Kenneth B. Boyle, 61, died Wednesday, Oct. 25, 2023.
He was preceded in death by his parents and sister.
Services will be Tuesday, 5-7 p.m., at Twin City Funeral Home. A private ceremony will be in Morgan City Cemetery.
Twin City Funeral Home is in charge of arrangements.
City Singles Championship
Kemper Williams Park
Patterson
Nov. 11
Class A
First place, Burnie Williams, Morgan City, 4-1, 52.0; second place, Al Dodson, Morgan City, 3-2, 41.5; and third place, Tim Gilmore, Bayou Vista, 3-2, 61.0.
Class B
First, Angela Percle, Morgan City, 4-1, 38.0; second, Linda Dodson, Morgan City, 3-2, 26.5; and third, Dale Pearce, Morgan City, 3-2, 34.0.
Class C
First, Matthew Strickland, Morgan City, 4½-½, 22.5; second, Jim Guzdial, Patterson, 2½-1½, 22.0; and third, Glenn Caillouet, Raceland, 3-2, 19.0.
Class D
First, Al Graham, Berwick, 5-0, 11.9; second, Kevin Kinslow, Morgan City, 4-1, 16.3; and third, Hilton Rhodes, Bayou Vista, 3-2, 13.8.
Championship Round
First place finishers met in a round robin to determine City Champion.
First, (city singles champion) Percle, 3-0, 40.0; second, Strickland, 2-1, 23.3; third, Graham, ½-1½, 7.5; and fourth, Williams, ½-1½, 43.7.
Students of the Year from schools in St. Mary Parish Public Schools participated in the District Student of the Year competition this week.
The Students of the Year Award Program is designed to recognize outstanding elementary, middle/junior, and high school students for their demonstration of excellent leadership ability, citizenship, and academic achievement. The Students of the Year Award Program is sponsored by the Louisiana state superintendent through the State Department of Education and the State Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.
The Students of the Year representing St. Mary Parish in the next level of competition are:
Carson Paradee, fifth grade, Berwick Elementary; Tyren Austin, eighth grade, B. Edward Boudreaux Middle; and Cherish Lewis, 12th grade, Berwick High.
Other participants were:
Fifth grade: Jacqueline Lopez, Aucoin Elementary; Alise Geisler, Bayou Vista Elementary; Zoe Bethea, Centerville Elementary; Ailyn Hernandez, Foster Elementary; Kendal Hawkins, Lagrange Elementary; Noelle Cheramie, Norman Elementary; Angelica Sanchez, Patterson Jr.; Sa’Niyah August, Raintree Elementary; and Annabelle Guagliardo, Wyandotte Elementary.
Eighth grade: Stanley Aucoin, Berwick Jr.; Icis Gant, Centerville High; S’Nai Burrell, Franklin Jr.; Briar Gorman, Morgan City Jr.; and Carlynn Lalonde, Patterson Jr.
Twelfth grade: Maci Pellerin, Centerville High; Kayla Smith, Franklin High; Michelle Beals, Morgan City High; Ella Doucet, Patterson High; and Le’Zay’Lon Brown, West St. Mary High.
District Students of the Year will participate in the BESE Region 3 Zone competition in December.
Consumers have been concerned about the availability of Christmas trees this year, but LSU AgCenter professionals say you should have no fear.
Dry conditions across the state have done considerable damage to many Christmas tree farms, but all is not lost, according to AgCenter forestry specialist Niels de Hoop.
“I have heard that irrigation has saved the commercial tree farms,” he said.
AgCenter area forester Whitney Wallace said there have been some losses, but the damage is not as bad as some would have you believe.
“I know some growers who have lost some trees this year, but this just makes it that much more important that we buy local,” she said.
AgCenter research associate Joe Nehlig said there will be a little bit of a shortage, but nothing to worry about.
“Believe me, we will have Christmas trees,” he said. “I’m growing from 500 to 600 at the Lee Memorial Forest near Bogalusa and I didn’t lose one tree.”
Nehlig said he grows the Carolina Sapphire species because it is more resistant to a fungus that attacks Christmas trees in this area.
“Most tree farmers are growing the Leyland Cypress variety, which is a pretty tree, but it’s susceptible to fungus,” he said.
Nehlig said the combination of the fungus and the drought affected Leyland Cypress growers the most.
The fungus can be controlled, but it requires a rigorous spray schedule every three weeks throughout the warmer months of the year.
Nehlig said he never irrigated this summer, so he sees the Carolina Sapphire species as one with greater drought tolerance.
“I have a neighbor who irrigated his Leylands this summer and, although he lost some trees, it was only a small percentage of his crop,” he said.
The extra expense will have to be passed on to the consumer, but for some, that is better than having to spend a whole holiday season without that smell of a natural tree.
So if you haven’t started shopping for your tree yet, then what are you waiting for? The growers are waiting for you.
After the Fifth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals’ order last week, the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management announced that it scheduled Lease Sale 261 in the Outer Continental Shelf in the Gulf of Mexico for Dec. 20.
In September, a federal judge ruled the Biden administration must go through with offshore lease sales in the Gulf of Mexico by Sept. 27 as originally planned and under original conditions. The Fifth Circuit concurred but amended the ruling, pushing back the lease sale date to Nov. 8.
Last week, the appellate court ruled that the Biden administration must hold the lease sale within 37 days of its ruling on Wednesday. It also ordered BOEM to include 6 million acres in the Gulf that it had previously removed from the sale. Earlier this year, BOEM reached a settlement with environmental groups opposing the sale to purportedly protect an endangered whale species.
BOEM announced, “Pursuant to direction from the Court,” it will “include lease blocks that were previously excluded due to concerns regarding potential impacts to the Rice’s whale population in the Gulf of Mexico. BOEM will also remove portions of a related stipulation meant to address those potential impacts from the lease terms for any leases that may result from Lease Sale 261.”
Environmental groups opposing offshore drilling allege the industry would cause an endangered whale species to go extinct because it only lives in the northern part of the Gulf of Mexico. In 2019, NOAA Fisheries designated the Gulf of Mexico Bryde’s whale as an endangered subspecies under the Endangered Species Act. In 2021, it expanded the designation to include Rice’s whale, which is also protected under the Marine Mammal Protection Act.
The state of Louisiana, American Petroleum Institute and petroleum companies, Chevron and Shell, sued, arguing BOEM’s policies violated federal law.
Louisiana Attorney General Jeff Landry said the rulings were “a major win not only for the rule of law, but also for Louisiana jobs and affordable energy. At a time when working families are being squeezed by unaffordable Bidenomics, I am glad to deliver yet another victory defeating overreaching bureaucrats. … Congress is clear: lease sales must take place; so we are grateful the Judge cut through the noise and upheld the law.”
BOEM issued A Final Notice of Sale for public inspection Friday, Nov. 17, 2023. It will be published in the Federal Register on Monday, Nov. 20, 2023, it said.The opening of bids will be livestreamed at 9 am CDT on Dec. 20. All terms and conditions of the lease sale are listed online.
The Fifth Circuit’s decision also came after the U.S. Department of Interior issued in September a five-year plan to impose even greater restrictions on federal offshore oil and gas leasing.
LOGA President Mike Moncla said that while the Inflation Reduction Act “promised us anywhere from zero to eleven offshore lease sales,” the Department of the Interior was “only committing to three for the next five years. This will curtail discoveries for years to come.”
“Every other administration prior to this one had Five-Year Plans that enabled uninterrupted leasing activities,” he said. “This action will negatively impact Louisiana jobs and diminish GOMESA funds that are rebuilding our coast. The Gulf of Mexico provides 15% of our nation’s oil. These attempts to slow, or halt offshore production hurts all Americans at the pump and makes us more dependent on foreign oil.”
“As predictable as” the department’s plan is, Moncla said it was “still disappointing to see that the Biden administration’s war on the oil and gas industry rages on” at a time when “worldwide demand for oil and gas is at record levels and our products will continue to be necessary for decades to come.”
The U.S. oil and natural gas industry, led by the Gulf states of Texas and Louisiana, set records in petroleum exports and were the top exporters of liquified natural gas (LNG) in the first half of 2023. This is after the U.S. became the world’s largest LNG exporter in the first half of 2022, led by the two Gulf states, the EIA previously reported.
When Elidsabel Martinez started a new job at Baton Rouge’s Tara High School a year ago, she was quick to take note of some of the challenges being faced by her students day in and day out.
“Our students [don't]have a lot of necessities,” said Martinez, who teaches English as a second language, or ESL. Topping that list, she said, is food.
She saw teachers spending money out of their own pockets to help feed hungry students. She and another ESL teacher, Alejandra Macedo, decided something needed to be done — like setting up a food pantry in the school.
Now, their vision is reality.
With Macedo standing nearby, Martinez cut a red ribbon Nov. 16, officially opening Tara’s food pantry. They were joined by school administrators, LSU AgCenter nutrition staff and representatives of the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank — all of whom played a role in getting the pantry up and running.
Students will be able to visit the pantry weekly and take items such as canned meats and vegetables, dry beans, rice and packaged snacks home to their families. Thanks to funding from Humana for refrigeration, students can even pick up frozen foods.
The food bank will keep the pantry shelves stocked, and organizers of the initiative are hoping to collaborate with local grocery stores and other partners to secure additional items through donations.
They have plans to eventually open the pantry, which will operate year-round, to the public.
“We know there is a food insecurity problem here — not just here in this school, but in East Baton Rouge Parish,” said Dewanna Drewery, a regional coordinator with the AgCenter who often visits Tara to teach nutrition classes through the Expanded Food and Nutrition Education Program, or EFNEP.
Before she came to work at the AgCenter in January 2022, Drewery was a teacher at Tara, where much of the student population comes from low-income families. Like Martinez and Macedo, Drewery witnessed firsthand how hunger affects students’ education and overall well-being.
“You can look at a child and tell whether or not they’ve had something to eat. Sometimes, a child will approach you and say, ‘Man, I’m hungry,’” she recalled. “I kept a little refrigerator in my office. If a student told me they were hungry, I would give them a bowl of cereal or a granola bar.”
In her new role at the AgCenter, Drewery’s job is to teach about the importance of eating healthful foods.
“But at the same time,” she said, “I want these kids to be able to choose foods — period.”
KiEtha Gage, agency relations and programs manager with the food bank, said the new pantry will make it easier to get food to those who need it.
“We’re excited because this is one of the only school pantries that is open in East Baton Rouge Parish,” Gage said. “It’s easily accessible for families because the students are already going here, so we’re hoping that’s going to aid our families in getting the food they need.”
Ariane Dent, the food bank’s programs coordinator, said the timing of the ribbon cutting — a week before Thanksgiving — was significant.
“We thought this would be the perfect time,” she said, adding that many students depend on school meals and do not have reliable access to food when they are at home during holiday breaks.
At the ribbon-cutting ceremony, Martinez beamed as she did the honors with a pair of scissors fetched from the school’s supply room. Her colleagues cheered as the ribbon fell to the floor.
“We are so thankful for the work that Mrs. Martinez and Ms. Macedo have put into starting the food pantry for our students and community,” said Jessica Mitchell, assistant principal. “We appreciate the partnership between all of the organizations that have made this possible.”
The Spirit of Morgan City shrimp boat in the Brashear Avenue median became the spirit of Christmas on Thursday, a Thanksgiving night tradition. The lights were lit at the boat, which once more has been decorated with swamp scenes -- including white alligators pulling Santa's sleigh-boat -- created by local native and designer Lee Romaire.
The Review/Bill Decker
(Editor’s note: The charges listed here and the narratives that go with them are provided by the police agencies that made the arrests. Guilt or innocence has not been determined in court.)
Berwick police and sheriff’s deputies tracked down a suspect in the theft of a vehicle from a business, police report.
Berwick
Chief David S. Leonard reported these arrests:
--Darrell Sides, 49, Morgan City, was arrested at 1:28 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of theft of a motor vehicle.
At 1:01 p.m. Tuesday, the Berwick Police Department received a report about a vehicle being stolen from a local business. Officers responded and was quickly able to identify a suspect.
Moments later, officers, along with the assistance of the St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office, were able to locate the suspect, who was identified as Sides. Further evidence was obtained linking him to the theft
A short time later, investigators located the stolen vehicle. Sides was placed under arrest and transported to the Berwick Police Department, where he was booked.
--Ismael Rivera, 23, Hempstead, Arkansas, was arrested at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday on a charge of possession of marijuana (under 14 grams).
About 7:15 p.m. Tuesday, officers in the area of U.S. 90 observed a vehicle with modified exhaust. A traffic stop was conducted, and contact was made with Rivera.
During the course of the stop an odor of marijuana was detected, and a search of the vehicle was conducted. Marijuana was located inside.
Rivera was placed under arrest and released on a summons to appear in court.
--Anthony Gant, 42, Morgan City, was arrested at 10:01 p.m. Tuesday on a St. Mary Parish warrant alleging failure to appear on a charge of criminal neglect of family.
Morgan City
Chief Chad M. Adams reported that over the last 24-hour reporting period, the Morgan City Police Department responded to 36 calls for service and made this arrest:
--Brandon Hill, 41, North First Street, Morgan City, was arrested at 11:02 a.m. Tuesday on charges of possession of heroin, introduction of contraband into a penal facility and disturbing the peace (drunkenness), and on a warrant alleging failure to pay fine (6th Ward Morgan City Court).
Franklin
Chief Cedric Handy reported that the Franklin Police Department responded to seven complaints in the last 24-hour reporting period and made these arrests::
--Girard Navy, 31, Ninth Street, Franklin, was arrested at 9:56 a.m. Tuesday on charges of simple battery and simple assault. Navy was booked, processed and held with no bond set at the time of press release.
--Luis Sanchez, 43, Becnel Street, Franklin, while incarcerated at the Franklin Police Department, was arrested at 6:16 p.m. Tuesday on a warrant for the Osceola County Sheriff's Office alleging probation violation.
Sanchez was booked, processed and held with no bond set at the time of press release.
A 33-year-old woman died Wednesday after her car ran into a pickup on La. 182 in Amelia, Louisiana State Police reported.
The woman was identified as Kristin Michele Myers of Morgan City.
According to the state police account, the call came in at 1:15 p.m.Wednesday about the two-vehicle crash on U.S. 90 Business (La. 182) near Beauregard Road.
The preliminary investigation revealed Myers was driving a 2017 Kia Forte west, traveling behind a westbound 2019 F250. For reasons still under investigation, Myers’ Kia rear-ended the back of the F250 as the driver slowed to make a left turn.
Myers suffered critical injuries and was transported to a local hospital where she succumbed to her injuries. Restraint use on the part of Myers is unknown at this time. The driver of the F250 was restrained and was not injured.
Impairment on the part of Myers is unknown, but standard toxicology samples were obtained for analysis; results are pending, state police said. The driver of the F250 showed no signs of impairment and submitted a breath sample indicating no alcohol in his system. This crash remains under investigation.
Troopers reminded motorists to make good decisions while operating motor vehicles. Never drive while impaired, fatigued, or distracted; always ensure every occupant is properly restrained. While not all crashes are survivable, taking simple precautions like these can often mean the difference between life and death.
Troop I has investigated 46 fatal crashes resulting in 51 deaths in 2023.
Staff Report
And then there was one.
The Central Catholic football score looked like a baseball score. But the 10th-seeded Eagles were on the gridiron Friday when they upset No. 7 St. Frederick 6-2.
Central Catholic advances to this Friday’s Select Division IV quarterfinal at second-seeded Southern Lab.
The Eagles became the last St. Mary team alive in the prep football playoffs.
Southern Lab downed No. 15 Hanson Memorial 47-26, also in Select Division IV.
In Non-Select Division IV, No. 6 Mangham defeated Centerville 53-14, and top-seeded Logansport beat No. 16 Franklin 64-12.
Central Catholic 6,
St. Frederick 2
A mishandled Central Catholic punt snap in the end zone resulted in a safety and a 2-0 St. Frederick lead in the first quarter. Not quite 4 minutes into the second, Eagle running back Tate Fontenot caught a 6-yard pass from Benjamin Case to the St. Frederick 3-yard line, then took a direct snap into the end zone.
Central Catholic led 6-2, and that was it for the scoring. The drama continued.
The Eagles, playing against a bigger line, stopped three St. Frederick drives inside the Central Catholic 25, including once from the 8 and one from the 14.
St. Frederick stopped Central Catholic once at the Warrior 16 and then at their 1.
Both teams lost key players to injury.
Fontenot, who had 20 rushing yards and caught five passes for 33 yards, limped off with just over 9 minutes left in the game.
St. Frederick quarterback Montrell Conner, the big gainer for the Warriors with 13-for-80 rushing and 6-for-11 passing for 59 yards, came out in the third quarter after rushing for 17 yards.
That put freshman Parker Robinson behind center. On his third series, with 5 minutes left in the game, he hit William Parker for 47 yards, leading a charge to the Central Catholic 16.
But after a short run, Eagle defensive lineman Kaleb Willis slapped the ball away from Robinson. Then two passes fell incomplete, and Central Catholic had protected its lead.
Central Catholic’s Cash Baker earned the working class hero award, rushing 21 times for 48 yards.
Case passed for 83 yards on a 10-for-14 performance.
In addition to Fontenot’s five receptions, Hollins caught two for 20. Baker, Drake Rock and Landon Ramagos had one catch each.
For St. Frederick, Marcario Dade rushed 17 times for 63 yards.
Robinson finished with three completions in five tries for 60 yards.
Patrick caught seven passes for 101 yards.
Central Catholic is now 9-3 on the year and has won eight of its last nine games.
St. Frederick finished with a 7-4 record.
Franklin Banner-Tribune
P.O. Box 566, Franklin, LA 70538
Phone: 337-828-3706
Fax: 337-828-2874
Morgan City Review
1014 Front Street, Morgan City, LA 70380
Phone: 985-384-8370
Fax: 985-384-4255