Richelle Ruth Votaw was born August 31, 1976, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She was born in the spirit in December 1987 and baptized in Jesus name in the Mississippi river at St. Francisville, Louisiana. March 18th, 2022, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana Jesus called Richelle to be with him.

Richelle was an active member of the First Pentecostal Church of Denham Springs.  She was also a member of the American Federation of Teachers.   Richelle’s educational achievements include graduating valedictorian of her class at Community Christian Academy and graduating summa cum laude from SLU with a bachelor’s in education and a master’s in educational technology.

Richelle’s real passion was teaching, and she put a hundred percent in all that she did. She was a teacher at O.W. Dillon in Kentwood, Louisiana for twenty-two years where she was awarded multiple teacher of the year awards.  She taught first, second and third grades, taught fifth and sixth grade reading, oversaw the startup of the school’s first computer lab, and designed and maintained the O.W. Dillon and Kentwood High School’s websites. She was also English as a Second Language (ESL) certified.

Richelle enjoyed traveling.  She travelled extensively throughout the US, Canada, Mexico, and Europe. During her travels in the United States, she visited presidential libraries, several museums, and NASA. Richelle loved the mountains and traveling to see them. She especially enjoyed visiting zoos.  The panda was her favorite animal, and she visited every zoo that housed them.  Besides her love for travel, she also enjoyed hobbies such as cross-stitch, crafting, and collecting.

Richelle was a devoted Christian her entire life.  She loved the Louisiana District Camp Meeting and spent the week there almost every year.  Richelle has taught Sunday school since she was sixteen years old.  She also taught Search for Truth Bible Studies.  Richelle also worked as a field editor for God’s Word for Life a division of Pentecostal Publishing House.  She always put God first, then family, church, and country.

Richelle was preceded in death by her father, Richard Franklin Votaw, her paternal grandparents, William and Marie Votaw and her maternal grandparents, Allen, and Elaine Johnson. She is survived by her mother, Nell Johnson Votaw. Richelle will be missed by her uncles, aunts, cousins, and Charlie her “support dog”.

A service celebrating her life will be held on Wednesday, March 23, 2022, at 7:30 pm at First Pentecostal Church, Denham Springs, visitation will begin at 5:00 pm. Graveside service will be held at 11 am on Thursday at Evergreen Memorial Park. Arrangements with Church Funeral Services.

To view Richelle’s tribute video please click the link below:

https://www.tributeslides.com/tributes/show/TZGBC72NRDQ9RXNM