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Five Tri-City area high school seniors received a combined $42,000 in scholarships Thursday night to continue their education at the next level.

The Atchafalaya Chapter of the American Petroleum Institute hosted its 61st Annual Scholarship Banquet at the Petroleum Club of Morgan City.

Thirty-eight students from the area applied for the scholarships. All applicants should be proud of the educational accomplishments they have made, Scholarship Chairman Herbie Kimble said.

The scholarship program began in 1956 when the chapter awarded a single scholarship. The scholarships awarded each year “are made possible by the ongoing support of our generous chapter members and numerous supporters,” Kimble said.

API currently funds scholarships for 19 students from the area.

All five of the 2017 scholarship recipients plan to attend LSU.

Morgan City High School’s Caylee Deshotel and Berwick High School’s Olivia Orlando each received a $12,000 scholarship. Deshotel will study pre-med while Orlando plans to major in biology.

Grant Oubre of Berwick High received the $6,000 Ronnie Roussel Scholarship and will study chemical engineering.

This scholarship has been awarded since 1986 in Roussel’s memory and is funded by B.A. “Red” Adams and Yvonne Adams.

Berwick High’s Elizabeth Ibert and Central Catholic’s Connor Hebert also each received $6,000 scholarships. Ibert plans to pursue a marketing degree, and Hebert will major in computer science.

Each scholarship is paid out over the course of eight semesters and requires recipients to maintain certain academic standards.

Applicants for the scholarships had to write an essay. Organizers choose a different essay topic each year that’s pertinent to current local, national or international events.

“This year, the essay topic addressed the establishment of sanctuary cities and the impact this designation would have on our cities, states and our country,” Kimble said.

Steve Nance, president and manager of Steele Creek Energy in Spring, Texas, was guest speaker during the banquet. Steele Creek is a private company that invests primarily in oil and gas. Nance has nearly 40 years of experience in the oil and gas industry.

Nance told the students to “dare to dream big,” he said.

“Don’t be bashful in your dreams, and then be willing to work hard for it,” Nance said.

He encouraged students to step outside of their comfort zones and to try new things. They should take risks, but also consider the consequences of their decisions if they fail, he said.

One of the qualities that Nance holds dearest is the importance of doing the right thing “no matter what the cost.”

Students will have challenges and decisions in the coming years that “in some cases are going to impact you for the rest of your life,” he said.
Nance emphasized the need to “communicate early, often and honestly.”

The majority of people’s problems, if not all of their problems, directly result from communication issues, Nance said.

Nance has run several different organizations over the years and always had a pact with his staff “that there will never be any repercussions from communicating a problem, unless that problem was done criminally or with malcontent.”

Asking questions is another key to being successful because “you never know what you might learn,” Nance said.

Sometimes, Nance asks questions he already knows the answers to, but he does so to make sure he knows what colleagues think about a situation.
Quoting legendary college basketball coach John Wooden, Nance said, “Balance is everything.”

Nance was able to hear Wooden speak one time and said he never mentioned basketball but instead talked about balancing one’s life. People should find balance in their lives in regard to their spirituality, family, school, work and fun, Nance said.

A 45-year-old Morgan City man was arrested on a domestic abuse battery charge Wednesday after police responded to a disturbance, Morgan City Police Chief James Blair said in a news release.
—James Edwards, 45, of McDermott Drive in Morgan City, arrested at 6:17 p.m. Wednesday on a charge of domestic abuse battery and a warrant for failure to appear for arraignment.
Patrol officers responded to a home on McDermott Drive in regard to a domestic disturbance. Officers arrived and learned that Edwards allegedly committed a battery on the victim. Edwards also had an active 16th Judicial District Court warrant. Edwards was jailed.
Blair reported responding to 40 calls and reported the following arrests:
—Lynn J. Matherne, 54, of Maplewood Drive in Houma, arrested at 12:07 p.m. Wednesday on charges of driving under suspension, no insurance, failure to secure load and expired license plate.
Patrol officers responded to U.S. 90 in regard to a vehicle crash. Officers arrived and observed debris in the roadway from a load that was not properly restrained and fell onto the roadway.
Matherne, the driver, had a suspended driver’s license and had no insurance on his vehicle, expired registration and an expired license plate. Matherne was jailed.
—Elmer Canizales, 25, of Eighth Street in Morgan City, arrested at 6:50 p.m. Wednesday on charges of no driver’s license and no seat belt.
Patrol officers observed a vehicle in the area of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, and the driver was not properly restrained. Officers stopped the vehicle and identified Canizales as the driver. Canizales also did not have a valid driver’s license. Canizales was jailed.
—Johnny Deberry, 61, of Railroad Avenue in Morgan City, arrested at 1:59 a.m. Thursday on a warrant for eight counts of failure to appear to a pay fine. Deberry was located and arrested in the area of Fourth Street on city court warrants. Deberry was jailed.
—Roberto N. Acosta, 68, of Ditch Avenue in Morgan City, arrested at 4:32 a.m. Thursday on charges of no driver’s license and expired license plate.
Patrol officers observed a vehicle in the area of Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard with an expired license plate and stopped the vehicle. The driver, Acosta, did not have a valid driver’s license. Acosta was jailed.
St. Mary Parish Sheriff Mark Hebert reported responding to 30 complaints in the parish and reported the following arrests relating to east St. Mary Parish:
—Donna S. Reed, 46, of Saturn Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 7:43 p.m. Wednesday for the following offenses: on charges of improper lane usage, speeding, possession of open alcoholic beverages in motor vehicles, operating a vehicle with a suspended license, no insurance and switched license plate
A deputy traveling on U.S. 90 in Berwick observed a vehicle speeding and swerving onto the shoulder of the roadway. The deputy conducted a traffic stop and identified the driver as Reed.
In addition to driving the vehicle with a suspended license and no insurance, the deputy found that the license plate displayed on the pick-up truck was not registered to the vehicle.
The deputy also saw an open bottle of liquor inside the vehicle. Reed was released on a summons to appear in court July 10.
—Anthony Beard, 40, of Cross Road in Bayou Vista, was arrested at 11:07 a.m. Wednesday on a warrant for failure to appear on the charge of possession of marijuana and on a warrant for failure to appear on the charge of disturbing the peace intoxicated. Beard turned himself in at the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center. He was released on $3,500 bail.
—Kirk Butler, 24, of Taft Street in Patterson, was arrested at 4:52 p.m. Wednesday on a warrant for failure to appear on the charge of unauthorized use of an access card.
During booking at the St. Mary Parish Law Enforcement Center, a correctional officer located the active warrant for Butler. He was released on a summons to appear in court July 10.
Franklin Police Chief Sabria McGuire reported the following arrest relating to east St. Mary Parish:
—Jeremy Smith, 34, of La. 182 in Morgan City, while incarcerated at the Franklin Police Department, was arrested at 3:30 p.m. Wednesday on 16th Judicial District Court warrants for failure to appear on the charges of possession of a firearm by persons convicted of certain felonies and simple battery.
Smith was booked and remains in jail with no bail set yet.
Berwick Police Chief James Richard reported no arrests.
Patterson Police Chief Patrick LaSalle reported no arrests.

ANCHOR FEST
At 10:30 a.m. Sunday, May 7, at Lake End Park Pavilion is Morgan City Family Church’s annual picnic. Public invited for worship, food, competitive games for kids and adults, free snowballs and more.

PATTERSON
Knights of Columbus meeting 7 p.m. Thursday, May 11. Meal at 6:30 p.m.