Occupation: Wife and mother, and previously worked in the medical field
Husband: Governor Jeff Landry
Child: Jeffrey (JT), 20
Hobbies: Tennis, reading, service, and spending time with family and friends
For Louisiana’s First Lady Sharon Landry, family and community come first. Despite the titles that come with being the wife of Governor Jeff Landry, she remains deeply rooted to the joys of Louisiana life—family gatherings at the camp, casual meals on paper plates, and time spent on the Bayou. As a devoted mother, wife, and a leader in her own right, she is passionate about helping families thrive in Louisiana.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE FAMILY TRADITION THAT CELEBRATES LOUISIANA’S CULTURE?
SHARON: My favorite holiday is Thanksgiving, because there’s not a lot of pressure. We go to our hunting camp, and the Landrys and the LeBlancs come. Everybody brings a dish, Jeff and his brothers cook the turkeys, and everybody’s together, visiting out on the Bayou and eating on paper plates. It’s really casual. It’s just about giving thanks for all that God has given us and feeling blessed.
IF YOU COULD PLAN THE PERFECT FAMILY DAY, WHAT WOULD IT INCLUDE?
SHARON: Usually cooking with the family out by the water. My son loves to wake board; also boating—either on the Bayou or at the beach—fishing, just being surrounded by family and friends.
WHAT’S A FUNNY OR MEMORABLE PARENTING MOMENT YOU’VE HAD WITH JT?
SHARON: There are so many, but one I can remember is [when] Jeff took JT, when he was five, six, or seven, to a hunting ranch in Texas. I was not there; it was a father-son trip. They had a pool out there and were redoing it, but they had put water in it and all this blue dye, and JT just accidentally fell in, and he came out looking like a little blue Smurf. So I said, well, that’s what happens when you leave them with the husband. They get free rein, and they love it. I’m sure it was accidental but intentional to get in the water and go swim.
HOW HAS RAISING A FAMILY IN LOUISIANA SHAPED YOUR VALUES AND PARENTING STYLE?
SHARON: I come from a family with five kids, and my parents were great role models and examples towards me and my family, as well as Jeff’s parents. He comes from four, and he’s the oldest. Me and my twin sister are the babies. I think [having] real strong family roots, being there, being present, teaching them to be good stewards of the state and to always give back to the community, and to leave the state better than we found it [is important.] You always want to give your kids more than you had and to remind them to give back and help a community in service.
WHAT LESSONS ABOUT KINDNESS AND COMMUNITY DO YOU HOPE TO PASS ON TO JT?
SHARON: As a mother, you just hope that you teach them to be kind, to be good, to always give back to the community. You want them to grow up in a better place than you were, and that’s what Jeff’s doing, that’s what I’m doing. We’re trying to make the state better. We want people to stay in the state. We want people to come home. Our whole theme of the inauguration was “Come Back Home.” We want to instill in them to stay here, to raise a family here, and the strong roots that we were taught.
AS FIRST LADY, WHAT INITIATIVES ARE YOU MOST PASSIONATE ABOUT WHEN IT COMES TO SUPPORTING LOUISIANA’S FAMILIES?
SHARON: When we started the Love One Louisiana Foundation, we didn’t want to focus on just one group. I wanted to reach across all of Louisiana on all its issues, because there are so many needs in the state, whether it comes to single mothers, education, health care, tragedies like January 1, or hurricanes for providing shelter and food. That’s why we called it Love One Louisiana, to encompass all of Louisiana. If something comes up and we want to help, we reach out and support them in their needs. We just started the foundation in January, so we’re just kicking it off. The tragedy on January 1 really kicked us into high gear, so we’ve raised money, and we’re working on getting that to the victims and the injured right now.
WHAT’S ONE PIECE OF ADVICE YOU’D GIVE TO FELLOW MOMS ABOUT BALANCING FAMILY, WORK, AND SERVICE?
SHARON: Family is the most important thing to me. Being a parent is the hardest job you can ever have, and it always comes first to me: God, family, then your job. With Jeff working and traveling, my main focus was to be there with JT. We had one child and I didn’t have another one to try out; I have to get this one right. It was really important for me to stay home, be with him through school, and all his extracurricular activities, being a caregiver, a scheduler, counselor—and we’re still doing that. He’s in college now, and so I was always home. When Jeff considered running for governor, I asked him to wait until JT graduated high school, because I knew in high school, Jeff would come in to play more. I always say I had him for about 15 years, and in high school, he needed his father. He needed the father figure, and so we agreed, and Jeff didn’t decide to run until JT’s senior year. He’s the most important thing in our lives, and we needed to keep the family together, be there for him, and [for him] to know that he came first.
WHAT DOES “HOME” IN LOUISIANA MEAN TO YOU AND YOUR FAMILY?
SHARON: Home is back in Acadiana, back in Broussard, back at the camp. We have a camp in Catahoula, which is 20 minutes from our home in Broussard, so that’s home, and being either one of those places with family and friends, hanging out. The mansion is the work home, so we have lots of homes, and we try to make all of them as comfortable as possible and welcoming to everyone that wants to come visit.
WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR THE NEXT GENERATION OF CHILDREN AND FAMILIES?
SHARON: That they have a safe community, where they have opportunities and can reach their goals, no matter what background they come from, and that they feel loved.
