Roland Belanger, a native of Montegut, served in the Marines in World War II and then began working in the Texas Company shipyard in 1946. Within a few months, he transferred to Bay Ste. Elaine as a roustabout. By 1960 he was a driller on the Terrebonne Bay, making toolpusher in 1963. In 1968, after an injury, he was assigned to a cost study team to evaluate costs of drilling. Returning to toolpushing in 1972, he worked in Mississippi and Florida, finishing his career as rig superintendent in 1983.