Dr. Ernest W. Kinchen, Jr.
Dr. Ernest W. Kinchen Jr has been selected to receive the Richard J. Catalon Sr. Creole Heritage Award at Vermilionville on Sunday, June 7, 2026. Dr. Kinchen is a trailblazer, a healer, and a leader that has shaped the lives of many in his community. He is a Board-Certified General Surgeon, a Fellow of the American College of Surgeons, a member of the Musser-Burch Medical Society and the Alton Ochsner Surgical Society. He has dedicated over fifty years to medicine and has served his community with unwavering commitment. He has been a mentor, a philanthropist, and an advocate for justice.
Dr. Kinchen’s legacy extends far beyond the operating room. His mission has always been to uplift and inspire, ensuring that future generations have access to education, opportunity, and a strong sense of self-worth.
He is the Founder of the Living Legends Program and Pride Plaza, one of the first multi-specialty medical clinics by African Americans in the Deep South. Pride Plaza was more than just a medical facility! It symbolized what could be accomplished through unity. It provided medical care and a model for Black excellence, resilience, and collaboration. This was a space where Black physicians could thrive, mentor, and uplift one another.
Dr. and Mrs. Kinchen have participated in student exchange programs and activities serving as ambassadors to creole life, sharing with others from other countries our food, music, culture and joie de vie particular to this region of Louisiana. Dr. Kinchen has also participated and presented at events that support and highlight the Creole way of life such as our museums, cooking, storytelling and farming.
Dr. Kinchen has expressed that, “My dream has always been for all people, especially African Americans, to love, respect, empathize, and support each other, not to behave selfishly, as though there are limited resources, but instead, to give back and share their abundance- to live as God would have us do.”
His accomplishments are too numerous to articulate but a few are as follows:
• He served as the first president of the local society of the National Medical Association,
• In 2012, he was honored as a Living Legend by the Joseph Henry Tyler, Jr. Chapter of the National Medical Association- the only local physician to receive such an honor.
• In 2019, he received the Louisiana CLI & Limb Salvage Club’s Lifetime Achievement Award,
• in 2021, state Senator Gerald Boudreaux honored Dr. Kinchen’s “distinguished medical career and his service to Louisiana Citizens” by Resolution No. 110 that elaborates on many of Dr. Kinchen’s accomplishments and contributions.
• In 2022, Dr Kinchen received the renowned Civil Rights Activist and Freedom Rider David Dennis’s lifetime achievement award from his alma mater, Dillard University.
For over half a century, Dr. Ernest W. Kinchen Jr. has been more than a surgeon; he has been a trailblazer, a mentor, and a force for change. His extraordinary career is defined not just by the thousands of lives he has saved but also by the countless individuals he has uplifted through his unwavering commitment to justice, mentorship, and community empowerment. Dr. Kinchen has truly been an outstanding citizen in this community and deserves such accolades.
Source: kreol Magazine (December 2, 2025)