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Renovations are planned for the St. Mary Registrar of Voter’s office on the third floor of the parish courthouse, necessitating a temporary move.
Registrar Jolene Holcombe said the office will be relocated to room 105 on the first floor, likely by Friday. Renovations are expected to take several months.
Early voting for the March 24 election will probably be held in the temporary location, Holcombe said. More information will be released before early voting begins on March 10.
For additional information, call 337-828-4100.

The second annual “Krewe of Donnis” Mardi Gras Parade rolls through the streets of Baldwin Saturday.
Grand Marshal Eugene Paul Foulcard Sr. and King and Queen Derrick and Quovadis Kelly lead this year’s parade, which begins at 1 p,m.
Foulcard is a lifelong native of Franklin. He is a 1984 graduate of Franklin Senior High School and received a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration from Southern University and A & M College in Baton Rouge.
For the past 29 years, Eugene has served as St. Mary Community Action Agency’s chief financial officer. He has helped ensure the agency’s good stewardship of state and federal dollars used to serve the children and families in need of assistance in St. Mary and Vermilion Parishes. His greatest passion has always been giving back and serving the community he loves.
Eugene has served 12 years on the Franklin City Council, representing District C. He has served for 13 years on the Franklin Foundation Hospital Board of Commissioners, the past three years as chairman. He previously served as chairman of the Franklin Home Rule Charter assisting with the re-writing of the city’s charter.
Eugene is a lifetime member of Kappa Alpha Psi and a lifelong member of St. Jules Catholic Church. His wife, Terri Foulcard, is the current director of Claire House for Women and Children. They are parents of four children, Lynn, Ashley, A’Myrie, and Eugene Jr. Eugene is the son of the late Carl C. Foulcard Sr. and Lydia Delasbour Foulcard, and the sixth sibling of Carl Jr. “BumDee”, Michael, Carol, Donald, Debra and Charles Foulcard.
The King and Queen, Derrick and Quovadis Kelly, have been married for six years and are the proud parents of four children, Derrick Jr., Xxvion, Korion and Kahlil. Both Derrick and Quovadis are members of Isrealite Devine Spiritual Church of rural Jeanerette. Quovadis serves as the church administrator. Her favorite bible verse is Philippians 4:13: “I can do all things through Christ that strengthen me.” Her motto is, “Never look down on anyone unless you are helping them up.” Quovadis is a 1998 graduate of Franklin High School and Derrick received his GED in 1994.
Derrick has worked as a truck driver for 23 years. Quovadis is a stay at home wife and mother. She formerly worked at Affordable Home Furnishings for 10 years. Together, they own Zeus Transportation and Coko ‘n Kidz Fun Jumps. They’re also the co-founders of Pozitive Image Project since 2011, which includes Community Feeding Project, Christmas Toy Project and many more.
Quovadis enjoys traveling and spending time with family while Derrick loves yard work, riding his Harley and playing with Khole and Zoey, his two dogs. Quovadis joined the Krewe of Donnis Mardi Gras Association last year.
The Parade starts from UMCOR-Sager Brown and travels through town.

Doyle Berry helped grow a Berwick oilfield-marine construction company into one of the largest in the region, but he never ceased trying to help others in whatever way he could, say area officials who knew him.

Berry, 87, died Monday at his home in Berwick surrounded by family.

In 1956, Berry moved to Berwick and co-founded Berry Bros. General Contractors Inc. with his brother, Everett Berry.

Now the company is one of the largest marine and oilfield construction companies in south Louisiana, and has three divisions around the country servicing the gulf states, Rocky Mountains and central states, the company’s website says.

Doyle Berry was “an icon in the industry,” Berwick Mayor Louis Ratcliff said.

“He was very community-minded and a true friend for the community of Berwick,” Ratcliff said.

Together, Doyle and Everett Berry built Berry Bros. “from nothing to what it is today,” Ratcliff said.

Doyle Berry was born in Norfolk, Virginia, and grew up in Mendenhall, Mississippi. He joined the Navy in 1948, spending most of his four years of service on the island of Guam.

He went on to attend the University of Southern Mississippi. In 1955, he took a summer job in south Louisiana and “took note of the countless opportunities in the burgeoning oilfield,” his obituary stated.

“With one pickup truck and some hand tools, the brothers saw an opportunity in the Louisiana swamps to make their mark in the burgeoning oilfields of South Louisiana,” according to the company website.

After success with their roustabout services, Doyle and Everett Berry then purchased welding and winch trucks, and later bought barges, cranes and boats to enter the marine construction business, the website says.

Doyle Berry arrived in Berwick with about “$300 in his pocket,” said Raymond “Mac” Wade, executive director for the Port of Morgan City.

Wade served on the port commission with Doyle Berry, who spent over 30 years on the commission. Wade was also a partner with Doyle Berry in a “drilling fluids business” in the 1980s.

“He’ll be missed. He got a lot of people started in this area in their businesses,” Wade said.

He knew people all over the country, including Washington, D.C.

“The board wished we had him now to help us in Washington,” Wade said.

Early on, Berry Bros. began doing dredging and pile driving work all over Louisiana and in Texas and Mississippi, in addition to offshore work crews, Wade said.

Former Berwick Mayor Emmett Hardaway became mayor in the late 1980s after Everett Berry, who had previously been mayor, died.

Hardaway said his “best experience” with Doyle Berry was in 1992 in the aftermath of Hurricane Andrew.

“He worked very hard with the state to get help for us,” Hardaway said. “He was instrumental in getting the National Guard down here during that time and generators and just all kind of help from the state at a time when I needed him absolutely the most.”

Hardaway and Doyle Berry were friends for a long time. He “was a man of his word,” Hardaway said.

“If he told you he was going to do something, you could count on him doing it,” Hardaway said.

Hardaway relied on Doyle Berry to get help for the area from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.

“I was not aware of all of the things that the Corps was doing when I first took office, and he kind of helped me through that,” Hardaway said.

Berwick Councilman Duval Arthur, who’s a former Berwick police chief and former chief deputy for the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office, said Doyle Berry was always available to help and “had connections in every area.”

When the St. Mary Sheriff’s Office made one of the largest drug busts along the gulf coast in the early 1980s, Doyle Berry provided one of his tugboats to transport state police and sheriff’s deputies, Arthur said.

During that drug bust, authorities seized 14 tons of marijuana from a crew boat in Amelia, Arthur said.

The Southwest Reef Lighthouse in Everett S. Berry Memorial Lighthouse Park is where it is now on Berwick’s riverfront thanks to Doyle and Everett Berry bringing it there, he said.

“I think of Doyle because whenever something would go wrong or we couldn’t do it … we’d call him, and he’d find a way. And we’d do it,” Arthur said.

He was also extremely involved with the Berwick-Bayou Vista Krewe of Dionysus, and brought celebrities, including Johnny Cash and Walter Payton, to serve as parade marshals, Arthur said.

Visitation for Doyle Berry will be held at Hargrave Funeral Home at 10 a.m. Friday with services starting at 1 p.m. He will be laid to rest privately at a later time.

Information from Doyle Berry’s obituary contributed to this article.

A 37-year-old Amelia man was booked on multiple drug charges after sheriff’s detectives located crack cocaine, methamphetamine, marijuana and over $1,600 in cash during a search, St. Mary Parish Sheriff Scott Anslum said in a news release.

—Derek Gaskins, 37, of Friendship Alley in Amelia, was arrested at 6:07 p.m. Monday on charges of possession of methamphetamine, possession of crack cocaine over 28 grams with intent to distribute, possession of marijuana, possession of a firearm in the presence of a controlled dangerous substance, possession of drug paraphernalia, transactions involving drug proceeds and violation of a controlled dangerous substance law-drug-free zone.

Narcotics detectives developed information that illegal drug activity was taking place at Gaskins’ home and obtained a search warrant for the location.

Detectives found crack cocaine, marijuana and over $1,600 in cash on Gaskins, Anslum said. The money is suspected of being gained from the sale of illegal drugs. Detectives also located marijuana, methamphetamine, crack cocaine, a firearm, and items of drug paraphernalia inside the home, Anslum said.

Gaskins is a convicted felon, and the home where the drugs were found is located within 2,000 feet of a church, Anslum said. Gaskins was jailed with bail set at $81,500.

Anslum reported that deputies responded to 37 complaints in the parish and reported the following arrest in east St. Mary Parish:

—Alyssa Ashmore, 28, of Third Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 1:45 p.m. Monday on a warrant for failure to appear on charges of possession of diazepam, simple battery and disturbing the peace by appearing in an intoxicated condition.

A deputy responding to a call for service at a business in Bayou Vista came into contact with Ashmore and located the active warrant for her arrest. The deputy transported Ashmore to parish jail. Bail is set at $15,000.

Morgan City Police Chief James Blair reported that officers responded to 56 complaints and reported the following arrests:

—Quincy J. Johnson, 24, of South Railroad Avenue in Morgan City, was arrested at 8:04 a.m. Monday on a charge of simple burglary.

Patrol officers responded to the area of South Railroad Avenue in regard to a residential burglary. Officers spoke with the victim who positively identified Johnson as the person who had gained entry into the home, Blair said. Johnson was located in the area and jailed.

—Keishia L. Howard, 42, of Mount Street in Morgan City, was arrested at 10:56 a.m. Monday on warrants charging her with accessory after the fact to simple burglary, obstruction of justice and two counts of failure to appear for trial.

Detectives continued an investigation initiated by patrol officers in which Shawn Harding was arrested for simple burglary, Blair said.

Howard was contacted by Harding to move and conceal items from other burglaries that had been reported, Blair said. A search warrant was conducted on Howard’s home, in which multiple items that had been reported stolen were located, Blair said.

Police found evidence linking Howard to the attempted concealment of the items, Blair said. Warrants were prepared for her arrest. Howard also had arrest warrants through 16th Judicial District Court. Howard was jailed. The investigation is ongoing.

—Tremayne Skinner, 41, of Railroad Avenue in Morgan City, was arrested at 2:53 p.m. Monday on warrants charging him with failure to register as a sex offender and probation and parole violation.

Skinner was located and arrested in the area of Railroad Avenue on warrants through St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office and Louisiana Probation and Parole. Skinner was jailed.

—Rebecca F. Matherly, 35, of La. 182 in Morgan City, was arrested at 3:14 p.m. Monday on warrants charging her with possession of methamphetamine and possession of drug paraphernalia.

Matherly was located and arrested at the Harding County, Texas, Detention Center on Morgan City police warrants. The warrants stem from two separate investigations conducted by the narcotics and patrol divisions in November 2015 and March 2016 when Matherly was in possession of suspected methamphetamine on the 2016 incident and drug paraphernalia in 2015, Blair said.

The investigation in both incidents continued and warrants were prepared for Matherly’s arrest. Matherly was jailed.

—Danny M. Fulks, 32, of Parish Road in Franklin, was arrested at 12:10 a.m. Tuesday on two warrants charging him with failure to appear to pay a fine and a warrant charging him with two counts of failure to appear.

Fulks was located and arrested in the area of La. 182 on city court warrants. Fulks was jailed.

—Jolene M. Hebert, 39, of La. 70 in Morgan City, was arrested at 1:18 a.m. Tuesday on charges of DWI first offense and disregard of traffic controls.

Patrol officers responded to a business in the area of La. 182 in regard to an intoxicated person. The person left prior to officers’ arrival in a vehicle.

A description was obtained and the vehicle was located in the area a short time later. The vehicle disregarded a red light in the area of La. 182. A stop was initiated, and Hebert was identified as the driver.

Hebert was in an intoxicated state and performed poorly on a field sobriety test. Blair said. Hebert registered 0.228 grams-percent blood alcohol content, Blair said. Hebert was jailed.

—John C. Knowles, 24, of Highway 41 in Repton , Alabama, was arrested at 1:32 a.m. Tuesday on charges of DWI first offense and reckless operation of a motor vehicle

Patrol officers observed a vehicle being operated in the area of Seventh Street in a reckless manner. A stop was initiated, and Knowles, the driver, was in an intoxicated state, Blair said.

Knowles performed poorly on a field sobriety test and refused to a chemical test for intoxication, Blair said. Knowles was jailed.

Berwick Police Chief James Richard reported no arrests.

Patterson Police Chief Patrick LaSalle reported no arrests.