Natchitoches Parish Sheriff’s Deputies responded to the scene of a vehicle in the ditch on May 11 on Interstate-49 at milepost #148 near Powhatan. There were no injuries. Motorists should drive carefully, pay attention to the road and avoid distractions.

According to the National Weather Service in Shreveport, a tornado watch is in effect until 5 pm today, May 11.

Scattered thunderstorms will be possible across the area today. A Flood Watch remains in effect, as moderate to heavy rainfall could result in flooding across the region. Also, an isolated strong to severe storm will be possible, with damaging winds being the primary threat.

The City of Natchitoches Planning and Zoning Department approved 21 permits during the month of April with an application value of $199,808 million.

See Full Report Here:

Northwestern State University awarded 905 degrees to 881 graduates during spring commencement May 11-12.  Graduates collected diplomas for associate, bachelor’s, master’s, doctoral degrees, post-baccalaureate certificates and post-master’s degrees. 

Commencement ceremonies were schedule for 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. Wednesday, May 10 and 10 a.m. Thursday, May 11.  The ceremonies were to be live streamed at www.nsula.edu.  More information on commencement is available at www.nsula.edu/graduation.

Graduates listed by hometown (in Natchitoches Parish) are as follows.

Campti – Morgan Etheredge, Bachelor of Arts; Macey Gill, Bachelor of General Studies; Shannon Bledsoe, Alexis Smith, Bachelor of Science;

Chopin – Katherine LeBlanc, Bachelor of Science;

Cloutierville – Alexis Coutee, Bachelor of Science;

Lena – Weslee Pickering, Bachelor of Science; 

Natchez – Clayton Jackson, Associate of General Studies; Michael Vienne, Bachelor of Science; Patricia Wise, Bachelor of Science in Nursing; Camessa Smith-Thompson, Master of Arts in Teaching; 

Natchitoches — Amber Armstrong, Associate of Science in Nursing; Luke Gallien, Aisha Latchie, Alexander Melcer, Kamryn Shelton, Talesha Solomon, Associate of General Studies; James Prock, Associate of Science; Caleb Callender, John Coffey, Matthew Courville, Catelyn Errington, Alexis Kitishian, Helen-Lois Mancil, Kaylee Merry, Emmett Nobles, Colie Plaster, Koral Richard, Derek Sarvis, Haley Summerlin, Kaci Waguespack, Bachelor of Arts; Drew Davis, Mickayla Love, Christina Rowland, Kerrie Spillman, Haley Summerlin, Bachelor of Fine Arts; Makayla Collinsworth, Gabrielle Dyes, Sarah Johnson; Weston Noe, Destine Scott, DeMarcus Sharp, Travis Smith, Bachelor of General Studies; Meredith Corrales, Jalima Diaz, Kylie Dornbush, Ivan Lorduy Camargo, Edgardo Paz Mancia, Bachelor of Music; Emily Saldivar, Bachelor of Music Education; Christopher Allen, Victoria Ashworth, Sharna Ayres, Parker Blanchard, Alaidrian Bolton, Maelana Braxton, Haidyn Brossett, Morgan Brown, Jazzare Burrell, Cory Campbell, Darious Ceasar, Melissa Collier, Johnathan Daigle, Riley Daniel, Joy Davis, Heather Day, Hannah Deranger, Jamie Dodds, Marissa Gardner, Peyton Green, Jordan Guillory, Mia Huffman, Tatiyana Kim, Morgan Landry, Aarika Lister, Dylan Lorenz, Juanita Marin Tabares, Amanda Maxey, Tristan Neitte, Mikiah Odum, Christian Osborne, Isabel Perregrino, Alyssa Price, Koral Richard, Joicelynn Richardson, Leidy Natalia Serna Tobon, Kristin Smith, Olamilekan Soyomi, Lucy Stark, Caroline Stokes, Brenda Teul, Julia Theriot, Adam Trupp, Macy Vascocu, Catrice Wafer, Kaci Waguespack, Patrick Walker, Derek Walle, Lawrence Washington, Raegan Washington, Bailey Wilburn, Terry Wilson, Bachelor of Science; Alexander Aguillard, Kasey Cain, Ferron Harrison, Bachelor of Science in Nursing; Meya Nutt, Bachelor of Social Work; Bobby Jordan, Taylor Camargo-Patron, Graduate Certificate; Brandon Cagle, Carly Chandler, Catelyn Errington, Master of Arts; Lindsey Sullivan, Master of Education; Ella Castro, Karla Gonzalez Bueno, Ramon Sarruf Monroy, Steven Wimberley, Master of Music; Bobby Armstrong, Marc-Ale Augustin, Courtney Chancellor, Makalah Koeberlein, McKinley LaSalle, Marcos Morelli Desanzo, Aspen Oliver, Patrycja Polanska, Jordan Wilburn, Master of Science; Mallie Anderson, Tracy Bishop, Roxanne Cook, Master of Science in Nursing; 

Oak Grove — Kaitlyn     Murphy, Master of Science in Nursing;

Provencal – Dylan Jennings, Bachelor of General Studies; Mason Pitts, Bachelor of Science; Kimberley Guidry, Master of Arts;

Robeline — Samuel Phillips, Associate of General Studies; John Martinez, Bachelor of Fine Arts; Reagan Moore, Bachelor of Science;

The month of May is here and I’m glad. It was with mixed feelings that I ripped April off my calendar and bid it good bye with good riddance mixed with a measure of thanks. Let me explain.

The month of April brought with it the bad temper Mother Nature can sometimes show. Some Aprils are sunny and warm; storm free and pleasant. Not this April, though. We had storms causing damage around the area. We had too much rain at times but the main thing that chapped my rear was the early-morning temperatures.

April is when I usually begin doing something I love to do and that’s take a basket of crickets, a comfortable chair and set up shop on the bank of a favorite pond. The bluegills are usually bedding by then and it takes a minimum of effort to fill a cooler with all the big fat bluegills and chinquapins I care to clean.

I keep a daily log of weather conditions and looking back over the log for April, I see 52, 48, 49, 51 et al as morning temperatures — and my favorite time to hit the pond is in the mornings. I’m not ready to have to have to wear a jacket to fish for bream so I’ll have to wait and see if May offers more comfortable conditions.

While April chilled us and didn’t let us take coffee cups comfortably to the porch to enjoy spring weather, something else took place that sort of made us forget about what a bad mood Mother Nature was in that month.

Every year around this time, song birds that have spent the winter in the tropics begin thinking about heading north where they’ll spend the summer and fall nesting and rearing offspring. During this time of time of year, they begin first gathering on the coast to restore their strength and energy from the exertion of winging their way across the Gulf. Birders from all over visit the coast to experience this spectacle, seeing birds they only see this time of year.

Once their stamina is replenished, the birds begin filtering north making their way through our part of the world, occasionally stopping by to sample our bird feeders that are usually visited by those native to north Louisiana – cardinals, blue jays, chickadees, titmice and such. Some that come through this time of year stay through the summer, rearing their young, while others bid us adieu after filling their stomachs before moving on.

Every year about this time, I start looking for one particular species of song bird, one that always stops by for a week or so before moving north. It’s the rose breasted grosbeak, a stunningly beautiful bird with eye-catching markings; a black back, white underside but what catches your attention is the crimson throat and upper breast the grosbeaks sport. The female has the appearance of a large brown sparrow. I’ll usually see a pair and sometimes two stop by to sample what’s on my feeder.

This year, something happened that made me forget that April robbed me of my chance to fish for bluegills. It was the sheer number of these beautiful birds that have converged on my feeder. I was thrilled when my first one showed up April 20. What I haven’t expected is the fact that the grosbeak flood gates opened and I’m filling my feeder several times a day because there have been so many.

One morning, I counted more than a dozen on the feeder, on the ground and on nearby branches. It’s not just me seeing them; reports have come in all around the area from folks seeing bunches of grosbeaks around their feeders. 

So April, I’m giving you a pass this year. Your weather stunk, but being inundated with so many rose breasted grosbeaks is a nice consolation prize.

Contact Glynn at glynnharris37@gmail.com

LAKE CHARLES – Kat Marshall’s leadoff moonshot of a home run sparked Northwestern State to a six-run eighth inning explosion on the way to an 8-2 win against Nicholls on the first day of the Southland Conference Tournament. 

The win advances NSU into the winner’s bracket of the tournament where it will face Southeastern for the fourth time in less than a week at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon, weather permitting. 

After holding the lead from the second inning on, the Lady Demons (25-25) saw their slim two-run advantage slip away in the bottom of the seventh inning.  

Marshall took a 2-1 pitch up in the zone out and over the scoreboard in left field for her second home run of the season to ignite an NSU offense that had stagnated over the previous four innings. 

“Really just went into the inning just trying to get back on track,” Marshall said. “Maggie (Darr) worked her tail off all game and Kenzie (Seely) came in with a tough situation and got us out of it but they were able to get two runs. My only goal my first at bat in the eighth was to get on base and I just happen to find a pitch I was able to hit hard.” 

Her long ball was the first of six hits in the inning for NSU and the first of four extra-base hits. A four-pitch walk put Makenzie Chaffin on base following Marshall’s blast with Laney Roos bringing her around on a triple to dead center field. 

With just two triples on the season entering the game, the Demons doubled their total in two batters as Tristin Court hit a sinking liner to right that got bast the right fielder for a second straight three-bagger and a 5-2 NSU lead. 

Camryn Ford delivered the third straight hit and RBI, her second of the game in her first postseason action, with a single to left and ended up on third after a throwing error in the outfield. 

“The dugout was crazy afterwards,” Marshall said. “That’s the best part of this team. When you do well everyone is happy for you and it makes everyone more amped up and excited. We typically have a pretty loud dugout anyway but when good things are happening like that we let them know.” 

With the bases loaded later in the inning Marshall stepped to the plate for the second time and once again delivered for the Demons. An opposite field double brought in two more runs, her third and fourth RBIs of the game, giving the Demons the six-run cushion. 

The late-game heroics served as a nice bookend for the dominant pitching performance the Demons got from Maggie Darr to start the game. 

Darr faced the minimum through the first four innings, carrying a no-hitter through four and a third before Nicholls got its first hit on a one-out double in the fifth. She pitched 6.0 innings and allowed one earned run on just three hits with four strikeouts, using her defense time and time again throughout the night. 

Ford tracked a ball down at the wall in center field early in the game, Keely Dubois turned a 6-3 double play and Ashlyn Walker jumped from behind the plate to grab a pop up while crashing into the net to prevent Nicholls from gaining baserunners or momentum. 

“I was really proud of them for coming back and doing what we needed to do to win the game,” head coach Donald Pickett said. “We showed a lot of character, a lot of fight and a lot of heart. We got one down but we’ve got to continue to come out with that same fight and intensity and keep playing pitch-by-pitch Demon softball.” 

The Northwestern State baseball team – young and old – had its moments Tuesday night at Alex Box Stadium.

The No. 2-ranked LSU Tigers had a few more.

The Tigers rode the momentum of three straight second-inning home runs to a 14-4 win against the visiting Demons, handing Northwestern State just its second mid-week loss of the year.

“That’s a really good team, and it’s what you get when you play a really good team,” seventh-year head coach Bobby Barbier said. “We made some mistakes. When you throw six or seven guys, you’re going to have some guys who don’t have their best stuff. You want to see them command the ball better, because the guys who commanded the ball did well. We competed hard tonight.”

NSU (25-21) struck first for the third straight trip to Alex Box Stadium as Jeffrey Elkins started the game with a single and later scored on a wild pitch from LSU starter Thatcher Hurd (3-1). Hurd allowed three of the first four NSU hitters to reach but struck out the final two hitters of the inning to keep it a 1-0 lead.

After Chase Prestwich’s perfect first inning, Hurd responded with a three-up, three-down second inning before the LSU bats came to life.

Tommy White’s lead-off home run in the second was the first of three straight solo shots off right-hander Ethan Francis (1-1). The Tigers’ fourth home run of the game – Jordan Thompson’s three-run shot – capped a seven-run third inning in which the Tigers (38-10) sent 10 batters to the plate.

Northwestern State turned to the long ball to answer LSU’s second-inning barrage as freshman Michael Dattalo drove a 3-1 pitch from Blake Money out to left-center field for Dattalo’s eighth home run of the season.

It was part of another two-hit game for Dattalo, who has recorded a team-leading 23 multi-hit games this season. Dattalo’s sixth-inning double and Elkins’ RBI double in the seventh were the only other hits for the Demons.

Elkins went 2-for-4, giving him his third straight multi-hit game against the Tigers. A senior from Lafayette, Elkins is 7-for-15 with two doubles, two home runs and seven RBIs in four career games against LSU.

“Jeff and Mikey had good days,” Barbier said. “Daunte (Stuart) swung the bat really well, but didn’t have a lot to show for it.”

After LSU’s seven-run third, freshman right-hander Tyler Bryan restored order with a perfect fourth inning that included strikeouts of projected first-round MLB Draft pick Dylan Crews and White to punctuate his fourth straight scoreless outing.

“He’s growing up and becoming a real guy for us,” Barbier said. “It’s fun to watch.”

The Demons return to action Friday when they host McNeese in the series opener of the final home series of the season. First pitch is set for 6:30 p.m.

No. 2 LSU 14, Northwestern State 4

NSU       101 001 1 – 4 4 2

LSU        037 013 x – 14 11 1

W – Thatcher Hurd (3-1). L – Ethan Francis (1-1). 2B – NSU, Jeffrey Elkins, Michael Dattalo. LSU, Tommy White, Hayden Travinski. HR – NSU, Michael Dattalo (8). LSU, White (17), Beloso (8), Travinski (4), Jordan Thompson (8). Highlights: NSU, Elkins 2-4, 2B, RBI; Dattalo 2-3, 2B, HR, RBI. LSU, White 3-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBIs; Beloso 2-3, HR, RBI; Travinski 3-3, 2B, HR, 3 RBIs; Brayden Jobert 2-4, 3 RBIs.

Records: Northwestern State 25-21, LSU 38-10.

Spots remain for the Northwestern State baseball team’s Alumni Weekend activities this Friday and Saturday when the Demons face McNeese at Brown-Stroud Field.

All alumni are invited to attend the two-day event, which will include a tour of the NSU baseball facilities, the opportunity to take batting practice on the field following Saturday’s game, a postgame social and a private section at the games with food and drinks.

Baseball alumni and families will be able to purchase $5 tickets to both games. For more information, contact the NSU Athletics Ticket Office at 318-357-4268.

Attendees should RSVP to director of player development Trevor Wren at twren299108@nsula.edu.

As most gardeners know, marigolds are a helpful resource to other plants, they repel bugs and help other plants grow healthy. Mrs Cady Caskey’s second grade classes at Provencal Elementary had this in mind when they planted their garden full of marigold seeds back in February. They tended to them each week until May, and then happily delivered the beautiful flowers to each teacher during Teacher Appreciation Week to let them know they are appreciated and share the beautiful, unique qualities of the marigold.

Mrs Cady Caskey and her three 2nd grade classes are pictured.

Baton Rouge– The Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry (LDAF) Commissioner Mike Strain, D.V.M., reminds property owners to remain vigilant for termites during late spring and into the coming summer months.

With Louisiana’s warm and wet climate this time of year, termites can get especially active as they constantly seek out new food sources.

“Turning off outside lights at night or using yellow bulbs can help you avoid attracting swarming termites,” says Commissioner Strain. “However, there are also other proactive measures you can take on a regular basis to protect your property from the destruction of termites.”

• Fix any leaks in the roof, pipes, and outside faucets on your home.
• Repair rotting wood on the fascia, soffit, and exterior wood surfaces.
• Remove any wood lying under or around your home, and store firewood away from your home.
• Examine your home’s slab line and the base of piers for signs of termites.
• Clean the gutters on your home and repair sections that may be damaged.
• Trim tree limbs and vines that may be growing on your home.
• Drain water away from the slab or under your home; do not let it pool.

Treatments and annual inspections by a licensed, insured, and bonded pest control company are a good termite preventative. Between professional inspections, property owners can also look for mud tubes on slabs, piers, or walls; pinholes in wallboards; softness in flooring; or blisters in paint or wallpaper.

To find out which companies are certified and licensed to perform termite-related services, consumers can contact the LDAF at 225-925-4578, visit the LDAF website at www.ldaf.la.gov, or download the LDAF Business Search App (available in the Apple and Google Play store).

Jo Ann Kinghton was born February 27, 1942, to the late Stille Lee Lynch and Mrs. Willie Mae Page Lynch in Natchitoches, LA.  She was the third of four children born to that union.  Jo Ann confessed Christ at a young age at Shady Grove Baptist Church, where she remained a faithful member until her health declined.

She graduated from Central High School, class of 1959, then went on to become the first of her family to attend college.  Jo Ann obtained a Bachelor of Science in Secondary Education from Grambling College in 1965 and later earned a Master’s plus 30 from Northwestern State University.

A devoted educator, she dedicated nearly 50 years of her life in service to the youth of Natchitoches and Red River parishes.

She is survived by her children, Stanley, Nina (Thbasta) and Erika, grandchildren; Alicia, Jasmine, Donovan and Karrigan, great-grandsons; Da’Marion and Kaiden, siblings; Alton, Earlee, Mary, Stillie Ray, Howard and Catherine (Odell), and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

Don’t miss out! Limited tickets are available for the Natchitoches Jazz Fest featuring Mark Chesnutt, Cupid, Tracy Byrd, and more!

Buy now and enter to win a luxurious Steel Magnolias Getaway! Affordable prices, unforgettable experience!

How to enter:

It’s simple! Buy your Natchitoches Jazz R&B Festival tickets, and you’re automatically entered into the giveaway! The more tickets you purchase, the more chances to win, with VIP tickets counting even more!

The Giveaway Prize Package includes:

2-night stay at the iconic Steel Magnolias House B&B where several scenes from the movie were actually filmed!

$100 gift certificate for Merci Beaucoup Restaurant in downtown Natchitoches just a few blocks from the Steel Magnolias House!

$100 gift certificate for Mayeaux’s Steak House within easy walking distance from the Steel Magnolias House!

Dinner for two at Mariner’s Restaurant on Sibley Lake which offers spectacular sunset views over the lake and fine dining!

Scenic cruise on the Cane River Queen, Natchitoches’ own riverboat!

$100 gift certificate to Plantation Treasures Gift Shop!

$100 gift certificate to Magnolia Spa Wellness & Boutique.

The approximate value of the package is over $1,000!

Get your tickets and enter the giveaway today:

https://www.eventbrite.com/…/26th-annual-natchitoches…

For more information on the full line-up, head to:

https://www.natchjazzfest.com/lineup-2023

JOB VACANCY: Band Director

LOCATION: Natchitoches Jr. High School

QUALIFICATIONS: Certification according to State Department of Education as a band director.

SALARY: According to NPSB salary schedule.

WHERE TO APPLY:

Linda G. Page, Personnel Director
Natchitoches Parish School Board
P. O. Box 16
Natchitoches, LA 71458-0016
(318) 352-2358

WEBSITE: npsb.la

EOE

BOM made a donation to the M.R. Weaver Elementary School Teacher Appreciation Week. Pictured left to right: BOM’s Carrie Hough, Principal Armetrice Williams, BOMFS’ Reba Phelps, and BOM’s Blaise LaCour.