Notice is hereby given that the Natchitoches Parish School Board will receive the following:

August 22, 2022 2:15 p.m. – 2022 CREW CAB PICKUP TRUCK

Bids/Proposals will be accepted until the date and time specified and will be publicly opened and read aloud at that time in the School Board’s Central Office, 310 Royal Street, Natchitoches, Louisiana, 71457-5709. Please find bid-related documents and place electronic bids, is desired, at
WWW.CENTRALBIDDING.COM.

For questions relating to the electronic bidding process, please call Central Bidding at 225-810-4814. Bids/Proposals received after the date and time of opening will not be considered. Facsimile transmissions will not be considered.

Additional information may be obtained upon request by contacting Michelle Demery, Purchasing Coordinator, at 318-352-2358, Ext. 1155, or email at Michelle.Demery@npsb.la between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 4:30 p.m.

The Board reserves the right to reject any or all bids.

/s/
Lee Waskom
Director of Business Affairs

/s/
Grant Eloi
Secretary-Treasurer
Natchitoches Parish School Board

Jessica Mullican of De Ridder, a recent graduate of Northwestern State University, has been awarded a $2,000 Dean Adele Hagner Stamp Graduate Fellowship from Alpha Lambda Delta, the honor society for first-year academic success. Mullican was inducted into ALD in 2019 and is a previous recipient of ALD’s Trow Undergraduate Scholarship in 2020.

Mullican studied strategic communications and hospitality management and tourism at NSU, graduating this past May. She served as the Alpha Lambda Delta chapter secretary and junior advisor. As an undergraduate, she was a freshman orientation leader, interned as a heritage ranger with the Cane River National Heritage Area and worked as a student worker in the First Year Experience Office. She recently accepted a full-time position at NSU as coordinator of First Year Experience. She will be pursuing a graduate degree in Student Affairs in Higher Education at NSU.

“My goal is to work in University Recruiting, freshman orientation and new student programming during and after my graduate studies,” Mullican said.

Twenty-eight graduate fellowships are given annually by Alpha Lambda Delta to its members from a national pool of competitive applicants. Award amounts range from $2,000-$7,000 and are used to offset the expense of pursuing graduate or professional studies. Each fellowship is named for a person of significance to Alpha Lambda Delta. Dean Adele Hagner Stamp, educator and community leader, was born in Catonsville, Maryland, and received her bachelor’s degree at Tulane University, her master’s at University of Maryland and did additional graduate work at Catholic and American Universities. In 1922, Stamp began a 38-year career as Dean of Women at the University of Maryland. In 1983, the Board of Regents named the student union building at the College Park campus the Adele H. Stamp Union in recognition of her extraordinary contributions to the university. Stamp was for many years the treasurer of the National Council of Alpha Lambda Delta and it is largely due to her financial abilities that the monies have accrued that now make up the Perpetual Fellowship Fund and ultimately fund ALD scholarships and fellowships.

Alpha Lambda Delta is an honor society that recognizes students’ academic success in their first year at a college or university. Founded in 1924 and active on 280 campuses, Alpha Lambda Delta inducts 22,000 members annually and has over 1.3 million lifetime members. Alpha Lambda Delta’s mission is “to encourage superior academic achievement, to promote intelligent living and a continued high standard of learning, and to assist students in recognizing and developing meaningful goals for their unique roles in society.”

Natchitoches Parish Journal publishes paid obituaries – unlimited words and a photo, as well as unlimited access – $80. Contact your funeral provider or npjnatla@gmail.com . Must be paid in advance of publication. (Notice of Death shown above are FREE of charge.  You may email them to npjnatla@gmail.com)

We are inviting anyone who would like to begin our school year in prayer to Natchitoches Central on Wednesday night, Aug. 3, at 6 pm in the atrium. We will join together to ask the Lord’s favor and blessings on our students, our teachers, and our schools.
We hope to see you there!

Micah Coleman, NCHS Principal

Valley Farmers co-op presents Hunters Night Out with Cody Kelley this Thursday Aug. 4 from 6-8 p.m.

Cody Kelley, from Small Town Hunting on The Outdoor Channel, is coming to Natchitoches for one night only.

So come on out to Valley Farmers co-op and see all the sale items on hunting supplies and much more while visiting with our good friends at the co-op and Cody Kelley. First come, first serve hamburgers and hotdogs will be provided.

We will see y’all there and remember as Cody Kelley says, “There’s a little Small Town in all of us.”

Valley Farmers Co-op is located at 250 Rapides Dr. in Natchitoches.

A young Smithsonian Magazine staffer named Chris who is working on a piece about the history of bicycle newspaper carriers contacted me by email this week. Being a paperboy was his first job, back in the late 1980s, he told me. 

If you lived in town big enough for access to a newspaper, being a paperboy or papergirl was almost a rite of passage, definitely a job coveted by your classmates and friends. At daybreak in towns across America, the paperboys were the modern-day Pony Express, saddling up their bicycles and throwing papers onto porches of their dentists and teachers and Little League coaches. 

As American as Paul Harvey, apple pie and Easter bonnets. 

“No one seems to be able to tell me if this profession still exists,” Chris wrote. “So, I’m writing you to Ask the Paperboy… about paperboys. Or girls.” 

For years now, this column has been a spot where you could send your questions to the Paperboy, who I know personally. I have a few of your requests stored and will try to crank out an ‘Ask the Paperboy’ in the next couple of weeks — if I can get Paperboy to answer his phone. 

We’ve written more than a year’s-worth of these in the past three decades, and they usually go something like this. 

Dear Ask the Paperboy, 

I’m all fired up about this weekend’s release of Water For Elephants at the picture show. Tell me, when was the first Bearded Lady? I love the circus! 

Hairy in Homer 

Dear Hairy, 

Short answer: too soon. By the way, did I ever tell you about my toughest interview? Ever? It was with the Headless Woman. She’s a tough quote. I said “Huh?” a lot. 

Or …  

Dear Ask the Paperboy, 

If you see a turtle outside his shell, is he homeless or nekkid? 

Slowly, Kurt in Fordyce 

Dear Kurt, 

At that moment, both. And probably cold. And wondering where he’s going to keep his keys and wallet. 

Or … 

Dear Ask the Paperboy, 

It is the 50^th anniversary of the Ken doll. Do you have a favorite?  

Gated Community Barbie 

Dear Barb, 

Probably the Talladega Ken, who comes in blue jean cutoffs, a straw cowboy hat, is tattooed by Office Depot and smells like 30-weight. Pull his string and he says “Nice viscosity!” and “My trailer, or yours?” 

As I told Chris, readers often ask me things and I don’t know the answer, but Paperboy does.  

And he knows enough to answer Chris’, who asks, again… 

Dear Ask the Paperboy, 

No one seems to be able to tell me if this profession still exists. So, I’m writing to Ask the Paperboy. Some of my friends say there is no Paperboy, that you can’t see him so he’s not real. Please tell me the truth: Is there a Paperboy? 

Chris at Smithsonian Magazine 

Dear Chris, 

Most papers these days are delivered by what are called ‘newspaper carriers,’ adults in cars. And more and more newspapers are now being delivered digitally. But …  

CHRIS, your little friends are wrong. They have been affected by the skepticism of a skeptical age. They do not believe except they see. They think that nothing can be which is not comprehensible by their little minds. All minds, Chris, whether they be men’s or children’s, are little in this great universe of ours. 

Yes, CHRIS, there is a Paperboy. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Paperboy. It would be as dreary as if there were no Chrises. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. Only those things, only faith, fancy, poetry, love, romance, can push aside that curtain of the unseen world to view and picture the supernal beauty and glory beyond. 

No Paperboy? There is! He lives, continuing to make glad the heart of reader hood. Oh Chris, there IS a Paperboy — and you owe him $43.18, counting the leftover balance you forgot to pay last month. See you on collection day Saturday. 

Contact Teddy at teddy@latech.edu 

The Natchitoches Regional Medical Center celebrated its newest Daisy Award winner: Claire Chester Wardell, RN of the Labor & Delivery Unit.

“She was a Rockstar,” Robert Richoux shared after the birth of his son at the hospital. “She went above and beyond for my wife. She was extremely helpful and supportive. Anything my wife needed she was there for. Everyone helping with delivery was amazing but Claire was the one doing the hard work. She was so encouraging during delivery. She knew all the right things to say to help my wife. Sure doctors get all the credit, but nurses like her are the true heroes.”

The DAISY Award For Extraordinary Nurses honors the super-human work nurses do for patients and families every day.

Pictured are Karn Richoux, Claire Chester Wardell, and Robert Richoux with son.

Thirty-five years of pro football experience stood before the Northwestern State football team as it gathered for Tuesday’s report day activities.

Former Nicholls running back Lionel Vital was a guest speaker who livened up what typically is a day full of administrative meetings and paper work. Vital played with the then-Washington Redskins in 1987 before beginning a scouting and executive career that lasted until his retirement six months ago.

“He has lived that journey, and it’s where all these guys want to go,” fifth-year head coach Brad Laird said. “To be able to hear from somebody who has come from where they came from, being a running back from Nicholls, to play in the NFL and CFL and, more importantly, be a scout. He knows what the NFL scouts are looking for, and he was able to relay that message to them – not just on the field, but he talked just as much about off the field. That’s a message these guys need to hear.

“It’s a different message. It fit his schedule for him to come here Day 1. It was a fitting way to kick start fall camp.”

Vital’s message of perseverance and success resonated with the assembled group of Demons, who kick off fall camp with a 9:15 a.m. practice Wednesday.

A former NFL scout and director of player personnel, Vital spoke and answered questions from a rapt audience, who hung on nearly every word of his journey from seventh-round draft pick to being cut to nearly turning down what became a decades-long career in scouting and front-office work.

Vital credited a “raw” uncle, who told him upon hearing Vital initially turned down an offer to scout that his nephew “must have rocks in his head.”

“I just threw out pieces of 35 years, pertinent things that they can take with them,” Vital said. “It can be one or two things, it can be 10 things, that can help them get to the next level. That’s their dream. You have to push them to go to class, but they all want to go to the NFL. They all are trying to get to that level. I’m trying to make life lessons. This all parallels to life.”

Ahead of Vital’s question and answer segment with the players, he offered up a few questions to the Demons including what their goals as a team are for the upcoming season and what it means to win as a team.

As Vital echoed some of the responses from the team, those words stuck equally as much as the ones he spoke later.

“He gave us a lot of great information we need as a team before we start our camp,” said senior safety Jabari Reddock, who transferred from Stony Brook in the spring. “We can connect more. As he said, culture is a big thing in any business setting. As a team, if we come together as one, have a great culture and are on the same page, the sky is the limit.”

A limitless future is one Vital saw himself with nearly 40 years ago when another professional athlete spoke to him.

“It makes me feel good to see young men sitting, listening and asking questions when they’re deep into what I’m saying,” Vital said. “I feel like I’m helping. They may be doctors or lawyers or one may end up speaking around the country.

“I was at Nicholls State and Willie Stargell came. He was speaking, and I loved him. It impacted me. I wanted to do that. Maybe not at that moment, but as the years passed, I thought, ‘Man, that was pretty cool.’ I don’t think I could fathom doing this if he had not come to my school. This is going to impact somebody eight to 10 years down the road. Someone’s going to grab a mic and talk.”

BOM is a proud sponsor of Girl Scout Troop 765 in Natchitoches.

Pictured left to right: BOM’s LeeAnn Edwards, Latronda Vercher, Ava Vercher, BOM’s Sarah Giannone, Ce’Lecia Vercher, and Erica Vercher.

The Goldonna Wildcats are ready for a new school year and hosted their Open House on Tuesday, August 2, 2022. According to Principal Cori Beth Manuel it was well attended but she wanted to clear up a slight misunderstanding.

“Our school sign is glitching! The correct date for the first day of school is Friday, August 5th for grades 1-8 and Kindergarten girls. Kindergarten boys will report on Monday, August 8th. All of the kindergarten students will be on campus on Tuesday, august 9th. Pre-K girls begin August 11th, Pre-K Boys begonia August 12 and all of the Pre-K Campus on August 15,” shared Mrs. Manuel.

She went on to say, “We are looking forward to a wonderful school year and a campus full of students!”

Goldonna Assembly of God Church held their Vacation Bible School on Sunday July 31st and it was a packed house. The theme for the event was “Jerusalem Marketplace.” The church members all participated in different ways including; decorating, cleaning, teaching, cooking and painting. They look forward to growing this event in the future. There will be a Community Church Service held at Winfield First Assembly of God on Friday, August 5, 2022 at 6:00pm. The church is located at 5693 Highway 167 in Winnfield. Brother Mike Howell will be the guest speaker and there will be food! Be sure and bring a pot luck dish to enjoy while fellowshipping with others.

There will be a Variety Show Benefit for Gail Black Roy at the Goldonna School on August 26th from 6:00pm to 10:00pm. Tickets for the show are $15 and children under 5 years of age will get in for free. The $15 does include food and drinks as well. All classmates from 1975 to 1980 are asked to bring finger foods, can drinks, cakes or cookies. The will also be a Blood Drive at this event that will benefit Gail. For more information please call 318-875-2264, 318-413-9389, 318-583-2861 or 318-875-2651.

It is election time in Goldonna and there are candidates for nearly every office held. One thing is for certain, God has truly blessed Goldonna with many residents who truly care about moving the Village forward and making it the best it can possibly be. I am sure that any extra prayers you have laying around would surely not be wasted on all of the fine individuals who decided to run for re-election or election for the first time. Praying for your community is never wasted prayers. With all of the communication advances being made there is no telling what is in store for the future of this beautiful, hilly area of Natchitoches Parish.

It will soon be time to start planning the annual Christmas in the Park Festival. I hope everyone is ready to start pitching in! There are only 144 days until Christmas!

If you have news to share please email Reba Phelps at jreba.phelps@gmail.com

POSITION: Electrical Department – Groundman Laborer

QUALIFICATIONS: A working knowledge of principles and practices in overhead and underground electrical power line installation, maintenance procedures and operating/maintenance of substations including low voltage service work is desirable, trim trees and branches and assist the Right of Way Crew. Must work towards obtaining a CDL license. Overtime, standby and dependability is required.

EDUCATION: High School diploma or equivalent.

CONTACT: City of Natchitoches, Human Resources Department located at 1400 Sabine St., or P.O. Box 37 Natchitoches, LA 71458-0037.

Applications may also be picked up upstairs at City Hall, located at 700 Second St., or you may download an application on line at www.natchitochesla.gov

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS: Applications will be accepted through August 8, 2022

THE CITY OF NATCHITOCHES IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER.

By Brad Dison

In the summer of 1893, Katharine Lee Bates was teaching English at Colorado College in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Katharine and some of the other teachers decided to visit the summit of Pikes Peak, some 12 miles away as the crow flies. Katharine had learned all she could about the peak’s history before setting off.

Pikes Peak became part of the United States with the Louisiana Purchase in 1803. Soon thereafter, the federal government sent military explorers out to see what the newly acquired property contained. One of those military explorers was Zebulon Pike, the peak’s namesake. His task was to locate the headwaters of the Red and Arkansas rivers. On November 15, 1806, Pike spotted what he called “the Grand Peak” for the first time. Eleven days later, Pike and several of his men attempted to reach its summit. Bad weather and the lack of proper climbing gear ultimately forced them to retreat. Pike never made it to the peak which bears his name. It was another fourteen years, in the summer of 1820, before the first European-American reached the summit.

Climbing the 14,115 feet summit in the 1890s was not an easy feat. Katharine and the other teachers hired a prairie wagon to take them part of the way up the mountain. When the road became too treacherous for the wagon to go on, they mounted donkeys and continued. By the time they reached the top, several hours later, they were all exhausted. Their energy was renewed when they saw the breathtaking views. As Katharine took it all in, she had a sudden flash of inspiration. She pulled out her notebook and began writing. She diverted her gaze from the view just long enough to scribble down a few words at a time.

Throughout her lifetime, Katharine published numerous books, most of which were popular at the time but have largely been forgotten with the passage of time. Her most memorable work was that poem she quickly wrote while taking in the wonderful views from Pikes Peak. Organist Samuel A. Ward happened upon Katharine’s poem and composed music to go along with it. The song was first published in 1910. Since then, hundreds of artists have recorded the song including Bing Crosby, Frank Sinatra, Ray Charles, Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, and Aretha Franklin. Katharine’s sudden flash of inspiration produced one of the most beloved patriotic songs in American history, “America the Beautiful.”

Her original 1893 poem is still recognizable today, though there are noticeable differences from her later, more popular version.

O beautiful for halcyon skies,
For amber waves of grain,
For purple mountain majesties
Above the enameled plain!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee,
Till souls wax fair as earth and air
And music-hearted sea!

O beautiful for pilgrim feet
Whose stern, impassioned stress
A thoroughfare for freedom beat
Across the wilderness!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
Till paths be wrought through wilds of thought
By pilgrim foot and knee!

O beautiful for glory-tale
Of liberating strife,
When once or twice, for man’s avail,
Men lavished precious life!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
Till selfish gain no longer stain,
The banner of the free!

O beautiful for patriot dream
That sees beyond the years
Thine alabaster cities gleam
Undimmed by human tears!
America! America!
God shed His grace on thee
Till nobler men keep once again
Thy whiter jubilee!

Source:
1. The Boston Globe, March 29, 1929, p.1.
2. The Kansas Chief (Troy, Kansas), January 2, 1896, p.1.

NPSO/NPDC Education Coordinator Deputy Monia Jackson donated school supplies on behalf of the NPSO to Natchitoches Junior High Assistant Principal Robert Carnline that can be used by teachers and students during the upcoming school year.

We welcome all of our teachers and students back to an exciting upcoming school year.

Contestants are being sought for the 2022 Natchitoches Queens Scholarship Program to be held at the A.A. Fredricks Auditorium on the campus of Northwestern State University. The Natchitoches Queens Scholarship Program includes the Miss Merry Christmas Pageant and the Miss Natchitoches City of Lights Pageant. The Miss Merry Christmas Pageant will be held at the A.A. Fredricks Auditorium on Saturday, Sept. 17 at 2 p.m. followed by the City of Lights Pageant on Sunday, Oct. 2 at 2 p.m.

The Miss Merry Christmas Pageant is open to young ladies who will be enrolled in the twelfth grade in a Natchitoches Parish school. Participants compete in scholastic achievement, interview, evening wear, casual wear, and onstage question. The winner will be crowned Miss Merry Christmas and will serve as the official hostess of the Natchitoches Christmas Festival. Christmas Belles will also be selected from the pageant contestants. Miss Merry Christmas and her Belles will represent Natchitoches at various events throughout the holiday season.

There is a $75 entry fee to enter the Miss Merry Christmas Pageant. There must be at least 10 girls entered in the Miss Merry Christmas pageant for the pageant to take place. All applications and entry fees for the Miss Merry Christmas Pageant must be returned to the Main Street Office at 781 Front Street, Natchitoches, no later than Friday, Sept. 2 at 4 p.m.

The Miss Natchitoches City of Lights Pageant is open to young ladies who will be enrolled in the twelfth grade through age 25 by December 31, 2023, enrolled in high school or college, or meets the state residency requirement. Participants compete in interview, talent, onstage interview/social impact, and red-carpet wear. The winner will be crowned Miss Natchitoches City of Lights and will receive a $1,000 In-Kind Scholarship to Northwestern State University, an official Miss America Local Crown, a custom embroidered sash, and much more. The winner must be available to attend Miss Louisiana State Meeting in April 2023 and the Miss Louisiana State Competition in June 2023 held in Monroe, Louisiana.

The Miss City of Lights Pageant also includes an Outstanding Teen division. Participants must be enrolled in Junior/High School, be between the ages of 13-18 years old, and compete in interviews, fitness in sportswear, talent, and evening wear/onstage question.

There is a $110 entry fee to enter the City of Lights Pageant in the Miss division and a $75 entry fee for the Outstanding Teen division. All applications for the Miss Natchitoches City of Lights Pageant must be submitted to pageant director Gregory O’Quinn via email at gregoquinn78@yahoo.com by Sept. 28.

All applications can be picked up at the Natchitoches Main Street Office Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 4:30 p.m. For more information, please contact the Main Street office at (318) 357-3822.

Rotarian with the Program Jessica McGrath introduced Natchitoches Central High School Football Coach James Wilkerson. Wilkerson gave an update on the football program. Pictured from left are Rotary President Aaron Johnson, Wilkerson, and McGrath (Photo by Dr. Ron McBride).

Natchitoches Parish Journal publishes paid obituaries – unlimited words and a photo, as well as unlimited access – $80. Contact your funeral provider or npjnatla@gmail.com . Must be paid in advance of publication. (Notice of Death shown above are FREE of charge.  You may email them to npjnatla@gmail.com)

The first official day of school is Friday, August 5th and we hope students across the parish have enjoyed their summers and have a great first week back!!

Open House dates are:

Marthaville:

Thursday, Aug. 4 from 5-7 pm

Provencal:

Thursday, Aug. 4

•5:00pm PreK – 4th Grade -Meet in the gym for the welcome and introduction of the elementary staff

•6:00pm. 5th – 8th Grade – Meet in the gym for the welcome and introduction of the junior high staff

Goldonna:

Tuesday, August 2 at 5:30pm

LP Vaughn:

Tuesday, August 9 for 1st and 2nd grade from 5-6:30 pm

Thursday, August 11 for Pre-K and Kindergarten from 5-6:30 pm

Weaver:

Tuesday, August 16 from 5-6:30 pm

East Natchitoches:

Thursday, August 18 from 5-6:30 pm

Natchitoches Jr. High:

Wednesday, August 10 from 5-6:30 pm

NSU Middle Lab:

Tuesday, August 2 from 4:30-6 pm

Fairview Alpha:

Thursday, August 4 from 5-6:30 pm

To add any dates to this list please email us at NPJNatLa@gmail.com.

Parents,

Welcome Back! I hope you are enjoying a wonderful summer. I also hope you are relaxed, recharged and ready to start a new school year. I am so delighted that you are part of our amazing learning community. I welcome and value your positive energy and dedication to excellence in education, and I look forward to working with you and your children.
All signs point to another incredible and productive school year. Our skilled and devoted staff is already planning and preparing for your child(ren). We are indeed a caring community with the common goals of nurturing responsible, caring students and promoting high-level learning.

Facilities Update
If you drove past the school this summer, you may have noticed numerous maintenance and construction projects. First, we have completed the much needed update of the elementary building. The library has undergone a total replacement of the floor. Currently the baseball field is getting needed attention. This is scheduled to be finished by the end of September.

Security
Our number one priority is student learning and our number one responsibility is student safety. Please remember “all visitors must check in at the office when coming to school”. Your cooperation in appreciated.

August Schedule
The first day for 1-8 grade students will be August 5. School will begin at 7:40 AM daily and end at 3 PM. One half of Kindergarten will report on August 5 and one half will report on August 8. All Kindergarten will come on August 9. One half of Pre-K will report on August 11 and one half will report on August 12. All Pre-K will come on August 15. Pre-K parents will meet with their teacher on August 4th.

Open House
Marthaville Elem/Jr.Hi will conduct Open House on August 4 from 5-7 PM. Our teachers maintain a high degree of integrity, determination, and courage everyday. We know you are loving, affirming, fair and consistent parents. Your relationship with your children makes a difference in student learning. It is obvious that “Together we can”

Online Registration Available
The Natchitoches Parish School Board is proud to announce online registration for all new and currently enrolled students in Natchitoches Parish Schools. Registration is done through the NPSB web page – CLICK HERE.

Bill Gordy
Principal
Marthaville Elem/Jr. High School

With hurricane season underway, the Louisiana Department of Health reminds the public about how to safely use a generator to avoid carbon monoxide (CO) poisoning in the event of a power outage.

During 2021, CO poisoning killed 81 Louisiana residents and sent hundreds more to the hospital. Six of these deaths occurred during Hurricane Ida. Deaths from carbon monoxide exposure often spike after hurricanes and storms due to improper use of portable generators.

Known as the silent killer, CO is an odorless, colorless and tasteless gas produced when fuel is burned that can easily build up to deadly levels. CO symptoms are often described as “flu-like” and can appear as headaches, nausea, dizziness, weakness, chest pain and confusion. Breathing in too much CO can make you pass out or kill you. People who are sleeping or drunk can die from CO poisoning before they have symptoms.

The Office of the State Fire Marshal recommends the following safety tips for portable generators:
Place generators at least 20 feet away from your home.
Look for any air entry points into the home near your unit and ensure that those are properly closed and sealed off, such as windows or doors, air intakes, nearby dryer vents or crawl spaces.
Install CO alarm.
Give generators breaks that allow for any concentrated exhaust to clear away from the area.
Open your windows and doors during this break to air out any concentration that may have collected in your home.

In addition, here are some safety tips for standby generators:
Check the manufacturing specs to verify the installation meets those specs.
If there’s a concern that the installation standards were not met, get an appropriate party, like the installer, out to inspect it.
Ensure your generator is being appropriately maintained, including the oil change frequency requirements.

If you think you or someone else has been exposed to carbon monoxide, move the person into fresh air and call your doctor or healthcare provider. If someone has been electrocuted, call 911 for emergency care instructions.

Natchitoches Parish Fire Didtrict 6 continues to respond to numerous grass and brush fires. The latest a grass fire on Hwy. 494 at 2 pm on Sunday, July 31.

An unattended burn barrel resulted in fire extension into very dry nearby vegetation.

The parish-wide Burn Ban has not been lifted and is still in effect. The fire risk continues to be extremely high
Engines 1, 4 and 18 responded, along with Rescue 1 and 8 NPFD6 members.

By Edwin Crayton/Opinion

Ask almost any group of Christians when morals began to decline among young people in America and someone in the group will most likely point to the day prayer was taken out of schools. That was June 25, 1962, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled school-sponsored prayer unconstitutional. But if those who see this as a turning point are right, then does that fact actually say more about the state of Christian families than it does about the schools? In other words, if taking prayer out of schools had that much impact, then maybe Christian families were not doing enough spiritual training themselves. God commanded his people to teach their own children about his ways (Deuteronomy 6: 1-9). But over time, have Christians abdicated that responsibility to others? Today, like most of society, schools are undergoing radical cultural shifts that tend to be hostile to Christian values and teachings. What a child learns in his Christian church on Sunday morning, is often criticized or contradicted one way or another in his school, the next day on Monday. Sexual acts that are considered sins at church are celebrated on the school campus. This has to be confusing to a child. Does it make sense then, to keep putting Christian school kids through this? It seems apparent that something needs to change.

The good news is that God is not caught off guard. The Bible predicted that there would be a day when people would reject strong doctrine or rather, be hostile to the teachings of God (2 Timothy 4:3). We are in that time period now. Our children are caught in the crossfires of a spiritual war in which Satan will deceive many into rejecting biblical teachings and lifestyles in favor of lifestyles that oppose Christianity (Ephesians 6:12). His goal is to get people to reject God so that they will be eternally punished and suffer forever in hell. It’s entirely tragic (Revelations 20:11-15). Hell is a form of slavery with no relief. Unfortunately, Satan’s cruel scheme is working on many of our young people who are unaware of what is happening to them. In 2019 Lifeway released a study that revealed that most young people who leave church do so when they enter college. However, about half of a second group of respondents who decided not to leave church said, “the church was a vital part of their relationship with God (56%) and that they wanted the church to help guide their decisions in everyday life (54%).” The question is, how do we get more young people to draw the same conclusion?

Perhaps it starts with an honest evaluation of how we educate Christian children. We can begin by asking questions. Are we as parents and family members really taking as much responsibility for the training of children as we can or could we do more? Do our Vacation Bible School Programs, Sunday Schools and Youth Programs truly prepare children for the real world they are facing in the 21st Century? It appears to me that many Vacation Bible School Programs for instance feel like slick Disney productions from about 40 years ago. In other words, they seem generic. While we are teaching generic ideas about the faith, look at what the secular world is teaching our children: Movies promote fornication (sex before marriage). Main characters sleep together almost a few minutes after being introduced to each other. Yet the Bible tells us to shun fornication (1 Corinthians chapter 6). LGBT groups promote a society where gender is something you can choose about like you might pick a box of cereal. They successfully lobby schools to allow boys to compete as girls with girls in sports. God said that he made humans male and female (Genesis 1:27). Marriage is treated like Play Dough. Make it what you want. But the Bible says it was designed by God to be between a man and woman only. God gave specific directions on marriage and divorce/remarriage (Genesis 2:24, Matthew 5:31-32, Matthew 19:1-12, Mark 10:1-11). God prohibits the practice of homosexuality—something that goes against his teachings (Leviticus 18:22, Romans Chapter 1, 1 Corinthians 6:9-11). Satan goes after children early. In fact, not long ago, I stumbled upon a children’s book called “My Two Moms”. The title tells it all. The implications of that incident too are that we must realize the window of time is small when it comes to children and as the Bible teaches, we must reach them very early (Proverbs 22:6). I am of the opinion that a child’s first three words should be: mom, dad, God.

Why not use the Bible as the instruction book it is meant to be and take God’s directions seriously? Why not teach sexual values to children at home and strengthen it in churches? I don’t mean the mechanics of sex, but rather teach God’s viewpoint on sexuality in relationship to morality. Remember, when we don’t teach sexuality from a Christian viewpoint, we leave our children open to a culture that deliriously pushes an anti-Christ version of sexuality and reproduction. Indeed, sins are rebranded as rights. That is why there is an almost violent push back over the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade. And it is getting louder. Consider the irony of it all. What we have here is a radicalized group of young people fighting for the right to kill their own children. The biblical point of view is lost on them (Exodus 20:13). Reaching our children early helps instill respect for God’s ways before the world can rush in with seductive lies that pervert their souls.

Of course, there is no guarantee that we can save every child. The Bible itself warns that the road to hell is wide and unfortunately many will travel it. Many people will simply reject Jesus. Yet, the worst thing we can do is to be passive and throw up our hands. We are not helpless in this. First, if we love them, we will realize our children are worth the effort. Second but not least, we are commanded by God himself to warn people about evil. In Ezekiel 33:8-9, we see that God makes it clear that if we do not warn people when we see them headed down the wrong path, we will personally be held accountable. However, if we warn them and they continue down the wrong path, we will not be held accountable.

I realize that when we flip on the TV or Internet, it’s easy to be discouraged by the forces that are lined up against Godly morality: Hollywood, some media, political leaders, governments, corporations, celebrities—the list is growing. But we can be encouraged when we realize that we are on the side of God whenever we submit to do his will. He will hear our prayers and work through us. No one will ever defeat God. But we must put him first and teach our children to do so. The schools can’t do it. The world won’t do it. It is up to us to teach Christian values at home, often and accurately regardless of how crazy things get. That also means we must get our own spiritual houses in order. Read the Bible. Attend church. Live by godly guidelines. Believe. Children learn by what we do, not just what we say. Families are a child’s best teachers. We are not fighting for good grades. We are fighting for something more precious: our children’s souls.

“For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.” –The Book of Ephesians, 6:12

Look for this Opinion article at least twice monthly in the Journal.

CASA of Central LA, is looking for new volunteers to assist us in serving the almost 4,000 children in Louisiana foster care. CASA volunteers are Court Appointed Special Advocates who are appointed by a judge to advocate for the best interests of a child in court. CASA volunteers are different because we remain appointed to the child’s case throughout its duration. While the child may have multiple attorneys, social workers, therapists, and foster placement throughout the life of the case, they will have only one CASA volunteer. By being that caring consistent adult, CASA volunteers have been the certainty in uncertain times for these children.

CASA of Central Louisiana specifically advocates for the abused and neglected children of Natchitoches, Red River, and Sabine Parishes. For more information call (318)238-2446.