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VINCENT PETER VALENTI

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:37pm

Vincent Peter Valenti, 72, a native of New Orleans and resident of Sorrento, died Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021, at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center in Baton Rouge.
He is survived by his wife, Maryline Valenti of Sorrento; two daughters, Brenda Gordon of Texas and LilyMae LeBlanc of Sorrento; stepdaughter, Aspyn Allen of Sorrento; sister, Helen Carbo of Chalmette; four grandchildren; and four great-grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his parents and two step-daughters.
Visitation will be Friday at Twin City Funeral Home from 10 a.m. until services at noon. Burial will follow in Morgan City Cemetery.
Twin City Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

JOSEPH EDWARD HAMLETT

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:33pm

Joseph Edward Hamlett, 48, a native of New York and resident of Galliano, died Wednesday, Aug. 25, 2021, at his residence.
He is survived by his wife, Melissa Toups Hamlett of Galliano; three children, Cassianna Hamlett, Shelbi Hamlett, of Morgan City, Brédyn Hamlett of Galliano; step-son, Jaé Falgout of Galliano; brother, Don Hamlett of Patterson; and two grandchildren.
He was preceded in death by his father, mother, stepfather, maternal and paternal grandparents.
Visitation will be Saturday at Twin City Funeral Home from 3 p.m. until services at 6 p.m. He will be laid to rest at a later date.
Twin City Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Photos of damage in Port Fourchon, Grand Isle

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:32pm

Submitted Photos
The office of U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy, R-La., posted these photos after an aerial survey of damage caused by Hurricane Ida in southeast Louisiana. Top Photo: Damage was extreme at Port Fourchon, near where the hurricane came ashore at midday Sunday as a Category 4 storm. Second Photo: These pictures show damage at Grand Isle. Above: A dangerous storm surge caused flooding across the southeastern part of the state.

MABLE M. COLLINS

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:26pm

September 23, 1944 — August 23, 2021
Mable M. Collins, 76, a resident of Church Point, passed away on Monday, August 23, 2021 at The Carpenter House in Lafayette.
Mable was born on September 23, 1944 in Franklin, the daughter of Albert Domingue and Annette Bonin Domingue.
Mable loved playing cards and doing puzzles. She loved being outdoors planting flowers, watching her hummingbirds at the feeder or on the water fishing. Always on our minds and forever in our hearts.
She will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by three daughters, Belinda Daigle of Church Point, Nina White and husband Michael of Berwick, Christine Deshotel and husband Richard of Franklin; eight grandchildren, Nicholas Daigle, Maranda Raber, Brandon Billiot, Chase Billiot, Randal Billiot, Bradly White, Richard “Richie” Deshotel and Christopher Deshotel; 22 great-grandchildren; one sister, Fannie Marcotte of Franklin.
Mable was preceded in death by her parents, Albert and Annette Bonin Domingue; her husband, Kenneth Collins; four sisters, Ophelia Waguespack, Louise Hunter, Lucille Bonin, Theresa Bonin.
Memorial services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 4, 2021 at Twin City Funeral Home with a memorial visitation being held from 9:00 a.m. until the time of the service. Following the services, Mable will be laid to rest in the Morgan City Cemetery Mausoleum.

RELLA MAE FONTENOT

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:25pm

May 22, 1926 — August 30, 2021
Rella Mae Fontenot, 95, a resident of Morgan City, passed away peacefully on Monday, August 30, 2021 at her home.
Rella was born on May 22, 1926 in Ville Platte, the daughter of Bernard Tremie and Eumia Fontenot Tremie.
Together with her husband Jesse, they owned and operated Jesse Fontenot Inc. Texaco Fuel Dock for 60 years. She loved spending time with her family and enjoyed cooking for them. She enjoyed her trips out to eat and thoroughly enjoyed traveling with her husband and daughter.
She will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by six grandchildren, Jeffrey Fontenot and wife Becky, Kelly Whittington, Nicole Ehrett, Tonya Metz, Joe Metz and Alaina Smith; and 10 great-grandchildren, Jesse, Haley, Tate, D.J., Gabrille, Addie, Clint, Emma, Ethan and Lana.
Rella was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Jesse Fontenot; two children, Sandra Metz Fisher and Doyle Fontenot; two brothers, Delbert Tremie and Rayford Tremie; and two sisters, Lou Fontenot and Audrey Warnot.
Graveside services were held at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, September 1, 2021 in the Morgan City Cemetery.

HORACE JAMES KELLY JR.

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:23pm

Horace James Kelly Jr., a resident of Morgan City, died Thursday, Aug. 26, 2021, at his residence.
Visitation will be Saturday from noon until services at 2 p.m. at New Zorah Baptist Church in Morgan City. Masks and social distancing required.
He is survived by his wife, Julia Ann Jack Kelly of Morgan City; children, Marcelle Hoskins, Kelly Night Sr. and Michelle Knight, all of Morgan City, Jamie Brown of Spencer, Oklahoma, Quindell Mitchell of Verdunville, LaShonda Kelly of Baton Rouge, Kelly Knight Sr. and Sharice Gibson of Baldwin; siblings, Charlie Kelly, James Kelly, Billy Kelly, Charles Kelly, Donald Kelly, Rachel Tatmon, Ella Guice, Janice Sly and Donna Kelly; 12 grandchildren; nine great-grandchildren; and a host of other relatives.
He was preceded in death by his parents, two daughters, four siblings, and maternal and paternal grandparents.
Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

DOLLY ANN RATCLIFF GAMBLE

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:22pm

Dolly Ann Ratcliff Gamble, 63, a native of Berwick and resident of Morgan City, died Tuesday, Aug. 24, 2021, at Ochsner St. Mary.
She is survived by five children, Derrick Ratcliff of Thibodaux, Brian Gamble of Bayou L’Ourse, Christopher Gamble of Napoleonville, Kelly Grandin of Pierre Part and Matthew Gamble of Morgan City; 14 grandchildren; parents, Calvin and Kathryn Ratcliff; two sisters, Audrey Caldwell of Amelia and Hilda Michel of Morgan City; and a host of other relatives.
Dolly was preceded in death by her husband and a sister.
Visitation will be Friday from 5 p.m. until services at 7 p.m. at Twin City Funeral Home, who is in charge of arrangements.

EUNICE GIBSON

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:21pm

May 11, 1930 — August 29, 2021
Eunice H. Gibson, 91, a resident of Bayou L’Ourse, passed away peacefully on Sunday, August 29, 2021 at her home surrounded by her loving family.
Eunice was born on May 11, 1930 in Kentwood, the daughter of Darville Hagan and Beatrice Redman Hagan.
She will be sadly missed and lovingly remembered by four children, Verna Justilian and husband VJ of Bayou L’Ourse, John Sons and wife Jill of Sulphur, Tommy Sons and wife Vikki of Morgan City, Becky Dunham and husband Kenneth of Houma; numerous grandchildren, great-grandchildren and great-great-grandchildren; three brothers, Bobby Hagan, Lonnie Hagan and Clifton Hagan.
Eunice was preceded in death by her parents; two husbands, Leo Sons Sr. and C.L. Gibson; seven children, Marylou Veret, Ruby Hearse, Sammy Sons, Troy Sons, Tara Sons, Leo Sons Jr. and Leon Sons; two grandsons, Randy Vaughn, David Sons; four great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, September 3, 2021 at Twin City Funeral Home with Pastor Herb Stanley and Pastor Mac Berseygay officiating. A visitation will be held from 10:00 a.m. until the time of the service and following the services, Eunice will be laid to rest in the Morgan City Cemetery.

Report: August job numbers will be lower than expected

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:20pm

CASEY HARPER, The Center Square

A new jobs report for the month of August found U.S. employers added 374,000 nonfarm, private sector jobs, far short of the 600,000 estimated by Dow Jones.
The report comes amid ongoing concerns over the Delta variant’s impact on the economy and debate over the role of federal unemployment benefits in ongoing joblessness.
ADP’s report comes ahead of the highly anticipated federal jobs report, expected Friday, which will include government workers.
“Our data, which represents all workers on a company’s payroll, has highlighted a downshift in the labor market recovery,” said Nela Richardson, chief economist at ADP, a major payroll company that releases monthly economic data with Moody Analytics. “We have seen a decline in new hires, following significant job growth from the first half of the year.”
The report comes also found that businesses with fewer than 50 employees saw an increase of 86,000 jobs from July to August. Midsized businesses with 50 to 499 employees added 149,000 employees, and large businesses with 500 or more employees added 138,000 workers.
“Service providers continue to lead growth, although the Delta variant creates uncertainty for this sector,” Richardson said. “Job gains across company sizes grew in lockstep, with small businesses trailing a bit more than usual.”
ADP’s report continues a trend of disappointing jobs numbers. Republican-led state governments around the country have pointed out this trend, putting the blame on recently enacted $300 weekly unemployment benefits.
They argue that those benefits, when added to state unemployment payments, discourage Americans from returning to the workforce. Unemployment has fallen since states began turning away the benefits, but proving an entirely causal relationship is difficult.
The August report found a similar trend as July’s report, which showed 330,000 jobs added, well short of the 653,000 estimated by Dow Jones. Experts have predicted a reversal of that trend, but it has not yet materialized.
“Despite the slowdown, job gains are approaching 4 million this year, yet still 7 million jobs short of pre-COVID-19 levels,” Richardson said.
ADP analyzes data from its payrolls, which include 460,000 U.S. businesses that employ nearly 26 million domestic workers.

Map shows peak wind gusts during Hurricane Ida

Thu, 09/02/2021 - 2:16pm

The federal government has developed this map showing peak wind gusts during Hurricane Ida. The map shows gusts of 60-70 mph in east St. Mary Parish, and 50-60 mph gusts in the western part of the parish.