son Matthew for only the briefest of moments last August before nurses at Baton Rouge General whisked him to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit.
It was a bittersweet moment for Musgrove, a special-education teacher for East Baton Rouge Parish schools. The joy of seeing her newborn, who arrived four weeks early, came with worry over his care and the choice she’d soon need to make: earning a paycheck or spending enough time with her baby in those first crucial months of life.
East Baton Rouge Parish, like many Louisiana school districts, doesn’t offer paid parental leave. That meant Musgrove’s two months at home with Matthew even under a state law that allows teachers to take extended sick leave for a portion of their pay, would end up costing her more than $4,000 in lost wages Musgrove needed to get back to work, but she and her husband struggled to find day care. Her little boy was still so tiny two months after his birth that workers initially assumed he was too young to be left in their care.
“There was so much stress just mak-
ing sure he would be OK,” Musgrove said. For many Louisiana teachers, taking
BY ASHLEY WHITE Staff writer
Erika Musgrove laughs as her son Matthew giggles at his siblings making faces.
BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS
Threats over cartoon force event postponement
BUFFALO N.Y An event in support of local reporting was postponed after death threats against a journalist for his newspaper editorial cartoon about the catastrophic flooding in Texas, according to a union
An online fury erupted this week over an editorial cartoon in The Buffalo News by Pulitzer Prize-winner Adam Zyglis showing a man in a MAGA cap being swept away by the Texas floodwaters. Nose deep in the water, the man is holding up a sign that reads “Help” and a speech bubble floating downstream says: “Gov’t is the problem not the solution.”
At least 120 people were killed in the Texas flooding and more than 170 were missing.
The Buffalo Newspaper Guild said a happy hour event Thursday at the Buffalo History Museum called “Drawing Support for Local Journalism” was postponed amid the backlash. The free, public event was planned to highlight the need for local journalism at a museum exhibit of Zyglis’ work. But the guild said plans to protest and confront Zyglis at the event led to death threats against the cartoonist “and a deluge of other direct threats to hurt him and his family.”
Arizona resident dies from plague
FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. — A resident of northern Arizona has died from pneumonic plague, health officials said Friday Plague is rare to humans, with on average about seven cases reported annually in the U.S., most of them in the western states, according to federal health officials.
The death in Coconino County which includes Flagstaff, was the first recorded death from pneumonic plague since 2007, local officials said. Further details including the identify of the victim were not released Plague is a bacterial infection known for killing tens of millions in 14th century Europe Today, it’s easily treated with antibiotics
The bubonic plague is the most common form of the bacterial infection, which spreads naturally among rodents like prairie dogs and rats. There are two other forms: septicemic plague that spreads through the whole body, and pneumonic plague that infects the lungs.
Turkish president hails militant disarmament
ISTANBUL Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on Saturday hailed start of a disarmament process by militant Kurdish separatists as the end of a “painful chapter” in Turkey’s troubled history
Erdogan told a meeting of his ruling AKP party in Ankara that the more than 40-year-old “scourge of terrorism” for which the Kurdistan Workers’ Party — or PKK — was responsible is on its way to ending.
Erdogan’s remarks came a day after male and female members of the PKK in northern Iraq cast rifles and machine guns into a large cauldron where they were set on fire. The symbolic move was seen as the first step toward a promised disarmament as part of a peace process aimed at ending four decades of hostilities
The move came after PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan, who has been imprisoned on an island near Istanbul since 1999, urged his group in February to convene a congress and formally disband and disarm. In May the PKK announced that it would do so. The PKK had waged an armed insurgency against Turkey since 1984, initially with the aim of establishing a Kurdish state in the southeast of the country. Over time, the objective evolved into a campaign for autonomy and rights for Kurds within Turkey.
The conflict, which spread beyond Turkey’s borders into Iraq and Syria, killed tens of thousands of people. The PKK is considered to be a terrorist organization by Turkey, the United States and the European Union.
Previous peace efforts between Turkey and the PKK have ended in failure most recently in 2015.
59 Palestinians in Gaza killed by airstrikes, shot
BY WAFAA SHURAFA and SAMYA KULLAB Associated Press
DEIR AL-BALAH, Gaza Strip At least 31 Palestinians were fatally shot on their way to an aid distribution site in the Gaza Strip on Saturday, while Israeli airstrikes killed at least 28 Palestinians including four children, Palestinian hospital officials and witnesses said.
There were no signs of a breakthrough in ceasefire talks following two days of meetings between U.S. President Donald Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu Trump had said he was nearing an agreement between Israel and Hamas that would potentially wind down the war
The 31 Palestinians shot dead were on their way to a distribution site run by the Israeli-backed American organization
Gaza Humanitarian Foundation near Rafah in southern Gaza, hospital officials and witnesses said.
The Red Cross said its field hospital saw its largest influx of dead in more than a year of operation after the shootings and that the overwhelming majority of the more than 100 people hurt had gunshot wounds.
Airstrikes in central Gaza’s Deir alBalah killed 13 including the four children, officials at Al-Aqsa Martyrs Hospital said.
Fifteen others were killed in Khan Younis in the south, according to Nasser Hospital. Israel’s military did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Intense airstrikes continued Saturday evening in the area of Beit Hanoun in northern Gaza.
Israelis rallied yet again for a ceasefire deal. “Arrogance is what brought the disaster upon us,” former hostage Eli Sharabi said of Israeli leaders.
Attempt to pick up food ends in death
The 21-month war has left much of
Gaza’s population of over 2 million reli-
ant on outside aid while food security experts warn of famine. Israel blocked and then restricted aid entry after ending the latest ceasefire in March.
“All responsive individuals reported they were attempting to access food distribution sites,” the Red Cross said after the shootings near Rafah, noting the “alarming frequency and scale” of such mass casualty incidents.
Israel’s military said it fired warning shots toward people it said were behaving suspiciously to prevent them from approaching. It said it was not aware of any casualties. The GHF said no incident occurred near its sites.
Abdullah al-Haddad said he was 655 feet from the aid distribution site run by the GHF close to the Shakoush area when an Israeli tank started firing at crowds of Palestinians.
“We were together, and they shot us at once,” he said, writhing in pain from a leg wound at Nasser Hospital.
Mohammed Jamal al-Sahloo, another witness, said Israel’s military had ordered them to proceed to the site when the shooting started.
Sumaya al-Sha’er’s 17-year-old son, Nasir, was killed, hospital officials said.
“He said to me, ‘Mom, you don’t have flour and today I’ll go and bring you flour, even if I die, I’ll go and get it,’” she said. “But he never came back home.”
Until then, she said, she had prevented the teenager from going to GHF sites because she thought it was too dangerous.
Witnesses, health officials and U.N. officials say hundreds have been killed by Israeli fire while heading toward GHF distribution points through military zones off limits to independent media.
The military has acknowledged firing warning shots at Palestinians who it says approached its forces in a suspicious manner
Report: Fuel to Air India plane cut off moments before crash
BY SHEIKH SAALIQ Associated Press
NEW DELHI Fuel control switches for the engines of an Air India flight that crashed last month were moved from the “run” to the “cutoff” position moments before impact, starving both engines of fuel, a preliminary investigation report said early Saturday.
The report, issued by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau, also indicated that both pilots were confused over the change to the switch setting, which caused a loss of engine thrust shortly after takeoff.
The Air India flight — a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner — crashed on June 12 and killed at least 260 people, including 19 on the ground, in the northwestern city of Ahmedabad. Only one passenger survived the crash, which is one of India’s worst aviation disasters.
The plane was carrying 230 passengers — 169 Indians, 53 British, seven Portuguese and a Canadian along with 12 crew members.
According to the report, the flight lasted around 30 seconds between takeoff and crash. It said that once the aircraft achieved its top recorded speed, “the Engine 1 and Engine 2 fuel cutoff switches transi-
tioned from RUN to CUTOFF position one after another” within a second. The report did not say how the switches could have flipped to the cutoff position during the flight.
The movement of the fuel control switches allows and cuts fuel flow to the plane’s engines.
The switches were flipped back into the run position, the report said, but the plane could not gain power quickly enough to stop its descent after the aircraft had begun to lose altitude.
The report stated: “One of the pilots transmitted ‘MAYDAY MAYDAY MAYDAY’.”
Aviation expert and former airline pilot Terry
Tozer said the engine cutoff switches being switched
Colo. dentist accused of poisoning wife’s protein shakes going on trial
BY COLLEEN SLEVIN Associated Press
DENVER
Just days before she died after suffering symptoms that mystified her doctors, Angela Craig confronted her husband, James, in their suburban Denver kitchen over his lack of support.
In that 2023 argument captured on home surveillance video, she accused him of suggesting to hospital staff that she was suicidal, court documents show Prosecutors say James Craig caused the ailments that ultimately killed his wife by poisoning her protein shakes and trying to make it look as if she killed herself. His trial on murder and other charges is set to begin Monday with the questioning of potential jurors. Angela Craig, 43, died in March 2023 during her third trip to the hospital that month.
Toxicology tests later determined she died of poisoning from cyanide and tetrahydrozoline, an ingredient that is found in over-the-counter eye drops. The couple were married 23 years and had six children.
Craig has pleaded not guilty to charges including first-degree murder solicitation to commit murder and solicitation to commit perjury
The 47-year-old dentist allegedly bought arsenic online around the time his wife began to experience symptoms like dizziness and headaches for which doctors could find no cause, prosecutors say. At the time of his arrest, police said Craig was trying to start a new life amid financial troubles and appeared to be having an affair with a fellow dentist.
Prosecutors said he had affairs with two other women, but they have not detailed a motive in his wife’s death.
Craig’s attorneys have argued police were biased against him and claimed testing of his wife’s shake
containers did not turn up signs of poison. They’ve questioned the reliability of a jail inmate who said Craig offered him $20,000 to kill the case’s lead investigator an alleged plot for which Craig is also on trial. To avoid being held accountable, prosecutors said, Craig tried to fabricate evidence to make it appear his wife killed herself.
He tried to get another fellow inmate to plant fraudulent letters at Craig’s home to make it look like his wife was suicidal, prosecutors said. Then, in the weeks before Craig had been set to stand trial in November, prosecutors said he also sent letters to the ex-wife of the inmate he allegedly tried to get to kill the investigator, offering her $20,000 for each person she could find to falsely testify that his wife planned to die by suicide, they said. As jury selection was about to begin, his lawyer at the time, Harvey Steinberg, asked to withdraw, citing a rule allowing lawyers to step down if a client persists in actions considered criminal or that they disagree with.
Another attorney for Craig, Robert Werking, later argued that investigators did not look into whether Craig wrote the letters or check them against his handwriting Werking also said that the inmate and his ex-wife were prosecuted for forgery for their roles in an alleged fraud ring in 2005, suggesting they could not be trusted. We rking withdrew from the case himself this month after being charged with arson of his own home, leaving his wife and law partner, Lisa Fine Moses, to defend Craig. Werking’s attorney David Beller, said he was getting mental health treatment and asked the public to show him grace. Moses did not immediately return telephone and email messages seeking comment.
to off only seconds after takeoff was “absolutely bizarre.”
“Unfortunately, the altitude was so low that the engines were only beginning to recover and they didn’t have enough time,” Tozer told Sky News.
The report also indicated confusion in the cockpit moments before the crash.
In the flight’s final moment, one pilot was heard on the cockpit voice recorder asking the other why he cut off the fuel. “The other pilot responded that he did not do so,” the report said.
The preliminary report did not recommend any actions for Boeing, which said in a statement that it “stands ready to support the investigation led by India’s Aircraft Accident Investigation Bureau.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ODED BALILTy
Relatives and supporters of Israeli hostages held in the Gaza Strip attend a rally demanding their release from Hamas captivity and calling for an end to the war, in Tel Aviv, Israel, on Saturday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By AJIT SOLANKI Officials inspect the site of Thursday’s Air India plane crash on the roof of a building in Ahmedabad, India, on June 13
Their concernsappear valid when considering recently released state test scoresand enrollment data.
The percentage of students who scored proficient across all subjects dropped 26 percentage points to 9%, the largest percentage point decrease foraschool in the state.After removal of the programs, the school last year was less racially diverse and had alarger population of economically disadvantaged children.
Those changes mean the school will likely lose its C ranking when school performance scores are issued in thefall. Anditamplifies concerns about whether students are receiving theacademic and socialservices they need.
But the dramatic shift in performance may lead to swifter positive changes, district leaders said. Without gifted and immersion student scores,itmay help staff and administrators get amore accurate picture of zoned students’ needs, said Associate Superintendent Mark Rabalais.
“While 9% is absolutely unacceptable, that information may help the academic team be even morestrategic in responding to the needsof those students,” he said. Even somecommunity memberswho were among those who objected to the program removals are optimistic things will improve.
“We’ve had some meetings with the superintendent, and he’sencouraged us that he’s going to do all that needs to be done,” said Alton Trahan, president of 100 Black Men of Greater Lafayette.
The conversation now has to shift to what resources Paul Breaux students and staff need for positive change, said schoolboard member Amy Trahan,who representsthe school.
“Student success is my priority,” she said. “There must be equitable resources for that to happen and Iwill always champion for that for the students and families in my district.”
Whywas thereconcern?
When Paul Breaux opened in the 1950s, it served as the parish’s onlyhighschool forBlack studentsand was named for an educator who advocated for and led Black students. It closed in 19 as part of adesegregat order before reopening following school year a middle school.
The Lafayette Parish School Board voted in Ma 2023 —despite loud ob tions from community mem bers —tomove the gifted program from PaulBre to Edgar Martin Middle. French and Spanish imm sion programs were mo from Paul BreauxtoS Middle.
Adistrict-hired strate planner last fall pro moving Paul Breaux Midd to the Northside High erty.Community memb were initially hesitant the proposal but warmed to it when it was explai middleand high schoolers would be separated would mean two new ties for northside famil
deniedwantingto or making decisionsthatwould lead to the school’sclosure.
What haschanged?
Still, community members raised the alarm that removing the gifted and immersionprograms would cause academic hardships for neighborhood zoned students and would slash enrollment, Alton Trahan said.
“Not only were you taking gifted studentsout of overall school performance,” Trahan said, “but it also took out those relationshipsand very diverse student body.”
Student test scores are justone measure of success, butfor thestate they make up 65%ofthe school performance score calculation,which is translated into grades for each school and district.
Public school students are tested to gauge student learning in Englishlanguage arts, math and science, and factor into the annual ratings that schools anddistricts receive from the state. The state considersstudents to have met learning expectations if they earn scores that qualify as “mastery”or“advanced”— thehighest of fivecategories.
The state released subjectlevel test scoresfor districts andschools last week.
ThepercentageofPaul Breaux studentswho scored mastery or above plummeted when compared to last year’sscores across every subject.
n All grades, all subjects: 9% (-26 percentage points compared to 2024)
n English: 16% (-30)
n Math: 5% (-30)
n Science: 5% (-26)
By comparison, the percentage of students who scored mastery or above in all subjectsatScottMiddle increased 6percentage points to 33 and at Edgar Martin, they increased 16 percentage points to 63%, according to statedata.
Thecurrent data released by thestate does not include information about student growth, which Rabalais, a district leader,said is an importantmeasure of student achievement.
“It’sconceivable that some of these students may have, in fact, improved their overall scores,” he saidina statement. “But that’snot reflected in the current data set.”
School Board member AmyTrahan,who representsPaul Breaux, said she is taking adeep dive into the data and encourages others to do the same. She said she’s looking at performance amongsubgroups and is eager to see theprogress datawhen it’s released.
Superintendent Francis TouchetJr. also is asking his team to analyzethe test scores of returning students to seeifthe data can help point to thehighest levels of need, aspokesperson said.
The district also uses other data points to measure success, such as attendance
and discipline rates, and opportunities to accesselectivesand extracurricular activities. At Paul Breaux, studentsdoorwill have accesstoSTEM, art, computer and band classes for the upcoming year
Moving the programs nearly halved the Orange Street school’senrollment from about 580 students in spring 2024 toabout 320 studentsinspring 2025. It also dramatically changed the demographic makeup of the school. In spring 2024, about 60% of studentswere Black, 28% were White and 5% were Hispanic.Inspring 2025, about89% of students were Black, 3% were Whiteand 5% were Hispanic. And the percentage of economically disadvantaged students increased by 13.6 percentagepoints to 96.3% in spring 2025.
At Edgar Martin and Scott Middle, wherethe gifted and immersion programs moved respectively,the percentage of economically disadvantaged students decreased by about 13 percentage points to about 55% at Edgar Martin anddecreased about9 percentage pointsto74% at ScottMiddle. Research shows that studentsbenefitfromracially, ethnically and culturally diverse classrooms, showing apositive relationship betweenstudent learning and exposuretopeers of different backgrounds,accord-
ing to apaper by educators at Columbia University that waspublishedbyThe Century Foundation, apublic policyresearch think tank, in 2020.
It also improves students’ abilities to exhibit interracial understanding, empathy and live with and learn frompeople of diverse backgrounds, according to the authors.
What happens next?
While disappointing —and almost exactly whatcommunity members foreshadowed —Trahan said he hopes this meansthe district can home in on exactlywhat Paul Breaux students and staff need, including certified and effectiveteachersand counselors who can address students’ emotional needs.
Achange in leadership is one of the things AmyTrahan said she and others are excited about.
TiaTrahan, who has been an educator formore than 20 years, hasbeen named the school’s principal.She previously oversaw Lafayette Middle andwas named the2024LouisianaOverall Principal of the Year while there. The school had significantacademicgains under her leadership, earning the Louisiana Comeback Campus distinction.
She also bringswith her the tools to create acommitted parentand community group through Love Our School’s Communityand
Family Engagement model, whichshe had done at Lafayette Middle. While the district waits for progress data and school performance scores from the state, spokesperson Tracy Wirtz said it’salready thinking about how to help current and rising Paul Breaux students.
Interventions are available for students who need intensive learning and tutoring is also available,Wirtz said. The district’schief of middle schools also is reviewing plans forearly intervention, looking to growth and change seen at elementary schools that have implemented the Accelerated Campus Excellence program, part of which focusesonhiring highly effective teachers. The hope is to attract those teachers to Paul Breaux through the superintendent’s incentive programfor hardto-staff schools.
It’sgoing to take awholestudent approach to give the school the resources it needs to grow and succeed,school board memberAmy Trahan said.
“For me,it’show arewerallying behind thenew principal and staff? Are we pulling in our community partners? Areweinvolving families?” She said. “Weknow given equitable resources, those students are going to shine.”
However,the School Board rejectedother posals for consolidation closures, which meant would not have the fun necessary for the chan And alast-minute pitc close Paul Breaux and Northside High into facility received strong lic opposition.
Every recent change sidered by the School felt like another slice death by athousand for the Paul Breaux commu nity with the eventual for the district to close school. District leaders
more investment.
Landry has had abumpier ride this year
In March, voters overwhelmingly rejected constitutional amendments whose approval had been the next item on his conservative agenda. Then, during the two-monthlegislative session that followed, an independent-mindedSenate killed two of Landry’skey initiatives and failed to accept athird one.
In the end, though, propelled by strong,bipartisan backing in the House, the Legislature handed Landry important political wins by approving measures that aim to make people healthier and stem the rising cost of auto insurance.
“Wehave kept our word and proved that bold reform is notaspirational —it’spossible,” Landry said in astatement immediately after the session ended.
Along the way,Landryhas engagedinaseries of highprofile fights with an arrayof fellow Republicans, including Insurance Commissioner TimTemple, stateSen.Alan Seabaugh, of Shreveport, and state Treasurer John Fleming. Conservative talk radio hostMoon Griffon accused Landry of being too close to trial lawyers.
Post-session, Landry has held four bill signings over thepast three weekstoburnish his achievements and has appeared on two conservative talk radio programs.
“The good news is that the Legislature has gone home,” said BerniePinsonat, aveteran pollsterand political consultant in Baton Rouge. “He primarily has thestage to himself. He has the bully pulpit.Hegets to go across the state and tout his successes with the Legislature and what it means forvoters.” In recent days, Landry has also penned acolumn for the conservative website The Hayride, wherehe explained away his troubles
during thelegislativesession by writing thathe confronted “powerful special interests.”Hesaidhetook on trial lawyers andinsurance companies over how to stem risingrates, adding, “Weruffled alot of other feathers this session but passed serious reforms.”
SaidNew Orleans-based pollsterRon Faucheux: “He is putting his markers down and saying what heaccomplished. He’sdoing exactly what he shouldbedoing post-session.”
Landry declined to be interviewed for this article.
“Weworked every single dayduringsession for the people ofLouisiana,” Kate Kelly, thegovernor’sspokesperson, saidina statement.
“Wewere focused on passing real reforms that continue to move our stateforward —and we got historical results. All of our polling reflects that.”
Pinsonatbelievesthat Landryistryingtoboost his less-than-stellarresults in polls taken earlier thisyear
“The polling numbers I’ve seen show he has to repair thedamage,”said Pinsonat.
“Being visible allaround the state,taking credit for this and that, is something I would be doingtotry to improve my pollnumbers. You don’t want low approval ratings to stay for alongperiod of time. It becomes the way you’reviewed.”
Landry received middling results in asurveyof likely votersconducted immediately after the March amendmentdefeats, byPinsonat andGreg Rigamer for conservative business owner LaneGrigsby.Asmany voters —45% —offered favorableviews as unfavorableviews, while 45% said Louisianaisheadinginthe wrongdirection. Only 38% saidthe state is heading in the rightdirection
Asurvey taken two weeks later by Baton Rouge pollster John Couvillon for attorney John Carmouche, a foe of oil and gas companies, gave the governor worse marks. Only 32% of likely voters gave Landryafavorable rating,while 48%gave
an unfavorable rating.
Fights with Republicans
During the two-month legislative session that began April 14, Landry kept alow public profile,rarelyappearing before the press to push his initiatives. He becamemired in legislative fights, with theSenate ultimately blocking three of his initiatives. In one case, he sought to rollback anti-equity andinclusion programs at universities. In another,hewanted to prevent CVS from owning drugstores while also owning pharmacy benefit manager companies. In athird case, he sought to nearly double spending on his LA GATOR school voucher program, but senators insisted on maintaininglast year’s lower amount. For the first time during his time as governor,a sizable numberofHouse Republicansrebelled, dividing over his toplegislativepriority,House Bill 148. Critics said Landrypushed it so he could blame Temple if insurance rates continue to soar
Griffon frequently blasted Landry for promoting the bill and said thegovernor sided too often with trial lawyers, whotussle with insurance companies every year over proposedchangesthatwould make it harderfor injured people to sue and win big paydays. Triallawyers contributed heavily to Landry’s campaign when he was elected governor in 2023.
Landry pushedbackon Griffon’snarrative when he appeared on Griffon’sshow on June 26, saying theinsurance industry in 2020 had identified seven measures that needed to pass in Louisiana to hold down insurance rates by reducing their legal payouts. Allseven measures passed this year,Landry said.
“I just took themtothe woodshed,” thegovernor said of trial lawyers. “We railroaded them.”
But Landry vetoed one pro-insurance bill by Seabaugh.
Griffon respondedby playing aclip from aReba
McEntire song,“YouLie,” interspersedwith audio where Landry told legislators one day during the legislative session that he would sign everypro-insurance bill they sent him.
When Landry appeared on Griffon’sprogram on June 26, the two talked over each other while the governor defendedhis decision, sayingitwas actually an anticonsumer bill. Landry also took ashotatSeabaugh, saying that Seabaugh stood to benefitpersonally from thebillbecause he is an attorneywho defendsinsurance companies.
Seabaugh has becomethe most prominent critic of Landry among the 144 state legislators.
On Griffon’s programlast week, Seabaugh criticized Landry for issuing line-item vetoes of infrastructure projectssponsored by legislators who had voted against HB148, the TimTemple bill.
“He’s not vetoing bills because of what they say,” Seabaugh told Griffon. “It’sbecause of who is the author.”
ASupreme Court decision on June 27 ignited complaints that Landry misled state legislators in pushing them last year to create aseat for U.S.Rep. Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, at theexpense of U.S.Rep. Garret Graves, R-Baton Rouge.
Landry toldlawmakers thenthat theyhad to create the second Black-majority district in Louisianatosatisfy thefederal courts. But the Supreme Court has yet to determine that, announcing it would put offadecision on whether to accept the redrawn districts until next year
“A Republicandistrict was flipped to aDemocratic district,” Treasurer John Flemingsaid. “It’sclear that that was not necessary.”
Landry has gained afoe in Fleming after news reports held that the governoristrying to entice U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow,R-Start, to joinFleminginchallenging U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidyinnextyear’s Republican primary Fleming saidLandry has
made ahabit of making enemiesofpeoplewho don’t side with him
“He tries to put fearin people he’s supposedtobe workingwith,”Fleming said.
Landry hits theroad
Landry launched hispostsession public relations campaign on June 24 in Baton Rouge by signing abill that he saidwouldlower prescription drug costs by reining in pharmacy benefit managers,who actasmiddlemen.
Aday later,heheld an event with the press in Bossier City “on reining in big governmentand bringing folksfromdependence to independence.”
Twodayslater,Landry hosteda pep-style rally as he signed abill in Baton Rouge withHealth Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.that mimics President Trump’sMake America Healthy Again movement.
On thatday,Landryalso appeared on the talk radio
program of conservative host Brian Haldane. There, in answer to friendly questions, Landry extolled what happened duringthe legislative session.
“Every daybecomes abetterand betterday in Louisiana,” he told Haldane. “We have signedsome monumental bills.”
On June 30, Landry held another bill signinginBaton Rouge, this timefor bills that he said would stem car insurancerate increases and another that he said would accelerate road repair and building projects by the state Department of Transportation.
Couvillon, the pollster, said he believes that Landry is making asmartdecision by stepping up his public profile.
“This is part of the accessibility you need to have if you’re an incumbent governor,” Couvillon said. Email TylerBridges at tbridges@theadvocate. com.
Wildfiresforce evacuationsat national parks
BY HANNAH SCHOENBAUM Associated Press
Wildfires have forced evacuations for visitors and staff at two national parks in the U.S. West as thesummer monsoon season brings increased lightning to the arid region.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, about 260 miles southwest of Denver,closed untilfurther notice after lighting strikes sparked blazes on both rims, park officials said.
The Grand Canyon’s North Rim in Arizona also closed because of awildfire on adjacent Bureau of Land Management land near Jacob Lake.
The wildfire on Black Canyon of the Gunnison’sSouth Rim ignited Thursday and has burned 2.5 square miles, with no containment of the perimeter.The smaller blaze on the North Rim was out as of Friday,according to an incident map.
The conditions there have been ripe for wildfires with hot temperatures, low humidity,gusty winds and dry vegetation, the park said, adding that weather remained aconcern Friday
Fire danger has ramped up in the West as drought conditions have worsened across several states.
While monsoon season can drop much-needed moisture on theareafromJune through September,itcan also bring dust storms and thunderstorms like those that ignited the wildfires in the Colorado and Arizona parks.
Firefighters saved Black Canyon’svisitor center
along the SouthRim by removing dryvegetation and coating the building in alayer of protective material, fire officials said. Small aircrafts from Colorado’sDivision of Fire Prevention andControl dropped retardant fromthe skyFriday while ground crews tried to contain the burn.
Some park equipment and sheds were damaged, the park said.
In Arizona, the Coconino County Sheriff’s Office said it helpedevacuate people fromanarea north of Jacob Lake and campers in the Kaibab National Forestnearby.
The fire began Wednesdayevening after athunderstorm moved through thearea, fire officialssaid.
“Gusty anderratic winds” spread the flames Thursday afternoon and inhibited firefighters from containing the blaze, Bureau of Land Management spokesperson Rachel Carnahan said. By Friday afternoon ithad burned about 17 square miles withzero containment, and dark clouds of smokesettled over the Grand Canyon.
About500 visitors who planned to stayinthe park overnight were evacuated Thursday night, Grand Canyon spokesperson Joëlle Baird said. Employees and residents on theNorth Rim were told to shelterinplace.
Melinda Rich, whose family owns the 102-yearold Jacob Lake Inn known for its homemade cookies, evacuated75employees Thursday and guests in about35cabinsthat were rented out at the time.
Records: FEMA removeddozensofbuildings from 100-year floodmap before expansion
BY RYAN J. FOLEY, CHRISTOPHER L. KELLER, and JIM MUSTIAN Associated Press
Federal regulators repeatedlygrantedappealstoremove Camp Mystic’s buildings from their 100-year flood map, loosening oversight as thecamp operated and expanded in adangerous flood plain in the years before rushing watersswept away children and counselors, areviewbyThe Associated Press found.
The Federal Emergency Management Agency included the prestigious girls’ summercampina“Special Flood Hazard Area”inits National Flood Insurance map for KerrCounty in 2011, which meansitwas required to have flood insuranceand faced tighterregulation on any future constructionprojects.
That designation means an area is likely to be inundated during a100-year flood —one severe enough that it only has a1%chanceofhappening in any given year
Located in alow-lying area along the Guadalupe Riverin aregionknown as flash flood alley,Camp Mystic lost at least27campers andcounselors and longtimeowner Dick Eastland when historic floodwaters tore through itspropertybefore dawn on July 4.
The flood was far more severe than the 100-year event envisioned by FEMA, experts said, and moved so quickly in the middle of the night thatit caught many off guard in a countythat lacked awarning system.
But SyracuseUniversity associate professor Sarah Pralle,who hasextensively studied FEMA’s flood map determinations, said it was “particularly disturbing” that acamp in charge of the safety of so many young people would receive exemptions from basic flood regulation.
“It’samystery to me why they weren’ttaking proac-
tive steps to move structures away from therisk, let alone challenging what seems like avery reasonable map that shows these structures were in the100-year flood zone,” she said.
Camp Mysticdidn’trespond to emails seeking comment and calls to it rang unanswered.The camp has called the floodan“unimaginable tragedy” and added in astatement Thursday that it hadrestored powerfor the purpose of communicating withits supporters.
FEMA exempted buildings In response to an appeal, FEMA in 2013 amended the county’sflood map to remove 15 of the camp’sbuildings fromthe hazard area. Records show thatthose buildings were part of the99-yearold Camp Mystic Guadalupe, whichwas devastated by last week’sflood.
After further appeals, FEMA removed 15 more Camp Mysticstructures in 2019 and 2020 from the designation. Those buildings were located on nearbyCamp Mystic Cypress Lake, asistersite thatopened to campersin2020 as partofamajor expansion andsufferedless damage in the flood.
Campershave saidthe cabins at CypressLake withstood significant damage, but thosenicknamed “the flats” at theGuadalupeRivercamp wereinundated.
Experts sayCamp Mystic’srequests to amend the FEMA mapcould havebeen an attempttoavoidthe requirement to carryflood insurance, to lower the camp’s insurance premiums or to pave the way for renovating or adding new structures under less costly regulations.
Pralle said theappeals werenot surprising because communities and property owners have usedthemsuccessfully toshieldspecific properties from regulation.
RegardlessofFEMA’sde-
terminations, the risk wasobvious. At least 12 structures at Camp Mystic Guadalupe were fully within FEMA’s 100-year flood plain, and a few more were partially in that zone, according to an AP analysis of data providedby First Street,adatascience company that specializes in modeling climate risk.
Jeremy Porter,the head of climate implications at First Street, said FEMA’s flood insurance map underestimatesflood risks. That’s because it fails to take into account the effects of heavy precipitation on smaller waterways suchasstreams and creeks. First Street’s modelputsnearlyall of Camp MysticGuadalupeat risk during a100-year flood.
Thebuildings at the newer Cypress Lakesite are farther from the south fork
of the flood-prone riverbut adjacent to Cypress Creek. FEMA’s flood plain doesn’t consider the small waterwayarisk. However,First Street’smodel, whichtakes into account heavyrainand runoff reaching thecreek, shows that themajority of the Cypress Lake site lies within an area thatisatrisk during a100-year flood. In astatement, FEMA downplayed the significance of the flood map amendments.
“Flood mapsare snapshots in time designed to show minimumstandards forfloodplain management andthe highest riskareas forflood insurance,” the agency wrote. “Theyare notpredictions of where it will flood, and they don’t show where it has flooded before.”
online — Orleans Parish — offered any fully paid time off for new parents. In other districts, only extended sick leave as required by state law is available, which allows teachers to receive 65% of their pay for 30 days.
That can be a major financial burden for Louisiana teachers, who earn average salaries that are about $5,000 below their peers in other Southern states. As a result, teachers who think they might want a child someday spend years saving up limited paid time off, preemptively take out disability insurance policies or, in some cases, find compassionate colleagues willing to “donate” unused sick days.
Paid parental leave for teachers is still a relatively new in the U.S. but conservative-leaning states, where lawmakers often talk about the importance of supporting families, are leading the way when it comes to offering the benefit. Alabama most recently joined the list, passing a bill that went into effect this month that offers eight weeks of paid parental leave for mothers and two weeks for fathers.
Louisiana lawmakers introduced a bill last year to provide six weeks of paid leave for teachers, a benefit that state workers already receive, but pulled the proposal due to cost concerns.
In studies, paid family leave has been attributed to lower chances of postpartum depression, increased breastfeeding rates and improved financial stability. For teachers, it’s been linked to better work-life balance and less stress. A 2023 report from the Qatar Foundation, an international nonprofit focused on education and community development research, analyzed 67 studies on teacher wellbeing from around the world and found that such policies often translate to improved academic performance, social skills and student engagement.
Of course, the benefit includes an upfront cost for school districts, many of which already struggle to pay teachers competitive wages.
But as Louisiana political leaders work to retain and recruit educators with plans to raise their pay and improve their working conditions, teachers and advocates say the state should make it easier for them to care for their own families.
“We care for everybody else’s babies,” said Cassidy Tackett, a special-education teacher in Caldwell Parish “But we get 65% pay or none at all when we stay home with our own.”
Imperfect solutions
Under federal law, employees are entitled 90 days of unpaid family and medical leave. In Louisiana, workers have access to extended sick leave, but paid policies are largely determined by employers. No state body keeps a full list of district parental leave policies, and determining what
benefits are available in individual parishes can be difficult.
Of the school boards who have made their policies public, many follow the minimums set by state law, saying only that employees shall be granted leave without pay “for a reasonable period of time” following the birth of a child depending on how long an employee is “disabled on account of pregnancy, childbirth or related medical conditions.”
Most teachers receive 10 sick days per year, which they are generally required to exhaust before using any other state or district leave policy Once those days are used, many teachers must accept a pay cut and apply for the state’s extended medical leave. Because of this, teachers look for other ways to cobble together the time they need.
Bitsy Aymond, a firstgrade teacher in Iberville Parish is due to give birth this month. She and her husband, a high school art teacher in the district, have spent the past nine months trying to maximize the time they’ll get with their newborn.
Like most districts, Iberville Parish allows employees to take up to 30 days of extended leave with partial pay in a six-year period once they’ve used up their sick days. But between a miscarriage Aymond suffered last year, a chronic illness that requires frequent medical care and regular prenatal checkups, she said she knows she’ll have no sick days left once the baby is born If she or her baby fall ill, she’ll have to take unpaid time off until her sick bank replenishes in August 2026. Her husband, Kyte, donated some of his time to her under a district policy that allows teachers to give a portion of their unused leave to a colleague, and Bitsy in anticipation of becoming pregnant, took out a short-term disability leave insurance policy through the district two years in a row which could allow her to take up to six months with partial pay But the Aymonds worried it still wouldn’t be enough
“We don’t have a lot of extra money,” Bitsy Aymond said.
“Even getting that 65% pay is a big blow in addition
to the new child we’re already paying for.”
For Musgrove, ongoing health issues related to her son’s premature birth meant that she was slated to return to work before she felt ready. Thankfully, she said, a group of co-workers stepped in to donate 10 of their unused sick days, allowing her to stay home with Matthew through the end of Thanksgiving break and extending the total time she was able to spend with him to three months.
Aymond and Musgrove both said they considered leaving the profession after they realized that they were also expected to do some work — provide lesson plans, complete paperwork and keep track of student progress — despite being out on leave.
“If I spent time doing anything work-related, I felt like I was squandering the little time I had,” Musgrove said. “I was failing no matter what decision I made.”
Representatives with East Baton Rouge and Iberville school districts did not respond to a request for clarification regarding the districts’ leave policies.
Is La. behind the curve?
As of July, eight states have some form of paid family leave policy in place for educators: Alabama, Delaware, Georgia, Oklahoma, Oregon, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee.
Some say they’ve already seen a payoff. Tennessee reported a 22% reduction in turnover and a 25% reduction in retirements two years after approving paid leave for state workers, including teachers.
Carmen McCoy, a staff attorney at A Better Balance, an organization that advocates for women in the workplace, said that whether a job offers family leave can play a big role in hiring and keeping educators. More than a quarter of teachers nationally who recently left education reported “personal life reasons,” like health, pregnancy and child care, or caring for family, as the most important reason that factored into their decision to quit, according to federal data.
State Sen. Sam Jenkins,
a Democrat from Shreveport, said Louisiana should join other Southern states in providing some form of paid
leave for its teachers. He authored a bill introduced in 2024 that would have given educators six weeks of paid leave following the birth or adoption of a child.
The Senate Education Committee unanimously passed the proposal, but Jenkins ultimately pulled it over concerns it wouldn’t pass the full Legislature due to its $15 million projected cost, which is how much the state would pay to hire substitutes while teachers are on leave.
Instead, the Legislature approved a study group to collect data on how many teachers are likely to use the benefit and determine a more precise cost estimate. The group is expected to begin meeting this summer, said Jenkins, adding that he plans to reintroduce a revised version of the bill next year
While some lawmakers worry about financial impact, McCoy pointed out that less turnover can translate to more savings in the long run.
Jarod Martin, superintendent of schools in Lafourche Parish, said that while he supports a statewide parental leave policy for educators, the state’s ongoing teacher shortage remains a cause for concern for district leaders.
“More often than not, when a teacher is out for six weeks, we’re unable to adequately backfill (their position) with a qualified substitute,” he said. “As a former principal, I was always very aware of the impact on children when teachers are not at work.”
Still, Jenkins believes better parental leave options will only become more important, particularly as the state tries to keep younger teachers in the profession.
“We want to make sure we’re decreasing turnover,” he said, “and retaining good employees.”
Email Elyse Carmosino at ecarmosino@theadvocate. com.
However, questions remain about whether such a move would be feasible for districts.
BY AAMER MADHANI Associated Press
BRIDGEWATER, N.J President
Donald Trump on Saturday
announced he’s levying tariffs of 30% against the European Union and Mexico starting Aug. 1, a move that could cause massive upheaval between the United States and two of its biggest trade partners.
Trump detailed the planned tariffs in letters posted to his social media account. They are part of an announcement blitz by Trump of new tariffs aimed at allies and foes alike, a bedrock of his 2024 campaign that he said would set the foundation for reviving a U.S. economy that he claims has been ripped off by other nations for decades.
In his letter to Mexico’s leader President Claudia Sheinbaum, Trump acknowledged that the country has been helpful in stemming the flow of undocumented migrants and fentanyl into the United States. But he said the country has not done enough to stop North America from turning into a “Narco-Trafficking Playground.”
“Mexico has been helping me secure the border, BUT, what Mexico has done, is not enough,” Trump added.
Trump in his letter to the European Union said that the U.S. trade deficit was a national security threat.
“We have had years to discuss our Trading Relationship with The European Union, and we have concluded we must move away from these long-term, large, and persistent, Trade Deficits, engendered by your Tariff, and Non-Tariff, Policies, and Trade Barriers,” Trump wrote in the letter to the EU “Our relationship has been, unfortunately far from Reciprocal.”
The letters come in the midst of an on-and-off Trump
threat to impose tariffs on countries and right an imbalance in trade Trump in April imposed tariffs on dozens of countries, before pausing them for 90 days to negotiate individual deals. As the three-month grace period ended this week, Trump began sending his tariff letters to leaders but again has pushed back the implementation day for what he says will be just a few more weeks
If he moves forward with the tariffs, it could have ramifications for nearly every aspect of the global economy
Responses
European Union Commis-
sion President Ursula von der Leyen responded by noting the bloc’s “commitment to dialogue, stability, and a constructive transatlantic partnership.”
“At the same time, we will take all necessary steps to safeguard EU interests, including the adoption of proportionate countermeasures if required,” von der Leyen said in a statement.
Von der Leyen added that the EU remains committed to continuing negotiations with the U.S. and coming to an agreement before Aug. 1. Trade ministers from EU countries are scheduled to meet Monday to discuss trade relations with the U.S., as well as with China.
European leaders joined von der Leyen in urging Trump to give negotiations more time and warnings of possible new tariffs on Washington.
“With European unity, it is more than ever up to the Commission to assert the Union’s determination to resolutely defend European interests,” French President Emmanuel Macron said in a statement posted on X. Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni’s office said “it would make no sense to trigger a
trade war between the two sides of the Atlantic.”
Danish Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told broadcaster DR that Trump was taking a “pointless and a very short-sighted approach.” Swedish Prime Minister Ulf Kristersson warned in an interview with SVT that “everyone loses out from an escalated trade conflict, and it will be U.S. consumers who pay the highest price.”
Trump, as he has in previous letters, warned that his administration would further raise tariffs if the EU attempts to hike its own tariffs on the United States.
The Mexican government said it was informed during high-level talks with U.S. State Department officials Friday that the Trump letter was coming. The delegation told Trump officials at the meeting it disagreed with the decision and considered it “unfair treatment,” according to a Mexican government statement.
Sheinbaum, who has sought to avoid directly criticizing Trump in the early going of her presidency, expressed a measure of confidence during a public appearance on Saturday that the U.S. and Mexico will reach “better terms.”
“I’ve always said that in these cases, you need a cool head to face any problem,” Sheinbaum said.
With the reciprocal tariffs, Trump is effectively blowing up the rules governing world trade For decades, the United States and most other countries abided by tariff rates set through a series of complex negotiations known as the Uruguay round. Countries could set their own tariffs, but under the “most favored nation” approach, they couldn’t charge one country more than they charged another
EDUCATION
Trump’sbillcould impact youngest Americans
BY MORIAH BALINGIT AP education writer
WASHINGTON The impact of the massive spending bill President Donald Trump signedintolaw on Independence Day is expected to filterdown to infantsand toddlers —asegment of the population that’sparticularly vulnerable to cuts to the federal social safety net.
Many middle-class andwealthy families will see benefits from the legislation, but programs that help low-income families keep babies healthy have been cut back.
While statemoney funds public schools and preschool in some cases, programs supporting the youngest children are largely backed by the federalgovernment.
The law extends tax cutsTrump passed during his first term and pours billions more dollars into border security as he seeks to broaden his crackdown on immigration.
To pay for these initiatives, the law cuts Medicaid and food stamps —programs relied upon by poor householdswithchildren —bymore than $1 trillion.
The legislation Republicans called Trump’s“big beautiful bill”isset to deliver some gains for families with children.
It increases tax credits, including one that now allows parentsto deduct up to $2,200per childfrom their tax bills. And it introduces investment accounts for newborns dubbed “Trump Accounts,” each seeded with $1,000 from the government.
Still, advocatessay they don’t make up for what childrenare likely to lose under the law.And they fear whatcomesnext, as the next Trump budget proposes more cuts to programs that help
parentsand babies.
Strain on families
More than 70 million Americans relyonMedicaidfor health care. About40% of births are covered by Medicaid. Newborns, too, qualify for it when their mothers have it.
Thenew law doesn’ttake little kids or their parents off Medicaid. It institutes Medicaid work requirements forchildless adults and adults with children over the ageof13.
But pediatricians warn the cuts will befelt broadly, even by those who don’tuse Medicaid.
The Medicaid cuts are expected to putafinancialstrainonhealth care providers, forcing them to cut theirleast profitable services. That’soften pediatrics,where young patientsare morelikely to use Medicaid, saidLisa Costello, aWest Virginia pediatrician who chairs the federal policy commit-
teefor the American Academy of Pediatrics
The ripple effects could exacerbateanexistingshortage of pediatricians and hospital beds for children.
“Any cuts to that programare going to trickle down andimpact children, whether that’spediatric practices who depend on Medicaid to be able to stay open or children’s hospitals,” Costello said.
States alsouse Medicaid to pay for programsthat go beyond conventional medical care, including therapies for young childrenwith disabilities.Under thelaw,states will foot agreater portion of the bill for Medicaid, meaning optional programs are at risk of getting cut.
While parentsofyoung children are exempt from the work requirement,recipients mustverify they’re in compliance or exempt from the requirement every six months. Critics fear eligible adults will lose their coverage because of
thenew reporting requirements.
If an adult loses Medicaid coverage, it could ratchet up household stress and make it moredifficult for parents to makeends meet both of which can negatively impact youngsters. And parents who lose their health insurance are less likely to take their children to the doctor
“Whenparents lose theirhealth insurance, they often think that their children also are no longer eligible, evenifthat’snot the case,” said CynthiaOsborne, aprofessor of early education and the executive director of the Prenatal-to-3 Policy Impact Center at Vanderbilt University
Increasedtax credits
Thelaw increases thechild tax credit to $2,200 per child, up from $2,000. But parents whodon’tearn enough to pay incometax will still not see the benefit, andmanywill see only apartial benefit.
The measure also contains two provisions intended to help familiespay for child care, which in many places costsmorethana mortgage.
First,itboosts the tax credit parents receive for spending money on child care. It also expands a program that gives companies tax credits forproviding child carefor their employees.
Both measureshavefaced criticism for generally benefiting larger companies and wealthier households.
“It’sacorporate business tax break,”said Bruce Lesley,president of the advocacy group First FocusonChildren. “Itmakes their child care dependent upon working for an employer whohas the credit.”
‘Trump Accounts’
The law launches aprogram that
WE’RE ASKING EXPERTS ACROSS THESTATEHOW TO TACKLE THEBIGGEST CHALLENGES FACINGLOUISIANA SCHOOLS. HAVE AN
creates investment accounts for newborns. The “TrumpAccounts” are to be seeded with$1,000 from the government, and children will be able to use themoney when they become adultstostart anew business, put the money toward a house or go to school.
Unlike otherbaby bondprograms, which generally target disadvantaged groups, the federal program will be available to families of all incomes.
The program’sbackers have pitched the accounts as away to give young people aboost as they reachadulthood andteachthem about the benefits of investing. Critics argue familiesinpoverty have more immediate needs and their children should receive a larger endowment if the goal is to help level the playing field. Cuts to food assistanceprogram
The Supplemental NutritionAssistance Programfaces thelargest cut in itshistory underthe law. It will, forthe first time, require parents to worktoqualifyfor the benefitiftheir children are14orolder But even households with younger children could feel the impact.
The law kicks some immigrants —including those with legal status —off food assistance. It makesit more difficult for individuals to qualifybychanging how it considers their utility bills.
SNAP hashistorically been funded by the federal government, but under the new law,states will have to shoulder some of the financial burden. Cash-strappedgovernmentscould decide to implement new requirements that would make it more difficult for people to qualify, said Katie Bergh, asenior policyanalyst with the Center on Budgetand PolicyPriorities. Some states maydecide to exit the program altogether
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By EVAN VUCCI
President DonaldTrump signshis ‘Big Beautiful Bill’ of taxbreaks and spending cuts at theWhite House on July 4, surrounded by members of Congress.
LOUISIANAPOLITICS
Medicaid cuts an issueinmidterm congressionalelections
Democratstouse cuts againstGOP whileJohnson says, ‘Bring it on’
WASHINGTON —With B-2s flying overhead during an Independence Day ceremony,President Donald Trump signed the Republicans’One Big BeautifulBill Act into law
With that signature, Trump created one of the main battlefieldsin the fight to control Congress, where Republicans can afford to losenomore than three seats in the House and four in the Senate.
Mark Ballard
Looking at aseries of polls that indicate the bill’sunpopularity nationwide, Democrats haveresolved to make the 2026 midterm elections about cuts to Medicaid Even in Louisiana,where Republicans dominate the statewide political scene, both parties are gearing up to argue the merits and faults of the billthatcodifies much of Trump’sagenda.
House SpeakerMike Johnson, R-Benton, and other Republicans have been talking up how they believe the legislation’stax breaks will help working Americans and will energize the U.S. economy Democratic officials arecounting the number of rural hospitals they say will closeand the number of people they say will lose health care to pay for those tax cuts.
On Fox News Sunday,Johnson pooh-poohed Democraticopposition and challenged the minority to “bring it on.”
“Our Republicans are going to be out across the countrytelling the simple truth, and guess what?,” Johnson said, “Everyone
Kennedystumps for Trump spending cuts
The U.S. Senate is running out of time to approve President Donald Trump’sproposaltoax about $9.4 billion in spending on variousfederalprograms, including public broadcasting and HIV prevention programs abroad.
CAPITOL BUZZ staff reports
crats are looking forchallengers with certain skills in four of the six House districts with Republican incumbents, said Randal Gaines, chair of the state party He wants to find seasoned candidates whowon’tbuckle under the national scrutiny sure to accompany races in astate that is hometothe top twoGOP House leaders and amember of the powerful House Appropriations Committee.
Gaines wants candidates who have ahistory of public service and of getting things done. Someone whocan articulate in kitchen table termsthe coming, but not yet arrived, impact of the new law on Medicaid.
Republican incumbents represent about 848,400 Medicaid constituents whowere part of Trump’s58% to 60% Louisiana wins in three presidential elections.
Louis Reine, whose state AFLCIOcomprises asignificant block of Democratic voters, says the midterm elections will increase the conversation in Louisiana but likely won’tchange the roster of Republican congresspersons.
Sen. John Kennedy,RMadisonville is among the senators pushing to approve what’s called a“rescissions” package, which rescinds funding Congress had previously authorized.
In speeches from the Senate floor andop-eds, Kennedy has said the bill slashes “spending porn,” or programs he believes are awaste of taxpayer resources approved during the Biden administration.
“If my colleagues still think this spending is necessary,they should vote no on [Trump’s] re-
will havemore take-home pay They’ll have morejobs and opportunity.The economy will be doingbetter.And we will be able to point to that as theobvious result of what we did.”
Party campaign organizations and theirsupporting issue groups are alreadyrollingout advertisingthat either blasts or exalts the bill.
Theconservativegrassroots group AmericansFor Prosperity,for example, paid for acommercial that called the tax cuts a “historic win.” House Democrats launched adstargeting 35 Republicans for backing reductions to Medicaid, according to New Jersey Spotlight News.
“Elections have consequences, and this bill is an example of what Republicans will do with unchecked power,” said Rep Troy Carter,D-New Orleans. “I’m going to makesure Louisianans know exactly what this bill does, so that they can be informed voters in the 2026 midterms.”
Carter was speaking prior to hosting aThursday night town hall on the Xavier University campus in New Orleansthat featured top Democratic chiefs, including House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries. The New York Democrat made anumber of appearances last week, from news shows on MSNBCto“The View,” adaytime talk show
Sen. John Kennedy, R-Madisonville, listens to fellowlawmakers speak duringthe SenateAppropriations full committee markupofbills Thursday in Washington.
quest,” Kennedy wrote in aNew York Post op-ed. “But hereon planet Earth, the American people know they could be spending this moneyfar better than the deeply weird, woke bureaucrats they’ve already voted out of office.”
Kennedy has highlighted foreign aid programs he thinks are wasteful, such as “$3 million on circumcisions and vasectomies in Zambia, $500,000 on electric buses in Rwanda and $67,000 to feed insect powder to children in Madagascar.”
“Weare going to do everything we can, no matter how long it takes, to reverse the damage being done to the American people,” Jeffries said Thursday night. Democrats will have to contendwith the new law’s timing. Most voterswill see lower tax bills when they file their federal income tax returns by April 15, 2026. Butthe restrictions Democrats fear —and someexperts predict —will lead eventually to closed rural hospitals and millions losing their health care coverage won’tbegin until January 2027 and 2028 in somecases. Midterms conclude in November 2026.
That’swhy Louisiana Demo-
Buthe’salso amongthe most prominent senators calling for Congresstoaxfunding forthe Corporationfor Public Broadcasting, whichsupports NPR and PBS.
“Theremay have been atime decades ago whenAmericans needed public broadcasting to get thenews. Today, Americans have thousands of free news and entertainment options —yet only NPR andPBS get$1.1billion from taxpayers,” Kennedy wrote. “When acountry has racked up more than$36 trillion in debt,choosing to fund unneeded and biased public broadcasting is cell-deep stupid.”
Butthe cuts to public broadcasting have alarmed other senators, including ahandful of Republicans who have expressed uneaseatapproving the rescissions package.
Others areuneasywith slashing funding forPEPFAR, an international program aimed at fighting the spread of HIV that was apriorityofformer President George W. Bush. Trump haspublicly threatened to withhold endorsements from any senator who doesn’tvote to approve the package.
“I don’tsee it happening in a very,very red state” like Louisiana, where Republicans hold all the statewide posts and the Legislature, Reine said Thursday However,inswing districts that could go either way,Democratic pressure on the Trumpbill could makeadifference, he said. Though Republicans did winand did embarrass Democrats last year,Trumpwon the election by only 1.5% of the vote nationwide. “Ifthe Democratic argument resonates in the congressional districts that are not really blue or really red and that swings four or five districts, it could totally change the balance in Congress,” Reine said.
Email Mark Ballardat mballard@theadvocate.com.
Feds designate Ouachita River
The U.S. DepartmentofTransportation hasdesignated the OuachitaRiveraU.S.Marine Highway,whichmakes governments, industries andshipping companies on the605-mile waterway eligible fornew categories of infrastructure grants.
“The OuachitaRiverisawonderful natural resource withvast economicpotential,especially in a regionbuilt by commoditieswhich relyonreliablemodes of transportation,” U.S. Rep. Julia Letlow,the Start Republican who represents thedistrict. “This designation will spur rural economicdevelopment andincrease opportunities for infrastructure improvements and job creation.” The riverhas been designated Marine Highway M-167.
“This is actually pretty huge!” saidBrandon Waggoner,vice president of theOuachita River ValleyAssociation,inanews release. “The Ouachita Riverbrings so much to thepeoplewithinthe OuachitaRiverBasin, andweare excited to announce this major development. It is amajor step in the revitalization of theriver.”
We’recelebratingAmerica’s birthday with $1,776off your first month’srent!* Save bigonanoutstandingseniorlivingexperienceand grow with us as youmeetnew friends,explore newopportunities,and enjoyaworry-freelifestyle. Here,you will engageinexciting, adventurous, social, andenriching activities Ourapproachtoseniorcareisfocusedonthe individual wants andneeds of everyresident we serve. Whatever your preferences, our gracious andcaringstaff is readytoaccommodate. We can’t wait to welcome youhome to the ultimate in comfort, care and support. Callustoschedule atour or to learnmore.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MANUEL BALCECENETA
STAFF PHOTO By JOHN McCUSKER
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries, D-N.y.,from left, joins Democratic congressional colleagues Rep. DebbieWassermanSchultz of Florida, Rep. Robin Kelly of Illinois and Rep. Nanette Barragan of Californiaata healthcare town hall with Rep Troy Carter,D-NewOrleans, on ThursdayatXavier University in NewOrleans.
THE GULF COAST
New law means seafood restaurant menu changes
Establishments must say if shrimp are imported or domestic
BY LILLIAN FOSTER Sun Herald
Mississippi’s new seafood labeling law went into effect Tuesday, forcing some Coast restaurants to make changes Passed on June 10, an expansion of House Bill 602 requires all seafood and crawfish sold in the state to be labeled as either “domestic” or “imported” on all signage, menus, packaging and online listings.
A task force composed of the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources and the Mississippi Department of Agriculture and Commerce will ensure that wholesalers, processors, retailers and food service establishments comply with the law.
MSDMR Executive Director
General Joe Spraggins said the law is meant to give consumers more transparency when purchasing seafood
“When people come to South Mississippi and walk into a restaurant, they’re expecting to get Gulf seafood or something that’s grown in America,” Spraggins said “You don’t know what you’re getting when you buy the import, but you know what you’re getting when you buy domestic because the United States has laws and domestic seafood is processed the right way.”
Violations begin with a threeday notice and can result in civil fines of up to $10,000 or imprisonment for up to six months. Anyone who violates the law due to good faith reliance on wholesaler documentation will not be penalized.
“As long as you show me intent, we’ll work with you until you can correct whatever you need to correct,” Spraggins said.
Industry support Bethany Fayard, vice president and director of operations
at Ocean Springs Seafood Inc., said she’s been looking forward to the law ever since a similar one was put into effect in Louisiana in January
“I’ve been fighting for this change for a long time because I saw what a big difference it made in Louisiana,” Fayard said.
“I would like to see it done nationally.”
Fayard said she expects domestic shrimp sales to increase following the implementation of the law
“Restaurant owners don’t want to admit that they’re selling imports,” Fayard said.
“Our economy needs to support our fisheries and our shrimp fac-
tories.”
Sean Desporte, owner of Desporte Seafood, said his company has always clearly labeled its seafood for customers.
“We do the right thing — the way it’s supposed to be done,” Desporte said. “I think it’s great, because I want everybody to do the same thing we do.”
Frank Miller, a manager at Desporte, said complying with the law hasn’t been a challenge so far
“Most of my time is going to explaining this to my customers because they’re more freaked out than we are,” Miller said.
Confusion, concern over new law
Not everyone is in support of
the law Thomas Genin, owner of Butcher Block Steakhouse and The Blind Tiger restaurants, questioned the law’s necessity
“At the end of the day, nobody really cares where it comes from,” Genin said. “This is all a bunch of noise starting and coming from a few commercial lobbyist groups.”
The law expands on a previous country of origin seafood labeling requirement for crawfish and shrimp, but its name initially caused confusion, leading many to believe they would need to list the specific country of origin in addition to labeling products as “domestic” or “imported.” Under House Bill 602, anyone
selling or processing seafood is only required to indicate whether the product is “domestic” or “imported.”
The label must be in a font size equal to that of the product name, and any item containing a mix of domestic and imported seafood must be labeled as “imported.”
Genin said he hopes officials will provide restaurants with clarity regarding labeling requirements.
“Nobody has reached out to any restaurant that I know of to tell us exactly what we’re supposed to do,” Genin said.
Shane Bernard, the owner of Rags to Riches bar and restaurant on the Bay St. Louis beach, echoed concerns about confusion regarding the law, but said he supports the overall concept.
“I’m all for it, because I think that there should be truth in advertising,” Bernard said “Most people, given the option, would not want to pay the upcharge for the domestic shrimp, but we’re still going to try to give them that option.”
Some imports lack in quality
David Gautier, owner of Gautier’s at the Harbor, said he believes more consumers would be willing to pay higher prices if they better understood the quality differences in most imported seafood.
“The consumer has been duped for years with imported products that do not match the quality of what they’re being sold,” Gautier said.
According to Fayard, many imported products are a result of aquaculture — a practice of farming aquatic animals that often involves the use of antibiotics and hormones.
“It’s not a natural process, and the water is disgusting,” Fayard said. “They have to use all these supplements to raise them, and you’re putting that in your body as opposed to a naturally wild-caught product.”
“By no means are all imports bad, but some of them — they’re not fit for landfill,” Gautier said.
PUBLIC NOTICE TO LAFAYETTEPARISHCITIZENS
LouisJ.Perret, ClerkofCourt andChiefElectionOfficial forthe Parish of Lafayettewill hold four (4)meetingsfor personsinterestedinbecomingcertified to serveasfollows:
COMMISSIONER
Wednesday, July 23, 2025 at 5:30 pm Thursday,July24, 2025 at 10:00 am and5:30 pm Wednesday, July 30, 2025 at 5:30 pm Thursday,July31, 2025 at 10:00 am and5:30 pm
Please attend onemeeting that is at themostconvenienttimefor you!
This meetingisfor thosewho have NEVERSERVED as an election commissioner. Payis$200per Election with required school attendance
QUALIFICATIONSREQUIRED:
1. ALafayette Parish registered voterwho is able to performthe essentialduties of acommissioner.
2. Aseventeen (17)yearold whoisparticipating at a12thgrade levelorhas completed a12thgrade education
3. Aqualified voterofthisstate or aregisteredvoter of anotherstate whoisastudentataninstitutionofhigherlearninginLafayette Parish (Mustprovide studentidentification or feebill showingcurrent enrollmentand acopyofhis/her proofofvoter registration)
4. Must nothavebeenconvicted of an election offense as definedinChapter 10 of theLouisiana Election Code
5.Mustnot be required to register as asex offender or childpredatorpursuanttoR.S.15:542.
6. Lawenforcementofficers shallnot be eligible to serve.
Please call ourElectionDepartmentat337-291-6368ifmoreinformation is needed
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CAMERA PHONES ARE NOTPERMITTED IN THE LAFAYETTEPARISHCOURTHOUSE.
SUN HERALD PHOTO By HANNAH RUHOFF
Boxes of shrimp are packed and ready to be shipped at Biloxi Bay Processing Passed on June 10, a new Mississippi law requires all seafood and crawfish sold in the state to be labeled as either ‘domestic’ or ‘imported’ on all signage, menus, packaging and online listings.
Report: Issues found at 3 nuclear plants
But Entergy, NRC say critique is flawed
BY DAVID J MITCHELL Staff writer
Entergy Corp.’s three nuclear power plants in southern Louisiana and Mississippi had some of the most safety and security issues among plants of their type in the nation over the past three years but most if not all, were in the lowest risk category, an environmental group says.
The group, the Union of Concerned Scientists, reached that conclusion in an analysis of federal data
as part of a broader critique of nuclear regulators’ colorcoded inspection rating system. The group contends the system may miss or underrepresent emerging risks by failing to account appropriately for high numbers of the lowest-level “findings,” or issues raised in inspections.
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission, which issues the findings, called the group’s methodology flawed and not in line with how it operates. Entergy dismissed the report as inaccurate and
Palmetto man sentenced to life in prison
Two killed in 2020 revenge shooting
BY CLAIRE TAYLOR
Staff writer
A Palmetto man found guilty of killing two people in October 2020 in what is described as a revenge shooting will spend the rest of his life in prison.
Sanplice Christopher Simien, 48, on Thursday was handed two life sentences in connection with the shooting deaths of Michael Thomas, 29, of Washington, and Ladarious Keller, 20, of Morrow, according to a news release by St. Landry Parish District Attorney Chad Pitre.
In March, a St. Landry Parish jury in March found Simien guilty of two counts of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted first-degree murder
Thomas, Keller and three other young men were in a parked truck outside a residence on Cook Street in Morrow in October of 2020 when Simien approached the truck from the driver’s side and opened fire with a handgun in each hand, Pitre wrote.
Thomas died at the scene and Keller died at a hospital.
A third man, a 19-year-old from Bunkie, was shot multiple times and required surgery A fourth victim, a 21-year-old from Lebeau, was uninjured, according to the Sheriff’s Office.
Deputies said Simien and Thomas had a heated argument days before the shooting after Simien was robbed by Thomas at gunpoint and had between $1,200 and $1,400 stolen by Thomas and an unknown individual, the statement said On Thursday Simien was sentenced to serve life imprisonment at hard labor without probation, parole or suspension of sentence for each count of murder and 30 years in prison for each count of attempted murder
Email Claire Taylor at ctaylor@ theadvocate.com.
not “in good faith.”
The raw tallies of NRC safety findings from 20222024 made the plants along the Mississippi River the first- and second-most-cited single-unit plants in the nation over the three-year period, it said Waterford 3 in New Orleans had the fifthmost findings.
But the NRC says all three Entergy plants remain in the regulator’s “highest performance category in safety and security” after the agency applies its “action matrix” that accounts for a
variety of factors, not just safety and security findings.
“The NRC uses multiple inputs to assess performance, including inspector findings and objective performance indicators showing how well a plant is performing when measured against established thresholds,” Victor Dricks, NRC spokesperson, said in a statement.
“The assessment process allows NRC to integrate various information sources relevant to plant safety performance, make objective conclusions regarding their significance, take actions based on these conclusions in a predictable manner, and
effectively communicate these results to licensees and the public.”
Questioning the system
The Union of Concerned Scientists used a relatively new NRC database to generate the tallies. Most, if not all, of the findings the group uncovered were rated “green,” the lowest risk category that doesn’t trigger extra levels of scrutiny from the nuclear agency “Green” findings have “very low safety significance,” the NRC says. But the group faults this color-coding system and created its own metric to
try to assess what a large number of “green” findings might mean for plant safety It equated five “green” findings to one “white” finding and weighted the results. A “white” finding, the next risk category up from “green,” represents “low to moderate safety significance,” the NRC says. White and other worse findings spark additional NRC oversight.
Using the Union of Concerned Scientists’ metric, the group ranked the three Entergy plants first, second and third on its ”Terrible
TOP: Two juvenile green herons, one a bit younger than the other, stand together on a branch Thursday at Cypress Lake swamp on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus
ABOVE: An alligator peers above the surface of the water
RIGHT: A red-eared slider turtle comes up for a breath of air
FULL OF LIFE
STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK
Manhelps builds ‘culture of reading’ for18years
Metairie Kiwanis club visits
Jeffersonschools
BY COURTNEY LUCIUS Staff writer
As he strode up to the podium at the Jefferson Parish School Board’sJune meeting, Mel Dussel asked everyone to join him fora pledge “I promise,” Dussel said, as board members and the audience repeatedafter him. “Overthe summer holidays …I will read at least five books.”
It’sapledge he says in every elementary schoolacross theparish every year.Aschairman of the Rewards for Reading program at the Kiwanis of MetairieDawn Busters, the 77-year-old retiree finishes every presentation with those words.
After 18 years, the program now touches 56 schools,and Dussel has presided over it sincethe beginning. It’ssponsored by Metairie’s Kiwanis Club, whichhas “Dawn Busters” as part of the name because of their early morning meeting time and the early morning radioshow ”Dawnbusterswith HenryDupre.”
The club’sRewards for Reading program was created to help kids learn to read, and improving literacy hasbecome afocus of policymakers since the pandemic.
As of May,23% of Louisiana third graders scored “well-below” target reading levels on an end-ofyear assessment, an improvement from 27% in 2024. And anew state law requires students to passthe statereading test before advancing to fourth grade.
Acar full of prizes
Here’show Rewards for Reading aims to solve the problem: A
NUCLEAR
Continued from page1B
Thirteen”nationwide listing for single-unit reactors
In thethree-year period analyzed, Waterford 3had 32 “green” findings and four “white” ones; River Bend in St. Francisville had 60 “green” findings andtwo “white” findings; GrandGulf in Port Gibson, Mississippihad 58 “green” findings, including 27 in 2024, but no “white” findings.
“River Bend and Grand Gulf are by far the worst violators,” thereport says. “This does not come as asurprise, as accusations of financialproblems andmismanagement of its nuclear fleet have swirled around Entergy for decades.”
Entergy also has adualnuclear reactor plant in central Arkansas.
The report pointed out that the LouisianaPublic Service Commission and other officials filed a complaint in 2021 againstEntergy
The state officials alleged to the Federal Electric Regulatory Commission that “safety and reliability problems caused “subpar” performance of the Grand Gulf nuclear plant and excessive costs for ratepayers.
The report added that Entergy’s performance should be keptin mind as the utility plans to increase thepower output of its nuclear fleet and, therefore, work reactors harder.Itisalso considering building anew reactoratthe Grand Gulf site.
Entergydisputesreport
The report also comes as Entergy and Cleco face renewed scrutiny over reliability followingaforced
childreads abook and takes a test on it.For each testtheypass, they get aticket that goes into a prizedrawing.
Then, twice ayear,Dussel brings acar full of prizes —including Walmart gift cards, gift certificates for food or games and otherdonated items— to all56 elementary schools in Jefferson Parish forthe children who entered the drawing. The boy and girl who read the most books are rewarded with bikes. Over the years, theprogram has given away between $18 million and $20 million in prizes Julie Broussard, aformer JeffersonParish school system librarian,saw firsthand howthe program motivated kids to read Shehad to start arriving to school 30 minutes early so kids could go to the library to check out books Now, as the Bridgewater Elementary School principal and as a Jefferson Parish parent herself, Broussard sees how the program continues toget children excited aboutreading “Some studentshaven’thad experiences with literacy and literature in their homes, so school is their first experience with justfun reads,”Broussard said. “It just became something that wasafun incentive,but just built this culture of reading in the school.”
Dussel boasts that the reading program’s participation throughoutthe years is 99%.
‘You gottadothis’
The bike giveaway is the highlight of theRewardsfor Reading program, and it has been since Dussel visited his first school, A.C. Alexander in Kenner
That first year,Dusselhad two bikes withhim, but he plannedto give away only one. He picked two names out of600 kids,and by happenstance both children hadparents who had diedwithin
STAFF PHOTO By JOHN
Mel Dussel has led reading programsfor years as apartofthe DawnbustersKiwanis ClubinNew Orleans on Friday.
thepast 6months. Dussel gave away both bikes— andfound his calling.
“Tome, theman upstairs said ‘Hey,Mel, you gotta do this,’ ” Dussel said. At that point in 2009, theprogram was in 14 schools. But 10 yearslateritwas in everyschool in the parish
“I gottoknowthe principals andlibrarians, andthey said ‘Mr Mel, what you’re doingisgreat, but you’re comingtoaschool whereyou got 500 kids.They’re waiting to see you and, 10 minutes later,you go on, and you give away two bikesand 498 kids are upset because theyread abook and they didn’twin anything,’ ” Dussel said.“So Istarted going outand getting sponsors.”
Now,every child can get aprize, Dussel said. Cici’sPizza gives theprogram 30,000 certificates ayear; Adventure Quest Lazer TaginElmwood provides 30,000
free games; Game on Social Hub in Kenner supplies 30,000 certificates anddifferent prizes for the topboy andgirlreaders.
The impact of rewarding children forreading,instead of punishing them, goes along way, Broussard said.
As aparent, Broussard notices herown children aremoreexcited about reading for fun. They’ve even been asking to go to the library consistently this summer, shesaid.
Dussel makes this magic happenatthe Rewardsfor Reading presentations, aschoolwide assembly whereDusselgives away prizes to the entireschool. With mascots andmore, the presentations are carefully designed to entertain and excite children. When Dusselfirst startedaschairman for the program, the presentations lasted 3minutes.Now, they’re as long as 45 minutes to an hour
“Everythingthatwesay in
blackout in the New Orleansarea in May,triggered by adowned interstate transmission line and large, unplanned plant outagesthat included afive-day shutdownofEntergy’s River Bend following aleak. MichaelBowling, aspokesman for Entergy’snuclear operations, counteredthe criticismsinthe environmental group’sreport,alsonoting thatNRC’s online oversight pages show theplantsremain in the agency’sbest safety and performance category.
“Weare proudofthe nearly 3,000 nuclear professionals who work 24/7, 365toensure we safely produce clean power for our customers,” he said. “Wedonot consider this blog report accurate or in good faith.”
In astatement, NRC officials pointed out that “green” and “white” findings can’t be equatedbecause theyrepresent different magnitudes of safety and security risk. Simply adding up green findings also isn’thow NRC evaluates plants, the agency said.
UnionofConcerned Scientists pointed out in its report, however, that NRConceproducedits own watchlists based on safetyperformance but the lists went away in the late 1990s when Congress changed the agency’ssafety assessments to the current, color-coded one.
The group contends the current system could fail to address patternsthat might emerge froma
seriesofthe lowest level “green” problems.
“Associating higher-risk violations with increased oversight does seem like areasonable thing to do. However,itviolates common sense to argue thatthe totalnumberofviolations,and their cumulative impact on risk, should not be also considered,”wrote EdwinLyman, UCS’s nuclear expert andthe author of the report.
The report noted that even with that number of findings in 2024, Grand Gulf remained in the NRC’shighestperformance category along with afacility that had two findings in that year In an interview,Lyman argued
front of thesekids has been carefullythoughtof. Igot them jumping up and down, Iget them screaming, Iget them dancing. Youknow,their attention span is roughly three minutes,” Dussel said.“So everythree minutes I’m changing things.”
Dussel says he dedicates at least two and ahalf months ayear to this program, planning thepresentations, gathering sponsors and visiting everyschool. Buthe isn’ttraveling alone. His fellow volunteersfromthe Dawn Busters Kiwanis Club take amonth and ahalf off of “everything they do in life” for this program Butthe results make thesacrificeworth it forDusseland the Dawn BustersKiwanis Club,he said.
“It’sour job, as adults,” Dussel said. “Theseare our kids and the future of JeffersonParishdepends on what thesekids do as they grow up. Andifthey can’t read, they can’tsucceed.”
that green findings can be serious, representing “sometimes years or decades of negligence.”
In his report, he pointed out that Entergy receiveda “green” finding forits failuretoimplement a programatWaterford 3toaddress more than 2,500corrosion issues Some of the problems had been identified “as far back as 2011, with around 200 classified as severe and affecting critical safety-related systems,”the report noted.
Lyman also alleged that NRC inspectors may face pressure from industry to keep borderline findings “green” and avoid more higher rated findings with more serious regulatory consequences.
He argued some “green” findings countonbackup systemsimplemented since theFukushima nuclear plant disaster in Japan in 2011 thatdon’t have the samereliability demands as other equipment.
“So, there are alot of uncertainties in there, andI think ‘green’ may not be as benign in manycases as the NRCclaims it is,” Lyman said. DavidJ.Mitchellcan be reached at dmitchell@ theadvocate.com.
PHOTO PROVIDED FROM ENTERGy CORP
Entergy’sGrand Gulf Nuclear Station in Port Gibson, Miss.
McCUSKER
Mel Dussel, right, and the Dawn Busters Kiwanis Club wonthe Signature ClubAward fortheirreading program in 20 elementaryschoolsatthe 2018 LaMissTenn Kiwanisconference.
Will Big BeautifulBill mean La. boom or bust?
Much of the commentary thus far about the One Big Beautiful Bill Act reminds us of the tale of the blind men touching an elephant who cannot agree on what the creature is.
Certainly,the nearly 900-page legislation is a behemoth, stuffed with changes to everything from health care to border security. Andmuch of one’sperspective on it depends on which part one has grabbed ahold of. That has led to competing narrativesonwhat Louisiana and the nation can expect. But before we come to blows like those fabled blind men, we should look carefully at what the law actually does, rather thanwhatis speculated or feared. First, we must acknowledge that the passage of this legislation marks asingularachievement for the Trump administration, and it would not have been possible save for the tireless work of two Louisiana Republicans —House Speaker Mike Johnson and Majority Leader Steve Scalise. Despite athinmajority skeptical of changes made by the Senate, they managed to keep their restive caucus focused andbring the bill across the finish line in time for President Donald Trump to have asigning at the White House on July 4. If there are still any doubts about whether the man from Benton has the savvy needed tobeasuccessful speaker, they should be put to rest once andfor all. So back to the question at hand: What does the law do? Some of its provisions will have a delayedimplementation. The most significant of these is the $1.1 trillion cut over the next decade in federal spending on Medicaid, which doesnot go into effect untilafter the 2026 midterm elections. In Louisiana, where one-third of our population isenrolled in Medicaid, tens of thousands could lose coverage. We have expressed deep concern about what this could mean for health outcomes and for rural hospitals. But we are cautiously optimistic thatthe cuts won’tbeasdeep as expected and that the state Legislature will have enough time to figure out aplan. The law also extends the Trump tax cuts that were set to expire at the end of the year.Some workers will see additional savings as it enacts Trump’scampaign promise toeliminate taxes on tips and overtime. However,those deductions last only from 2025 to 2028. In Louisiana, where tourism and hospitalityare big employers, we are sure the change will be felt On clean energy,the bill raises issues for companies that have already invested heavilyinLouisiana. Itphases out taxbreaks for wind and solar projects so any that don’tbreak ground within the next year could lose out. We are disappointed to see that the state’sembrace of new industries could be in peril.
There were also somebig wins for our state tucked into the bill. We are thrilled that the Stennis Space Center,which employs thousands in our region, will get $120 million in infrastructure upgrades when just months ago its NASA funding was on the chopping block. And in one of the most substantial victories Louisiana has won in Congress in decades, the state will finally receive more proceeds from offshore oil and gas production tohelp save ourcoast. Thanks to the effortsofScalise, language in the bill allowsanadditional $50 million annually for the Gulf of Mexico Energy Security Act, which has been the work of a long line of Louisiana lawmakers from both sides of the aisle. These are only some of the highlights. We share concerns about the law’simpact on the deficit and the poorest Americans. We’re sure that there’smuch more initthat we will learn as time goes on. But we caution those who are quick to judge based on its outlines. The fuller picture may not be visible just yet.
OPINION
Drunkand defiantistopsonthe charts
Everyyear,there’sasong of summer.It’soften something to argue over when conversation lags at the barbecue.
In 2013, feminists attacked Robin Thicke’s“Blurred Lines”for allegedly glamorizing sexual violence. “Blurred Lines” was ahugehit.According to Rolling Stone, “It held thewhole world in its slightly skeevy grasp all summer long.”
This year’s summer sensation is asong titled, “A Bar Song (Tipsy)”byShaboozey This hip-hop-meets-country songisabout drinking and drinking alot.
and liquor
Theserigid denunciations of alcohol are dredging up badmemories of Prohibition. Opponentsargue that lonelinessisanother serious health hazard that meeting friends over abeer can lessen —atleast until the withdrawal. Alcohol is adepressant, after all. Moderateorevenheavier drinking at timesofcelebration,however,can be apartof life (assuming the drinkeris not an alcoholic or driving).
This comes at atime when some medical researchers have given booze an absolute thumbs down, witness the headline, “Even aLittleAlcohol Can Harm Your Health.” Not everyone is buying that argument
Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr.holds the view that no amount of alcohol is safe. He wants America’s official dietary guidelines to lower alcohol consumption limits. That displeases states that produce beer,wine
Butanyone who hasobserved thecurse of alcoholism can attest that those addicted shouldn’tbedrinking at all. It happens that manyrecovering alcoholics do just fine enjoying aCokewith friends at abar
Others may feel unable to sit in that environment without consuming alcohol. Thereare other places for camaraderie —coffee shops, forinstance —that shouldn’ttrigger drinking.
In this year’s song of summer,some may take issue with its defense of getting stupid sloshed.
The partthat Idislike most is the
“excuse” for allthatharddrinking containedinthe opening verse: “My baby want aBirkin, she’s been tellin’ me allnight long /Gasoline and groceries, the list goes on and on /This 9to5ain’tworkin’, why the hell do I work so hard?”
HermesBirkin bags price out most of the uppermiddle class. Youdon’t have to be poor to suffer adaily grind or financialpressure.Ineithercase, drinking is notgoing to cure it —certainly notafter the temporary high. There’s onegroup for whom “A Bar Song (Tipsy)” mayactually boost incomes:bar owners. Part of the song’ssuccess surely comes from its frequent playing at these establishments.
As we can see, songs of summer oftenrebel against The Moment. “BlurredLines” wasaccused of downplaying rape.“ABar Song (Tipsy)” raisesa fist of defiance in whatseems an eraofpressuredsobriety.How aboutmoderatedrinking, if any drinking, andleave it at that.
Froma Harrop is on X, @FromaHarrop. Email her at fharrop@gmail.com
Personal storiesbring news to life
Readers sometimes share personal stories in their letters to us.
Andthosestories give us apowerful first-person perspective on issues of theday When big news happens,it really hitshome when you hear from people directly affected in theirown voice. Decisions made in Washington or in Baton Rouge affect our everyday lives
ly’sexperience of coming to America.
Often,thesestories highlight how theexperience of more recentimmigrants differsgreatly from those whose families came decades ago. We’d like to hear more from recentimmigrants who have successfully navigated the system.
someone areason to question their ownassumptions.
So thanks to allwho share their experiences with us.
And, of course, politicians make all kinds of claims about how they will benefit theordinaryAmerican. But readers talking about their experiences can show areas that need more attention or exposewherereality doesn’tmatch the rhetoric.
Readers also tell us about theirexperience with government agencies. Moreoften, it is to criticize, but we encourage you to write if you have agood experience as well.
It’simportant to recognize examples of where the government is working. Toomany people don’trealize whatan agency does until they need it.
Going to ourletters inbox, for the week of June 19-25,wereceived48 letters.
On some of the big issues in Louisiana, like insurance, readers have had much to say.Autoinsurance was the focus of sweeping reform inthe last legislative session, so tellusyour stories if you are seeing theeffects. Andonnational issues like immigration,readers have shared their fami-
As journalists, we knowthat personal anecdotes aren’t the whole story Oneindividual’sexperience, after all, can be outside of the norm. But Iwould say your experiences are an importantpart of the story When you share themwith our audience, it might open some eyes or give
During this week, immigration was the topissue on your minds. Six letters mentionedimmigrationenforcement, particularly the case of Mandonna Kashanian, aNew Orleans resident from Iran who was arrested outside herhome and put in detention despite having lived in the country for 47 years. She hassince been released Most of the letters supported her release. The next most popular topic was the U.S. bombing of nuclear sites in Iran. Afterthat, you were also talking aboutthe budgetbill (three letters) andliberalism on college campuses (threeletters).
Arnessa Garrett is Deputy Editor | OpinionPageEditor.Emailher at arnessa.garrett@theadvocate.com.
Arnessa Garrett
Froma Harrop
COMMENTARY
What NORD canlearn from Arthur Ashe
So, what does Wimbledon tennis have to do with aNew Orleans inspector general’s critical report about the New Orleans Recreation and Development Commission and its supporting foundation?
Not much, really,except in my own mind. But bear with me, because NORD is really important. Many of you may be reading this on Sunday morning as the Wimbledon men’sfinal is on TV in the background. The former sports writer in me really wanted to write about the50thanniversary of the great Wimbledon drama of 1975, wherein AmericansArthur Ashe and Jimmy Connors competedinone ofthe great grudge matches of all time. It made ahuge impression on me. At the time, Ashe was the captain of the U.S. squad in the DavisCup, the international competition wherein the players compete as ateam, representing theircountry.Connors refusedto playinthe Davis Cup, choosing
instead to play in lucrative exhibition matches. Ashehad responded by callingConnors “unpatriotic,” after which Connors suedAshe for defamation —news that broke just before Wimbledon began. When both reached the finals, Ashearrived on court in a“USA”sweat jacket —and proceeded to thoroughlyout-think Connors fora 6-1, 6-1, 5-7, 6-4 victory.
Watchingasan11-yearold,Iwas impressed. Here was Ashe, aBlack, motherless child (she died when he was six) who grew up amidnasty segregation in Confederate-revering Richmond, Virginia, fiercely and proudlyexpressing love of his nation. Connors, aWhite, privateschool child of relative privilege, wasthe one more interested in cash than country Andthe patriot— theman who concentrated on theblessings of America rather than theway it treated him for his first quartercentury as asecond-class citizen —was theone whowon. Andhe
did it on July 5, 1975, the first official day of the yearlong countdown towardthe U.S. bicentennial. Ashe’striumph taught agreat lesson of classiness and grace.
But… let’s get back hereto Louisiana in thehere and now (Trust me, there is atopical connection here.) For months, I’ve tracked (andwritten acolumn about) the situation at NORD, which had allowed some of its facilities to deteriorateembarrassingly and which was late in paying itssummer lifeguards,all as an inspector general analyzed itsoperations. This pastWednesday,Inspector General Ed Michel released his report, and it made NORD, its foundation and thecityofNew Orleans all look pretty bad.
The IG called out NORD and theNORD Foundation “for failure to meet their legal obligations to obtain audits and sworn financial statements.” The city, meanwhile, was tardy in its own audit and failed to hold NORD accountable for its failure to audit.
So, NORD suffers yet another
black eye, even as, theIGnoted, thecity provides NORD with morethan $22 million to operate “playgrounds, athletics, and leisure activities throughout the city.” As the IG wrote, NORD “play[s] acrucial role in the lives of many” NewOrleanians, as it is intended to “advance[e] the physical, mental, and social well-being” of city residents. If NORD isn’toperating well, that should be heartbreaking for us all. Personally,NORD played ahuge roleinmychildhood, both in terms of its recreational opportunities and, importantly,as afirst major instigator of happy, seamless racial integration in days when legal segregation was outlawed but social integration still was quite rare.
As it turnsout, it was the organized public playgrounds of Ashe’syouth —alas, segregated at the time —that gave Ashe the venue and boost that otherwise he would have been denied.
Ashe’sfather,you see, was a handyman andcaretaker for Richmond’srecreation depart-
mentwho motivated his son to shine in both scholastics and sports. Far too skinny forfootball, Ashe began playing tennis at the public courts on whose grounds he literally lived in acottage with his father and brother Ashe is therefore one of this nation’sforemost examples of the good that can be done, the opportunities that can arise, via apublic recreation department led and wellmaintained by caring adults. Ascholar,Armyofficer, gentleman and sports superstar, Ashe was the epitome of the ideal of opportunity meeting diligence to form excellence. The opportunity part came from the facilities of organized public recreation. Here at home, NORD is far from atotal travesty,but it clearly needs improvement. By rights, its management and future ought to be abig topic in this year’s campaign formayor.The future of the next Arthur Ashe might depend on it.
Quin Hillyer canbereached at quin.hillyer@theadvocate.com.
Scalisewas righttohelpdetainedLa. woman
I’m here today to say something Ihaven’t had occasion to say nearly enoughinrecent years. Good for you, Steve Scalise. By multiple accounts, theHouse majority leader from Metairie played a keyrole in securing the freedom of alongtime, well-known andwidely loved resident of his Republican district, Donna Kashanian,who’d been carted awaylast month from her front lawn in Lakeview toan ICE detention facility.
fender of President Donald Trump, even when his actionsare indefensible.This time, though, he heard thecall from his constituents, checked his conscience and used hisloftyperch to get theDepartment of Homeland Security to let Kashanian come homewhile her status is reconsidered. His takeonthe situation, he told my colleagueJames Finn after reviewing Kashanian’s file, was that she had never gotten a proper hearing.
Kashanian came to the U.S. on a student visa and applied forpermission to stay several times after forces hostile to her father’sally,the U.S.-backed Shah of Iran, overthrew her country’s government in 1979.
She was denied asylum, andlater denied agreen card due to abrief marriage when she was young thatthe government deemedfraudulent, but she was toldshe could stay in the country if shekeptin touch with authoritiesand followed the law That she did, for decades. She marrieda U.S. citizen and raised their daughter, rebuilt after Hurricane Katrina, volunteered in the communityand lived life as aNew Orleanian.But thenthe Trumpadministration, without notice, changed the rules and rounded herup. The outcry was quick andfurious, andso loud that it reachedthe ears of oneofthe few people in aposition to do something about it.
Scalise has always been asteadfast de-
“The more Igot involved, the more Irealized that, No. 1, Ithink they madeamistake in the ’80s when they rejected her asylum claim,” Scalise said. “And Ithink they should look at her case again based on the totalityof thedecades in which she’sserved in this community.”
And then he went further
While declining to criticize theadministration,Scalise acknowledged that its black-and-whitenarrative is false, that Kashanian’sstoryisfar from unique and that there are people all over thecountry beingtargeted whose cases are also complicated andnuanced.
“You have tens of millions of people here illegally,some of them are bad people who are committing violent crimes …Those people, by theway,are beingdeported. AndIdon’tthink anybody has aproblem with that,” he said. “But then what do you do with the people who are here illegally but aren’tviolent criminals? And by the way,how do you know thedifference?”
The answer,hesaid, is that “we will have
EssenceFestivalcan
The EssenceFestival of Culture has abright future —inNew Orleans, Louisiana. It might not seem thatway with some of the sharp criticism, menacing vitriol and painful ugliness in recent days. I’ve been partly responsible for lifting this conversation in this newspaper and on radio —because things were different this year.This wasn’tthe same litany of complaints. The convo reached afeverpitch. And it went national. Even the Breakfast Club talked aboutit. Iknew we Black folk love Essence Festival, but Ididn’trealize how deeply we love it until this year. Essence loves us, too. Just read its online recap. The loud feedback Essence leaders heard came from acollective heart of Black love. As at any major event, not everything goes well. That definitely happened, in spades, this year. Late daytime and nighttime scheduleannouncements. Poor audio. Programs started late. Concerts went into the wee hours. Big sponsors, including recently controversial Target. But seemingly
not enoughtocover the cost of enoughstaff to make things work.
“Every signal that we have says it’sstronger Ithink the vibe is very strong,” Richilieu
to change the law in Congress.”
Well, amen to that.
It’strue that there’swidespread support for removing bad actors, but that’sclearly not what’s happening here. Instead, armed and often masked immigration agents are being ordered by WhiteHouse aide Stephen Miller to makemass arrests.
In fact, according to astunning new report in The Atlantic, ICE is so driven by Miller’squotas that agents are being told NOT to pursue themost dangerous, complicated cases —drug, child exploitation and human trafficking —and instead pick thelow-hanging fruit. That meansthe far morenumerous people going to work or just minding their own business, whocame here to escape oppression or violence or to chase economic opportunities that generationsofimmigrants have pursued, even as Congress has refused to create afairer
So when we need to have these conversations, we’ve got nowhere else to go,”hesaid.
and moreeasily maneuvered immigration system Their stories are getting wide play.The high school athlete in Massachusetts. The California landscaper and father of three U.S. Marines. The mother of anewborn married to aformer Marine in Baton Rouge. The farmworkers whose bosses are begging Trumpfor relief so they’ll have people to pick their crops. And it seemsthat Americans, not just in Lakeview,are listening. Anew Gallup poll suggests that they largely reject both the policies that led to Kashanian’sdetention and the ugly,underlying premise. It found that 62% disapprove of the administration’shandling of immigration, including 45% whostrongly disapprove. It also found that only 30% of Americans wantimmigration decreased, a steep decline from ayear ago, when 55% did, and that huge majorities —78% and 85% respectively —want apath to citizenship forthose here illegally or whose parents brought them to the country illegally as children. What all this points to is ahard shifttoa morehumane immigration stance, one that considers people’sactual circumstances and character rather than sweeping them up in amean-spirited ideological crusade to fulfill an increasingly unpopular agenda. I’mglad Scalise is advocating forthat, even if it meansbreaking from the president he so often acts like he serves. Email StephanieGrace at sgrace@ theadvocate.com.
Dennis, executivevice chairman of Sundial Media Group, which owns Essence Ventures, which operates the Essence Festival, told me late on the second full day of theevent. “The vibe is still there, and it’sstronger than our critics want to give us credit for.”
Dennis said vendors
“must develop andgrow” tokeep up with theconsumers walking the floor and their expectations.
Repeatedly disobey therules, like puttingadisplay in the middle of theaisle, and vendors don’t getasked back. If someone had along-term relationship and that partnershipdissolved,perhaps it was because the arrangement didn’tmeet requirements.
Dennis spentmore than an hour on WBOK 1230 AM’sGood Morning Show with hosts Dr.Ashonta Wyatt andmetalking about the festival, concerns andproblems.
“This is aBlack-owned station. ...It’s the oldest, and it’sthe only
Irespect Dennis for knowing where alarge base of his audience and potential customers are. With my newspaper interview and his radio interview,along with what I’ve heard from many of you, Inow can answer the question I’ve been asked multiple times:“What do YOU think should be done?”
These are some of thosethings:
CONSISTENT ESSENCE LEADERSHIP We haven’tknown who toexpect, who to listen to, whowemight consider following. Even if that person doesn’tlive here, someone should be here six to eight times ayear
ESSENCE HOUSE. Open an Essence House, an Essence Family Center or something called The Essence Vibe as ayear-round operation. It can become ameaningful part of OUR Black culture with activities and programs coordinated with existing culture bearers.
ESTABLISH ALOCAL COMMITTEE Alocal-regional-state committee with representatives from the stateof Louisiana, New Orleansmayor’s office, New OrleansCity Council, theLouisiana Black Legislative
Caucus, our arts and cultural communities, the NewOrleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce andthe Urban League of Louisiana. Consider having anobusiness, no-contracts guideline. No one on this important task group couldreceive financial remuneration
CREATE AN ESSENCE COALITION. We have boots-on-the-ground sisters who are apart of sororities, social clubs, membership clubs, groups and krewes whose members can voluntarily provide feedback and ideas from aBlack women’s perspective.
ENGAGE BLACKMEDIA. We have a community rich with Black media that providenewsand information as theychallenge us. Include WBOK 1230 AM; the Louisiana Weekly; The NewOrleans Tribune and theNew Orleans Data News Weekly
INVOLVE BLACKYOUTH It’s clear festival leaders have pivoted from a one-day event focused on Black women to amultiple-day event with more of afamily focus. If I’m right, say it with your full chest. Either way,our youth who are teens, in their 20s and 30s must be apart of this. Essence
Festival must be sure to have age and family diversity Like all families, we have to makeadjustments as “our” baby, “our” child has becomeanadult capable of making decisions of her own.
Iama NewOrleans native, resident and taxpayer.I love my city Ilove the Essence Festival. Ilove my people. ALL of my people. New Orleans peeps as wellas those from all 50 states and territories from across the African diaspora.
We have aclash of cultures. Our New Orleans culture is something special, akey reason people visit. Our global Black culture is larger moreinclusive and not all Black folk are like other Black folk. Most of us love all and anything and any one Black. We say that, but we have to stretch ourselves, grant grace and be open to learning and accepting those whocome from apart of the culture that is not our own.
Working together,inall of our Blackness, we can get through this —and makethings better
Email Will Sutton at wsutton@ theadvocate.com.
PHOTO PROVIDEDByKAITLyNNMILNE
From left to right, Kaitlynn Milne, Donna Kashanian and Russell Milneafter Kashanian’srelease from ICEcustodyin Basile on July 8.
Quin Hillyer
Stephanie Grace
Will Sutton
SPORTS
Servais was in Norman, Oklahoma, watching asophomore left-handed pitcherfrom LSU by thename of Kade Anderson.
BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer
Scott Servais knows what abigleague pitcher looks like.
As the manager of the Seattle Mariners for nine seasons and as acatcher in the major leagues for 11, what he saw on April3 was a performance worthy of the highest level of baseball. Complete game shutouts are rare, especiallyinan era of baseball whenstarters don’t go as long and relief pitchers are asked to pick up the slack Servais wasn’tatanMLB game.
Paul Skenes, Tarik Skubal orLoganGilbert— hisace pitcherin Seattle —wasn’tonthe mound
“He (Servais) said that was, if not the most,one of themostimpressive pitching performances he’sseen at any level,” said one scout who also attended that game and spoketoThe Advocate on the condition of anonymity.“Ithink that said alot to me.”
Thekid who dazzled Servais on that cold and windynight —strikingout 14 battersinthe shutout against Oklahoma —has achance to becomethe No.1overall pick in the2025MLB DraftonSunday (5 p.m., ESPN). If selected by the Washington Nationals,Anderson would become thesecond LSU playerpicked No. 1inthree years.
“His next pitch should be for someplacein theWashingtonNa-
tionals organization.It’snot close,” LSUcoach Jay Johnson said. “And they usually draft really well. And he’sthe best player in thecountry There’snobodyclosertothe major leagues than that right now.” Anderson’s path wasn’t aconventional one. He underwent Tommy John surgery during his junior year of high school, which wiped out his senior season.Instead of signing aseven-figuredeal with an MLBclub out of high school, the injury set him on acourse for at least two seasons in Baton Rouge.
Andersonshowedpotentialin his freshman year withthe Tigers. He had a13-strikeout performance againstSoutheastern Louisiana before finishing the year with59 punch-outs anda 3.99 ERAin381/3 innings.
Another scout who saw Anderson during an intrasquad scrim-
magebefore his freshman year believed then that he wasa firstround player “I didn’tsee him in high school. Didn’tknow he had Tommy John yet. At that point,I was just like, well, this is an easy first-rounder,” said thesecond scout, on condition of anonymity.“But to me,Ijust saw four pitches and theability of commandand howeasyofan operation he did it, and you’re still projecting on thebody “So Imean,thatone was really kind of ano-brainer.”
Anderson built upon his promising freshman campaign with an historic sophomore season. He led LSUtoits eighth national championship in June,tossing another complete gameshutout in Game 1ofthe College World Series final
AN MLB DREAM
Cajuns OF Higgshopes to hear
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
ULoutfielder Conor Higgs understands the differentwaysthe 2025 Major League Draft could gofor him.
Higgs is focused only on the prize, no matter the outcome.
“With the stuff I’vegone through in the game and outside of the game, my maturity and age hasreally taught me alot,”Higgs said. “I don’tsee it any other wayreally. I’mjust excited to see whatcould come.” The draftedisonly 20 rounds, so there are fewer opportunitiestoget drafted than before Covid. It was 40 rounds prior tothe summer of 2020.
The first three rounds, including compensatory
MLB Draft rounds 1-3, 5 P.M. SUNDAy,ESPN
picks, will begin at 5p.m. SundayonESPNand the MLB Network.Day Two of thedraft with rounds 4-20 is scheduled to begin at 10:30 a.m.Mondayand will stream on mlb.com.
“Getting drafted would mean theworld to me,”he said.“SinceIwas alittle kid,I alwayssaidI was goingtoplayprofessional baseball. It would fulfill a dream.”
Higgs hopes tokeep UL’s draft streak going by gettingselected. At least one Cajun hasbeen drafted each year since 2013.
“I haven’t asked for any advice frommyformer teammates,” Higgs said. “I probablyshould, but
BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer
The NewOrleans Saints took twodifferent approaches whenaddressing their defensive line this offseason. Forthe edgegroup, New Orleans focusedonretaining its own. The Saints re-signedChase Youngtoa three-year, $51 millioncontract. And the team also brought back CamJordan on areworked contract fora15th season. Theinteriorofthe line, meanwhile, underwent amore fundamental change. Though the Saints also brought back starting defensive tackles Khalen Saunders and Nathan Shepherd on reworked deals, NewOrleans traded forDavon Godchaux and drafted third-rounder VernonBroughton.Those twomoves,in particular,account forthe differences in schemeunder new defensive coordinator Brandon Staley
Together,the Saints hope to get more out of the line that underwhelmed last season. The Saints ranked21stinquarterback pressure percentage and 20th in sacks with 39 —and only 28 of those came from thedefensive line.They were even worse against the run, allowing the second-most rushing yards per gameand the second-most rushing yards per play Best case
Startwiththe investment the Saints made toward stopping the run. If that happens, the defensive line should be significantlybetterthanitwas last year Besides the obvious need to cut down on the amount of yardagegiven up on
BY HOWARD FENDRICH
AP tennis writer
LONDON For years, Iga Swiatekneverfelt comfortable on Wimbledon’sgrass courts, never thought she could add atrophy there to her other Grand Slam triumphs. Oh, did that turn out to be wrong. NotonlyisSwiatek nowthe champion of the All England Club, she did it with a6-0,6-0 victory over Amanda Anisimova on Saturday inthe first women’s final at the tournament in 114 yearsinwhich one player failed to claim asingle game.
“It seems,” said Swiatek, a 24-year-old from Poland who is now 6-0 in major title matches, “super surreal.”
That’salso agood waytodescribe the way things unfolded at asunny,breezy Centre Court against the 13th-seeded Anisimova, a23-year-oldAmerican in her first Grand Slam final.
“I was abit frozen there,with my nerves. Maybe the last two weeks Igot abit tired or something,” saidAnisimova, who skipped practice Friday because of fatigue and felt pain in her rightshoulder while warming up before thematch. “It was a bit tough to digest, obviously,especially during andright after.I was alittle bitinshock.”
The wholething took just 57 minutes. The previous 6-0, 6-0 Wimbledonwomen’s finalwas all theway back in 1911.
“Honestly,Ididn’teven dream (of this), because for me, it wasjust, like,way toofar,you know?” Swiatek said Maybe, Swiatek said, the lower expectations sheand plenty of other people heldfor her at Wimbledon helped. For once, she wasn’tthe top seed.Her name was not listed by many among the title contenders.
“I couldreally focus on getting better and developingasa
player,”Swiatek said, “rather than everybody just asking me to win, win and nothing is
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By KIN CHEUNG
celebrates after beating Amanda Anisimova of
singles
nalatWimbledon in London on
6
Cardinals 3-time Pro Bowl left tackle Sharpe, 65, dies TEMPE,Ariz. — Luis Sharpe, a threetime Pro Bowl selection at left tackle for the Cardinals during the franchise’s time in both St. Louis and Arizona, has died. He was 65.
The Cardinals confirmed Sharpe’s death through his family, a team spokesman said Saturday Sharpe’s wife, Tameka WilliamsSharpe, also posted about her husband’s death on social media.
The 6-foot-5, 275-pound Sharpe played all 13 of his NFL seasons with the Cardinals, spanning from 1982 to 1994. He made three straight Pro Bowls from 1987-89 and was a second-team All-Pro selection in 1988 and 1990.
WIMBLEDON
Tennis’ ‘Big 2’ meet again
Alcaraz, Sinner play for singles championship in replay of French Open
BY HOWARD FENDRICH AP tennis writer
LONDON It’s fitting that the Wimbledon final between Carlos Alcaraz and Jannik Sinner on Sunday represents the first time the same two men meet for that title right after playing for the French Open trophy since a couple of guys named Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal did so every year from 2006-08.
That’s because the only real competition the No. 1-ranked Sinner and the No. 2-ranked Alcaraz face at the moment comes from each other not anyone else currently on the men’s tennis tour — and the only comparisons that feel somewhat appropriate come by measuring them against the greatness of the Big Three.
Let’s be clear: It’s too early to put Alcaraz or Sinner in a class with Federer and Nadal — each retired with at least 20 Grand Slam titles or Novak Djokovic, who is still going at age 38 with 24 majors. But as Djokovic himself put it: “We know they’re the dominant force right now.”
Major force
They have combined to win the past six majors, a streak that will grow to seven on Sunday Go further back, and it’ll be nine of the past 12 Slams (the others in that span went to Djokovic). Alcaraz, a 22-year-old from Spain, already owns five such trophies; Sinner, a 23-year-old from Italy, has three.
Their combined age is the lowest for Wimbledon men’s finalists since Federer, just shy of 25, faced Nadal, 20, in 2006.
“We are still really young So I just hope (we) keep doing the right things for, I don’t know the next, I don’t know five, 10 years,” Alcaraz said, “just to (put) our rivalry (on) the same table as those players.” Alcaraz on a roll
He is on a 24-match unbeaten run currently, plus has won 20 in a row at Wimbledon as he pursues a third consecutive title.
Sinner is participating in his fourth consecutive major final, including victories at the U.S. Open and the Australian Open.
“The anticipation for this final is big, is amazing,” Djokovic said.
Alcaraz vs. Sinner demands attention.
When Alcaraz fought back from a two-set deficit and erased three championship points to defeat Sinner in five sets spread across 5 hours, 29 minutes at Roland-Garros last month, there were immediate comparisons to what many consider the greatest men’s tennis match ever: Nadal’s win over Federer in five sets at the All England Club in 2008.
Good for tennis
“It’s good for the sport,” said Sinner, who
TENNIS
Continued from page 1C
produce merely 10 winners. Anisimova was shaky from the start, put only 33% of her first serves in during the first set and finished with 28 unforced errors
Certainly the pressure she was under from Swiatek’s near-perfect play was a factor Swiatek delivered serves at up to 121 mph, got 78% of her first serves in and used deep groundstrokes to grab 16 of the 20 points that lasted five shots or more.
“She definitely made it difficult for me,” Anisimova said Swiatek already owned four titles from the French Open’s red clay and one from the U.S Open’s hard courts, but this is the first one of her professional career at any grass-court tournament. She is the eighth consecutive first-time women’s champion at Wimbledon, but this stands out because of just how stunningly dominant it was.
TALE OF THE TAPE
said his right elbow that was hurt in a fall in the fourth round and was covered by tape and an arm sleeve in his semifinal victory over Djokovic won’t be an issue Sunday “The more rivalries we have from now on, the better it is, because people want to see young players going against each other.”
Like Federer and Nadal, these two go about winning differently
Sinner boasts metronomic precision with his pure and powerful groundstrokes generated by his long limbs, force-blunting returns and a serve that might be the most dangerous on tour. Alcaraz is a master of creativity and ver-
Anisimova won her first-round match less than two weeks ago by a 6-0, 6-0 score and eliminated No. 1-ranked Aryna Sabalenka in the semifinals, but she never looked like the same player this time. Not at all. When it was over, Anisimova sat on the sideline crying, while Swiatek climbed into the stands to celebrate with her team.
Swiatek was the Wimbledon junior champion as a teen in 2018 but never had been past the quarterfinals on the All England Club’s grass as a pro. Her only other final on the slick surface came when she was the runner-up at a tuneup event in Germany right before Wimbledon began Swiatek spent most of 2022, 2023 and 2024 at No. 1 in the WTA rankings but was seeded No. 8 at Wimbledon. She served a onemonth doping ban last year after failing an out-of-competition drug test; an investigation determined she was inadvertently exposed to a contaminated medical product used for trouble sleeping and jet lag.
satility with speed to spare, able to hammer shots from the baseline or charge the net or end a point with a well-disguised drop shot.
“They bring out the best in each other It’s going to come down to just the big moments. It’s so tough to call it,” said Taylor Fritz, the runner-up to Sinner at Flushing Meadows and beaten by Alcaraz on Friday. “They both generate a lot of just raw power. But I think for me, it’s a little more uncomfortable to play Carlos, just because of the unpredictability of what he’s going to do.”
Will the French Open matter?
How will what happened in Paris just five weeks ago affect things?
Will Alcaraz carry extra confidence from his fifth straight win over Sinner? Will Sinner bear a mental burden from the way he let one get away or figure out what went wrong and correct it?
Alcaraz doesn’t think that loss will affect Sinner this time.
Sinner said he rested and relaxed for a couple of days following that setback, eating barbecued food with family and playing pingpong with friends, before getting back to business. If he truly were devastated, he argued, he wouldn’t have reached his first Wimbledon final so soon after
“Let’s hope it’s another beautiful match played at a very high level,” Sinner said, “and may the best man win.”
Anisimova was a semifinalist at age 17 at the 2019 French Open; her father died shortly after On Saturday Anisimova’s mother arrived in England for a rare chance to be at one of her daughter’s matches.
“My mom is the most selfless person I know, and she’s done everything to get me to this point in my life,” Anisimova said through tears, then spoke to her mother directly, saying: “Thank you for being here and breaking the superstition of flying in.”
And then, with a chuckle, Anisimova added: “It’s definitely not why I lost today.” She took time away from the tour a little more than two years ago because of burnout. A year ago, she tried to qualify for Wimbledon, because her ranking of 189th was too low to get into the field automatically but lost in the preliminary event.
On Monday, she’ll be ranked in the top 10. “I wish,” Anisimova told the crowd, “that I could put on a better performance for all of you.”
Sharpe was born in Havana and played in college at UCLA. He started all 189 games he played in the NFL.
Resurgent McIlroy has share of Scottish Open lead
NORTH BERWICK, Scotland Masters champion Rory McIlroy took another step toward emerging out of the doldrums with two big shots at the end of his round Saturday that led to a 4-under 66 that gave him a share of the lead with Chris Gotterup in the Scottish Open.
McIlroy kept in range of Gotterup on another gorgeous day of sunshine along the Firth of Forth, then came into everyone’s view in the middle of the back nine at The Renaissance Club.
After a 15-foot birdie on the par3 14th, his shot from a greenside pot bunker hit the pin for a tap-in par to keep his momentum.
Gotterup, who tied the course record with a 61 on Friday, had to settle for a 70. He will be in the last group Sunday with McIlroy and Wyndham Clark, who had a 66.
Reds OF Fraley will try to finish year with torn labrum CINCINNATI Cincinnati Reds right fielder Jake Fraley was activated from the 10-day injured list on Saturday
The former LSU star had injured his right shoulder while trying to make a diving catch June 23 against the New York Yankees. An MRI revealed a partially torn labrum that will eventually require surgery Fraley received a cortisone shot and will try to play through it for the rest of the season.
The Reds were 7-4 in his absence.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand, who hasn’t played since Noelvi Marte returned from the IL on July 4, was optioned to Triple-A Louisville.
Red Sox RHP Dobbins out for season with torn ACL
BOSTON Red Sox right-hander Hunter Dobbins said on Saturday he knew his season was probably over when he felt a familiar feeling in his knee.
He was right. Dobbins was diagnosed with a torn anterior cruciate ligament, his second ACL tear in his right knee.
Dobbins tore the same ACL playing high school football.
Covering first base in the second inning of Boston’s 5-4 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night, the 25-year-old Dobbins stepped awkwardly and limped after recording an out by making a catch on a throw from first baseman Abraham Toro.
Dobbins took one warm-up toss before manager Alex Cora stopped him from attempting any more.
Upstarts Gainer, Ruffels lead
Evian Championship
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France Cara Gainer, a No. 129-ranked Englishwoman, and Gabriela Ruffels, a 71st-ranked Australian, will be in the final group at the Evian Championship on Sunday after powering through the field in the third round of the fourth major of the year in women’s golf.
On a glorious Saturday at Evian Resort Golf Club, Gainer shot 7-under 64 to move to 11 under for the week and was soon joined in the lead by Ruffels, who shot 66. They’ve got plenty of high-quality company on the leaderboard, however No. 6-ranked Minjee Lee, the recent winner of the Women’s PGA Championship, shot 66 and was a stroke off the co-leaders in her bid to become the first woman since Inbee Park in 2013 to capture back-to-back major titles.
AP PHOTO By BEN WHITLEy
Kate, the princess of Wales, presents the Venus Rosewater Dish to Iga Swiatek after her Wimbledon victory Saturday.
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By THIBAULT CAMUS
Winner Carlos Alcaraz of Spain, right, and Jannik Sinner of Italy hug after the French Open final on June 8 in Paris. The two players have combined to win the past six Grand Slam tournaments.
alta 10-4), 1:10 p.m. Atlanta (TBD)atSt. Louis (Gray9-3), 1:15 p.m.
L.A. Dodgers(Yamamoto 8-7)atSan Francisco (Ray9-3), 3:05 p.m. Arizona (Kelly 7-5) at L.A. Angels (Soriano 6-6), 3:07 p.m. Philadelphia (Sánchez 7-2)atSan Diego (Pivetta 9-2), 3:10 p.m.
Golf
Genesis Scottish Open Saturday At The Renaissance Club North Berwick, United Kingdom Purse: $9 million Yardage: 7,282; Par: 70 ThirdRound C. Gotterup, United States 68-61-70—199 -11 R. McIlry,Northern Irelnd 68-65-66—199 -11
W. Clark, United States 66-69-66—201 -9
MattFitzpatrick, England 69-63-69—201 -9
J. Knapp, United States 64-69-68—201 -9 Marco Penge, England 65-67-69—201 -9
Ludvig Aberg, Sweden 67-65-71—203 -7
H. English, United States 72-65-66—203 -7
TomKim, South Korea66-70-67—203 -7
A.Novak, United States 72-63-68—203 -7
Antoine Rozner, France 67-67-69—203 -7
Matti Schmid, Germany65-68-70—203 -7 Sepp Straka, Austria 64-69-70—203 -7
KevinYu, Chinese Taipei67-67-69—203 -7
N. Hojgaard, Denmark 68-69-67—204 -6
Francesco Laporta, Italy 71-64-69—204 -6
KristofferReitan, Norway 71-65-68—204 -6
S. Scheffler, United States 67-68-69—204 -6
Andy Sullivan, England 68-66-70—204 -6
Bud Cauley,United States 67-70-68—205 -5
Harry Hall, England 67-64-74—205 -5
Viktor Hovland,Norway 66-72-67—205 -5
R. Langasque,France 71-67-67—205 -5
M. McCarty, United States 69-65-71—205 -5
Taylor Pendrith, Canada 67-69-69—205 -5
Victor Perez, France64-70-71—205 -5
X. Schffele, United States 68-66-71—205
Jorge Campillo, Spain 68-71-67—206
Ugo Coussaud, France 68-71-67—206
Grant Forrest, Scotland 67-68-71—206
M. Kim,United States 69-67-70—206
Justin Rose,England 70-68-68—206
Jordan L. Smith, England 71-67-68—206
Nick Taylor,Canada 67-66-73—206
C. Bezudnht, South Africa 70-68-69—207
AlejandroDel Rey, Spain 67-67-73—207
Si WooKim, South Korea70-69-68—207
K. Mitchell, United States 66-67-74—207
John Parry,England 71-68-68—207
Yannik Paul, Germany68-66-73—207
Aaron Rai, England 69-67-71—207
Adam Scott, Australia 69-68-70—207
S. Soderberg, Sweden 69-66-72—207
MattWallace, England 71-68-68—207
Laurie Canter, England 69-69-70—208
N. Echavarria, Colombia 64-72-72—208
T. Fleetwood, England 70-67-71—208
B. Harman, United States 69-65-74—208
A. Smalley, United States 70-69-69—208
J. Svensson, Sweden 73-64-71—208
J. Vegas, Venezuela 67-71-70—208
G. Woodlnd, United States 69-69-70—208
D. Brown, England 70-66-73—209
J. Kruyswijk,South Africa 70-68-71—209
RichardMansell, England 69-67-73—209
M. McNealy, United States 67-71-71—209
Keita Nakajima, Japan 73-65-71—209 -1
Marcel Siem, Germany65-71-73—209 -1
ElvisSmylie,Australia 67-71-71—209
Sami Valimaki, Finland 70-69-70—209
J. Bridgemn, United States 71-68-71—210 E Sam Burns, United States 67-71-72—210
Corey Conners, Canada 70-69-71—210
Ryan Fox, New Zealand 66-70-74—210 E
J. Thomas, United States 69-70-71—210 E Sam Bairstow, England 70-66-75—211 +1
D. Berger, United States 68-71-72—211 +1 Thomas Detry,Belgium 68-70-73—211 +1
P. Harrington, Ireland 69-70-72—211 +1
R. Macintyre, Scotland 68-71-72—211 +1
T. Olesen, Denmark 67-70-74—211 +1 S. Stevens, United States 72-67-72—211 +1 Connor Syme, Scotland 68-71-72—211 +1
L. Clanton, United States 72-66-74—212 +2 Martin Couvra, France 70-68-74—212 +2 R. Gerard, United States 67-70-75—212 +2
H. Norlander, Sweden 67-72-73—212 +2 DaleWhitnell, England 70-68-74—212 +2
B. Hun An, South Korea67-72-76—215 +5 Paul Waring, England 69-69-WD
Evian Championship
Saturday At Evian Resort Golf Club
Evian-les-Bains, France Purse: $8 million Yardage: 6,504; Par: 71 ThirdRound CaraGainer 68-70-64—202 -11
HyoJoo Kim 71-70-70—211 -2 Paula Reto 69-71-71—211 -2 Shannon Tan73-68-70—211 -2 Brianna Do 76-68-68—212 -1
BrookeHenderson 73-71-68—212 -1 Jin HeeIm70-72-70—212 -1 Nelly Korda67-70-75—212 -1 Stephanie Kyriacou70-68-74—212 -1 Rose Zhang 71-70-71—212 -1
AyakaFurue 67-72-74—213 E
Jeong Eun Lee5 74-69-70—213 E Gigi Stoll 72-70-71—213 E Jasmine Suwannapura72-68-73—213 E Patty Tavatanakit 71-68-74—213 E Weiwei Zhang71-69-73—213
IgaSwiatek(8),Poland, def. Amanda Anisimova (13),UnitedStates,6-0, 6-0. Men’sDoubles Championship Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash (5), Britain def. David Pel, Netherlands, and Rinky Hijikata, Australia,6-2,7-6 (3).
Cycling
Tour de France Saturday 8th Stage A106 mile ride from Saint Meem-LeGrand to LavalEspace Mayenne 1. Monathan Milan, Italy, Lidl-Trek,03:50:26. 2. Wout VanAert, Belgium, LeaseaBike, same time 3. KadenGroves, Australia,Alpecin-Deceuninck, same time 4. PascalAckermann, Germany, Israel-Premier Tech,sametime. 5. Arnaud De Lie,France, Lotto, same time 6. Tobias Lund Andresen,Denmark, same time. 7. Bryan Coquard, France, Cofidis, same time. 8. Alberto Dainese,Italy, Tudor ProCycling Team,same time. 9. VincenzoAlbanese, Italy, EF EducationEasyPost,same time. 10. Stian Fredheim, Norway,Uno-XMobility same time Also 39. Matteo Jorgenson, United States, Team Visma ‘Lease aBike, 03:50:26. 64. Neilson Powless, United States, EF Education-EasyPost, 03:51:07. 97. Sepp Kuss, UnitedStates, Team Visma Leasea Bike,03:51:37. 135. WilliamBarta, United States, Movistar Team,03:52:47. 160. QuinnSimmons,United States,LidlTrek, 03:55:05. Overall Standings
1. TadejPogacar, Slovenia,UAE Team Emirates-XRG, 29:48:30. 2. Remco Evenepoel, Belgium, Soudal QuickStep, 29:49:24. 3. Kevin Vauquelin,France, Arkea-B&B Hotels, 29:49:41. 4. Jonas Vingegaard, Denmark,TeamVisma Leasea Bike,29:49:47. 5. Mathieu vander Poel, Netherlands, Alpecin-Deceuninck, 29:49:59. 6. Matteo Jorgenson, United States,Team Visma ‘Lease aBike, 29:50:04. 7. OscarOnley,Great Britain, Picnic PostNL, 29:51:19. 8. Florian Lipowitz, Germany,Red Bull— BORA —hansgrohe,29:51:32. 9. PrimozRoglic, Slovenia,Red Bull—BORA —hansgrohe,29:51:36. 10. Mattias Skjelmose, Denmark, LIDL-TREK/ USA, 29:52:13. Team Standings
1. Team Visma ‘Lease aBike, 89:29:39. 2. UAETeamEmiratesXRG, 89:35:12. 3. Groupama-FDJ,89:35:03. 4. Arkea-B&BHotels, 89:44:13. 5. Decathalon AG2R La Mondiale Team, 89:46:33. 6. RedBull—Bora—Hansgrohe, 89:50:32. 7. IneosGrenadiers, 89:53:38. 8. EF Education —EasyPost, 89:55:55.
SAINTS
Continued from page1C
the ground, stopping the run could help put the defense in more favorable situations on third down. Last year,the Saints faced an average third-down distance of 7.1 yards —good for around league average (17th). That’snot terrible, but New Orleans thengenerated pressure on only 35.6% of its third downs. That was the third-worst rate in the league. In general, the Saints need more out of their pass rush That area improved over the last eight games of the season, when then-interim coach Darren Rizzi had Brian Young oversee the defensive line rather than Todd Grantham.Inthat span, the
ANDERSON
Continued from page1C
against Coastal Carolina in a 1-0 victory He finished the season with a3.18 ERA in 19 starts, striking out 180 batters in 119 innings. Only Skenesand Ben McDonald have recorded more strikeoutsinasingle season in LSU history
“He’sdone everythinga first-round pick —a high first-roundpick—needs to do to go there,” the second scout said.
Anderson made afew obvious improvements to his game headinginto his sophomoreseason,mostnotably adding aslider to hisrepertoire. The new weapon diversified an arsenal that already included astrong fastball, changeup and curveball.
With four plus pitches, Anderson became more nasty against hitters on either side of the plate. And his ability to throw each offering for astrike made him an even rarer commodity in the eyes of scouts.
“Pretty much anyone that’sthrowing four plus pitches for strikes is in the big leagues already,” athird scout said on thecondition of anonymity.“So to see a guy doing it in college, it’s almost funny.It’slike, ‘Oh, this guy’sjust way better than his peers.’
What allows Anderson to command the ball consistently is his simple and repeatable delivery.He’sa good athlete who arrived at LSU as atwo-way player, atrait scouts see in his approach on the mound.
“The ease that he (threw the ball), it was kind of like a(TomGlavine),” the second
HIGGS
Continued from page1C
really alot of them are pulling for me. Me and Rocc (Carson Roccaforte) are really good friends,and Italk to John (Taylor) regularly and Duncan (Pastore)agood bit.”
Lastyearwas abanner year for the Cajuns with Kyle DeBarge going No. 33 overall to Minnesota and LP Langevin getting picked in the fourth round by Kansas City
“There’sbeen acouple teams I’ve talked to andgot invited to their draft process stuff, but really it’sup in the air for the most part right now,” said Higgs, who said he has gotten positive feedback from aNew York Yankees scout.“We’ll see. It only takes one.Ionly need one guy to believe in me and
Saints had20sacks after registering 19 in thefirst nine outings. Young was retainedonstaff when Kellen Moore was hired, although Jay Rodgers now coaches theteam’sedge rushers and Brian Davis coaches thedefensive line.
If this season goes right for the line, it’ll likely be because theSaints foundmore consistency in that regard. New Orleans hasn’t had a rusher earn double-digit sacks since Jordan in 2021. The best person to break that streak this year might be Chase Young —who, despite recording only 51/2 sacks in 2024, ranked sixth in quarterback pressures with 73. If Young canjustconvert more of those intosacks— and granted, that’sbeen the knock on himfor most of his career —then the line will
scout said. “The names that start popping in your head when you see him.It’sjust like, OK, those are all the rightnames to be compared to.”
Anderson’sdelivery is what afourth scout saw him improve upon by the endof the season.
“I remember that game in Baton Rouge (against Missouri), he was kind of fighting hisdelivery at two different pointsinthe game, thefourth scout saidunder the condition of anonymity “And then when Isaw him again in the SECTournament, it was like he maybe fell out of rhythm three or four pitches the entirestart and they were spaced out.
“He feltwhatever it was that was going awry, andhe madethe adjustment. He fixed it like on the very next pitch.”
Thescoutsalsosaw progress from Anderson’s changeup. The fourth scout observed flashesofa plus pitch when he sawAndersonthrow against Missouri By the timehewatched him again at the SEC Tournament, the offering had become aweapon.
“Ithad come alongway over the course of the spring,”hesaid.
“He’sgot zero issue throwing ittoboth leftiesand righties. So that was thepitch Ithought took the further step forward ” Foraspolishedand impressive as Anderson isas aprospect, there’snoguarantee that he’llbethe first pickSunday. Oklahoma high school infielder EthanHolliday,Tennessee left-hander LiamDoyle and California high school right-hander Seth Hernandez, among others, are also candidates. Anderson is projected
have power in hiswords.”
Higgs is coming off his best season after winning the team’s triple crown. The TexasCity native batted 355 with 12 doubles, two triples 16 homers, 46 RBIs and seven stolen bases. Higgs alsosporteda .472 on-base percentage thanks to 28 walks and 18 hit by pitches. He also pounded out a.680 slugging percentage to earn All-SunBelt recognition.
His career numbers are .310 with 43 doubles, eight triples, 34 homers, 113 RBIs, a.420 on-base percentage and 16 stolen bases.
“I’m very happy with how Iwent out at UL and how I bounced back fromthe year prior,” Higgs said As ajunior,Higgs hit .264 with 15 doubles, twotriples, 11 homers, 32 RBIsand six stolenbases.
Theoutfielder,who also played somefirst base this past season, said hisbig se-
be better off for it.
Worstcase
Wheneverthere’s a scheme change implemented, it can take at least ayear for thecoaching staff to find the right pieces for its defense. That might be thecase for New Orleansthis year
Even with Chase Young’s re-signing, theSaints don’t
to be the No. 1pick in The Athletic andESPN’s latest mock drafts, but there’sstill plenty of uncertainty regarding whothe Nationals will choose, especially after they decidedtofire general managerMike Rizzoa week before thedraft.
Anderson also isn’taperfect prospect. He’s hadTommy Johnsurgery already andhis fastballvelocity isn’t overwhelming, often sitting between 91-94 mph.
“I don’tknow,” the third scout said when asked whether he thought Anderson would go No. 1. “I think the unique thing aboutMLB is with allthe draft rules and stuff, it always seems like it comes down to money.Like, Henry Davis wentNo. 1a few years ago because he took less money than some other guys.”
Theconsensus among draft experts is that Anderson will get selectedatleast in the top 5. The Los Angeles Angels own the secondpick and the Seattle Mariners will have theNo. 3overallselection.
More than one scout who spoke withThe Advocate believesthe first pick will be either Anderson or Holliday, the son of former All-Star outfielderMatt Holliday and the younger brother of Baltimore Orioles infielder and former No. 1overall pick Jackson Holliday
“I could definitely see a scenario which(the Nationals) do (pick Anderson),” a fifth scout said on the conditionofanonymity.“Because they’ve got apretty good young core of players in the major leaguesthatI think areonthe brink of being pretty good.Ithink it’sgoing to be either himorEthan Holliday.”
niorseason was moreabout focusing on others.
“I attribute it to making what was going on with me alot smaller and putting the guys first,” he said. “The younger guys,trying to be aleader to them. It made it more free for me, because Iwasn’tthinking about my performance as much. Iwas thinking what Icould do to help them and teach them in the game and to help them learn the culture here.”
His list of contributions was so extensive that Higgs even had threesacrifice flies and two sacrifice bunts.
Evenifthe draft doesn’t go his way,Higgs won’tbe ready toslam thedoor on chasing his dream.
“No doubt, Ifeel likeIkind of owe it to myself to see it through,” Higgs said. “It’s always been my dream.”
Email KevinFooteat kfoote@theadvocate.com.
have aton of star power on theedge. The team chose to takeoffensive tackle Kelvin Banks in the first round instead of an edge rushersuch as Jalon WalkerorMykel Williams. TheSaints prioritized the offensive line,and while that’scertainly reasonable, it couldcomeata cost on defense.
Theworst-case scenario is that, in addition to the
“You could prettymuch mark those two down as one andtwo,” thefirst scout said.
“I’d go to Vegasonthatone.”
Both Holliday and Anderson areadvised by Scott Boras, an agent who has a history of making deals with Rizzo andthe Nationals. But even with Rizzo no longerat the helm, the fourthscout believesthe move probably won’taffect who Washington picks first.
“The scouting department worked the whole year putting the draft board together
Apredictionin 10 wordsorless
potentiallackofpressure from the edge,the changes intended to stop therun don’twork, either.The interioriscrowded right now And though that should be sorted out in training camp, there’sapossibility the Saints are still searching for aviable run defender over the course of the season, and players such as Bresee and Broughton don’tmake as muchofanimpact as the team would hope.
so it wouldn’tbenormal really to just blow the whole thing up right nowand go with some off-the-wall pick,” the thirdscoutsaid
“Especially with (interim general manager Mark DeBartolo) already being in the office.”
There is little doubt about who the most MLBready prospect is this year
The fourth scout recognized that when he watched Anderson strikeout eight of the first nine batters he saw against Texas A&M at the
Saints makestrides but still draft edge rusher next year
Email Matthew Parasat matt.paras@theadvocate. com
SEC Tournament.
“It felt like therewas a big-league starting pitcher on themound,”the fourth scout said. Anderson has done everything in his power to impress MLB organizations. Now it’s up to the Nationals to determine whether he will follow in Skenes’ footsteps as aNo. 1pick.
“I don’tknow if they should pickhim No.1,” the fourth scout said. “But he probably is the safest pick in the draft.”
STAFF FILE
PHOTOByDAVID GRUNFELD
Saints defensivetackle Vernon Broughton smiles afterfalling down while performinga drill during rookie minicamp on May10.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER Saints defensiveend Chase young warms up during minicamp practiceatthe OchsnerSports Performance Center on June 10
LIVING
Where’sthe thunderinthe La.music industry?
Herman Fuselier
July kicked off with another banner week for Louisiana music, especially grooves that originatefrom Lafayette and the surrounding area. “A Tribute to the King of Zydeco,” thestar-studded Clifton Chenier salute that’smaking headlines from New York City to Bangkok, Thailand, sat at No. 2onthe iTunes World Music Albums Chart. It was knocked from No. 1by“Songs from the Heart,” anew release from 87-year-old swamp pop legend and retired school principal Johnnie Allan, of Lafayette. The album jumped to thetop spot within two days of itsJuly 3debut.
Many are celebrating the latest lightning strikes for Louisiana music. But where’s the thunder —the business infrastructure that keeps music flowing and growing at home?
The question is as old as 1920s trailblazer Amedé Ardoin,who hadtogo as far as San Antonio and New York City to record songs that laid the foundation of zydeco and Cajun music. Theanswer remains missing like Joline, the mysterious figure in Ardoin’sFrench songs of love and lost. Lafayette journalist Christiaan Mader,ofthecurrentla. com, opined: Where are the booking agents, managers, publishing houses and other must-haves for asustainable, brick-and-mortar industry?
Maderpoints out music’s$1.5 billion impact to Louisianais “almost 10 times the output in Mississippi, birthplace of Elvis Presley,and about twice the output of Alabama, home of recording mecca Muscle Shoals.”
In light of the Cheniertribute success, Mader asked the sustainability questiontosome local insiders. He was metwith the usual head-scratching
Our music is powerful enough to influence the influencers, like the Rolling Stones. Theybarely blinked when asked to perform on the “King of Zydeco” tribute. Yetthe state is filled withGrammy nominees who work as carpenters, teachers, truck drivers and other jobs because music doesn’tpay thebills
There are no easy answers. But one strategy must be continued publicawareness. Keep the business of music in people’seyesand ears
Few fans stop to consider in this digital age, when their favorite artist is apush button away.Yet that musician earns fractions of apenny for each stream. One thousand streams fetch afat check of $4. Changing the publicmindset is particularly hard in Lafayette, acity now entering its third generation of major music events that don’tcost apenny to attend. That’s50
ä See INDUSTRY, page 4D
In style
BY JOANNABROWN Staff writer
Kate Fusilier didn’tgoto school for design. She didn’tgrow up knowinghow to sew.Infact, Fusilier startedmaking clothes just over ayear ago— andher looks havealreadycaught theattention of New York Fashion Week, where this Lake Charles native will showcase herfirst collection this September In thespan of ayear,and at the ageof40, Fusilier haslearnedto sew, started afashion label, and dressed celebrities like musician Dusky Waters and bass player Harmoni Kelley,who tours with Kenny Chesney She says thather new label, CosmicCollective, representsthe vibrancy andpageantryoflife in Louisiana —and it all started with adding alittlebling to thebandana shewas wearing as aface mask during the pandemic.
“I hadbeenmaking thesebandanas with crystalfringe, which Ithought would be cute,”said Fusilier,who previously worked in liquorsales for the food andbeverage industry.“In 2022, Iwalked intoaboutique, right when the Nashville disco cowgirlscenewas
BY RACHELMIPRO Contributing writer
Fusilier will showcase her work at the Flying Solo’s‘Ones to Watch’ runway showatNew york Fashion Week this September
blowing up. There were crystal fringe jackets, shorts —itwas everywhere. Iaskedifthey thought bandanas would sell, and they said that they would be great for bachelorette trips.”
Thatconversation led to the launchofBlingdana,the project
that would be Fusilier’sentry point into the world of fashion. After going to Dallas Market Center,a wholesale behemoth in the fashion, accessories and interiors space, Blingdana landed in boutiques acrossthe country.Fusilier, who livesinCovington,thenstarted receiving invitations to showcase Blingdanas at area fashion shows.
Highlighting bandanas in arunwayshowisa challenge, because therest of theoutfit can makeor break the accessory.Fusilier started upcyclingclothes to pair with herdesigns, but when she was asked to apply for NewOrleans Fashion Week in May 2024, she knew it was time she learned how to sew herself
“I went to anonprofit studio (the Seauxing Seeds Foundation) where they make dog beds for the Humane Society,” said Fusilier.“The sweetest womentaught me how to sew,and Irealized that Ihad something inside me that Ididn’tknow existed.” Cosmic Collective wasborn then —afashion label that is home to Fusilier’sBlingdana brand, and other items in her expanding garments and accessories collection,
Myra Clark Gaines, photographed between 1855 and 1865, fought for 57 years to
father’s
PROVIDED PHOTOS By LAURA FLANNERy
KateFusilier,who is from LakeCharles,isshown withitems from herNew Orleans-based fashion label Cosmic Collective.
TRAVEL
Visitors to Lake Charleswillfind arevitalized city
BY CHERE COEN Contributing writer
As if hiding inside during the first pandemic of most people’s memories was bad enough,Hurricane Laura came barrelinginto Louisiana in August 2020, slamming into the Lake Charles area with Category 4intensityand a brutal storm surge. Laura was the 10th strongest U.S. hurricane on record, and it left the region reeling.
Some Lake Charles residents imagined atarget on their backs after that fatal year,asLaura was followed by another hurricane, then arecord-breaking winter and adevastating flood in 2021. Signs still existofthe damage nature left behind, but for the most part, Lake Charles is experiencing aremarkable renaissance.
Businesses and homes have been rebuilt, many stronger than before, and new attractions debut this summer,including arejuvenationofthe lakefrontalong Interstate 10 which includes two new museums and ariverwalk. Vendors have emerged to get people outside, and by the Gulf’s edge, Lighthouse Bend offers a marina and RV sitesalong with arestaurant and market in Cameron.
Twoattractions in one
The newly-opened Port Wonder off I-10 (next door to the Lake Charles Visitor Center) shares its 32,000-square-foot building with theChildren’sMuseum of Southwest Louisiana and the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries’ Nature&Science Center Children —and adults as well may learn about everything from Louisiana’secosystems withlive marine creatures to broadcastingthe news while having loads of fun.
The Children’sMuseum features four galleries with interactive exhibits, explaining health, the media and retail outletssuch as grocery stores.There are also year-round programs and activities, birthday parties and field trips.
The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Nature & Science Center includes large freshwater and saltwateraquariums, interactive displays and an open pool where visitors may
TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER
By ChristopherElliott
touchmarine life.
Bothmuseums face the lake and include outdoorplay areas acovered fishing pier,analligatorpond (don’tworry,they aren’t free to roam) and walking trails thatconnect tothe Lakefront BoardwalkPromenade. The walkway will eventually extend miles around the city.
Getoutdoors
Lake Charles contains vast waterways and aflat terrain, so it’sideal for paddling enthusiasts and bikers.
Jerry “Sarge” Antoine went home to Lake Charles after serving in the Marinesand wanted to spendhis retirement sharing his love of the outdoors with others. Antoine offers guided kayak tourswith his Lake Area Adventures, including launching from Prien Lake Park into Indian Bay, the eastern shore of Prien Lake.
Donnie Glyenn hosts guided bicycle tours through Lake Charles. We’re talking fun wheels with music andlights
Booking.comtransfers
through historicneighborhoods and along the lakefront with his company Biking Through The Lake. The Creole NatureTrailcontinues to be aLouisiana gem. Nicknamed “Louisiana’sOutback,” thehorseshoe route winds
south through wetlands and bayous from I-10 to the Gulf, along Gulf beaches andCameron and then back up north toward Lake Charles.Itwas the first in the nation to be designedaNational Scenic Byway Thereare numerous ways to
accessthe trail, including hiking through marshesatthe Sabine National Wildlife Refuge south of Hackberry,shell hunting at Holly Beach andRutherford Beach alongthe Gulf —and bird andgator watching at the 3-mile driving loop at Pintail Wildlife Drive.
New to the trail is Lighthouse Bend at literally the end of the road in Cameron, atown and regionthathas seen its own fair share of destruction in the past 20 years. The newLighthouse Bend RV resort offers ways to camp near the Gulf at Cameron, use a14-slip marina with fueling andfish-cleaning stations, pick up suppliesatthe market and dine at its restaurant with water views. Be sure to look for Pinky the pink dolphin sightedalong the Cameron waterways. What’s newindining
Foryears, residents loved The Bekery for its fresh baguettes, scones,coffee andother delectable treats, nottomention its adorable patio
The Bekery still attracts patrons but nowina larger space in the Walnut Grove planned neighborhood Inside the newrestaurant, visitors will feel like they’ve been transportedtoFrance, enjoying The Bekery’sbestwith marble tables, crystalchandeliers, outdoor seating anda bistro-styled barserving wine and Champagne.Everything here is delicious, but we especially loved the lavenderlatte andfresh croissants.
Coming soon
Lake Charles owns avibrant Carnival scene. The Mardi Gras Museum of Imperial Calcasieu showcases the state’sunique celebration with displays of opulent headdresses and gowns wornby the morethan 65 krewes in southwest Louisiana and the costumes of the nearby Cajun courirs de Mardi Gras.
The museum is on hiatus as it moves from its previous home in the Center School Arts and Humanities Center into anew expanded space in the Nellie Lutcher Cultural District at 641 Enterprise Blvd. It plans to reopen later this year
Christopher Elliott
Ireserved avilla in Alicante, Spain, through Booking.com and paid infull.Three days before my trip, Booking.com canceled the reservation and offered little help in getting an alternative.I found anew propertyon Booking.com, but it cost $1,000 more. Booking.com agreed to refund thedifference and credited the amount to my Booking.com wallet. However,without my authorization, it then transferred the funds to an unknown credit card. Despite numerous emails and phone calls,Booking.com ignoredmyrequests for an explanation. Can youhelp? Elaine Treacy,Commugny, Switzerland Booking.com should have done
everything it couldtohelp you find an alternative whenithad to cancelyour reservation. Transferring your refund to the wrong account just addedinsult to injury Youdid the right thing by documenting your communications with Booking.comand persistently seekinganexplanation.
Here’s what should happen: If an accommodation provider cancels your reservation,which is what appeared to have happen, then Booking.com should have notifiedyou as soon as possible —not threedays beforeyour trip. It also shouldhave triedtofind suitable alternative accommodation. If it wasn’t available,thenBooking.comshould have given you a
full refund. Additionally,insome cases wherethe cancellation is the provider’sfault, Booking.com should have offered additional compensation, especially if there’s apricedifference between the canceled vacation rental and the replacement. Booking.com didn’tgive you enough time, and you had to negotiate the$1,000 compensation (it should have just offered it). And of course,itshouldn’thave sent your refund to amysterious third party
Youcould have triedcontacting amanager at Booking.com for help. Sometimes escalating the issue can lead to afasterresolution. Ipublish the names, numbers and
email addresses of Booking.com’s executives on my consumer advocacy site,Elliott.org.
In cases like this, where acompany ignores alegitimate complaint, sometimes involving athird party, like aconsumer advocate, can help.
Icontacted Booking.com on your behalf. After weeksofback and forth, Booking.com claimed they found no suspicious activity on your account. In other words, the company believedyou had transferred your refund from your Booking.com wallettosomeone else’scredit card.
Youthencontacted executives at Booking.comand threatened to report them to the National Cyber
Security Centre and Interpol. Booking.com then contacted you directly and issued afull refund to your bank account.
It’sunfortunate that it took such extrememeasures to get your refund. This situation highlights the importance of staying vigilant and persistent whendealing with travel companies. Remember to always document your communications and escalate the issue if you hit adead end.
Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy,anonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris@elliott.org or get help by contacting him on his site.
PROVIDED PHOTO
Jerry‘Sarge’ Antoine shares his love of the outdoors withhis Lake Area Adventures kayaktrips
PHOTO By CHERÉ COEN
The newChildren’sMuseum features four galleries with interactive exhibits.
By The Associated Press
Today is Sunday,July 13, the194thday of 2025. Thereare 171 days left in theyear
TodayinHistory
On July 13, 1985, the “Live Aid”benefit rock concerts were held simultaneously in London and Philadelphia, raising millions for faminereliefin Ethiopia
Also on this date:
In 1793, French politician,physician andjournalist Jean-Paul Marat was assassinatedbyCharlotte Corday,who stabbed him to deathinhis bath
In 1863, deadly rioting against theCivil Warmilitary draft erupted in New York City. (Theinsurrectionwas put down three dayslater.)
In 1923, asign consisting of 50-foot-tall letters spelling out “HOLLYWOODLAND” wasdedicated in the Hollywood Hills to promote asubdivision (the last four letters wereremoved in 1949).
In 1930, the first FIFAWorld Cupbegan in Uruguay In 1960, John F. Kennedywon theDemocratic presidential nomination on the first ballotathis party’sconvention in Los Angeles.
In 1973, former presidential aideAlexanderP Butterfield revealed to Senate WatergateCommitteestaff members theexistence of President RichardNixon’ssecret White Housetaping system
In 1999, Angel MaturinoResendiz, suspected of being the “Railroad Killer,” surrendered inEl Paso, Texas.
In 2013, ajury in Florida cleared neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman of allcharges in the shooting of Trayvon Martin, theunarmed black teenager whose killingunleashedfurious debate over racial profiling, self-defense andequal justice.
In 2018, agrand jury indictment, sought by special counsel Robert Mueller,allegedthatthe Russian government was behinda sweeping conspiracytointerfere in the2016 U.S.presidential election.
In 2020, Washington’sNFL franchisedropped the “Redskins” name and logo amid pressure from sponsors; the move followed decades of criticism that the name and logo were offensivetoNative Americans.(Theteam was eventually renamed theCommanders.)
Today’sBirthdays: GameshowannouncerJohnny Gilbert (TV:“Jeopardy!”)is97. Authorand Nobel laureate Wole Soyinka is 91.Actor PatrickStewart is 85. Actor Harrison Ford is 83. Singer-guitarist RogerMcGuinn (The Byrds) is 83. Rubik’sCube inventor Erno Rubik is 81.Actor-comedianCheech Marin is 79. Actor DaphneMaxwell Reid is 77. Actor Didi Conn is 74. Actor Gil Birmingham is 72. Singer Louise Mandrell is 71. Formerboxing champion Michael Spinksis69. Actor-director Cameron Crowe is 68. Comedian TomKenny is 63. ActorKen Jeong is 56. Singer Deborah Coxis51. Actor AyaCash is 43. Former St. Louis Cardinals catcherYadier Molina is 43. Actor ColtonHaynes is 37.Actor Steven R. McQueen is 37. Soul singer Leon Bridges is 36. ActorHayley Erin(TV:“General Hospital”) is 31.
In praise of thehumblehandkerchief
Dear Miss Manners: What is your opinion on handkerchiefs? Iprefer them to tissues. Ihave seen brides,at weddings that cost thousands of dollars, crying intowadded-up tissues. If they really find it so disgusting to reuse a soiled handkerchief, they could investafew dollarsinamulti-pack and get afresh one each time.
Also, Ibelieve that it is better for the environment.
Gentle reader: Why would anyone prefer aflimsypiece of paper to an all-purpose little cloth for mopping up life’sfrequent spills,including those from noses?
MissManners suspects it is the fussy name and theembellishments such as embroidery,floral motifs and monograms —that condemn handkerchiefs as frivolous.
So yes,she loves them.
Remind her to give large lacy ones to prospective brides who areknown to be emotional.
Dear Miss Manners: Twoteachers at the school where Iteach had babies. The school had separate baby showers for each of them, and Igave agift at each
shower Neither one has offeredany thanks to anyofusfor the giftsthey received. I’m rather surprised. Is this the norm these days?
Gentle reader: As you areateacher,you probably subscribe to the idea that normal behavior —which is to say, that behavior in whichmany people indulge —could standimprovement. That ingratitude is commondoes not make it acceptable.Nor is being busyanexcuseyou would accept from studentswho didn’tturn in their assignments.
ButMissManners presumesthat you arealso familiar with failure to complete atask. Are you sure that each of the packages included asecurely fastenedcard identifying thedonor?
Dear Miss Manners: Many of my soonto-be in-laws areupsetthat we don’t have awedding registry,and also that they don’thave my phone numberto complain.
Nobody bothers my fiancé, but his mother,“Noreen,” gets alot of calls from theextended family.I’ve given my blessing for hertoshare the truth: We are putting togetherphoto walls in thefronthallway of ourhome, andwill happily include anyone who sends us pictures
Eventhis highly personal gift idea isn’tcutting it, andNoreen is getting frazzled as the date draws nigh. Directing relatives to my fiancé’sphone numberisn’tworking. I’m tempted to make aregistry that is allsockstobedonated to acharity, but thatwould probably just make things worse for Noreen.
Pleasetalkmedown.
Gentle reader: Presumably youknow thatMiss Manners has long been railing exhaustively —and ineffectually —against the customofgiving one’s shopping list to guests.
Nevertheless, when she calms down, she realizesthatthere really are people who would like to pleasecelebrants andyet don’tknowthemwell enough to knowhow.Tomakethatpalatable,itshould be done indirectly and in generalterms. Whatyourfiancé’smother needs is suchananswertothe relatives: “They love kitchengadgets,” “Their house is in tonesofblue andgray” or “They travela lot.”
Sendquestions to Miss Manners at her website, www.missmanners.com; to heremail, dearmissmanners@ gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City,MO64106.
Amarkerhelps in restocking pill bags andboxes
Dear Heloise: When it’s time to restock your pill dispenser from your personal pharmacy,itcan be challenging to remember which time of day to take them or how many pills to take. To make this processeasier, consider using amagic marker to write when to takeeach pill on top of the cap, such as “a.m.,” “p.m.,” or whatever time you need them. For medications that need to be taken multiple times aday,you can write “a.m./ p.m.” For medications that need to be taken at acertain quantity, you can add the
quantityonthe cap, such as “2x”or“1/2.” These markings should only be made on your “active” bottles.
When you receive arefill for amedication, place it in your pill bag/box without marking thecap. This helps keep the“new” bottles withoutcap markings easily distinguishable from the“active” ones. Once an active bottle is empty,simply transfer the cap from the empty bottle to thenew bottle andreturn it to thebag/box. The cap from thenew bottle should then be placed on the old empty bottle. Removethe label and recycle.
Iuse two bags;one is stored inside theother.The inner bag contains active pills,and thenew pills are
placed between the outer andinnerbags. Ihopethis helps some of your readers.
—MichaelFloeser,inRochester, New York
Peelingpotatoes
Dear Heloise: Ilove your columnand have been afaithful reader fordecades. This is a tip on peeling potatoes. After having agarbage disposal backup due to putting potato peelings into it, the plumber suggested not to do this in the future.
Now,after washing the potatoes forpeeling, Iopen afew sheets of newspaper to cover the sink.
Then you can peel away When you’re done, just fold up the newspaper with the peelings, and you can safely dispose of the messinto the
garbage. No moreclogged drains!
Jodi Fidler, via email
Move it to junk
Dear Heloise: Iamresponding to Steve W. about unsubscribing. Ihave spent timeunsubscribing to unwanted emails. If it’salegit company,then I’ll consider it. But I’mfinding that most of them are probably just phishing to find live email addresses. Recently,I read an article that suggested to instead movethese unwanted emails to “junk.” Then your phone will start sending them there directly —Mark Hadley, via email Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.
Judith Martin MISS MANNERS
Hints from Heloise
Daughter losesidentityinquest to fitin
Dear Harriette: My 12-year-old daughter is going througha phase where she feels like she has to match everything her friendsdo, what they wear,what they eat, the shows they watch, thehobbies they’re into, etc. She constantly compares herself to them and puts so much pressure on herself to fit in, to the point where she won’teven try somethingnew unless she knows it’salready popular with her friend group. If her friends wear acertain brand, she wants the exact same thing. If they don’tlike something, suddenly she doesn’t either, even if she used to love it Iunderstand that middle school
Harriette Cole SENSE AND SENSITIVITy
can beatoughtime and that fitting in feels like themostimportantthing in the world at that age, but Ican’thelp but worry that she’sstarting to loseher sense of identity by trying so hard to blend in. Iwant to encourage her to think for herself and to be confident in who she is, even if that means standing out sometimes or doing somethingdifferent from the crowd.I don’twant to stifle her sociallife or makeher feel likeI’m judging her choices, butIdowant her to learn that it’sOKnot to be asheep. How do Italk to her about individuality andself-confidence in away that she’llactually hear and take to
heart? —Needing Independence
Dear Needing Independence: There may be no words that will help open your daughter’seyes. This is atime for you to show her that she has options. She might not like it, but Irecommend that you enroll her in an extracurricular activity that requires alot of her time —asport,computer programmingorpublic service are great options. Force her to do somethingonher own that will get her to thinkindependently Talk to her teachers. See if any of her classes can be changed. Something dramatic needs to happen to shake her out of her friends’ clutches. When my daughter was dealing withpeer pressure, her teacher took her
out of the class she shared with aclique the next year.She was devastated at first, but her schoolwork improved dramatically and her mindset eventually lifted, too.
Dear Harriette: My best friend and her fiancé have decided to call it quits. They’ve been together for nine or 10 yearsand have been engaged for the past two.They had even begun building their first home together aftermoving to anew state. About amonth ago, we had abridesmaids’ gettogether,sotomyunderstanding, they were still on the same page in terms of getting married. Sometime afterthat, Irealized they each removed photosofthe other from their social media accounts and have since canceled
their wedding. It washeartbreaking receiving an update like that via email. I’ve called and texted my friend, but she hasnot been responding to me. Otherfriends aresaying the same.How can I support my friend through such adifficult change that Idon’t even understand? —Breakup Mystery Dear Breakup Mystery: Give your friend space. She has alot to process. Text her once aweek telling her you love her and are there forher in any way she needs. But don’tpush.
Send questions to askharriette@ harriettecole.com or c/o AndrewsMcMeel Syndication, 1130 Walnut St., Kansas City, MO 64106.
FUSILIER
Continued frompage1D
like capes, pajama sets, caftans, dresses and more. She is currently designing the pieces that will appear on aManhattan runway this fall, when Cosmic Collection is highlighted at the FlyingSolo “Ones to Watch” show during New York Fashion Week on Sept. 14. “Kate’swork stood out forits distinct creative vision,meticulous craftsmanship, andstrong editorial appeal,” said arepresentative from FlyingSolo NYC, afashion company noted for platforming emergingde-
“Creativity isamuscle. The more you tap into it, the more it grows. In the process of redefinition that happens, Itapped into areal purpose Idid not plan, and it’struly agift.”
KATE FUSILIER
signers —and placing them in front of top outlets like Vogue, Elle and Harper’sBazaar Fusilier said, “The New York collectionisbrightand robust It’san homagetoNew Orleans, and how huge our parades areas part of the culture. There’saplay on marchingbandhats, there’s
feathers withfringe, mixing patterns —it’sa whole collection of cosmic ideas and colors.”
One of her current pieces is abodice designed from the vibrant colorsand textures of horse show ribbons, in another play on the spirit of pageantry that evokes fun, hard work and joyous spectacle.
Fusilier is at the beginning of her designing career,and she’s planning for big things to come.
“I expect to be in Vogue,” she said. “I will get in Elle magazine.” Andshe isn’tjust claiming it. Fusilier is working hard in anticipation of ameteoricrise and there’snoplace to go but up.
After all, this is adesigner wholaunchedanaccessories
In thespan of ayear,and at the ageof40, Fusilier has learned to sew, started afashion label and dressed numerous celebrities.
brand, afashioncompany, and a whole new career in amatter of monthsafter leavingrehab for alcoholism in 2020. She said that shewillbefive years sober in November,and “in manyways my company represents the phoenix of my sobriety.”
“If Ihadn’tgotten sober,this would not be my reality right now,”according to Fusilier.
“Creativity is amuscle. The moreyou tap into it,the more it grows. In the process of redefinitionthathappens, Itapped intoareal purpose Idid not plan, and it’struly agift.”
rightful heir to this, she was not going to back down.
“Even after her firsthusband died and she got remarried,there were times that she was in there arguing for herself. She was not going to let anything get in her way. And Ithink that was her just wanting to prove that she means something and that thisishers.”
Thechild of asecretmarriage Gaines was born in New Orleans in the early 1800s to Clark and aFrenchwoman named Zulime Carrière.The two had been married secretly.After they split, Clark destroyedevidence of the relationship when he wantedto remarry,Dunn said. Gaines was raised by friends of Clark and kept ignorant of herreal parentage until around1832, when she was going through her adoptive father’spapers. Clark’s1811 will bequeathed hisvasttractsof New Orleans land to hismother, administered by his businesspartners, extremely influentialpower brokers Beverly Chew andRichard Relf. The two would benefit heavily from the will,Dunn said,
allowingthemtoreceive much of his fortuneand land
Gaines found evidence of another will, made in 1813, that declared her hisheir and left her all his property andfortune —estimated then at $35 million Dunn said Gaines unearthed evidence that thetwo business partners haddestroyed this will for personal gain. As anewlywed, she filed the first lawsuit with thehelp of her husband, William Whitney,since women weren’tallowed to sue on their own Elizabeth Urban Alexander, author of “Notorious Woman:The Celebrated Case of Myra Clark Gaines,” talked about New Orleans’ response to her case.
“Those questions were not particularly well received by the New Orleanscommunity,because if Myra Gaines was right, then thelegal titles to afairly large portion of New Orleans were beingcalled into dispute,” Alexander said.“So thewhole power structure ofNew Orleans gathered together to support the executives of Clark’swill who were still alive, and to oppose this young couple.”
Sued andjailedfor libel
Chew andRelf sued Whitney for libel, landing him in jail for a
three-week stint.When Whitney died of yellow fever three years later,Gaines blamed the imprisonment for weakening him. After her first husband died, she remarried, and her second husband also supported her cause.
In 1858, theLouisiana Supreme Court finally nullified the1811 will and upheld thevalidity of the 1813 will. Butbythis time, the original estate had been split up and sold off, with much of Clark’s former land now belonging to the city.Gaines then had to sue the city for her land, enduring decades more of legal troubles.
Alexander described Gaines as savvy,bucking social normsthat expected women to stay quiet and unseen. Alexander said she’d dress fashionably —inone case showing up in court in black velvet,with diamonds in her hair and asilk hat with bird of paradise feathers. She’d have her second husband, ageneral, stand beside her in full uniform and introduce her before she’d talk
“In other words, she’sa picture of femininity while she’sdoing somethingthat women are not supposed to do,” Alexander said.
“She wanted tobepart of her lawsuit,and she was. “She argued her case by herself in court,” Alexander said. “She
was able to manipulate this sort of classification system of awoman as alady,without completely violating it.”
Settingthe trailfor women
The final tally was57years in court, with Gaines’ litigation pending in at least one court every single year,Alexander calculated. The lawsuit was heard 17 times before the U.S. Supreme Court and had over 70 court filings in various probate and district courts. After the case was finally settled in Gaines’ favor,her heirs were awarded $923,788, but years of dragging litigation had incurred heavy legal fees, Dunn said. In the end, her heirs were left with just over $60,000 after these costs werepaid.
“She didn’t get to really reap the benefits,”Dunn said. “But the legacy of this, she really set the trail for women to be able to go on and have amuch bigger role in their personal lives and society.”
Do you havea questionabout something in Louisiana that’s got you curious? Email your question to curiouslouisiana@ theadvocate.com. Include your name, phonenumber andthe city where you live.
INDUSTRY
Continued from page1D
years of free Festivals Acadiens et Creoles, 42 years of free DowntownAlive, 38 years of free Festival International and 37 years of free Bach Lunch. Citing financial challenges, organizers ended Rhythmsonthe River in June, after a25-year run of free shows. All of the events started as noble causes, but they’re difficult to maintain with little or no money coming in. Changing the minds of generations accustomed to music being free and cheap is alonghaul fight. Public officials, investors, media and economic development interests must be in the conversation, too. All of us play arole in building a music industry that’snot just holding its breath forthe next lightning strike.
Herman Fuselier is awriter
and
PROVIDED PHOTOS By LAURA FLANNERy
Kate Fusilier,who is from LakeCharles, shows offitems from her NewOrleans-based fashionlabel Cosmic Collective
AT THE TABLE
StuffedcrabswereonceanAnchorInn favorite
BY CATHERINE S. COMEAUX Contributing writer
My father’sboyhood summers were filled with legendarily large turtles, man-sized fish and overflowingshrimp nets threatening to sink the boat when he worked for the Anchor Inn, asmall family-run restaurant at Intracoastal City Folks traveled from miles around to the edge of Vermilion Parish to enjoy the fresh-caught seafood dished up on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Stuffedcrabs were afavorite.
Owners Lennis and Leontine Moss ran the businessfrom1949 until 1957. Leontine Mossserved as cook, kitchen manager and food purveyor.Lennis Moss and his crew of fishermen, including my father and his brothers, caught the seafood. Their granddaughter Marsha Frederick, who Imet via social media,was barely walkingwhen Hurricane Audrey sweptthe Anchor Inn away,but shehad pictures, stories and recipes to share. She and her husband recently joined my father and our family to swap stories overstuffed crabs —ataste of the past Iattempted to recreate. Inspiration for the restaurant’s name came at the end of aday of trawling when Moss hit asnag that threatened to tip his boat. With help, he pulled up an anchor taller than aman, an impressive size for Vermilion Bay
He sandblasted, paintedand hung it to mark the Anchor Inn, a small wood-sidedbuildingwitha screened porch facing thecanal. The restaurant attracted guests from near and far.One afternoon, after afried fish dinner,acouple of historians from New Orleans
Stuffed Crabs
Serves6.Recipe
stepped outtohave acloser look at theimpressiveanchor.There were nomarkingsonitwhich was asuresign, according to Lennis Moss,who often regaled customers with tall tales, that it was an outlaw anchor With sketches in hand, thehistorians traced the origins of the anchor to Lafitte’sBlacksmith Shop in New Orleans. According to my father,the pirate’sanchor nowmarks an international mooringbusiness located on U.S.90. Frederick isn’tsosure it’sthe same anchor,but no one in thefamily can verify Theoriginal anchor might be lost, but Ifelt lucky to put my eyes on oneofLeontine Moss’ original recipes. Since it was succinctly written in portions to feed asmall restaurant full of patrons, following it was achallenge. Frederickhadn’t madeitin
fromthe family of Leontine Moss.
ed as an alternative to homemade. Perhaps the restaurant goers of 1950s Vermilion Parish liked their stuffedcrabs roux-rich.
As much as Iwanted to recreate the flavor of the original recipe, I couldn’tbring myself to add the full amount of roux, partly owing to my personal taste and partly forfear of ruining agood-sized portion of high-priced crab meat
However,inreducing the roux, my stuffed crabs came out alittle dry
Roux adds flavor and moisture as it helps hold the crab meat together.When Imake this recipe again, Imight channel the spirit of Leontine Moss and add the full amount or add an egg to help bind the meat
What kind of crab meat would Moss have used?
She likely used freshly picked crab, amixture of dark sweet claw meat,smoothbuttery lumps from the body,and tasty chunks from the back fins. Perhaps she mixed in alittle bit of the flavorful“fat.”
Iwould have preferred to use fresh-picked crab but my timing wasoff. Iwas able to score aset of crab backs from afamily crab boil which Iscrubbed clean and froze until Ineeded them, but for the stuffingI used frozen crab meat,four parts lumptoone part claw
1. In a4-quart lidded Magnalite or Dutch oven, stir and heat the roux over medium-highheat
2. Add onionsand cook afew minutes, then add celery and bell pepper
3. Cook on medium heat about 15-20minutes, until oil starts to separate.
4. Add ground shrimp and garlic, simmer 15 minutes.
5. Add enoughwater to reserved shrimp liquid to make 11/2 cups of liquid, then pour into pot and simmer 1hour,stirring frequently
This should be cooked down thick.
6. Add seasonings —salt, red pepper,Kitchen Bouquet,Worcestershire sauce, Tabasco, red hot sauce,parsley and onion tops
7. Gently fold in the crab meat.
8. If mixture is dry,add small amount of water
cleanedcrabshells, aluminum crab shells or small ramekins
9. Gently mixinabout 1/4 cup breadcrumbs.Crab mixture can be refrigeratedovernight at this time
10.Preheatovento425 F. 11.Stuff mixtureintocrab shells/ramekins and topwith remaining breadcrumbs (mixed with melted butterifdesired)
12.Bakeuntil breadcrumbs are toasted
Recipe notes:
n The largeramount of dark roux is what the original recipe calledfor
n If usingthe lesser amount of roux, consideradding an egg to help hold the meattogether
n For addedflavor,substitute chicken or seafood stock for water
n Kitchen Bouquet is found in most grocery stores near the
years, so Ifound myself calling on the spirit of her grandmother to help me. Frederick had shared an image of the nicely dressed, gently smiling lady standing at acounter at the Anchor Inn, her nails done, looking like she was ready toserve acold Jax beer (or perhaps answer myquestions about her recipe).
Iwasn’tconvinced the crab-to-
roux ratio was correct. Wouldn’t thedark, jarred roux overpower thedelicate crab meat?Moss, who passed away in the ’60s, madeher own roux (jarred roux didn’tbecome available until 1975).
Perhaps something was miscommunicated in relaying the recipe across generations, especially when jarred roux wasadd-
We enjoyed the stuffed crabs with fresh corn maque choux, and sliced cucumbers splashed with cane vinegar and sprinkled with salt. Jax beer,astaple at the Anchor Inn, was served, thanks to the Port Orleans Brewing Company.Itrecently revived the brew after it had been discontinued in 1974. The Anchor Innhas been gone for68years now but you can get a taste of its history in this recipe.
broths and stocks.Itprovides color and minimal flavor
n Both redhot sauceand Ta-
were called for in
n
basco
the origi-
nal recipe. Iused afew dashes of Tabasco and omittedthe red hot sauce.
Iusedbuttered breadcrumbs
for tops. Mix 1-2 tablespoons melted salty butter in with the remaining breadcrumbs before sprinkling on top.
Swappingstories over stuffed crabs recently were,front row, Catherine S. Comeaux and her father Harold Schoeffler;back row, Paul and Marsha Frederick, whose grandmother Léontine Moss was well-known forher stuffed crabs. The crabswere afavorite menuitematthe Anchor Inn restaurant, owned by the Mosses.
PROVIDED PHOTO
Léontine Moss and her husband, Lennis, owned the Anchor Inn from 1949 until 1957.
Hurricane Katrinauprooted environmentalprofessor’s life
Butlater,she discovered howbirding canchangethe world
BY JOYHOLDEN Staff writer
Sometimes natural disasters have away of rerouting aperson’slife. In Trish O’Kane’scase, she transformed from acivil rights journalist to an ornithologist and environmental activist,a journey she recounts in her nonfiction book, “Birding to Change the World.”
O’Kane, currently an environmentalstudies professor atthe University of Vermont, moved to New Orleans to teach journalism at Loyola University with her husband on Aug. 1, 2005. Three weeks later,Hurricane Katrina hit, and everything they hadwas underwater
When she returned in January 2006, O’Kane put up bird feeders in the yard of her rented house, and she began to watch the birds, becomingfascinated with house sparrows. This “birding fix” grew and helped her heal. Inspired by her newfoundlove for nature, she applied to and completed aPh.D. program in environmental studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
During this time, she made Warner Park, alarge park with wetlands and arichlydiverse natural environment, acrucial piece of her dissertation.She started an activist group called “Wild Warner” and began aprogram, “Birding toChange the World,” which partnered college students with middle school students for asemester to learn about birds and experience wildlife.
Bill Moyers helped reintroducepoetry to Americans
Ihad thoughtofsocial justice very rigidly,and then, because of Katrina, Iwas able to make the connection with environmental justice —but it was still justice. Iwas very lucky and privileged that Iwas able to go back to school in my mid-40s. Iwas the first one in my family to get aPh.D. The transformation was because ofour education system
When Iemailedthisprofessor in Madison, he answeredand changed my life. He changed my husband’s life. He changed the history ofWarner Park.
How did yourexperience with Hurricane Katrinaand teaching the Warner Park kids help you to connect environmental justice with social justice?
DuringKatrina, it was playingout rightinfront of us. If we hadn’t connected the dots before, it was very obvious all of asudden. If youdidn’thave acar or if you didn’t have acar that worked, how were you going to get out ofthere?
As we approach the 20th anniversary of Katrina, can you describe the transformation that happened in your life because of the hurricane and the events that followed?
Ithink alot of people whowent through Katrina feel this way:I felt like Idied. That person who was acertain kind of person died, and anotherpersonwas born afterward. It just took a long time for that person tofind outwho shewas. Iwas 44, and I wanted to make achange. As acivil rights journalist,I was in Central America for 10 years, and Iwas in Alabama at the Southern Poverty Law Center,soIdon’tfeel like Ibecame atotally different person. Ifeel like the seeds of those experiences cameout and could grow in anotherway that Ihadn’texpected.
When Iwas researching the book later,readingabout people with disabilities who had no transportation, I’d ask, “What happened to them?”“Did they getout ofthe city?” Thosethings for uswere visceral. They were notjuststatistics. We lived it. We saw it.
Iwasn’t from New Orleans. I had just moved there. ButIhad ajob,Ihad money,and Ihad a friendwho found me aplace to live. Iwas reading about these NewOrleanians stranded all over thecountry,people who camefrom generations of families. It was just wrong. The accumulationofexperiences of that time was justa wake-up call.
When Iwent to Madison with the kids, Ihad lived in Central America. I’d seen alot of poverty
and injustice, but because I hadn’tlived in acold climate, I didn’tknow what was required to be outside.
All of asudden, there are all these little kids in our program on aFebruaryday with 2feet of snow on the ground in their little sneakers and cotton socks, and it was acatastrophe. Irealized Icouldn’tdothis if these kids don’thave proper clothing, but their parents couldn’tafford the clothing.
So we started clothing drives, and we do that now in Vermont, too. My college studentsdoclothing drives for the kids, but that doesn’taddress thefundamental injustice of living in acold place with children who have aright to be outside. It’s essential for their physical and mental health, but you can’tafford apair of Smartwool socks because you’re a cashier at the grocery store who doesn’tget paid enough.
The injustices are so baked in to our systems, and we don’t even see them.Suddenly,itwas right in front of me. Acrying child turning blue.
Those kids were great teachers. What wouldyou likefuture readers to know about this book?
Ilearned while living this book that we can’tdoitalone. Everythingthat happened to me here was because people were kind and helpful and opened doors during theworst time in their lives. Ifound aflock in Madison. Ifound agroup of people who believed and wanted to help protect this place, Warner Park. We all can find common ground in what we love.
Email Joy Holden at joy holden@theadvocate.com.
Bill Moyers, whodied last month at 91, will be remembered forhis workasatop aide to President Lyndon B. Johnson and alater career in broadcasting. But Moyers shaped my life mostvividly in his championship of poetry,aform of readingthat fewofusembrace these days. I’d been obliged to study poetry in college, but once I started acareer and looked toward new roles as ahusband and father,poems seemed far removed from what Iconsidered “real life.” But hearing an Elizabeth Bishop poem on a public TV show several decades ago nudged me to give poetry a secondlook. Meanwhile, Moyers had embarked on aseries of PBS projects aimed at reintroducingpoetry to new readers. Those programs, “The Power of theWord” and “The Language of Life,” helped reawaken my interest in poetry,too.
Modern poetry has areputation for being arid and abstract, something eked out by scribes wearing turtlenecks and berets in agrungy cafe. But Moyers, who’d grownupjust across the Louisiana border in Marshall, Texas, seemed like someone Imight know.His twang was comfortably familiar to anyone who’sgrownupinthis part of theworld, and as ajournalist, his eye wenttoward the real and concrete rather than the remoteand ethereal.
His love of poetry moved me to think that Imight also like it. The poets that Moyers interviewed for his TV shows didn’t seem stuffy and detached, either.Iespecially enjoyed his talks with Donald Hall and Jane Kenyon, two poets who had marriedeach other and built alife
in rural New Hampshire. Their shared household seemed much like that of any other family: gardens to weed, bills to pay, some health struggles, the question of what to cook for dinner
The couple’sconversations with Moyers pointed to poetry’s power to illuminate everyday experience, making small moments shine. Those glints of revelation appealed to the same sense of curiosity that drew Moyers to journalism
“Poetry is news—news of the mind, newsofthe heart —and in the reading and hearing of it, poet and audience are fused,” he pointed out. “Strangers converge but community emerges, the shared experience of being present when poetry reveals a particular lifetobeevery life— my life, your life, you, me, us.” Through television, Moyers connected Americans with poets at street level, an especially valuable giftsince fewofusget to know poets firsthand. In my own work as ajournalist, I‘ve been lucky to know quite afew, including Louisiana poets Ava Leavell Haymon and Catharine Savage Brosman. Their work resonates because it’sapart of, not apart from, daily concerns. With the arrival of Marie Howe’s“Newand Selected Poems” on my nightstand, poetry continues to be on my reading list this summer.I have Bill Moyers to thank for getting us together
Email Danny Heitman at danny@dannyheitman.com
NewOrleans Book Fest expandsFamilyDay
Fullday dedicatedto kid-friendly reading
BY MADDIE SCOTT Staff writer
The New Orleans Book Festival at Tulane University will expand itspopularFamily Day in 2026 to Sunday,March 15, as a dedicated day of literary fun just for children and families to wrap up theweekend. Previously held on Saturday alongwith otherBook Fest events,FamilyDay will now takecenter stage at 10 a.m.on Sunday forexclusive family programming. The day will feature kidfriendly author readings, book signings, interactive performances, costumed characters andcrafts. Book lovers will find readings of all levels, backgroundsand interests.
“This move gives us the chance to elevate Family Day even further,” Cheryl Landrieu, festival co-chair,said in astatement. “By
extending the festival into Sunday, we’re creating more space forfamilies to explore, connect and celebrate the joy of reading without competing with other programming.”
Last year’sFamily Day welcomedmorethan 20 children’s authors and distributed over 5,000 free booksinpartnership with Scholastic.
The free, four-day NewOrleans Book Festivalbegins the eveningofThursday, March12 followed by three full days of programming from 10 a.m. to 5p.m. on Friday,Saturday and Sunday
Theauthorlineup will be announcedinNovember2025, andthe full schedule will be announced in the weeks before thefestival. Registration for attending thefestivalisnot required but strongly encouraged. Guests canregister ahead of timeonline.
“Family Day is one of the most joyful and inclusive parts of the festival,” Landrieu said. “We’re thrilled to give it the spotlight it deserves.”
by RonChernow 10. “100 Days of Joyand Strength” by Candace Cameron Bure
TRADEPAPERBACK
1. “One Golden Summer” by Carley Fortune 2. “Severed Heart” by Kate Stewart
3. “The Tenant”byFreidaMcFadden
4. “Caught Up” by Navessa Allen
5. “Sandwich” by Catherine Newman
6. “Remarkably Bright Creatures” by Shelby VanPelt
7. “Problematic SummerRomance”by Ali Hazelwood
8. “LightsOut”byNavessa Allen
9. “The Spellshop”bySarah Beth Durst
10. “FourthWing” by Rebecca Yarros
Dan an AT RANDOM ny Heitm Danny Heitman
Moyers
PROVIDED PHOTO
Trish O’Kane, author of ‘Birding to Changethe World,’and environmentalstudies professor at the University of Vermont
MUSIC THAT MOVES THEM
BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer
The Crowe Boys went viral last year BrothersOcieand Wes Crowe filmedthemselves performing theircountry folk song “Where Did I Go Wrong?” one evening in January2024 in apark near Ocie’sArabihome. Theyposted thevideoon TikTok and watched in amazementasitgathered more than amillion views overnight.
The post ultimately racked up 20 million views and caught the attention of music industry executives looking for the next big thing.
Aftertalking to dozens of recordlabels,the brotherssigned with theNashville, Tennessee, division of industry giant MCA, which released their debut album, “Made to Wander,” in June.Inafew weeks, they embark on their first
Struggling school systems, churches weigheddownbysurplus properties
BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer
BAUDOUIN,
KATIE
School Board president
The Crowe Boys —brothers Ocie and WesCrowe performatthe FarOut LoungeinAustin, Texas.The duo recentlygarnered national attention after posting their song ‘Where DidI Go Wrong?’onTikTok.
European tour The experience has made Ocie Crowe afirm believer in the power of a song. “If you make something real forpeople, your audience will find you,” he said. Louisianaisahotbedoftalented
ä See MUSIC, page 2E
Stegall, Benton &Associates. “An older,special
whole other deal.”
STAFF PHOTO By DAVID GRUNFELD
The former L.E. RabouinMemorial School is among sevenproperties the Orleans Parish School Board has been trying to auction
STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
Producer andengineer Misha Kachkachishvili mixes music by local musician Brian Stoltz with the help of internSandro Iezhava at Esplanade Studios in NewOrleans.
PROVIDED PHOTO
KFC closes last
Acadiana locations
KFC, which made a big splash when it opened three locations in Lafayette, has apparently closed all its locations.
The national brand quietly closed at 200 Kaliste Saloom Road and 3328 Ambassador Caffery Parkway after posting signs on the door It also closed its location at 1007 E. Main St. in New Iberia.
All three are operated by KBP Foods, the largest KFC franchisee in the United States. The three locations are believed to be the last in southwest Louisiana. KBP closed the location at 1320 N University Ave. in 2023 as part of wave of closures across southwest Louisiana.
Emails to both KBP Foods and KFC corporate were not returned.
It’s the latest in a string of closures across the country for KBP but also for the KFC brand, reports indicate. The franchisee closed about 25 locations in the Midwest last fall, while the KFC has had others closing, including one in Iowa that cited the restaurant’s unprofitability after 45 years of business.
KFC has reported declining sales in several quarters of late, and sales in 2024 were down 5% from 2023, reports indicate. Earlier this year it slipped behind Raising Cane’s in annual U.S. sales among chicken chains and now ranks fourth overall, behind Chick-fil-A and Popeyes.
KBP partnered with a Kansas company to build the three Lafayette locations, and that group sold all three. The locations along North University Avenue and Kaliste Saloom Road sold in 2019 for a combined $3.1 million, land records show
The Ambassador Caffery Parkway location sold for an undisclosed amount in 2020, but that property changed hands again last year for $1.15 million, records show
Viemed buys medical equipment firm for $26M
Lafayette-based Viemed closed on its purchase of an Illinois-based medical equipment business that specializes in respiratory care and women’s health.
Viemed and Lehan’s Medical Equipment announced they had wrapped up the $26 million deal last week that also includes an estimated $2.2 million in contingent payments.
Viemed funded the acquisition through a combination of cash on hand and borrowings from its existing credit facilities. Last year, Lehan’s generated net revenues of approximately $25.7 million.
Lehan’s offers home medical equipment and products for women’s health, including breast pumps and provides rental, sales and resupply of CPAP machines and other respiratory devices.
It has locations in Illinois and Wisconsin.
“We are pleased to close the acquisition of Lehan and bring this talented and highly motivated team into the Viemed family,”
Viemed CEO Casey Hoyt said in a statement. “Lehan’s 80-year track record and brand recognition in a large and fast-growing market along with its preferred contracts and fulfillment expertise make for a powerful combination with our national scale, unique care delivery model and existing payer relationships to serve a broader patient population.”
PROPERTIES
Continued from page 1E
Widespread issue
Other institutions in Louisiana are facing the same issues as the New Orleans school system.
The East Baton Rouge Parish system closed nine schools at the end of May, leaving six buildings vacant. Superintendent LaMont Cole has said he wants to explore converting at least one former school into rent-reduced housing for district teachers.
Last summer after demolishing the former Haynes Academy in Metairie and listing it for sale, the Jefferson Parish School Board took the property off the market. School Board members said at the time that they were concerned the 8.3-acre campus wouldn’t fetch a fair price.
The property had initially appraised for $12.3 million, a number much lower than expected. A second appraisal came in even lower at under $10 million.
The Archdiocese of New Orleans, one of the largest landowners in the New Orleans area, has also come up against the issue. In 2008, the Roman Catholic diocese closed 27 churches amid a postHurricane Katrina decline in the area population.
In the nearly two decades since, only 15 have been sold. Of those, just five fetched $1 million or more.
More recently, as it has begun selling additional properties to raise money to compensate survivors of clergy sex abuse in its ongoing Chapter 11 bankruptcy case. The archdiocese has listed several properties for sale and, in some cases, has lowered its asking price several times before getting any offers.
Avenue in New Orleans was purchased in late 2022 after a group of developers that had purchased it from the archdiocese in 2016 ran into financial trouble. A renovation is underway to turn it into an event venue.
Developers also successfully converted the former Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church in Faubourg Marigny into a boutique hotel and an old convent on the edge of the French Quarter into high-end apartments.
But Sts. Peter and Paul Church and the convent were sold and renovated years ago, when interest rates were more favorable and construction costs were much lower
Some, like the former Catholic Bookstore and its adjacent parking lot on South Carrollton Avenue, sold quickly Others, like the former Sacred Heart Church on Canal Street, have been on the market for years.
‘Whole different climate’
Part of the problem, real estate watchers say, is the nature of old, institutional buildings.
“Old churches are tough because they were built for specialized uses,” said Baton Rouge-based developer and architect Dyke Nelson, who has done historic conversion projects around Louisiana and out of state. “If you are going to use historic building tax credits, you’re constrained in what you can do so it becomes a lot more difficult.”
Some of the properties are also in older neighborhoods, where developers are less interested in renovating them for new uses.
Institutions have had better luck with some of their buildings, of course. The former Our Lady of Lourdes Church on Napoleon
“It’s a whole different economic climate now,” Benton said. “Financing is more difficult. So is everything else.”
In the case of the Orleans Parish School Board properties, the auction format, required by state law, also likely dampened interest from prospective buyers, said Paul Richard, the commercial broker with NAI Rampart who marketed the properties.
“It takes time to put together the kind of financing needed to buy a historic building if you plan to renovate it,” he said. “That runs up against the short-term nature of an auction.”
Baudouin said the board may try to auction the properties off for a third time this fall. By law, the board would not be required to set a minimum bid, potentially offering the properties for sale at a lower price.
“We are looking at what the best strategic decisions to make. And we are feeling the same pressure as others,” she said.
Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@theadvocate. com.
It’s an inspiring story demonstrating how modern digital platforms can help musicians find an audience quickly
But the Crowe Boys’ breakthrough also underscores a challenge for Louisiana: When promising music acts emerge from its fertile ground, they often are forced to look elsewhere for the professional support needed to launch and maintain their careers.
That’s because New Orleans, despite being the birthplace of jazz and home to amazing musicians, never built a robust music industry ecosystem — the major labels, talent agencies or music publishers to match those in rival music cities like Los Angeles, New York and Nashville.
Over time, those cities have benefitted from critical mass that attracts the music creatives and businesses That leaves New Orleans as a town known primarily for its live music scene.
“We do not have a recording industry; we have a hospitality industry that caters to musicians,” said Misha Kachkachishvili, owner of Esplanade Studios, a high-end recording studio in Mid-City whose client list ranges from local brass bands to Taylor Swift. “If there’s no festivals, hotels, bars or restaurants, the whole thing will die immediately.”
dios, rehearsal spaces, trucking companies and caterers. Altogether, the industry is responsible for about 67,000 jobs.
Many local music insiders think building similar songwriting activity in Louisiana could boost the state’s business overall.
“Our musicians put all their effort into their gig on Frenchmen Street to make a hundred bucks,” said Reid Wick, a New Orleans native and executive at the Recording Academy, the national trade group that produces the Grammys. “But the real money is taking the intellectual property of songwriters and putting it into commerce.”
Teams behind the scenes
Behind every big-time music act in the nation’s $200 billion music industry, there’s a team of professionals working outside the spotlight.
Music managers negotiate business deals with help from specially trained lawyers and accountants.
city’s music scene They also model, in an increasingly decentralized music industry, how the business of music can be done outside of the major hubs, which raises hopes that their presence will attract others. A loose-knit coalition of local music industry champions is working to grow that community
After working for Austin, Texas’ famed South by Southwest conference for more than two decades, Melissa and Kirk O’Brien moved to the New Orleans area in 2018 and, a few years later, launched NOLA MusiCon to create educational and networking opportunities. It returns for its third year in October, two months after the decades-old Cutting Edge Music Business Conference.
‘We let it fly’
Dating back a century ago to when Louis Armstrong left his hometown to launch his global jazz career, New Orleans has tended to export its musical talent to bigger industry hubs A few decades later, Fats Domino recorded hits in New Orleans for the benefit of out-oftown record companies.
was a missed opportunity.
“We weren’t able to build an industry around it,” he said. “We let it fly.” ‘Constant supply and demand’
Talent agents screen potential gigs and endorsements. Record labels distribute music on streaming platforms. Publishing companies sell songs.
Another October event, NOLAxNOLA, was launched during the pandemic to promote local venues. And the Metronome music business accelerator offers training, mentorship and networking to founders of music tech companies.
This dynamic is something local industry champions have lamented for decades. The latest torchbearers tout solutions that include new business initiatives, changes to public policy and a fresh focus on songwriting, the music industry’s core intellectual property
“We have to make it easy for businesses to come,” said PJ Morton, a five-time Grammy-winning soul and R&B artist from New Orleans who moved home in 2016 to start a record label. “We have an advantage because people love to be in New Orleans and create here.”
Allen Toussaint flipped the script for a while in the 1960s and ’70s with his New Orleans-based label and recording studio. And in the 1990s and early 2000s, several homegrown hip-hop labels scored big hits and introduced stars like Lil Wayne and Juvenile to the world, raising hopes that New Orleans could become an enduring hub of hip-hop and R&B music.
“When Cash Money was here, we had famous people in town all the time,” said Raj Smoove, a DJ who contributed material to one of Lil Wayne’s big albums. “You never know who you’d run into at a club or a mansion in Eastover.
But those labels eventually fizzled or left town for bigger cities, which music attorney Tim Kappel said
Today, the Louisiana music industry contributes an estimated $1.4 billion to the state’s annual gross domestic product, along with roughly 31,000 jobs But much of that economic activity comes from music-based tourism — the state’s many festivals and events that employ musicians, sound engineers and other production personnel on a gig basis.
Nashville has plenty of live music, too. But its $7.4 billion music industry is driven primarily by recording and songwriting.
On the city’s Music Row, songwriters gather daily in rooms with acoustic guitars and laptops to dream up hit tunes. They work for music publishers, who help sell the songs. The town’s record labels, meanwhile, look for the best compositions for their artists.
“There’s constant supply and demand next to each other, and that’s what churns the town,” said Jim McCormick, a New Orleans-born songwriter who has worked in both cities for two decades.
An ecosystem has developed to support that churn professional services along with recording stu-
When economic development officials talk about building the city’s industry, these are the well-paying jobs they’re talking about.
New Orleans isn’t home to the offices of any national labels, talent agencies or music publishers But it does have a small but influential group of national music industry executives who are based here and travel as necessary
The community includes Patrick Templeman, a business manager for A-list stars who in 2015 set up a 15-person New Orleans office of his global firm PS Business Management and last year partnered to buy Mid-City music club Chickie Wah Wah.
Amy Davidson, whose firm M Theory provides services for music managers, and Reeves Price, who produces festivals for concert industry giant AEG, also work from New Orleans, as does Ryan Chavez, founder of New Orleans-based entertainment industry tech platform Imprinted. Along with a few music lawyers and other pros serving high-profile New Orleans artists, these industry executives lend credibility to the
Recording Academy’s Wick, meanwhile, is focusing on policy issues that affect the industry He recently created Louisiana Music Partners, a statewide trade association One of its first official acts was to criticize Gov Jeff Landry’s recent veto of an extension of the state’s 20-year-old music industry tax credit program.
Landry said the program was underused. Music businesses that had participated claimed red tape was the problem and said changes made during this year’s legislative session would have improved it.
“The veto eliminates the state’s only investment in the music industry and shows a complete lack of regard for the Louisiana music community,” a statement from the trade association said.
Fighting headwinds like that, Wick and others believe it’s important to pursue multiple strategies, including building music business literacy statewide.
Ocie Crowe is learning why that matters in real time.
Said Crowe: “Why play for four hours for $50 when a song I made adds two zeros to that every month?”
Email Rich Collins at rich. collins@theadvocate.com.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER
Fans dance as Son Rompe Pera performs at the Cultural Exchange Pavilion Stage during the 2025 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. New Orleans is a town known primarily for its live music scene, but many musicians leave in pursuit of a more robust music industry with major labels, talent agencies or music publishers.
STAFF FILE PHOTO By IAN McNULTy
The Elysian Bar serves dinner and brunch in the event space at the Hotel Peter & Paul, within the former Sts. Peter and Paul church in the Marigny in New Orleans.
Morton
Smoove
TALKING BUSINESS
ASK THE EXPERTS
LSU innovation leader predicts an energy renaissance
BY BLAKE PATERSON Staff writer
Q&A WITH BRAD IVES
With a $25 million donation from Shell, LSU three years ago created a new institute to support research aimed at issues facing the energy sector Since then, the Institute for Energy Innovation has awarded grants to LSU scientists studying extreme winds and their impact solar installations, the risks and benefits of carbon sequestration, the best places to locate wind farms in coastal Louisiana and new forms of battery storage.
At the institute’s helm is Brad Ives, a North Carolina native who arrived at LSU in 2023 after a three-decade career that included stints as a Wall Street lawyer, investment banker, renewable energy executive, assistant secretary of the North Carolina natural resources agency and university administrator
The institute’s goal, Ives said, is to figure out how to decarbonize the energy sector and do so in a way that’s “fair and just.” That includes funding research into technology, public policy and economics, as well as engaging in community outreach and education.
In this week’s Talking Business, Ives discusses how the “One Big Beautiful Bill Act” will affect the energy transition, why he thinks it’s important to partner with industry on solutions and how he thinks Louisiana can become a global energy leader
This interview has been edited for length and clarity You arrived at LSU at a time when
Brad Ives took over as executive director of LSU’s Institute for Energy Innovation in 2023
the federal government was investing heavily in efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Many of those programs were scaled back as part of the domestic policy bill that President Donald Trump signed earlier this month. What does that mean for the energy transition in Louisiana?
The transition will be slower You’re still going to see solar projects built in Louisiana after all the tax credits are gone, because it makes financial sense.
But the big driver of what’s happening is not the U.S. domestic market. It’s the global markets. The EU is putting in what they call a carbon border adjustment mechanism that’s effectively a carbon tariff that will kick in in 2026, and it’s initially going to track steel, aluminum, cement and fertilizer This is not woke, lefty, green, whatever buzzword you want to use: This is global competitiveness.
We have the world’s largest ammonia plant here for fertilizer, CF Industries For that plant to continue to be com-
petitive globally, they need to be the lowest carbon intensity producer of that product. Critics, including environmentalists and activists, have said they’re skeptical that the institute is committed to lower carbon future given that its main benefactor is a fossil fuel giant. How do you respond to that?
The analogy everybody goes for is Phillip Morris paying Harvard researchers to say that smoking wasn’t harmful. We’re not absolving the oil and gas industry for climate change. I will tell you that burning hydrocarbons has led to climate change. That’s settled science. I don’t think there’s any taint of the money on the work that we’re doing.
If you want to look at the moral hazard of taking money from people who’ve contributed to it, I might flip it around and say, you know, this is a great sign that companies realize they’re part of the problem, and they’re looking for solutions and funding groups like ours, and they’re
willing to hire somebody like me. I mean, I got fired at the University of North Carolina over my efforts to shut down their coal plant, and I’m the guy that they sought out to run this thing.
What’s amazing is if you go to these refineries and chemical plants and talk to people, they want to change it They want to be lower carbon. This is just the job they have, and it’s how they pay their bills, and it’s what they do. They’re looking for better ways to do it.
One of your goals is to make sure that the energy transition is “fair and just.”What does that mean and how do y’all plan to accomplish that?
Twenty percent of Shell’s gift is targeted towards environmental justice, which, when I got contacted by the search firm for this position, and heard that, I was like, seriously? That really resonated with me. It’s not only to do the energy transition and to look towards future, but how do you do that the right way
The right way has two aspects. One is, here in Louisiana, you’ve got this history of people, the fenceline communities, that when you really dig deep back into it, these are the descendants of slaves that lived on properties that then became these big industrial facilities. So you’ve got long-term justice and equality issues there.
But then you also have all of these people who worked in the oil and gas industry and see that as the thing that’s been driving Louisiana’s economy for at least the last century and they’re worried about their futures.
So, the institute’s trying to figure all this out and do it the right way
Your career has spanned the globe and included stops in New York City
and London.What did you see in Louisiana that made you want to work at LSU?
I looked at Louisiana, and as a Southerner had been like, “How the hell is Louisiana not the wealthiest state in the Southeast?” You’ve got the oil and gas and the mineral resources, the mouth of the Mississippi River Why did Atlanta and Houston beat out New Orleans? We’re seeing all this economic activity coming here as part of the energy transition. Isn’t this the great opportunity for Louisiana to be the leader that it should have been?
To be at a flagship university like LSU and a state like Louisiana, these are the types of places that can start to solve these problems. The potential here is unreal.
What do you see as the most promising path in Louisiana to reducing global emissions?
I think carbon sequestration is the single most important technology humankind is working on. It’s the big bridge. If we can capture a meaningful amount of emissions we’re making, then we’re going to slow global warming.
We’re doing a lot around carbon sequestration and trying to figure out, how do we do it safely? Where do you do it? Some of the stuff is public policy. How do we reward communities that have these facilities? How do you pay the individual landowners that the carbon is going to be sequestered underneath them? Then there’s the safety aspect. How do you make sure that it stays underground? How do you tell if it leaks?
Measuring success to me is can we enable good carbon sequestration projects here in Louisiana the next three
to five years, and make sure that they’re safe and effective.
If we see solar and wind growing at a reasonable rate in Louisiana, too, that’s a win. The institute announced its latest round of grant funding in June, including for a project to examine public perception of the energy sector through statewide surveys and focus groups. What’s the goal of that effort? There’s a lot of misinformation, especially around solar power I was talking to somebody pretty high-ranking in the community here about solar and they said, “But what happens after the land gets poisoned by these solar panels? You can’t farm on it anymore.” And I’m like, “It’s a piece of glass. There is no poison.” You find that misinformation seems to spread much more quickly than accurate information.
The institute recently offered scholarships for Louisiana teachers to attend a course at LSU on energy fundamentals.Why was that important for you?
The more content we can get out to teachers, the better My parents were middle school teachers when they met, so education has always been important. It changed my life. Is the next Neil deGrasse Tyson in some public school in rural Louisiana and just waiting to have that moment of inspiration, you know? How do we reach the teachers who are going to expose that kid to some concept that then leads them down that a path? Could they end up going to LSU and coming up with the thing that make nuclear fusion work at an affordable level? Maybe. Email Blake Paterson at bpaterson@theadvocate. com.
NewStudy DebunksRed DrumCrisis Claims: Louisiana’sGulfMenhaden FisheryNot to Blame
Thisarticle is brought to youbythe Louisiana CommercialFishing Coalition LLC
Alandmark Louisiana-funded study confirms whatdecades of fisheries science have long suggested: the Gulf menhaden fishery is not amajor contributor to reddrum mortalityinLouisiana waters
The comprehensivebycatchassessment, conducted by LGL Ecological Research Associatesand administered through the Gulf StatesMarine Fisheries Commission, found thatcommercial menhaden harvesters were responsible forjust 3.4% of reddrum removals by number statewide in 2024.In contrast,96.6% of removals were from the recreational sector Thesefindingscome at atime when misinformation about reddrum bycatchhas fueled public pressurefor newrestrictions on commercial harvesters. But the data tells aclear story: Louisiana’smenhaden fishery is both sustainable and responsible —and not a threattored drum populations
Backed by IndependentScience
Thestudy wasfunded through a$1 million appropriation by the Louisiana Legislature and carried out during the 2024fishing season. It is the most extensivebycatchstudy ever conducted in the Gulfmenhaden fishery, with data collected from 418 purse seine sets
—3.2% of total effort,exceeding theoriginal sampling goal by morethan50%.
Observersand electronic monitoring systems were used to gather and verifydata. The study employedadvanced techniques such as ReflexActionMortalityPredictors
(RAMP) and24-hour live holding tanksto assess fish survival.
Keyresults include:
•Menhaden harvestersaccounted forjust 30,142 reddrummortalities in 2024—only 3.4% of statewide removals
•Anestimated26,847red drum were released aliveafter incidental capture, with an 84% survival rate in rolloverreleases
•Overall, the fishery remained well below Louisiana’s5%bycatchlimit by weight, with acombined bycatchrate of just 3.6%.
ProactiveConservation in Action
The study alsoclarified howred drum mortalitycan be reduced through better handling practices.When fish are retained in thenet and released after pumping, mortality drops sharply —akey operational takeaway thatis nowbeing applied across the fleet
In responsetothe study’s findings, the Louisiana menhaden industry has proactively standardized anew hose-end cage design acrossits fleet prior to the 2025fishing season. This design, shown to significantly improve the survivability of reddrum and similar species,isalready delivering results.Fleetwide upgrades reflect an ongoing commitmenttoconservation and demonstrate howscience candrive improvements in real time.
Putting Croakerand SeatroutinContext
The report also documentedAtlantic croaker and sand seatrout (whitetrout) in the retained catch. While some critics have highlighted thesefiguresfor political gain
scientists notethat:
•Thesespecies are not overfished or undergoing overfishing, per federal and state assessments
•Theyare short-lived forage fish with high natural mortalityand would not be expected to survivetoadulthood even withoutfishing pressure.
•Their retention is primarily due to small size, not gear inefficiency
This context is importantto accurately interpret the data and avoid mischaracterizing the fishery’s overall impact
AModel of RegulatedSustainability
The Gulf menhaden fishery is among the most tightly regulatedinthe state,overseen by the National Marine Fisheries Service, the Gulf StatesMarine Fisheries Commission, the Louisiana Wildlifeand Fisheries Commission, andthe Louisiana Department of Wildlifeand Fisheries
It is alsocertified as sustainableby the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) —the gold standardfor global fisheries certification. According to the 2024stock assessment, Gulf menhaden stocksare healthier thanatany pointinthe past 40 years, with spawning stock biomasshaving morethantripled since the 1990s. Fishing mortalityhas declined to just one-thirdof 1990s levels The fishery harvests lessthan 2% of the total Gulf menhaden biomass, leaving ample resources in the ecosystemfor predators such as reddrum, speckled trout,and marine mammals
An Economic Engine for Coastal Louisiana
In addition to its environmental track record, the menhaden industry plays a critical economic role in Louisiana’scoastal communities.The sector:
•Paysmorethan $25million in state and local tax revenue
•Provided roughly$60 millioninemployee compensation in 2023alone Menhaden also contribute to global food systems.Rich in omega-3s,protein, and essential nutrients,theyare used in aquaculturefeed, pet food, and human nutritional supplements
Letting Science Lead
The findingsofthis independentstudy offer aclear conclusion: theGulf menhaden fishery is operating responsibly,within regulatory limits,and with minimal impact on reddrum and other species of concern. Gear innovation and betterhandling are already helping to drivemortalityevenlower Forthe thousands of Louisianans whose livelihoods depend on this fishery —and for policymakerscharged with overseeing its management— this newresearch provides a firm foundation fordecisions rooted in data, not speculation.
COURTESy OF DON KADAIR
5financialliespeopleshould stop tellingthemselves
Youdon’tmean to, but you lie about your money habits.
Fool’sTake: Dip into these chips
Michelle Singletary
THE COLOR OF MONEy
Me: “Do you eat out alot?”
You: “Not really.” If Isuspectthis isn’ttrue because the revolving credit card debt or lack of savings says otherwise, I channel Jack Nicholson in “A Few Good Men” when he bellowed: “You can’thandle the truth.”
The truth: Here’sanillustration of what one monthly bank statement might list: $7 daily Starbucks stops (can’tstartthe day without aventi caramel macchiato); $120 for lunches out with co-workers; $47 for Taco Tuesdays; several deliveries using Uber Eats or Grubhub (because there wasn’tanything in the fridge even though it was stocked with food); and afew hundred dollars spent on Friday dinners and happy hour drinks because “we deserve it after aweekof hard work.”
Many people unintentionally misrepresent their spending, naively believing their ownnarratives about where their money goes until they are confronted with the undeniable evidence of their bank statements.
This financial amnesia shows up constantly during my workshops and radio call-ins. Here’s what happened when two callers got caught in their money mistruths.
Iasked the first caller whether she had abudget. She paused and then gave a hesitant yes.
When Ihear brief silence or abreak in the conversation followed by an “um” or “uh,” it usually indicates that the truth may be otherwise.
Experience told me to press her.Turns out, the woman didn’t haveabudget. She was, however, trying to pay off debt. Budgeting will help you identify expenses you can cut and, as aresult, the savings you will need to devote to
reducing your debt. Another caller was fretting because shecouldn’tkeep up with her bills and was losing hope.She earned agood salary.She said she had cut out every possible luxury —cable, dining out.ThenI asked her what percentage of her monthly take-home went toward her mortgage.
She quickly answered 30% comfortably below the36% of net pay that many experts sayshould be the ceiling. But something didn’tadd up. If her expenses were low and she didn’thave any debt excepther mortgage, why was shecrying broke?
Iaskedagain: “Areyou sure your mortgageisjust 30% of your take-home pay?”
She confidently repliedyes again.
But then, with additional probing, Ifoundout she hadlost the part-time income that she had used to qualify for the mortgage. Ipointedout that if herincome had dropped, then the percentage of her net pay going toward the monthly mortgage would be more than 30%.Itwas obvious to me that the woman wanted to clingtothe belief that she could still afford that.
By getting her to face thereality that her financial situation had changed, Ihelped hersee that she needed to find another part-time job, take in aboarder or moveto amoreaffordablehome. She said shewas willingto considerboth the job and roommate options.
Here are five of my favorite financial fibs:
Ihaveabudget. Keepinga mental tally of yourspending is usually not enough. You’ll have better control over money if youtrack your expendituresina notebook, spreadsheet or budgeting app. Ihaveanemergency fund. People will swearthey have arainy-day fund, but they raid it so regularly that it becomes just another spendingaccount.Icallthisthe emergencyfundfallacy
Imanagemyspending better witha credit card. Monthly statements show where money went, but
research reveals thatpaying with plastic— credit or debit —increases howmuchpeople spend. AFederal Reserve Bank of Boston report found that consumers spend an averageof$22 pertransactionwhenpaying with cash,compared with $112 when using cards. Idon’tdineout alot. This is typically nottrue. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the averageAmerican household spent nearly $4,000 on food away from home in 2023, an 8% increase from theprevious year When Ireviewpeople’s bank records, they’re often shocked at howmuchtheyspend dining out each month.One couple (a family of four) discoveredtheyhad spent $1,500 on restaurants in a month.
Idon’tunderstand whyI’m always broke. This is perhaps the most common financialfibpeople tell themselves. If yougenuinely reflected on your spending habits andcombed through your bank or credit unionstatements, you’d quickly uncover thereason your budgetisn’tbalancing —meaningyou are spending more than your take-home payevery month. Or people overlook howsmall, frequent purchasesadd up. It often comes down to needsvs. wants. Be honest: You’ve probably classifiedtoo manywants as needs. This distortedviewof your finances prevents youfrom seeingwhatshould or could be cut.
Stopfooling yourself.It’stime for areality check Grab your bank statements from the past six months. Use differentcolored highlightersto mark your spending categories: restaurants, shopping, entertainment and whatever else appears. Youcan start making fundamental changes once youare truthful about where your money goes. Youcan handle the truth. But you can’t fix what youwon’t face.
Email Michelle Singletary at michelle.singletary@washpost. com.
Nvidia is one of the world’slargest semiconductor companies. It once generated most of its revenue from gamingfocused graphics processing units, which can also be used to mine certain cryptocurrencies. But now 89% comes from data center graphics processing units, whichare especially well-suited for processing complex artificial intelligence tasks.
Nvidia’s sales of data center GPUs surged in 2023 (fiscal 2024) after OpenAI’slaunch of ChatGPT in late 2022 sparked aglobal artificialintelligence infrastructure race. That year,Nvidia controlled about98% of the data center GPU market. From fiscal 2025 to fiscal 2028, analysts expect the company’srevenue and earnings pershare to expand at compound annualgrowth rates of more than 30% and28%, respectively,asthe AI market continues to expand. But those estimates could be too conservative —since Nvidia has comfortably beat Wall Street’s top- andbottom-line expectations for manyquarters. Because it’s the top seller of the picks and shovels for the AI gold rush, its revenue and profits maykeep crushing analysts’ expectations.
Nvidia’s sales in China were recently throttled by U.S. export curbs, but it can easily offset that pressure with its stronger chip sales in other markets. Simply put, Nvidia has plenty of ways to keep growing. (The Motley Fool ownsshares of and recommends Nvidia.)
Ask the Fool: The 7% rule
What’s the7%rule in stocks? —T.L.,Anchorage,Alaska It’sarule addressing when to sell; it says you should sell out of a stock if it dips by 7% or so below your purchase price. So if you bought shares of Old MacDonald Farms (ticker: EIEIO) at $100, and they dropped to $93, you’d sell all of them. This can happen automatically if you set a“stop-loss” order with your brokerage. The benefit of this rule is that it can minimize your losses. If, for example,a stock begins a30%
decline —which has happened even with shares of great stocks —you’d be out of it before your investment lost any more value. Of course, no one knows exactly when astock will go up or down, so if that stock pulled back alittle before immediately beginning a big climb, you might end up missing out on muchofthat.
It can be good (and easier) just to hang on to shares of great companies through ups and downs, aiming to hold for many years. I’ve saved abit of money and want to buy some stocks.What do Ido first? —O.A., BrokenArrow,Oklahoma Before investing, pay off any high-interest-rate debt and have an emergency fund that can pay at least several months’ worth of living expenses. Read and learn more about investing, too, perhaps with John C. Bogle’s“The Little Book of Common Sense Investing,” “The Only Investment Guide You’ll Ever Need:Revised Edition” by Andrew Tobias or Joel Greenblatt’s“The Little Book That Still Beats the Market.” Read up on brokerages at fool.com/money My Dumbest Investment: A$37 feeontop of aloss Oneofmymost regrettable
dollars across abunch of companies, or perhaps better still, to wait until it’sclearer which ones are best positioned for long-term success. It’soften better to invest in companies that have proven profitability,and that have more cash than debt. And when choosing between brokerages, check their fee schedules and favor those with low fees.
We areJones Walker LLP,a firmdrivenbyanentrepreneurial spirit,adeepsenseofcommunity, and afierce determination to deliverexceptional serviceand valuefor our clients. Since1937, our firmhas been committed to workingwithcommunity leaders to developbusiness opportunitiesacrossthe state. We aresteadfast in continuing ourdedicationtogobeyondinadvising clientsand supportinginitiatives andorganizations that make Louisiana abetterplace to live andwork
William H. Hines,ManagingPartner bhines@joneswalker.com 504.582.8000 201St. CharlesAvenue NewOrleans,LA70170-5100
|ARIZONA |DISTRICTOFCOLUMBIA|
|KENTUCKY|LOUISIANA |MISSISSIPPI |NEW
|TEXAS
Motley Fool
BR-based JRE Capital moves into N.O. real estate market
BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer
JRE Capital, a Baton Rougebased real estate investment company has purchased the Jefferson Business Center in Elmwood for $11.4 million, marking the firm’s first foray into the Greater New Orleans area.
JRE Capital Managing Partner Trey Williams said the 104,000-square-foot building, which has suites with office and warehouse or “flex” space, was attractive because it’s a “solid piece of real estate in a highly desirable corridor.”
The firm bought the property from the Ludwig Family, which had purchased it in 2019 for $6.2 million. In the years since, the family invested in upgrades to the building and increased its occupancy from 60% to more than 90%, according to Leon Audibert III, a broker with Property One who will continue to handle leasing for the center
The deal underscores the strength of the industrial subsector one of the few bright spots in a real estate market that has been chilled by high interest rates and insurance costs. While many office, retail and residential deals are on hold, activity in the industrial sector continues to grow, Audibert said.
“A lot of it is driven by e-commerce and service type companies,” he said. “There’s also a lot
of activity up and down the river, and if you need industrial space, you pretty much have to based in Elmwood, Kenner or the St. Rose area.”
Exceeding expectations
JRE Capital is an arm of Jarreau
Real Estate, which also does commercial brokerage, development and property management.
Founded in 2020 by Williams and Donnie Jarreau, JRE Capital solicits investments from accredited investors and offers them
opportunities to buy into individual properties mostly shopping centers or small office complexes — at whatever level they want. Investors in the deals typically put up anywhere from $25,000 to $1 million, Jarreau said.
JRE targets cash flowing commercial properties primarily in mid-sized markets in the southeast, though most of its deals so far have been in south Louisiana. After raising enough equity for a particular deal, the firm goes out and secures whatever debt is
needed to close the sale. It then manages the property for two to five years, on average, before trying to sell. In the years since its founding, JRE Capital has raised more than $42 million from more than 125 investors and has nearly $119 million in assets in its portfolio, a modest number that the firm hopes to continue growing.
So far, two of the 13 properties in JRE’s portfolio have been sold. Both have “far exceeded expectations,” according to Williams,
who said the exits netted average return for investors of more than 25%.
One of those properties was a warehouse and distribution facility on La. 30 in Geismar that JRE developed on vacant land it purchased in 2022 for Baton Rouge bat maker Marucci Sports. JRE raised the money for the 200,000-squarefoot facility and developed the site, then leased half to Marucci, which had outgrown its Baton Rouge distribution site, and the other half to two other tenants.
Earlier this year, the warehouse sold for $34.5 million, a 26% return for JRE’s investors in the deal.
“That was a good one,” Jarreau said. “They don’t always do that well.”
Williams and Jarreau believe Jefferson Business Center will also prove to be a good investment. Lease
line with the market average.
“There is not much available land in New Orleans and it’s easier to acquire than to build,” Jarreau said. “This one had a lot of upside. It checked all our boxes.”
Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@theadvocate. com.
Lauren Bercier, co-founder and chief executive officer of Something Borrowed Blooms, has been named to the Catalyst Bank advisory board
Bercier cofounded the Lafayette-based silk floral rental company 10 years ago. The business has served more than 50,000 weddings globally
“Lauren embodies what it means to be a catalyst,” Joe Zanco, president and CEO of Catalyst Bank, said in a statement. “She’s built
a company that challenges the status quo while staying deeply rooted in Louisiana values. Her insight and entrepreneurial spirit will be a tremendous asset to our advisory board and the community we serve.”
Lt. Dushawn and Lt. Crystal Dupree are the new leaders of The Salvation Army in Lafayette.
The Duprees were commissioned as Salvation Army officers in 2020 and have held appointments across Florida, most recently in Venice.
The couple is responsible for all church programs and social ser-
vices at The Salvation Army in Lafayette, including the supervision of social services, disaster relief, Angel Tree and Christmas campaigns. In addition, the Duprees will serve as senior pastors to The Salvation Army congregation.
Ryan M. Thomson is now president
of TSL Insurance Group.
Thomson has more than 20 years of experience in insurance and risk management and has been on the TSL staff since 2003. He most recently served as executive vice president and sales director
Katrena King, the former executive director for the Leadership Institute of Acadiana, was named director of monitoring and resource development for the General
Commission on the Status and Role of Women for the United Methodist Church. King, a provisional deacon in the Louisiana Conference, also serves as a diversity equity and inclusion strategist for the Louisiana Conference and adjunct faculty at Purdue University Global. She also co-chaired the legislative task force for the 2020/2024 General Conference, where she helped develop, revise and pass 10 pieces of legislation.
ACADIANA INBOX
Gallagherhas Louisiana industries covered.
Gallagher is oneofthe largest insurance brokerage, risk managementand consulting firms in theworld. With roots in Louisianadatingback decades,we’vegrown to become the leaderinthe stateaswell.
Leading theway in Louisiana. Gallagher serves awealthofindustrieshere, including:
Globalexperience.
As aglobal provider, Gallagher focuses heavily on data analytics and forecasting and benchmarking services,while offering thought leadership on such criticaltopics as cyber risk,social inflation and AI.Ifitaffects claimsand premiums, we areonit.
Louisianaexpertise
Gallagher enteredthe market with our first office in BatonRouge in 1991. Startingwith $5 million in revenue, we’veexpandedexponentially:
Acommitmentbeyond business. Ourteam is passionateabout taking part in opportunities to makeanimpact. From supporting local charities to hurricane relief efforts, we believe in giving back to the communities across Louisiana whereweliveand work.
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Inside thisissue of BayouBloom:
✜ Learning aNew Language
✜ Become aMentor
✜ Travel Tips forSeniors
✜ Finding Volunteer Opportunities
✜ Regular Exercise HasManyBenefits
✜ Rejoining theWorkforce
✜ Home Projectsto MakeLifeEasier
Learninga new Language
Learning asecond (oreventhird) language isn’t justfor kids in school. Older adults can pick
up a newlanguage,too,aswell as some health benefits.
The evidence clearlydemonstratesthatthere is no critical period forsecond-language learning, no biologicallydetermined constraint on language-learningcapacitythat emergesataparticularage,nor anymaturational processwhichrequires that older language learners function differentlythanyoungerlanguagelearners,”saysProfessor CatherineSnowatthe HarvardGraduateSchoolofEducation
Trainingthe brainto speakanother language is aworkout foryoursynapses. It opensnew pathways, keepingyourgray matter nice andhealthy,possibly delaying dementiaand othercognitive illnesses. Older adults mayalsohavealeg up on youngerlearnersbecause they have establishedstudy techniques that work for them and, especiallynowadays, accessto technologythatcan make learninganew language asnap.
TheBritish Council, theUnitedKingdom’s
internationalorganization forcultural relationsand education, says it mayhelp olderlearnerstouse visual andauditory mnemonic devices, examples andmemory associations,and to systematicallyrepeatand recyclegrammar,vocabularyand expression. Olderstudentsofanew language should be encouragedtouse their wealth of experience to help them learnthe newlanguageand to usetheir newskillsuninterruptedfor as long as possible
Whiletechtools such as RosettaStone
or Duolingo aregreat,and often available from thepublic libraryand othersources, classesare agreat wayfor seniors to practice their language skills. Classes, whichmay be availablefor free or at alow costat localcommunity centers,libraries and universities, offer professionalinstruction andthe abilitytoconnect socially,which addsanother layertoimproving senior living.
Aimtopractice alittlebit everyday in shortspurtsratherthancramming. It didn’t work in highschooland it doesn’t work now. Tryusingstreaming services to find televisionshows, news reportsand otherprogramming in thelanguageyou’re learningifyou can’tspeak it with someone or useanapp
Become a Mentor
SKILLS NEEDED
Mentor.org says most of us hada teacher, coachorco-workerwho took us under their wing at some point. Thinkabout that person andthe skillstheyhad andsharedwith you. Thewebsite says good mentorsshould have adesiretohelpyoungerpeople, active listeningskills, empathyand flexibility.
FINDING APROGRAM
Mentor.org says to consider at leastthree differentorganizationswhenlooking to become amentor. Startbytalkingto the organization’s volunteercoordinator about your experienceand theorganization’s needs. Be honest aboutthe amount of time youcan commit,the typesofactivities you’re comfortablewithand thenumberofpeople you’dliketomentor.
With age comes wisdom,often enough, and plentyof life skills. Sharethose lifeskills with younger people to passonsome of that knowledge andmakesocialconnections that can keep youmovingand healthy. Visit www.mentor.org
Askabout theprocessthe organization uses to match mentorsand menteesand be sure youunderstandthe process. Also make sure youknowthe typesofmentorship relationshipsthe organization offers. Youmay be comfort- able with one-on-one mentoring, butnot groupmentoring,for example. Findout aboutany trainingopportunities that maybeavailable andhow frequentlynew trainingcomes up or mayberequired
APPLYING TO BE AMENTOR
Talk to thecoordinator aboutthe mentoring applicationprocess, includingany screening andbackgroundchecksthatneed to take place.You mayneed to submit awritten application, whichmay include personal and professional references andaninterview Don’tbediscouraged if your firstopportunity
doesn’t panout. Thereare plenty of programs outthere that canuse your skills.
CONCERNS
It mayseemdauntingat first, especially if theorganization workswithyoung people that mayhavehad badexperiences in the past.
Don’tbeworried if it takestimetocultivate alasting andproductiverelationship. Learn what to do if anythingserious comesup during thementoring relationship,suchas anythingthatmay necessitate reportingto authorities.
forSeniorsTravel Tips
Manyolder Americans plan to spend their goldenyears traveling, which is great. It keeps people physically and mentally healthy, improving brain function,and it’sfun.
Ingeneral, traveling, goingtonew places andmeeting up with family andold andnew friends is really vitalfor ourmentalhealth,”saysKathleenCameron,formerseniordirector of theNationalCouncil on Aging’sCenterfor HealthyAging.
STAYING HEALTHY
TheCenters forDisease Controland Prevention maintainsalistoftravelhealth notices forcountries around theworld
Thesenotices inform travelersofall ages or outbreaks, naturaldisasters andother events that canaffecthealth.
Thesenotices arecategorizedintofour levels The first, Level 1,isfor travelersto practice theusual precautionsfor their destination,suchasconsumingbottled water.
Level2 includes enhanced precautionsand mayalsoidentify specificriskpopulations.
Level 3 urgestravelerstoreconsider nonessential travel andLevel 4cautions travelersthere is an extreme health risk. If your trip includes along flight,NCOA says planes areusuallylesshumid than the normal environment, whichcan puttravelers at higherriskofdehydration andrespiratory disease. Drinklotsofwater andwalk in the aisletoprevent bloodclots.
STAYINGSAFE
As exciting as tripsare,avoid posting travel plansonsocialmedia TheNCOA says thievesuse social mediatotarget
homes wherethe occupantsare outoftown. Consider asking afriendorfamilymember to checkinonthe houseperiodically, turninglightsoff andonand grabbing any mail or packages.
On theroad, useyourhotel room’s safe for passports,jewelry andcash. Double check that thecodeworks before placinganything inside.Lookfor bags andwallets that guard againstpickpockets. Look forjackets and pantswith magnetically sealed pockets, insidepockets andother storageoptions to foil thieves.
Before leaving, call credit card companies andbanks to letthemknowyour destinations.Takeatleast oneback-up card in case theworst does happen,and also make sure you’re carrying cash safely
Opportunities
Even if you’reout of the workforce,you canstill givetoyour communities through volunteer opportunities.
Researchers foundthat80% of volunteers over theage of 55 reported having good,verygood or excellenthealthversus 50% of non-volunteersofsimilaragesand backgrounds, Silver Sneakers says
“Volunteershavelower mortalityrates, lowerrates of depression, increasedstrengthand energy,and fewerphysical limitations than thosewho do notvolunteer,” says Samantha Jo Warfieldwiththe Corporationfor National andCommunity Service.
Here aresomeopportunities to give back in your community.
SENIOR CORPS
SeniorCorps is agovernmentagencythathelps seniors find volunteeropportunities. Throughthe Foster Grandparentprogram, seniors canserve as role models to children andanother program, SeniorCompanion, connects seniors with people whoneedhelpwith dailytasks such as groceryshoppingand paying bills. Theagency matches more than 143,000 seniorvolunteerswithopportunities everyyear. More than 47 millionhours have been served by Senior Corpsvolunteers.
Volunteer Finding
NATIONAL OR STATEPARKS
National andstate parksalwaysneed volunteers to help take care of public landsbygreetingvisitors, leadingtours,handingout information andmore. Youcan even turn your volunteerism into aseason-long trip by becominga campground host (you getafree campsite). Lookfor opportunities posted on volunteer.gov or with the state parksagencyinyourstate.
MEALS ON WHEELS
MealsonWheelshas 5,000 independentlyrun localprogramsto provide mealstohomebound seniors.Volunteerspickupmeals at a centrallocationand deliverthemalong apredetermined route. Meals on Wheels spokesperson JennyBertolette YoungtoldSilverSneakers that avolunteer maybethe only person thehomebound seniorsees that day. Andasthe U.S. population ages, more volunteers will be needed
CANINE COMPANIONS FORINDEPENDENCE
This organization connects expertlytrained service dogstopeople with disabilities. It has six trainingcenters across thecountry and more than 40 volunteerchapters. Volunteers raisepuppies from eight weeksto18months, taking it to puppyclasses, teachingitbasic commands andsocializingthe dog.Ifyou can’thelpthisorganization, butstill love animals, consider volunteering with alocal animal shelterwalking, playingwithand socializingthe animalsthere
Visit www.volunteer.gov
PlanyourEscape withAAA!
Youdeserve agreat vacation.Try the Hawaiian Islands, European river cruising, Canadian rail adventures, or an Alaska land-and-sea journey.Let our friendly travel advisors in our Louisiana offices help you plan an unforgettable vacation.
Regular Has Many Exercise Benefits
Seniorsshould get 150minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity andtwo days of musclestrengthening activities every week,the National Institute of Aging says.
Itdoesn’t have to be all at once.Aim for small amountsofexercisethroughoutthe daytonet thetotal amount of minutes.
STAYING HEALTHY GO SLOW
Don’tjumpinall at once.Increasephysical activity graduallyoveraperiodofweeks or even months.And neverstart exercising before talkingto your medical professionals aboutwhether it’s safe foryou to do so
Whenever there’sabreak in your new fitness routine, graduallyworkyourway up againto avoidinjury.
SET GOALS
Setrealistic, specific fitnessgoalsfor yourself Theinstitute suggests goalssuch as a10-minutewalk threetimes perweek. Review thesegoalsregularlyas youmake progress.Considerusinganapp or other
waytotrack your progress,orevenkeepa writtenlog.Celebrate your successesand thinkabout exercisingwithfriends and family formoreaccountability.
VARY YOUR ACTIVITIES
Trytovarythe typesofexerciseyou get. Include acombination of aerobic, strengtheningand balance activities. Some examples to getinyour150 minutes may include:
Lookfor indoor andoutdoor activities and, when youcan,try to buildmorephysical
activity into your dailylife. Identify any barrierstophysical activity,suchaspoor weather, andplanfor what to do when that happens. Plan your activities forthe parts of theday when youhavethe most energy Youmay find youget aboost of energy after some physical activity.
GEAR
Work outinclothes andshoes that arecomfortable andsafe.Shoes should supportyourfeet, have non-skidsoles and appropriateheeland arch support. Change them outregularlyasyou become more physically active.
Clothesshouldallow forafull range of movement andbeappropriate foryour climate. Look forfabrics that pull sweataway from theskinand dryquickly.
Rejoining the Workforce
While manyseniors have worked theirwhole liveslooking forwardto retirementand nothaving to work everyday,T.Rowe Pricesaysmillions of retirees have rejoinedthe work force, especiallysince the COVID-19 pandemic.
The pandemic forced theretirementofabout 2.4 millionpeople, theFederalReserve of St.Louis says. Many of thosepeoplehavesince unretired,returningtothe workforce post-pandemic.
Abouthalfofthose returningtoworksay they’rereturningtoworkdue to financial reasonswhile another45% saythey’re comingbackfor social andemotional benefits. Retirees workingfull-timeagain saytheyare most often motivatedfor mental stimulationand professionalfulfillment
Otherreasons to return to work,Forbes says,are benefits such as medical insurance, challengeswithrelationships, andlife disruptionssuchasareduction in retirement income.
Thinkofyourage andexperience as apowerfulasset, TheSeniorSource, a
resource forre-entering theworkforce,says. Showcase your accomplishmentsinstead of making achronological list of your jobs.Highlight what youwill bringtothe organization,includinganinventory of the skills youdeveloped before retirement and howtheywould best applytothe jobs you’re considering. Looktoroles whereexperience is valued,suchascaregivers, health care, educationand nonprofits. Consider improvingyourtechnologyskills. Take aclass at alocal college, community center or librarytoget up to speed on computingskillsthatmay have evolvedsince
youleft theworkforce.
Whileunretirementhas itsbenefits, there arealsosomedrawbacks. Forbes says these mayinclude reducedSocialSecuritybenefits, Medicaresurchargesand highertax burdens. If you’re in asituation whereyou’reforcedto return to work,you mayresentneedingtogo to work and find yourself gettingmoretired than youdid before youretired. Preparefor thesepotential obstaclesbefore signingonthe dotted lineand accepting anynew joboffer.Talktoa financial plannerabout theconsequences of gettinga paycheck again, especially if it wouldaffect retirement income you’ve been relyingon.
HOMEPROJECTS
TO LIFE Easier Make
Moreand moreseniors areopting to ageinplacein theirhomesrather than downsizeormovetoassisted living facilities. With alittlework, seniors canstayin their familyhome forlonger.
LIGHTING
TheU.S.doesn’t have height requirements forelectricaloutlets or switches, so they couldbeatany height in thehouse.For comfortableaging in place,consider raising theoutlets andloweringthe switches so they areeasier to reachfromaseatedposition, such as in awheelchair. Optfor paddlestyleswitches rather than traditional toggle switches as they areeasier to usewitha knuckleorelbow.Consider installingmore lightingthanyou thinkyou need.Asseniors losevision, extralightingcan helpthembe independentlonger.
WINDOWS ANDDOORS
Widendoorframes, when youcan. This will make your home more accessible if youneedtotransitiontoawheel-chair or scooterfor mobility.Alsochoosedoorknobs andother hardware that caneasily be turned. Thinkabout using them withoutthe full useofhands or arms. Thereshouldbeatleast oneway to getinto andout of thehomes withoutusingsteps
Visit www.aarp.org
KITCHENSAND BATHS
In thekitchen,opt forvarious height countertopssothere’s aplace forthe standingand seated cook.Choosestorage optionsthatdon’t requireliftingorexcessive pullingorbending. Look forpull-out drawersand traysthatcan increase usability. Situateappliancessohazardsare eliminated Forinstance, look at rangeswithcontrolson thefront so youwon’t have to reachoverhot pots to adjust thetemperature.Keepmicrowavesand dishwasherswhere they canbe used by people sittingorstanding. Securely mounttoilets to thewall at the proper heightstobeuseful. Mind where doorsopenand closeand make sure thereis plenty of room forpeopletouse them with amobilityaid.While ahot bath is greatfor achingmuscles, ashowerisgenerallymore usable andsaferthana bathtub. Eliminate anysteporlip to theshowerentry and, if possible,choosealarge enough shower to accommodateaseatedtransferorroll-in use.
Here aresomeprojects recommended by the AARP.
Theindependenceyouwant. Theassistanceyouneed.
The Vincent offers acontinuum ofcare, from cottages& independent livingtoexpertly staffed assisted livingapartments andmemorycaresuites. Whatever your needs, our unique community invites you to explorelife’s excitingopportunitieswithconfidenceand support around theclock. We arededicated toproviding exceptionalsenior livingexperiences forthose seeking thebest in life. TheVincent is more than justa placetolive; it’s aneighborhood dedicatedtoproviding community, activity,engagement, andchoice.AtThe Vincent, you’re immersed in an exciting, adventurous, social, andenriching lifestyle.Come by fora tour andexperience thewarmthand supportofour community foryourself!
In the newEvoke spine stimulator AI-monitored model, the devicesenses pain signals going to thebrainand blocks them by givingelectric stimulations.
PHOTO PROVIDED By OCHSNER HEALTH
‘GAMECHANGER’ FORPAINRELIEF
BY MARGARET DeLANEY Staffwriter
Joseph Jeanmarie has had back problems since the1980s,when he injured his back and had surgery.Although his chronic pain was sometimes debilitating, he continued his work as an insurance investigator For the past 40 years, he’s dealt with the pain, mostlyworking at apain level of eight out of 10. His chronic back pain sent him to amyriad treatments and doctors over the years including medicines, physical therapists and electricstimulationtreatments.
spine from reaching the pain —not afixto his chronic back pain, but amanagement method to improve his lifestyle.
In 2004, Jeanmarie metDr. Maged Guirguis, an interventional pain specialist and system chair at Ochsner Health Guirguis put Jeanmarie on aspine stimulator that blocks pain receptors in the
This radiofrequency ablation was approvedfor medical use in the 1970s, according to Guirguis, and is used in patients with painfularthritis in the lower back andneck.The minimally invasive procedure delivers thermalenergy or heat signals through needles to affected nerves, temporarily disconnecting the nerve’s ability to communicate with thepain processing center in the brain.
“It managed the pain,” Jeanmarie said. “It was tremendous.”
Jeanmarie continued the RFAtreatmentforseveralyears,visitingGuirguis’s office whenever thepaincame back,until anew AI-powered spine stimulator came on the market.
This newer treatment, althoughstill using smallsignals to block pain receptors in the spine,utilizesaclosed-loop system and artificial intelligence to continuously distribute treatment andtrack the patient’sresponse. The Evoke System spine stimulator is like apacemaker for the back,according to Guirguis. It is an implantable device that doctors put in the spine in twostages: atemporary trialofelectricwires to test theeffectiveness and pain relief over seven days and the finalprocedure to place the device on the spine
Saluda Medical,the companythat created thenew device,had an ongoing clinical trial acrossthe United Statesin 2021,including NewOrleans. Guirguis thought Jeanmarie was the perfect candidate.
ä See SPINE, page 2X
Strategies canhelp manage ADHD at work
eyeturning condition into astrength
BY CATHY BUSSEWITZ Associated Press
NEW YORK Jeremy Didier had takenher sontoa psychologist for apossible ADHD evaluation when she spotted an article about women with the condition. As she read it in the waiting room, she thought to herself: They’re describing me
“Lots of risk-taking, lots of very impulsive behavior growing up,” Didier said.Asthe magazine described, she’d excelled in school butgotten in trouble for talking too much. She’d amassed too many speeding tickets as an adult. She turned to her husband and said, “I think Imight have ADHD.” Didierisnow the board president of Children and Adults with Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder,anonprofit advocacy and support organization.Her realization mirrors the experiences of other adults whowonder if they have ADHD after achild’sdiagnosis. Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder is aneurodevelopmental condition characterized by inattention, hyperactivity or acombinationofthe two. Common symptoms such as trouble concentrating or sittingstill cancreate challenges at work.
People with ADHD areoften passedoverfor promotions, said Andrew Sylvester,a psychiatrist at UCHealth, ahospital in Longmont, Colorado.Difficultieswith attention maylead the mind to drift during meetings, and cause someone to miss important discussion nuances. The disordermay interfere with organization, planning and remembering details.
Yetsome adultsthink of having ADHD as asource of personalitystrengths andwaysofthinking thatbenefitemployers. Diagnostic manuals maycall it adisorder,but it also can be asuperpower,they said.
“Our brains work differently,and so we’re more likely to be able to think outside thebox andcome up with different things, and sometimes that’sbecause we’ve had to do that in order to survive,” Didier said. Here are some ways to cope with andchannelADHDinthe workplace.
Getting diagnosed with ADHD doesn’talways lead to aquickfix. While doctors often recommend medication and therapy,not everyone can take medication, and those routes don’tnecessarily eliminate all symptoms.
Didier floundered with amessy house and lots of yelling as she and four of her five children were diagnosed with ADHD
ä See ADHD, page 2X
Guirguis
HEALTH MAKER
BR massage therapist teaching self-care at home
BY MARGARET DeLANEY
Staff writer
Susan Jones, with The Muscle Manipulator of Baton Rouge, is passionate about teaching people to practice self-care at home.
Jones studied massage therapy with an associate degree in natural health in Miami. In 2007, Jones and her husband, a Baton Rouge native moved to Louisiana to work with Hurricane Katrina relief. Since then, Jones has dedicated her days to teaching with a goal of starting her own business.
She opened The Muscle Manipulators in Baton Rouge in 2018 as a massage therapist office that provides care for all ages and walks of life.
“Personal trainers, MDs, PTs and chiropractors that have recognized that the combination of techniques can help people improve faster and have a better quality of life with less pain and more ability to do what they love,” Jones said.
Jones works with babies, kids and adults of all ages. She has also worked with dogs and cats (for fun). Her goal is to help people get better and feel better with noninvasive techniques. Tell me about teaching people to treat themselves at home. How can people do it safely?
The cupping therapy classes basically give people guidelines and show them how to use massage tools like scraping and cupping therapies. It also includes general safety, so they don’t get hurt or hurt other people. Typically, I do give my clients homework after their own massage. I recommend that almost everybody gets a set of cupping tools and scraping tools.
I had a client that came to me that had pain for about 10 years. They went in for a surgery that left him with a painful 12-inch incision from his abdomen to his
SPINE
Continued from page 1X
“It’s not a particularly new device,” Guirguis said. “The problem with the older model is that we did not know how everybody reacts in pain, and we had no feedback if the electric signal was working or not, except when the patient came back after a couple of days.”
In the newer AI-monitored model, the device is sensing the pain signals going to the brain and adjusting the levels of treatment by giving a certain electric stimulation. The stimulator is looking at the different needs when a patient, like Jeanmarie, is walking, running, resting golfing, swimming, etc.
“I was fortunate enough to get involved,” Jeanmarie said. “It’s been a game changer for my whole life moving forward.”
Jeanmarie was the first patient in Louisiana to receive this treatment, and four years later, his life is back to playing golf, riding bikes, swimming and going to the gym — with significantly less pain in his back.
“Before the device, I was at a pain level averaging around an eight, and in really bad times a 10,” Jeanmarie said. “Now my pain level, on average, is probably around a two Even though the stimulator hasn’t totally taken away all the pain, it’s just made the pain where it’s more manageable, especially in my activities.”
Who qualifies for treatment?
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved this pain management treatment for those who have tried multiple other methods, including medication and surgery, and have experienced chronic pain for more than six months. According to Guirguis, there are studies that suggest a second or third surgery for spine pain management is “extremely unsuccessful.”
“When you do a second (spinal) surgery, there’s no ‘go-back’ after the surgery They have to take some piece of bone and put in hardware,” Guirguis said. “Once they drill that in the bone, it’s very, very hard to take the hardware out unlike the surgery for the spinal cord stimulator. There’s not a lot of surgeries that you have a chance to try it out for seven days.” Although Jeanmarie has the nerve stimulator on his lower
side, across some of the ribs and lower ribs.
So, when he came to see me, we found that he felt some relief from the cupping, from some of the fascia work and the scraping tools. I asked him to bring his wife, and if she was willing to learn a technique. She came and I showed her some basics. We used a manual pump cup — a little hose that you squeeze and it takes the air out of the cup. The cupping creates a vacuum on the back to relieve tension in the soft tissue muscles. The improvement that he had was leaps and bounds compared
PHOTO PROVIDED By OCHSNER HEALTH
The Evoke System spine stimulator is like a pacemaker for the back according to Dr Maged Guirguis. It is an implantable device that doctors put in the spine in to relieve chronic pain.
back, the FDA has approved the use of the device to relieve pain in the arms, legs and upper back.
The stimulator is also FDA-approved for patients with diabetic neuropathy, a type of nerve damage that can happen when a diabetic has high blood sugar over time, most often damaging nerves in the legs and feet.
“There’s a lot of indication coming up for use in headaches and other local nerve problems in the body as well,” Guirguis said.
In Europe, the technology is approved for patients with cardiovascular disease, especially people who have problems with blood supply in the legs or the heart. There are also other indications in the research and clinical trial stages for using the pain stimulator device for abdominal pain and pelvic pain.
These future applications would use the same technical concept but are peripheral nerve stimulators, rather than centered around the spinal chord nervous system.
“Even though this stimulator hasn’t really fixed my problem, it does help me with dealing with that chronic pain. It did mask it,”
Jeanmarie said “It’s amazing how it’s helped me move forward in my life.”
Ochsner has treated thousands of patients with the device, both in the national clinical trial and after it was approved by the FDA on Jan. 23.
“There are a lot of other pain doctors in Louisiana that utilize this technology,” Guirguis said.
“And once it’s available commercially in Louisiana, our patient numbers might reach the millions.”
Email Margaret DeLaney at margaret.delaney@ theadvocate.com
to what he could have gotten from just coming to see me once a week or once a month.
I’m huge, huge advocate for people doing self care at home, and I don’t think that that hurts me or my business — or any other massage therapist. There’s plenty of people in pain, and they deserve to feel relief at home too.
I have also had some really beautiful experiences working with newborn babies and my oldest clients in their 90s.
More recently I have been able to teach some moms the techniques to help babies with colic, reflux and apnea. It’s not a magi-
ADHD
Continued from page 1X
She experimented with medicine, diets and reward charts, and discovered what helped her the most: a community of parents who had children with ADHD.
“There’s nothing like talking to other people who are going through what you’re going through to help you feel that you’re not alone,” she said.
Didier eventually became a social worker and now runs support groups for adults with ADHD, teaching skills they can use at work.
Some organizations have employee resource groups organized around neurodiversity to provide camaraderie and support to adults with ADHD, autism, dyslexia and other conditions.
GPS of the brain
People with ADHD often struggle with executive function, which Didier describes as “your brain’s GPS” for navigating your day Executive function is a set of mental skills that includes making plans, managing time and flexible thinking. It also includes working memory, which helps us keep track of what we’re doing.
To keep from getting derailed, experts recommend breaking large tasks into chunks, writing detailed to-do lists and taking breaks.
Personal chef Bill Collins, 66, who was diagnosed with ADHD two years ago, writes structured lists when he’s making a meal for a client. He creates categories for kitchen areas — counter, stove and oven and then lists tasks such as “chop carrots, boil water for pasta” underneath each category Then he numbers each task so he knows exactly what to do, where and when.
“That’s how I got around my unknown ADHD early on, just making lists,” Collins said. “If it’s something I don’t want to do, I put it at the top of the list so I can be done with it.”
Another technique is called “body doubling,” which involves a pair of work colleagues meeting over Zoom or in-person to focus on completing projects The two may choose to perform separate tasks one might build a presentation deck while the other files tax reports — but help each other stay accountable.
“You’re just sitting there during that dedicated time, getting things done,” Didier said.
floor muscles that are tight with trigger points that may be causing incontinence for women or pain with nerves that are in those areas. You can be a 70-year-old person and rehabilitate your knees, or you can be a teenager who’s having growing pains and wants to play basketball. These are all things that are accessible to you. I really find that soft tissue works for exercise and mobility
Massage guns are great. Just know how to use them properly — let the gun do the job. You don’t have to dig in with the massage gun because when you dig in, you actually stop the mechanism that helps.
What’s next in massage therapy?
Most of the innovation is happening with soft tissue work. As massage therapists, we are more aware of how much information the body is actually giving us. More people are aware of how emotions affect their soft tissues. We’re more aware of how scar tissue and surgeries and traumas can keep tension and emotions locked in the tissues.
As far as massage tools, technologists are coming out with a new gadget here or there. But in the end, those gadgets are supposed to be an extension of the therapists hands.
cal fix but it’s empowering to have a tool that can gently help the body to release restrictions. How can people get started at home?
A great place to start is online. We have access to so much free education and apps that can help us get started. As far as equipment, a foam roller is always good, but I prefer a ball more for at-home exercises — something the size of a softball. Instead of laying on the ground for exercises, because not everybody can do that, I recommend people find an empty wall that they can lean against and use the ball. You can release pelvic
Insurance company Liberty Mutual provides an AI tool that helps break down large projects into manageable tasks and provides reminders about deadlines to help employees with ADHD stay focused and organized, said Head of Benefits Verlinda DiMarino.
Getting through meetings
Meetings can be difficult for people with ADHD if their minds drift or they feel an urge to get up out of a chair They also may struggle with impulse control and find it hard to wait their turn to speak.
Nicole Clark, CEO of the Adult and Pediatric Institute, a mental health practice in Stuart, Florida, suggests asking for meeting topics in advance and writing up talking points. If you think of questions during the meeting, write them down.
Some employers use a voiceto-text service, projecting what a speaker is saying on a screen, which helps people with attention difficulties stay focused, Clark said.
Sylvester, the psychiatrist, recommends practicing active listening by repeating in your head what someone just said, or taking a brief timeout from a meeting to reset.
Tell them, “‘I need five minutes. I’ll be right back.’ Get up and walk out. Do what you need to do,” he said.
Mariel Paralitici-Morales, chief medical officer of the Adult and Pediatric Institute, who has ADHD, sits close to whoever will be speaking to help sustain attention.
“Having something in my hand helps,” said Paralitici-Morales, who sometimes holds a fidget spinner “If we have to talk, I found it’s easier for me to be the first one and break the ice” to keep herself from second-guessing what she planned to say
As many people as we touch on a daily basis, it’s like we’re training our hands to feel specifically what is the norm and what is outside of the norm, and how to bring the body back to the norm.
The longer-form therapy in massage treatments gives the body more time to calm itself down, to process some of the changes that need to happen for the tissues to really release — and for the benefit to last longer for the patient.
Email Margaret DeLaney at margaret.delaney@theadvocate. com.
Seek accommodations
People with an ADHD diagnosis can request accommodations at work through the Americans with Disabilities Act Noise-canceling headphones may help Consider asking for the ability to take a break every 20 minutes, Sylvester said “Set a timer for five to 10 minutes. Get up and walk around. Make some coffee. Go play with the dog,” he said. “When that timer goes off, go back to a 15- to 20-minute hard productivity cycle.”
Employees can also request a flexible schedule or ability to work from home, which can enable time for therapy or self-care.
Antoinette Damico, 23, who coordinates events at an executive search firm in San Francisco, said she practices meditation, writes daily goals in a journal and stays off short-form media to improve her concentration.
Celebrate your strengths
Having ADHD can be an asset in the workplace, and many CEOs and entrepreneurs are neurodiverse, Didier said.
“We bring all kinds of unique talents to our workplaces. Hyperfocus, lots of energy, resilience, the ability to multitask,” she added. “There’s something about people with ADHD that seems to unmask or give us a greater capacity for creativity and innovation.”
Damico also thinks her ADHD provides advantages. When she’s interested in a topic, she can be extremely focused, reading extensively and talking about the topic nonstop, a trait others with ADHD report. “It can generate a real passion in you that is a bit unique,” she said. “It really creates this grit in me in terms of when I really want to accomplish something, there’s this boost of energy.”
DO YOU HAVE A HEALTH STORY?
The Louisiana Health section is focused on providing in-depth, personal accounts of health in the state.This section looks at medical innovations, health discoveries, state and national health statistics and re-examining tried and true methods on ways to live well.
Health editions will also profile people who are advancing health for the state of Louisiana. Do you have a health story? We want to hear from you. Email margaret.delaney@ theadvocate.com to submit health questions, stories and more.
PHOTO PROVIDED By SUSAN JONES
A young boy Susan Jones treated had apnea from having fascia restrictions from before birth. Jones treated him with cupping therapy.
Compared to the nation,Louisiana ranked the third-most stressed state with an overall stress score of 56.21, according to data gathered byWalletHub That’ssignificantly higherthan the national averagestress score of 44.85 Stress can come from many sources: work,traffic,friends,money,children and more.But chronic stress can be detrimental to health,according to the American PsychologicalAssociation,with women and young peopleexperiencing the most stress.
Continued stress can cause wear and tear on the bodyincludinganxiety,muscle tension,headaches,heartdisease,high blood pressure,stroke,sleep problems and much more.
The most stressed states include,in descending order: n NewMexico with astress score of 60.52, n Nevada with astress score of 59.9, n Louisiana with astressscore of 56.21, n WestVirginia with astress score of 55.28, n and Mississippi with astress scoreof 54.66.
The least stressedstates include,in ascending order: n Nebraska with astress score of 31.83, n Minnesota with astress score of 32.32, n NewHampshire with astress scoreof 32.49, n South Dakota with astress score of 32.66, n andIowawith astress score of 35.69 WalletHub,anonline tool to compare financialproducts,determined each state’s“stress score”by combining 40 differentdata points in four different categories: money-related stress,familyrelated stress,health and safety-related stress and work-related stress.
Data used included averagehours worked per week,job security,credit scores,costofchild care,divorce rates, mental health rates,physical activity rates, insufficient sleep rates andmore.See the fulllist of data points at wallethub.com.
HowstressedisLouisiana?
Stress scores combinenationalwork-related,
Source:WalletHub
Electrolytes play greaterroleinbody’sfunctions than just hydration
BY AVERYNEWMARK
Atlanta Journal-Constitution (TNS)
ATLANTA— You’veseen them on nightstands, in gym bags and probably even in your groupchat: electrolyte powders are gaining momentum in the wellness world But beyond the pretty packaging and promises of hangover cures, do you actually need them?
If you ask Patrick Russell, cofounder of Decatur,Georgia-based hydration brand Oasis, the answer is asalty yes.
“Sodium is as essentialtohydration as water,”hesaid.
“You can drink 3gallons of water,but if you have no salt, that waterwill just joyride your bloodstream until you
peeitout.”
Electrolytes aretinycharged minerals your body uses toabsorb and regulate water,according to the AmericanHeart Association.
Thefive keycomponents are sodium, potassium, magnesium,calciumand chloride
“You have about 37.2 trillion cells in your body,and all of themneed water to perform,” Russell said.
“Water has to get into your cells through the membrane, but it can’t do that alone. It needs an electrical charge —and that’swheresodium comes in.”
But electrolytesaren’tjust about hydration. They are critical in nerve function, musclecontractions andmaintaining fluid balance.
Afterdigging intothe science, Russell; his twinbrother Thomas; andco-founder Nicolas Terwindt launched Oasis, ahydration powder with800 milligrams of sodium perserving —whattheycall their “saltiloxzone.”
“It’sthe perfect amount between nottoo much salt where it would taste like seawater,and not toolittle whereit’snot effective,”Russell said. Thebrothers credit Allulose,a sugarfound in figs and raisins that tastes sweet but isn’tmetabolized by the body,for their brand’staste.
So who needselectrolytes? Athletes, of course, but there’smore variabilitythanyou might think,according to the AHA. Anyone spendingtimeinthe heat,recovering
from ahangover or taking weightloss medications can benefit.
The AHA also states that while electrolytes can give your body a “charge,” it is importanttoavoid consumingtoo much. Excess sodium raises blood pressure, so consult withyour doctor If you’re ready to start your own hydration journey,here are some other buzzy picks that dietitians recommend:
n Coco5: This coconut water-based hydration drink was originally developed in the Chicago Blackhawks locker room to support athlete recovery.Now backed by Devin Booker, D’Angelo Russelland Charles Barkley,it’sloaded withpotassium,magnesium and calcium
n Nuun SportPowder: This hydration powderpromises no fizz, making it agood option for anyone on the go.The packets come in several flavors, each containing 300 milligrams of sodium, along with potassium and magnesium.
n Transparent Labs:Thiseco-friendly tubprovidesmultiple electrolytes and other nutrients like taurine Each serving contains 500milligrams of sodium, with no artificial colors or sweeteners.
n LMNT: The salt bomb wellness influencers love.With1,000 milligrams of sodium perpacket,this keto-friendly mix is intense but effective. Bonus: The company has a page on its website that teaches you how to DIY it at home.
On aregular Thursday when colleges areinsession in New Orleans,between 40 and 60 volunteers come together to package hot meals for poor residents at Trinity EpiscopalChurch in the Lower Garden District.
WhileTrinity’sLoaves andFishesministry is fueled by the good hearts of their volunteers, food and other resources require money,and grantshavebecome more competitive with more nonprofits serving greater needs.
To helpwith the funding, theministry has implemented unique fundraisingefforts.
“I’ve had the thought over the years that Ireally need to figure outfundraising without going after grants all the time,” said AaronTaylor,executive director of Trinity Loaves and Fishes.
So, Taylor considered ways to fundraise that appealed tothe widercommunityzeitgeist. In 2023, there was nothing as monumental as Taylor Swift andher ErasTour,and the ministrycame up with asuccessful first-in-the-stateraffle for two tickets.
“Nonprofits are really going to have to start thinking outside the box for ways to develop fundraising events,” Taylor
said. “Ifyou can catcha wave,that’sone of the most important things that you cando.”
This year,the ministry is organizing amahjong tournament with over 300 players.
Over 1,000 people aweek
TrinityLoaves andFishes was founded in 2006 in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, after then-BishopCharlesJenkins met with volunteers of Mobile Loaves and Fishes of Austin, Texas,who were feeding residentsthat weregetting their livesback together after the devastating storm.
Jenkins decided he wanted asimilar program in New Orleans and now serves over 1,000 people aweek in the city and givesout 800 weekly sandwichbags, operating arefrigeratorand ahot food truck, according to the organization.
TheEras Tour raffle was the result of Taylor’syearslong consideration of the possibility of araffle,but was looking forthe right item to basearaffle around.
“I wantedsomething marketable, something that people really wanted that was hard to get for the average consumer,” Taylorsaid.“Iremember beinginthe shower,where Idoalot of my thinking on how Icould raise money,and wondered, ‘Whatifwebought Taylor Swift tickets.’
From Taylor Swift ticketstomahjong tournaments, this N.O. church findsunique ways to fundraise
program director Aaron Taylor holdsa boxwith food and mahjong tiles to promote asoldout mahjong night in at Christ Church Cathedral in NewOrleans.
While Taylor saidittook some convincing to go forwardwith an over $3,000 investment, andsome back-and-forth with the Louisiana OfficeofCharitable Gaming to work out the laws around such a raffle, theministry completed allthe paperworkand was able to host the raffle. Along withsetting up the Loaves and Fishes raffle, Taylor said their fundraiser helped thestate learnwhat to do with other organizationswho laterhosted theirown Eras Tour sweepstakes. Media coverage of the rafflehelped Loaves and Fishes makeover$10,000 in the first days
The $3,000investment in the raffle resulted in over $40,000 for Loaves and Fishes, according to theministry,though Taylor said he now wishes they keptthe raffle going intothe days leading up to theOctober 2024 concerttoraiseeven more money
“It’sreally good to volunteer and see the full circle of preparing the meals, delivering the meals and seeing them in the hands of people who need them,” said Ben Williamson, president of the board of TrinityLoaves and Fishes. Williamson was effusive in the work Taylor did to runthe nonprofit as well as his fundraising plans.
“Aaron’sreally done agreat job with coming up with these creative and innovative ideas to raise money,”Williamson said. “He took abig chancewith the Taylor Swift raffle. and it really paid off in abig way.”
The raffle also helped theministry recruit more volunteers whofound out aboutthe food program through the ticket giveaway,including youngervol-
ä See COMMUNITY, page 2Y
Atestfor theTikTok generation
Twenty-somethings surround me in the newsroom. As expected, they use their phones for everything.
Iuse my phone, too —just differently.Most of my colleagues are digital natives. We work toward the same goals using different systems. My desk is covered in business cards, reader postcards, receipts, sticky notes and avariety of notebooks. Each is chock full of my hybrid cursive/shorthand scratch and scrawl —and it works forme. Their desks appear almost sterile to me —tidy,neat, no handwritten notes in sight. Other people closer to my age do have notes like my own. Even without knowing who sat where, Icould estimate each occupant’sage by whatwas —orwasn’t—ontheir desks. Different generations have different systems. What feels essential to me can feel unnecessary to them, and vice versa. Few use spiral-bound reporter’snotebooks like the ones I’ve collected for decades and stored in my attic. Their lack of pen and paper usage inspired me to run asmall experiment.
Iwrote asimple note in cursive in asmall reporter’snotebook. I walkedaround the newsroom and asked each journalist to read it. The note explained my mission and asked the readers when they learned to read and write in cursive, and if they remember who taught them.
Some of them struggled to read the full note. Ideliberately included the words “easy-peasy,” so there would be something unexpected.
Ilearned that acouple of them write in cursive often. However, the rest of them said they only use cursive to sign their names.
Reporter Haley Miller said Mrs. Strehle taught her cursive when she was in the second grade in Indiana, but she never writesinit now
Quinn Coffman says reading the note “took abit,” but he learned cursive in the second grade in St. Louis, Missouri, from Mrs. Broughten and Mrs. Miller.Still, he said he can’tread most adults’ cursive and can’twrite it beyond his signature.
Aidan McCahill, 23, learned cursive in fourth grade in Michigan from Mrs. Radecki. Does he write in it?
“Absolutely not,” he said. “I couldn’tifIwanted to.”
Deanna Narveson, 30, says she always writesincursive. She learned in fifth grade.
“Teachers said we could write faster in cursive. Iwas acompetitive student,” she said.
Alayna Ford, a21-year-old intern, said she uses cursive only for her signature, but she learned it in second grade in Georgia.
Javier Gallegos, aphotographer struggled to make out ahandful of words in my note. He said that he never writes in cursive other than his signature. Ihope that Mrs. Rodriguez, his fourth grade teacher in El Paso, Texas, would not be disappointed to hear this news.
Caitie Zeilman, who is 25, said reading the note “took an extra second,” but eventually,she was able to decipher it. Not read, but solved —like apuzzle.
To them, cursive is something to be decoded.
My colleagues’ efforts and responses fascinated me.
Idecided to take alook back at the history of teaching cursive in America and how the art of penmanship is tied to the very start of the country with three famous words, “Wethe People...”
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Trinity Episcopalfood program chef Kelly Williams, volunteer Jan Hutchison and Belinda Long,ofBethlehemLutheran Church hand outmeals to peopleonthe sidewalk outside the church.
Trinity Episcopal food
STAFF FILE PHOTOSBySOPHIAGERMER
Hunter Key, 13, helps box food for the TrinityEpiscopalfood program at Christ Church CathedralinNew Orleans on April17.
ASK THE EXPERTS
Helping find permanent housing for the homeless
Native New Orleanian gives back to the city by advocating for at-risk populations
BY JOY HOLDEN Staff writer
Donna Paramore, a New Orleans native, has dedicated 20 years of her life to nonprofit leadership and fund development, advocating for at-risk populations. She has served as the executive director of the Travelers Aid Society of Greater New Orleans, the oldest, nonsectarian social welfare organization in the country, for five years Her entire career has been centered on giving back to the Greater New Orleans community Since Paramore has been with the Travelers Aid Society of Greater New Orleans, the organization has quadrupled in employees, the services they provide and the people they are able to serve.
What is the mission atTravelersAid Society of Greater New Orleans, and what communities do you serve?
We’ve been in existence for 116 years, and our mission is that we work to end homelessness. Our vision is that everyone in New Orleans would have a safe place to call home. We work with individuals who are either currently homeless or unhoused, or those who have formerly been homeless or unhoused. We have outreach workers that go in the streets each and every day to actually connect individuals to services and get them qualified for permanent housing.
We also have permanent supportive housing for more than 200 people, and we provide extensive case management services We work with these individuals with holistic services to get them to a level of self-sufficiency, as many of our clients will have disabilities,
anywhere from physical to mental disabilities. We keep working with them to help them restart their lives.
Can you explain what “fair housing” truly means and why it’s so important?
Fair housing really means that every person has the legal right to choose where they live without discrimination based on race, color, national origin, disability or family status. It’s foundational to create equitable, inclusive communities.
Fair housing is so important because it helps ensure that all people, especially those who’ve been historically marginalized, can access safe, affordable housing in neighborhoods of their choosing.
So that’s where we really work with clients to give them choices.
So although they’re coming from the streets, we don’t just put them in any first apartment that would be available We want to put them in areas that they will be comfortable with, that they can access different resources.
Tell us about the recent tiny house collabo-
ration that Travelers Aid was a part of in May.
We partnered with Louvis services, which is a nonprofit developer, and they’ve partnered with Tulane University students to help build the house. This is actually the second tiny home that we’ve been a part of with Louvis services
We provide the clients and the supportive services for the client. This is a perfect example of why it’s so important for different nonprofits to partner together to provide great resources in the community This partnership, not only does it provides affordable housing, but it also provides the case management that clients need and the rental assistance that clients need.
The tiny home is beautiful. And although it says tiny homes, it has everything in it that an individual would need to restart their lives. The units are 500 square feet. They come fully furnished. They have beautiful porches It’s just great to be a part of something like that,
Last reminder to nominate a person
Submit someone over 60 years old for the ENCORE awards: Deadline July 14
Jan Risher
It’s the last chance to nominate someone over the age of 60 who is doing extraordinary things.
Nominate them for the Louisiana Inspired ENCORE Awards here. The awards will celebrate Louisianans aged 60 and over who continue to lead, serve and inspire. The awards will recognize
COMMUNITY
Continued from page 1y
unteers from colleges who may not have otherwise heard of the ministry
“It definitely got our message out to a broader audience. We’ve had donors now from different states, and it was because of the Taylor Swift raffle,” Taylor said First Taylor Swift, now mahjong
Following the raffle, Taylor wanted to come up with another idea that could be a shake-up from regular fundraising activities that New Orleans organizations put together He was thinking about a spin on a golf classic fundraiser, one that could especially appeal to women, who tended to be the largest donors to philanthropic programs.
“I saw all these men’s golf tournaments, all the time And I thought, ‘There needs to be a mirror for women that is similar to a golf tournament,’ ” Taylor said.
Sally Cockerham, a ministry volunteer who passed away had told the ministry about her love of playing mahjong with her friends, which planted the idea about the appeal of the tile game to women. Taylor said his research leads him to believe the Loaves and Fishes’ New Orleans Mahjong Classic will be the largest philanthropic mahjong tournament in American history Tourna-
so we know that we’re creating affordable housing and we have clients that will be in those houses and off the streets.
How does a partnership like this address the larger homelessness crisis in New Orleans?
When we look at homelessness, it’s such a complex issue, so it requires collaboration across different sectors for it to be successful. Partnerships like this allow us to pair safe, quality housing with wraparound services, which are evidence-based and proven to reduce homelessness.
We realized that there’s only one solution for homelessness, and that’s permanent housing. This is actually solving part of that problem by providing permanent, supportive housing. By us working together, we can scale solutions more effectively and reach people who are often left behind. Every unit that’s created, every person that is housed, is a step towards a broader systemic impact.
What do you hope the community takes away from this project?
We want the community to know that homelessness is a solvable problem when we have partnerships and individuals that invest in the work that we do.
The tiny home project demonstrates what’s possible when we move beyond temporary fixes and embrace long term, compassionate solutions. A temporary fix is to put someone in a shelter for a few months, or put them up in a hotel. That’s a very temporary solution. But when you can build affordable housing, and then you give individuals the services that they need, then we look at that as a permanent solution to the homelessness problem.
As a New Orleanian, what does this position mean to you?
My family has been in New Orleans for generations, like dating back to the 1800s. Growing up, I was always taught that we should give to the world and not take from the world. So, being in this position, I feel like I’m doing a little point of making New Orleans a better place.
We have to do something. We can’t always complain about New Orleans. We have to do something to make it better I feel like I’m doing a small part in terms of helping individuals who have probably been forgotten by society, maybe forgotten by their families because of different issues, such as mental health issues.
By helping one person I’m doing something to contribute back to the city that has essentially raised me and formed me into the person that I am.
Email Joy Holden at joy.holden@ theadvocate.com.
individuals who prove that purpose and passion don’t fade with age — they evolve. Whether they launched a business, wrote a book, earned a degree, created art, led community initiatives or made a lasting impact in any field, we want to recognize those who keep going, keep learning and stay engaged with their communities. The 2025 ENCORE Awards will highlight those who have taken on bold new challenges, lifted up others and made a measurable impact in their communities or beyond, challenging outdated ideas of aging by shining a light on people whose second (or third!) acts are meaningful, powerful and creative. Nominations for the 2025 ENCORE Awards can be made here. (FOR PRINT: https://www nola.com/site/forms/encore_ awards/encore_awards_imported-20250605122916/ Submissions will close July 14. Award recipients will be announced in late summer For more information, email Jan Risher at jan.risher@theadvocate.com.
ment tickets — 340, in fact — which include three rounds of mahjong, sold out within nine days and include players from 22 states. The waitlist is now over 200 people as of June.
The tournament is being organized in partnership with popular mahjong Dallas-based mahjong instructor and influencer Molly Hardy, who will speak at the tournament
“Mahjong really is a great way to create community, and I think it’s a game that involves strategy,” Taylor said I think people,
especially women, want more than just tea parties and galas. They want something that gives them the opportunity to use strategy.”
The tournament will take place Nov 8 at the Hotel Monteleone in the French Quarter.
Along with the raffle and mahjong tournament, Taylor said Loaves and Fishes hosted its second gala for fundraising and to celebrate their volunteers.
Email Marco Cartolano at Marco.Cartolano@theadvocate. com
RISHER
Continued from page 1y
From our country’s early days, penmanship was a valued element of a basic education. When keyboards and computers became more prevalent, cursive instruction began to wane. In 2010, the Common Core Standards seemed to spell the end of cursive when schools across the country were no longer required to teach the style of writing. These days, about 24 states have reinstated legislation requiring cursive to be taught at public elementary schools so maybe it’s making a comeback? Louisiana was an early adopter of the callback to cursive.
In 2016, Louisiana passed legislation requiring public and charter schools to teach cursive. Last year, legislators passed “Let Teachers Teach” legislation that repealed “certain student instruction and teacher training requirements.” Ultimately, the legislation asked the BESE Board to review the many requirements on schools and teachers to decide which ones
needed to stay in place and which ones needed to fall by the wayside. For now, the jury is still out on cursive’s curlicues and uncertain future. In the meantime, the 2016 legislation that requires public and charter schools to teach cursive is still in effect — though by my brief investigation, I’m not sure how many schools are doing that. If you’re fluent in cursive, the National Archives needs your help. They’re looking for volunteers to help transcribe historic documents. Volunteers watch an 8-minute video and then are invited to download documents and transcribe a variety of records — including Revolutionary War pension files, JFK Assassination Records (1964), Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Records (1947-1959), Department of State Records from 1947-1952 and more. The truth is, I love working with this latest generation of journalists. They are fun. They are smart. They are hardworking. I’ll keep my cursive sharp, just in case one of them ever needs help reading a birthday card from their grandma. Email Jan Risher at jan.risher@ theadvocate.com.
PROVIDED PHOTOS
The Travelers Aid Society of Greater New Orleans and its supporters unite on the steps of the state capitol building to rally support for their cause of ending homelessness in New Orleans.
Donna Paramore, Travelers Aid Society of Greater New Orleans
STAFF PHOTO By JAN RISHER
Jan Risher quickly wrote this note to see if fellow journalists, particularly the younger ones, could read cursive.
STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER
Trinity Episcopal food program chef Kelly Williams serves meals at Bethlehem Lutheran Church in New Orleans on April 17.
forcitizens living on the largest of Minnesota’s 11 reservations. With 1,300 square miles of land, the White EarthTransportation Department is responsible for 150 miles of rural roads.
Bagley
BY JODI RAVE SPOTTED BEAR
Contributing writer
Editor’snote: This story, created by Jodi Rave Spotted Bear for Buffalo’sFire, is part of the AP Storyshare.
Louisiana Inspired features solutions journalism stories that provide tangible evidence that positive change is happeninginother places and in our own communities —solutions that can be adopted around the world. Native peoplesoften experience the worstroad conditions and havethe highest need for transportation. After about adecade of envisioning an expansive transit hub for the White Earth Nation, Tribal leaders and administrators officially broke ground for the White Earth Transit Station
On Friday,May 30, White Earth Nation Chairman Michael Fairbankssat and sang with alocal drum group, signaling the cultural and spiritual importance of the tribe’stransit station groundbreaking. In the background, heavy equipment operators cleared the ground andmoved earth for the 18,000-square-foot transit hub, which is expectedto be completed in July 2026. When done,the hub willbe the largest tribal transit facility in Minnesota.
“It’sa really good day here in White Earth to see the project movingforward,” said Rep. LauraLee Erickson, White Earth’s District 3leader,who joined Fairbanks and fellow White Earth Nation tribal leaders, staff and citizens who gathered at the construction site andlater held symbolic gold shovels.
The White Earth Transit Station is greatlyneeded
White Earth Reservation land is situatedamong lakes, trees andmore than ahundred miles of dirt and gravel roads, plus 50 miles of bituminous roads. Areliable transit system ensures the safety of all citizens, particularly women and young girls.
“Withlimitedaccessto cars —and few,ifany,auto mechanics in rural reservation communities —Native women and girls resort to hitchhiking, which places thematrisk,” according to atransportation research report by TRNews. “The forms of travel for tribal people are sometimes affected bya lack ofaccess to reliable mode choices providedbythe tribaltransportation agencies, such as public busesorother ridesharing and transit for rural communities.”
Numerousstatistics underscore theurgent need for reliable transportation in Native communities, where public transitoptions are frequently limited. The WhiteEarthNation is poised to change these national dynamicswith the constructionofthe $7 million WhiteEarth Public Transit Station.
The hub will house 12 buses currently in the tribe’s transit fleet, along with 18 employees.
“We’re running alittle short on drivers, so we’re hoping to add afew more andthen we do expect to expand and add some more routes,” said Kenneth Bakken, WhiteEarth public transitmanager In addition to transporting people acrossthe reservation, the tribe’s bus routes extend to some nearbytowns,such as Detroit Lakesand
“It’sbeen along road,” Bakken said. “I’ve been with transit for16years, been amanager here for 10, and that’skindofwhen we started theproject. We gottogether with theLand Office, working on securingthe property here.And thenonce we did that, we went and workedwith FTA, which is the Federal Transit Administration, working on securing funding with them to do the project.”
While the recent groundbreaking was years in the making through the efforts of manypeople,including theReservation Business Committee, or RBC,and theMinnesotaDepartment of Transportation. U.S. SenatorsAmy Klobuchar and Tina SmithfromMinnesotaled acampaign to support transit needs for Native communities. On Aug. 18, 2022, the senators announced $5.9million in federal grants to Minnesota Native nations, including $3.6 millionfor WhiteEarth public transit facilities.
“Thisfunding will help modernize public transit in Tribalcommunities, while improving air quality and helpingcombat climate change,”said Sen. Smithin astatement. “I am proud of ourwork to help make these grants more accessible for Tribal communitiesand will continueworking to support public transportation across Minnesota.”
Smithchaired afieldhearing in summer 2022 in Minnesotaaimed at elevating the infrastructurepriorities of Minnesota’sTribal Nations and raising awareness amongTribal Nations for the funding opportunities available through the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, passed at the end of 2021.
In 2022, American Indian and Alaska Native adults were 17.1% more likely to
of
on May30for the White Earth Transit Station. In the background, heavy equipment operators were busyclearing the ground to beginbuilding construction.
lack reliable transportation for dailyliving in the past12months compared with Asian, whiteand Hispanic populations,accordingtothe National Center for Health Statistics. This hinders people in numerous ways, including their abilitytoseek medical attention.
“On behalf of myself andthe other members of the RBC,weare proud to be oneofthe recipients of such agenerous grant from theFTA,” said Fairbanks in astatement. “Our goal is to always ensure that our systems, processes, and decisions worktoserveour community and families of the White Earth Reservation to thehigheststandard possible. This grant will aid in the continuance of providing excellency of White Earth’sTransit system as wellasbeing at the forefront of improvingair quality and combating climate change.”
Lee Erickson, White Earth Nation District 3leader,looksatarchitectural designs during the groundbreakingfor the tribe’stransit station.
PROVIDED PHOTOS By JODI SPOTTED BEAR
As asign
community cohesiveness, adrumgroup opened the groundbreakingceremony
Rep.Laura
FAITH & VALUES
Jewish weddings seeing change for gender equality
Shifts affect the marriage contract, breaking the glass under the chuppah
BY SAMIRA MEHTA Contributing writer
Traditional Jewish weddings share one key aspect with traditional Christian weddings. Historically, the ceremony was essentially a transfer of property: A woman went from being the responsibility of her father to being the responsibility of her husband.
That may not be the first thing Americans associate with weddings today, but it lives on in rituals and vows. Think, in a traditional Christian wedding, of a bride promising “to obey” her husband, or being “given away” by her father after he walks her down the aisle.
Feminism has changed some aspects of the Christian wedding.
More egalitarian or feminist couples, for example, might have the bride be “given away” by both her parents, or have both the bride and groom escorted in by parents. Others skip the “giving” altogether.
Queer couples, too, have reimagined the wedding ceremony During research for my book
“Beyond Chrismukkah,” about Christian-Jewish interfaith families, many interviewees wound up talking about their weddings and the rituals that they selected or innovated for the day to reflect their cultural background. Some of them had also designed their ceremonies to reflect feminism and marriage equality something that the interfaith weddings had in common with many weddings where both members of the couple were Jewish.
These values have transformed many Jewish couples’ weddings, just as they have transformed the Christian wedding. Some Jewish couples make many changes while some make none And like every faith, Judaism has lots of internal diversity — not all traditional Jewish weddings look the same.
Contracts and covenants
Perhaps one of the most important places where feminism and marriage equality have reshaped traditions is in the “ketubah,” or Jewish marriage contract.
A traditional ketubah is a simple legal document in Hebrew or Aramaic, a related ancient language. Two witnesses sign the agreement, which states that the groom has acquired the bride. However, the ketubah is also sometimes framed as a tool to protect women. The document stipulates the husband’s responsibility to provide for his wife and confirms what he should pay her in case of divorce. Traditional ketubot — the plural of ketubah — did not discuss love, God or intentions for the marriage.
Contemporary ketubot in more liberal branches of Judaism, whether between opposite-or same-sex couples, are usually much more egalitarian documents that reflect
the home and the marriage that the couple want to create. Sometimes the couple adapt the Aramaic text; others keep the Aramaic and pair it with a text in the language they speak every day, describing their intentions for their marriage.
Rather than being simple, printed documents, contemporary ketubot are often beautiful pieces of art, made to hang in a place of prominence in the newlyweds’ home. Sometimes the art makes references to traditional Jewish symbols, such as a pomegranate for fertility and love. Other times, the artist works with the couple to personalize their decorations with images and symbols that are meaningful to them.
Contemporary couples will often also use their ketubah to address an inherent tension in Jewish marriage. Jewish law gives men much more freedom to divorce than it gives women. Because women cannot generally initiate divorce, they can end up as “agunot,” which literally means “chained”: women whose husbands have refused to grant them a religious divorce. Even if the couple have been divorced in secular court, an “agunah” cannot, according to Jewish law, remarry in a religious ceremony
Contemporary ketubot will sometimes make a note that, while the couple hope to remain married until death, if the marriage deteriorates, the husband agrees to grant a divorce if certain conditions are met. This prevents women from being held hostage in unhappy marriages.
Other couples eschew the ketubah altogether in favor of a new type of document called a “brit ahuvim,”
or covenant of lovers. These documents are egalitarian agreements between couples. The brit ahuvim was developed by Rachel Adler, a feminist rabbi with a deep knowledge of Jewish law, and is grounded in ancient Jewish laws for business partnerships between equals. That said, many Jews, including some feminists, do not see the brit ahuvim as equal in status to a ketubah. Building together
Beyond the ketubah, there are any number of other changes that couples make to symbolize their hopes for an egalitarian marriage. Jewish ceremonies often take place under a canopy called the chuppah, which symbolizes the home that the couple create together In a traditional Jewish wedding, the bride circles the groom three or seven times before entering the chuppah. This represents both her protection of their home and that the groom is now her priority
Many couples today omit this custom, because they feel it makes the bride subservient to the groom. Others keep the circling but reinterpret it: In circling the groom, the bride actively creates their home, an act of empowerment. Other egalitarian couples, regardless of their genders, share the act of circling: Each spouse circles three times, and then the pair circle once together In traditional Jewish weddings, like in traditional Christian weddings, the groom gives his bride a ring to symbolize his commitment to her — and perhaps to mark her as a married woman. Many contemporary Jewish couples exchange two rings: both partners offering a gift
The ketubah is a binding document in Jewish law that traditionally spells out a groom’s responsibilities toward his wife — but that many couples adapt to be more egalitarian.
to mark their marriage and presenting a symbol of their union to the world. While some see this shift as an adaptation to American culture, realistically, the dual-ring ceremony is a relatively new development in both American Christian and American Jewish marriage ceremonies. Finally, Jewish weddings traditionally end when the groom stomps on and breaks a glass, and the entire crowd yells “Mazel tov” to congratulate them. People debate the symbolism of the broken glass. Some say that it reminds us that life contains both joy and sorrow or that it is a reminder of a foundational crisis in Jewish history: the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem in 70 C.E Others say that it is a reminder that life is fragile or
that marriage, unlike the glass, is an unbreakable covenant Regardless of what it means, some contemporary couples both step on glasses, or have one partner place their foot on top of the other’s so that the newlyweds can break the glass together The couple symbolize their commitment to equality — and both get to do a fun wedding custom. There are many other innovations in contemporary Jewish weddings that have much less to do with feminism and egalitarianism, such as personalized wedding canopies or wedding programs. But these key changes represent how the wedding ceremony itself has become more egalitarian in response to both feminism and marriage equality
SCORE helps business owners through knowledge, experience
BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer
A little advice can go a long way when starting a business, but new business owners don’t always know where to find it. This is where the Service Corps of Retired Executives can help The nonprofit organization, known as SCORE, has been advising up-and-coming business owners through volunteer mentors since it was chartered by an Act of Congress in 1964. And as clientele increases, the organization’s Baton Rouge chapter is seeking out more volunteer mentors.
“Primarily we look for mentors that have their own business, meaning we’re looking for volunteers that have been on an entrepreneurial path,” said Clarence Lawson, a certified mentor for SCORE Baton Rouge. “We also look at those who have actually been in business, maybe working for an employer But pretty much what we look for is a person that lived the experience to help the entrepreneur.” SCORE is a resource partner of the U.S. Small Business Administration and receives
through a congressional grant, as well as from workshop fees and contributions. Its written mission is to “foster
brant
And the best part? All of these services are offered free to SCORE’s clientele. Meanwhile, SCORE Louisiana counseled 721 unique clients and conducted 47 free business education workshops in 2024. Still, maintaining, or even increasing, those numbers means recruiting more mentors.
“We’re looking for mentors who are knowledgeable and able to pro-
vide counsel while walking these new entrepreneurs along the journey,” Lawson said. “So we look for a person who is empathetic toward the entrepreneur, knowing exactly what that journey looks like. They will basically be walking alongside the entrepreneur when it comes to developing their business plan and at the same time have the knowledge to what it takes to be successful in that journey.”
For Lawson, SCORE is a chance to give back to a nonprofit that mentored him when he was developing his own consulting business.
“I had a mentor that let me look over his shoulder, which helped me understand what a business looks like,” he said. “He helped me figure out things like cash flow and the tools I would need in my business, and he helped me understand that no every day is going to be sunshine.”
But the most valuable lesson Lawson learned though SCORE was knowing his numbers.
“It’s not enough to have a great idea, because at the end of the day, you’re in business to be profitable,” he said. “So you need to know the cost of being in business.”
Lawson learned these lessons not only through one-on-one mentor counseling but also by attending workshops hosted by the nonprofit These workshops usually are conducted online. In the Baton Rouge
area, they are coordinated by Nesha Brown.
“My job is to recruit subject matter experts and presenters to be able to offer tangible tools and resources in support of small businesses,” she said. “I recruit presenters, I facilitate the workshops, I select the topics and make sure that they’re relevant to the small business needs within Louisiana. And we plan out an entire schedule of workshop programming for people to participate in free of charge.”
It’s not unusual for more than 100 entrepreneurs to sign up for a single workshop.
“These are people who are just starting out,” Brown said. “And since the workshops are virtual, you can take part in them no matter where you are.”
“SCORE is the most effective source of small business mentoring in the U.S. and we are proud to be making a positive difference right here in our local community,” added Bob Shaver, district director of SCORE Baton Rouge Area Chapter “SCORE data shows that entrepreneurs who receive three or more hours of mentoring report higher revenues and increased business growth.”
To learn more about volunteering to become SCORE mentor visit score.org/batonrougearea.
PROVIDED PHOTO
GETTy IMAGES PHOTO By URIEL SINAI
yulia Tagil and Stas Granin celebrate their union on July 25, 2010, at a square in Tel Aviv. The couple held a public wedding to protest Israeli marriage guidelines set by the chief rabbinate.
STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON
Clarence Lawson, of SCORE, in the meeting room at the Main Library where those in the program meet in Baton Rouge
SUNDAY, JUlY 13, 2025
CURTIS / by Ray Billingsley
SLYLOCK FOX / by Bob Weber Jr
GET FUZZY / by Darby Conley
HAGAR THE HORRIBLE / by Chris Browne
MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM / by Mike Peters
ZIGGY / by Tom Wilson
ZITS / by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman
SALLY FORTH / by Francesco Marciuliano & Jim Keefe
PEARLS BEFORE SWINE /byStephan Pastis
grams
directions: Make a 2- to 7-letter word from the letters in each row Add points of each word, using scoring directions at right. Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus. “Blanks” used as any letter have no point value All the words are in the Official SCRABBLE® Players Dictionary, 5th Edition.
word game
instructions: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.
todAY's Word — dAMnABLe: DAM-nuhbul: Liable to or deserving condemnation; detestable
Average mark 40 words
Time limit 60 minutes
Can you find 53 or more words in DAMNABLE?
ken ken
instructions: 1 -Each rowand each column must contain thenumbers 1through4 (easy) or 1through6 (challenging) without repeating 2 -The numbers within the heavily outlinedboxes, called cages, must combine using thegiven operation (inany order)toproduce the target numbersinthe top-left corners. 3 -Freebies: Fillinthe single-boxcages withthe numberinthe top-left corner
instructions: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 gridwith several given numbers. The object is to placethe numbers 1to 9in theempty squares so that each row,each column and each 3x3 boxcontains the same number only once. The difficultylevel of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday
directions: Complete thegridso that numbers 1–132 connect horizontally, vertically or diagonally
Sudoku
Lead directing double works!
Today’s deal was played recently in Europe, where players experiment with bidding ideas not usually seen in North America. North’s one-spade response, denying a major suit, is one such idea. North-South bid to a normal contract only to be doubled by East This was a leaddirecting double, asking for the lead of dummy’s first bid suit, in this case spades. North, with a huge unknown club fit with partner, ran to four clubs and South raised to game. West duly led the four of spades to East’s ace, and East continued with the queen of spades to South’s king. South cashed the ace and king of clubs, then cashed two high diamonds and led a diamond for a ruff in his hand. East could do what he wanted with the master trump, but he could not defeat the contract.
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
super Quiz
Take this Super Quiz to a Ph.D. Score 1 point for each correct answer on the Freshman Level, 2 points on the graduate Level and 3 points on the Ph.D. Level.
SUBJECT: DISASTERS
(e.g., In 1984, this city in India was the site of the world’s worst industrial disaster Answer: Bhopal.)
FRESHMAN LEVEL
1. In 1912, this ocean liner sank with the loss of over 1,400 lives.
Answer________
2. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called it “a date which will live in infamy.”
Answer________
3. In 1986, this space shuttle broke apart, killing all seven crew members.
Looking at the effect of the double, three no-trump can be made on a spade lead, but the winning line is far from clear and declarer might have gone down. Without the double, however, West would probably have led the queen of diamonds, and three no-trump would have romped home, perhaps with an overtrick. In this case, the leaddirecting double did no worse than break even for East-West and might have gained a little bit.
what’s best for you, and everything will fall into place Love is in the stars VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) Movement is necessary for your health, but overdoing it will set you back. Moderation is the key to satiating your body, mind and soul. Embrace what fulfills you. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Talks can be fortuitous if you are willing to meet halfway and contribute equally to the outcome. Don’t miss a romantic opportunity or a chance to don a new look. SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Count your money, protect your possessions and invest smartly. Concentrate on revamping your resume or looking for new outlets to apply your skills, experience and knowledge.
nessandencouragenewfriendships. Chase your dreams and enjoy what life can offer CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Once you have your mind set on something and your plan ready, you will find it easy to parlay your preparation into somethingthatgivesbackmorethan you anticipate. What you contribute, you will get back twofold.
PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Distance yourself from anyone using persuasive tactics to promote indulgence. Temptation will surface and emotions will swell. Choose a pastime you enjoy, and head in a direction that offers gains and growth.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov 23-Dec 21) Travel, reunions and doing or learning something new will promote happi-
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Keep your money and possessions separate Dismiss joint ventures, shared expenses and untrustworthy offers. Concentrate on your living space; make changes that add to your comfort.
ARIES (March 21-April 19) Reconsider your options before you move forward with a home improvement project, move or change. Acting on impulse will lead to regret, but biding your time and negotiating will lead to peace of mind.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Stick to what you know and do best. Making a change to appease someone will cost you, but putting your time and energy into self-improvement will make you feel better GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Live in the moment, enjoy life and turn your surroundings into a playground. Put the people and the things you love most at the forefront and enjoy the peace and gratitude they provide.
SCORING: 24 to 30 points —congratulations, doctor; 18 to 23 points—honorsgraduate; 13 to 17 points —you’replenty smart, but no grind; 5to12points —you really shouldhit the booksharder;1point to 4points —enroll in remedial courses immediately; 0points who reads thequestions to you?
Give like the sun and thewhole world grows tall.
jeFF mACnelly’sshoe/ by Gary Brookins &Susie MacNelly
