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St. Mary voters will go to the polls Saturday to help decide local issues and a statewide race.
The polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 8 p.m. Saturday.
Voters statewide will decide between Democrat Derrick Edwards and Republican John Schroder for Louisiana State Treasurer. The winner of the race will be responsible for managing the state’s bank, cash flow, and public debt.
Patterson residents are voting on the following four charter amendments propositions:
—Charter Amendment 1 proposes that the mayor of Patterson shall have the authority to hire without council approval and discipline and terminate with council approval all city employees with the exception of employees within the police department.
—Charter Amendment 2 proposes that the elected chief of police of Patterson shall have the authority to hire without council approval and discipline and terminate with council approval all city employees within the police department.
Currently, the city charter states that the mayor has the power to hire, discipline and terminate all city employees, including those within the police department, with city council approval.
The two amendments are designed to clarify the separation of power between the mayor and police chief, a point of contention in city government recently.
—Charter Amendment 3 proposes that the notification of council meetings made to reduce the notice required for council meetings from four days to one.
If passed, the amendment will allow for any last minute agenda changes that occur over the weekend prior to the city’s Tuesday monthly council meetings.
—Charter Amendment 4 proposes to amend Section 2-2-10(A) of the city charter by adding the words “immovable property” to provide clarification about which government property would need an ordinance from the council before a sale or lease.
Berwick, Bayou Vista, and Patterson residents will vote the millage renewal Wax Lake East Drainage District proposition. The proposition calls for a 20-year continuation of the 2-mill property tax so that the funds collected may be used for construction, improvements, maintenance and operations of the drainage entities in the district. The 2-mill property tax has been in place for the last 10 years and is only one of two property taxes that Wax Lake East Drainage District has implemented.
Franklin voters will choose between Rogers Washington Sr. and Carla Weidenboerner in a runoff as the next city marshal for city court in Franklin.

Mary Spot Scott, 81, a native of Lafourche Parish and a resident of Schriever, passed away at 3:25 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 12, 2017.
Visitation will be from 9 a.m. until funeral time at 11 a.m. on Saturday at First Baptist Church located at 1987 La. 311 in Schriever. Burial will follow in the church cemetery.
She is survived by her husband Isaac Scott Sr. of Schriever; sons, Charles, Lionel and Joseph Ellis of Franklin, Glen, David and Isaac Scott Jr. of Schriever.; daughter, Yvette Scott of Schriever; 29 grandchildren; 44 great grandchildren; 12 great-great grandchildren; brothers, Wilbert Matthews of Houma, James Holmes of Schriever and Kernan Hollie of Houma; sisters, Lelia Southall of Morgan City, Edna Winslow, Geraldine Randall, Margaret Noah all of Houma, Cheryl and Bessie Clement of Schriever.
She was preceded in death by her four children, parents, five brothers and a sister.
Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

Calvin B. Johnson Jr., a resident of Morgan City, passed away Saturday, Nov. 11, 2017 at his residence.
Visitation will be observed on Saturday at Mt. Pilgrim Baptist Church, 113 Federal Ave. in Morgan City, from 10 a.m. until funeral service at 1 p.m. Burial will be in the Morgan City Cemetery.
He is survived by his sister, Angelee Johnson of Morgan City and his devoted nieces, nephew and a host of relatives and friends.
Calvin was preceded in death by his parents, a son, a sister and his grandparents.
Jones Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.

The Leapfrog Group, a national nonprofit health care ratings organization, has released new Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grades.

Teche Regional Medical Center was one of 832 awarded an A for its commitment to keeping patients safe and meeting the highest safety standards in the United States. Teche is the only hospital in the community and surrounding areas to get an A.

The Safety Grade assigns letter grades of A, B, C, D and F to hospitals nationwide based on their performance in preventing medical errors, infections and other harms.

“Teche Regional Medical Center is committed to delivering the best possible care to our patients, families and visitors and ensuring that everyone has a positive experience at our hospital,” said Jerry Dooley, interim CEO of Teche Regional. “We are very pleased to have earned an A, which places us among the top tier of hospitals across the country when it comes to patient safety.”

“It takes consistent, unwavering dedication to patients to achieve the highest standards of patient safety. An ‘A’ Safety Grade recognizes hospitals for this accomplishment,” said Leah Binder, president and CEO of The Leapfrog Group. “We congratulate the clinicians, Board, management and staff of Teche Regional Medical Center for showing the country what it means to put patient safety first.”

Developed under the guidance of a Blue Ribbon National Expert Panel, the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade uses 27 measures of publicly available hospital safety data to assign A, B, C, D and F grades to more than 2,600 U.S. hospitals twice per year. It is calculated by top patient safety experts, peer reviewed, fully transparent and free to the public.

To see Teche Regional’s full grade, and to access patient tips for staying safe in the hospital, visit www.hospitalsafetygrade.org and follow the Leapfrog Hospital Safety Grade on Twitter and Facebook.