THIBODAUX, La. (AP) - Not all heroes wear capes, but sometimes they do.
Todd Prevost, an investigator with the Lafourche Parish District Attorney’s Office, wears one when he dresses like Batman to bring joy to sick kids.
Wearing a costume inspired by Christopher Nolan’s “Dark Knight” trilogy, Prevost began appearing as Batman in hospitals, birthday parties and special events three years ago.
“It’s magical the way children look up at you,” the 44-year-old Thibodaux resident said. “They truly believe you are that person they see, that Batman figure. I hope it brings them a little happiness and a little joy, even if it’s just for a brief moment and gets them to forget what’s going on.”
Like the original, Prevost’s Batman origin story began with a tragedy.
His wife, Lt. Courtney Curole, died four years ago following a battle with leukemia. Not only did Curole serve with the Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office, but she also oversaw the creation of the Safetyville exhibit at the Bayou Children’s Museum in Thibodaux.
She also was an avid fan of the Dark Knight, Prevost said.
“I was more of a Superman fan,” he said. “We both enjoyed Batman, but she took a special liking to him. During the course of her struggles, people would send her things related to Batman to try and strengthen her up.”
After his wife succumbed to cancer, Prevost said he was determined to do something to keep her memory alive.
“After some of the grieving process was done with initially, I felt there was more to be done that could help her spirit live on,” he said. “So why not Batman? He’s a lot easier than Superman anyway. I’m like 5 foot 8. I can’t really pull off the Superman gig, but I can more easily pull Batman off. I started researching cosplay and costumes and things like that which led me to order a Batman suit from Orlando.”
Instead of catching bad guys, the objective of Prevost’s Caped Crusader is to bring a child a moment of joy during a tough time.
“I know illness,” he said. “I saw what my wife went through and I can’t imagine how a child feels about it. If I could just take some of that away for a little while, that’s my goal.”
By helping kids Prevost said he’s also helping himself through the healing process.
“People tell me what I’m doing is selfless, but I turn around and say it’s kind of selfish of me because I get a lot of healing from it,” he said. “I do it for everybody, but I also do it for myself because it’s in the name of my wife.”
Like his masked alter ego, Prevost said he learned to persevere through life’s hardships and wants to help others do the same.
Prevost has a Batman quote tattooed on his back that was given to him by a priest who presided over his wife’s funeral.
It reads:
“When I’d finally mastered my fear, I went to take another look at the world. No, that’s inaccurate. I went out to learn how to be strong enough to face it. To defend it. To gaze into it and accept it for what it was…without flinching.”
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