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St. Mary Parish AARP Chapter 4435 held its monthly meeting on Jan. 7 at the St. Mary Senior Citizen Center, home of St. Mary AARP, in Morgan City.
Members of the Marine Corps League — St. Mary Detachment presented a certificate of appreciation to St. Mary AARP for its contribution to the annual Marine Corps League Toys for Tots Campaign. Bill Goessl, Marine Corps League representative, expressed thanks to the AARP membership for the generous donation of new toys to the program.
He further explained that because of contributions like this, the Toys for Tots Project was able to give new toys to every child on their list in St. Mary Parish. Marine Corps League member David Martin then explained that the St. Mary Detachment maintains a warehouse for toys, from which they work with local agencies throughout the year to distribute toys to children following such events as house fires.
Prior to the meeting, members and guests were entertained with dance music from 4 to 5:30 p.m., followed by bingo until 6:15 p.m.
The meeting and meal sponsor was Gulf Coast Orthopedics. Attendees were served a meal of spaghetti with meat sauce, sweet peas and salad, and cake. The meal was prepared by Lonnie LaBouve and Lance Devillier.
Birthday and anniversary celebrants for January were recognized at the meeting. The cake was donated by M C Bank.
The next St. Mary AARP monthly meeting and meal will be held Feb. 4.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Country music queen Loretta Lynn has big plans for her 87th birthday this April in the form of an all-star tribute concert featuring Jack White, Garth Brooks, George Strait and many more.
The “Coal Miner’s Daughter” singer-songwriter on Monday announced details of the April 1 show in Nashville, Tennessee, at the Bridgestone Arena.
She released her album “Wouldn’t It Be Great” last year, but hasn’t been performing publicly since she had a stroke in 2017 and missed being honored at the CMT Artists of the Year show last October due to an illness.
Other artists scheduled to perform are Alan Jackson, Trisha Yearwood, Little Big Town, Martina McBride, Miranda Lambert, Keith Urban, Kacey Musgraves, Brandy Clark, Darius Rucker and the Pistol Annies.
Lynn said she’s not planning any duets during the concert, instead saying she just wants the artists to sing for her. “I know what I want to hear and I am pretty sure they will be singing them,” Lynn said.
Still the Country Music Hall of Famer said she would eventually like to perform again. “Feels like I have been gone a hundred years,” she told The Associated Press.
Despite her health problems, including fracturing a hip, she has continued to put out music and earned a Grammy nomination this year for best country solo performance for her song “Wouldn’t It Be Great,” which she wrote about her late husband Oliver “Doolittle” Lynn.
“I sang that song to him,” Lynn said. “It was the last song I sang to him. And he always said, ‘Honey, that’s a hit.’ I said, ‘Honey, you think so?’”
Brooks joined her on the stage of the Grand Ole Opry, where she was presented with a birthday cake. The two artists are close, and Brooks told a story about how he was her date when she was given a lifetime achievement award from the Recording Academy in 2010.
She insisted that he bring her in his truck rather than a limousine, Brooks said, and she climbed inside wearing one of her big ball gowns that she’s fond of wearing. “That truck still has so much glitter in it,” Brooks said.
Lynn said after the press conference that Brooks came to her while she was having health issues to pray over her.
“When I took sick, he came and prayed for me a couple of times,” Lynn said. “My back was hurting so bad and when he got through praying, my back eased up. And that’s true. This is the truth. Prayer helps.”

MLK EVENT
The St. Mary Chapter of the NAACP will hold its annual Dr. Martin L. King Jr. Celebration on Monday, Jan. 21. A march will begin at 2:30 p.m. at Morgan City’s City Hall, 512 First St., and end at New Zorah Baptist Church, 604 Julia St. The tribute begins at 3 p.m. Public invited.

BARBECUE DINNER
Benefit for Claire House Children is noon to 4 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 23, at Bayou Vista Community Center. Menu: barbecued chicken, rice dressing, baked beans, potato salad and soft drink. Donation $8.

Becker’s Hospital Review named Aphreikah DuHaney-West, CEO of Teche Regional Medical Center as a top female leader to its annual list of 143 women hospital and health system leaders to know.
The women on the list are hospital and health system executives for institutions across the nation. Whether they lead multistate health systems or 25-bed critical access hospitals, these leaders face the challenges of running healthcare organizations head-on. Many wear multiple hats within their health system to promote organizational growth and drive innovation.
The leaders on the Becker’s Hospital Review list were nominated and selected based on editorial judgment after evaluation of their management and leadership skills, as well as career accom-plishments.
DuHaney-West manages the day-to-day operations of Teche Regional Medical Center as the 167-bed hospital’s CEO.
She is in charge of ensuring operational excellence, physician and employee engagement and Teche’s strategic market position. As a certified professional in patient safety, DuHaney-West has become a champion of quality and patient safety engaging and involving communities in their healthcare.
She previously served as chief operating officer of Mercy Regional Medical Center in Ville Platte and Acadian Medical Center in Eunice. Before joining MRMC/Acadian, she served in numerous other leadership roles and mission critical initiatives in the areas of physician satisfaction, clinical outcomes and service line development in LifePoint facilities, including as chief nursing officer of Havasu Regional Medical Center, and Logan Regional Medical Center just to name a few.
DuHaney-West holds a bachelor’s degree in nursing and master’s degree in nursing science and business administration.
She is certified in healthcare management as a fellow of the American College of Healthcare Executives. She is the recipient of numerous honors including Health Service CNO Award in 2010 and have presented at national conferences.
“I feel humbled and honored to be included in this list of well accomplished women in healthcare.
"I’m grateful to be part of an organization like LifePoint that values inclusion, advancement and development of their leaders. I’ve had the pleasure of working with talented employees and physicians in great communities.” added DuHaney-West.