullivans and Ronnie and (Mayor) Belinda Constant were best couple friends. Ronnie Constant is still grieving, he could only say, “Henry was the kindest, most gentle man I have ever met and it was a privilege to call him my friend.”
Belinda Constant said, “My heart is so full I can’t put into words what he meant to me. As couples, we were best friends for 30 years. We traveled together, hung out, laughed together and cried together. The loss of Henry is huge, it has taken a piece of our hearts.
“Judy and I were always involved in something, from non-profits to fundraising to political campaigns. Henry and Ronnie just let us do our thing. Henry and Judy were original committee members who started and volunteered at the Gretna Farmers Market for many years. Henry loved the city he called home and Gretna is a better place because of him. While a part of us is gone, we will continue to live with him in our hearts,” she said.
So beloved among the jurist community was he, that plans were developed and laid to honor him in a very special way. It started with the efforts of Gretna resident Blair Constant, an assistant district attorney to dedicate the Jefferson Parish Jury Room in his memory.
“Besides being someone who was close to my family, he was a judge who enjoyed a universal reputation among his colleagues and lawyers as not only a special person, but a true judge. This was the primary reason I thought, and the Jefferson Bar Association (J.B.A.) believed, he should be honored in this special way. Additionally, and for all practicable purpose, he died while in office. But for his battle with cancer, he would be serving the remainder of his term today, and no other Jefferson Parish judge, at least in recent times has died in office,” Blair Constant said.
“Once the J.B.A. approved the idea, I worked with several individuals to get this done, and it needed to be a team effort to show solidarity in the court system of honoring his contribution to the court,” he said.
The first to approve the idea was the man who is responsible for the jury assembly room, Clerk of Court Jon Gegenheimer who said, “I knew Henry for over 40 years, as a friend and a colleague in the court system. He was a true gentleman and a great judge. I was delighted to be among those who honored him by dedicating the Jefferson Parish jury room as the “Henry Garland Sullivan, Jr. Jury Assembly Room” in his memory,” Jon Gegenheimer said.
“Chief Judge Ellen Kovach, on behalf of the 24th Judicial District Court bench quickly approved the idea. Finally, but certainly not least, Parish President Cynthia Lee-Sheng and Councilman Marion Edwards both
supported the idea. The Jefferson Parish Council unanimously passed the resolution to dedicate the jury room and June 24, 2020 was officially named “Judge Henry G. Sullivan, Jr. Day in Jefferson Parish.”
Creating and ordering the plaque came next with input from the team, including Constant, Kovach, Edwards and the J.B.A. Board.
“Henry was an incredible man. He was the perfect judge, intelligent, hardworking and the most ethical elected official I have ever known. I respected him as a fellow judge and loved him as my dear friend. It was my good fortune to have shared as much of my career with him as I did,” Councilman Marion Edwards said.
“COVID-19 caused a delay in the planning of the event to unveil the plaque. Finally, on October 22 the dedication was held. J.B.A. President Jason Cavignac presided as master of ceremonies and Kovach, Edwards and Gegenheimer spoke about Judge Sullivan. Gegenheimer along with Judy (Sullivan) and the family unveiled the plaque that is now on display outside the room,” Blair Constant said.
Chief Judge Ellen Kovach said, “Judge Sullivan was the epitome of a good judge. Socrates described the essential qualities of a good judge 2400 years ago saying “four things belong to a good judge: to hear courteously, to answer wisely, to consider soberly, and to decide impartially.
“These words true today describe the kind of judge the honorable Henry Sullivan was patient, dignified and courteous, to jurors, litigants, witnesses, attorneys and all others. He listened patiently and he answered, with wisdom born of intelligence and experience, just as he listened, courteously.
“For Judge Sullivan, courtesy in the court room was not only about good manners, civility and politeness. It was about embodying the highest standards of judicial and personal conduct at all times. Judge Sullivan was an excellent judge who always exhibited exemplary temperament. Patient and calm, Judge Sullivan treated all whom he encountered with dignity and respect. He was a credit to the bench and a credit to the human race,” she said.
It was fitting to renaming the jury room in his honor for Judge Sullivan placed great value on jury service. When family or friends would reach out seeking to be excused from jury duty, it is said that he would respond “absolutely not! We need good people like you to serve on our juries.”
“Judge Sullivan didn’t just talk the talk, he walked the walk. When he was called to serve, that he did, and although not selected, his wife Judy can tell you she still has the $12 check the clerk sent Judge Sullivan for his jury service, which of course, true to form, he did not cash. Judge Sullivan also took great care, time, and attention with jurors, from coming down to this jury assembly room to greet prospective jurors even when he did not have a trial, to talking with his juries after their verdict was handed down, answering their questions and addressing their concerns,” Kovach said.
Born on Sept. 4, 1947, Judge Sullivan was a life-long resident of the Westbank, a devoted parishioner of St. Joseph Church and Shrine where he was often seen at the “working person’s daily 12:10 Mass.” So devoted was he to St. Joseph’s that he decided before his death, when planning his funeral that he had a special request involving the church. In lieu of flowers, he asked that his friends would donate instead to the St. Joseph Restoration Fund and they generously complied. The judge thought this might be a good idea for others who lost loved ones might help the restoration fund.
He loved his Catholic faith and he dearly loved the Irish! He was so proud and truly honored to be selected as the 2005 “Grand Marshall” of the Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club. He celebrated St. Patrick’s Day with, and mentored his oldest grandson, Evan Schiavi, a practicing attorney who dearly loved his Pop. The Sullivan’s visited Ireland many times.
Michael G. Fanning, also of Irish descent said, “Henry and I met when we both started the Jefferson Parish District Attorney’s office as assistant district attorneys on the same day in February 1982. We had both started out as attorneys a little later than most, having graduated from college and trying our hands at jobs that were not particularly suited to us. Henry was a quiet, almost cerebral, presence. I was a brash, vulgar ex-cop. I guess opposites attract. We became friends immediately and grew to become best friends.
“Perhaps his greatest trait was that he was a good listener. He made everyone he met feel that he or she was important to him and what that person had to say was worth listening to. When out and about, he took the time to stop and speak to anyone he knew that he ran into. It was a joke in the D.A.’s office that when a group of us, including Henry went to lunch, we told him that we were going a half hour earlier than when we intended to go. We knew he would stop to take the time to greet and converse with whomever he met on the way out of the courthouse, causing us to wait while he did so. Often, we were still late.
“Although Hank had strong feelings about many things, he respected everyone’s views, a rarity today. We did not hold the same outlook on a few things, but if we spoke about them, he never thought less of me for my opinions. In all of my years knowing him, I cannot recall him ever losing his temper. His anger displayed itself as a simmering pot. It never boiled over, at least around me.
“He adored Judy and his kids and grandkids, proudly accepting Judy’s daughter from her first marriage as his own. Social media notwithstanding, I believe that the quality of your friendships is more important than the quantity. I was undeniably fortunate to have Henry as my friend. I have not had, and could not have, a better friend,” Fanning said.
Judge Sullivan graduated from De La Salle High School in 1965, earned a bachelor of science from Southeastern Louisiana University in 1969, his juris doctorate degree from Loyola Law School in 1974. He was in private practice for 22 years and served as an Assistant Jefferson Parish Attorney, as legal advisor to the Jefferson Parish Sheriff’s Office and as a Jefferson Parish Assistant District Attorney.
His love for his neighborhood and community shows in his long list of civic involvement that included the Gretna Community Association, the Gretna Historical Society, the Jefferson Historical Society of Louisiana, the West Bank Rotary Club, Rotary International, Ancient Order of Hibernians, Irish Channel St. Patrick’s Day Club, the Forty Niners and the St. Thomas More Catholic Lawyers Association.
He also belonged to countless professional associations, was a member of The National Judicial College Alumni and a Fellow of the Louisiana Bar Foundation.
Judge Sullivan’s kindness, compassion, quiet strength, dignified manner, wisdom and warm smile will never be forgotten.
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