NEW ORLEANS — Dolores “Tuttie” Kepner, the founder and longtime captain of the Krewe of Cleopatra, died Thursday. She was 89.
The Carnival krewe announced her death Friday in a Facebook post.
“She devoted the last 48 years of her life to this wonderful organization and was the heart and soul of the parade. She was a true pioneer and a fearless leader who will always be our Captain,” the krewe wrote.
Kepner founded the all-female krewe which first rolled on the West Bank in 1973. “At that time, men had Bacchus and Endymion,” Kepner told Times-Picayune reporter John Pope earlier this year. “I saw (those parades) and thought it would be nice to have a ladies’ organization.”
Cleopatra, named after the legendary Egyptian monarch, first rolled with 250 members and the theme “Cleopatra’s Queens and Enchantresses."
It moved to the Uptown parade route in 2013 and now has close to 1,500 members. In recent years it has paraded on the first Friday night of the official city parade calendar.
Kepner was an Algiers native and self-described housewife who had never been on a float, but didn’t let that stop her from launching a new krewe. She and a group that included her husband and her sister, Joycelyn Champagne, set out to launch the new krewe, with the help of float builder Blaine Kern, also an Algiers native.
Kepner and Champagne served as co-captains until 1975, when Kepner took over the title full-time.
“It’s a big joy. I like people, so it’s easy for me to enjoy myself,” Kepner said earlier this year.
"Those of us who were fortunate enough to know her will remember her as a charismatic friend and loving person," the krewe wrote in its post Friday. "Her greatest love was for her family, which included the Krewe. The Krewe of Cleopatra, Mardi Gras, and the city of New Orleans have lost an icon."
"Her passion and spirit will continue to live on through this parade. We look forward to honoring and celebrating her memory this year and every year to come. She leaves behind a legacy that we will always cherish and will work tirelessly to carry on."
Funeral arrangements are pending.
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