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Berwick's Mikah Ortiz earns coaches association Class 3A All-State honors

Mon, 06/17/2019 - 9:40am
Staff Report

Berwick High School freshman Mikah Ortiz was named a Louisiana Softball Coaches Association Class 3A All-State utility player.
Ortiz finished her freshman season with a .563 batting average with 11 doubles, three triples, 23 RBIs, 31 runs scored and 12 stolen bases.
She is one of five selections from District 8-3A, which Berwick competes in, to make the squad.
Other representatives were utility selections Carina Chargois and Meryl Guidry, both of Kaplan; infielder Chloe Landry and utility selection Lexie Gisclair, both of Erath; and infielder Ainsley Constanine of North Vermilion.
Brusly High School’s Beau Bouvier was named Coach of the Year.
No other local players were selected but representatives from their districts were.
In Class 4A, District 7-4A was represented by four players.
Selections were: E.D. White infielder Scout Blades, Vandebilt Catholic infielder Lillie Mazur and Assumption utility players Alise Aysen and Raegan Alleman
West Ouachita’s Ashley Hoyle was named Coach of the Year.
In Class 1A, District 7-1A was represented by three selections from Vermilion Catholic: catcher Sadie Boudreaux and utility players Emily Boudreaux and Ainsley Mallet.
Oak Grove’s Trey Bennett was named Class 1A Coach of the Year.

Wheel House for June 17

Mon, 06/17/2019 - 9:39am

FISH FRY DINNER
Sold by Mt. Esther Baptist Church from 11 a.m. until sold out on Saturday, June 22. Menu: fried fish, white beans and rice, salad, cake and drink. Donation $8.

Soap Opera Review: ‘DAYS’: Psycho Claire, qu’est-ce que c’est?

Mon, 06/17/2019 - 9:38am

THE BOLD AND THE BEAUTIFUL: After learning that Steffy had actually adopted Liam and Hope’s baby, Thomas considered whether to tell Hope. But Thomas threatened Xander, Zoe and Flo, and warned them not to tell anyone that Beth is alive. DAYS OF OUR LIVES: Ben saved Tripp and Haley when a psychotic Claire tried to kill them by burning down the Horton cabin. Haley and J.J. later said goodbye as she was about to be deported to China. Stefan gave Nicole (Kristen in disguise) a job at DiMera. GENERAL HOSPITAL: Chase was surprised to learn that Shiloh’s partner in Dawn of Day ...

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Miles Liner Foundation Scholarships

Mon, 06/17/2019 - 9:36am

Four local seniors have been awarded the seventh annual Miles Liner Foundation Scholarship. All photos are submitted by the foundation. Recipients are shown with Mike and Lynn Liner.

Tri-City Swim Team in action this summer

Mon, 06/17/2019 - 9:24am
Staff Report

The Tri-City Swim Team has participated in four meets this summer.
Below are the top times for participating swimmers among the meets they competed in:
Women’s Results
8 & Under 25 Free: 1, Meredith Loupe 23.41; 2, Raylie Pittman 24.21; 3, Ava Berry 26.25; 4, Stella Saleme 27.09; 5, Taylor Macaluso 28.72; 6, Allie Soileau 43.56; 7, Brooke Bolner 57.25.
8 & Under 25 Back: 1, Meredith Loupe 25.56; 2, Stella Saleme 28.16; 3, Raylie Pittman 28.25; 4, Ava Berry 33.72; 5, Taylor Macaluso 34.64; 6, Allie Soileau 52.65; 7, Brooke Bolner 1:04.77.
8 & Under 25 Breast: 1, Stella Saleme 43.93.
8 & Under 25 Fly: 1, Meredith Loupe 32.72; 2, Raylie Pittman 39.50; 3, Taylor Macaluso 42.75.
8 & Under 100 IM: 1, Meredith Loupe 2:18.13; 2, Stella Saleme 2:44.06.
9-10 50 Free: 1, Caroline Izaguirre 32.93; 2, Ella Mae Billiot 33.09; 3, Abigail Macaluso 40.59; 4, Emma Lind 41.09; 5, Katie Colgin 41.51; 6, Gianna Case 42.94; 7, Rebecca Cronier 51.31; 8, Ashley Houghton 1:07.75.
9-10 50 Back: 1, Caroline Izaguirre 39.78; 2, Ella Mae Billiot 44.71; 3, Emma Lind 48.44; 4, Gianna Case 51.50; 5, Katie Colgin 52.15; 6, Abigail Macaluso 53.23; 7, Rebecca Cronier 1:01.44; 8, Ashley Houghton 1:27.40.
9-10 50 Breast: 1, Ella Mae Billiot 48.94; 2, Abigail Macaluso 58.94; 3, Emma Lind 1:01.06; 4, Rebecca Cronier 1:22.31.
9-10 50 Fly: 1, Caroline Izaguirre 39.09; 2, Gianna Case 51.43; 3, Katie Colgin 54.00; 4, Abigail Macaluso 55.53.
9-10 100 IM: 1, Caroline Izaguirre 1:31.50; 2, Ella Mae Billiot 1:32.63; 3, Gianna Case 1:50.13; 4, Abigail Macaluso 1:56.94; 5, Emma Lind 2:00.47.
11-12 50 Free: 1, Madison Izaguirre 36.50; 2, Giselle Ramos 36.87; 3, Aubrey Richoux 37.16; 4, Addison Loupe 37.50; 5, Abigail Foreman 38.13; 6, Kylee Askew 39.00; 7, Natalie Faust 39.62; 8, Ashley Tabor 40.38; 9, Catherine Izaguirre 40.81; 10, Kaitlyn Kapp 41.72; 11, Caroline Mensman 45.68; 12; Kate Bailey 48.16; 13, Hannah Dalton 51.40; 14, Riley Terrebonne 52.63; 15, Isabell Ortiz 55.90.
11-12 50 Back: 1, Giselle Ramos 40.59; 2, Madison Izaguirre 45.97; 3, Aubrey Richoux 46.69; 4, Ashley Tabor 46.94; 5, Abigail Foreman 49.37; 6, Kaitlyn Kapp 50.25; 7, Addison Loupe 50.38; 8, Kylee Askew 51.00; 9, Natalie Faust 51.16; 10, Catherine Izaguirre 56.03; 11, Kate Bailey 57.87; 12, Riley Terrebonne 58.05; 13, Hannah Dalton 1:01.80; 14, Caroline Mensman 1:02.03; 15, Isabell Ortiz 1:09.75.
11-12 50 Breast: 1, Madison Izaguirre 48.66; 2, Ashley Tabor 48.81; 3, Aubrey Richoux 51.38; 4, Addison Loupe 51.93; 5, Giselle Ramos 55.69; 6, Kaitlyn Kapp 59.23; 7, Hannah Dalton 1:09.06; 8, Isabell Ortiz 1:20.28.
11-12 50 Fly: 1, Kylee Askew 44.75; 2, Natalie Faust 45.09; 3, Abigail Foreman 49.25; 4, Catherine Izaguirre 56.03; 5, Caroline Mensman 1:01.34.
11-12 100 IM: 1, Madison Izaguirre 1:37.50; 2, Giselle Ramos 1:41.10; 3, Addison Loupe 1:42.03; 4, Ashley Tabor 1:43.88; 5, Abigail Foreman 1:44.53.
13-14 50 Free: 1, Emma Clements 32.47; 2, Emerald Begley 32.90; 3, Alexa Leftwich 33.71; 4, Annemarie Campbell 34.38; 5, Oliviah Mensman 35.75; 6, Shelby Knapp 37.28; 7, Isabella Duval 39.13; 8, Sofia Cepeda 39.19; 9, Mikah Ortiz 45.98.
13-14 50 Back: 1, Emma Clements 41.25; 2, Shelby Knapp 43.88; 3, Isabella Duval 45.41; 4, Alexa Leftwich 46.56; 5, Annemarie Campbell 48.29; 6, Oliviah Mensman 51.78; 7, Sofia Cepeda 54.72; 8, Mikah Ortiz 1:02.10.
13-14 50 Breast: 1, Annemarie Campbell 44.75; 2, Isabella Duval 46.53; 3, Mikah Ortiz 50.50; 4, Oliviah Mensman 53.81; 5, Shelby Knapp 59.93.
13-14 50 Fly: 1, Emerald Begley 39.41; 2, Emma Clements 39.63; 3, Alexa Leftwich 43.84.
13-14 100 IM: 1, Emma Clements 1:26.35; 2, Emerald Begley 1:28.64; 3, Alexa Leftwich 1:39.06; 4, Annemarie Campbell 1:39.94; 5, Isabella Duval 1:41.78.
50 Free: 1, Madeline Albritton 29.59; 2, Megan Soileau 30.60; 3, Kaylee Percle 31.31; 4, Grace Campbell 32.25; 5, Natalie Kinchen 32.75; 6, Randi Joubert 33.48; 7, Madyln Hall 35.62; 8, Kyleigh Arceneaux 36.40; 9, Anna Leleux 37.47; 10, Hannah Bailey 37.53; 11, Briana Richard 41.28; 12, Katie Taylor 41.65; 13, Mia Cepeda 47.75; 14, Winnie Mabile 50.37.
50 Back: 1, Megan Soileau 37.50; 2, Kaylee Percle 41.01; 3, Randi Joubert 41.59; 4, Kyleigh Arceneaux 45.44; 5, Madyln Hall 47.92; 6, Hannah Bailey 49.34; 7, Briana Richard 49.81; 8, Anna Leleux 49.97; 9, Katie Taylor 53.53; 10, Mia Cepeda 1:00.38, 11, Winnie Mabile 1:04.72.
50 Breast: 1, Megan Soileau 41.47; 2, Madeline Albritton 41.69; 3, Grace Campbell 42.44; 4, Kaylee Percle 43.82; 5, Hannah Bailey 45.09; 6, Natalie Kinchen 45.73; 7, Anna Leleux 48.50; 8, Winnie Mabile 54.53; 9, Mia Cepeda 58.66.
50 Fly: 1, Madeline Albritton 33.56; 2, Megan Soileau 35.75; 3, Natalie Kinchen 37.72; 4, Madyln Hall 39.56; 5, Grace Campbell 39.70; 6, Randi Joubert 41.75; 7, Kyleigh Arceneaux 42.97.
100 IM: 1, Madeline Albritton 1:19.31; 2, Megan Soileau 1:23.80; 3, Kaylee Percle 1:26.97; 4, Natalie Kinchen 1:28.75; 5, Randi Joubert 1:28.77; 6, Grace Campbell 1:30.21; 7, Madyln Hall 1:39.71; 8, Kyleigh Arceneaux 1:42.56.
Men’s Results
8 & Under 25 Free: 1, Zachary Ziegenbusch 22.28; 2, Benjamin LaCoste 22.78; 3, Preston Beattie 27.16; 4, Blake Bolner 31.63; 5, Zane Leftwich 34.50; 6, Gavin St. Romain 35.37; 7, Grayson Montgomery 37.76; 8, August Ziegenbusch 41.03; 9, Ryder Sikes 43.06.
8 & Under 25 Back: 1, Zachary Ziegenbusch 24.75; 2, Benjamin LaCoste 27.09; 3, Preston Beattie 31.45; 4, Gavin St. Romain 36.31; 5, Blake Bolner 36.59; 6, Grayson Montgomery 39.27; 7, Zane Leftwich 40.16; 8, August Ziegenbusch 43.31; 9, Ryder Sikes 51.22.
8 & Under 25 Breast: 1, Zachary Ziegenbusch 39.62.
8 & Under 25 Fly: 1, Benjamin LaCoste 31.69; 2, Preston Beattie 40.06; 3, Zane Leftwich 41.59; 4, Gavin St. Romain 48.00.
8 & Under 100 IM: 1, Zachary Ziegenbusch 2:36.53; 2, Preston Beattie 2:50.01.
9-10 50 Free: 1, Trent Stocktill 38.10; 2, Joseph Berry 38.62; 3, Robert Dupont 41.00; 4, Michael Carbonell 43.90; 5, Kristian Izaguirre 44.40; 6, Zephan Soileau 45.00; 7, Reece Arceneaux 47.03; 8, Gavin DiMatteo 49.33; 9, Wyatt Aucoin 53.69; 10, Graham St. Romain 53.71; 11, Jayden Prevost 1:02.93.
9-10 50 Back: 1, Joseph Berry 47.40; 2, Trent Stocktill 48.19; 3, Robert Dupont 50.44; 4, Kristian Izaguirre 51.88; 5, Gavin DiMatteo 55.53; 6, Reece Arceneaux 56.36; 7, Michael Carbonell 1:00.65; 8, Zephan Soileau 1:03.22; 9, Wyatt Aucoin 1:03.34; 10, Graham St. Romain 1:05.97; 11, Jayden Prevost 1:15.31.
9-10 50 Breast: 1, Joseph Berry 58.62; 2, Kristian Izaguirre 1:01.49; 3, Zephan Soileau 1:02.37; 4, Gavin DiMatteo 1:05.22.
9-10 50 Fly: 1, Joseph Berry 49.62; 2, Robert Dupont 50.38; 3, Reece Arceneaux 59.75; 4, Trent Stocktill 1:00.93; 5, Michael Carbonell 1:19.32; 6, Graham St. Romain 1:25.03; 7, Wyatt Aucoin 1:46.35.
9-10 100 IM: 1, Joseph Berry 1:45.60; 2, Kristian Izaguirre 2:02.07; 3, Gavin DiMatteo 2:05.38; 4, Reece Arceneaux 2:20.45.
11-12 50 Free: 1, Cadyn Fabre 34.87; 2, Justyn Gilmore 39.18; 3, Jeremy Gilmore 39.31; 4, James Bolner 43.47.
11-12 50 Back: 1, Cadyn Fabre 45.12; 2, Jeremy Gilmore 48.36; 3, James Bolner 53.16; 4, Justyn Gilmore 56.34;
11-12 50 Breast: 1, Justyn Gilmore 55.71; 2, James Bolner 1:05.31.
11-12 50 Fly: 1, Jeremy Gilmore 44.01; 2, Cadyn Fabre 47.36.
11-12 100 IM: 1, Cadyn Fabre 1:45.75; 2, Jeremy Gilmore 1:46.24; 3, Justyn Gilmore 1:47.34.
13-14 50 Free: 1, Carson LeBlanc 26.69; 2, Zachary Campbell 28.18; 3, Jake Clement 28.97; 4, Matthew Klein 30.91; 5, Zackery Soileau 31.59; 6, Noah Castaneda 32.34; 7, Cameron LaCoste 32.41; 8, Luke Bailey 33.94; 9, Mayson Landry 39.12; 10, Colin Knapp 42.68.
13-14 50 Back: 1, Carson LeBlanc 33.19; 2, Zachary Campbell 35.47; 3, Jake Clement 38.25; 4, Matthew Klein 39.84; 5, Cameron LaCoste 40.25; 6, Zackery Soileau 42.81; 7, Luke Bailey 42.94; 8, Noah Castaneda 43.05; 9, Colin Knapp 50.88; 10, Mayson Landry 56.35.
13-14 50 Breast: 1, Zachary Campbell 36.21; 2, Carson LeBlanc 37.97; 3, Cameron LaCoste 38.53; 4, Luke Bailey 41.01; 5, Noah Castaneda 46.02; 6, Matthew Klein 47.00; 7, Zackery Soileau 47.03; 8, Colin Knapp 47.35; 9, Mayson Landry 52.69.
13-14 50 Fly: 1, Carson LeBlanc 29.84; 2, Zachary Campbell 34.51; 3, Jake Clement 38.00; 4, Noah Castaneda 40.75.
13-14 100 IM: 1, Carson LeBlanc 1:13.03; 2, Zachary Campbell 1:15.68; 3, Noah Castaneda 1:28.52; 4, Luke Bailey 1:30.46.
50 Free: 1, Luke Orlando 26.22; 2, Ty Kapp 26.40; 3, Logan Haines 27.34; 4, Rustin Scarbrough 27.37; 5, James Klein 31.33; 6, Ethan Blanchard 31.41; 7, Anthony Saleme 31.43; 8, Cade Toups 31.44; 9, Keith McCue 31.78; 10, Ethan Kahl 32.68; 11, James Decondris 42.81.
50 Back: 1, Ty Kapp 30.88; 2, Luke Orlando 32.64; 3, Logan Haines 35.87; 4, Rustin Scarbrough 36.40; 5, James Klein 38.83; 6, Cade Toups 39.47; 7, Ethan Blanchard 41.69; 8, Anthony Saleme 44.18; 9, Keith McCue 47.82; 10, Ethan Kahl 49.34; 11, James Decondris 52.90.
50 Breast: 1, Luke Orlando 33.62; 2, Rustin Scarbrough 36.91; 3, Keith McCue 37.16; 4, Logan Haines 37.47; 5, Cade Toups 39.41; 6, Ethan Blanchard 41.90; 7, Anthony Saleme 47.59.
50 Fly: 1, Ty Kapp 27.78; 2, Logan Haines 32.62; 3, James Klein 33.34; 4, Keith McCue 35.22; 5, Ethan Blanchard 37.50; 6, Anthony Saleme, 40.41.
100 IM: 1, Luke Orlando 1:07.75; 2, Ty Kapp 1:10.03; 3, Logan Haines 1:12.31; 4, Rustin Scarbrough 1:13.10; 5, Cade Toups 1:20.91; 6, James Klein 1:22.03; 7, Ethan Blanchard 1:26.84; 8, Anthony Saleme 1:29.59.

Parish council refuses meeting change 5-5

Sun, 06/16/2019 - 6:00am

Parish President David Hanagriff exited the room halfway through the meeting.
Councilman Dale Rogers cited a minister in east St. Mary as the reason.
And a packed house of church congregations watched their effort collapse in two 5-5-1 votes.
All this in a three-hour meeting of the St. Mary Parish Council, during which the majority of time was spent debating whether or not to change the council’s meetings from the second and fourth Wednesdays to the first and third Thursdays.
Previously, the East St. Mary Ministerial Alliance asked the council to make the change so that church members can become more active in parish affairs, but are unable, due to Wednesday’s traditional worship service. Two ordinances were crafted and presented by Councilman Craig Mathews that were up for adopting Wednesday.
The ordinances were footnoted by a memo stating, “Rev. Mathews intends to offer a motion to table this item until the next meeting on June 26, 2019,” outlining the changes in date and times of council meetings if it had passed. Mathews did not move to table.
The council clerk received some 17 correspondences in opposition to the change.
In public hearing before the council meeting, members of the alliance again stated their wish to have the change approved. Rev. Marty Harden, Patterson, said, “This is not one church entity, this is a lot of churches…I want you to know, not as a threat but as a promise, we’re watching.”
Jason Bailey, Morgan City, told the council, “We’re all Christians representing the betterment of each other, the betterment of our parish, to do what’s best for our parish…we need more people to step up, to get involved (in parish government).”
Bailey referred to conflicts with school activities and other organizational functions that are normally held on Thursdays. “They told me if this moved to Thursday, ‘we’re going to have to decide between our children’s athletic and academic events or the parish council.’
“I don’t want to have to make a choice between by children’s’ events and coming to the parish council meeting.”
Jonathan Hebert, Berwick, said he participates in a weekly Thursday function, and that would be a conflict. “I just hope we can find common ground where we can choose a night and time to meet for the parish council.”
Rev. Mark Gowan, Bayou Vista, and president of the alliance, said this issue has existed for “many years.”
“We’ve gone before the parish council before,” he said, noting various attempts to have the date changed, all the way back to the Police Jury. “We keep asking because we would love to be a voice and have that opportunity to be a voice.”
He noted that he and other pastors serve at public meetings to lead prayers and often stay throughout the session to keep abreast of governmental affairs. “We’re just asking that we get to come sometimes and be a part,” he said, adding that he has turned his church over to his son who is now senior pastor.
Rev. Mark Gowan Jr., Patterson, said “our only goal here is if we can make a change, we want to see a change made. We want to help...we’re looking for our opportunity to be involved, our opportunity to run if we want to run, to be a part of what’s happening in our parish that doesn’t conflict with our religious views and meetings.”
Rev. Allen Randle Sr., Franklin, said, “I echo the sentiments of all these people in moving this meeting to Thursday night. There’s a cry, there’s a call. Life is full of changes and some important matters will always face resistance, and that lets me know that there is something that is happening.”
Randle said the people are speaking and “the question is will the cry be ignored by those that we depend on, that we put in office?”
When the ordinance came up for consideration, Parish President David Hanagriff said, “This issue is about a parish council meeting. This is not a parish president’s meeting, this is a parish council meeting. I will not have a vote on it. I am actually in full support of this.”
Hanagriff said the issue has been brought up before, as Randle pointed out. He said it arose again when Chairman Gabriel Beadle approached him on the subject. “This might be the best time, for the reason that we have several long-serving council members that are not going to be on the council anymore (due to term limits.) And when that happens, we get a new crop of councilmen in here, sometimes change is a good thing.”
He asked Beadle to wait while he studied the possibilities of the change.
“Can the administration and the clerk make it happen? In doing that, and looking through it, we can. It’s not easy, but we can do it. It’s very simple: You have a large group of people in St. Mary Parish that go to church every Wednesday…God-fearing people that are passionate about going to church every Wednesday. Why should they have to choose between church and the meetings?”
Hanagriff said school functions “actually helped the argument. You’re telling me that schools aren’t putting functions on Wednesdays because of church? That’s a great thing. Why are they forcing the parish council to do that? Should we follow suit? They’re doing that for a great reason, and I agree with that…we should follow suit.”
Hanagriff said he’s heard that some individuals just want to run for office. “I think that’s a great thing,” he said. “I’m willing to move forward to make my administration make this happen because it’s for the betterment of St. Mary Parish.”
Mathews and Councilman Glenn Hidalgo moved to amend the ordinances to take effect on Jan. 1, rather than before the August qualifying date.
The debate continued with Mathews saying, “No matter which night these meetings are held, somebody’s going to be inconvenienced.”
He said he personally has meetings of some type or another virtually every evening. “My hope is that we can find some happy medium, some compromise, that the people who put this ordinance forward and put in a considerable amount of time and thought and research into it, (will) try to reach some type of compromise.”
Mathews said he welcomed public engagement in not only parish meetings, but all government sessions.
Councilman Patrick Hebert, in a lengthy statement, said a solution would be to simply change the time of the meetings, from the current 6 p.m. to an earlier 5 p.m. or 5:30 p.m.
“We always holler, ‘Let’s get good people in there,’ and it harms my heart to be here tonight with people I love, I know the vast majority of people here, they’re good friends of mine…we’ve got to come up with a better solution for this.”
He said he was in favor of a change at first. He said was approached by Gowan about changing the meeting date, and said he’d consider it. There were later discussions with council members, Hebert said, and the ordinances were introduced, but then removed. They reappeared at a later session.
Hebert said he spoke to clergy and there was agreement that an earlier time for the meetings would be workable.
Councilman Paul Naquin said after 28 years on the council, “I am the only person from the police jury and the parish council that served on the Louisiana Police Jury Association. It would really affect me because most of the meetings are on Wednesday nights. So I do have an issue on time. Not just us, we have to think about the whole parish, people that are working, and have to go home and change clothes and go to the meeting. Let the new council come in and change the date.”
Voters will elect new councilmembers in several seats this fall for the upcoming terms.
Hidalgo said in August those candidates will qualify for election, and there may be people who wish to run, want to know when the meetings will be, not after elected and beginning their tenures.
“A lot of this should have been discussed beforehand,” he said.
Rogers had a statement as well. “When I first saw this thing on the agenda, I asked why is this being offered? I made phone calls and this is the answer that I received: I was told that a person wants to run for council and he is a preacher, and he does not want to decide, if elected, to go to a council meeting or attend his church on Wednesday night. This person is also insisting that this ordinance be adopted before qualifying deadline in August.”
He said he began hearing other council members “questioning the motives of this ordinance. Well, then the story changed. I was told that this person was not running for office and that he was not the reason for changing the meeting date. I listened to this group and was thinking of voting in favor two weeks ago. I was taken aback by a threat of votes that may be cast against those who vote against this ordinance.
“I will always vote what I believe is the best interest of the majority of this parish,” Rogers said. “I cannot support this ordinance based on the idea that we are doing this to satisfy one individual or one group of people in our parish of 50,000.”
Rogers said to those council members who “are term-limited out and the ones that decided not to run for re-election: Don’t be persuaded by the idea that this is being done for the majority of the population when it is in fact a political maneuver for some kind of control over this elected council. It makes no sense for this council to change meeting days for the (next) elected council.”
In fact, one written public input to the council on the ordinances also mentioned “to make a change for one person or leave it alone for the majority” in his comments.
Councilman Ken Singleton said, “We need to have a win-win…we have our meetings on Wednesdays and all our boards have meetings on opposite days (so as not to conflict with parish council).”
Singleton said that “a lot of my feelings align with Councilman Hebert and I think the win-win situation would be to move our meetings up to an earlier time.”
He then called for the question, an immediate vote without further discussion as outlined by Robert’s Rules of Order.
However, Beadle said there would be opportunity for every councilman to speak, which is not allowed when the question is called, according to Robert’s Rules. Some councilmen questioned the legality of that.
Legal counsel Eric Duplantis said the call is not appropriate until all council members have had an opportunity to comment.
Singleton withdrew the call for question.
Beadle then asked if any councilmen had more comments. Mathews pointed out that Hanagriff wished to say something, but Beadle just repeated the call for councilmen comments only. He then switched seats with Vice-chairman Kevin Voisin to make his own statement.
Beadle said that moving the meeting time to earlier “would be absolutely amazing for the administration and employees that have to be back here, it would hinder the public from being involved in meetings. After we make that decision, do now I miss work, and ask my boss to take off early to go to a council meeting? That’s the whole reason why Mr. Naquin and the Police Jury Association had moved this meeting to 6 p.m. to get the people in our area involved in the meetings.”
He said the new council will have the same opportunity as the current council to change meeting days and times. “This allows for anyone who wants to run to know when their meetings will be,” he said.
Moving the meetings, he said, allows the public to be more involved, as the crowd Wednesday demonstrated. “That is democracy,” he said. “That is how we as a council should be every meeting.”
Call for the question was again put forth by Singleton and a second by Rogers.
Hanagriff asked to make a comment, but Duplantis explained that no debate can take place after the call. Mathews questioned that, but Duplantis stood firm in his stance.
The call for the question was voted upon first.
In favor were: Rogers, Singleton, Hebert, James Bennett, Sterling Fryou, Naquin and Voisin.
Voting against were: Hidalgo, Beadle and Mathews.
Then the vote was taken on the amendment delaying the effective date of the ordinance to Jan. 1. The amendment was rejected.
In favor were: Hidalgo, Bennett, Voisin, Beadle and Mathews.
Against were: Rogers, Singleton, Hebert, Fryou and Naquin.
Finally, on the vote for the original ordinance, it also was rejected.
In favor were: Hidalgo, Bennett, Voisin, Beadle and Mathews.
Against were: Singleton, Hebert, Fryou, Naquin and Rogers.
By the home rule charter, a majority vote requires six members to pass an action.
Councilman J Ina was absent.
Hanagriff then said that, after being denied the floor twice, if the council did not wish to hear his comments he would leave, and he departed council chambers.
Rogers, when questioned after the meeting about his earlier statement that the proposed change was about one individual, said, “I’m going to leave it like that…I’m telling you information that I was told.”
When asked if a name was mentioned, he said, “At that first conversation there was not. At a later time I found out who that was all about. My decision was made because I knew what was being done was not for the majority of the parish. It wasn’t in their best interests. There was another motive behind it. I understand people want to come to meetings, I wish they would all come to meetings, I’m sorry there’s a conflict, okay? The main reason I was informed why this was being offered at this point in time was somebody running for political office and they wanted this done prior to the August (election) qualifying. Mr. Hidalgo backed me up before I even spoke: This needs to be done before August so people know when they’re going to have their meetings.”
Though he refused to reveal a name, he was asked by reporters if the individual was from east or west St. Mary.
“East,” Rogers said.

1834 ledger: A glimpse of Franklin from long ago

Sun, 06/16/2019 - 6:00am
By ROGER EMILE STOUFF

Some 185 years ago, an unassuming ledger of transactions in a small Louisiana community called Franklin served as a chronicle of its people and their lives.
From its rediscovery sometime in the 1990s until today, this 1834, deteriorated, roach-eaten ledger has captured the wonder and imagination of those who have seen it, most especially Larry Bodin of Franklin.
“At first glance, without reading it, one would toss it in the trash can,” Bodin said. “If I recollect correctly it was in the 90’s that the ledger was removed by Dan Darden from the old Western Auto building.”
Darden was using the building to keep second hand furniture, Bodin said, though it was still owned by the Broussard family at that time, after the Western Auto closed in the mid-1980s.
“It was later bought by the Wiltz family and restored,” Bodin said. “Dan kept the book for a while and then eventually gave it to me. I already knew he had it, so it would not have been lost, he knew I was interested in preserving it. Before the store was Western Auto it belonged to the Delahoussaye family. I had always heard it was two brothers, but have never confirmed that fact.”
As evidenced by the photos, the ledger was in deplorable condition, but Bodin was undaunted. “I was able to make about six whole sheets from the back quarter of the book and save them,” he said. “The front top hole is very deep so all of those sheets were not usable for copies. I would suspect those were caused by roaches. I am very careful not to move it too often because the pages are very fragile.”
Bodin believes that in 1834 the structure that is now The Lamp Post was a general merchandise store selling thread, ribbon, material, brogans (shoes), stockings, suspenders, slippers, wool hats, frock coats, whiskey, wine, brandy, tobacco, flour, nails, paint brushes, coffee pots, buttons and ammunition, all of which and more were listed in the ledger’s fragile pages. The proprietor(s) even advanced cash on accounts.
“When Dan Darden found the ledger in the store, his first thought was that there might be an Indian chief listed in it,” Bodin said. “I don’t think so. First of all, no Indian chief would have been at that store in 1834. They would have had to have known either English or French or have an interpreter. I don’t think they would have ventured too far from the (Chitimacha) reservation and they did not have too much need for what was sold there. They were fishing. Dan kept the ledger for about a year then he finally gave it to me when he could not find a chief in it. I was familiar with most of the names of those who were buying.”
Franklin in the 19th century was quite a different place, of course. Though unrelated to the ledger, a statement dated May 31, 1899, to “CF Kramer, Tutor, Dr., Funeral Director, Livery and Sale Stable” demonstrates just how different:
“Establishments did not have a street number until 1927 when home mail delivery began,” Bodin explained. “The stable was located where the Teche Theater is now. I know the stable was in existence in 1914. Early on there were no funeral homes. People were laid out in the home and there was no embalming. I do not know to what extent the (business) played, if they dug the grave, and furnished a casket, etc. They probably furnished the hearse. A livery stable had to be well-established to be able to furnish those services. I did see where a stable in Baldwin offered that service.”
The cityscape we see today bears little resemblance to what Franklinites would have gazed upon in the 19th century, he said.
“Stop and think, which street besides Main Street has a boulevard?” he said, referring the Martin Luther King Boulevard. “That street had to be important earlier on. Everything near the courthouse square and Bayou Teche were very important.”
Bodin went on, “Hotels did not have bath accommodations then, so when salesmen (drummers) came to town they would go to a barber shop for a bath and shave. After that they would go to the livery stable and rent a horse and buggy to call on customers. My grandfather was a barber, I saw some of his earlier advertisements offering a bath…it was all on Willow Street.”
The legible parts of the ledger read like a Who’s Who of Franklin: William Palfrey, James Theall, W.B. Lewis, John Caffery, Donelson Caffery, Henry Foot, Joshua Baker, Brice Elloit, Wilson M. Mckearell, David Weeks, O. D. Langstaff, David Bell, John B. Murphy, W. S. Harding, H. D. Richardson, William Stirling, Judge Porter, Benifs Brashear, Dr. Allen (dentist), Peyton Smith, Dr. James Smith, William Parker, John D. Millerny, Charles Gravemberg, P. A. Vandorn Plantation, John Millet, James Hale, Jarard Y. Sanders, Mattew Nimmno, Michael Gordy, George Haydell, John Carson, O. D. Langstaff, Thonmas Wallace, Desire Carlin, Marshall Solonge, John Hartman.
Attorney Paul J. Breaux, a Franklin native, produced a detailed history of this city titled “A Five-Arpent Stretch at 1819 on the West Bank of Bayou Teche, Franklin,” based upon the works of James Cathcart and John Landreth. Breaux’s document is extraordinarily detailed and deeply researched, and thus reveals certain points and aspects of Franklin.
For instance, Breaux writes, “The site of Franklin at January 1819 contained 15 to 20 houses and some 120 to 150 inhabitants,” according to one source, while another notes “the number of residences at 12 or 13, calling them ‘dwelling houses’ and describing them as being ‘generally indifferent’ in appearance.”
A courthouse that also served as a school and for church services was noted, along with a tavern and a jail.
“The town as then situated was found to be five arpents in linear measure on and along the west bank of Bayou Teche,” Breaux wrote. “An arpent being 190 feet, Franklin proper at the time was thus some 950 feet in length from one end of the settlement to the other.”
When applying existing markers, Breaux estimates that the northernmost end of Franklin in January, 1819 was where Teche Drive and Adams Street meet, and to the south, at Teche Drive and Martin Luther King Boulevard.
“One should not be inclined to dismiss the importance of the role played by this place named Franklin or the significance of the influence it had exerted by that time on the political/governmental affairs and economic development of the lower Teche and even beyond,” Breaux wrote.
“The earliest instance of the word ‘Franklin’ being used in a public record to identify a specific place—that place some 30 miles by its courses above Berwick Bay at which Bayou Teche turns from a westerly track to a south and then southeasterly track on its meander to the Atchafalaya River—is the May 1815 sale document,” for land between local residents. It was not until 1820 that the state legislature officially designated the town as Franklin, and incorporated in 1830.
Victor Hugo once asked, “What is history? An echo of the past in the future; a reflex from the future on the past.”
And perhaps a nearly 200-year-old, fragile and yet magical ledger from a settlement that would eventually become home to thousands, can indeed reach us through an echo of voices long gone.

Baldwin gets PC, state funding for various projects

Sun, 06/16/2019 - 6:00am

Good news was the order of the day at Baldwin’s town meeting, Thursday.
It began with a visit from outgoing State Representative Sam Jones, who announced several awards for the town from the recent legislative session in Baton Rouge.
According to Jones, he and Senator Bret Allain were able to secure for Baldwin $15,000 toward the town’s beautification/Main Street upkeep and $1.2 million toward water independence realization.
Baldwin Mayor Abel “Phil” Prejean said to Jones, “Thank you. You said you were going to do it, and you did it.”
Jones said, “It has been an honor serving you (Baldwin), and thank you.”
Following Jones’ departure from the meeting, Baldwin Fire Chief Lance Mire reported that the Baldwin Volunteer Fire Department had retained its Class Five rating following its recent audit by the Property Insurance Association of Louisiana.
Mire further explained that the retention of the Class Five rating “means that your fire insurance will not be adversely affected by our operations.”
Additional announcements subsequent to Mire’s report, were:
—Alderman Herbert Bell announced having secured, with St. Mary Parish Councilman Craig Mathews, $2,065 toward funding the procurement of baseball equipment for Baldwin’s youth summer league, as well as $1,500 to “off-set the cost of the use of the Baldwin Park for the summer league”
—Alderwoman Margaret Coleman announced that with the assistance of Town Attorney Joseph Tabb, she has formatted the letters, soon to be sent to violators of the town’s lawn length and “junk car” ordinances
—Tabb advised the board to approve to accept the proposal of the single company who bid for the contract to install the town’s new water meters.
In other news, the town’s budget for 2019-2020 was accepted at a three to two vote, to the objection of Coleman, who could be heard after the meeting saying, “How is it that we can pay someone $900 a day to clerk, but we can’t find $40,000 to give to the police department?”

Longman re-elected to LAA directors

Sun, 06/16/2019 - 6:00am

St. Mary Parish Assessor Jarrod K. Longman was recently re-elected by fellow assessors to serve on the board of directors of the Louisiana Assessors’ Association (LAA).
The board of directors consists of 11 members, including the current president, vice president and treasurer along with a representative from eight districts around the state.
Longman serves as the director from District 3 which includes Avoyelles, Iberia, Lafayette, Pointe Coupee, St. Landry, St. Martin and St. Mary parishes.
The board of directors is tasked with setting the agenda of the LAA and making recommendations regarding policy based upon the work of various standing committees and subcommittees of the Association.
In addition, Assessor Longman has been reappointed to serve on the Oil and Gas, Watercraft, and Legislative Committees of the LAA.
The Oil and Gas and Watercraft committees help determine rules and regulations that govern taxable value for related properties, and the Legislative Committee represents parish assessors on legislative matters that impact the communities they serve.

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