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July 11, 1962 — November 2, 2021
“Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest.”
Matthew 11:28
Roy Paul Arceneaux, Jr., 59, of Gibson, Louisiana, passed away at his home after a long journey with cancer on November 2, 2021.
He was born on July 11, 1962 to parents, Roy Arceneaux Sr. and Eula Mae Bailey Arceneaux of Gibson, Louisiana. He graduated from H.L. Bourgeois High School and spent a number of years working throughout the country in the oil industry. Besides spending time with family and friends, he was an avid reader and Western movie fan.
Roy was predeceased by his paternal and maternal grandparents and his brother, Jeremy Arceneaux. He is survived by his parents, brother, Carl Arceneaux and wife (Gina), sisters, Tammie Kirby and husband (Mike) and Cherie Pinac and husband (Gillis) and grandmother, Alma Glavin and several nephews and nieces and family and friends.
A private family burial service will be held at St. Patrick’s Cemetery on Friday, November 5, 2021. The family wishes to thank Heart of Hospice for their loving care. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Cancer Society.

Republicans have enjoyed a hot streak in Louisiana, capturing most of our statewide and federal offices and tipping the scales in elected bodies like the Legislature. Democrats, meanwhile, take comfort in having a bench of marketable mayors and a governor with national sway.
Few politicos, however, would call Louisiana a Democratic-leaning state. For a while, consultants and talking heads said our home was more a shade of purple — not quite red and not quite blue. That’s another description few politicos would embrace these days.
So what should Dems do in the current political environment? The leadership of the Louisiana Democratic Party believes voter registration could be the key to building for the future, as long as it’s married to improved outreach, candidate recruitment and other activities.
These were among the topics discussed this past weekend when the party leadership presented its strategic plan to the Democratic State Central Committee.
That gathering was the first time Chairwoman Katie Bernhardt, who was elected last year, publicly discussed the blueprint that will guide the party through the 2022 and 2023 election cycles.
While the focus will naturally be on winning elections, the “Flip the Boot Blue” plan wasn’t sold to DSCC members as a cure-all. Instead, the strategic blueprint was presented as a dependable model that could help Democrats recruit and support candidates while locating new voters in a fashion “that’s more precise than ever.”
The key to the new plan will be identifying persuadable voters who either aren’t registered, aren’t hearing the right messaging or are being overlooked by campaigns for a variety of reasons.
In an interview last week, Bernhardt said the party will target 900 precincts using tens of thousands of data points in the hopes of reaching more than 150,000 unregistered Democratic voters.
Using in-house mapping technology, the party plans to engage these new voters with canvassing, text messaging, direct mail, email and other tactics.
In a state with a 92% voter registration, according to the Secretary of State’s office, the objectives are lofty — but not impossible, party diehards contend.
“Why would campaigns and donors want to work with the party on something like this?” asked Bernhardt. “It’s because our mission is to empower our partner organizations. What’s really different about this, though, is we’re inviting a new level of accountability. Our goals will be measurable. There will be measurable data points. There will be data that anyone can look at to see our progress.”
Registration efforts will begin immediately, but the party will have to raise roughly $500,000 to get the program ready for the 2022 elections. Bernhardt said there are several pots of grant monies available though the Democratic National Committee for the program. Donors will be approached as well.
“If funding is the first step, hiring a field director will be the second,” said Bernhardt.
Party officials believe the new plan has a number of built-in fundraising benefits. Bernhardt said donors will find comfort in the program’s ability to target not only precincts, but households. Each decision will be made with a certain number of voters in mind. “Over the long run, this will diminish time wasted and better maximize our resources,” she added.
The “Flip the Boot Blue” plan prioritizes parishes in tiers based on how influenceable they might be.
These are parishes where the Democratic votes are heavy, or where former President Donald Trump underperformed and Gov. John Bel Edwards won in 2019.
The lower the tier number, the higher the value. Places like Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport are classified as Tier One, for example.
So is Jefferson Parish. “Jefferson is a real indication of where we can focus our attention in the future,” Bernhardt said. “We’ve studied what happened in Georgia and there are some similar trends. We’ve seen much higher turnout in Jefferson Parish lately for our candidates. The Census data really points to some changes there.”
The plan has many tentacles, from investing in candidates in new ways and communicating with no party voters to increasing turnout and building upon each and every campaign, win or lose.
Volunteers will also be needed and Bernhardt has rechartered the Young Democrats organization, which is specifically for high school students.
While there’s work underway to help organize college campuses through College Democrats, the party is also building out an arm of its strategic plan to target high school seniors.
Not to be outdone, Republicans are bankrolling similar efforts in Louisiana. In fact, Republicans have found great success in recent years in registering new voters and recruiting first-time candidates.
Whether Democrats can do the same in the Bayou State remains to be seen.
For more Louisiana political news, visit www. LaPolitics.com or follow Alford on Twitter @ LaPoliticsNow.

Charlie Wells was named Morgan City High School homecoming king during homecoming that was celebrated the week of Oct. 17-24. He is the son of Lanica Jacobs and Charlie Wells Sr. Homecoming Queen Nyla Morse was crowned during the MCHS vs. A.J. Ellender football game Oct. 22. She is the daughter of Marquita Anderson and Corey Morse.

DEAR ABBY: My husband is close to retirement age and has his hands full with work and yardwork all year long. We have a lot of property to take care of. Two years ago, a retired neighbor asked him to clear the snow from her double driveway during the winter storms. (We don’t own a plow.) She started giving him $20 for his hard work. This year, she decided to give him $10 when she felt like it.
This woman is well-off financially. She has two housekeepers, goes out to eat and vacations on a regular basis. When the snow falls, she calls our home constantly to have her driveways cleared even though my husband is at work.
How do we put a stop to this when the snow starts falling this winter?
FED UP IN PENNSYLVANIA

DEAR FED UP: Your husband has been a good neighbor; this woman hasn’t acted like one. The next time you get a call like that when your husband is at work, TELL her your husband is “too busy” to help her out.
Then suggest she hire a person or snow removal service that does it professionally. She can certainly afford it.

DEAR ABBY: I am at a crossroads. My wife and I have grown apart. I thought we could go to counseling to resolve it, but she wants no part of it.
My issue is this: My daughter came to me asking why Mommy is kissing “Mr. Jones” and telling him she loves him. I can handle the heartbreak, but for my daughter to see this kills me inside.
How do I confront this?
HEARTBROKEN FOR MY CHILD

DEAR HEARTBROKEN: Talk to your wife about what your daughter told you. When couples separate, they usually try to spare their young children the details of their romantic lives until enough time has passed for the kids to adjust to the breakup.
That your wife couldn’t wait to do this is regrettable. Because she refuses counseling, if you haven’t talked to an attorney, the time to do it is now.

DEAR ABBY: My daughter-in-law’s mother has a brother who is a pastor. Recently, they held a small Sunday morning service at my daughter-in-law’s house. The brother wanted to do a “laying on of hands,” where he would say a short prayer about each person.
When it was my turn, he put his hand on my head and prayed for “all my bad habits” to be healed. I was mortified. This was in front of my grown sons and other people I know.
Everyone has some bad habits, but why would he single me out to shame and embarrass like that? I don’t think his intentions were holy. Advice?
FEELING ABUSED IN FLORIDA

DEAR FEELING ABUSED: You would feel less “abused” had you told that tasteless individual how his “blessing” made you feel when it happened. However, if you have his phone number, it’s still not too late. You deserve an apology. And if you are invited to any more of those small religious services, I suggest you politely decline.
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