225 Magazine [April 2024]

BACK ON THE MAT

Dan Turner and Scott Casternopoulos have a lot in common. They became friends while training together on the Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Revolution team in Baton Rouge. They both also developed large lower back disc herniations at different times over that last several years.  The disc herniations caused extreme sciatica (leg pain) and were incapacitating. Barely able to walk, they each under went a short outpatient procedure by Dr. Oberlander, called a microdiscectomy (aka laser discectomy or minimally invasive discectomy) that allowed for a quick recovery.  Now pain free, they are back on the mat training together.  In fact since his surgery, Scott has won  multiple International Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Federation tournaments.

ACTUAL PATIENT

SCOTT CASTERNOPOULOS

Eric Oberlander, MD

Board Certified Neurosurgeon

TheNeuroMedicalCenter.com

The Library brings value to your small business or non-profit by helping you find the tools and resources to keep it moving forward. Stop by one of our locations, search our digital library, call a librarian, or even text our team with your top challenges and questions.

Fried chicken

BIRD IS THE word in the Capital Region. 225 staff photographer Collin Richie captured our cover shot showcasing the golden, crunchy wings from Blue Store Chicken.

This Month @ BREC [APRIL]

SPRING BREAK CAMP Various Locations

April 1-5 | 7:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

VIBIN’ YOGA Independence

Botanical Gardens Lawn

April 4 + 18 | 6-7 p.m.

April 27 | 8:30-9:30 a.m.

POWER UP YOGA Independence

Botanical Gardens Lawn

April 4 + 18 | 7-8 p.m.

April 27 | 9:30-10:30 a.m.

ZIPPITY ZOO FEST

BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo

April 6-7 | 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.

COMITE CLASSIC

Comite River Conservation Area

April 6 | 9 a.m.-1 p.m.

PARTIAL SOLAR ECLIPSE

Highland Road Park Observatory

April 8 | 10:30 a.m.- 3:30 p.m.

ZOO + ME MORNINGS

BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo

April 9 | 9:30-11:30 a.m.

FLEX, BODY + STRETCH

Anna T. Jordan Community Park

April 10 | 5:30-6:30 p.m.

ARTS FEST @ BARINGER

Baringer Art Center

April 13 | 10 a.m.-1 p.m.

BR BIKE FEST

Perkins Road Community Park

April 13 | 10 a.m.-2 p.m.

FAMILY KARAOKE IN THE PARK

Jackson Community Park

April 13 | 1-3 p.m.

GLOW IN THE PARK: VOLLEYBALL

Anna T. Jordan Community Park

April 18 | 6-7:30 p.m.

brec.org/summer camp

WILD WINE WALK

BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo

April 19 | 5-7:30 p.m.

SUNSHINE SOCIAL: TIE DYE TIME

Milton J. Womack Park

April 19 | 6-9 p.m.

BLITZBALL TOURNAMENT Lovett Road Park

April 20 | 10 a.m.-3 p.m.

SWEET TOOTH DESIGNS

Church Street Park April 24 | 6-7 p.m.

BIOBLITZ 2024

Bluebonnet Swamp Nature Center

April 26 + 27

Chicken out

FRIED CHICKEN has been the one culinary constant across the course of my life.

Yes, I was one of those cliché I-only-eat–chickennuggets little kids.

But around a decade ago, fried chicken was also my entrypoint to Louisiana’s food culture. And it’s fortunately a far cry from the frozen Tyson tenders of my youth.

Not long after I started working at 225, I discovered the one-and-only Raising Cane’s. (Or more accurately, one of the 780 locations the brand touts today, as we learned reporting this month’s cover story.)

I needed a quick lunch, so I rolled through the drive-thru near my office for a box combo.

It was the sauce for me. Plunging a crunchy tender into that tangy, peachy hued sauce provided pure comfort—and an almost instant connection to food in Baton Rouge.

I went back to that location again and again during my first few months in town. I was so far from home and didn’t feel like I had much here yet in the way of family or friends—but at least I had that glorious chicken.

I later learned, of course, that my Cane’s order was all wrong. You’re supposed to add an extra sauce and swap the coleslaw for an additional Texas toast. “It is the law,” my coworkers implored me. Even better if you slather the sauce on the bread and pile on the tenderloins for a makeshift sandwich, they instructed.

But Cane’s was only my gateway to so many other institutions in Baton Rouge.

Soon, someone brought Chicken Shack to the office, and I bit into a taste of the city’s oldest continually operating eatery. I dialed the Acadian Thruway location to hear its endearing answering machine messages that have become the stuff of local legend. They are always a good reminder of what “a beautiful day it is to be alive”—and to get your order in early for that day’s specials.

Next, I was lured by the hype of Blue Store Chicken. I pretty much inhaled the crispy tenders and fries minutes after opening the Styrofoam to-go box. And the anticipation of standing in line, breathing in the aroma of chicken bubbling in the fryer while waiting for my order, was half the fun.

Over the years, I dare say my palate for fried chicken has expanded. I’ve gone through all the phases—cycling through cravings for chicken and waffles at Mason’s Grill, the Nashville-inspired hot chicken from Chicky Sandos and the brunch biscuit at Overpass Merchant. I even learned how to make a healthyish version of fried chicken coated in almond flour back when I was following a paleo diet.

I was utterly fascinated to learn how Louisianans swear by the fried chicken from gas stations.

And I’m still stunned by the way local restaurants can take pretty much anything and fry it.

“Are you serious?” I asked my friends when our order of The Chimes’ spinach and artichoke dip arrived at the table with—yes—fried pasta for dipping. (Which turned out to be addicting.)

I was simultaneously shocked and delighted to discover Bistro Byronz has a salad with french fries on it.

Frying is like a religion here—it’s simply our way of life.

I love to think about how being an I-only-eat–chicken-nuggets kid in Baton Rouge might mean little ones are on a diet of Chicken Shack, Blue Store or Cane’s.

And even if we grown-ups can’t consume fried chicken every day, it’s such a treat when we do.

Maybe that’s why fried chicken feels so good to eat. It brings us back to our childhood, and it tastes like home, no matter where we are.

Jennifer Tormo Alvarez 225 Editor-in-Chief

How we got that shot

No, these dancers aren’t crashing into each other. 225 staff photographer Collin Richie captured Of Moving Colors Productions’ graceful moves in the studio at Creative Bloc, and art director Hoa Vu wove the photos together. The images are part of this month’s feature on OMC’s Dance for Parkinson’s - Baton Rouge program. Turn to page 84 to learn about how the May 17 performance of Orchid’s Arc aims to spread awareness about Parkinson’s disease.

SAY WHAT?

“There’s something within that 337, 225, 504 area code. There’s something there that you just can’t get in the rest of the world.”

LeTrainiump Richard, on how growing up playing trumpet in Baker has helped set his sound apart from other musicians.

Turn to page 88 for our story on an Austin-born music series that is showcasing the sounds of Louisiana.

COLLIN

RICHIE

•

Publisher: Julio Melara

EDITORIAL

Chief Content Officer: Penny Font

Editor-In-Chief: Jennifer Tormo Alvarez

Managing Editor: Laura Furr Mericas

Features Writer: Maggie Heyn Richardson

Digital Staff Writer: Olivia Deffes

Multimedia Editor: Oscar Tickle

Staff Photographer: Collin Richie

Contributing Writers:

Cynthea Corfah, Madelon Davis, Tracey Koch, Benjamin Leger, Domenic Purdy, Kelsei Scott

Contributing Photographers: Ariana Allison, Amy Shutt

ADVERTISING

Director of Consumer Sales: Michelle Lanoix

Team Leader: André Hellickson Savoie

Assistant Sales Manager: Manny Fajardo

Multimedia Consultants: Jamie Hernandez, Kaitlyn Maranto, Cassidie Tingle

Digital Operations Manager: Devyn MacDonald

Partner Success Manager: Paul Huval

Content Creator: Ashleigh Ward

Digital Ops Assistant: Derrick Frazier

STUDIO E

Director: Taylor Gast

Creative Director: Tim Coles

Corporate Media Editor: Lisa Tramontana

Content Strategist: Emily Hebert

Project Manager: Kendall Denney

Account Executive: Judith LaDousa

MARKETING

Marketing & Events Coordinator: Taylor Andrus

Marketing & Events Assistant: Mallory Romanowski

ADMINISTRATION

Business Manager: Tiffany Durocher

Business Associate: Kirsten Milano

Office Coordinator: Sara Hodge

Receptionist: Cathy Varnado Brown

PRODUCTION/DESIGN

Director of Creative Services: Amy Vandiver

Art Director: Hoa Vu

Senior Graphic Designers: Melinda Gonzalez Galjour, Emily Witt

Graphic Designers: Ellie Gray, Sidney Rosso

AUDIENCE DEVELOPMENT

Audience Development Director and Digital Manager: James Hume

Audience Development Coordinator: Ivana Oubre

Audience Development Associate: Catherine Albano

Customer Experience Coordinator: Kathy Thomas

A publication of Melara Enterprises, LLC

Chairman: Julio Melara

Executive Assistant: Brooke Motto

Vice President-Sales: Elizabeth McCollister Hebert

Chief Content Officer: Penny Font

Chief Digital Marketing Officer: Erin Pou

Chief Operating Officer: Guy Barone

Re: Our story on Chocolate Bijoux, an artisan chocolate brand that sells its colorful confections at pop-ups and in local retail outlets:

“Some of the best chocolate I’ve ever had, and I looooove gourmet chocolates!!”

—@evolveestheticsla

On our food critic’s review of Bonta del Forno, which transports diners from the maze of strip malls next to Bass Pro Shops to a delicious Italian dream:

“Love this place!!!”

—@Se7enough, via Instagram

“Def a gem.”

@__mermaid_k, via Instagram

Comments and analytics are from Feb. 1-29, 2024. They have been lightly edited for clarity and brevity.

Last call for votes!

You have until April 3 to decide Baton Rouge’s best restaurants, bars and businesses of 2024. Head to 225batonrouge.com/ bestof225 to cast your ballot. Voting has been open since late February, with nominees determined by write-in submissions earlier this year.

SCAN TO VOTE!

COLLIN RICHIE

COLLIN RICHIE

April HOT STUFF

BY MAGGIE HEYN RICHARDSON PHOTOS BY COLLIN RICHIE

COOKING FRESH peppers is easy.

Dice and toss them into a saute pan. Add a few slices to a pizza. Grill them whole. Bottle them with vinegar to make pepper sauce. Stuff them with cream cheese and christen them poppers.

But find them in dried form and it may give you pause. Leathery looking and often packaged without instructions or heat level, dried chiles can be a headscratcher to the uninitiated.

Chile enthusiast Jim Boitnott says to fear not. Once you understand the basics of dried chiles, he portends, a vast culinary world unfolds.

Since 2021, Boitnott has taught regular cooking classes on chiles at Red Stick Spice Co., including the recurring Taco Tuesday and Chile & Salsa Masterclass sessions.

“Chiles are one of my biggest passions,” says Boitnott, a technology consultant who relocated to Baton Rouge from Greensboro, North Carolina, 10 years ago. “I love Southwestern foods and the foods of the Americas, and I study them religiously.”

Red Stick Spice Co. owner Anne Milneck says Boitnott was teaching a course on paella shortly after the store’s teaching kitchen opened in 2020 when she asked him what other topics he could share. His chile enthusiasm led to the creation of additional classes, which attract both hot pepper fanatics and those who crave something tamer.

The latter describes Milneck, she confesses. Not Boitnott. He digs the fire.

found in supermarkets and specialty stores like Red Stick Spice Co. No surprise, the Mid City retailer has increased its chile inventory as a result of Boitnott’s classes, complete with snappy instructions on how to use them, Milneck says.

As for dried chiles, there are dozens and dozens to discover, Boitnott says, including the medium-hot, earthy pasilla, the mild-to-medium guajillo, and the small and fiery chile de arbol, his personal favorite.

“Balancing the chiles is the key to making great sauces,” Boitnott says. “It just requires playing around with different varieties to see what you like.” redstickspice. com

Pepper points

Jim Boitnott’s tips for how to use dried chiles

Remove seeds

When working with any dried chile, start by slicing it open and extracting the seeds. Wear gloves or wash your hands thoroughly if working with a hot variety.

Toast

Toast the chile slightly by holding it over a stove-top flame or by placing it quickly in a hot cast iron skillet. This releases its rich, smoky flavors.

Reconstitute

But that’s not to say the class is about heat exclusively. Weaving practical instruction on how to make everything from salsas to main courses with fun facts about the 50-million-year history of chiles in the Western Hemisphere, Boitnott shows home cooks how to deploy the wide spectrum of fresh and dried chiles

Next comes the most important part, reconstituting the chile so that it becomes pliable. Submerge it in very hot tap water to soften, then pop it into a blender or food processor to make a paste.

Incorporate

Now in paste form, the chile is a base ingredient that will impart smoky, fruity or spicy punch—depending on the variety—to sauces, salsas and other dishes.

Anne Milneck and Jim Boitnott in the Red Stick Spice Co. teaching kitchen, where Boitnott teaches recurring classes on fresh and dried chiles.

WHAT’S NEW

Compiled by Madelon Davis

Mod Mex

Pink Agave is bringing $1 taco deals and novelty cocktails to Nicholson Drive. Co-owner Marco Herrera has taken the traditional Mexican restaurant experience and elevated it in his new space, the former home of The Bullfish Bistro. The interiors give off a Miami Beach vibe with black-and-white mosaic floors, neon lights and braided barstools. And some of the cocktails are even bolder, using glass purses, IV bags and plastic tubs filled with rubber ducks as vessels. pinkagavetaqueria.com

Shine on

Chef Danny Wilson is bringing his creative comfort food back to the Baton Rouge community—this time via the Soulshine food truck. The chef, who closed the Soulshine brick-and-mortar in 2023, says his new rotating menu is inspired by his life, offering riffs on burgers, chili cheese dogs, mango nachos, avocado toasts and more. The truck is located outside of Brickyard South Thursday through Monday around 7 p.m. and at Pelican to Mars as early as 9 a.m. Saturday and Sunday for brunch. Find it on Instagram

Springing into the music

Five music series to check out this season

Live on Pointe

A free, monthly show at PointeMarie with food and drinks

Rock N Rowe

Spice up your Thursday nights with a free show of local artists at Perkins Rowe

Live After Five

Downtown’s free Friday-night concerts during most weeks of April and May

Sunday in the Park

Arts and live music every Sunday in April at the Shaw Center for the Arts Plaza

Soulful Sunday

Beauvoir Park's recurring $10 live concerts

ARIANA

SAY WHAT?

“It is about giving back to the community. It is being the local place doing it right and making sure people are getting the value they are looking for.”

Joey Faciane, co-owner of Sammy’s Grill, which reopened a location in Prairieville in late February. The new restaurant at 37306 Perkins Road is serving up the same Southern comfort food fans have come to expect from the seafood spot with outdoor seating and tons of flat-screen TVs. Find them on Facebook

DIGITS

The low down

The International Downtown Association classified Baton Rouge’s downtown as “emerging” earlier this year along with those in Birmingham, Tampa and other metros. When compared to other emerging downtowns, BR rates well.

7% 16% 79

Growth in employment from 2015 to 2020 in downtown Baton Rouge, compared to an average 1% decline among other emerging downtowns

Growth in residential population from 2012 to 2021, equal to the emerging downtown average

Walking score downtown, compared to an average score of 80 in other emerging downtowns

What’s brewing?

Mid Tap has renovated and revamped its image. Co-owner Rick Patel has ditched the self-pour system in favor of a specialty cocktail menu and a lounge-style atmosphere. The food has taken a turn, too, with a brand-new brunch menu, the addition of a few dishes with Indian flair and the return of Mid Tap’s popular quesadillas. midtapbr.com

Evening at Windrush

Friday April 26, 2024

Join us for a progressive evening including cocktails and music set in the beautiful Windrush Gardens. Afterwards, enjoy an elegant southern supper provided by Chef John Folse. All proceeds benefit the Friends of LSU Rural Life Museum. Details and tickets available at lsu.edu/rurallife.

Scan here to learn more

ARIANA ALLISON

Popping up

In just three years of business, kid-owned Posh Pop is making big moves

Campus cravings

Last spring, Posh Pop was invited to sell at LSU Softball games. The experience was challenging, McCallister says, but despite having a hard-to-reach location, sales were strong. LSU Athletics has since invited the business to sell inside Tiger Stadium, the PMAC and Alex Box Stadium.

New digs

The forthcoming retail store in Zachary will sell at least eight flavors with rotating specials, and it will host products made by other kid-preneurs, according to McCallister.

Sisters Bailey and Harper Galloway, then 10 and 5, were cleaning up after making Christmas cookies with their mom, Ebony McCallister. Harper suggested they watch The Grinch Microwave popcorn followed, and almost instantly, the snack blossomed into something new.

“We basically took all the leftover cookie and pretzel pieces and mixed them together with the warm popcorn,” recalls Bailey, now 13. “We sat down to watch the movie and I told my mom, ‘This is really good. I think we’ve got something.’ And after that, it kind of just kind of blew up.”

Bailey and Harper, now 8, are the co-owners of Posh Pop, a Zacharybased gourmet popcorn company that has grown from a cottage enterprise to LSU AgCenter Food Innovation Institute (Foodii) tenant to soon-to-be retail store. The three-year-old kid-run company currently sells its sweet and savory popcorn at six different LSU Athletics events. It’s a regular vendor at the Zachary Farmers & Artisans Market and has a mobile special events trailer. The company just announced plans to open a storefront this summer in Zachary on Virginia Street, near the new location of artisan bakery CounterspaceBR.

“They were serious about it from the first night,” McCallister says. “I knew they weren’t going to let it go because that’s all they could talk about for 48 hours straight.”

Flavor fun

At LSU sporting events, the sisters sell flavors like Kettle Me Baby, a traditional kettle corn, and Tiger Tease, a creation made with a white chocolate drizzle and sprinkles. They regularly create a special Flava of the Month, like King Kake for Mardi Gras or First Kiss for Valentine's Day.

The two even performed a mock Shark Tank presentation in the living room, says McCallister, who would only allow the girls to watch Shark Tank or the Food Network after 7 p.m.

“They knew about pitching a business,” she laughs.

The girls named the enterprise Posh Pop. McCallister used her sales and marketing skills to create a logo, website and social media, then wrapped up the brand to give the girls for Christmas a few weeks later.

COLLIN RICHIE

The sisters started with online sales in early 2021. That was followed by faceto-face sales that summer at the Zachary Farmers & Artisans Market, and their first festival that fall, Live After Five. Word continued to spread, and customers began requesting the popcorn for special events like baby showers and birthday parties, McCallister says.

In 2022, the sisters landed a competitive youth business tenant spot inside Foodii and moved production there. Currently, the team produces popcorn at the LSU AgCenter facility at least once a week. They often spend weekends on production and sales.

Their stable of more than a dozen flavors includes fan favorite Cheesy Cheddar Bomb, sweet-spicy Cajun Critter and Saturday Morning, awash in Fruity Pebbles cereal and mini marshmallows. One of Harper’s creations, Slumber Party, is a colorful mix of popcorn, cookie crumbles, marshmallows, chocolate drizzle and lots and lots of sprinkles.

“It’s like a rainbow sugar rush,” she says.

Issue

Just like a slumber party. poshpop.shop

–MAGGIE HEYN RICHARDSON

• Please respond by e-mail or phone with your approval or minor revisions.

• AD WILL RUN AS IS 24 hrs from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines.

• Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees.

Carefully check this ad for:

This ad design © Melara Enterprises, LLC. 2024. All rights reserved. Phone 225-928-1700

MON:

COLLIN

RICHIE

Sisters Bailey and Harper Galloway run Posh Pop, which is now sold at six different LSU Athletics events.

2024

AWARDS

JUNE 27 • 6 – 8 PM

1717 at The Queen

Baton Rouge

WHO WILL TAKE THE THRONE THIS YEAR? JOIN US FOR THE REVEAL OF THE 2024 BEST OF 225 WINNERS!

Be the first to know who won awards in all of your favorite categories. Enjoy a royal celebration with drinks, live music and a variety of bites from The Queen. Don’t miss out on this opportunity to live like a king … or queen!

SCAN TO LEARN MORE AND GET TICKETS

EVENT SPONSORS:

University Lake island

Project engineers built an island in the summer of 2022 in University Lake near Stanford Avenue to test how the Lakes’ dredged sediment performed when building up shorelines. Now overgrown, the island will be re-landscaped in the next few months, Goodson says.

1

A2

3

RGUABLY BATON ROUGE’S most anticipated civic initiative, the University Lakes Project has been steadily making progress since Phase One kicked off last year. The multi-year project is intended to restore the health of the iconic lakes, create new pedestrian amenities and reduce flooding in surrounding neighborhoods.

Regulars of the lakes have seen lots of activity lately. “We’re full speed ahead with the Phase One dredging in City Park Lake,” says Mark Goodson, the project lead and principal with consulting firm CSRS. Moreover, sediment is being pumped to the shoreline of the LSU Bird Sanctuary on University Lake, helping to extend the peninsula’s area, while massive machinery works to expand Interstate 10 in a separate project nearby.

What else is happening, and how long before it’s all finished? Here’s an update. universitylakesproject.org and i10br.com

University Lake near Stanford Avenue

Flood control is one of the project’s key objectives. A weir—a dam-like barrier that controls water flow—is now being modified to enable authorities to draw down the lake in advance of weather events, Goodson says.

LSU Bird Sanctuary

The sediment dredged from City Park Lake is being used to extend the shoreline of the LSU Bird Sanctuary. The added sediment is pumped into erosion-control devices called Geotubes, which build out the embankment and eventually create additional habitat for native and migratory birds. Goodson says there are no current plans to open the limited-access peninsula to the public.

University Lake

Phase Two calls for the dredging of University Lake, a portion of which is already underway on the north side of the lake. The south side will be dredged after capital outlay funding is approved for the project during this spring’s legislative session, Goodson says.

Sinker cypress

The piles of sinker cypress stumps and logs at May Street, Stanford Avenue and other spots will serve several purposes, Goodson says. Some will create underwater habitats and sediment traps. Others will be used to make pedestrian benches in May Street Park. Smaller, inferior pieces will be ground and converted into mulch. Remaining cypress will be auctioned at the end of the work with proceeds returned to the project.

May Street project

The May Street Realignment Project, part of Phase One, will build a new bridge between the two lakes that spans a soonto-be-dug channel. Pedestrian pathways will be built on either side of the bridge. May Street Park (greenspace off of City Park Lake) will see an improved shoreline and visitor amenities. Construction is anticipated to begin in August or September, Goodson says. It should be completed in the fall of 2026.

Dalrymple Drive and I-10

This work is the I-10 widening project, separate from the University Lakes project. Now visible is the temporary trestle bridge on the freeway’s north side, which provides a structure for crews to expand the elevated roadway. Project crews are also in the process of creating cofferdams, temporary dry working areas in the lake that make it possible to build, Louisiana DOTD Communications Director Rodney Mallett says. Crews were scheduled to begin driving piles for the new bridge and building retaining walls on East Lakeshore Drive in March.

City Park Lake dredging

At times, there have been as many as three dredging machines in the lake, each removing sediment and debris to deepen the lake to an average depth of 6 feet. The same is happening on a portion of University Lake. Increasing the lakes’ depth ensures water flows naturally and isn’t susceptible to the fish kills and algae blooms of the past. City Park Lake dredging should be completed in July, Goodson says.

Landscaping around City Park Lake and Lake Erie

Part of Phase One includes landscaping along the shorelines of City Park Lake and Lake Erie. Expect to eventually see low-growing native plants that will support wildlife habitats and help filter runoff. Goodson says the landscape work should start in early 2025.

5

Friday, April 5, 2024

library should be a place where people can just exist, she says, and she wants them to consistently feel welcomed from the second they walk in.

“Making sure people understand that you’re fine to come in and use the library—there’s no need to explain your presence there,” she says. “We want people to come in and feel comfortable.”

Stokes is looking into establishing new programs for struggling communities, providing services like lunches for children during the summer while they are out of school and ensuring residents access to up-to-date technology.

One of her first big projects will be the opening of the new South Branch Library, located near Sprouts Farmers Market on Perkins Road. Construction started last year with an estimated winter 2024 completion. Stokes says she is looking forward to building on her experience with furnishing libraries from her previous job in Vicksburg.

“(I’m) very, very happy that we can put a library branch in a spot where it’s really needed,” she says. While Stokes spent so much of her childhood in a library, becoming a librarian never crossed her mind. But around two decades ago, she saw an article about the growing scarcity of librarians. She decided to go back to school to pursue this path. It’s a journey

that’s been full of surprises, including moving to become the director of EBRPL—which has a much larger staff and more branches than the previous library system she worked for.

She says she knew this new role would be a big undertaking. But she says she is not intimidated and is jumping into the position and getting straight to work.

“I’d like to say thank you to everybody I’ve met so far. Everybody has been so welcoming and so kind. I’m very quickly getting to love Baton Rouge,” Stokes says. “I thought it was a great city when I first arrived, and I’ve just grown to like it more and more every day.” ebrpl.com

BEYOND CANCER

At Our Lady of the Lake Cancer Institute, treating cancer goes beyond just treating cancer. It also means treating everything that comes with cancer, including the complications and side effects. Cancer takes everything. We’ll stop at nothing to care for you. Which is why we’ve been the region’s leading cancer treatment destination for decades. And we won’t stop there.

Luke Lognion

LUKE LOGNION dreamed of being a magician when he was younger. Today, he’s not waving a wand, but he is making magic in downtown Baton Rouge through his retail concept and his community involvement.

Originally from Lake Charles, Lognion moved to Baton Rouge to attend LSU and planted his roots here at the start of the pandemic. That’s when he moved to Spanish Town with his now-husband, Garrett Kemp. Together, the couple owns local arts and antiques shops Circa 1857 in Mid City and BRASS by Circa 1857 downtown.

“During the pandemic, I just saw the creative community of Baton Rouge,” he says. “Outdoor activities became the thing. Through J. Hover’s kind of renaissance of Beauvoir Park and Live After Five going on, Baton Rouge had a lot to offer that I didn’t want to leave.”

When Lognion, 30, isn’t behind the checkout counter, organizing displays or helping artists bring in items to consign at BRASS, he can now be found

helping other downtown organizations put on some of the same events that attracted him to the Capital City years ago.

In January, Lognion was named managing director of Live After Five, one of the city’s largest outdoor music series produced by the Downtown Business Association. That same month, he was named director of the Baton Rouge Arts Market, held in conjunction with the Red Stick Farmers Market on the first Saturday morning of the month. He also serves on the board of directors for downtown’s Baton Rouge Blues Festival and Foundation. In these roles, he does everything from advertising for the events and attending meetings to approving artist and musician lineups and finding sponsors.

“Baton Rouge has historically been a very segregated city—in terms of race, in terms of socio-economic status and geography,” he notes. “Oftentimes, these areas of Baton Rouge never mingle together, but downtown is the place where

all of Baton Rouge comes. Downtown is the heart of Baton Rouge. And the live music festivals and just every other festival are what keeps the heart healthy.”

Lognion also recognizes that downtown is a hub for workers. So much so that he founded an initiative titled Work Downtown, Play Downtown in 2022 to encourage downtown professionals to stay around after work hours and enjoy local businesses.

Though revitalizing downtown is one of his passions, Lognion knows it’s also one he shares with many in the community. He acknowledges there are other like-minded people striving for change and encourages more people to get out and love the neighborhood, too.

“Downtown has so much potential,” he says. “The thing that I love about Baton Rouge is that it is thriving from change. And, if you want to make a difference, people are so receptive to anybody jumping in.”

“This is a city where if you want to make a difference, you can.”

DIGIT

79%

Amount of consumers who say they crave fried chicken at least once a month, according to a 2023 national survey of more than 2,000 adults by Louisiana Fish Fry.

Blue Store Chicken

Friedchicken!

It’s true love: biting into Baton Rouge ’ s everlasting fried chicken fascination

BY CYNTHEA CORFAH, OLIVIA DEFFES AND MAGGIE HEYN RICHARDSON PHOTOS BY COLLIN RICHIE

DIGIT 1974

The year a Manchester, New Hampshire, restaurant called Puritan Backroom began serving what it claims to be the country’s first chicken fingers.

IS BATON ROUGE a fried chicken town?

You bet.

Alongside its obvious Cajun and Creole foodways, there’s a powerful fried chicken throughline in the Capital City, demonstrated by bedrock brands that have made the dish a local staple. Emblematic establishments like Chicken Shack, Blue Store and, of course, Raising Cane’s have permanently anchored fried chicken as a signature dish in the Red Stick. Meanwhile, new and trendy fried chicken concepts continue to open across the region.

We crave it as a lunch special and an Easter Sunday main course. We expect it at parties, and we need it on weeknights. It’s a citywide unbreakable habit. Let’s dig in.

Sidebars by Maggie Heyn Richardson

Sidebar sources: Bitter Southerner, Chicken Shack, Eater, Green Book (2018), McDonald’s, Prince’s Hot Chicken, Raising Cane’s and The Smithsonian National Museum of American History

Fried

The enduring influence of Chicken Shack, Blue Store Chicken and Raising Cane’s

BY MAGGIE HEYN RICHARDSON

and true

Chicken Shack

Blue Store Chicken

ONCE, TRIPLET’S BLUE Store was a lone convenience store in the shadow of Southern University. Then suddenly, its footprint spread like grease on a paper bag. The family-owned Blue Store Chicken concept has grown to eight locations in greater Baton Rouge, with more planned in outlying areas.

Naturally, the menu is outfitted with your choice of white or dark meat. This is a fried chicken joint, after all. But what its fans love most are the wings. Golden brown and generously spiced, Blue Store wings are sold in all manner of quantities. Buy a single wing or a tray of 100, or order a combo paired with Blue Store’s staple eggrolls, deep-fried potato logs or shrimp fried rice.

Founder Mua Phan opened the first Blue Store kitchen inside his Mills Avenue convenience store in Scotlandville in 1993, perfecting a formula for fried chicken that would soon draw legions of fans. In the shop’s early days, his 10 children pulled shifts. Today, Phan’s daughter, Hue Tran, is a CPA and the brand’s current operator. In 2016, she set in motion a growth strategy that has seen Blue Store spread from north Baton Rouge to all corners of the city. Her siblings each operate individual locations. One of the newest Blue Stores is a stand-alone building that opened last fall on Burbank and Staring. It joined locations on Highland Road, Bluebonnet Boulevard, Old Hammond Highway, Jones Creek Road, North Boulevard and Plank Road. Regardless of where you find one, you might just consume the wings with a fountain drink in the parking lot before heading home.

Find it on Facebook

Chicken Shack

STOP BY THE Chicken Shack’s flagship location on North Acadian Thruway at lunchtime, and you’ll routinely find a lengthy queue. The tidy line of patrons starts inside at the store’s order window and winds through the center past small Formica-topped tables. The unmistakable aroma of golden-brown goodness wafts through the air, no doubt ensuring mouths are watering.

Founded in 1935 by noted Black businessman Thomas Delpit and now run by the family’s fourth generation, the Chicken Shack is an oldschool, homegrown concept famous for its wet-batter-deep-fried bird. Sink your teeth into a behemoth breast or impossibly juicy thigh, and you’re tasting what true fried chicken is meant to be. The two-piece special on Tuesdays, a leg and thigh for less than $2, is arguably the best lunch deal in town.

Any day of the week, however, the Chicken Shack menu is a hit parade of soul food classics. Opt for your favorite white or dark meat pieces, and select sides from what seems a catalog’s worth of country cooking. Rice and gravy, yams, mustard greens, cornbread dressing and lima beans are just a few on offer. And if, for some inexplicable reason, you’re not in the mood for fried chicken, Chicken Shack also serves lunch specials like smothered pork chops, seven steak, meatloaf and pork ribs. But the chicken is the thing. And like the tag line says, it’s knuckle suckin’ good. chickenshack.org

“Eat wid ya hands! That’s how ya ’sposed ta!”

—Viggo Mortensen’s character “Tony Lip” Vallelonga on fried chicken etiquette in the 2018 film Green Book. The 2019 Oscar winner for Best Picture was filmed in Louisiana.

Raising Cane’s

FOR MANY IN Baton Rouge, fried chicken has ceased to be the bone-in stuff of yesteryear. Instead, it means Cane’s.

The origin story of Raising Cane’s is forever inscribed in the city’s history. The multibillion-dollar fast food chain’s first location opened at the corner of Highland Road and State Street in 1996. It was the brainchild of Baton Rougean Todd Graves, who raised money for the business working as a boilermaker and salmon fisherman in the Pacific Northwest when banks turned him down.

Over its nearly 30-year history, Raising Cane’s has exploded in growth. Today, there are more than 780 locations in 39 states and five countries. By the end of 2024, the total is expected to reach 850.

The beauty of Cane’s is its simplicity. The main difference in the menu’s four box combo options is the number of chicken fingers. Graves has said he was inspired by the stripped-down ease of California chain In-N-Out Burger’s menu and wanted to create something similar solely devoted to chicken fingers.

Alongside marinated, battered and deep-fried chicken tenderloins, Cane’s boxes house trademark crinkle-cut fries, coleslaw, Texas toast and Cane’s sauce, the remoulade riff whose recipe remains a company secret. raisingcanes.com

DIGIT

The number of Raising Cane’s locations in 39 states and five countries expected by the end of 2024.

New chicks on the block

Newcomers have brought tasty, fresh takes to the fried chicken scene in recent years, from hot chicken to wings

BY OLIVIA DEFFES

CHICKY SANDOS IS comin’ in hot.

Known since 2020 for serving up Nashvilleinspired hot chicken from its unassuming white food truck, the eatery is now cooking up something new. It has plans to move into its first brick-and-mortar as early as this month. Chicky Sandos will take over the former Kolache Kitchen on Jefferson Highway, bringing the addition of a drive-thru window, a dining area, a few fresh menu options and more consistent hours.

“(The brick-and-mortar) is kind of like the next step,” says Sameer Abudyak, one of the founders. “It’s like the next level of Chicky Sandos, where we can keep on seeing where we go with it.”

Prior to dreaming up plans for the brick-and-mortar, the mobile restaurant popped up in different spots around Baton Rouge before eventually settling into its regular spot on Airline Highway near Total Offroad & More. It drew fans to the parking lot with a small-butintentional menu of hot chicken

dishes, including sandwiches, tenders and loaded fries, during select lunch and dinner hours.

“I’m glad everyone loves all the different flavors and tastes that we provide them,” Abudyak says.

It’s not the first time we’ve seen fried chicken newbies experience quick growth in Baton Rouge.

Vic Smith and his partner Derrick Revish opened the first brick-and-mortar for their Empire Wingz concept back in 2016. But, the brand officially started a few years earlier, when Revish dished out wings outside of Smith’s club, Empire, to boost drink sales.

Today, Empire Wingz has three locations and a food truck. It maintains a simple menu of wings, sauce-covered fries and a fruit punch, both named after Smith’s sons. The wings are seasoned before frying, building flavor before adding sauces or dry rubs.

Smith tells 225 he has plans to expand Empire Wingz into other states like Tennessee and Texas in the next few years.

“People would come to the club just for the wings,” Smith recalls. “We had already built a brand, and a lot of people already knew about us and were in love with our wings. So, expansion is just putting it near more people.”

ORIGIN STORY

Nashville hot chicken

The true birthplace of hot chicken was probably Black Nashville households, but a 2013 James Beard American Classic Award credits the city’s Prince’s Hot Chicken restaurant for inventing the dish using a recipe that’s more than a century old.

Chicky Sandos launched as a food truck in 2020.

BR isn’t burnt out on fried chicken

OF COURSE, FRIED chicken is all over restaurant menus in Baton Rouge. But, new establishments specializing specifically in slinging spinoffs of spicy sandwiches, tender platters and saucy wings have proven the Capital Region can’t get enough.

Clutch City Cluckers

159 W. State St.

This Texas-based food truck popped up in January 2024 near LSU’s North Gates with a menu full of saucy and cheesy chicken sandwiches, crispy tender baskets, sugary shakes and more. Come prepared to eat—the truck doesn’t skimp on its dishes. Think: tacos drenched in the brand’s signature Cluck It Sauce, or fried chicken pieces sandwiched between waffles or two grilled cheeses. clutchcitycluckers.com

Big Chicken

1717 River Road

Former pro-basketball player Shaquille O’Neal founded Big Chicken in 2018, fusing trendy tastes with recipes reminiscent of his childhood. The menu features sandwiches with flavors like Nashville hot and buffalo along with popcorn chicken, chicken salads, Cheez-It-crusted mac and cheese, and more. The brand now has locations around the country, with its first Louisiana eatery debuting last August inside The Queen Baton Rouge. bigchicken.com

KOK Wings and Things

1509 Government St., Building D Get lost in the sauce on Government Street courtesy of KOK Wings and Things. The Lafayette-born restaurant opened its doors in Baton Rouge back in May 2023. From sweet or spicy to saucy or dry rubbed, KOK boasts an assortment of flavor options to customize your wing plate. Add more “things” to your order like sliders, saucedrizzled fries and more. eatkok.com

Valley Wings

Multiple locations

Whether you like your wings traditional or boneless, Valley Wings has you covered with both options and a variety of dry rubs and wet sauces to douse them with. The wing joint opened in 2020, bringing a menu rounded out with chicken tenders, loaded fries and a few appetizers. valleywingschicken.com

DIGIT

1983

The year McDonald’s debuted the Chicken McNugget nationwide

Empire Wingz now has three locations and a food truck.

FILE PHOTO BY CAMILLE DELAUNE

What the cluck

Does fried chicken go with everything? Here’s how local eateries are riffing on the Capital City classic

BY OLIVIA DEFFES

THOUGH DELICIOUS ON its own, fried chicken is the versatile, crispy star in many other entrees, from salads to sandwiches.

With or without bones, local menus dress it up in yummy costumes. Picture it wearing a biscuit hat, wrapped up in a tortilla blanket or even delicately laid upon a cushiony bed of lettuce.

No matter what variation of the crunchy classic you order, it’s sure to be fingerlickin’ good.

Chicken and pancakes

Think of fried chicken for breakfast, and chicken and waffles might be the first dish to come to mind. But, what about the waffle’s pillowy cousin, the pancake? The sweet treat also makes an excellent companion for fried chicken. But who’s really surprised?

Where to get it: Zeeland Street* (pictured here)

Chicken sandwiches

Remember how divided the nation was over Popeyes’ new fried chicken sandwich in the summer of 2019? People vocally chose sides about which fast food chain’s sandwich was best. Though tensions have died down, this tumultuous time proved people sure do love a fried chicken sandwich. And lucky for us, we can get an even better version at plenty of Baton Rouge eateries.

More mashups

Chicken-fried chicken

Similar to chicken fried steak, chicken is deep fried to get a crisp, golden crust. It’s often plated with a comforting side and splashed with gravy.

Where to get it: Willie's Restaurant**, SoLou, Overpass Merchant**, P-Beau’s

Where to get it: Curbside, Chicky Sandos, Overpass Merchant, Chicken Shack, Olive or Twist, The Chimes

Want to think outside the bun? Chicken wraps and even fried chicken po-boys are all over restaurant kitchens around town, too. Try a wrap at Mid City Beer Garden or a po-boy at Rocco’s New Orleans Style Po-boys & Cafe.

Fried chicken and red beans

Forget andouille. Try the Louisiana Monday-night classic with crispy fried chicken.

Where to get it: Elsie’s Plate & Pie, Mid City Beer Garden**

Fried chicken salads

Choosing a fried option doesn’t always mean a completely unhealthy meal. It’s all about balance, right?

Where to get it: The Chimes, TJ Ribs, Our Mom’s Restaurant and Bar

Chicken and waffles

Chicken piled high on top of fluffy waffles is the perfect combination of breakfast and lunch.

Where to get it: SoLou, Mason’s Grill, The Smiling Dog*, Olive or Twist, Willie's Restaurant*, Portobello’s Grill*

Chicken and biscuits

Move over, bacon! Fried chicken also pairs well with a pillowy, savory biscuit for a crumbly breakfast sandwich or an elevated eggs Benedict.

Where to get it: Spoke & Hub, Tap 65*, Overpass Merchant*, Portobello’s Grill*, Elsie’s Plate & Pie*

* Brunch only

** Only on certain days

Gail’s Spicy Chicken at Curbside

Golden ticket

Fried chicken is a language every country speaks

BY CYNTHEA CORFAH

IN LOUISIANA, WE grew up on buckets of drumsticks and wings. But as the American staple has spread around the world, countries have reinterpreted fried chicken with local ingredients, seasonings and frying techniques. Now, these worldly flavors and styles are being adapted in restaurant kitchens across Baton Rouge.

Asian street-food restaurant Chow Yum is no stranger to putting an Asian spin on traditional, beloved Southern dishes. And fried chicken is often the centerpiece.

In the Hot Honey Chicken Bao, crispy fried chicken tenders are dunked in a smoked ghost-pepper hot-honey glaze and nestled inside fluffy bao buns. They’re dressed with house-made boursin cheese, tangy pickled onions and crack crunch.

The Bombay Chicken is plated with morsels of crisply fried tender chicken thigh and skin tossed in a wok with curry oil, spices, jalapenos and garlic. A drizzle of cilantro lime crema helps quell the heat.

“Like all of our dishes, we love to play around with lots of flavor elements and give guests something they’re familiar with but have never properly had,” Chow Yum owner and chef Jordan Ramirez says. “People around here love spice and flavor, and both of these dishes offer that in their own unique way.” chowyumbr.com

Chow Yum’s

Hot Honey

Chicken Bao

DIGIT

123,000

Number of attendees at the 2023 National Fried Chicken Festival on the New Orleans Lakefront. Save the date for this year’s event on Oct. 5-6. friedchickenfestival.com

Go on a culinary adventure with globally influenced dishes

CHICKEN KATSU at Ichiban

5741 Essen Lane

In this Japanese-inspired dish, chicken breast is breaded in a panko crust, deep fried until crispy and served with tonkatsu sauce. ichibanbr.com

SESAME CHICKEN at Cheng’s Restaurant and Bar

7951 One Calais Ave., #3403

Chinese-style, deep-fried, lightly breaded chicken thighs are stir-fried in a tangy sesame sauce and served with broccoli. chengsrestaurant.net

TAP 65 CHICKEN

SANDWICH at Tap 65

515 Mouton St., Suite 103

Indian-inspired, marinated fried chicken breast is topped with tikka masala sauce, masala onions and cilantroyogurt chutney and served with peri-peri fries. tap65.com

CHARCOAL CHICKEN at Brasas Peru

7520 Perkins Road

Peruvian-style charcoal chicken isn’t fried, but the open-flame-roasted, smoky chicken does share the crispy skin, flavorful meat and savory seasoning of its fried relatives. brasasperubr.com

CHICKEN TEMPURA SUSHI ROLL at Sushi Village

10404 Coursey Blvd.

Crispy bits of chicken tempura are wrapped in a sushi roll at this Japanese restaurant. batonrougesushivillage.com

TROPICAL WINGS at Jamaican Vibes Cuisine

1082 West Lee Drive

Jamaican-style, tropical flavored wings taste even better on Wild Wednesdays, which include $1 wings and $10.99 jerk chicken entrees specials. jvibesc.com

Chow Yum’s Bombay Chicken

Rare bird

Cafe Express

2451 North St.

“Who doesn’t love the taste of good fried chicken?” asks Sean Huey, co-owner of Cafe Express.

“It’s an inexpensive item that has been around a long time, and you can prepare it in so many different ways.”

The soul food restaurant on North Street is packed daily with customers desperate for their fried chicken fix.

The fried chicken recipe created by Huey's mother and the cafe's founder, Marie Sanford, has been used for 30 years—with no ingredients added or subtracted.

Soul food restaurants, convenience stores and gas stations are often gems for fried chicken that will make you rub your stomach in satisfaction

BY CYNTHEA CORFAH

Have you tried…

Brother’s Food Mart

Multiple locations

Make friends with the staff at your neighborhood corner store to get fresh, hot fried chicken. The crunchy chicken is a lifesaver when late-night cravings hit.

Cajun Cowboy Kitchen

8194 Plank Road

“Fried chicken wangz” are seasoned with the restaurant’s original Red Magic seasoning and come with one side. If you want the same crispy texture without the bone, order the chicken tenders.

Dorothy’s Soul Food Kitchen

1221 Gardere Lane

Fill up on fried wings paired with all the fixings at this local favorite, familyowned restaurant.

Jasmin Food Market

1710 N. Sherwood Forest Drive

Most known for its spicy and boiled crawfish and tasty potatoes, this hidden gem also serves affordable and appetizing fried chicken wings.

Perks Soul Food

Multiple locations

Generously portioned fried chicken plates come with three sides, like spaghetti and cheese, corn, cabbage, rice and gravy, green beans, sweet peas, sweet potato, potato salad, red beans and white beans.

Pic-A-Pak Fried Chicken

310 S. Alexander Ave., Port Allen

This no-frills restaurant serves fried chicken so good it made Yelp reviewers want to cry tears of joy. Treat yourself to a box with a side of fries to-go.

Save More Market

Multiple locations

Louisiana Chicken Fry?

Baton

Rouge-based Louisiana Fish

Fry sells a breading line for fried chicken sandwiches, tenders and wings.

These markets serve the famous Krispy Krunchy Chicken, which is exactly as described: crispy, crunchy—and when you’re lucky enough to get a fresh batch, the meat is piping hot and juicy.

Sunshine’s Place

8330 Scenic Highway

Outside of flavorful crab legs, crawfish, shrimp and seafood egg rolls, customers can grab fried chicken wings, fries, sauce and a drink Monday through Friday.

Taleen’s Food Mart

5102 Government St

Indulge in the ultimate comfort food, served on a lunch plate filled with items like fried chicken wings, po-boys, shrimp fried rice, hamburgers and lo mein.

Sean Huey, co-owner of Cafe Express. The institution was named the Baton Rouge Soul Food Festival’s Soul Food Pioneer in 2023.

INSIDE

STYLE

The Modern Munchkin

Jami Hollingsworth Redmond started competing in pageants at 46. She was crowned Mrs. Louisiana American last year.

Glitz, glam and goats

This pageant queen is just as devoted to designer handbags as she is to rescuing animals on her farm

BY CYNTHEA CORFAH // PHOTOS BY COLLIN RICHIE

ICOULD HAVE SWORN I was on the set of The Real Housewives when the 2023 Mrs. Louisiana American showed me her impressive designer bag collection.

Jami Hollingsworth Redmond, 48, collects designer bags and clutches as if they were rare artworks. She owns 14 high-end clutches and loves limited-edition or artist collaboration purses.

Among her designer purses are a giant, black quilted Yves Saint Laurent lambskin tote, a chic white Louis Vuitton logo-embossed bag, a mini teal velvet Gucci crossbody, and a black quilted Chanel clutch.

Some of these sought-after bags cost nearly $5,000. But Redmond says “you don’t always have to pay top dollar to look like you have.”

She uses Poshmark, Queenly, FashionPhile and The RealReal to shop and sell items.

The reigning pageant queen lives in Gonzales, has a 9-year-old son— and runs her own farm. She has 36 animals, including 11 goats, three sheep, three pigs, a mini donkey, two tortoises, a Great Pyrenees puppy, two alpacas, three turkeys, two house cats, two Bengal cats, three chihuahuas, a rabbit and a barn cat.

Redmond was 46 when she started competing in pageants. With her spunky, confident personality, she took home two titles: Mrs.

Pelican State and Mrs. Louisiana American, distinctions reserved for married contestants with less restrictive age limits.

“I am 100% committed to women my age looking and feeling amazing—no matter what age they are,” Redmond says. “Which is one of the reasons I went into pageantry. I wanted to show my peers there is nothing to be afraid of. I can strut my stuff as much as any of the Miss candidates.”

Over the years, she has aimed to compete in pageants in an affordable and sustainable way.

She finds some pageant dresses discounted on online. Her other gowns are custom-made or sourced from local shops like Chatta Box.

Each of her favorite dresses has a story. She tries not to get too attached to the others, so she sells or donates the rest.

Redmond travels to The Galleria in Houston twice a year, filling up her Sprinter van with pieces for the season.

“The key to feeling fresh and young is changing your look,” she says.

People might think Redmond’s life is all glamour. In reality, she spends most of her days taking care of her son and animals wearing athletic wear from Shein and Fashion Nova.

But when she decides to dress up, the world is her stage—and she is the beauty queen.

Inside Mid City’s newest toy shop, The Modern Munchkin Co.

IT’S ALL WORK and all play for The Modern Munchkin Co. owner Whitney Tiemann. Her free-play storefront opened in February in the Electric Depot spot formerly occupied by Sweet Baton Rouge.

Inside, Tiemann covered blank walls with colorful painted arches and murals, including one featuring little pink fuzzball creatures, or “munchkins,” in a sea of jungle leaves painted by Tiemann’s brother, graphic designer Alex Major.

The shop has shelves full of toys for infants up to children about age 9. There are even some things made for parents like “mommy and me” jewelry, children’s room decor and memory books. Tiemann will also offer custom-curated gift baskets tailored to the child’s age and interests.

“The idea here is to bring your kids and let me entertain them. We’re going to play. We’re going to set them up with a little nook, and you can shop.”

—The Modern Munchkin Co. owner Whitney Tiemann

Along with toys, books, stuffed animals and other kid-friendly displays, the shop has plenty of activity sections and demo stations for open-ended play.

“When I go to a toy store, it’s hard for me to bring my kids,” Tiemann says. “I want to, but it’s crazy. They want to grab everything. … That turns a lot of people

SHOP TO IT

The Modern Munchkin Co. is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m.–5 p.m. at 1509 Government St., Building B, Suite D. Find it online at modernmunchkin.co

away from bringing their kids to toy stores. So, the idea here is to bring your kids and let me entertain them. We’re going to play. We’re going to set them up with a little nook, and you can shop.”

The space allows for tiny customers to try out different items in sensory bins, play stations, reading nooks and more. Tiemann says it’s important for parents and children to learn how to use the toys together before purchasing them.

“I want to get people in the store and show them that it is actually easy,” she says “Your kids, as young as they are, will do it for you. … It’s intuitive for them to understand things like, this block fits in this hole and this one doesn’t.”

The Modern Munchkin Co. started as an online shop back in

2021. Tiemann wished she could find well-made items for her children in Baton Rouge, so she started the online store to bring them here herself.

She is intentional when curating items to sell at The Modern Munchin Co. She favors functionality, and almost all the products in the store do not require batteries, except for a display of light-up bath toys. Instead, she says she looks for products that promote creativity and learning instead of items that grab attention for momentary distraction.

“It’s meant to be almost Montessori-style, open-ended play,” she says about the store. “And, the toys will grow with the kids, or they can be passed down because they’re made really well. (The toys) are either sustainable or eco-friendly for the most part, whether we cut down on packaging to the best I can, or the toys are made sustainably. And, they’re just more fun and mindengaging for kids.”

POSITIVE PARENTING

Raising happy, healthy children is the most important job most of us will ever have. This special

SPONSORED BY

Watch Your Child Thrive at BASIS

Danielle Brecheen, Owner of Brecheen Pipe & Steel

HOW DO YOU PROMOTE DIVERSITY, EQUITY AND INCLUSION?

When I began working in this maledominated industry in 1985, there weren’t many women in the industrial space and it was difficult trying to develop long-term partnerships. But because of my determination and drive to succeed, my company has done just that. It has been very important to me to promote women in this highly competitive industry. Because of the hardships and challenges I faced in the 1980s, I felt the need to promote more women into industrial sales and, ultimately, leadership positions. I most enjoy working with high school-aged women and encouraging them to strive for success.

WHY IS THIS IMPORTANT TO YOUR ORGANIZATION?

It takes workers with different backgrounds and interests to come together as a winning team in the steel industry. We have college graduates, high school graduates and some that never finished high school, many of whom have been trained and promoted to higher paying positions.

WHAT HAS BEEN MOST REWARDING ABOUT THE EXPERIENCE?

In the past 39 years, I have seen the inclusion of more women in the industrial space. Women are now operators, welders, engineers, etc. It makes me happy to see how much better, and fairer, the job market has become. It’s particularly rewarding to get positive feedback from clients about how courteous and prompt our deliveries are, and how well-mannered our warehouse staff is. I feel

the overall diversity of our work culture has brought out the best in our employees and makes us more approachable to our customers.

WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE FUTURE?

The continued availability of on-the-job training opportunities will enable us to promote and retain our employees. And that’s important, since employee longevity is conducive to a strong, successful and diverse team.

Scan here to learn more

Chakesha Scott, Principal at Impact Charter School

WHAT MAKES THE CULTURE OF IMPACT CHARTER UNIQUE?

The culture at Impact Charter School is defined by its vibrant and motivating atmosphere. Starting with our daily morning assembly called “Harambee,” we cultivate a sense of community and enthusiasm that carries through the day. Our focus on positivity and excellence creates a unique environment where students feel valued and motivated to excel.

HOW DOES IMPACT CHARTER PREPARE STUDENTS FOR THE FUTURE?

Impact also prepares students for the future by utilizing rigorous Tier 1 curriculum in all core subjects and facilitating engaging learning environments that develop critical thinking, problem-solving, and communication skills. We also focus on character development, leadership, and social-emotional learning to ensure students are wellrounded and prepared for life’s ongoing challenges.

HOW IS IMPACT CHARTER EMBRACING NEW TECHNOLOGIES AND LEARNING METHODS?

Impact embraces several new technologies and methods to enhance teaching and learning. From utilizing Chromebooks, online resources, audio enhancement, to project-based learning, we strive to provide innovative and

effective educational experiences that meet the needs of 21st-century learners. We provide a lot of professional development around our technology resources to encourage maximum usage by our staff and with high fidelity.

WHAT EXTRACURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES ARE STUDENTS AT IMPACT CHARTER OFFERED?

Students at Impact are offered a wide range of extracurricular opportunities to explore their interests and talents. From sports teams and clubs to community service projects, performing & visual arts programs, and academic competitions, we provide a variety of activities that enrich the learning experience and help students develop leadership skills and teamwork.

HOW DOES IMPACT CHARTER ACCOMMODATE LEARNING DISABILITIES?

Impact accommodates learning disabilities through personalized learning plans, specialized instruction, and support services. Our staff works closely with students, parents, and specialists to identify individual needs and provide the necessary accommodations and interventions to help every student succeed.

Scan here to learn more

WISDOM COMMUNICATION GRACE LOVE

JOY PURPOSE

SOCIAL MEDIA

AWARENESS COMPASSION

BALANCE GUIDANCE POSITIVITY

INTENTION TECHNOLOGY

ROUNDTABLE THE PARENTING

PHYSICAL HEALTH CHOICE

TRUST

CORE VALUES

HEALTH GOALS

PERSPECTIVE RELATIONSHIPS RESOLUTION EMOTIONAL

LIFE

Local experts share their thoughts on issues that affect children and families, and provide solutions to strengthening family ties.

SPONSORED BY:

ROUNDTABLE PARTICIPANTS

Dr. Andy Yarborough is a licensed clinical psychologist in the Greater Baton Rouge area who co-founded The Well Clinic with his wife Melody. He and The Well Clinic team guide people across the lifespan into hope, wellness, and life from a traumainformed, growth-oriented perspective. The Well Clinic offers several services, including counseling, coaching, neurofeedback, psychological and psychoeducational assessments, and medication management from a holistic approach.

Katie Jenkins is a Board Certified Behavior Analyst (BCBA) and the founder/owner of Grace Therapy Center. Grace Therapy Center provides 1:1 and small group Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) therapy for children with autism and other developmental differences. With a collaborative approach, Katie and her team work together with families to help each child reach their goals and be successful in communication, academics, problem solving, self-management, and social skills.

Amanda Martin is the founder and CEO of Studyville, a revolutionary academic workspace that offers tutoring in an upscale co-working environment. Under her leadership, Studyville has more than tripled in size in just a few years, adding a second location and expanding in-person tutoring out of state in Georgia and North Carolina. In 2023, Studyville was honored by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce as one of America’s Top Small Businesses.

Krystle D. Veals serves as the Director of Community Investments at New Schools for Baton Rouge. Her responsibilities include leading various initiatives that focus on family, school, and community partnerships, enrollment equity, and family engagement. She firmly believes that every family deserves to be equipped with the necessary tools and empowered to make the best choices for their child’s academic journey.

Dr. Shaun Kemmerly serves as Chief Medical Officer at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital and is a pediatric physician. In her role, she is responsible for the quality and safety of Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital and oversees the 50 pediatric specialists and 60 general pediatricians who offer exceptional care for the children of Greater Baton Rouge.

Erin Pourciau Bradford (Not pictured) is the Director for the I CARE Program, which focuses on drug, alcohol, and violence prevention in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System. Erin works with a staff of 20 people to ensure that students and families are supported in coping with trauma, grief, and life changes in healthy and positive ways. The I CARE Program is the only program of its kind in the nation and was recently awarded Prevention Program of the Year for the state of Louisiana.

Challenges of the Modern Family

For the first time, 225 has assembled a group of local parenting experts to participate in a unique Roundtable discussion about critical issues facing Baton Rouge’s children and families. Topics include mental health, social media, family dynamics, academics, and parental support. In these pages, these experts share their thoughts on the challenges we face as we strive to raise happy, healthy children …. and how we can do better.

Comments made during the Roundtable have been edited and condensed for clarity and for space. Read and share the online version at 225.com/2024ParentingRoundtable.

I think for parents, it’s juggling the work/life balance. There is just so much to do. If you are a working parent, you have got your job on top of managing the kids and your home. But even if you are not a working parent, there are all of the sports activities, school projects, homework, doctor’s appointments, carpool, and overall management of the family and household. I can speak as a mom; IT IS DEFINITELY A STRUGGLE TO KEEP ALL THE PLATES SPINNING while maintaining your kids’ well-being as the number one priority.

—Amanda Martin

Lack of connection with others and themselves. I THINK WE STRUGGLE WITH KNOWING HOW TO ENGAGE OUR OWN EMOTIONS and leading ourselves well as parents; we’re surviving and trying to stabilize life. This makes it difficult to foster connection with our kids and those around us. The more that we can lean in and pay attention to what’s going on in our own lives, the more we can foster the connection we need with our kids and to the resources available to us.

—Dr. Andy Yarborough

I think for many parents, it’s the idea that the world is moving so much faster than when they were their child’s age, so there are always so many questions going through your mind. I THINK THERE IS SO MUCH PRESSURE CREATED BY THE AMOUNT OF INFORMATION AND MISINFORMATION THAT IS RECEIVED. What do we do with that? How do we interpret that? Is it true, is it not true? Is it good for my child, is it not good? It’s a lot for a parent to manage. And if they are a solo parent, the pressure kind of rests and settles on them even more. It’s unfortunate that parenting does not come with a manual. It does not come with a Google search.

—Krystle Veals

What is one of the most challenging issues facing parents today?

They have access to so much technology, questionable substances, and the world at their fingertips. Another issue is the fact that many young people are faced with influences from social media that make them question their own identity. WE ARE SEEING MORE AND MORE STUDENTS EXPLORE THEIR SEXUALITY; they seem fearful to be who they want to be and they worry that their environment does not accept them. Furthermore, these students are in a vulnerable place and may face bullying at school and elsewhere. Lastly, as a society we are faced with trauma, whether direct or indirect—everything from violence and sexual abuse to food insecurity and grief over the loss of a loved one.

—Erin Pourciau Bradford

Some families are HAVING CHALLENGES WITH THE COST OF LIVING AND RAISING A FAMILY. They are having trouble with the basics— transportation, housing, food insecurity and more. One of the things we are doing at Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Health is working with the social determinants of health and questioning families about these concerns. Then we join with our great partners such as the Mayor’s Healthy City Initiative and the Food Bank to help connect families to resources that they need.

—Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

I think it’s figuring out who can we trust, where do we go for help, what’s going to work for our family? When you add in a situation of single parenthood or for my clientele, a diagnosis of some sort, it’s even harder. Managing those expectations that have changed … you thought you were taking your kid to T-ball and now you are taking them to therapy every day. The influx of information they receive is now “How do I even navigate this information? Do I ask the mom group on Facebook? Do I find another professional?” A LOT OF US ARE BLESSED. I’M A MOM AND I GET TO SEND MY KID TO SCHOOL EVERY DAY AND SAY, “HAVE A GREAT DAY!” And they get to come home and do fine. And if there’s a problem, I have the resources to navigate that. But this is not necessarily the case for a lot of the families we work with or even in general. Coming up with those resources and how to tap into them is important for finding the best solutions for your family.

—Katie Jenkins

Unlock your brain with Neurofeedback

Are you searching for an effective and drug-free way to REDUCE YOUR STRESS AND ANXIETY,  INCREASE YOUR FOCUS AND CONCENTRATION, GET BETTER SLEEP, or IMPROVE YOUR OVERALL WELL-BEING?  If so, we invite you to experience the life-changing benefits of Neurofeedback. We are the first practice to offer Neurofeedback in Baton Rouge, and we are the only LENS Neurofeedback provider in Louisiana.

WHAT IS NEUROFEEDBACK?

Neurofeedback is a safe and non-invasive method that serves as a mirror for your brain. It provides real-time insights into your brain activity, enabling your brain to use this information for self-optimization. This approach empowers you to enhance brain function through direct feedback, helping you work towards improved cognitive health and overall well-being.

NEUROFEEDBACK SUPPORTS THE TREATMENT OF...

Anxiety, Depression, ADHD/ADD, PTSD, Insomnia, Migraines, Autism Spectrum Disorders, Traumatic Brain Injured (TBIs), and some forms of chronic pain. It also supports non-clinical goals like improved focus, improved performance, and increased productivity for professionals, athletes, parents, and anyone else interested.

TO LEARN MORE ON NEUROFEEDBACK, SCAN THE CODE

Clinical Psychologist

We are losing that sense of connection within families. No one is saying, “HOW ARE YOU DOING? WHAT HAPPENED TODAY? WHO DID YOU PLAY WITH ON THE PLAYGROUND?” It’s scary because we need that as humans. We crave that, especially with our young people who are growing and developing, and soon they will be gone. Eighteen years comes and goes very quickly and you realize just how precious it is to have a conversation. You realize just how precious it is to say, “Let me just sit with you for a while.” On the other hand, technology can be a tool and can do some amazing things. It can increase efficiency in our lives. I think the challenge for families is to figure out how to do that morally. How to do that where it is constructive and produces something for the greater good.

—Krystle Veals

The world’s perspective is at your child’s fingertips (good, bad and indifferent). IT INFLUENCES THEIR PERSPECTIVE ON EVERYTHING, BUT MAINLY ON THEMSELVES. Technology also decreases social skills, communication skills and conflict resolution. The glorification of violence, drug paraphernalia and risky behavior has been a huge problem with the prevalence of technology. It has interrupted conversations, ideas, bonding, and more.

—Erin Pourciau Bradford

Let’s use AI as an example. It’s coming at us 100 miles an hour. IT IS THE FASTEST GROWING TECHNOLOGY THAT WE HAVE EVER SEEN AND KIDS ARE CATCHING ON FASTER THAN WE ARE. They are writing essays with Chat GPT. They are doing math with PhotoMath, which takes a picture of the problem and works it out for them step by step, even showing the work. This is amazing and terrifying, so how do we navigate that to where we are using it in the classroom, but we are also teaching kids to use it as a resource and not as a way to cheat? Kids are so smart and this technology is going to be transformative for them; we just need to figure out how to use it morally. It’s almost harder to be a parent now with technology because you need technology, but if you let technology raise your child, that child is not going to adapt well.

—Amanda Martin

How is technology and social media affecting today’s families?

Social media is a profitable business, and it’s important that we recognize the targeted marketing to our children. So just have that awareness. I think as your kids are older, you should talk to them about the addictive behavior of social media and technology. It’s important to have a family plan, time when every member of the family gets to communicate (during meals, talking in the car, any time we are not on our screens). Set those spaces and guard rails. Just like we are not going to allow our young kids to see R-rated movies, we are not going to give them access to things that we don’t monitor or have control over. Yes, there are so many cool things we can do to advance healthcare with technology, but still, it’s a tool. I think WE NEED TO PROTECT OUR CHILDREN WITH THEIR GROWING AND MALLEABLE BRAINS, and not let it get too out of hand.

—Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

Technology is a reinforcer so it will increase the behavior itself. You stare at technology and what do you want to do? Stare at more technology. You stare at a screen and what do you want to do? You want to stare at a screen more. It compounds itself until you are in this big mess and you wonder how did you get here? And what does it look like when you take that technology away from your child? WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU TAKE SOMETHING ADDICTIVE AWAY FROM SOMEONE? It doesn’t look great. We are creating this addiction with our kids and we don’t even realize we are doing it. I think that is a really dangerous spot.

—Katie Jenkins

Technology and social media can have a positive impact on the lives of teens and families, but both also drive disconnection. Parents are struggling to be present with their kids. WE DO THINGS FOR OUR KIDS, BUT WE DON’T OFTEN DO THINGS WITH OUR KIDS, looking them in the eyes and engaging with them in meaningful ways. There is a power in showing up for our kids and being present. To avoid disconnection as families in this tech and social media age, we must be curious about what we are doing with tech and social media and why. This is a core part of self-leadership. Family values shape the rhythm of tech and social media use in the family. Three or more hours a day on tech and social media create a significant increase in depression, anxiety, and social isolation. Values-based moderation and boundaries are crucial for stewarding these tools and keeping our kids healthy.

—Dr. Andy Yarborough

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For some families, the pandemic was a time to connect and value family time together. But based on surveys and recent literature, THE PANDEMIC HAD A DISPROPORTIONATE NEGATIVE EFFECT ON FEMALES, specifically junior high and high school girls. A February 2023 survey showed that 57% of high school girls reported persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness. For males it was 29%; still, over a quarter is unbelievably high. 30% of the girls reported seriously considering suicide, and 13% attempted it one or more times. 70% of the girls noted that they missed seeing people very much, and 28% of boys said the same. This driving sense of disconnection has been brutal. There are also some things that took place that are going to be harder for kids down the road, like more experiences of traumatic events. If you were already in an abusive or neglectful home, school was your safe space. With school shutdowns, kids no longer had that space. Finding data on recovery is difficult, but young people can be resilient. Social support, good friendships, individual and family counseling, and healthy activities like sports and music are helping our kids recover.

Dr. Andy Yarborough

The trauma of loss and isolation has affected so many people, especially those who were already struggling. I’m not sure we are recovering … I think we just swiped left and thought it was over. I believe people have adapted well, but there will be long-term effects and we will be working with people for generations to come. THE PANDEMIC WAS A COLLECTIVE TRAUMA EXPERIENCE AND IT WILL CONTRIBUTE TO PROBLEMS IN THE FUTURE. It created a lack of foundational experiences in academic, communication and social skills for younger students, and that has been a challenge in our schools.

Erin Pourciau Bradford

For us, autism diagnoses got put on the back burner because no one was going to the doctor unless you were really sick. Kids weren’t going to daycares or sitters or nannies. They weren’t around other kids. The parents either didn’t realize that their child was delayed because they didn’t have another child around … or there was less opportunity for someone to say, “Hey, so and so really should be talking by now.” Maybe a child wouldn’t have been as delayed, but they were sitting in an isolated environment, or spending too much time on a screen or just not around the language models that they really needed. WE ARE STILL SEEING A LOT OF CHILDREN WHO ARE JUST NOW GETTING DIAGNOSED BECAUSE NO ONE NOTICED THE PROBLEM BEFORE. The pandemic delayed some diagnoses and some services and probably increased some behaviors that we don’t want to see.

Katie Jenkins

How did the pandemic affect this generation of children and how are they recovering?

Honestly, in the state of Louisiana, our pre-pandemic levels of literacy and math were nothing to brag about. Last year EBR Schools test scores improved a percentage point across the board; that’s not enough. Studyville opened in August 2020 so it was right when kids were going back to school and I thought, “This could have been a really bad idea.” But it turns out that it was a much-needed service because students were so far behind and needed help. There was grace in the fall of 2020 with teachers recognizing students missed a whole semester and needed help with review and acceleration. The learning gap, however, just snowballed. Now students are still behind as a result of the pandemic and teachers have less capacity to review rudimentary skills that were missed several years ago. STUDENTS ARE LOSING THESE FUNDAMENTAL CONCEPTS THAT THEY NEED FOR ADVANCING IN MATH, SCIENCE, AND ENGLISH; we are still catching up.

Amanda Martin

From a health perspective, the pandemic just threw every routine out the window. Children were no longer in school or participating in their sports or their clubs. That isolation was very challenging. We have seen an increase in kids presenting with anxiety, depression, and eating disorders. The eating disorders really caught me off guard as a healthcare provider because of the ages of the children. There were 8- and 9-year-olds struggling with this and that has been a big challenge. We have been working on improving mental health care access for kids, but there is still a lot of work to do in that arena. DURING COVID AND THE ABSENCE OF SCHOOL, CHILDREN SPENT MORE TIME IN FRONT OF SCREENS AND ON THE COUCH. They exercised less and we saw an increase in obesity. We also noted an increase in Type 1 diabetes diagnoses. Now that the kids are back in school, we are happy to see them engaging in activities and active play again.

Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

In the education arena, we have something called summer slide. Kids go home for summer vacation and traditionally, when they enter into their next grade level, they are behind because academics took a back seat over summer vacation. So now there’s this new terminology, the Covid slide, where we see even worse performance than from the summer slide. Why? Because I may not know how to teach my child. That’s what I send them to school for, right? SO WE SAW AND STILL SEE A LOT OF KIDS STRUGGLING TO CATCH UP ACADEMICALLY, SOCIALLY, BEING BACK IN THE CLASSROOM. And the other thing that breaks my heart (specifically for Louisiana) is that we have students who never returned  to school. We don’t even know where they are. We don’t know how they are being educated.

—Krystle Veals

FIVE SURPRISING SIGNS YOUR CHILD MAY BE VAPING, AND WHAT PARENTS CAN DO

With bright colors and flavors like mango and mint, electronic cigarettes—aka e-cigarettes, vape pens or vapes—have become increasingly popular with children and teens, who often believe they are a safe alternative to smoking cigarettes.

But these battery-powered devices are far from harmless. E-cigarettes work by heating a liquid such as propylene glycol or vegetable glycerin that contains nicotine, THC, other substances, and those appealing flavorings. And while the process is called “vaping,” e-cigarettes don’t actually create harmless water vapor—they create aerosols that contain harmful and cancer-causing chemicals including formaldehyde and heavy metals like lead, nickel and tin.

“Vaping companies promote their products by stating that it’s less harmful, but remember that less harmful is still harmful,” warns I CARE prevention specialist Melvin Sanders Jr.

More than 2.5 million middle and high school students in the United States used e-cigarettes in 2022, according to the National Youth Tobacco Survey released by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in coordination with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Among these youth e-cigarette users, nearly 85% reported using flavored e-cigarettes, and more than 1 in 4 reported using e-cigarettes daily.

The negative health effects of nicotine, which is found in virtually all vape products, are many.

Nicotine is highly addictive, and the vast majority of adults with nicotine addiction began using nicotine products before age 21, according to the Partnership to End Addiction. Using nicotine while the brain is still developing creates a greater risk of addiction. And those fun flavors? When heated to create an aerosol, they form harmful compounds that can cause lung damage.

“The real effects of vaping are still unknown,” says I CARE director Erin Pourciau-Bradford. “I CARE continues to stay abreast of all current research to keep our community and students informed to make positive life decisions.”

The I CARE Prevention Program offers drug, alcohol and violence prevention support and resources for families and schools within the Baton Rouge community. The program focuses on educating and empowering youth to make healthy choices, and its specialists provide crisis intervention, prevention workshops, and grief and trauma recovery support. Resources are available both in person and online.

Find out more about the I CARE Prevention Program at icare.ebrschools.org.

WONDERING IF YOUR CHILD OR TEEN IS VAPING? HERE ARE FIVE WARNING SIGNS TO LOOK FOR:

1 2 3

INCREASED THIRST: Vaping removes hydration from the skin, especially around the mouth and throat.

NOSEBLEEDS: Skin around the nose can crack due to lack of moisture.

“VAPER’S TONGUE”: When moisture in the mouth is compromised, the user can lose flavor perception. A child might take an interest in spicier foods or suddenly want to add more spices or salt to his or her meals.

4 SKIN DAMAGE: Skin that was once clear might become irritated or damaged. There may be an increase in red spots and worsening acne.

5 SLEEP DISTURBANCES: Children may stay up later than usual, have difficulty falling asleep, or be restless during sleep.

I think I am going to go back to consistency and contingency. If you can be consistent as a parent and do those minute things or you can pick one thing and consistently do it, I think the power of that is going to get you a lot further than big grand ideas. FIND WHAT’S IMPORTANT TO YOUR FAMILY AND REINFORCE IT. If time together is important, then spend time together by decreasing screen time and doing things that let you focus on your family. I think if you can make things contingent on certain behaviors, then you are only going to increase the values that you care about.

—Katie Jenkins

I believe open lines of communication, support, healthy boundaries, and speaking positively to our children is critical. Children have to learn how to navigate the world, and it our job to serve as models and help them do it from a positive perspective. We must be careful in how we react and handle daily and long-term stressful situations. WE MUST SHOW EMPATHETIC RESPONSES. We have to teach children how to fight adversity, how to stand up for themselves and how to be the best they can be. We also must be careful about putting our past trauma on them. They will have enough to fight without adding our battles to theirs.

—Erin Pourciau Bradford

Kids spell love T-I-M-E so my advice is to spend time together away from devices. Go for a hike, take a small vacation, throw a football together, go to a park, walk the LSU Lakes, play board games

FIND OUT YOUR CHILD’S LOVE LANGUAGE AND SPEND TIME WITH THEM in the way they most appreciate. Get out and spend time together; it’s not rocket science. It’s very simple.

—Amanda Martin

What is your advice to parents for raising healthy, well-adjusted children?

Be kind to yourself. You want to create this loving nurturing environment for your family and it’s hard and it takes a lot out of you. FILL YOUR OWN CUP SO THAT YOU CAN THEN FILL THE CUP FOR THE FAMILY. Celebrate the small wins, the 10 minutes that you are walking outside or playing with a butterfly. Connect with your kids in the car and enjoy the little moments. Make every moment count because you don’t realize the power of those small things. Be a good role model for your children. They are watching and they absorb everything we do so it’s a lot of pressure to be a good parent. Even so, be kind to yourself.

—Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

FIND YOUR VILLAGE AND THEN ASK FOR HELP. I personally don’t believe we were sent to this earth to just do it alone, to figure it out, to scrape two nickels together. I don’t believe in things like that. Whether your village is coming by way of a Facebook group, the soccer moms or Fathers on a Mission … whatever it is … what we do well in Baton Rouge is relate to each other. You find your people. You get your people together and that ecosystem has the responsibility of making sure that all of the children succeed.

—Krystle Veal

My advice to parents for raising healthy children is SELF-LEADERSHIP. I define self-leadership as your “core self” leading all of who you are into health in key areas of life: spiritual health, soul care, physical health, and relational health. These areas then extend into the world around you. There is a principle called intergenerational transmission where we inadvertently transmit systemic patterns from one generation to the next whether we realize it or not. By focusing on your own self-leadership and your health in these areas, you are literally CHANGING YOUR FAMILY LEGACY, PASSING DOWN HEALTH TO YOUR KIDS AND BEYOND

—Dr. Andy Yarborough

Baton Rouge is a loving community. We take care of each other, we feed each other at tailgates and during hurricanes, and we show up for each other. Unfortunately, our healthcare outcomes don’t show that. Louisiana is toward the bottom of the list in healthcare outcomes, such as infant mortality or teenage pregnancy, just to name a few. I think our state and our city are better than that. There are many good people and good organizations in this space. How do we work better together? One thing that Our Lady of the Lake Children’s Hospital has done this past year is partner with Children’s Hospital New Orleans. We’ve accomplished many things already in this first year of collaboration. I also think the BREC system is great. GEOGRAPHICALLY, WE HAVE GOOD WEATHER MOST OF THE TIME SO WE CAN GET OUTSIDE AND PLAY. And you don’t have to be an athlete to utilize the outdoor spaces for walking with your children, bike riding along the along the levee, or enjoying the dog parks. Baton Rouge is really an incredible place for families.

—Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

It’s interesting to me that we kind of foster and reinforce competition but with that comes a little bit of teamwork. So we have all these people doing great things in our community, but we can’t get them to come together because of competition. How does it all connect and what does that look like? I make money because I do this, which is fine but that’s not my why. Money is not my why. None of our whys here are money. We work with kids. So it’s important to know that we are the doers, the ones who are willing to let some other things take a back seat to get things connected. It’s critical that we as a community reinforce what is actually important to us and if it’s CULTURE and FOOD and COMMUNITY … then as business owners and affluent people in the community, we should project that as well. Let’s connect and then it compounds on to other things.

—Katie Jenkins

I think Baton Rouge does kids sports really well. We are great at it. IF YOU GO TO THE BALLFIELD, PARENTS ARE THERE AND THEY ARE INVOLVED. There is no amount of time, travel, money, effort, and hauling of coolers that parents won’t do for their children. We have collegiate sports, and we have magnificent organizations like BREC, the YMCA and other private sports entities. So we do sports really well. I just wish we had that same amount of passion for literacy. Your child is more likely to get a TOPS scholarship than they are to get an athletic scholarship by exponential rates. But you cannot do that unless you are getting the foundation for literacy and math. We do sports well. We could be much better at supporting education.

—Amanda Martin

What is a positive example of the BR community supporting parents and families?

I am a transplant to Baton Rouge. My wife and I moved here in 2008. All three of our kids were born here, and Baton Rouge is home now. Baton Rouge has amazing people and organizations who are on a mission, not just to fix, but to add value to our community. I want to highlight a couple that are doing an amazing job. The Forgotten Initiative is a national organization, but our local chapter really does whatever it can to support our foster care system by connecting volunteers from local churches. Whatever your religious orientation or preference, LOCAL CHURCHES HAVE THOUSANDS AND THOUSANDS OF PEOPLE WHO CARE ABOUT THEIR COMMUNITY and want to volunteer to serve our foster families and support our foster care system. Second is the Bethany Center for Mentorship which serves the Greater Baton Rouge area. They are doing an amazing job of partnering with schools and family systems across several different areas of life. The integration piece is where I think we need to keep getting better. Equity isn’t just about opportunity; it’s about knowledge of that opportunity and knowing where to find the information you need. One of the things we must work through as a community is moving from the competition mindset to the cooperation mindset where we are partnering with other organizations to get our community the information they need to stabilize, heal, grow, and flourish.

—Dr. Andy Yarborough

At I CARE, we are a great example of an organization that supports parents and families. The I CARE program provides connectivity to resources, activities and educational sessions in and out of the school system. At the forefront, WE STRIVE TO PREVENT DRUG USE, ALCOHOL USE AND VIOLENCE, but we are able to strengthen relationships and our community through supporting all that enhances protective factors for everyone.

– Erin Pourciau Bradford

One that comes to mind is Fathers on a Mission, which does parenting classes for men and helps them advocate for their rights as fathers. We have the Bridge Agency, one of those organizations that meets basic needs. Their offices are stocked with diapers and uniforms for kids. So many connections to food or employment, things of that sort. I am a Baton Rouge transplant myself. I often tell people that they feed me really well and they treat me like family. In Baton Rouge there are some amazing things that are happening. Redstick Cares is an organization I love, especially in the context of family. WHENEVER THERE IS A PROGRAM FOR ADULTS, THERE IS ONE AVAILABLE FOR THE CHILD AS WELL. So you get the whole family taken care of in a holistic approach. And to pat our own selves on the back, Enroll BR is amazing. We provide families with information to help them navigate the school choice process. We have a lot of options that work best for different types of learners, but there is a misconception that we do just one side of the fence and that’s not true. We have caregivers who call us and say, “This is what my child has going on. What’s going to be the best option for them?” We are pro-parent and pro-parent choice. We have some gems … we just have to figure out how to amplify that.

—Krystle Veals

One of our initiatives is to provide the community with resources that are specific to their needs. When we’re at community events, the presenting concern could go from SUICIDE TO GRIEF TO HOMELESSNESS and so on. To be able to connect an individual with the right resource is paramount. We are beginning to remind and educate the community on who we are and what we do via social media, print media and word of mouth. I CARE continues to bring students awareness through presentations and informational text, and supports other community partners to bring awareness to parents and community members. The Prevention Summit held in January 2024 set the stage for current prevention content that affects young people. It helps to equip adults with the tools to help out student and children in the community.

—Erin Pourciau Bradford

We have recently started our Center for Child and Adolescent Services, and we just began offering neurofeedback. Right now, WE ARE THE ONLY CLINIC OFFERING NEUROFEEDBACK in the Greater Baton Rouge area, which can help treat anxiety, depression, sleep issues, ADHD symptoms, and several different struggles. It also helps with non-clinical goals. For example, if you want to optimize your brain functioning to focus more effectively, increase sports performance, and other things like this, neurofeedback could help you. We are excited about that. We also do psychoeducational assessments. We not only pay attention to the areas of your child’s struggle, but we also identify where they are strong, integrating positive psychology into the assessment process. We are thankful to serve our Greater Baton Rouge community by guiding families into hope, wellness, and life.

—Dr. Andy Yarborough

Continuing our collaboration with Children’s Hospital in New Orleans. Our plan is to increase access to care and share best practices with them. We are also recruiting expert, hard-to-find specialists to come to Louisiana to take care of our children with complex healthcare needs. IN BATON ROUGE, WE OPENED THE HOGS HOUSE IN LATE FEBRUARY. This is a home for families that live outside of Baton Rouge but are here receiving specialized care for their child. It is a beautiful 12-room home and a comforting, welcoming place where families can find respite when their kids are recovering in the hospital or undergoing care on our campus. We also have plans to advance neuroimaging with a new 3T MRI. This state-of-the-art scanner allows better and faster brain imaging and will be available on campus later this fall.

—Dr. Shaun Kemmerly

Name one of your organization’s 2024 initiatives.

One of Studyville’s main focuses for the next year is literacy. The Louisiana state legislature passed an initiative, the Steve Carter Literacy Program, for which Studyville is a provider. This was originally a $40 million program and no one knew anything about it! For families with kids K - 5, if your child didn’t perform well on the LEAP exam or reading assessment, you are eligible for $1,000 of tutoring in literacy. Only a small percentage of the eligible students actually knew about it and participated last year. So what we did well in education is SET ASIDE $40

MILLION FOR LITERACY

, but what we did badly was that we told no one about it. If you have an elementary school student in a Louisiana public or charter school, I encourage you to look into the Steve Carter Literacy Program with the Louisiana Department of Education. Another example of our community work was a recent camp we did in Scotlandville. We had these students for just three weeks. In math, we saw an increase of 5-31% in the students’ progress and in literacy, we saw a 1075% increase. It’s initiatives like these where we see real results that remind us why we do what we do.

—Amanda Martin

We recently reinvested $205,000 back into a total of 16 community organizations doing work around equity, family and community, out of school time programming, youth empowerment and academic outcomes. I am really proud of the 16 grantees that we have.

I AM ALSO PROUD OF ENROLLBR BECAUSE WE ARE ALL ABOUT THE PARENTS. When you engage with someone at EnrollBR, we are asking what your family dynamics are, not anyone else’s. What do you need to ensure the success of your child? An after-school program? One that specializes in English Language support services? EnrollBR takes the time to sit with families and walk them through that process. We will soon be launching our Your School, Your Choice podcast as another way to get information out to the families—not just the ones who need it, but also those who could be allies and advocates for parents making the decisions that best suit them.

—Krystle Veals

Our organization started very small in 2021 with two kids and now we have about 70 kids in three locations and 120 employees. One of my goals is always to increase access to our services, but a lot of people don’t even know what ABA is. APPLIED BEHAVIOR ANALYSIS

IS MOSTLY ONE-TO-ONE THERAPY

. So every child has one therapist working with them on their programs and gets individual attention. It is super powerful because unlike other interventions, we get these kids sometimes 35 hours a week. Instead of going to a daycare or preschool, we are often able to drill down and learn why they arent't talking, why they aren't meeting these milestones on time. Unfortunately, the statistics show that autism is becoming more prevalent and we need more providers. We were looking at 1 in 44 kids in America with autism, but now, it is 1 in 36. That is post-pandemic data from 2021 reported in 2023 … they are saying it will level off for 2024 but I just don’t know. Our goal for 2024 is to increase accessibility of therapy for as many families as we can.

—Katie Jenkins

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ONE BOOK ONE COMMUNITY SELECTION BRINGS TOGETHER LOVE OF FOOD & HISTORY; EVENTS PLANNED THROUGHOUT APRIL

Calling all readers, especially foodies and history buffs. This year’s East Baton Rouge Parish Library’s One Book One Community selection is filled with ancient recipes updated for the modern kitchen and illustrated with beautiful photographs portraying the dishes and historical artwork.

For the 18th year, One Book One Community aims to bringing together parish residents from all walks of life to read and then discuss the year’s selection. This year’s title, Tasting History by Max Miller, gives readers the opportunity to explore the past through 4,000 years of recipes.

The project began as a YouTube channel when Miller, a former Disney employee, was furloughed during the Covid-19 pandemic. During lockdown, Miller used his channel to entertain both foodies and history buffs alike by recreating dishes from the past, often using historical recipes from vintage texts, but updating them for modern kitchens, all while telling stories about the cuisine and culture.

The concept for One Book One Community originated in Seattle, Washington, in 1998, with the Washington Center for the Book’s project, “If All of Seattle Read the Same Book.” Today, residents in cities and towns all over the nation strengthen their sense of community while reading and talking about one great book.

Along with promoting Tasting History, the library is also offering free programming with a culinary theme through the end of April. For more details on programs available for the entire family, visit ReadOneBook.org.

APRIL EVENTS INCLUDE:

Taste the History of Georgian England’s Parmesan Ice Cream

This group cooking class will follow a recipe from 1789 for a classic and historic ice cream flavor, Parmesan. Monday, April 1 from 2:30 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Jones Creek Regional Young Adult Room.

Tasting History: How to Make Pretzels and Dipping Sauce

Teens will learn to make a snack that dates to AD 610: Pretzels! They will also learn how to make an easy dipping sauce to go with the pretzels. Monday, April 1 from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Pride-Chaneyville Branch Library. Register at 225.658.1540 to ensure a spot.

Poet Talk with Mona Lisa Saloy, author of Red Beans and Ricely Yours

Following a talk and poem reading from her book, Saloy will hold a book signing. Saturday, April 6 at 10 a.m. at the Main Library at Goodwood.

Tea and Literature

Tea plays an important role throughout fiction. Taste and see how! Presented by Anne Milneck of Red Stick Spice Co. Sunday, April 7 at 3 p.m. at the Main Library at Goodwood.

Ratatouille

Set in Paris, this Disney movie follows a young rat Remy who dreams of becoming a chef. After the movie, participants will make their own dish of Ratatouille out of paper. Ages 6-11. Saturday, April 13 at 10 a.m. at the Eden Park Branch. Call 225.231.3260 for more information.

Meet the Author

Author Max Miller is visiting the Main Library at Goodwood. Saturday, April 20 at 10 a.m.

Max Miller, author of OBOC 2024 selection, Tasting History

Justin Alford, Owner at Benny’s Car Wash

CAN YOU EXPLAIN THE IMPORTANCE OF ROUTINE CAR WASHES IN MAINTAINING THE APPEARANCE AND LONGEVITY OF A VEHICLE?

A vehicle, like any machinery, needs maintenance for optimal function. While oil changes and tire rotations are crucial for its longevity, car wash professionals also focus on preserving the vehicle’s appearance. Environmental factors like insects, bird droppings, road grime, and acid rain can damage a vehicle’s paint over time, similar to dirty oil affecting an engine’s performance. We use advanced cleaning methods and protective coatings to keep the paint clean, making the vehicle last longer.

HOW DOES REGULAR WASHING HELP PROTECT A CAR’S PAINT JOB FROM ENVIRONMENTAL DAMAGE SUCH AS BIRD DROPPINGS, TREE SAP, RAIN, AND ROAD SALT?

To understand this issue, let’s consider the reality of the clearcoat painted surface on your vehicle. Despite its smooth appearance, under magnification, it’s actually full of tiny bumps and cracks. These tiny imperfections are prime spots for environmental contaminants like tree sap, bird droppings, and road salt to gather. Professional car washes, like Benny’s, use solvents, surfactants, and mechanical agitation to effectively remove these contaminants.

HOW DO YOUR CAR WASH TECHNIQUES ACCOMMODATE VARIOUS TYPES OF VEHICLES, SUCH AS TRUCKS, SUVS, OR LUXURY CARS?

To accommodate the diverse range of vehicles we wash, we use versatile equipment designed to be as inclusive as possible. While some vehicles may not fit due to height, width, or tire width limitations, we aim to minimize exclusions. Our tunnels are strategically designed with a variety of appliances to overcome any limitations and ensure effective cleaning for all vehicle types.

AS A CAR WASH EXPERT, WHAT ADVICE WOULD YOU GIVE TO CAR OWNERS WHO WANT TO KEEP THEIR VEHICLES LOOKING THEIR BEST BETWEEN WASHES?

That is an easy one, unlimited plans. When you sign up for Benny’s Unlimited Wash Club, you can wash your car up to 2 times per day, every day, all for one low monthly price. Plus, members enjoy exclusive perks, like saving up to 30 cents per gallon on fuel at any B-Quik location and discounted oil changes.

HOW HAS TECHNOLOGY INFLUENCED THE CAR WASH INDUSTRY, AND WHAT INNOVATIONS HAVE YOU IMPLEMENTED IN YOUR BUSINESS TO ENHANCE THE CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE?

Benny’s actually invented the “Modern Day Express Car Washing”, creating the concept of an all-inclusive car wash experience using an automated computer program. However, success in the car wash industry goes beyond automation; it requires providing value to customers. This means ensuring cleanliness, offering amenities such as foam and lights, providing free vacuums, and maintaining a friendly staff. Ultimately, customers should perceive a fair exchange: a reliably clean car with added convenience.

WHAT ARE THE KEY DIFFERENCES, IN TERMS OF BOTH EFFECTIVENESS AND CONVENIENCE, BETWEEN GETTING A PROFESSIONAL CAR WASH AND WASHING YOUR CAR YOURSELF AT HOME?

Professional car washes are quick, around five minutes per vehicle, compared to at least thirty minutes for washing at home. Professional solutions effectively remove contaminants without damaging wax coatings, unlike household dish soap. A hose running for ten minutes will use approximately 110 gallons of water. Here at Benny’s, we use much less. Scan here

WHAT IS CHARLIE’S PLACE?

Charlie’s Place Activity and Respite Centers in Baton Rouge and Gonzales offer a program for individuals with early to mild stage Alzheimer’s and dementia-related disorders designed to provide cognitive stimulation and social interaction while giving caregivers a much-needed break. The program offers a home-like experience of person-centered care, where participants can enjoy a purposeful, six-hour day with a host of activities to stimulate cognition and socialization.

HOW DO I KNOW IF MY FAMILY MEMBER IS A GOOD CANDIDATE FOR CHARLIE’S PLACE?

To determine if a loved one is a good candidate for Charlie’s Place, contact Treasure White, Respite Director for more information and a tour of Charlie’s Place.

WHAT ACTIVITIES WILL MY FAMILY MEMBER PARTICIPATE IN AT CHARLIE’S PLACE?

Charlie’s Place provides person-centered care to clients, which means there is something for everyone to enjoy! Activities at Charlie’s Place are selected based on the interests of the clients and may include music, pet therapy, gardening, arts/crafts, live entertainment, intergenerational activities, physical activities and exercise, integration of technology using the “It’s Never Too Late” (IN2L) system, games

requiring mental participation and concentration, cooking/baking, and social interaction with peers, to name a few.

WHERE CAN CAREGIVERS FIND ADDITIONAL RESOURCES REGARDING AT HOME CARE TIPS/ADVICE?

Alzheimer’s Services can provide additional information regarding resources and tips regarding at-home care. Visit alzbr.org or call 225334-7494 to speak with one of our knowledgeable staff members.

DOES GOING TO CHARLIE’S PLACE REPETITIVELY HELP TO SLOW THE EFFECTS OF DEMENTIA?

Studies have shown that mental exercise, social interaction, and exercise can have a beneficial impact on memory and cognitive function. This combination has been shown to reduce or delay the changes in the brain leading to cognitive impairment. As Charlie’s Place offers a purposeful day of all three components, participation in the program can be beneficial to those with Alzheimer’s or a related memory impairment.

Treasure White, Respite Director

STUDYING CHILDHOOD OBESITY:

YOUR FAMILY COULD HELP RESEARCHERS MOVE SCIENCE FORWARD

LSU’s Pennington Biomedical Research Center is home to the top scientists in the world who are studying one of the most pressing health issues in our country – childhood obesity. Despite ongoing efforts, childhood obesity rates have continued to soar over the last 10 years, with about 1-in-5 children affected by obesity. To move the science forward, Pennington Biomedical invites parents to enroll their children in clinical research trials.

Parents can be assured that these studies are non-invasive and primarily involve the collection of measurements, including height and weight, food intake and amount of physical activity, along with body scans. Participants are encouraged to implement behavioral interventions, and they receive resources to help fight obesity, as well as compensation.

Baton Rouge librarian Kytara Christophe took part in a 2017 study involving whether the diabetes drug Semaglutide was effective for weight loss. The experience was overwhelmingly positive, and Christophe began looking for a study that was a good fit for her and her daughter, who was in middle school at the time.

They were selected to serve on a family advisory board that explored more effective ways to encourage others to participate in research trials. “There are these misconceptions – all clinical trials are not about testing medications on you,” Christophe says. “The researchers were talented, caring and humble, and they really had a genuine interest in what we thought.”

Parents who are interested in participating in a clinical research trial themselves or enrolling a child can find more information online at pbrc. edu/clinicaltrials or by calling 225.763.3000.

MEET SOME OF PENNINGTON BIOMEDICAL’S RESEARCHERS AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THEIR WORK AND ACCOMPLISHMENTS.

Dr. Amanda Staiano

Staiano, director of pediatric obesity and health behavior, recently served on the American Academy of Pediatrics committee that issued its first comprehensive guidelines in 15 years on evaluation and treatment of children and adolescents with obesity.

Staiano has a specific interest in using technology to promote physical activity and healthy behaviors and was principal investigator in a study involving exergaming, or technology-driven physical activities. Her other current trials utilize technology for behavior change, including developing and testing a mobile app for parents of preschoolers to increase children’s physical activity and improve self-regulation skills and the use of telehealth counseling in a primary care-based pragmatic trial of children with obesity.

Dr. Robert Newton Jr. Newton’s interests center on addressing health disparities in African American children, adults and older adults.

Newton, professor of physical activity and ethnic minority health, recently secured a $214,000 grant from the National Institutes of Health to explore whether African American fathers can serve as catalysts for improving their children’s health. The study will analyze the degree to which fathers can influence their children’s health by incorporating exercise into family activities.

Dr. Leanne Redman Redman, director of the maternal and infant research lab, is studying the body fat and metabolism of infants to learn more about what a person’s metabolism is like when they’re born and how it changes throughout their growth and development.

In Redman’s studies, researchers first take a measurement of the infant’s body fat percentage by placing it inside a Pea Pod, an enclosed oval-shaped chamber that measures how much air volume the baby takes up inside the pod compared to the baby’s body mass.

The second measurement is newborn metabolism. Pennington Biomedical is home to the only metabolic chamber in the world sized for infants. To obtain the measurement, the baby is placed inside the clear metabolic chamber, allowing researchers to capture the infant’s entire metabolic cycle. By measuring the amount of oxygen the baby breathes in versus carbon dioxide it breathes out, researchers can estimate how many calories the baby is burning.

Dr.

John Day, General Dentistry at CareSouth

WHAT ARE THE BEST WAYS PEOPLE CAN TAKE CARE OF THEIR TEETH?

There is no more cost effective and beneficial thing that any person can do to take care of their teeth than to practice thorough oral hygiene at home on a daily basis. Brush, floss, and avoid sugar in the diet- it’s the cheapest dental insurance there is! See a dentist at least once a year for a check up.

WHAT FOOD ITEMS DO THE WORST DAMAGE TO TEETH?

Any food that is high in sugar. If you read food labels, you will find that almost all pre-packaged or processed foods in the United States are loaded with sugar. Soft drinks not only contain huge amounts of sugar, but are acidic, too. The acid they contain dissolves tooth enamel. Cut as much of the above items from your diet as possible.

WHY CARESOUTH FOR DENTAL?

We offer comprehensive dental treatment in a caring and professional environment. Our mission is to provide quality, affordable healthcare with compassion and respect for all.

Dr. Gregory Garner, Chief Medical Officer at CareSouth

WHY SHOULD A PATIENT COME TO CARESOUTH?

We provide quality care with respect and dignity to all patients regardless of insurance or lack of insurance.

WHAT ARE THE MOST CRITICAL HEALTH ISSUES AMONG ADULTS?

Not taking mental health seriously, lack of preventive screenings, and chronic illness such as diabetes and hypertension.

WHY SHOULD MEN BE MORE PROACTIVE ABOUT GETTING THEIR PROSTATE EXAMS?

Cancer is the 2nd leading cause of death in men behind heart disease.  Prostate cancer is the 2nd  leading cause of death in men behind lung cancer. Black males are 1.7 times more likely to be diagnosed with prostate caner. Black males are 2.1 times more likely to die from prostate cancer due to lack of screening and delayed diagnosis.

A strong family is a priceless gift

At a time when children are increasingly techno-connected yet socially isolated, a time when anxiety and depression are common among young people … a solid family is more important than ever. Here are some simple steps you can take to help your children feel safe, loved, protected, and optimistic about the future.

SPEND TIME TOGETHER

Find ways to engage with your kids in a setting away from the pressures of school, work and home. Activities like biking, hiking, road trips, etc. offer the opportunity to communicate and spend quality time with each other.

TAKE CARE OF PHYSICAL HEALTH

Feeling strong and fit has a psychological effect on our brains, promoting feelings of happiness and a more positive outlook. Make sure your children get a good night’s sleep and eat a healthy diet.

BE AFFECTIONATE

Physical affection is sometimes the best medicine of all, especially from mom or dad. Take advantage of those moments when you can snuggle on the couch with your little ones or hug your teenager.

BE AWARE OF MENTAL HEALTH

If you notice signs of depression or anxiety, talk with your child’s doctor, who can refer you to the appropriate health professional. Common signs include lack of energy, trouble concentrating, changes in eating and sleeping habits, irritability, lack of interest in social interactions, conflict with family and friends, and feelings of sadness and frustration, among others. It’s up to you to make sure your child has the tools and the treatment he needs.

LIMIT SCREEN TIME AND SOCIAL MEDIA

Parents are often surprised when they learn the extent to which their children are exposed to negative images and information through social media. Don’t allow your kids to spend hours upon hours looking at their phones and iPads. Set limits and enforce them.

BE OPEN TO TALKING

Don’t minimize your child’s concerns when they come to you with a problem. Instead, listen and help them put things in perspective. Consider counseling if they seem overwhelmed or reluctant to share their feelings with you.

SHOW THEM THE BRIGHT SIDE

Children are too young and inexperienced to understand what you already know—life is filled with ups and downs, and no matter how difficult life may be at the moment, it gets better. Be sure to help your child understand this.

What’s in a name? What’s in a name?

The Tartufata Pizza

Shining

Shining

RESTAURANT REVIEW

Pizza Art Wine

BY BENJAMIN LEGER // PHOTOS BY COLLIN RICHIE

About 225’s food critic: Benjamin Leger previously served as managing editor for 225 and was the editor of its Taste section from 2012 to 2021, editing, writing and steering the direction of its food coverage in print and online. He is passionate about all things food and food journalism, and has written about the greater Baton Rouge area’s cuisine and culture for nearly two decades.

pizzaartwine.com

7673 Perkins Road

Monday-Wednesday, 11a.m.-9p.m.

Thursday, 11a.m.-10p.m.

Friday, 11a.m.-midnight

Saturday, 10:30a.m.-midnight

Sunday, 10:30a.m.-9p.m.

I KNEW THE backstory of Pizza Art Wine before I ever set foot inside. The restaurant’s owner, Yilena Hernández, is an international fashion model who opened the restaurant last year to celebrate her love of, well, pizza, art and wine.

From the curated photos on its Instagram to the glammed-up poses on Hernández’s own social media that show the Cuban beauty hopping out of a sports car in front of the restaurant wearing the highest of high-end brands, one would expect the restaurant’s vibe to be more L.A. than La.

But once inside this restaurant in Ichiban Square, the look translates as more boho chic than glitzy. There are colorful paintings on nearly every inch of the walls, and crystal chandeliers share space overhead with modern amber glass pendant lights. Meanwhile, the exposed kitchen shows off a huge bespoke brick pizza oven (more on that later) and a wood-paneled patio adds a more casual aesthetic.

That’s where my friends and I opted to sit one cool Tuesday evening. The interior dining room was bustling with patrons, likely all there for what we found out was the half-off select bottles of wine special known as “Wine Down Tuesday.”

We were happy to oblige the weekly deal, and once we selected our choice from the large wine menu, we moved quickly onto appetizers.

First up was the Beef Carpaccio, a beautifully dressed plating of thinly sliced raw beef topped with capers,

THE BASICS: Yilena Hernández opened her ode to pizza, art and wine in February 2023 in the Ichiban Square shopping center. In late 2023, an assist from consulting chef David Dickensauge revamped the menu to focus on quality ingredients and expertly prepared pizzas and pasta. Happy hours, a self-pour wine tap and live music make this vibey spot a great evening hangout.

WHAT’S A MUST: The Beef Carpaccio appetizer offers delectable, tender thinly sliced meat with capers and onions. Among several pasta dishes, the Tagliatelle Bolognese is a standout for its wide noodles and meat sauce. The real stars are the pizzas, with the Tartufata taking the lead thanks to a mix of prosciutto, mozzarella and truffles.

Pollo a la Brasa is the restaurant's signature dish.

chopped red onion and arugula.

The meat was melt-in-yourmouth tender, but the unexpected honey mustard drizzle was more sweet than peppery. I’m used to a horseradish sauce or mustardy vinaigrette drizzled on top of this dish, and I needed something with a kick. Still, overall, the delicious quality meat and the other ingredients were spot on.

Next was the Eggplant Caponata. This eggplant relish isn’t something I’ve seen on local Italian menus, but I’ve always loved its mix of savory and sweet flavors. I was excited to try it here. A mixture of roasted eggplant, olives and capers in a chunky tomato sauce came on two “boats” of crusty bread. Unfortunately, this was more sweet than savory. One of my dining partners even remarked she didn’t realize the dish had olives in it because the sweetness was so overpowering.

Our final starter, the Pesto Salad, however, struck the right balance, with mixed greens, grape

tomatoes, pine nuts and shaved Parmesan in a pesto dressing. The dressing was pungent, salty and just right, bringing all the ingredients together for a nice palate cleanser before our main course.

Our table of four decided to share two pizzas and a pasta dish. Even though pizza is, of course, in the name, there are nine different pasta dishes on the menu, too. We wanted to show them some love.

We went with the Tagliatelle

The Tagliatelle Bolognese is one of nine pasta dishes on the menu

Eggplant Caponata

Bolognese, which featured wide noodles and a stick-to-your-ribs mix of Italian sausage, capicola and ground beef in a rich pomodoro sauce.

Topped with shaved Parmesan, the dish was a satisfying take on spaghetti and meat sauce and the herby Italian sausage shined through.

Now onto the pizzas: The menu divides them into red sauce and

olive-oil-based pies. We were ready to try one of each.

The Diavola includes Italian sausage and spicy salami with mozzarella on a red sauce base. The huge slices of salami were so fiery that one of my friends opted to remove them from his slices. But the rest of us didn’t mind a little heat and loved the flavors.

The Tartufata brings together mushrooms, prosciutto, shaved

truffles and truffle oil with plenty of mozzarella. The truffle flavors were delicious without overwhelming the dish, and the rest of the ingredients offered contrasts of salty and savory.

Both pizzas were a hit and a big part of that was the incredible crust, courtesy of that brick pizza oven. Crispy, airy and nicely charred, it’s exactly the kind of pizza crust I covet and will likely

have me coming back for more— maybe even making me a brand loyalist.

While there were a few misses on the appetizers, our main courses hit the mark. Consistently good pizzas and a nice wine and cocktail selection make this restaurant expertly tailored for a night out with friends. And with its chic and artsy vibe, Pizza Art Wine is clearly ready for its close-up.

The American Advertising Awards® is the advertising industry’s largest and most representative competition, attracting tens of thousands of entries nationally each year. AAF-BR’s competition is the first tier in the three tier national competition. With the mission to recognize and reward the creative spirit of excellence in the art of advertising, we are excited to share 2024’s top local entries and special award winners. Congratulations to all winners!

PROFESSIONAL

BEST OF SHOW

OVERALL: STUN Design / Phi Kappa Phi Forum Magazine Covers

FILM, VIDEO & SOUND: Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry & Echo Tango / Lee Michaels Red Box Holiday

LOGO DESIGN: Red Six Media / Port of South Louisiana

PACKAGING DESIGN: TILT / Broken Barrel Packaging

JUDGE’S CHOICE

Adjunct Creative / The Plantry Café Branding

STUN Design / Here. Now. Louisiana. Spooky Post

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana / “Life Is...” Campaign

MOSAIC AWARD

Fireside Films / Girls on the Run - South Louisiana

STUDENT

BEST OF SHOW: Lucy He / LSU / Gotcha! Milk Tea Box

JUDGE’S CHOICE: Emma Sanderson / LSU / Froot Loops Rebrand

ADDITIONAL AWARDS

E.A. “PETE” GOLDSBY

SILVER MEDAL AWARD: Danielle Gremillion

MOSAIC CHAMPION AWARD: BR Youth Coalition

PRESIDENT’S SERVICE AWARD: Corey Salomone

COMPANY SERVICE AWARD: The Golden Goose

Pesto Salad

Beef Carpaccio

Mudbug mania

By Olivia Deffes

What the sky-high price of crawfish boils down to for local restaurants and culinary events

THERE’S GOOD NEWS and there’s bad news. The good news is crawfish prices are starting to decline. The bad news is some local crawfish-centered events and restaurant specials have been canceled or delayed due to the crawdad crisis.

It’s no secret crawfish have had a heftier price tag this season. In fact, a disaster declaration was issued for the industry last month by Gov. Jeff Landry. Crawdad availability has been hindered by last year’s drought and high temperatures, as well as saltwater intrusion and a hard winter freeze.

The crawfish industry typically brings about $450 million into Louisiana each year, according to Yvette Bonanno, spokesperson for the Louisiana Crawfish Promotion and Research Board. She estimates

that 2024 numbers will show upwards of $150 million in losses statewide.

Bonanno is also the president of the Baton Rouge Epicurean Society (BRES), known for hosting food-themed events throughout the year to raise funds for childhood nutrition. BRES’ Crawfete, an event held at Perkins Rowe to ring in crawfish season with boils and crawfish-filled dishes, was canceled last month.

Crawfete is one of the biggest events for the organization, according to BRES’ past president and executive committee member Stephen Hightower. But asking boilers and chefs to bring in crawfish sacks and culinary items didn’t seem feasible, he says.

“What it all boiled down to is that we couldn’t ask people that

are already struggling thanks to the crawfish shortage to be able to participate,” Hightower says.

BRES has donated over $1 million to the community, in part thanks to its popular events. To make up for the financial loss of Crawfete, BRES is looking to its next food event, Spring Fete held at Houmas House on May 19. Though Spring Fete is usually smaller and

more intimate, Hightower says the hope is to increase the event’s footprint by bringing in more restaurants and attendees to help make up for the loss.

Restaurants have also been impacted by crawfish prices this season. Typically around this time, Chow Yum is dishing out freshly boiled crawfish on the weekends. Its Chow Style crawfish

Chow Yum’s seasonal Chow Style crawfish was delayed this year due to high prices.

has become a local favorite for its unique additions like quail eggs, edamame, mushrooms and lemongrass garlic butter.

In early March, the eatery was not yet able to offer crawfish to eager customers. But, owner and executive chef Jordan Ramirez says the restaurant has been watching the price drop and he hoped to bring in mudbugs by the end of

that month. The special is a big boost for the business, too. During past seasons, Chow Yum would go through 40 to 50 sacks on busier weekends, Ramirez says.

“It’s not the main thing we sell,” he says. “So for us, as far as the labor involved to do it, the supplies, the ingredients, the cost of crawfish has to be at a reasonable price for it to make sense for us. … I’d love to come in at our normal prices, but really, the market price is going to dictate what that looks like.”

To make up for the late start, Chow Yum has been utilizing its redone patio space for outdoor dining. Ramirez plans to start a Saturday pop-up breakfast with Social Coffee and Chow Yum’s food truck this month, too. Chow Yum also reworked its crawfish season kick-off at Beauvoir Park into the first-ever Smoke N’ Funk Fest, a barbecue and live music event. Ramirez says the Feb. 24 event was a huge success.

And there is still hope for

another local crawfish event: the Crawfish King Cook-off held downtown.

The May 10 gathering allows teams of boilers to compete against each other while attendees get to pick and peel crawfish to enjoy. Teams are given crawfish and space to boil. The cook-off benefits both Big Buddy and Junior Achievement of Greater Baton Rouge.

The Crawfish King Cook-off usually draws in crowds in the thousands, and this year’s event will be held in conjunction with another popular downtown event, Live After Five. Junior Achievement President Paula Dawson says ticket prices increased last year, and those prices will be the same for the 2024 event.

Dawson says she does see the possibility of having lower funds from this year’s event, though, due to the price of providing crawfish to the teams. But she feels that having the event next month will be an advantage.

“We’re already seeing crawfish

prices going down a little bit,” she says. “And, I think that’ll help us out in the long run, being later in the season.”

Bonanno agrees that brighter days are ahead as we get into the thick of crawfish season.

“Mother Nature might delay things, but she won’t keep the crawfish industry down,” she says. “We hope to end the season with more crawfish and lower prices. Be patient, crawfish lovers. They’re coming.”

DIGITS $150 million

Estimated potential losses to the state’s crawfish industry in 2024, according to the Louisiana Crawfish Promotion and Research Board ISTOCK

• ANY TYPOS

WOMEN LEADING THE WAY

Business Report offers a unique opportunity to honor the women who make your company successful in a special section called, Women Leading the Way . The profile will highlight the individuals in the much anticipated May 2024 Influential Women in Business issue that also honors nine women in our community.

• Please respond by e-mail or phone with your approval or minor revisions.

• AD WILL RUN AS IS unless approval or final revisions are received within 24 hrs from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines.

• CORRECT PHONE NUMBER

© Melara Enterprises, LLC. 2023. All rights reserved. Phone 225-928-1700

Arts Leadership Award from the Louisiana Office of Cultural Development. In addition, Kris received the Esprit de Femme award and the Power of 9 award by WBRZ Donna Britt. She loves Mardi Gras season where she is 2022 Queen of Orion, 2016 Queen Artemis, 2017 KKDL Ball Captain, 2015 KKDL Duchess, 2013 Krewe Mystique Ball Captain and past Queen for Krewe of Mystique. She was honored as a 2022 Best Dressed honoree to help fight against cancer where she is 20 years cancer free. Kris continues to be active in the community with Big Buddy Dancing with the Stars, Dancing for a Cause, Knock Out MS Foundation and other communitycharityprojects. Issue Date: May 2023 Ad proof #1

For more information, contact Kelly Lewis at klewis@businessreport.com

• Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees. Carefully check this ad for: CORRECT ADDRESS

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This ad design

Issue Date: May 2023 Ad proof #1

• Please respond by e-mail or phone with your approval or minor revisions.

PADMA VATSAVAI

Founder & CEO, Vinformatix

• AD WILL RUN AS IS unless approval or final revisions are received within 24 hrs from receipt of this proof. A shorter timeframe will apply for tight deadlines.

• Additional revisions must be requested and may be subject to production fees.

• CORRECT PHONE NUMBER

© Melara Enterprises, LLC. 2023. All rights reserved. Phone 225-928-1700

A FIRST-GENERATION immigrant from southern India, Padma Vatsavai has become one of Louisiana’s most celebrated tech-space entrepreneurs and an inspiration to women seeking leadership roles in software development and other STEM fields.

Vatsavai is Founder and CEO of Vinformatix, the award-winning INC 5000 Baton Rouge software firm she grew from a single project into a major enterprise developer for government agencies, large local and national corporations and tech start-ups.

Carefully check this ad for: CORRECT ADDRESS

Padma has won many awards for her contribution to the Baton Rouge Community. She is a member of the US Chamber Small Business Council and serves on several boards.

With more than 25 years of industry experience, including 15 as an Enterprise Architect, Vatsavai is now positioning her company for national growth and herself for greater community investment as a mentor to the industry’s next generation of leading women.

This ad design

COLLIN RICHIE

TASTE // 82 [225] April 2024 | 225batonrouge.com

DINING

Steeped in tradition

Elevating an afternoon pick-me-up

THERE ARE FEW things as synonymous with British culture as afternoon tea. Britons have been enjoying the daily ritual since the 1660s. However, the tradition of serving afternoon tea along with sweets and scones did not come into fashion until the 1840s, when the Duchess of Bedford found herself becoming a bit puckish in the late afternoon. By the end of the 1800s, tea had become much more affordable, making afternoon teatime attainable for many in England.

On the menu

• Traditional English Scones

• Quick Clotted Cream

• Layered Shrimp Salad and Cucumber Tea Sandwiches

Recipes by Tracey Koch

For how to make these surprisingly simple Lemon-glazed Ginger Snaps, visit 225batonrouge.com/recipes

Traditional English Scones

Yields 9 to 12 scones, depending on the size

21 3 cups flour

11 2 tablespoons baking powder

2 tablespoons sugar

½ teaspoon salt

1 stick frozen unsalted butter

1 egg

¾ cup whole milk

¼ cup water

1 teaspoon crystallized sugar

1. Preheat the oven to 400 F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.

2. In a large mixing bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder, sugar and salt until combined.

3. Use a box grater to grate the frozen butter into the sifted mixture, and then use a fork or pastry cutter to combine the butter into the flour until it resembles wet sand.

Quick Clotted Cream

Yields 2 cups

2 tablespoons softened unsalted butter

2 ounces softened cream cheese

1 cup heavy whipping cream

1. Place the butter and cream cheese into a medium mixing bowl and use a hand mixer to cream them together until light and fluffy. Scrape down the sides of the bowl.

Layered Shrimp Salad and Cucumber Tea Sandwiches

Yields 3 dozen

6 ounces softened cream cheese

5½ ounces garlic and herb boursin cheese

½ cup chopped celery

1 3 cup chopped green onions

½ cup Hellmann’s mayonnaise

1 teaspoon fresh grated lemon zest

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

1-pound medium-sized boiled, peeled shrimp

½ teaspoon dried dill weed

½ teaspoon Creole seasoning

1 teaspoon of hot sauce

24 slices of white bread

12 slices of wheat bread

1 large English cucumber, thinly sliced

1. In a small bowl, combine the cream cheese and boursin together until smooth.

2. In the bowl of a food processor, place the celery, green onions, 1 tablespoon of the boursin and cream cheese mixture (saving the remaining for later use), mayonnaise, lemon zest and lemon juice. Pulse until all is incorporated but there is still texture in the celery and green onion.

4. Separate the egg. Then in a small bowl, whisk the milk and egg yolk together. Use a rubber spatula or wooden spoon to combine this into the flour mixture until it forms a dough ball.

5. Place the dough ball onto a well-floured surface, and dust the top of the dough with more flour. Do not use a rolling pin but gently pat the dough into a 2-inch round disk.

6. Use a 2 ½- to 3-inch-round cutter to cut the scones out, making sure to dip the edges of the cutter into flour to prevent the dough from sticking to the edges.

7. Place the scones on the lined baking sheet. Whisk the remaining egg white and water together to form an egg wash.

8. Use a pastry brush to brush the tops of each scone with a little egg wash and sprinkle each with a little crystallized sugar. Bake the scones for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden in color. Remove from the oven and serve the scones warm with jam and clotted cream (recipe follows).

2. Turn the mixer on low and slowly add in the heavy cream. Turn the mixer up to medium and continue mixing for another 30 seconds or until the cream is thick and smooth.

3. Place the clotted cream into an airtight container and chill until you are ready to use. Clotted cream will last for up to 1 week in the fridge.

3. Add in the boiled shrimp, dill weed, ¼ teaspoon of the Creole seasoning and the hot sauce. Pulse the food processor until the shrimp are just chopped but not pureed.

4. Place the shrimp salad in an airtight container and chill for 30 minutes to an hour before assembling the sandwiches.

5. To assemble the sandwiches, take 1 slice of white bread and spread it with 2 tablespoons of the shrimp salad. Spread 2 tablespoons of the remaining boursin mixture on top of a slice of wheat bread. Place this slice of wheat bread on top of the shrimp salad layer. Place 6 to 8 pieces of the cucumbers on top of the wheat bread with boursin. Sprinkle the cucumbers with a little Creole seasoning and top this layer with a second slice of white bread. Use a serrated knife to cut the crusts off of the sandwiches and then slice each into thirds.

6. Place the sandwiches on a baking sheet lined with parchment. Cover with a clean, damp kitchen towel to prevent the sandwiches from drying out as you repeat Step 5 to assemble the rest of the tea sandwiches.

7. Cover the tea sandwiches with plastic wrap and chill until you are ready to serve. These can be made 1 day in advance.

A Louisiana-themed music series in Austin Arts and music events

Just dance

Of Moving Colors Productions stages stories about Parkinson’s disease in next month’s ‘Orchid’s Arc’

BY JENNIFER TORMO ALVAREZ // PHOTOS BY COLLIN RICHIE

Of Moving Colors dancers Madilyn Cashio and Hannah Knoff

“We’re all movers. Regardless of professional or academic dance training.”

—Of Moving Colors Associate Director HANNAH KNOFF, pictured here with Parkinson’s patient Robert Perlis

THE DANCE CLASS starts with deep breathing. Later, students will be encouraged to release a big yell. Seated in folding chairs, the attendees at the Dance for Parkinson’s - Baton Rouge sessions stretch their arms into the air. They tap their feet. They make faces and punch the air.

“They do all the kinds of things that are difficult for people with Parkinson’s,” Susan Perlis says.

Perlis is the director of Dance for Parkinson’s - Baton Rouge, an Of Moving Colors (OMC) program that hosts courses for patients and their caretakers.

And by the last 30 minutes of the class, Perlis will have everyone out of their seats.

Her students will tango or bounce to the “Cha-Cha Slide.” They’ll sway to a playlist of Cat Stevens, Louis Armstrong and The Supremes. They’ll mirror moves, but they’ll also improvise their own.

And some will practice for their onstage debut next month.

On May 17, OMC presents Orchid’s Arc, a choreographed show about the beauty of movement through the stages of life. The event will feature OMC dancers and appearances from Dance for Parkinson’s students. It aims to spread awareness about the disease and Perlis’ classes.

Perlis has been instructing dance for more than 50 years, making an impact on the lives and careers of dancers everywhere from Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre to LSU to Southern University.

But for all her decades of teaching, these classes are particularly close to her heart.

Her husband, Robert, is one of the students.

***

PERLIS REMEMBERS THE signs. Robert was having vivid dreams.

His handwriting was suddenly becoming teeny-tiny.

Trouble sleeping, tremors and shrinking handwriting are some early signals of Parkinson’s, a disease afflicting more than 10,000 Louisianans and 1 million people nationwide, according to the Parkinson’s Foundation.

After Robert was diagnosed in 2012, Perlis enrolled in the Mark Morris Dance Group’s Dance for PD program, traveling to New York for training in specialized dance classes.

Back home in Baton Rouge, she connected with OMC Artistic Director Garland Goodwin Wilson, and Dance for Parkinson’s - Baton Rouge was established in 2016.

Today, the classes are held every week. Another weekly session for The East Baton Rouge Council on Aging isn’t restricted to patients with Parkinson’s, but it may inadvertently reach someone impacted by the disease.

“There’s so much lack of diagnosis that you might not even know you have Parkinson’s. So it’s a way that we can also educate people about what Parkinson’s is,” Wilson says.

All classes are free for patients and their caretakers. The program has received support from the Parkinson’s Foundation, including several grants over the years, but the sessions are largely volunteer-driven.

Parkinson’s patients battle muscle stiffness and impaired movement and balance. But they often find dancing is easier than everyday movements, according to the Dance for PD program.

Some participants are hesitant in the beginning. “I don’t dance; I can’t dance,” they’ll tell Perlis.

She and OMC’s dancers help them work through that mindset, and in turn, some of their physical challenges.

stop,” Wilson says. “But you want to visualize the lines that you’re going to step over, and just walk. … Visualization is a really important part of what we do in the classes.”

Soon, they’re playing “Heads, Shoulders, Knees and Toes” or an adapted version of hopscotch.

They’re getting cardio. They’re socializing. One moment, they’re being silly. The next, they’re having more serious discussion.

“For people with Parkinson’s, just plain old moving is essential. The more they can move, the better it is,” Perlis says. “It is a progressive disease, and the number one way that people can forestall it is to keep exercising.”

There are ups and downs. One week, an attendee might arrive to a session defeated by a bad week. The next, they’re upbeat.

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“People with Parkinson’s can get stuck—they might be at the grocery store, and they’ll just

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“But the people that take classes constantly tell us, ‘I have to be here,’” Wilson says. “When they go home, I think they’re happier. It’s a direct function of having danced.”

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“For people with Parkinson’s, just plain old moving is essential. … It is a progressive disease, and the number one way that people can forestall it is to keep exercising.”

—Dance for Parkinson’sBaton Rouge Director SUSAN PERLIS, pictured here with her husband, Robert

HANNAH KNOFF RECALLS

first stepping into a Dance for Parkinson’s class about a year and a half ago.

“I was just shocked at the creativity and the storytelling,” says Knoff, OMC’s associate director. “My dance partner, Frank, was over here creating this soulful improv piece—it was just beautiful movement. I was like, ‘Wait. These people are dancers. This is real.’”

That moment was Knoff’s inspiration for this month’s Orchid’s Arc

Her vision: showcasing young people and mature people moving together—and the importance of the community and support fostered between the two groups.

“We’re all movers. Regardless of professional or academic dance training, all humans have an internal rhythm and internal storytelling,” she says.

Orchids have many symbolic meanings—from growth and vitality to healing and strength.

This show falls under the umbrella of OMC’s “Petal Project”themed spring season, with each show as a “petal” that represents a different stage in the arc of life.

The dance company’s productions have supported organizations like Big Buddy and The Emerge Center in shows that have taken them to a range of venues across the city, from Manship Theatre and MidCity Ballroom to Ann Connelly Fine Art and Eye Wander Photo.

Whether they’re working to support the young or the old, each project searches for physical freedom through dance.

“As dancers, sometimes we forget we don’t need to be so perfect all the time. We forget to just appreciate,” Knoff says. “I’m lucky I get to be here moving my body, surrounded by good people.”

For Knoff, the Dance for Parkinson’s classes have reminded her of the simple joys of moving— without the pressure of nailing that triple-turn.

Louisiana, through and through

By Domenic Purdy

TheBrosFresh’s Lagniappe Lounge music series aims to spread the sounds of Baton Rouge artists to cities like Austin

TORRENCE THOMAS AND Thurman Thomas III—known professionally as TheBrosFresh— made names for themselves in Baton Rouge. So when the twin brothers and business partners moved from Louisiana’s capital to Texas’ capital in March 2022, the Ascension Parish natives didn’t want to forget their roots.

Over the next two years, they worked to establish Lagniappe Lounge, a musical showcase series for artists from Baton Rouge and Louisiana that have either made the move to Austin or are touring through the city.

Founded in September 2023, Lagniappe Lounge curates shows featuring Louisiana musicians, with the first batch taking place at Austin’s Soho House.

The series aims to “shine a light on Louisiana’s emerging music talent,” Torrence explains—and in

doing so, bring the sounds of south Louisiana to a new audience.

The performances, which Thurman describes as intimate concerts, are influenced by their time growing up going to shows and performing at Baton Rouge homegrown venues like the original Chelsea’s and The Caterie.

Performers at Lagniappe Lounge’s first six shows have included Baton Rouge acts like DeShawn Morrison, LG and Michael Armstead. Pell, a New Orleans-based artist, also included it as a stop on his tour.

While TheBrosFresh both perform on an occasional basis at the showcase, with Torrence on bass and Thurman on guitar, their main role with Lagniappe Lounge is as musical ambassadors.

When performers like Morrison—a hip-hop artist known professionally as SHXWNFRESH

Thurman Thomas III, Joseph Butler IV and Torrence Thomas perform in Texas.

PHOTO COURTESY THEBROSFRESH

who grew up with the brothers in Geismer—take the stage, Torrence is confident they will “win a second city” with their music and uniquely Louisiana vibe.

“You can come and jam, showcase your talents, learn something and support each other,” Thurman says.

The brothers are planning new Lagniappe Lounge shows in Austin this spring, with a venue yet to be decided. They hope to expand the series later this year, with aspirations to play “meaningful one-off shows” in different parts of the country like Nashville and Los Angeles.

TheBrosFresh have quickly established themselves in Texas, with appearances at fests like Austin City Limits and a nomination for Best R&B Act from The Austin Chronicle. As they grow their audience—performing at South by Southwest and Kerrclipse Music Festival this spring and setting their sights on booking a supporting slot for a major touring

act—they hope to use their platform to prop up Louisiana artists.

“When we come to this town, we ain’t here to play games,” Torrence says. “We’re here to take the city over.”

Lagniappe Lounge is the next permutation of over a century-long tradition of Louisiana artists broadening their horizons while maintaining a connection to their home state, from Louis Armstrong spreading the sounds of New Orleans to Chicago and New York in the 1920s, to Baton Rouge rock band Better Than Ezra bringing songs about the Red Stick into the mainstream in the ’90s and early ’00s.

Now, Louisiana Lagniappe performer LeTrainiump Richard’s zydeco and jazz roots and his experience playing trumpet in Baker

help set his sound apart from his pop influences.

“There’s something within that 337, 225, 504 area code. There’s something there that you just

Who has performed at Louisiana Lagniappe so far?

• Baton Rouge native R&B and hip-hop artists TheBrosFresh, SHXWNFRESH and Michael Armstead

• New Orleans hip-hop artists SHVKIEL, Pell and LG

• Mamou indie artist LeTrainiump

can’t get in the rest of the world. There’s a liveliness,” Richard says.

It’s why even as they eye a bright future elsewhere, Louisiana-bred artists maintain a connection to their hometown.

“I keep it in my sound, in my music. I keep it in my lingo, the way I dress,” Morrison says. “Even if it’s just wearing my LSU jersey around, just having that piece of Baton Rouge feels good.” Follow @thebrosfresh on Instagram for updates

bloc

A DECADE AFTER the launch of its downtown coworking space, Creative Bloc is debuting a new hub for fostering collaboration.

With a long waitlist of prospective members, Creative Bloc began searching for the right space about four years ago. Its second location opened in February at 3347 Nicholson Drive.

It boasts a similar setup to the downtown location, with conference rooms, offices and multipurpose rooms.

New amenities include a larger conference room as well as smaller rooms for working or holding meetings. Bigger spaces and increased privacy were common requests, says Managing Partner John Jackson. (Editor’s note: Jackson is also managing director of Launch Media, a division of 225’s parent company Melara Enterprises.)

The color scheme mirrors downtown’s, too, with clean white walls, wood accents, vibrant pops of yellow, funky art and whimsical color blocking. Some of the art is from local artists, while others are from all around the world. Local photographer Kevin Duffy prepared an installation of abstract art inspired by some of his favorite album covers.

The goal is for workers to feel inspired while they’re in the space and have a chance to connect with other professionals from around the region, Jackson says.

“I want … people to feel valued by coming in,” he says. “Because working alone is great, working in your kitchen is great, working at a coffee shop is great—but there’s limitations there.” thecreativebloc.org

ARTS agenda

ALL MONTH

Sunday in the Park returns for its 17th season of free, outdoor concerts. Sunday afternoons at the Shaw Center for the Arts Plaza will be filled with the sounds of Louisiana musicians like Shawn Williams, David Hinson, TheBrosFresh, and Gerard Delafose & the Zydeco Gators. artsbr.org

APRIL 5

Find some waterproof eyeliner and comb your closet for black clothing— this is totally not a phase. Emo Nite is coming to The Varsity Theatre. Sing—or cry— along to all the genre's hits. varsitytheatre.com

APRIL 19

Be one of the first fans to listen to Taylor Swift’s newest album, The Tortured Poets Department, at Chelsea’s Live’s popular Taylor Swift Night DJ duo Interstellar will be bumping the brand-new tracks along with some other T-Swift hits. chelseaslive.com

APRIL 5

Rock out with The Molly Ringwalds at L’Auberge Casino and Hotel. The cover band will take it back to the ’80s with hit songs, glam costumes and stage visuals. lbatonrouge.com

APRIL 11

The Knockturnal Nights adultsonly series returns to the Knock Knock Children's Museum with Knocking Around the World –Latin Night. Jam to Latin music, try bites from local vendors and sample top-shelf tequilas. knockknockmuseum.org

APRIL 20 + 21

Immerse yourself in a storybook classic with Baton Rouge Ballet Theatre’s full-length performance of Cinderella. Watch as the fairytale is told through the fluid movements of BRBT’s talented dancers. batonrougeballet.org

APRIL 26-28

Browse work from local artists at the Baton Rouge Fiber Arts Market, hosted by local yarn purveyor Fleur De Stitch’d. The multi-day fest will host a social event and shopping opportunities at Mid-City Artisans and will also celebrate Local Yarn Store Day at The Knots Bayou. fleurdestitchd.com/ br-fam-festival

COURTESY L’AUBERGE CASINO AND HOTEL

ISTOCK

ISTOCK

COURTESY BRBT

April

6+7

IN BLOOM

Spring into a new season at Flower Fest, benefiting St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. This festival at Pointe Marie is full of vendors, live entertainment and, of course, flowers. Walk around the outdoor event and check out the towering floral sculptures created by competing florists. theflowerfest.com

12-14

ON THE BOOKS

Calling all book lovers! Come out to John M. Parker Agricultural Coliseum for the Friends of the LSU Libraries Book Bazaar. Browse thousands of books ranging from new to vintage and find everything from military history books to cookbooks. There will also be a selection of CDs, DVDs and vinyl records to purchase. Tables will be refreshed each day offering tons of new finds. lib.lsu.edu

ON THE ROAD

NEW ORLEANS

APRIL 5 + 6: Hogs For the Cause, hogsfest.org

504

APRIL 11-14: French Quarter Festival, frenchquarterfest.org

APRIL 22-28: Zurich Golf Classic, zurichgolfclassic.com

STOCK PHOTO

ARIANA ALLISON

12, 19+26

FRIDAY NIGHT LIVE

End your work week right with a free concert at the Downtown Business Association’s beloved music series, Live After Five. Dance and sing along to performances by acts like Groovy 7, Kenny Neal and Todd O’Neill at Rhorer Plaza. downtownbr.org/live-after-five

19-21

A CASE OF THE BLUES

Grab your lawn chairs and dancing shoes as one of the oldest blues festivals in the country, the Baton Rouge Blues Festival, returns downtown. Enjoy open-air concerts and sounds of swamp blues while trying out food vendors and other activities. brblues.org

ALSO THIS MONTH

APRIL 6 + 7

Celebrate BREC’s Baton Rouge Zoo’s 54th birthday at the Zippity Zoo Fest. Have a wild time with animal friends, learn at educational stations and take the kids to the Children’s Village for storytimes, princess visits and more. brzoo.org

APRIL 14

Bring your appetite to The Executive Center for Taste of Mid City, a food festival featuring samplings from neighborhood restaurants and businesses benefiting Youth City Lab. Along with tastings, there will be performances by BR Music Studios and games and activities for children. theexecutivecenterbr.com

APRIL 17 + 24

Tap 65 and Queens of Louisiana are joining forces for another round of themed trivia nights. This month, attendees will be quizzed about pop legend Britney Spears. Compete against other Team Britney loyalists while chowing on dishes from the restaurant. queensoflouisiana.com

APRIL 21

Witness some impressive basketball tricks when the Harlem Globetrotters come to Baton Rouge. The Raising Cane’s River Center will host the iconic team for a night of skills and slam dunks that are sure to wow the whole family. raisingcanesrivercenter. com

MORE EVENTS

Subscribe to our newsletter 225 Daily for our twice-weekly roundups of events. 225batonrouge. com/225daily

ACADIANA

APRIL 5-7: Scott Boudin Festival, scottboudinfestival.com

APRIL 20: SpringFest, moncuspark.org/springfest

337

APRIL 24-28: Festival International de Louisiane, festivalinternational.org

JORDAN HEFLER

In every issue of 225, you’ll find a free print on this page. FRAMED celebrates life and art in Baton Rouge, each one featuring a local photographer, place or graphic designer. Cut it out to hang in your cubicle, or frame it for your home gallery wall. Show us where you hang them by tagging them on social media with #225prints.

GET FEATURED We love spotlighting local photographers, artists and designers for this page! Shoot us an email at editor@225batonrouge.com to chat about being featured.

PHOTO BY COLLIN RICHIE FOR ‘225’ / collinrichiephoto.com

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