Northwestern State University’s Student Government Association unveiled a special monument to honor former university president Dr. Jim Henderson Friday.

Following Henderson’s induction into NSU’s Long Purple Line, the university’s alumni hall of distinction, SGA President John Pearce of Livonia and former NSU first lady Tonia Henderson unveiled a bust of Dante Alighieri, the Italian scholar, philosopher and poet of the late Middle Ages who is much admired by Henderson. The bust and a bench named for Dr. and Mrs. Henderson, both NSU alumni, were placed in front of the NSU Student Union in the heart of campus.

The bust of Dante includes a quote from “The Divine Comedy” that reads “Be as a tower that, firmly set, shakes not its top for any blast that blows.”

Henderson, who served as NSU’s president for two years, often drew correlations between Dante’s work and references to NSU, such as the Demon Inferno and the quote “Lasciate ogni speranza voi ch’entrate (Abandon all hope, ye who enter here.).” He also noted that Dante’s use of Italian vernacular, rather than Latin, made his work accessible to individuals outside the upper classes and academia.

The installation was cast by NSU Professor of Art Corbin Covher in a project coordinated by SGA Advisor Shayne Creppel.

During his short but productive tenure at NSU, Henderson developed a strong rapport with students through personal accessibility and social media. He began service at president of the University of Louisiana System on January 1, leading nine state institutions and more than 90,000 students.

By Corey Poole/Opinion

I’ve spoken to a few classes at Northwestern State University in the Department of New Media, Journalism, and Communication Arts and it’s been a great experience.

Students going into the New Media industry are eager for information and thirsty to hear what it’s all about. The classes were “Writing and Reporting for New Media,” “Writing for Mass Media” and an upper level “Editing” class. I shared some professional experiences and gave them advise on gathering, reporting and editing local and community media.

I focused on the electronic side of Journalism because I became a reporter on the cusp of a transition from print to digital. I was close to graduating from NSU in 2009 when a professor (not one from the Journalism Department) asked me if I realized I was graduating into a dying field. That same year the Department was disbanded, until it was revived in 2015 under the “new media” mantle.

While my professor’s comment was disheartening, I never gave up. After bartending in Natchitoches for a few years I took a graphic design job at the local paper. I quickly moved to the editorial department and served as the paper’s editor before becoming the editor of the Natchitoches Parish Journal, an online news publication.

I grew up loving print, which always gave me a physical copy to hold in my hands. The idea of digitally reporting the news was intimidating at first. That was until I discovered its power to improve things, the demand from readers for real-time news and the gratitude of the local community for keeping them informed.

Through speaking to each class, I found a similar theme of accuracy in reporting. Especially with digital news, accuracy is imperative. The race to be the first news outlet to publish a story often leads to inaccurate facts.

So, reporting that police officers fired into a house during a standoff when they didn’t can get a journalist in a heap of trouble. Calling an Oak tree a Magnolia tree makes readers question what’s up. Calling an invasive species “endangered” is a blatant error. Any good reporter worth his/her salt can’t afford such mistakes.

In small towns, mistakes are magnified. Accuracy and reliability are the cornerstones of a journalist’s reputation. When reporting online, a mistake is easy to correct, but in print it becomes indelible.

Correctable or not, mistakes can change the meaning of a story entirely, or make the community question a publication’s overall integrity and quality. After all, the worst thing possible is to be mistaken for fake news.

Visitation is Tuesday evening and a memorial service is set for 1 p.m. Wednesday for Northwestern State baseball great Jimmy Stewart, inducted last October in the Demons’ N-Club Hall of Fame.

Stewart, 68, passed Saturday in Minden. Visitation is Tuesday from 5-8 p.m. at Rose-Neath Funeral Home at 211 Murrell St. in Minden, with the memorial service at 1 p.m. Wednesday at St. Joseph’s Episcopal Church at 1107 Broadway St. in Minden.

The Doyline native played basketball and baseball at Northwestern, excelling as a right-handed pitcher from 1968-71. After a successful tryout, Stewart reached Class AAA in the California Angels organization before a shoulder injury, sustained while refereeing a high school basketball game, ended his professional baseball career.

He was All-Gulf States Conference for the Demons and coach Herbie Smith as a senior, when Stewart was 7-4 with a 1.69 ERA, striking out 78 in 71 innings.

In his last three seasons, he started 23 games, finishing 22, and often would start the first game of a doubleheader, and come out of the bullpen in the second game. He also played basketball in his first two seasons at Northwestern.

“There wasn’t a better pitcher in the state of Louisiana,” said Smith last September at a reception held to honor Stewart in Minden. “His control was perfect, he threw it about 90 mph. Everything about him was really good. He was great to coach, a hard worker, a fantastic player.”

Stewart became a highly-successful high school coach in Webster Parish. He was a math teacher and a basketball, baseball and softball coach. He coached the Crimson Tide to a state finals appearance in basketball, and was pitching coach for three state championship baseball teams at Minden.

At Doyline, he coached the softball team to four state playoff appearances and retired as an acclaimed principal in 2004 after 19 years, and a total of more than 32 years in education.

He was instrumental in mobilizing the Demon basketball alumni annual fall weekend gathering that annually nets significant support for the program. Along with his late brother Bill, he created the Stewart Boys Scholarship endowment supporting Demon basketball.

Stewart is survived by his wife Renee and their adult children, Jamie Stewart Gressett and son Ryan Stewart.

The N.S.U. Middle Lab School Orchestra competed at Festival Disney in Orlando, Fla. March 31 – April 1. Festival Disney is the premiere international music festival where seventy-five orchestras, bands and choirs performed with hopes of winning one of the coveted Mickey Mouse trophies.

The Middle Lab Orchestra consisted of 56 string orchestra members from grades 6-8. They were accompanied by 70 chaperones, siblings and Lab School Orchestra Director Katrice LaCour.  The group performed at the Ballroom of the Americas at the Disney’s Contemporary Resort and was evaluated by three adjudicators.

The panel consisted of Prof. Joseph Hermann Professor of Music and Director of Bands at Tennessee Tech University, Dr. Alexander Jiménez, Professor of Conducting and Director of Orchestras at The Florida State University and Dr. Catherine Rand Director of Bands at The University of Southern Mississippi. Festival Disney Gold, Silver and Bronze awards are presented to the three highest superior-rated ensembles within their division at the awards ceremony held at the end of the festival.

The Lab School Orchestra was the only middle school orchestra attending so they were moved up to the High School orchestra division.  The awards ceremony was later that evening and there were three Orchestras that scored superior ratings.

The Middle Lab had the highest score, 97.3 percent, of all orchestras but were not included in the playoff round due to a classification error. The Gold Award was given to 3A Centennial High School High School with a composite score of 93.3 percent.

After the ceremony LaCour contacted the Festival Disney Team with concerns about an error he saw in classification on the composite score sheet. Festival coordinators agreed, apologized for the error and corrected the mistake. The coveted 1st place Gold Mickey Mouse Trophy was overnighted to Middle Lab where it now sits in their orchestra trophy case.

Centennial H.S. was able to keep their Gold Trophy as well due to the mix up. The orchestra returned home exhausted but ready for school Monday morning. LaCour invites everyone to Magale Recital Hall on the NSU Campus to hear this award winning group Thursday, May 11 starting at 5:30 pm.

By Kevin Shannahan

A very proud Natchitoches Central Principal Bill Gordy presented two NCHS students at the school board meeting on April 6th for the “School is cool” presentation. Bradley Scott placed first in the state in AG II while Jacob Boyt placed first in the state in Physics at this year’s Literary Rally held April 1st at LSU in Baton Rouge. NCHS sent 60 students to test at the district level rally held at NSU, of which 9 advanced to the state competition at LSU. The state competition featured approximately 1,000 students from every area of the state. In addition to the first place winners in AG II and Physics, NCHS students placed 15th in Civics, 13th in AG II, 9th in US History and 13th in Physical Science.

The Natchitoches Parish Journal wishes to congratulate all of the students who tested at the district and state rallies. The Chiefs turned in a superb performance!

Louisiana Lions Camp Executive Director Ray Cecil shared a slide presentation with the Natchitoches Lions. He informed the club that  applications are coming in and there is still space available for more campers. One weeks Sessions for mentally challenged youth will be held June 11-17 and June 18-24 (ages 8-19). One week sessions for physically challenged youth will be held June 25-July 1 and July 2-8 (ages 8-19). Sessions for youth with diabetes will be held July 9-15 (ages 6-10) and July 16-22 (ages 11-14). Please visit http://www.lionscamp.org or call 800-348-6567 for more information or to register.

Rotary member David Guillet spoke to the club about Rotary’s upcoming event “Bulletproof the Blue.” The goal of the event, which will be held Saturday, April 29 from 8 am – 1 pm at Dark Woods Haunted Attraction, is to raise $10,000 to purchase new bulletproof/ballistic vests for the Natchitoches Police Department.

A traffic stop on Interstate-49 near Natchitoches led to the arrest of a Las Vegas man on felony narcotics charges and the seizure of illegal narcotics April 6 at 5:10 pm.
NPSO Patrol Division deputies were patrolling on I-49 near Natchitoches when they stopped a 2016 Fiat passenger car for Speeding 88 miles per hour in a posted 75 mph speed zone.

Deputies say upon coming in contact with the violator, identified as Johnny M. Jones, of Las Vegas, Nevada he stated he did not have a drivers license handing them a Nevada Identification Card.

A computer background check revealed Jones drivers license was suspended and he had a lengthy prior criminal history.

NMJDTF Criminal Patrol Units with narcotics K-9 “Misty” were summoned and arrived on scene to assist.

Agents walked the K-9 around the vehicle who alerted to the vehicle for the presence of a narcotics odor.

Agents conducted a search of the vehicle, seizing approximately 12.8 grams or 46 suspected MDMA ecstasy tabs, suspected marijuana, suspected alprazolam, drug paraphernalia and weighing scales.

Deputies arrested:
Johnny Michael Jones Jr., 28, of Las Vegas, Nevada transported and booked into the Natchitoches Parish Detention Center charged with Possession of CDS Schedule I MDMA with Intent to Distribute, Possession of CDS I Marijuana, Possession of CDS Schedule IV Alprazolam, Possession of Drug Paraphernalia, Speeding 88/75 and Driving under Suspension.

Jones remains in the Natchitoches Detention Center awaiting bond.
The seized narcotics will be submitted to the crime lab for narcotics analysis and identification.

Deputies say Jones and two passengers traveled from Las Vegas to New Orleans and were on the way back to Nevada when stopped.

The two passengers were released after Jones confessed to ownership of the narcotics.
Deputies assigned to NPSO Shift “B” and NMJDTF Agents made the arrest.

Fourteen students from Lakeview Jr.-Sr. High performed in the L. M. E. A. District II Solo and Ensemble Festival at Tioga High School April 8. Ten of the students earned a superior rating on a solo instrumental performance, and 14 students earned superior ratings in small ensemble performances, earning a total of 24 medals.

The students who earned superior ratings on a solo performance were Courtney Mosley, Olivia Litton, Zoie Britt, Hailey Thompson, Kedreion Pattain, Joshua Graham, Jo Porter, James Earp, Myla Porter, and Kain Custis.

The students who earned a superior rating on the performance of a duet were Courtney Mosley, Joshua Graham, James Earp, and Myla Porter. Jo Porter and Kain Custis earned superior ratings on two different duets.

The students who earned a superior rating on the performance of a trio were Olivia Litton, Adriunhya Gray, Destinee Britt, Courtney Mosley, Joshua Graham, and Dylan Marr.

Percussion student Heather Mosley earned a rating of excellent on her solo performance.

This is the fourth consecutive year that Lakeview has received superior ratings at this festival.

Band director Denise Roper commented, “Solo and ensemble festival is a great opportunity for these young students to learn and perform pieces written by some of the greatest composers in the history of music. This year they played solo and ensemble music based on compositions by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Vivaldi, Gluck, Saint-Saëns, Schubert, and Mendelssohn, among many others. I am very proud of these students. They have worked hard and have consistently achieved great results.”

Pictured on first row from left are Adriunhya Gray, Heather Mosley and Zoie Britt. On second row are Destinee Britt and Courtney Mosley. On third row are Jo Porter, Joshua Graham and Hailey Thompson. On fourth row are Kedreion Pattain, Myla Porter, Kain Custis, James Earp, Dylan Marr and Olivia Litton.

By Kevin Shannahan

Kevin’s Gallery

This Sunday marked the 153rd anniversary of the Battle of Pleasant Hill. Every year since the late 1970’s, there has been a re-enactment held on the actual battlefield about 3 miles from the modern site of the Village of Pleasant Hill. This year’s re-enactment featured approximately 400 reenactors from Louisiana, Texas, Arkansas, Mississippi and Oklahoma with a local group representing Natchitoches Parish.

Friday featured an open camp held for local educators so school groups could come and learn about life in the Civil War era. Saturday and Sunday each featured battles fought before a large crowd as well as the Battle of Pleasant Hill Queen, court and a contingent of festival and pageant queens from across Louisiana. In addition to the battles, the event featured a period dance and church service.

Attend Tri Sigma’s Dancing with the Sigmas event Tuesday, April 11 at AA Fredericks Auditorium on the NSU Campus at 7 pm. Doors open at 6:30 pm.

The following community members were paired with Tri Sigma members:
 

Shayne Creppell
Kendrick Below
Daniel Page
Avila Kahey
Brad Laird
Craig Caskey
Elliot Guidroz
Howard Conday Jr.
Brian Carrol
Kiley Bell
Jack Duty
Dane Terrell
Leslie Ann Sharbono
Emilee Leger
Myranda Degraw
Caroline Aydelott
Emily Rawls
Katelyn Baronne
Emily King
Jourdan Waddell
Madeline Mason
Beka Aultman
Stacy Fussell
Ragan Aple

The event is a fundraiser for Tri Sigma’s philanthropy “Sigma Serves Children” through Tri Sigma’s philanthropic partner March of Dimes. Sigma Serves Children is the philanthropic initiative to benefit children’s health. Whether Sigmas provide play therapy grants to children’s hospitals or light their campus purple for Prematurity Awareness Month, they raise money to impact lives.

Admission is $10 per person. VIP seating is $20. Tickets are available at Bank of Montgomery, City Bank & Trust Company (St. Denis location), Exchange Bank & Trust Company and Merci Beaucoup Gift Shop. Tickets will also be sold at the door the night of the event.

For more information contact Myranda Degraw at 225-274-5134 or email her at mdegraw.sigma@gmail.com.

The Natchitoches Parish Planning and Zoning Department issued 33 permits for the month of March, totaling $3.1 million in estimated development costs and $26,948m in permit fees.

Commercial-New Construction:
Fire District 7, 4307 Hwy. 485, Robeline, $88,350

Commercial-Remodel:
Louisiana Heartland Properties, 985 Hwy. 504, $28,000

Residential-Addition:
Warren Ward, 168 Johnson Lane, $100,000

Residential-Detached Building:
Cletis Martin, 1136 Hampton Road
Tina Monette, 2427 Hwy. 119, Natchez
Clay Vanderlick, 2861 Hwy. 484, Natchez
Laura Bain, 101 Bayou Pierre Cutoff Road
Justin Rhodes, 118 Plantation Point, $20,000

Residential-Electrical Trade:
Alma Alost, 363 Mr. Ed Lane
Brenda Pleasant, 141 Pleasant Road, Robeline
Billy Potts, 582 Pardee Road, Campti
Ann McPhearson, 140 Lou Ivy Road
Krystle Johnson, 115 Carmane Road
Lanelle Sklar, 168 Bayou Pierre Cutoff Road
Morgan Prothro, 220 Paul Jordan Road
Lynwood Delphin, 1539 Bermuda Road, Natchez

Residential-Manufactured Home:
Iris Smith, 2174 Harmony Road, Robeline, $10,000
Russell Watson, 7103 Hwy. 9, Campti, $51,000
Terrance Moody, 134 Ann Street, $50,000
Joseph Kay, 143 McLaren Road, Robeline, $48,000

Residential-New Construction:
Jeremy Hebron, 252 Riverside Lane, Natchez, $275,000
David Solomon, 431 Bermuda Road, $20,000
Melissa Hardaway, 1733 Hwy. 156, Goldonna, $350,000
Randy Filasek, 224 Riverside Lane, Natchez, $280,000
Rhodes Properties, 121/123/125/127/120/122/124/126 St. Anne Street, $500,000
Jeremy Brimer, 255 Felix Roge Road, Melrose, $290,000
Luke Briley, 3082 Hwy. 117, Provencal, $350,000
Landon and Sarah LaCour, 145 Roverview Drive, Natchez, $315,000
Rhodes Properties, 219 St. Jerrard Avenue, $250,000

Residential-Other:
Brittany Withers, RV Site, 1593 Hwy. 493
Andrew Kasparek, Cell Tower, 337 Hwy. 71/84, Coushatta, $150,000

Residential-Swimming Pool:
Eric Kaufman, 214 St. Jerrard Avenue
Corwyn Aldredge, 292 Plantation Point

From pikappNSU.org

The Beta Omicron Chapter of Pi Kappa Phi Fraternity is doing their part to keep Natchitoches beautiful.

On March 24, active and associate members of the Northwestern State University fraternity held their regular ‘Trash Bash.’

The group walked more than a mile, clearing trash and debris from the roadside.

In 2006, the chapter adopted University Parkway, the main thoroughfare running through Natchitoches. The fraternity chose the street because of its high visibility to residents and tourists, as well as its proximity to the NSU campus.

“We genuinely care about this town. We take pride in its beauty and heritage. We see it necessary that we do our part to keep the roads clean,” said Beta Omicron chapter Historian, Tyler Thomas. Spring is an important travel season for Natchitoches, with the annual Bloomin on the Bricks event, Cane River Green Market, and the Natchitoches Jazz & R&B Festival.

The chapter has also adopted a stretch of South Jefferson Avenue along Chaplin’s Lake through the NSU Adopt-A-Road program.

Natchitoches Police Department Officers responded to a medical emergency on Klaire Circle shortly after 10 p.m. on April 8. Officers arrived and spoke with a witness who advised her neighbor knocked on her door and advised his brother was injured and she called 911.

The victim, a 12-year-old male, had an injury to the head that was later determined to be a gunshot wound. He was transported to Natchitoches Regional Medical Center and was later airlifted to University Health in Shreveport. At last report the victim was in critical condition.

No suspect information is available at this time and this case is currently under investigation by The Natchitoches Police Department Criminal Investigation Division.
If you have additional information in regards to this investigation please contact Detective Townson at(318) 357-3852. Remember all information given shall remain confidential.

Zeek Woodley did more than enough in his injury-interrupted senior season to earn the Northwestern State great one last spot on the All-Louisiana Men’s College Basketball Team.

Despite missing 15 games after breaking his right (shooting) wrist Dec. 19, Woodley was voted to the 2016-17 All-Louisiana Team announced late Saturday night by the Louisiana Sports Writers Association. He was a third-team selection on the 15-man squad. It was the third straight year he’s made the team, with first team honors last year and second-team recognition after his sophomore season.

In 14 games in the 2016-17 season, he averaged 19.2 points and 3.5 rebounds while making 50.8 percent of his shot, 43.5 percent from 3-point range, and draining 87 percent (60-69) at the free throw line.

Woodley was able to return for the Demons’ last four Southland Conference contests, when he averaged 23.3 points and 4.0 rebounds. The 6-2 swingman led NSU to a 3-1 finish, including wins over UNO and at Stephen F. Austin, snapping a five-year, 45-game conference home win streak by the Lumberjacks.

Before the injury, Woodley scored 28 on Nov. 28 at Mississippi State in a 64-59 defeat, with Bulldogs coach Ben Howland saying postgame that Woodley could play anywhere in the country.

In his final game, Woodley broke NSU’s 40-year-old career scoring mark, finishing with 2,033.

The Demons finished 13-16, including an 8-6 mark with Woodley in the lineup.

By Toria Smith

Marcus Hardison, defensive tackle for the Cincinnati Bengals and a Natchitoches native, spoke to students at the Natchitoches Junior High April 7.

The event was part of the Jobs for America’s Graduates (JAG) program. This program makes it possible for its members to earn community service hours, go on field trips, visit college campuses and hear valuable advice from guest speakers.

”One of the program’s requirements is bringing in eight guest speakers,” JAG Coordinator Jacquelyn Rainwater said. ”One of the students mentioned wanting to meet an NFL player, so I contacted Marcus’ aunt about making that happen.”

”When my aunt called me about speaking here, I jumped on it right away,” Hardison said. ”I always have a great time interacting with kids.”

Hardison wants to mentor children and be a positive male figure in their lives.

”My coaches were my role models, and I want to be that for someone else,” he said.

Hardison stressed the importance of school in his speech, and told the students that it is important to set goals early and to stay focused on these goals.

”I’m pursuing my communications degree while playing football,” Hardison said. ”It’s important to remember that the NFL is not for long.”

There is a 1.5 percent chance of making it to the NFL, so the teachers and administrators of Natchitoches Junior High felt that it was important for the students to know that school should be prioritized in case a career in football does not pan out.

”We want to make sure that they understand that the chance of making it to the NFL is so small,” Principal Edwin Mason said. ”To hear it from an NFL player drives that home more than we could hope to on our own.”

By Kevin Shannahan

Kevin’s Gallery

The Natchitoches Kiwanis held their annual Pancake Breakfast and 5K Run Saturday, April 8th at the NSU Pavillion and Tailgating area. The 5k race featured 45 runners who enjoyed perfect spring weather running a course on NSU’s picturesque campus. The Kiwanians were assisted by about 30 NSU students from various sports teams and organizations who helped serve food and cheer on the runners.

The popular event, a spring tradition in Natchitoches, is expected to raise about $12,000.00, all of which will be used in the local area for Kiwanis’ programs such as Terrific Kids, Circle K, Key Club and K-Kids youth programs. The Kiwanis also supports CASA and the Women’s Resource Center.

The event closed with a fiercly contested pancake flipping contast between Dr, Chris Maggio, NSU Interim President, Mayor Lee Posey and Natchitoches District Attorney Billy Joe Harrington. All three contestants fired up the crowd with their pancake flipping skills, but the Mayor and DA were unable to overcome Dr. Maggio’s homefield advantage as he drew the loudest cheers and won the competition.

The Natchitoches Parish Journal is donating today’s event photography. Photo protection is off and readers may download all they wish. If you see a photo you like, please consider a donation to Kiwanis to further their good works.

By Kevin Shannahan

Kevin’s Gallery

Northwestern State University’s Prather Colosseum was transformed into what was arguably the finest restaurant in the State Friday, April 7th as 20 area establishments presented their best seafood dishes to over 620 eager diners. The event goers enjoyed some of the best seafood dishes to be found as well as entertainment from NSU music students and local bands. A silent auction was also held during the dinner.

The inaugural Flavor of Louisiana is a fundraiser for NSU’s Columns Fund. The funds raised will be used to further the Column Fund’s mission of supporting NSU students with scholarships as well as providing opportunities for students, faculty and staff to reach out to the surrounding community. The event is expected to raise over $50,000.00 for this worthy cause.

Louisiana’s Lt. Gov., Billy Nungesser, was the guest of honor at the event. His office, in conjunction with the Louisiana Seafood Board, provided all of the seafood used that night. The Seafood Board is charged with promoting the use of seafood from Louisiana’s waters. The dinner featured each of the 6 species of fish, alligator, crab, oyster, shrimp and crawfish that are native to our state. Lt. Gov. Nungesser and the Seafood Board thought of the Flavor of Louisiana event as a way to both promote the use of local seafood and as a way to raise needed funds for our State’s colleges and universities.

Friday’s Flavor of Louisiana marks the start of what hopefully will become an annual event. The Bayou State features some of the best seafood to be found anywhere!

The Natchitoches Parish School Board met Thursday, April 6th in a meeting in which the business was largely overshadowed by discussion. All members were present

After the invocation, call to order and Pledge of Allegiance, the roll was called and it was determined a quorum was present.

The Superintendent’s report was on discipline in the schools and an introduction of Mr. Bill Gordy, Principal of NCHS, who presented two young men who placed 1st in the state in AG II and Physics at the state literary rally (come back for an upcoming story on these two young men and NCHS’ superb performance at the state literary rally.)

There was no old business to discuss.

As for new business, the consent agenda was adopted with a unanimous vote. The minutes of March 9th, 2017 were approved. The bills were approved for payment. Out-of-state travel for faculty, administrators and the NCHS cheer sponsor was approved. With the exception of the Director of Human Resources attending a teacher job fair in Nagodoches, TX, there was to be no cost to the Board.

There was some discussion between the Board, the representative from the Durham Company and principals concerning proposed school bus route changes. It was decided to further study the cost issues involved and address the issue at the next meeting.

On the Finance, Services & Insurance Report, there was continuing discussion concerning the first issue, LED lighting and HVAC upgrades at Marthaville. This item was deferred until the next meeting. The Transportation and Tax Commission reports were both received by the Board.

On the Personnel Report, Mrs. Page informed the board of a productive recruitment trip to Louisiana Tech’s job fair. She also announced that one teacher resigned and one teacher was retiring.

As for the Executive Report, there was considerable discussion and friction over the bullying policy in which the superintendent answered Board member’s questions concerning the teacher’s and principal’s disciplinary actions. There was also a discussion about the African American Studies course and its accreditation. The course counts for credit as an elective, but not as a core course for TOPS.

The meeting was adjourned after that item. A special called meeting will be held Monday, April 10th at 5:00. There will also be a reception held for district valedictorians on May 4th.

The Kiwanis Club of Natchitoches will hold its annual Pancake Breakfast and 5K Saturday, April 8 from 7 a.m. – 12 p.m. The festival style event will take place at Northwestern State University’s Collins Pavilion.

This year the club has put a new spin on an old tradition. The pancakes will be FREE to all guests. The Pancake Festival will also offer a wide array of events including: a pancake eating contest, pancake flipping contest and a free Kids Zone that includes face painting and bounce houses. The breakfast itself will include delicious pancakes, sausage and your choice of beverage (milk, coffee or orange juice).

“We are very proud of the dedication of our club members that make this event a complete success”, said Event Organizer Lee Waskom. “And with our enhancements and expansions this year we are looking towards another banner year.”

One hundred percent of the proceeds raised from this event will be used to support the many programs and projects in the local club including: Terrific Kids, K-Kids, Key Club, Circle-K, Boys & Girls Club water day and many others.

We would like to thank our sponsors that made our “new spin” on our annual Pancake Breakfast happen this year.

Bank of Montgomery
Alliance
Waskom & Brown
First Federal
J&J Specialty Lawn & Landscaping
Smoothie King
Bolton Realty
Weyerhaeuser
Christian Outreach Center
HDBA
City Bank & Trust
Sabine State Bank
Brian Carroll
Cross Financial Group
Dickey’s
Mayor Lee & Evie Posey
Exchange Bank

The Natchitoches Rotary Club will hold Bulletproof the Blue: A Law Enforcement Experience like no Other Saturday, april 29 from 8 am – 1 pm at Dark Woods Haunted Attraction.

The goal is to raise $10,000 to purchase new bulletproof/ballistic vests for the Natchitoches Police Department.

“Richard DeVargas brought to our committee’s attention the Police Department’s need for 10-15 new vests and that they cost around $500 each,” said Rotary member David Guillet. “When thinking of how we could raise money to help in that, we thought about golf tournaments, skeet shoots, and dinner events. We wanted to do something that would tie directly into law enforcement and the need for these vests.”

The event features three interactive scenarios, involving police issue Glock handguns with “simunition” non lethal rounds, that will put participants in situations designed to replicate an actual police call. There will be “shoot/don’t shoot” decision making involved that will give the participant a greater understanding of the stress that law enforcement officers endure.

With that said, the scenarios are fairly basic and are designed to be fun and user friendly even for people who may not be familiar with handling firearms. There will also be static displays from various law enforcement groups such as K-9, Dive Rescue, SWAT, and others.

“When we spoke with Rotary International to detail the event, they had never heard of anything like this nationwide,” said Guillet. “We felt like there has been some unfortunate misunderstandings nationally between law enforcement and the communities they serve, and we hope that this event will, most importantly, raise a lot of money and be a lot of fun for all who show up, but also put a friendly face on our police department. And we hope this will give the public a better understanding of the stress they endure. I hope everyone will come out and support us.”

This is an opportunity for the public to have fun, contribute to a cause helpful to the community, and get a friendly familiarity with the men and women protecting the community. Dark Woods staff will sell concession items such as drinks and snacks throughout the event.

Tickets will be $45 per person, which will include a T-shirt and BBQ lunch provided by City Bank and Trust. There are reduced rates for group packages, law enforcement, firefighters, active duty military, and students with a current, valid NSU ID. There are also corporate sponsorship packages available at reduced rates. The event is open to anyone 16 and older.

For more information contact David Guillet at City Bank and Trust, 318-352-4416 or Natchitoches Rotary Club on Facebook.

PRE-REGISTRATION IS HIGHLY RECOMMENDED