The Times-Picayune 05-03-2026 by The Advocate

SATURDAY @ JAZZ FEST

TAKE IT EASY

TheEagles, AlabamaShakes, T-Pain play sold-out Jazz Fest

the NewOrleans

at the Fair Grounds on Saturday.

BY KEITH SPERA Staff writer

The real “star” of the2026 New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival on Saturday?

The sun. After being MIA during twodaysofrain, the sun returnedinall its glory Saturday with the added bonus of low humidity and asteady breeze.

The Eagles also returned to the Fair Grounds on Saturday

The result?

The ﬁrst daytime selloutinJazz Festhistory, other than 2024’sspecial, limited-admission Rolling StonesThursday Just before 3p.m. Saturday,the festival posted on social media, “Today’sJazz Fest is sold out.Atthis time, tickets are still available for tomorrow.”

Anyone who stood in the blocks-long lines on Fortin Street trying to access theFair Groundsunderstood that abig daywas afoot. Wait times in the line stretched at least as long as 45 minutes

But Saturday’sattendance wasnot recordsetting. Far from it.

No day will ever match the160,000 that turned out in 2001 for the Dave Matthews Band and New Orleans rapper Mystikal, then at the peak of his popularity.That wasananomaly.

ä See JAZZ FEST, page 6A

T-Pain performs on the Congo Square Stageduring the New Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival on Saturday.

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN

Redistricting bills already filedfor regular sessionofLa. Legislature

BY TYLER BRIDGES

writer

The process of redrawing Louisiana’scongressional districts couldbeginassoon as Wednesday after the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated thevoting map andGov.Jeff Landry putthe brakesonthatlooming vote.

State senators saythey have been holding feverish talks behind the scenes to devise a plan to address therulinglast week that Louisiana’s House congressional mapisunconstitutional because it relied too heavily on race when it was drawn. On Thursday,saying he would not allow Louisiana to vote on an illegalmap, Landry declared an emergencythatcanceled the May16primary for the six U.S. House elections.

Akey person in what happens next is state Sen. Caleb Kleinpeter,R-Port Allen. He is both

ä See MAP, page 4A

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Acrowd gathers in front of the FestivalStageasthe Eagles performduring

Jazz& HeritageFestival

CHEDIAK Landry

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK

Alabama Shakes performonthe Shell Gentilly Stageduring the NewOrleans Jazz &HeritageFestival at the Fair Groundson Saturday.

BRIEFS FROM WIRE REPORTS

Supreme Courtasked to weigh mifepristone case

Amaker of the widely used abortion pill mifepristoneasked the Supreme Court on Saturday to blockanappellatecourt ruling that cutoff mail-orderaccess to the drug just aday earlier,in whatwas the biggest jolt to abortion policy in the U.S. sincethe overturning of Roe v. Wade Danco Laboratories, which is also adefendant in the lawsuit in question, asked to block theNew Orleans-based5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals decisionwhile appeals are pending, saying the appellate ruling “injectsimmediate confusionand upheavalinto highly time-sensitive medical decisions.”

The appeals court’sunanimous ruling Friday marked asubstantial victory for abortion opponents seeking to stem the ﬂowof abortion pills prescribed online, which they view as subverting state bans. It requires that mifepristonebedistributed only in person and at clinics, overruling regulations set by the federal Food and Drug Administration.

“We’re nowgoingtosee,Ithink in away we haven’tbefore,what thenationwilllook like when abortion bans are actually in effect,” said Mary Ziegler,anexpert on abortion law anda professor at University of California at Davis School of Law

Activists’ detention ups Spain-Israel tensions

SOLARES,Spain Spain’sforeign minister on Saturday called for the immediate release of an activistdetained by Israel after an aid ﬂotilla bound for Gaza was intercepted by the Israeli navy in international waters.

Saif Abukeshek, adual SpanishSwedishcitizen of Palestinian origin, was detained for questioning in Israel on Saturdayalong with Thiago Ávila of Brazil. A legal aid group said both men had launched ahunger strike.

Dozens of other activists were picked up by the Greek coast guardfollowing the Israeli action and taken to the island of Crete.

“This is acase of illegal detention in international waters, outside the jurisdiction of Israeli authorities. Ihavemade this clear to my Israeli counterpart,” José Manuel Albaressaidinaninterview with public radio.

An Israel-based legal advocacy group, theLegal Center for Arab Minority Rights in Israel, or Adalah, said it had visited the two men at adetention site in theIsraeli portcity of Ashkelon. It said both reported being on ahunger strike after allegedly being repeatedly beaten whileincustody

“Adalah maintains that the treatment of the two activists, including the use of isolation, prolonged blindfolding and physical beatings, constitutes agrave violation of international law,” the group said.

In an online post, Israel’s ForeignMinistry said Abukeshek and Ávila werebeing questioned for possible linkstothe armed group Hamas. It said the two men had been granted consularvisits. Whale stranded off Germany released

BERLIN Arescue team on Saturday released from abarge in the North Sea ahumpbackwhale thathad been stranded in shallow waters near Germany since March, witnesses said. NicknamedTimmy by Germanmedia, the whalewas spotted swimming near Germany’s Baltic Sea coast on March 3, far from itsnaturalhabitat in the Atlantic Ocean.

The mammal’shealth deterioratedasitbecame repeatedly strandedinshallow waters near the coastal city of Wismar, and unsuccessful effortsto coax it toward deeper seas were livestreamed acrossthe globe

The environment minister for Germany’sMecklenburgWestern Pomerania state gave the green light for the attempt to save the whale, proposed by aprivate initiative, despite some warnings from the scientific community that it may be too much for the animal.

Jens Schwarck, amemberof the private initiative who was on site, said the whale was released around 9a.m. local time, according to theGerman news agency dpa. The agency reported that the whale wasreleasedabout 45 miles from the coast of Skagen, Denmark.

Trumpsayshe’sreviewing Iran’s proposaltoend war

BY AAMER MADHANI, SARAH EL DEEB andCARAANNA Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. President Donald Trump said on Saturday that he was reviewing a newIranian proposal to endthe warbut also expressedskepticism it would lead to adeal.

“I’ll letyou know about it later,” he saidbefore boarding Air Force One, adding that they’re going to give me the exact wording now.”

Shortly afterspeaking to reporters, Trump posted on socialmedia about the new proposal, saying he “can’timagine that it would be acceptableinthat they have not yet paid abig enough price for what they have done to Humanity,and the World,overthe last47years.”

Twosemiofﬁcial Iranian news outlets, Tasnim and Fars, believed to be closetoIran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard,said Iran hassenta14-pointproposal via Pakistan in response to aninepoint U.S. proposal. Iran’s staterun media have not reported on thenew proposal.Pakistanhas hostedprevious negotiations between Iran and the United States.

Trump rejected aprevious Iranian proposal this week. However,conversations have continued, and the three-week ceaseﬁreappears to be holding.

TheU.S. president also has ﬂoated anew plan to reopen theStraitofHormuz at themouth of the Persian Gulf, where about aﬁfthofthe world’strade in oiland naturalgas typically passes.

Jailed activist’s health worsens

The health of imprisoned Iranian rightslawyer Narges Mohammadi was at “very highrisk,” her foundation and family saidSaturday, addingthatIran’sIntelligenceMinistry was opposing her transfertoTehran,Iran’scapital, fortreatment by herown doctors. Mohammadi, aNobel Peace Prize laureatein herearly 50s, was urgently transferred to ahospital in Zanjan in Iran’s northwest on Friday afteracardiac crisis and fainting. Her family has said herhealth had been worsening in part from abeatingshe received during herDecember arrest Medical teams in Zanjan have requested her records before

Dronekills

performingany treatment, while recommending that she be transferred to Tehran, herfoundation said.

Buther Paris-based husband, Taghi Rahmani, said the Intelligence Ministry opposed the transferfor angiography,orimaging of theblood vessels. He spoke in a voice message shared with The Associated Press by the foundation.

The Norwegian Nobel Committeeinastatementurged Iranianauthoritiesto immediately transfer Mohammadi to her medicalteam,saying her life is in theirhands

“She hasthe mental resilience forimprisonment, but her body does not have thereadiness.The MinistryofIntelligence wouldn’teven mind if (she)died,” her husband told Sky News. He addedthattheir children hadn’tseen Mohammadi for over adecade, since2015.

Before her arrestonDec. 12, Mohammadi already had been serving asentence of 13 years and nine months on charges of collusionagainst state security and propaganda against Iran’s government,but had been released on furlough since late 2024 over medical concerns Her legal team is pursuing the matterwith the General Prosecutor’sofﬁce, the foundation said. Firmswarnedabutsanctions

The U.S. has warned shipping companies they could face sanctions for paying Iran to pass safely throughthe Strait of Hormuz, adding pressure in the standoff over control of it.

Iran effectively closed the strait by attackingand threatening ships after the U.S. and Israel launched awar on Feb. 28. Tehranlater offeredsomeships safe passage viaroutesclosertoits shore,charging fees at times.

The U.S.onFridaywarned againsttransfers not only in cash but also in “digital assets, offsets, informal swaps, or other in-kind payments,” including charitable donations and payments at Iranian embassies.

TheU.S.has respondedwitha naval blockade of Iranian ports sinceApril 13,depriving Tehran of oil revenue it needs to shore up its ailingeconomy.The U.S. CentralCommand on Saturday said 48 commercial ships have been told to turn back.

Iran hangstwo men Iran on Saturday said it hanged twomen convicted of spying for Israel. The judiciary’snews outlet, Mizanonline,saidYaghoub Karimpourwas accusedofsending“sensitive information” to an ofﬁcer in Israel’sMossadintelligence agency,while Nasser Bekrzadehallegedly sent details aboutgovernment and religious leaders as wellasinformation aboutNatanz. The city is home to anuclear enrichment facility bombed by Israel and the U.S. last year Iran has hanged morethan a dozen people over alleged espionage andterrorist activities in recent weeks. Rights groups say Iran routinely holds closed-door trials in which defendants are unable to challenge the accusations theyface.

2inKherson strike as Russia claims front-line progress

BYSAMYAKULLAB

Associated Press

KYIV,Ukraine Twopeople were killed after aRussian drone attacked aminibus in the southernUkrainian city of Kherson, local ofﬁcials said Saturday,inthe latest barrage ofcivilianareas, ahallmarkof Moscow’sfull-scaleinvasion of its neighbor

Seven peoplewere also wounded in the attack, regional head Oleksandr Prokudinsaid.Hours later Russia attacked another minibusinKherson, wounding the driver,hesaid Meanwhile, along thenorthern border with Belarus, Ukraine recorded “rather unusual” activity on Friday,Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy said in apostonTelegram on Saturday.Without elaborating,hesaid activity was seen on theBelarusian side of the border and that Ukraine would act if matters escalated.

“Weare closely documentingand keeping the situation under control. If necessary,wewill react,” he said.

Belarus, aclose ally of theKremlin, has allowed Russia to use itsterritory as astaging ground to send troops into Ukraine and to host some of Moscow’s tactical nuclear weapons.

On Ukraine’s BlackSea coast, aRussian strike damaged port infrastructure in the city of Odesa.Nocasualties were reported Ukrainian civilianshaveendured relentless air assaults since Russia launcheda full-scale invasionofits neighbor more than four years ago. U.S.brokeredtalksbetween Moscow and Kyiv over the past year have brought no respite, with Russia rejecting Ukraine’s offer of aceaseﬁre, and in recent weeks the Iran war has diverted international attention from Ukraine’splight. Meanwhile, on the roughly 750-mile

front line, Russia claimed Saturday it had taken control of the village of Myropillia in Ukraine’snortheastern Sumy region. It was notpossibletoindependently verify the battleﬁeld claims, and Ukraine did not immediately comment.

In Russia, local ofﬁcials in the Krasnodar region saidthat aﬁre that broke out Friday followinga Ukrainianstrikeon an oilterminalinthe Black Seacity of Tuapse was put out on Saturday

Ukrainian drones have hit theoil reﬁnery and export terminal in Tuapse on four occasions in just over twoweeks, sparking ﬁres that prompted localevacuationsand sent up massiveplumesof smoke. Ukraine has escalated itslong-distance strikesagainst Russian oilfacilitiesin an effort to slash Moscow’soil exports, akey source of funding for itsgrinding invasion of Ukraine. But the economic impact is so far unclear,asthe rise in oil prices from the Iran war,and arelated easing of U.S. sanctions, have helped replenish theKremlin’s coffers.

Israeli strikeskill7 in Lebanon

Catholic conventin border villagebulldozed

BY BASSEM MROUE Associated Press

BEIRUT Israeli airstrikes on southern Lebanon killed at least seven people and woundedothers on Saturday while the Israeli military demolished parts of aCatholic convent in aborder village, ofﬁcials said.

Israel’smilitary on Saturday issued anew warning for residents of nine southern villagestoevacuate. Israel and Lebanon’smilitant Hezbollah group have kept up their attacks despite aceaseﬁre in place since April 17.

In the border village of Yaroun, Israel’smilitary used bulldozers to destroy parts of aCatholic convent that hadbeenempty as aresult of thelatest ﬁghting.

“Whatweheardisthatitwas destroyed with bulldozers,” said Gladys Sabbagh, the superior general of the Basilian Salvatorian Sisters. Sabbagh told The Associated Press thatthe convent includeda school that had been closedsince the 2006 Israel-Hezbollahwar,aswellasa clinic thatwas recently moved to the nearby village of Rmeich.

She described the convent as asmall compound housing just two nuns, who left because of the war.Sabbagh did nothavefurther details as Yaroun’s residents have been displaced.

The Israelimilitary issued astatement saying that as the armywas destroying Hezbollah infrastructure in Yaroun, ahouse thathad no religious signs was damaged. It added thatas soon as the military knew it was linked to achurch, soldiers “prevented any further damage from being done.”

The military added that Hezbollah used thecompoundinthe past to ﬁre rocketstowardIsraelonseveral occasions. It added that the military does not strike religious institutions intentionally

The Catholic Church in Lebanon rejected claims that the compound was used for military purposes.

“Weare against allpractices against places of worshipand churches. Theseare places to spread peace,love andeducation,” said Rev.Abdo Abou Kassm, director of the Catholic Centerfor Information. “These arenot military bases.”

The demolition at the convent came days after images of an Israeli soldier wielding an ax against the fallen statue of Jesus on the cross in the southern Lebanese village of Debel had sparked widespread condemnation, in Lebanon and internationally

Mohammadi

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By VAHIDSALEMI

Vehicles drivepast abillboard on Saturday withagraphicshowing the Strait of Hormuzand the sewn lips of President Donald Trump in a square in downtown Tehran, Iran.

the chairofthe Senate and Governmental AffairsCommittee —which is where the redistricting bills willlikely start —and sponsor of one of those bills.

“I’m sure we’regoing to have fireworks somewhere,” Kleinpeter said. On Friday,Kleinpeter said he hopes his committee will take public testimony and pass aredistricting bill on Wednesday, buthe acknowledged that that plan may be too ambitious.

Lawmakers would face atighter timetable if the committee has to wait aweek but wouldlikely still have enough time since the regular legislative session doesn’tend until June 1. The decisions have thrown Louisiana’selections into disarray after absentee voting had already begun for the May 16 primary and just before a week of early voting began on Saturday

Thesedevelopmentswill mean new districts for Louisiana’scongressional delegation—which currently hasfourRepublicans and two Democrats —unless one of several lawsuits that have just been ﬁled gum up those plans. Together,these events have also spawned confusion and lots of questions. Here are the best answers we have so far

What does Landry’s executiveorder mean for Louisiana’sHouse elections?

House Speaker Mike Johnson, Rep. Steve Scalise, Rep. Clay Higgins, Rep. Cleo Fields and Rep. Troy Carter are no longer runningfor reelection on May 16. The same goes for their challengers. Landry’smove also voided the election for the 5th Congressional District seat that Rep. Julia Letlow is vacating to run for the Senate. That affects fourRepublicans running in that race: State Sen. Rick Edmonds, of Baton Rouge; Rep. Michael Echols, of Monroe; Sen Blake Miguez, of Erath; and Misti Cordell, of Monroe, who chairs the state Board of Regents. It also affects the lesser-known Democratic candidates.

Whowilldrawthe new congressionalmap?

State legislatorscarryout the redistricting duties,and the governor will have amajor say because he will have to approve their map. Lawmakers won’t need aspecial session to carryout that work. Four legislators ﬁled redistricting bills to be heard in the regular legislativesession currently underway,in case the Supreme Court rejected the existing congressional map in time. The bills to watch are on the Senate side, legislators said. State Sen.Jay Morris, R-West Monroe, has three bills, while Kleinpeter,Sen. Ed Price, D-Gonzales, and stateRep. Mike Johnson, RPineville, have one each. Under two of Morris’ bills, the Legislature would eliminate either Fields’ or Carter’s seat. Under his third bill, lawmakers would eliminate both majority-Black seats. Kleinpeter described his bill as a“placeholder,” meaning he ﬁled abill just to have onethat can be changed Price’sbill would keep the current 4-2 partisan divide, meaning it stands little chanceofpassage in aLegislature with aRepublican supermajority.Johnson’s bill would reimpose theprevious congressional map with a5-1 partisan split.

When will theLegislature begintoredrawthe congressionalmap?

If the Senate andGovernmentalAffairs Committee adopts anew map on Wednesday,the full Senate might vote on that measure on Thursday.That bill would then pass to the House and Governmental Affairs Com-

mittee.

Severalfactors could push back that schedule. Kleinpetersaidheisnot only givingextra consideration to theviews of Speaker Johnson, Scalise andHiggins in theredesign butalsotofour state Senate colleagues who are consideringrunning for theHouse: Edmonds; Sen. Thomas Pressly,R-Shreveport; Sen. KirkTalbot,R-River Ridge; and Sen. Stewart Cathey,R-Monroe. Edmonds is alreadycampaigning for the 5th Congressional District seat. Pressly is eyinga possible campaign for Speaker Johnson’sseatif Democratswin theHouse in November and Johnsonthen resigns. The same logicapplies for Talbot with Scalise. Cathey is lookingatpossibly running for the 5th CongressionalDistrictseat.

Kleinpeter said he is asking the four senators to offer maps for their districts “I’m having to juggle alot of different options,”hesaid.

Kleinpeter added heisnot working with Miguez on a possible map. Miguez has angered his colleagues by running for the5th Congressional District seat even though he livesnocloser than 70 miles from the district. What will happen to Rep. Cleo Fields andRep.Troy Carter?

It seems likelythatone or both of them will lose their job

It’spossible that the Legislature will drawa mapthatpits them against each other.Then thequestionwouldbewhether it is weighted toward Baton Rouge(to favor Fields) or NewOrleans(tofavorCarter).

Kleinpeter indicated that he wouldfavor aBaton Rougecentric district —ifthe new

map retains oneBlack-majority seat —because of the post-Katrina population shift to the capital city.But Senate President Cameron Henry, a Republican who represents both Jefferson andOrleans parishes,may favor aNew Orleans-centric district to give hishomearea agreater voiceinWashington. What is thenew date for thecongressional elections?

We don’tknow thatyet.But legislators indicate that it’s likely that they will return to theopen primary system, meaning that candidates would qualifyfor thesix House races in July or August and compete in aprimary on Nov. 3. In anyracewhere no onereceived at least 50%of the vote, the top two votegetters would competeina runoff election in December What does Landry’s executiveorder mean for theother racesonthe May16ballot?

Those elections will still be held.Landry and Attorney General Liz Murrill say the Supreme Court ruling affected only the congressional elections, so the otherswill go forward as scheduled. The marquee election on theballot pits U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy against state TreasurerJohn Fleming, Letlow andMark Spencer,a business owner.Three candidates are competing in the Democratic primary: Gary Crockett, Nick Albares and Jamie Davis. TwoRepublicans —Judge BlairEdwards andJudge Billy Burris—are facing off for aLouisiana Supreme Court seat that coversthe

northshore of Lake Pontchartrain. TwoDemocrats and two Republicans are runningfor thePublic Service Commissionseat held by term-limited Foster Campbell in adistrictthat includes24parishesinnorth Louisiana. FiveRepublicans are running for the Public Service Commission seat held by term-limitedEric Skrmetta in adistrictthat covers suburban New Orleans.Two Republicans are challenging Joseph Cao for his seat on the Board of Elementary and Secondary Education.

As scheduled, voters will also decide whether to approve theﬁve constitutional amendments. Whyare some conservativesupset with Landry andMurrill?

Talk show host Moon Griffonisamong the loudest conservative voices blaming Landry andMurrill forthe election confusion, because the two insisted that legislators redistrict the House seats in 2024 andcreate the district that Fields wonat the expense of then-U.S. Rep. GarretGraves, aRepublican.

“The state was never required to draw new congressional maps in the ﬁrst place, and the map that was drawn looked like children with crayonshad been giventhe assignment,” Graves posted on social media Wednesday Landry and Murrill said in 2024 that the Legislature had to draw the newcongressional mapbecause U.S. DistrictCourt Judge Shelly Dick was poisedtodoso. Political insiders said Landry targeted Graves because he

supported arival of Landry’s during the governor’srace. What does thenew election schedule mean forGraves?

Graves represented theBaton Rouge-based 6th Congressional District for10years until Landry and state legislators redrew the boundary linesin2024 and gave him an unwinnable district. He didn’t runfor reelection as aresult. If legislatorsdrawhim a morefavorabledistrict now, he would be the best-known candidate, andhe’d have the mostmoney,with$3.6 million left over in his campaign account For now,Graves is trolling Landry andMurrill on social media for pushing the map redesign twoyearsago that costhim his district—and that the Supreme Courthas nowoverturned.Gravessaid they need better lawyers and suggested they contact billboard trial lawyerMorris Bart.

BatonRouge is provingthatit’smorethan Louisiana’scapital city –it’sadestination on therise. With ayearofrecord-setting events andpositivemomentum,2025sawsigniﬁcant tourismachievementsinthe region,and 2026 isshapinguptocarrythatenergyevenfurther. Oneofthe biggestsuccessstories of 2025 wasthe United States BowlingCongress OpenChampionships,whichtransformedthe RaisingCane’sRiver Center into afully-functioningbowlingcomplexfornearlyﬁvemonths From Marchthrough July,morethan50,000 bowlersand roughly100,000 of theirfriends family membersand fans made theirway to BatonRouge

Thechampionships generatedaneconomic impactofcloseto$150millionforBatonRouge a14percent increase from thelasttimethe tournamentwasheldlocallyin2012.Theﬁgure representsdollarsspentathotels,retailstores, restaurants, gasstations, theBaton Rouge Metropolitan Airport, coffee shopsand more

“Therealwinwasthattheeconomicimpact spilledoverfromtheRiverCenteranddowntown area into severalother areasofBaton Rouge, said LauraCating, Senior Vice Presidentof MarketingandCommunicationsforVisitBaton Rouge. “Weheard from theownersofseveral restaurantsand hotels whosaidthisevent made theiryearfroma ﬁnancial standpoint.”

That successextendedintoBaton Rouge’s growingreputationasadestination for athletic-based entertainment. In August LSU’sAlexBox Stadium welcomed thewildly popularBananaBallWorldTour, featuring thePartyAnimalsandTexasTailgaters.With twosold-outcrowdsand agrowing fanbase, theevent broughta newkindofhigh-energy, family-friendlyexperience to thecity.

Around thesametime, BatonRouge leaned intoitsartisticsidewiththelaunchoftheBaton RougeUnderground Film Festival,afour-day eventthatcelebratesindependent film and fostersavibrant creativecommunity.Hosted at theManship Theatre, the2025festivalfar

exceededexpectations, drawingabout 1,800 attendees, well aheadofthe projection of 500 people.The 2026 festival is slated for August 27-30. Now, alleyesare on 2026.Muchofthe momentum so farisbeing driven by Death Valley Live,anew concertseriesinsideLSU’s TigerStadium.Theinitiativerepresentsafresh chapterinlarge-scale entertainmentfor the city.The inauguralDeath Valley Live show on March28drewmorethan65,000fanstosee countrystarZachBryan BatonRouge’s combinationofeventsthat appeal to multiple demographics,combined withtouristdestinationsthatappealtoeveryone from historybuffstofamilieswithyoung kids toavidfoodies,ishelpingthecitymaintainand grow itstourism momentum “Webelieve BatonRouge hassomething to offer everyone at everytimeofthe year.We’re reallyproudoftheaccomplishmentsandfeedback wereceivedin2025andwefeel2026isalready off to astrongstart.We’re excitedtowelcome even more people to BatonRouge during the rest of theyear,”Catingsaid. Learnmoreabout tourismimpactatwww visitbatonrouge.com/about-us/why-tourism-matters.

Kleinpeter

STAFF FILEPHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Mulitple lawsuitsare challenging Gov. Jeff Landry’smovetosuspendLouisiana’s congressional elections so anew mapcan be drawn

Spirit Airlines shuts down, citing oil prices

BY AAMER MADHANI, RIO YAMAT, JEFF AMY and MIKE CATALINI Associated Press

WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. Spirit

Airlines, an impish upstart

that shook the industry with its irreverent ads and deep discount fares, announced Saturday that it has gone out of business after 34 years.

The ultra low-cost airline that once operated hundreds of daily ﬂights on its bright yellow planes and employed about 17,000 people said it had “started an orderly winddown of our operations effective immediately.”

Although Spirit had gone bankrupt twice before, the company said high oil prices, which have been rising because of the war with Iran, made it impossible to stay aloft.

The airline said on its website that all ﬂights have been canceled and customer service is no longer available. Some passengers arrived Saturday for flights and were stunned to find them canceled, while workers learned overnight they were out of jobs.

“We are proud of the impact of our ultra-low-cost model on the industry over the last 34 years and had hoped to serve our guests for many years to come,” Spirit’s announcement said U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said Saturday that Spirit had a reserve fund set up for customers who bought directly from the airline to get refunds People who bought from third-party vendors like travel agents would have to seek refunds from them.

Duffy said United, Delta, JetBlue and Southwest were offering $200 one-way ﬂights for people who had Spirit confirmation numbers and proof of purchase for a limited time. Other airlines would also help Spirit employees who might be stranded as well as offering them a preferential application process as they look for work.

and four children arrived for a Saturday afternoon Spirit ﬂight from Atlanta to Miami for a spur-of-the-moment vacation. The family had driven down from Tennessee to the Atlanta airport

“So the whole airline at every airport is out of business?” asked Nantang. “Oh my, that’s crazy.”

Other passengers wondered whether the airline would still answer its customer service phone, or when the refunds for canceled ﬂights might arrive on their credit cards.

funded takeover Spirit proudly disrupted the penny-pinching portion of the airlines industry with its no-frills, low-cost ﬂights and provocative ads like its “Check Out the Oil on Our Beaches” campaign after the Deepwater Horizon disaster in 2010, referencing suntan oil, but alluding to the crude spilled on the Gulf Coast.

However, Spirit has struggled ﬁnancially since the COVID-19 pandemic, weighed down by rising op-

erating costs and growing debt. By the time it ﬁled for Chapter 11 protection in November 2024, Spirit had lost more than $2.5 billion since the start of 2020.

The budget carrier sought bankruptcy protection again in August 2025, when it reported having $8.1 billion in debts and $8.6 billion in assets, according to court ﬁlings. Staff writer Missy

contributed to this report.

Spirit said in a statement it was working to get more than 1,300 crew to their home bases and that the ﬁnal Spirit ﬂight landed at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport from Detroit Metropolitan Airport.

The company advised customers that they could expect refunds but there would be no help in booking travel on other airlines The Trump administration had considered a government bailout for the cash-strapped business to keep it from going under, but a deal was not reached. Of the potential bailout, Duffy said Saturday “we often times don’t have half a billion dollars laying around.”

President Donald Trump had ﬂoated the idea of a bailout last week after the airline found itself in bankruptcy proceedings for the second time in less than two years with jet fuel prices soaring because of the Iran war

Up to 21,000 passengers faced canceled ﬂights through New Orleans after the shutdown.

Fifty-four arriving Spirit Airlines planes and 55 departing planes carrying up to 21,438 passengers through the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport between Saturday and May 15 have been canceled.

“Passengers with upcoming ﬂights to or from Louis

Armstrong New Orleans International Airport with Spirit are advised not to go to the airport and should make alternative travel arrangements,” said MSY spokesperson Erin Burns in a statement Saturday morning.

The shutdown comes during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, a busy travel weekend with hotel occupancy rates hovering above 90%, according to New Orleans & Company

“We recognize the signiﬁcant disruption this decision may cause and remain conﬁdent that other air carriers will move quickly to help maintain service across the markets previously served by Spirit Airlines,” Burns wrote.

Save for the conspicuously vacant counters at the former Spirit Airlines check-in, it appeared to be business as usual Saturday morning at the airport — a calm that belied the private chaos of tens of thousands of Spirit customers rebooking their upcoming canceled flights with other airlines and seeking refunds.

Five Spirit flights were still showing as “on time” on Saturday morning on the departure board in Atlanta

A trickle of passengers who hadn’t heard the news were still showing up.

“What!?” exclaimed Taylor Nantang as she, her husband

Former Spirit ﬂight attendant Freddy Peterson was on a Spirit flight from Detroit that arrived in Newark around 11 p.m. Friday He said that despite rumors ﬂying on social media Friday, things seemed kind of normal, with more than 200 passengers on the plane.

“All our aircraft were packed,” he said.

Peterson, 60, said he set his alarm clock for 3 a.m. Saturday to check the company website at the hour of the rumored shutdown and learned all Spirit ﬂights were canceled. He said Delta Air Lines brought him and another ﬂight attendant back to Atlanta on Saturday morning, with Peterson leaving from there to drive to his home in Shellman in southwest Georgia.

“I’ll probably do the boohoo crying and all that other stuff once I get in my car.” Peterson said he had been a ﬂight attendant with Spirit for 10 years and the company has “done wonders for me.” He said the airline’s reputation for bargain basement chaos was largely undeserved, but he did fault management for not communicating with the employees in the closing days, saying a promised employee town hall was canceled.

As late as Friday afternoon, Trump had said his administration was looking at a bailout for Spirit and had given the budget carrier a “ﬁnal proposal” for a taxpayer-

Wilkinson

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JEFF AMy

An airport employee walks past the Spirit Airlines counter at Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport after the airline’s shutdown.

Festival Stage field uninhabitable. Tarps on the wet ground took up even more space.

walk Blues,” which turned

The festival no longer releases daily attendance figures. But according to knowledgeable sources, Saturday’s attendance was not significantly greater than the ﬁrst Saturday’s.

Mitigating factors triggered the ticket sale stoppage On April 25, Stevie Nicks closed the Festival Stage as hugely popular country/bluegrass singer Tyler Childers headlined the Shell Gentilly Stage. That distributed the crowd between the two ends of the Fair Grounds.

By contrast, this Saturday’s crowd tilted heavily toward the Festival Stage, even as T-Pain closed Congo Square and the Alabama Shakes were at Gentilly The Eagles, back at Jazz Fest for the ﬁrst time since 2012 as part of the band’s multiyear farewell tour, were far and away the day’s biggest draw. Additionally, less real estate than usual was available to accommodate the skewed Eagles crowd Muddy bogs from the previous two days of rain rendered parts of the

Realizing one end of the Fair Grounds was headed toward the sort of gridlock Elton John, Fleetwood Mac and other classic rockers triggered in years past, producers made the unprecedented decision to cut off ticket sales by midafternoon.

Finding small moments

When The Rolling Stones played in 2024, attendance was reportedly capped at 40,000. All those ticket-holders ended up at the Festival Stage for the Stones, as all the other stages went dark. It felt like more people than that tried to wedge in at the Festival Stage for the Eagles. But it was still possible to experience peaceful, easy feelings at the Fair Grounds. Midafternoon, there was no line at the booth for meaty white beans and ribs. And you could easily slip into the Economy Hall Tent to catch clarinetist Dr Michael White and pianist Shaye Cohn lead a tribute to Jelly Rolly Morton’s Red Hot Peppers. They trotted out “Side-

100 this year Of the similarly vintage “New Orleans Blues,” White said, “You can hear the roots and foundation of the New Orleans style of piano playing.”

With its “Latin tinge,” it led directly to what Professor Longhair and other New Orleans rhythm & blues pianists would do decades later Eagles like the outdoors

As part of their long goodbye, Eagles drummer/vocalist Don Henley and his bandmates have logged the longest residency to date at the Sphere, the high-tech Las Vegas venue.

As he addressed the ﬂagwaving, sun-splashed sea of humanity spread out before him at the Festival Stage, Henley quipped, “This is very different than the Sphere.”

Unlike the sonically pristine, visually immersive Sphere, open ﬁelds at Jazz Fest are subject to the whims of the wind. The only pixels in play are modest screens at either side of the stage.

The success of their Sphere residency aside, the Eagles are ultimately about analog music made by humans wielding real instru-

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STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Little Feat performs in the Blues Tent during the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival at the Fair Grounds on Saturday.

ments. “We don’t use machines,” Henley noted, adding that they wouldn’t do much talking or jumping around.

Neither was necessary

The Eagles went to work with “Seven Bridges Road,” retrofitted with bluegrassstyle stringed instruments

beneath six-part harmonies. They swung into “Take It Easy” with Deacon Frey, son

JAZZ FEST

Continued from page 1A ä See JAZZ FEST, page 7A

STAFF PHOTO By ENAN CHEDIAK

The crowd fills in to hear Alabama Shakes perform at the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival on the Shell Gentilly Stage on Saturday.

BassistTimothy B. Schmit

lofted his falsetto on “I

Acrowd gathers in front of the FestivalStagea Fair Grounds on Saturday. of the late Eagles co-founder Glenn Frey,onlead vocals and a12-string acousticguitar.Country star Vince Gill, alsobrought in to help ﬁll the void left by the senior Frey’spassing, handled the electric guitar lead. The early part of the set was like alive version of the band’s“Their Greatest Hits (1971-1975),” which at 40 million copies and counting is the best-selling album of all time. From behind the drums, Henley sang lead on “One of These Nights,” his voice fullypresent.Gill’slead vocalon“Lyin’Eyes” was abit more tentative They cruised through “Take It To the Limit,” “PeacefulEasy Feeling” and“TequilaSunrise”in quick succession, then brokeout brawnier electric guitars for“In theCity.

Can’tTell Yo Kid in Town”w An hour in, WalshTime as

career with “Boys of Summer.” After “Life in the Fast Lane,” they paused.The chiming dual guitars of “Hotel California” ushered in the encore. Walsh set hisslideloose on “Rocky MountainWay,” as he did on thesubsequent “Heartache Tonight.” They exited at 6:35 p.m.

Surely they would return —theyhad 25 minutes left andhadn’tsung “Desperado”orany of the New Orleans-centric covers they’ve added at previous local concerts. But they were done.

Last word from Little Feat

The Eagles’ early exit allowed timetocatch the last exuberant20minutes of Little Feat in apacked, jubilant Blues Tent.

LittleFeat originated in Los Angeles acouple years before the Eagles and now consists of veteran and newermembers. Theyhit on all cylinders through “Fat Man in aBathtub,” as relative newbie Scott Sharrard traded guitar licks withveteran Fred Tackett. The final, celebratory “Dixie Chicken”detoured forakeyboard excursion by original member Bill Payne and abass solo by fellow long-timer Kenny Gradney Just about everyone in the tent was up anddancingasLittleFeat, unlike theEagles, took asold-out day at Jazz Fest to the limit. Email KeithSperaat kspera@theadvocate. com

EARTHQUAKES

scientists arehominginon such wastewater wells as apotential culprit for the earthquakes.

The 11 earthquakes recorded in the region over thepast month warrant “a closer examination to ensure the safety of underground sourcesofdrinking water,” the EPAtoldLouisiana’sDepartmentofConservation and Energy

Now,researchers are installing seismometers and aftershock monitors across northwest Louisiana and the state’sDepartment of Conservation and Energyis investigating saltwater disposal wells in abid to ﬁnd the cause. The earthquakes ratcheted up in 2022, andsince then, 35 earthquakes with amagnitudeof2.5 or more have struck northwestern Louisiana. A4.9-magnitude earthquakeonMarch5in

RedRiver Parish tied for the largest in state history causing people to scramble out of bed as the ground rattled under them. It was felt as far as 150 miles away

“Anybody living in a trailer home —and there area lotupthere —they bounce with everything bigger than abouta2.5,” said Cynthia Ebinger,a Tulane University professor who is studying the seismic activity

While ofﬁcials are not yet certain of the cause,itappears increasingly likely that oil and gas drillers’ disposal of saltwater deep undergroundisbehind the rise in earthquakes in the region, according to regulators and scientists.

Many of the Haynesville Shale drillers use hydraulicfracturing, or fracking, when drilling for natural gas. As part of that process, they blastwater into the rock formation.

The drillers also extract brine, highly saline water with heavy metals and other toxic materials, as a byproductofdrilling. To dispose of all of the water that comes up, theyinject it deep underground, aprocessregulated by the state Department of Conservation and Energy.The EPA regulates wastewater wells in some other states.

That process has caused earthquakes in other oil and gas plays, including in nearby Texas and Oklahoma.

Dustin Davidson, head of the Department of Conservation and Energy,said Louisiana’sHaynesville Shale play has only recently seen aboom in drilling similar to that in places like Oklahoma and Texas.

“What we’re dealingwith is an increase in production overall,” he said. “With the (oil) prices we’re seeing right now,with the needfor more energy nationwide andglobally,both Texas and Louisiana play alarge role in that.”

The production happening right now couldbe “causing subsurface impact,” he added, though he said state ofﬁcials have not concluded that’sthe cause.

tude quakesthatoccurred aminute apart near Coushatta andEdgeﬁeld, in rural northwest Louisiana.

The most recent was April 9.

could contribute to earthquakes. He said the saltwaterwells his bill would affect are about 5,000 feet deep, well above the depth of theearthquakes,and that they are lower volume, noncommercialwells.They are also afew parishes over from Red River,where the bigquake happened in March.

Thebiggest concernfor regulatorsismaking sure thebrine disposal doesn’t impact underground sources of drinking water If the statefinds that wastewater injection is causingthe earthquakes, “Wecan determinethat there should benoinjection in this location,” Davidson said Aspokesperson for the Louisiana Oiland Gas Associationdid not respond to messages seeking comment.A spokesperson for the Louisiana Mid-Continent Oiland GasAssociation declined to comment. The two organizationsare thebiggest thatrepresent theindustry in the state.

Potentialsmoking gun

Thekey question for researchers is exactly how deepthe earthquakes are happening.

If the earthquakes are above where saltwater injectionishappening, the operators may be pumping the brine at toohigha pressure, Ebingersaid. But if the quakes are below the so-called “injection horizon,” which appears more likely,multiplefactors could be at play.It’s

McCormick said he is talking with state regulators about his bill.

possible the weight of the basin is increasing because of the brine disposal, creatingan“underground dam” of sorts, she said. That can cause the faults to slip, something that has happenedinother oilplays in NorthAmerica. Wastewater injection has been theculprit of earthquakesinother oil states, she said.

“That is apotential that’s asmoking gun,” she said “There’sapossibility remaining that something in Louisiana is very weird and allowed this to happen. …(But) it seems less likely to be the case.”

Ebinger’sresearch has found that earthquakes in north Louisianahaveincreased in both number and magnitude over the last 8 years.LastOctober,she got funding from the USGS to install equipment to better understand their cause. USGS seismologist Justin Rubinsteinsaid they seek to find more earthquakes that haven’talreadybeen found and to use thatlarger dataset to understandhow thequakes have developed over time

Theresearchersalso intend to determinethe

relationship between oil andgas operationsand the earthquakes. Rubinstein said detailed scientiﬁc studiesand more oiland gas drilling data areneeded to make aspeciﬁcdetermination.

EPAtakes notice

Preliminary findings showthe earthquakes are happening deep undergroundalonga 70 millionyear-old fault line, likely between one to twomiles deep

Most of theearthquakes felt this year happened in early March. Six happened in one day on March 9, including 4.1- and4.4-magni-

Aroundthe sametime, the state Legislature held hearings on twobills that would loosen regulations on saltwater injection wells. HB 496 by Rep. Danny McCormick, R-Oil City, wouldprohibit the state from limiting injection wells at certain pressures. HB 706 by Rep. Neil Riser, R-Columbia,would establish abaseline pressure in state law

The day before the committee hearing on Riser’s bill, the EPAsent its letter During testimony in the House Natural Resources Committee, Davidson presented the letter from the EPA, noting the federal regulatorisalreadytaking notice of the earthquakes in theregion, citing wastewater wellsasapotential culprit.

The committee rejected Riser’sbill. McCormick’s bill is still pending.

In an interview last week,McCormick pointed out that surrounding states, like Arkansas, allowgreater injection pressures, which means more saltwater can be sent down thewellmore quicklyand economically

He disputed that the greater saltwater injection pressures he is seeking

“We’re discussing theissue,” he said.

Troy Hill,director of the EPARegion 6water division, wrote in the letter that the brine disposalcan cause underground formationstobreak down and faults to slip. Though McCormick downplayed the potential impact of greater injection pressures, Hill told state regulators to conduct a“comprehensive review” of the pressures at which operators are injecting wastewater

“Pressure management is vital,” Hill wrote, citing the EPA’spast experience with induced earthquakes in the states of EPARegion 6. Hill wrotethatthe state should implement “enhanced pressure and volume monitoring thatincludes athorough review of fault maps and geologic data likeformation fracture pressures, anda reviewofinjection activities within several miles of the recent earthquakes.”

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Troop withdrawal plan adds to U.S.-Europe friction

Pentagon to pull 5,000 troops from Germany

BY KIRSTEN GRIESHABER and EMMA BURROWS Associated Press

BERLIN Germany’s defense minister on Saturday appeared to take in stride

a Pentagon announcement that the United States plans to pull some 5,000 troops out of the country, President Donald Trump’s latest attempt to reduce America’s commitment to European security Boris Pistorius said the drawdown, which Trump has threatened for years, was expected, and he said European nations needed to take on more responsibility for their own defense But he also emphasized that security cooperation beneﬁted both sides of the transAtlantic partnership.

“The presence of American soldiers in Europe, and especially in Germany, is in our interest and in the interest of the U.S.,” Pistorius told the German news agency dpa.

The planned withdrawal faced bipartisan resistance in Washington, with swift criticism from Democrats and concern from Republicans that it would send the “wrong signal” to Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose full-scale invasion of Ukraine recently entered its ﬁfth year

Trump’s decision comes as he seethes at European allies over their unwillingness to join his campaign with Israel against Iran

He has lashed out at leaders like German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez and British Prime Minister Keir Starmer Merz last week criticized the war in Iran, saying the U.S. is being “humiliated” by the Iranian leadership and calling out Washington’s lack of strategy

In another sign of friction, Trump accused the European Union of not complying with its U.S. trade deal and announced plans to increase tariffs next week on cars and trucks produced in the bloc to 25%, a move that would be particularly damaging to Germany, a major automobile manufacturer

At least one EU lawmaker

ter in Landstuhl, where casualties from the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq were treated. U.S nuclear missiles are also stationed in the country

Withdrawal of 5,000 troops — the size of a brigade combat team — from Germany would likely have limited impact on combat power, but “in terms of messaging of U.S. commitment though, it’s very different,” another U.S. defense ofﬁcial said.

about the troop withdrawal.

Sen. Roger Wicker of Mississippi and Rep. Mike Rogers of Alabama said the decision risked “undermining deterrence and sending the wrong signal to Vladimir Putin.”

They also said the Pentagon had decided to cancel the planned deployment of the Army’s Long-Range Fires Battalion. Parnell’s statement made no mention of that.

many has heeded Trump’s call to shoulder more of the burden of defense spending in Europe, while giving U.S forces access to its bases and airspace in the war against Iran.

Trump has mused for years about reducing the American military presence in Germany, and has railed against NATO for its refusal to assist Washington in the war which began on Feb. 28 with U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran.

called the tariff hike “unacceptable” and accused Trump of breaking yet another U.S. commitment on trade.

A pullout of 5,000 soldiers from Germany would amount to about one-seventh of the 36,000 American service members stationed in the country The Pentagon offered few details about which troops or operations would be affected The withdrawal is scheduled to take place over the next six to 12 months.

Trump previously said he would pull 9,500 troops from Germany during his ﬁrst term, but he didn’t start the process and Democratic President Joe Biden formally stopped the planned withdrawal soon after taking ofﬁce in 2021.

More broadly around 80,000-100,000 U.S. personnel are usually stationed in Europe — depending on operations, exercises and troop rotations. The U.S. increased its European deployment after Russia launched its full-scale war on Ukraine in February 2022. NATO allies like Germany have expected for over a year that these troops would be the ﬁrst to leave.

Pistorius, in his comments to dpa, said, “We Europeans must take on more responsibility for our security,” while stressing recent efforts by Germany to boost its armed forces accelerate procurement and develop infrastructure.

NATO spokesperson Allison Hart, in a post Saturday on X, said the trans-Atlantic alliance was “working with the U.S. to understand the details of their decision on

force posture in Germany.”

“This adjustment underscores the need for Europe to continue to invest more in defense and take on a greater share of the responsibility for our shared security,” she added, noting “progress” toward a target among NATO allies to each invest 5% of their economic output to defense.

Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell said in a statement that the “decision follows a thorough review of the Department’s force posture in Europe and is in recognition of theater requirements and conditions on the ground.”

A U.S. defense official, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive matters, said the branches of the U.S military didn’t have prior knowledge of the decision to draw down the 5,000 troops and learned about it “in real time.”

In response, the Defense Department reiterated on Saturday that it conducted a thorough review of its force posture in Europe.

“The decision to withdraw troops in Germany follows a comprehensive, multilayered process that incorporates perspectives from key leaders in EUCOM and across the chain of command,” acting Pentagon Press Secretary Joel Valdez wrote in an email, using the abbreviation for U.S. European Command.

Most U.S. troops in Germany come from the Army and Air Force.

Germany hosts several American military facilities, including the headquarters of the U.S. European and Africa commands, Ramstein Air Base and a medical cen-

Air Force says former Qatari 747 nearly

By The Associated Press

The U.S. Air Force has ﬁnished modifying and testing a Boeing 747 jet donated by Qatar for temporary use as Air Force One and expects to have it ready for President Donald Trump to use this summer, the service announced late Friday

The jet is currently being painted red, white and blue, the Air Force said in a news

release

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth accepted the luxury jet a year ago despite questions about the ethics and legality of accepting an expensive gift from a foreign nation, as well as concerns about security and cyber intelligence Trump has defended the gift as a way to save tax dollars

Trump has said he wouldn’t ﬂyaroundintheaircraftwhen

histermends.Instead,hesaid, the plane would be donated to a future presidential library, similar to how the Boeing 707 used by President Ronald Reagan was decommissioned and put on display as a museum piece. Air Force ofﬁcials said the former Qatari jet will serve as a “bridge” until Boeing is ready to deliver a pair of new aircraft, which is now expected in 2028.

The only permanent brigade combat team in Germany is the 2nd Cavalry Regiment alongside an aviation brigade and other assets, which is considered to have an important role in America’s — and NATO’s — ability to deter threats.

After swift pushback from Democrats on Friday, Republican leaders of both armed services committees in Congress said Saturday they were “very concerned”

Wicker and Rogers said any signiﬁcant change to the U.S. force posture in Europe warrants review and coordination with Congress.

“We expect the Department to engage with its oversight committees in the days and weeks ahead on this decision and its implications for U.S. deterrence and trans-Atlantic security,” they said in a joint statement. They also noted that Ger-

American allies in NATO have braced for a U.S. troop withdrawal since Trump took ofﬁce, with Washington warning that Europe would have to look after its own security, including that of Ukraine, in the future.

Burrows reported from London.

Associated Press writers Ben Finley in Washington and Jamey Keaten in Lyon, France, contributed to this report.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MARKUS SCHREIBER

Bundeswehr troops demonstrate their capabilities on Thursday during a visit of German Chancellor Friedrich Merz to the army at the Bundeswehr base in Munster, Germany. The United States plans to pull some 5,000 troops out of Germany.

mate Ev arsal Din Wedding

Trump likes idea of government owning some firms

But administration took a pass on Spirit Airlines

BY JOSH BOAK Associated Press

WASHINGTON President Donald Trump had no qualms about a government takeover of Spirit Airlines, so long as the terms could be portrayed as a financial victory in what would have been the latest addition to a taxpayer-backed conglomerate of business interests.

But the budget carrier ceased operations on Saturday after reaching an impasse with an administration that increasingly sees the government investor path of the While railed against and other munists the free helped America superpower a shine to owning some production back in the Trump in preserving companie possibly for Uncle lican president investments economic blematic ing skills, had been governme picking winners In the cash-strapped line that costs caused war, Trump on Friday ment would the company good deal.” a bailout as much upside.

“If we will,” Tr have to come did not immediately the shutdown He had tential ac lier move Intel. Tr the computer turer’s stock very proud in that I making the America lars in the

vakumar at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, a Washington-based think tank.

“The key point is that we should not sacriﬁce our national economic and industrial framework in the name of ‘free markets’ or other ideologies,” he said. “Pragmatism, in various forms of industrial and innovation policy, have always been a feature of our economic system since the very beginning of our republic.”

During the 2024 campaign, Trump portrayed the administration of Democrat Joe Biden as communist and socialist.

“We will cast out the communists,” Trump said at an April 13, 2024, speech in

suggested the Republican majorities claw back funding to pay down the budget deﬁcit.

With Spirit Airlines in Chapter 11 bankruptcy, his administration had been weighing a $500 million deal that would have given the government a stake in the Florida-based discount airline. Other budget carriers have been interested in similar packages. That possibility drew objections from Republicans such as Sens. Ted Cruz, of Texas, and Tom Cotton, of Arkansas. Trump had told reporters in the Oval Ofﬁce that he wanted to save the jobs at Spirit Airlines and that “when the price of oil goes down, we’ll sell it for a proﬁt.”

Government investment can help to even the playing field for American companies competing against subsidized foreign businesses, said Monica Gorman, a managing director at Crowell Global Advisors who helped lead manufacturing and industrial policy in the Biden White House. But Gorman said that it was unclear whether the Trump administration had fully grasped the risks of “making some bad bets.” She stressed the importance of formalizing the process through legislation instead of relying on Trump’s whims.

ASSOCIATED

Pope urges wealthy U.S. Catholics to keep donating

BY NICOLE WINFIELD Associated Press

ROME Pope Leo XIV on Saturday encouraged some of the wealthiest U.S. Catholics to keep on giving to support his charitable works, in an audience that conﬁrmed how the election of the ﬁrst U.S.-born pope has invigorated American Catholics and their donations.

The Chicago-born Leo met with members of The Papal Foundation, a major funder of papal development projects in the developing world, in the Apostolic Palace at the end of their annual pilgrimage to Rome.

In his remarks, Leo thanked the foundation stewards for their generosity, which he said had allowed “countless people to experience in a concrete fashion the goodness and kindness of God in their own communities.”

He noted in particular the priests and nuns from poor countries who are able

to study at Rome’s pontifical universities to earn advanced degrees thanks to scholarships funded by foundation’s grants, which combined over the past four decades have totaled more than $270 million.

While The Papal Founda-

tion contributions to the Vatican remained strong during Pope Francis’ 12year pontiﬁcate, other donations to the Holy See tanked during the global financial crisis COVID-19 and other strains. Some U.S. Catholics also soured on donating

Bright moon may dim the Eta Aquarid meteor shower

BY ADITHI RAMAKRISHNAN AP science writer

NEWYORK The Eta Aquarid

meteor shower soon will light the sky with debris from Halley’s comet. But a bright moon will spoil the fun this year, making the display harder to glimpse.

The shower will peak Tuesday night into Wednesday morning. Viewers from the Southern Hemisphere typically see 50 meteors per hour during the peak, but the interfering moon could cut that number by half. In the north, skywatchers will likely see fewer than 10 per hour.

“For us in the Northern Hemisphere, it’s not going to be as impressive,” said Teri Gee, manager of the Barlow Planetarium in Wisconsin.

“The farther south you are, the better you’ll see it.”

Meteor showers happen when the Earth charges through trails of debris left behind from comets or asteroids. Those bits collide with Earth’s atmosphere at extremely high speeds, producing streaks of light that are also known as shooting stars. On any given night, a handful of stray meteors are visible under dark skies Meteor showers yield a more exciting show and happen at predictable times every year

Most meteor showers are caused by leftovers from comets, and the Eta Aquarids feature debris from one of the most well-known. Halley’s comet passes by Earth about every 76 years on its trip around the sun. It’ll next swing by in 2061

To glimpse these meteors, it’s best to go outside

just before dawn Venture away from city lights and tall buildings to get a clear view of the sky In this case, it might also help to ﬁnd a spot that blocks the luminous waning gibbous moon, which will be 84% full.

Bring blankets and lawn chairs. Avoid looking at your phone and give your eyes time to get used to the darkness. Look to the east in the vicinity of constellation Aquarius and bright star Eta Aquarii.

“You’re looking for bright streaks that appear in the corner of your eye for a fraction of a second,” said astrophysicist Nico Adams with SSP International, a nonproﬁt that promotes STEM education.

There’s no better way to enjoy the show than to experience it ﬁrsthand, Gee said.

U.K. PM urges tougher action against Gaza protests after antisemitic attacks

BY SYLVIA HUI Associated Press

LONDON Britain’s prime minister warned Saturday that tougher action was needed against people chanting certain phrases at pro-Palestinian protests, as concerns grew over the safety of British Jews after the stabbings of two Jewish men in London.

Keir Starmer said he would always defend the right to protest, but said there may be instances where some marches protesting the war in Gaza should be banned. He suggested that repeated pro-

Palestinian marches have had a “cumulative effect” linked to the rise in antisemitic incidents in the U.K.

“When you see, when you hear some of those chants — ‘globalize the intifada’ would be one I would pick out then clearly there should be tougher action in relation to that,” Starmer told the BBC. The Arabic word intifada is generally translated as “uprising.”

A 45-year-old man was charged Friday with attempted murder after two Jewish men were stabbed and wounded Wednesday in Golders Green, a London neighborhood that’s an epi-

center of Britain’s Jewish community Police called the attack an act of terrorism.

It was the latest in a string of incidents including recent arson attacks on synagogues and other Jewish sites in the British capital.

The U.K.’s most senior police officer warned Friday that British Jews are facing their greatest ever threat, and blamed social media for making antisemitism more mainstream than before.

Mark Rowley, the head of the Metropolitan Police, said British Jews are now the target of every extremist group spreading hate.

American-style capitalism.

The election of Leo seems to have reinvigorated the U.S. church, especially the donor class. On Saturday The Papal Foundation announced that its members had approved more than $15 million in grants for 2026, a record in the foundation’s 38year history

The foundation also announced that 25 new families had joined it in the year since Leo’s election, in the strongest sign yet that the election of an American, English-speaking pope and a math major with an eye to the Vatican’s balance sheet — has been good news for church fundraising.

vid Savage, the foundation’s executive director, said in a statement.

to the Holy See following years of unrelenting stories of mismanagement, corruption and scandal, as well as Francis’ known criticism of

“The growth we’re seeing is incredibly encouraging, as it reﬂects a shared commitment to serve, to give, and to bring the church’s mission to life in meaningful ways across the globe,” Da-

The foundation was created by the late Cardinal John Krol of Philadelphia in 1988, as a way for wealthy U.S. Catholics to directly fund charitable initiatives of the pope. To become a steward requires a $1 million gift to a fund that then helps support papal projects, such as building orphanages or monasteries For 2026, for example, some of the approved projects include the construction or renovation of a safe school for marginalized tribal children in India, and professional technical training for vulnerable women in the Philippines. The foundation currently has as its members all the U.S. cardinals, and is governed by a board of trustees made up of Catholic laypeople and bishops.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALESSANDRA TARANTINO Pope Leo XIV holds his weekly general audience on Wednesdays in St. Peter’s Square at the Vatican.

BY LINDSEY BAHR AP film writer

The organization behind the Oscars is for the first time addressing the use of artiﬁcial intelligence in performances and scripts for the 2027 Academy Awards

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences on Friday released updates across many categories, stressing the importance of human authorship while not banning AI.

The new rules also include significant changes to the much-criticized international ﬁlm category, expanding eligibility to include films that won top qualifying awards from prestigious film festivals like Cannes, Venice and Toronto.

“As we do every year, we made a lot of, we think, really smart and progressive changes,” film academy CEO Bill Kramer told The Associated Press. “Obviously, as the academy becomes more global, we need to think about how we are inviting international ﬁlms into the Oscars conversation.”

As part of its annual review of Oscar eligibility rules, the academy is tackling one of the global ﬁlmmaking community’s biggest concerns: generative artiﬁcial intelligence.

The new rules state that “the tools neither help nor harm the chances of achieving a nomination” and that the academy and each branch “will judge the achievement, taking into account the degree to which a human was at the heart of the creative authorship when choosing which movie to award.” They’re also reserving the right to request more information from the

ﬁlmmaking team about the nature of the use of AI and “human authorship.”

“Humans have to be at the center of the creative process,” said academy President Lynette Howell Taylor “As AI continues to evolve, our conversations around AI will do so along with that. But for the academy we are always going to put human authorship at the center of our awards eligibility process.”

When it comes to the eligibility of performances, only roles “demonstrably performed by humans with their consent” will be considered. The organization declined to comment on whether the upcoming AIrendered Val Kilmer performance would be eligible as the filmmakers have not yet submitted it for consideration A likeness is not an actor for one, but it might also depend on how Kilmer is credited in the film: As Val Kilmer or something else? One could also take Andy Serkis as Gollum as an example of a human collaborating with technology for the final performance.

“We will review that on a case-by-case basis,” Kramer said. “We, like everybody in our industry and world, we will be assessing this every year.” There is less ambiguity

in the screenplay categories, where the rules state that “screenplays must be human-authored to be eligible.”

The ﬁlm academy has often had to review its standards to meet the technological advances of the moment, whether it be sound, color or computer generated imagery (CGI).

As its membership has grown much more international, there have been increasing calls for an overhaul to the international ﬁlm category, which had been continually criticized as unjust, outdated and subject to political interference. That’s led to independent and dissident filmmakers often pointedly not being submitted to represent the country they’re from.

Last year’s Palme d’Orwinner at Cannes, for instance, was “It Was Just an Accident,” from Iranian filmmaker Jafar Panahi, was not submitted as Iran’s ofﬁcial entry for the 98th Academy Awards, but France’s.

Under the new rules, “It Was Just an Accident” could be considered eligible because it won the top Cannes prize and not because a country chose to submit it. In addition to the Palme d’Or at Cannes, the Golden Lion at Venice and the Platform award at To-

ronto, other festivals with eligible qualifying awards will also include the Berlin International Film Festival’s Golden Bear, the Busan International Film Festival’s best ﬁlm award and the Sundance Film Festival’s World Cinema Grand Jury Prize.

All the international films will also be credited as the nominee, not the country or region, and the award will be accepted by the filmmaker The director’s name will also be listed on the Oscar plaque, “after the film title and country if applicable.”

“That really reflects our desire to honor the film’s creative team. That is how we approach other categories,” Kramer said. “And as we become more global, as the ﬁlmmaking community becomes more global. I think it’s really about a focus on the ﬁlmmakers and less a focus of the country.”

The acting branch is catching up with the rest of the academy in allowing an actor to be nominated for more than one performance in a single category If, say, this year’s best actor winner Michael B. Jordan has two extraordinary leading performances in two differ-

ent films in 2026, he could possibly get two best actor nominations. This is standard practice in the other categories. In 2001, at the 73rd Oscars, Steven Soderbergh was nominated for best director for both “Traffic” and “Erin Brockovich,” winning the prize for the former The organization also clarified the eligibility of original songs used during a film’s end credits. For songs in which the first music cue plays over the end credits, that song must overlap with at least the film’s last 15 seconds before the credits roll in order to be considered eligible. This year’s original song winner, “Golden” was a key part of “KPop Demon Hunters” and used several times throughout the film.

“We never stop looking at ways to improve our eligibility process,” Taylor said.

LOUISIANAPOLITICS

High court decision opensdoortocountrywide battles

Severalstateson vergeofredrawing congressional maps

—U.S. Rep

WASHINGTON

Cleo Fields, D-Baton Rouge, likely won’tbeonly House member affectedbythe Supreme Court’sdecision last week to effectively eliminate his minority-majority congressional district.

Louisiana v. Callais was renderedasthe November midterm elections are getting underway.Republicans are trying to keep their bare House majority.Democrats think they have a shot to pick up the six seats necessary to take the levers of power in the House.

Many states have already begun primaryelections for themidterm Congressional contests. In his initial reaction upon hearing about the Supreme Court decision, President Donald Trumpsaid state legislatures should lean into redrawing congressional maps and eke out afew more districts that would elect aGOP candidate.

House Speaker Mike Johnson,R-Benton, wants Republican legislatures to go backtowork as he tries to holdontoaGOP majority

Mark Ballard

A6-3 Supreme Court majority found that the Voting Rights Act of 1965, under which minority voters have challenged electoral maps for decades, allows districts to favor aparticular party but not aparticular race unless intentionaldiscrimination is proven. Black voters have backed Democratic candidates with 80% to 90% pluralities since 1960.

“With this decision, states no longer have to ensure that communities of color have aconstitutional right to acongressional district in which they make up a majority of the vote,” Amy Walter wrote in The Cook Political Report, based in Washington.

Bill on termlimits faces headwinds

Aproposed constitutional amendment to set alimit of two overall terms for governors, instead of two consecutive terms, has twice failed to pass the Louisiana House. Currently, governors cannot serve more than two terms in arow —but they can come back and serve again after aterm out of ofﬁce. Former Gov.Edwin Edwards was elected in 1972, 1976, 1983 and 1991. House Bill 225, by Rep. Mike Bayham, RChalmette, would change the limit to two terms outright. That would bar former Gov John Bel Edwards, aDemocrat, from running again after serving from 2016 to 2024.

“All states that have unconstitutional mapsshould look at that very carefully andIthink they should do it before themidterms,” Johnson told reporters Thursday Facingsigniﬁcant headwinds goinginto November’smidterm elections, Trump earlier this year pushed Republican-led states to redistrict andadd moreGOP congresspersons. Some Democratic-led states responded by doing the same.

Theinitial round ofredistrictingtit-for-tat left Democrats and Republicans ﬂipping aboutthe same number of seats. That doesn’tyet count Florida, where the Legislatureis consideringnew maps that turn fourDemocratic seats —two of which are from minority-majority districts that would be eliminated into safe Republican ones.

The Cook Political Report with Amy Walter andSa-

implications for howelection maps are drawn all over the country.

bato’sCrystal Ball —two respected political handicappers —estimated seven districtscould change parties due to theCallais ruling. National Public Radio counted 15 House districts. Fair Fight Action and Black VotersMatter,two Atlanta-based voting rights groups, calculated 19 seats directly tied to the Voting RightsAct, but 27 seats could go Republican over time.

“It certainly appears possible, perhaps even likely,

Thebill passed out of the Committee on House and Governmental Affairs on an 11-2 vote. ButBayham has faced difficultygetting it past theHouse floor Because thebill proposes amendingthe constitution, it requires atwo-thirds vote to pass, or 70 votes. TheHouse hastwice voted on the bill, and it fell short both times —first in a 67-22 vote on April 22 andagain on a 67-21 vote on April 28. If thebill passes, the term limits would not immediately change. Voters would first have to approve amending thestate constitution. If approved, Louisiana’s rules wouldbewouldbe similartothose forpresident. The 22nd Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, approvedbyCongressin1947 andratifiedbythe statesin

1951, seta limit of two terms for U.S. presidents. Before thatamendment was ratiﬁed, only President Franklin D. Roosevelt had served morethan two terms; he was elected four times Psychedelics

bill advances

Abill thatwould open the door for moreresearch and testing of therapies that use psychedelic drugs like ibogaine and psilocybin is close to passing the Louisiana Legislature.

Agrowing body of research suggeststhose drugs can be powerful treatment tools for PTSD in veterans, drug addiction, and some mental health conditions. But theyare illegal for general useand research has been limited, given the potential for abuseifusedimproperly Senate Bill 43, by Sen. PatrickMcMath, R-Covington, would createa PsychedelicAssistedTherapy Program

that these Republican states will be able todraw out all or some of their Democratic-held seats, if not in 2026 than 2028,” said Kyle Kondik, managing editor of Sabato’sCrystal Ball in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Just how many depends on how fast GOP-dominated states move toredraw their congressional maps to add moreRepublican-leaning seats.

Other Republican states will be watching the progress and outcomeofthe

at the LouisianaDepartment of Health that would support research for ibogaine and psilocybin. Money from amassive settlementthe state reached withpharmaceutical companies over the addiction crisis could be used to fund the research.

The drugs would not be legalized for general use, and all research and clinical trials would need to be authorizedbythe federal Food and Drug Administration, withsigniﬁcant safeguards and procedural reviews.

The bill got aboostfrom President Donald Trump, who lastmonth signedan executive order aimed at hastening research into psychedelics and removing some of the federal rules thatrestrictthat research.

SB43 has broad support in the Legislaturesofar.It passed the Senatewithout opposition, and was unanimously approved by the House Healthand Welfare committee.

See the Louisiana Purchase

An original copy of the agreement for the Louisiana Purchaseisondisplay at

inevitable lawsuits that will be ﬁled over Gov.Jeff Landry’ssuspension of the elections forLouisiana’ssix House seats.

Somestates seem on the verge of going forit: Alabama, South Carolina and Tennessee.

U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville, R-Ala., urged the state attorney general to throw out afederal district court order not to change until 2030 the mapsthat helped elect two Black Democrats in the state’seight-member delegation.

“Inacountry where only 20 House seats are truly competitive, two moreRepublicans from Alabama could mean the difference between gridlock and advancing Trump’sagenda,” Tuberville, whoisrunning forgovernor,wrote in an op-ed. “Alabama, which voted forTrumpby65% in 2024, by all rights should send an entirely Republican delegation to Washington.” That percentage is statewide.Birmingham and Montgomery voters favored Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate in 2024. Johnson and House Majority Leader Steve Scalise, R-Jefferson and secondin-commandaslong as the GOPmajority holds, know all too well the difﬁculties of navigating aone or two or three seat majority

Asmallnumber of GOP representatives can —and have —used their votes as leverage to get concessions in legislation Republican leadership wants and Democratic members oppose. In somecases, depending on attendance, even asingle Republican objecting will kill legislation on party line votes.

“This ruling strengthens equal protection forall voters, and gives people in Louisiana and across the country greater conﬁdence that mapswill be drawn fairly and not racially motivated,” Scalise said.

Email Mark Ballardat mballard@theadvocate. com.

the Louisiana State Capitol as part of the nationwide celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.

In one of the largest land deals in history,the United States bought 828,000 square milesofland from France for $15 millionin 1803. That nearly doubled the size of the UnitedStates, adding territory from the Mississippi River to the Rocky Mountains and from the Gulf of Mexico to the Canadian border.That land now includes all or part of

15 modern states, including Louisiana. The exhibit is open and will last until July 11. It is free and open to visitors of all ages. “This is more than an exhibit,” Gov.Jeff Landry said, when he announced the idea in his speech to open the legislative session. “It is apowerful opportunity for Louisiana to tell its story —toremind the nation that our state has always been central to America’sgrowth, ambition, and belief in the future.”

Bayham

McMath

PHOTO PROVIDED By GOV. JEFFLANDRy’S OFFICE

Gov. Jeff Landry, center,and his wife Sharon, right, check out adisplay at the OldState Capitol in Baton Rougeofan original copyofthe agreement for the Louisiana Purchase.

STAFF FILE PHOTOByBRETT DUKE

Allen Whitehead delivers voting machines and signs to Harriet Tubman Charter School in Algiers on Oct. 10. The Supreme Court’sdecision in Louisiana v. Callaiscouldhavehuge

EDUCATION

Schoolscan help combat food insecurity,advocatesays

BY ELYSE CARMOSINO Staff writer

Louisiana has one of the highest rates of children facing food insecurity,with nearly 1in4young people struggling with hunger Lindsay Hendrix, chief impact officer at Second HarvestFood Bank,has spent over adecade tackling the issue, particularly among the state’sK-12 students. Her team worksto identify food insecurity across 23 parishes and collaborates with schools to establish food assistance programs,such as the Summer Feeding Program, which will serve breakfast and lunch to students at 99 schools this summer Food insecurity is when people, usually due to alack of financial resources, are unable to easily access the amount of food needed to survive. Children facing food insecurity mighthave to skip some meals or fill up on junk food. Research shows that students who don’teat enough nutritious food are more likely to suffer from chronic health conditions and perform poorly in school. They might struggling with fatigue and inattentiveness or frequently miss class Now advocateslike Hendrix are bracing for anew challenge. The U.S. Department of Agriculture, which

oversees several food assistance programs, including free school lunch programs, said last year that it will discontinue an annual food insecurity survey,which theagency called “redundant”and “politicized.” Hendrix said the lossof data willmake it more difﬁcult to trackhungerand ensurefamiliesand children getthe resourcestheyneed. “Not havinginformation aboutaproblem is aproblem,” she said. At thestate level, Louisianalawmakers are taking some steps to address childhoodhunger HouseBill 218, currently

awaiting review by theSenate Education Committee, would create ascreening process to detect food insecurity among public school students. House Bill 269, which is pending approval by theHouse Education Committee, asks thestate education department to fund theFree School Breakfast Program, afederal program that reimburses schools up to one breakfast per student per school day

Hendrix spoke to The Times-Picayune |The Advocate about why preventing hunger amongstudents is importantand what schools and communities

can do to help.

This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity

What is food insecurity,and what does it look likeinLouisiana?

Food insecurityisaUSDA measurement that surveys a sample of people across the nation and asks respondents whether they’vebeen able to meet their food needs over the last month.

Looking at statewide data, Louisiana is ranked third as having one of the highest food insecurityrates in the country among bothadults and children. We have more food insecure children than alot of states can even imagine.

In total, 248,000 Louisiana children come from afoodinsecure household.

Howdoes food insecurity impact a child’sdevelopment?

We talk to alot of educators, and they know which children in their classrooms struggle with hunger

Usually thosekids have trouble focusing. There’s often sleepiness, lethargy, and theyaren’table to perform well on tests or in their lessons because they’re not retaining the information they’re being taught.

There’salso evidence that shows afood insecurechild may be sick moreoften, so theymissmoreclasses.

It’s alot of disruption in the child’sday.Ultimately it negatively impactstheir ability to succeed as they move along in school and life.

What signs shouldeducators look for that indicate achildisstruggling withhunger?

Teachers and staff should be on the lookout for a preoccupation with food Hoarding food, putting food in pockets, asking classmates for food, et cetera.

They should also look for poor concentration and focus, low energy,orshifts in behavior

What are somewaysschoolscan helpcombat childhood hunger?

They can make sure that afamily is going through the qualiﬁcation process for free and reduced meals and make sure the child is actually participating in those meals.

For alot of schools, free and reduced meals are a big part of the day.Making sure that achild who is food insecure is able to access breakfast is important, as is being mindful of how the school sets up their day

Alot of educators talk about how their students are missing that free breakfast because their bus gets in too late. Teachers often have to supplement with snacks they’re purchasing out of their own pockets to be able to feed kids so that they can focus in the morning. Is Second Harvest working on any initiatives in schools?

Childhood hunger spikes in the summertimebecause kids who qualify for free breakfast and lunch are stuck when school gets out, so they cometosummer feeding programs where

WE’RE ASKING EXPERTS ACROSS THESTATEHOW TO TACKLE THEBIGGEST CHALLENGES FACINGLOUISIANA SCHOOLS. HAVE AN

they can continue to get those meals. We’re working on our largest summer food program on record. It’scalled SummerFeeding, and it’spart of the USDA’s summer food service program in partnership with the Louisiana Department of Education.

Ninety-nine sites have applied to receive breakfast and lunch meals across our service area. Last year we served 72 sites.

We’re also opening anew community kitchen at our Bayou Distribution Center in Houma, which serves Terrebonne, Lafourche and St. Mary,that’sgoing to serve about 6,000 children this summer How can peoplehelp hungry students in their communities? Supporting schools and teachers is really important. Teachers spend alot of their own dollars serving their students, and they’re already underpaid

THE GULF COAST

TikTok star readies to open restaurant in Mississippi

BY MARTHA SANCHEZ Staff writer

Matthew Bounds

By dawn,

arrives at the brick build-

ing that will soon become his new restaurant. Two weeks before opening day his schedule keeps getting busier.

“We are in serious crunch time,” the social media star said in between texting a contractor and coordinating a dishwasher installation. “I’m having the time of my life right now It’s pure chaos.”

For three years, the southern Mississippi native has grown his reach, video by video, post by post, until he earned more than 7 million followers across social media platforms — more than double the population of his home state. His fame is the result of quick cooking tutorials, tailored for fans on the go. But Bounds, 43, says he cares more about building community than gaining likes and views. He tries to make viewers feel welcome however he can: by cooking meals with cheap ingredients, by mixing Southern charm with occasional curse words, by wearing a T-shirt that says “y’all” in rainbow letters.

Now his career — and his audience is expanding beyond the internet Bounds released his third cookbook last month, which has sold about 17,000 copies so far and recently made The New York Times bestseller list. He and his husband, CJ Bryant, will open the restaurant, called Neighbors Tap & Table, in Gulfport, Mississippi, this month.

These days, Bounds is too busy to ﬁlm several videos a day like he used to — he is mostly reposting old recipes and hopes to share new

Matthew Bounds, known as ‘your Barefoot Neighbor,’ has grown famous online by inviting viewers into his kitchen for quick, easy meal tutorials. Bounds will

called Neighbors Tap & Table, in Gulfport, Miss., this

ones soon. The to-do list is packed at the restaurant, where stacks of boxes are still ﬁlled with glasses and plates. Bounds is excited and nervous

“It looks like a mess right now,” Bounds said Thursday But “it’s very, very close.”

‘Your Barefoot Neighbor’ His social media career began with a humble request: Would Bounds create a TikTok account to like videos of his friend’s dog? It was 2022, and Bounds was working as an insurance adjuster Consumed with politics, he had deleted all social media. But he obliged and even posted a few videos of yard work and home projects under the username “yourbarefootneighbor.” Then he decided to start

cooking. His easy meal tutorials featuring dishes like chili cheese tortellini and one pan Salisbury steak — took

off. Bounds soon quit his insurance job, landed brand deals and sponsorships and became a full-time social media personality

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That’s

TheAmerican Dental Association recommends checkups twice ayear.

Previous dental work canwear out. Even if you’ve had quality dentalwork in the past, you shouldn’t take your dentalhealth forgranted.Infact,your odds of having a dental problem only go up as you age.2

Treatment is expensive especially the servicespeople over 50 often need.

Consider these national average costs of treatment. $274for acheckup $299 for afilling $1,471 foracrown.3 Unexpected bills likethis can be areal burden, especially if you’re on afixedincome.

“Medicare&You,”Centersfor Medicare&Medicaid Services,2025. 2 “Aging changesinteeth and gums”, medlineplus.gov,4/17/2022. 3 FairHealth, Inc. National average dentalfees. Datacurrent as of July 2025;subject to change

“Absolutely love” “I absolutely love my dental insurance. My dentalofﬁce ﬁles the claims,leaving me with very little balancetopay.” Dorothy P.,TN

His audience — mostly women in their 30s and 40s nicknamed the “barefoot neighborhood” — expanded. They also started enthusiastically contributing to fundraisers and charities Bounds began to spotlight.

For his birthday last year, Bounds raised over $370,000 by livestreaming on social media for 26 hours. The money went to food pantries and nonproﬁts across the region.

“The best part about him is he doesn’t want the credit,” said Christen Duhé, president and executive director of the Gulf Coast Community Foundation, which helped Bounds distribute donations.

“He’s not really in it for him. He’s in it to do what’s best for other people.”

‘We all feel like we belong’ Bounds should be on the road.

If not for long days preparing to open the restaurant, he would be meeting readers, signing books and appearing on the talk show circuit to promote his newest cookbook, called “Keep It Simple Y’all: Every Day.”

“I’m doing none of that because it is 6:42 a.m. and I am here in the restaurant in a construction zone,” Bounds said in one recent video.

“These are my days right now This is where I live, and I love it.”

His latest endeavor began late last year, when a friend screenshotted a Facebook post with news that a restaurant in downtown Gulfport was for sale. By January Bounds and Bryant had signed a lease on the space.

“We keep throwing around the phrase ‘soft landing place’ whenever we talk about this place,” Bounds said. “That’s what we want it to be for people. We want it to be a really beautiful,

comfortable space that anyone can walk into.”

They plan to open May 16, serving small plates and shareables at evening happy hours. And “of course,” Bounds said, “we’re going to do a bangin’ lunch.”

Bounds says the restaurant will share the mission he cultivates on social media: to create a space where guests can “sit down a minute, put your feet up, hang out for a little while.” But viewers say Bounds’ appeal comes as much from his welcoming attitude as it does from his firm stands against hate. Bounds, the son of a Baptist preacher has credited that stance to a viral video in which he mentioned his husband and received some of “the most vile, hateful remarks I’ve ever seen.”

He didn’t let it fly And last year, after a Mississippi Coast restaurant promoted a special for straight couples only, Bounds helped organize a tour called “Love the Coast” to patronize inclusive restaurants across the region.

“He doesn’t accept bullying and he doesn’t accept negative talk,” said Martha Allen Price, the executive director of Extra Table, a nonproﬁt food bank in Mississippi that Bounds has supported. “Matthew has created a neighborhood, and we all feel like we belong.” On Thursday, Bounds was at the restaurant by 6:30 a.m. Soon, electricians and contractors started arriving. There were boxes to unpack, paint to touch-up, tables and chairs to assemble.

“I can’t wait to throw the doors open,” Bounds said this week pausing for a moment in the chaos. “I’ve always wanted to have my own spot.”

Matthew Bounds cooks simple, quick meals, including this recipe for one pot pimento cheese and sausage gnocchi

PHOTOS PROVIDED By MATTHEW BOUNDS

open the restaurant,

month.

Mexican governor, mayor indicted by U.S. step down

Officials face drug charges

BY FABIOLA SÁNCHEZ and ISABEL DEBRE Associated Press

MEXICO CITY Two members of Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum’s party in the northwestern Sinaloa state said they would temporarily step down from their posts after the United States charged them and eight other politicians and security ofﬁcers with drug trafﬁcking in a bombshell indictment that has shaken Mexico’s political establishment.

In a short video announcement at midnight Friday, Gov. Rubén Rocha Moya, the highest-ranking ofﬁcial named in the indictment, denied accusations that he protected the Sinaloa cartel and helped it smuggle drugs into the U.S in exchange for millions of dollars in bribes.

“My conscience is clear,” said Rocha, 76, a longtime ally of influential former President Andrés Manuel López Obrador “To my people and to my family I can look you in the eye because I have never betrayed you, and I never will.”

But he said he would take a temporary leave of absence from the position he has held for six years to defend himself against what he called the “false and malicious” allegations and cooperate with the Mexican government’s investigation.

Juan de Dios Gámez Mendívil, the mayor of the Sinaloa state capital Culiacán named in the indictment, also said he would take leave and denied the charges. Another defendant and member of the

ruling Morena party, Sen. Enrique Inzunza, said he would continue serving in the Senate while defending himself from the accusations.

In a special vote Saturday the state’s local congress appointed as interim governor Yeraldine Bonilla Valverde, an ally of Rocha who previously served as the state’s secretary of government.

Rocha and Gámez Mendívil had enjoyed immunity from criminal prosecution as sitting governor and mayor But in leaving their posts even temporarily the officials lost their blanket protection from prosecution, Arturo Zaldívar, a former Mexican Supreme Court justice who now advises Sheinbaum, posted on X

“They can be detained like any person,” he wrote Sheinbaum has struggled to strike a balance between the interests of her progressive Morena party and pressure from President Donald Trump to step up the ﬁght against cartels

In a nod to her party’s anticorruption platform, Sheinbaum said she wouldn’t defend anyone found to have committed a crime

But she vigorously defended Mexico’s sovereignty vowing that if federal authorities uncovered “irrefutable” evidence linking the 10 indicted ofﬁcials to cartel crime, the accused would be tried in Mexico, not the U.S. — a move that risks backlash from an American administration that has threatened military action against cartels on Mexican soil.

“We will never subordinate ourselves because this is a matter of the dignity of the Mexican people,” she said Friday.

Bayard (Timothy); Dewey (Peter); his brother, Michael S. Taormina; his mother-in-law, Joy R. Patin; his sisters-in-law, JoyA Patin, Joan P. Normand (Michael); and his brothers -in-law, Richard J. Patin (Pam), Edward A. Patin, Robert J. Patin (Gina). He also leaves behind many nieces, nephews and dear friends whom he loved He was preceded in death by his parents, Manuel J. Taormina, Sr. and Claire Barthel Taormina, his sister, Irene F. Taormina and his fatherin-law, Richard X. Patin.

Born in New Orleans, Louisiana on July 27, 1946, Manny was agraduateof St. James Major elementary school and CorJesu High School (class of 1965). He served as theI.T. General Manager of DeltaCom Services, Inc., for over 33 years representing major banks, hospitals and corporations across the state.

Manny cared most about his faith, family, friends, food, fun and his love of gardening. He was agreat storyteller and loved to talk about New Orleans history. He could be found in thekitchen, experimenting with new recipes or perfecting his classic dishes like Pesto and "Oh My Gawd"dip. Manny and Hope traveled extensively, including Texas, Florida, Las Vegas and Europe. Italy was Manny's favoritewhich he and Hopeexperienced with lifelong friends, Frank and RhondaTusa. Manny was happiest on his boat, "LadyRobolo," with afishing rod in his hand,sharing countless adventures and talltales on the water with his friends, Frank, Steve, Tony, Johnny and Wynn to name afew.

Manny was along-time devoted member of the Krewe of Endymion for over 50 years and served as afloat lieutenant.He especially enjoyed the Coronation Balls and Extravaganzas. He and his lifelong friend Larry Tusa, coined thephrase and lived by the motto "throw till it hurts!"

Manny was deeply loved and was overwhelmed by the outpouring of the support he received in his final weeks and days. The family wishes to thank theemployees of East Jefferson General Hospital and St.Joseph Hospice for thebest care, assion, kindness and

are requested To view and sign the family guestbook, please visit lakelawnmetairie.com

Villarrubia, Mildred Prange

Mildred Prange Villarrubia passed away on April 26, 2026, at the age of 93. She was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, on November 17, 1932. She attended her beloved St. Henry's Elementary School and wasa 1950 graduate of Sophie B. Wright High School. She was apast presidentofthe Ladies Auxiliary of the Home Builder's Association of Greater New Orleans. Although she did help her husband runDon Villarrubia Construction Co., Inc, herproudest joy was beingawife and mother to hertwo children. She waspreceded in death by herhusband, Donald J. Villarrubia, Sr.;

by d, Donald J. Villarrubia, Sr.; parents, Walter F. Prange and Eve Boudreaux Prange; andbrother, Melvin J. Prange, Sr. Millie is survived by her daughter, Pam Villarrubia McCullough (Mike); son Donald Joseph Villarrubia, Jr. (Jill); grandchildren Megan McCullough, Catherine McCullough, Shelby Villarrubia Pickett (Ryan), Riley Villarrubia, and Avery Villarrubia; great grandchildren, Eleanor Pickett andMargot Pickett; and sister, Myrtle P. Gettys. The family would like to express their deepest gratitude to hercaregivers, Carolyn Warren and Sherlene Robinson. Her private funeral Mass was held on Thursday, April 30, 2026. She was buried beside her devoted husbandinAll Saints MausoleuminNew Orleans, Louisiana. To view and sign the family guestbook, please visit lakelawnmetairie.com

JEFFERSON

Survey says aging residents need new services

Jefferson seeks solutions for seniors’ complaints

BY LARA NICHOLSON Staff writer

Once a bustling suburb for young families, Jefferson Parish is now graying faster than the rest of the state. And the services it provides older residents haven’t kept up with those changes, according to a new survey conducted by parish ofﬁcials.

In more than 600 responses, Jefferson Parish residents over 55 said they need more help keeping up with rising prices for food, medications and other necessities. They pointed to issues with getting around the parish, and problems accessing health care and mental health support. Many also said they need more housing assistance, both for aging in their homes and for affording assisted living care

The most resounding complaints across groups aged 55 to over 85 were affordability, accessibility and communication from the parish on what resources are available, according to Health Management Associates, the ﬁrm tasked by Jefferson Parish with conducting the survey

“We’ve just gotten used to not receiving resources, so I think we’re just used to living without it,” said Francene Simmons, 79, of Harvey “I think it’s time for that to change.”

Parish ofﬁcials said many issues identified by seniors closely resemble those of the community at large, and that they will work with an outside ﬁrm to identify possible solutions.

Roughly one in five Jefferson Parish residents, or about 84,000 people, is over 65 years old, according to U.S. census estimates, a sharp increase from 1980, when children outnumbered seniors roughly three to one.

That demographic change has meant that much of the parish’s services and infrastructure originally built around children and young families — a plethora of playgrounds, youth programs and neighborhoods full of single-family homes — are becoming underutilized as U.S. life expectancies lengthen, birth rates decline and

ä See SURVEY, page 1B

Smoothing the streets

BY JONI HESS Staff writer

A cigarette hung steadily

from William Banks’ mouth as Banks, tool in hand, smoothed hot asphalt over a sea of craters on an Uptown street one recent Tuesday

The smell of burning rubber is thick. But the 12-year veteran of New Orleans’ Public Works Department barely notices as he spreads the steaming material into a pothole before it hardens and becomes unworkable.

Another worker, Eric Gardner, shouts at the driver of a truck carrying the asphalt. “Up!” he yells, as the driver prepares to drop the black mass onto the ground on Pitt Street. “Down!” he screams. It falls, ready to be shoveled and packed into the next pothole.

Gardner’s directions are important. If he doesn’t communicate the drop timing right, it could be a “disaster,” he said.

“You’ll have s*** everywhere.”

The crew’s work is part of an ambitious push by Mayor Helena Moreno’s administration to tackle the holes that have pockmarked sinking New Orleans for years, among other chronic city infrastructure problems Administration ofﬁcials recent-

ly announced a new goal of ﬁlling 1,500 craters per week, up from a previous 500.

Thanks to a speedier hiring process, new equipment, and a reshuffling of Public Works priorities, the department has managed to ﬁll more than 10,000 potholes this year, Moreno announced last month.

Last Tuesday Banks, Gardner and two others in the four-person crew ﬁlled dozens of holes on Pitt Street in the span of an hour

“Before, we were responsible for a lot of different things,”

Roman tombstone returns to Italy

2,000-year-old marker found in N.O backyard

BY POET WOLFE Staff writer

Roman tombstone that captured global attention when it was found in a New Orleans backyard last year is back home in Italy

The ancient grave marker was one of two relics found in the U.S. and returned to Italy as part of an effort to combat the illicit trafﬁcking of cultural property Both items, including a reliquary urn recovered in Boston that carries the remains of a possible saint, were presented during a ceremony in Rome. The event celebrated an ongoing collaboration between American and Italian ofﬁcials to help preserve cultural heritage. The grave marker will return to the National Archaeological Museum in Civitavecchia, its original

home, though the museum is temporarily closed for renovation, according to Susann Lusnia, an associate professor of classical studies at Tulane University who helped investigate the relic

It was one of 21 tablets that disappeared after the museum was destroyed in Allied bombings in World War II before it reopened in the 1970s. The grave marker made its way to the U.S. and eventually New Orleans, where it was inherited by Erin Scott O’Brien from her grandparents, who met in Italy while her grandfather was stationed there during World War II. It remains unclear whether the stone was brought back by her grandmother or grandfather O’Brien placed the stone in her garden but forgot about it when she moved out of her home in the Carrollton neighborhood in 2018. It remained hidden under a tangle of thick vines and dirt until the home’s current owners, Danielle Santoro and her husband, Aaron Lorenzo, discovered it while doing yard work. The unearthing set off a global mystery that stretched across continents and was eventually solved by local experts,

said crew supervisor Pierre Batiste. “But we’ve gotten some support with those things, so we can focus on potholes and not be stretched so thin.”

The Department of Public Works has long been charged with a litany of duties across its ﬁve divisions. Crews had to clean drainage culverts, maintain traffic signals and set up barricades ahead of major events, among other tasks.

The city has moved some of that work to other departments parking enforcement to New Orleans police, for example

so that four pothole crews at a time can sweep streets to clear out a backlog of service requests. Their labor is much needed in New Orleans, which was built on top of silt and swampland. Potholes here largely form from surface erosion in the pavement that grows bigger over time.

The crews handle a different City Council district each day, mowing down a list of pothole complaints and filling more holes they see along the way They do roll-call at 7 a.m. before leaving the Public Works maintenance yard near the Laﬁtte Greenway to pick up the ﬁrst asphalt load of the day from Boh Brothers Construction in the Lower 9th Ward. They pick up an evening load after lunch about six tons a day overall, Batiste said.

The potholes vary in size. Deeper ones require an extra cushion of asphalt to harden before they can be ﬁlled completely That prevents a vehicle’s tire from sinking when it touches the ﬁlled hole, Batiste said.

Asphalt repairs can last for decades if the street’s foundation has a solid surface to bind to, said Jefferson Parish Depart-

Northshore DAs use murder charges for drug overdoses

BY WILLIE SWETT Staff writer

Prosecutors increase use of La. life sentence law ä See MARKER, page 2B ä See OVERDOSE, page 2B

Responding to a surge in deaths related to drug use in recent years, prosecutors on the northshore have increasingly employed a Louisiana law that carries a life sentence for supplying fentanyl and other drugs to people who die of an overdose. Collin Sims, the district attorney in St. Tammany and Washington parishes, indicted seven people last year on murder charges for distributing drugs that led to fatal overdoses — the most of any year in the last decade for the 22nd Judicial District. In the neighboring 21st Judicial District, which includes Tangipahoa, Livingston and St. Helena

Perrilloux Sims

parishes, District Attorney Scott Perrilloux says he has charged 10 people for murder for drug overdoses since the beginning of 2025, a signiﬁcant increase compared to prior years. The increasing frequency of the charges appears to be unique to the northshore. In interviews and emailed correspondences, district attorneys’ ofﬁces in other Louisiana parishes with large populations, including those that serve Shreveport, Baton Rouge, Lafayette and Jefferson Parish, said they rarely bring cases of this type. (Orleans

STAFF PHOTOS By SOPHIA GERMER

William Banks smooths tar over a pothole on Pitt Street in New Orleans on Tuesday.

Glen Walker fills potholes on Pitt Street in New Orleans on Tuesday.

PHOTO PROVIDED By DANIELLA SANTORO An ancient Roman tombstone was found in the backyard of a New Orleans home in March.

PARISH ä See POTHOLES, page 2B

ment of Public Works Director Angela Desoto. But if the surrounding street is in bad condition, the asphalt ﬁller can fail she said. In many of those cases, a partial or full surface road replacement may be necessary Like New Orleans, Jefferson Parish uses a hotmixed asphalt to seal up the hole, which is a quick way to get cars back on the road The parish keeps a list of roadways that need repairs. She didn’t say how long it was Jefferson doesn’t have a weekly goal number of potholes to ﬁll, Desoto said. But the department handles repairs regularly and investigates reported issues within a few business days, she said.

Like New Orleans does, “We like to focus on one area at a time to be more efficient with repairs,” Desoto said.

Long-term repairs

To address longer-term street repairs, Moreno’s administration has reallocated $6 million from previous bond sales to hire 50 public works employees for a newly formed Street Paving Unit. The crews will beef up existing pothole staff and focus on re-layering roadways, sidewalk repairs, and other infrastructure needs across the city Moreno has also obtained $2.5 million in a federal congressional earmark to hire Public Works crews and purchase a new pothole ﬁller truck Moreno signed an executive order in January for a citywide street maintenance program that targeted pothole repairs, roadway patching and surface and sidewalk maintenance, among other efforts.

The measure aims to shift away from the city’s long-held practice of doling such work to outside contractors to moving that work in-house. It’s an attempt to reduce costs and improve response times for issues tracked in the 311 nonemergency service system, which has historically been slow

The New Orleans inspector general found in 2022 that the Public Works Department took 204 days on average to address pothole repair requests.

In addition to Moreno’s efforts to streamline street repairs, officials with the Orleans Parish Communication District, which operates both the 911 emergency response system and 311, have said they will consider integrating artiﬁcial intelligence to assist with requests.

Administration ofﬁcials said they’re also working toward a citywide pavement assessment to better determine which streets require permanent repairs.

Batiste said the city’s longtime Public Works staff is looking forward to the additional help. Newly hired employee Glen Walker joined the crew last month. He’s still training helping them shufﬂe asphalt into the holes. “I just got to get better at it,” Walker said. “It’s not as simple as it looks.”

Email Joni Hess at joni. hess@theadvocate.com.

MARKER

Continued from page 1B

underscoring New Orleans’ instinct to preserve history in all of its forms Soon after the discovery, Santoro — an anthropologist at Tulane reached out to her colleagues in Latin and classical studies for help

Using key phrases from the stone’s Latin engraving, Lusnia determined the tombstone originated in a cemetery in Civitavecchia, Italy, long before its display in the museum. She also identiﬁed the man it honored. The gravestone begins

young people leave Jefferson Parish to live elsewhere.

Some steps are already being taken to confront the issue. Tennis courts are transforming into pickleball hubs, senior living communities have occasionally sprouted on shuttered properties, and aging homeowners are hiring contractors to retroﬁt their homes with wheelchair ramps and other designs for aging in place.

But many elder Jeffersonians say their needs are still not being met, and the assessment, which sought responses through surveys, focus groups and interviews with seniors and caregivers is part of a broader effort by parish ofﬁcials to determine how they can better care for the growing needs of its senior population.

Roughly a third of respondents said they have at least some difﬁculty with daily activities, and a ﬁfth of survey-takers said they needed occasional or regular help at home.

About 12% of respondents said they have skipped meals because of cost or access issues, according to the survey, with some saying their home-delivered meals from the parish were the only meal they’d eat that day And 31% of seniors said they felt lonely or isolated at least some of the time, with homebound seniors reporting more feelings of isolation than other groups.

Biggest issue: Housing

About 83% of all respondents said they would prefer to stay in their homes as they age rather than move into senior housing, although obstacles like affordability and minor home repairs make it difﬁcult to do so.

Jefferson Parish offers a free, low-income home repair program for seniors, although as with many senior programs, many residents said that they did not qualify for assistance because their income fell just above the eligible range.

Some respondents reported that those minor obstacles can lead to larger problems, like elderly homeowners who receive code violations because they’re unable to mow their lawns.

Also driving the push to age in place is the lack of senior housing options across the parish Jefferson

OVERDOSE

Parish ofﬁcials did not respond to requests for comparable data.)

In interviews, Sims and Perrilloux, who are part of the northshore’s opioid task force, said they are responding to the scourge of deaths related to fentanyl, a powerful synthetic opioid that can be lethal in even very small doses, with the tools they have available.

Sims argued that the charges are an appropriate punishment for distributing something as lethal as fentanyl — and act as a deterrent against future distribution.

“It’s so deadly, I think we’re really in a totally different territory when it comes to drugs,” Sims said.

Some public health researchers and advocates meanwhile say there isn’t a clear relationship between increased prosecutions and decreased opioid overdoses Some say the increased prosecutions could lead to more deaths if people are afraid to seek help when someone overdoses.

These kinds of laws “make drug users less safe, and less willing to call for help to prevent a death, which is what we claim we want to do,” said Deon Haywood, the director of Women with a Vision, a nonproﬁt in New Orleans that advocates for harm reduction, which she described as an evidence-based public health approach to drug use.

“The answer is not to put people away to charge people so that they spend the rest of their life in jail,” Haywood said.

Louisiana’s drug-induced homicide statute says a person may be charged with second degree murder if they distribute a controlled substance and it is the “direct cause

with the words: “To the spirits of the dead for Sextus Congenius Verus,” according to a translation by Lusnia. It notes he served in the military for 22 years and lived to the age of 42 His heirs, who commissioned the marker, described him in the engraving as “well deserving.”

Meanwhile, Ryan Gray — an archaeologist and professor at the University of New Orleans — zeroed in on census records to learn who lived in the Carrollton home after the war and who their neighbors were. The search initially led nowhere, but after Gray wrote an article about the discovery for the Preservation Resource Cen-

Parish has only three affordable senior living communities, located in Metairie, Marrero and Kenner, according to parish ofﬁcials.

The parish also only has about 2,000 nursing home beds total, after losing three nursing homes after Hurricane Ida.

While the demand for senior housing is only expected to grow, several factors are preventing the parish from attracting new housing providers.

Sarah Babcock, a parish technical adviser overseeing public health, said a statewide nursing home moratorium that’s up for extension through 2031, zoning laws and residents’ long-standing opposition to apartment complexes in their neighborhoods have all obstructed the potential for new senior housing developments.

No single place to receive services

A “spider web” of senior service providers and funding sources has made the issue even more complicated, Babcock said.

The Jefferson Parish Council on Aging receives the majority of its funding through federal dollars awarded through the state, as well as a portion of $1.6 million generated annually from a property tax of 0.5 mills, to operate the parish’s nine senior centers and other assistance programs.

But some municipalities, like Harahan, have pulled back that mill-

of the death” of the person who ingested it. The distributor may be charged with murder whether the person who ingested it got the drug directly from them or from an intermediary

The law dates to 1987, when New Orleans state Sen William Jefferson sponsored a bill aimed at people who sold cocaine, crack, heroin and other drugs People convicted of the crime face a mandatory life sentence.

Until recently, the 22nd Judicial District District Attorney’s Office only occasionally used the law, according to data going back to 2015. Sims joined the office in 2015 as criminal chief and became district attorney in 2023 In 2022, the District Attorney’s Office charged five people. In 2025, there were six indictments in Washington Parish and one in St. Tammany, according to records.

Sims said his office is not filing the charge at every opportunity, and instead said it depends on the evidence available and that he is especially inclined to file the charge if fentanyl is disguised as another drug.

“It’s not my intent to abuse the provision,” he said. “I try not to put people in jail for things that I ﬁnd silly or otherwise. I try to get dealers that are real dealers. I believe this stuff is different and I think it needs to be treated differently.”

Fentanyl-related overdose deaths soared in St. Tammany during the coronavirus pandemic, rising from 46 in 2019 to 115 in 2021, according to Coroner’s Ofﬁce data. They fell steadily in the following years, dropping to 27 in 2025. In Washington Parish, deaths went from 17 in 2020, to a peak of 33 in 2023. In 2025, 16 people died of fentanyl-related overdoses in Washington Parish.

The northshore’s opioid task force was formed in 2023 and combines lo-

ter, national outlets picked up the story, eventually reaching O’Brien. This summer, Gray will travel with a group of students conducting an excavation in Italy, about an hour outside of Civitavecchia. They plan to view the tombstone at the museum and meet with experts in cultural preservation to celebrate its return. Both Gray and Lusnia welcomed the news of its repatriation, which was announced by the Federal Bureau of Investigation on Wednesday “We’re delighted that it has made its way back to its proper home,” Gray said,

age funding to run their own senior centers. Other senior programming, like Golden Age Clubs, are run separately out of the Jefferson Parish Recreation Department. Babcock said those three sources don’t cover all the programs available to seniors in Jefferson, adding that she herself had just recently discovered another program through the Department of Environmental Affairs that instructs garbage haulers to grab carts from homes for those who can’t bring them to their curbs.

“Right now in Jefferson Parish there’s no one home for senior services,” Babcock said.

Solutions

Health Management Associates consultants shared the results of the surveys in public meetings over the past week. They said they plan to compile a report that will include recommendations to the parish administration and council, as well as potential options for funding to support those changes.

Babcock said her immediate priorities will be to create handouts that can be given to residents that list out all of the available senior services. She said she also plans to work with the transit department to improve transportation options and to expand the parish’s home meal delivery program, Meals on Wheels.

More complex issues like housing and caregiver support, on the other

cal and state police and the federal Drug Enforcement Administration to speciﬁcally target opioid-related drug overdoses.

Sims’ office is aided in drug-related prosecutions by opioid settlement money funds that opioid makers have had to pay to governments around the country

St. Tammany Parish Government records show that $45,000 in opioid settlement money was budgeted annually for an opioid investigator in Sims’ ofﬁce from 2024 through 2026. Another $149,000 was budgeted in 2026 for an opioid prosecutor Sims said he also received $100,000 from Washington Parish.

At a news conference in December, the task force highlighted a drop in fentanyl-related deaths in the last few years on the northshore that largely mirrored national trends Perrilloux and Sims said in interviews that they believe their prosecutions contributed to the drop.

“We’re like everybody else, we react to what’s happening in our communities,” Perrilloux said. “If that’s worthy of criticism, I understand it, but that’s the way it works.”

It’s hard to isolate a single factor to explain a decrease in overdoses, said Billy Robinson, a public health researcher at Louisiana State University But he said prevention and treatment efforts are important factors, and also the availability of the overdose reversal drug Narcan.

Robinson said law enforcement and prosecutions may contribute to a reduction in overdoses by disrupting supply chains, but said some research has also found that druginduced homicide laws can increase drug overdose risk.

For instance, a 2021 study investigated how drug-related homicide prosecutions affected rural areas

“And we’re really excited that we’re going to be able to bring some of our New Orleans people to see where it’s supposed to be.”

Suzy Johnston paints a Liberty Bell-shaped ceramic piece during a ceramics program at Wally Pontiff Jr Playground in Metairie on Friday. Jefferson Parish Recreation Department offers senior programming such as Golden Age Clubs at various playgrounds.

hand, may take longer to confront, she said.

“It pains me to know that we have seniors who are on a waiting list to receive Meals on Wheels due to a lack of funding,” said Jefferson Parish council member Deano Bonano in a statement. “Our research indicated that many parishes and counties across the nation provide dedicated taxes for senior services that far exceed what Jefferson does.”

As part of its revenue analysis, Health Management Associates will seek out any potential opportunities for federal grants that the parish doesn’t already have.

Beyond that, the parish will likely need to seek out public-private partnerships to expand services, lobby businesses like the YMCA and health care providers to assist their efforts, and tap the library and recreation systems to provide more senior programming, Babcock said. Bonano hinted in his statement that a new property tax may be in discussion.

“We cannot take taxes from the drainage, recreation, sewerage, library and other property taxes to spend on seniors,” Bonano said. “At some point soon we hope to develop a funding plan to bring back to the voters.”

Lara Nicholson writes about Jefferson Parish for The Advocate | Times-Picayune. Email her at lnicholson@theadvocate.com.

in North Carolina. It found that the charges could contribute to overdoses by increasing the volatility of the drug market and also by making people less likely to call 911 in response to witnessing an overdose. Few other prosecutors’ offices around the state appear to be ﬁling as many murder charges in drug overdose cases, according to interviews with prosecutors in other judicial districts.

In Jefferson Parish, only one second-degree murder charge has been ﬁled in connection with a drug overdose since 2015, according to District Attorney’s Ofﬁce spokesperson Paul Purpura.

East Baton Rouge Parish District Attorney Hillar Moore said his office has been treating overdose deaths as homicides for years and estimated the office files the charges maybe one or two times per year, though he said it is often hard to convince a jury to convict someone under the homicide statute, as opposed to manslaughter or drug distribution.

In Lafayette, the District Attorney Don Landry said he knew of just two people who had been indicted and convicted of second-degree murder in connection with drug overdose since he was elected in 2020. Additional information was not readily available.

In Shreveport, Laura Fulco, the ﬁrst assistant district attorney for Caddo Parish, said she’s come across very few of these cases during her 28 years working in the ofﬁce. In St. Tammany, Sims said the charges are often used to leverage guilty pleas for lesser charges. Most of the people in these cases in St. Tammany plead guilty to manslaughter, he said.

Email Willie Swett at willie. swett@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

Naquin, Shirley

Albert,Gerald St Tammany

Borne, Gail

EJ Fielding

Brennan, Lincoln Stalcup, Thelma CassouIII, Bertrand Grace Funeral

Dauterive, Robert Delahaye,Linda CassouIII, Bertrand Desforges, Patricia West Bank Duke Sr., Charles Mothe Evans, Wornique Rivera,Clemencia Foss, Catherine West Leitz-Eagan Hurstell, Stephen Lamy,Raymond Lamy,Raymond

Landry, Mary Obituaries

Leissinger, Marilyn Albert,Gerald

Lorentzson, Julius Milton, Carrie Mohamed, Talaat Naquin, Shirley Picou, Leonard Pulitzer,Paula Ray, Teron Rivé,Courtney Rivera,Clemencia Rosenblum,Edward Sloss, Dracos

Stalcup, Thelma

Taormina, Manuel Villarrubia, Mildred EJefferson

Garden of Memories

Lorentzson, Julius Mohamed, Talaat Leitz-Eagan

Dauterive, Robert

Tharp Funeral Home Sloss, Dracos

NewOrleans

Charbonnet

Picou, Leonard

Ray, Teron

Greenwood

Gail F. Borne passed away on April28, 2026 just after her 84thbirthday. She was born in NewOrleans and was aresident of Hammond. Gail retired as a Postmasterand took great prideina life of steadyservice and responsibility. A member of theNational Associationof Postmasters, she carried herself withquiet professionalism and adeeprespect forcommunity.Gail found simple, lasting joy in gardening and camping. Gail was preceded in death by her spouse of 60 years, CecilP.Borne; her parents, Robert and Natalie Fontcuberta; and her sister, Rae Ann Borne. She is survivedbyher daughter, Barbara Fitzmorris (David); her sons, Richard Borne (Trudy) and Dennis Borne (Anne); her grandchildren, James Rome (Brittany) AlexisBecerra (Brady), Kathleen, Victoria, Emily, Ethan, JosephBorne, NicoleBorne, Gretchen Borne,Richard Borne II andSarah Veillon (Kris); and her great-grandchildren,Layla Jones, Winston and Elinor Veillon, and Benjamin Becerra. The family wouldliketogive special thankstoPhoenix Assisted Living Facility Visitation willbeheldat Lake Lawn Metairie Funeral Home,5100 Pontchartrain Blvd.,New Orleans, LA,onMay 4, 2026, from9:30am to 1:00pm. AFuneral Mass willbegin at 1:00pm. Gravesideservices willfollowinLake Lawn Park NewOrleans.

Brennan, LincolnDavid

Duke Sr., Charles Foss, Catherine Lake Lawn Metairie

Borne, Gail

Desforges, Patricia

Pulitzer,Paula Rivé,Courtney

Taormina, Manuel

Villarrubia, Mildred

Majestic Mortuary

Albert,Gerald

Milton, Carrie River Parish

Gerald Albert,affection‐ately knownas“Geeky” or “Shorty,” transitioned to be withthe Lord on Friday April 24, 2026, at theage of 57. Alifelongnativeand residentofNew Orleans, Louisiana,Geraldwas a proud graduate of Walter L. Cohen High School.He dedicated many yearsof service as aStewarding Supervisoratthe Crown Plaza Hotelbeforehis re‐tirement. He waspreceded indeath by hismother, Lil‐lie MaeHayes,and hisfa‐ther, DonEugeneAlbertSr. Geraldleavesbehinda legacyofloveand many cherished memories.Heis survived by histhree chil‐dren, Miguel Brooks, MiquelBrooks, anddaugh‐ter Janile Albert;his step‐daughter, Kaytrell Worn‐ner;his godchild, Tia; and his ﬁancée, MiaAnderson. Healsoleavesbehindfour brothers: Don(Tracey), Eric (Sharon), Torey(Marcella) Albert, andJwanBuckhal‐ter;two sisters: Stephanie Thompson(Jackie)and Donyell Albert Richardson (Clarence); four sisters-inlaw:JackieWilliams(Don‐ald), TanyaAnderson (Don),TinaAnderson(Mar‐vin) andDeniseThi‐bodeaux;aswellas16 grandchildren anda host ofrelatives and friends. Relatives andfriends of the familyare invitedtoattend the FuneralService on Monday, May4,2026 at 10:00 am at Gentilly Greater HarvestMission‐ary BaptistChurch,4121 Al‐fredSt.,New Orleans, LA 70122. Pastor Calvin Bar‐rett, ofﬁciating. Visitation willbegin at 9:00 am.Burial willbe private. Profes‐sionalarrangementsen‐trusted to Majestic Mortu‐ary Service, Inc. (504) 5235872.

beinghonorably dis‐charged,hereturnedhome toMetairie, where he, along with afriend, started their business, Brennan& Bostick Sheet Metal& Roofing Repairs. When the KoreanWar arose, he left his business andjoinedthe conflict. Again, after re‐turning home with an hon‐orabledischarge,he founded hisown business Brennan Roofing andSheet Metal,which he retired fromatthe ageof86. Lin‐colnwas devotedtohis familyand community Familywas most important tohim.Hewas always proud of alltheir accom‐plishmentsand partici‐pated in alltheir events.By becominga member of the AmericanLegionPost350, a chartermemberofVFW Post6640, TheBenevolent and Protective Orderof Elks#30 anda longtime memberofFriends of Jef‐fersonParish, formerly known as theGood Ole BoysofMetairie. As oneof the firstparishionerstobe baptizedinthe parish of St Francis Xavier Church in Metairie, he hasremained a lifelong member until his death.OnApril 23, 2018, he had thehonor of riding on the USSKearsarge,a naval boatinNew Orleans. On October 30, 2022, he was honored with Dream Flights to flya planelike thatwhich he had flown duringthe war, builtin 1943. On November 8, 2025 hewas theGrand Marshall ofthe Veterans DayParade inLakeviewinNew Or‐leans.Hehas been the Grand Marshofthe Elks of Jefferson Parade,the Hara‐han ChristmasParade, and the IrishParadeon MetairieRoad. Lincolnwas recentlyhonored by Jeffer‐son Parish on his100th birthdaywiththe renaming ofhis street (Lincoln Bren‐nan Way),followedbya celebration of hisbirthday atthe Elk’sclubin Metairie, where he was honored with songsfrom WWII by theDixie Bell’s fromthe D-DayMuseumin New Orleans. He will be deeply missedand loved byall who knew him. Pleaseprayfor therepose ofhis soul andall thoseof the faithfuldepartedto restinpeace.Relatives and friends areinvited to visit St. FrancisXavierChurch 444 Metairie Road, Metairie, LA 70005, on Thursday,May 7, 2026, startingat10:00 AM.A Fu‐neral Mass will follow the visitationat12:00 PM.Bur‐ial to immediatelyfollowat the Greenwood Mau‐soleum. We also invite you toshare your thoughts, fondmemories, andcon‐dolencesonlineatwww greenwoodfh.com.Your sharedmemorieswillhelp uscelebrate Lincoln’slife and keep hismemoryalive

fish,mushrooms, fish, ice cream, snowballs, steak, heck he enjoyed all food, a gooddrink,napping, the Saints, Holy CrossSchool, Nola, Da Parish,PBS programs, movies too numeroustolist, little kids,his 1978 Bronco, his1997 low riderChevy S-10,his 2011 Tahoe, slogan t-shirts, some of which hismother disapproved, his beloved dog Sparky whopreceded himindeath, all dogs, goats, music, especially hisall-time favorite Guns 'n Roses, and above all,his familyand friends. He wasa Holy Cross Man, having graduated from Holy Crossin1998 wherehemade lifelong friends. He attended DelgadoCommunity Collegebut soon decided it wasnot for him. That's when he went backto work at afriend'sgrandfather's plumbing company, whereheworkedduring thesummers whileinhigh school. He completedhis plumbing apprenticeship and earnedhis journeyman plumber'slicense soon thereafter. At the time of hisdeathB.J. workedfor A&A Mechanical whereheenjoyed thecommercial plumbing work, butheespecially likedworkingwith thepeople at A&A.Hewas amember of the UA Plumbers andSteamfitters Local Union60. B.J. is survived by his parents, Randy andGwyn Cassou,his girlfriend Kelly Detillieu and manyaunts, uncles,cousins, nieces and nephews, great niecesand nephews, lifelongfriends that are like familyand his Godchildren, Mo West (Meghan Sposito) andTaj Sposito. He waspreceded in death by hisbeloved grandparents, Granny Anna and Paw Paw Bert Cassou,and MawMaw AnnAdams and Grandpa Charles Okronglis. B.J. will be dearlymissedbyall whoknewand lovedhim. Visitation willbeat GraceFuneral Home, 450 Holy Trinity Drive, Covington,Louisiana on Saturday, May9,2026, at 9:30 am with funeral service to begin at 11:30 am. Intermentwillbeprivate at alater date.

Dauterive,Robert Joseph 'Bobby'

years, andGenuine Parts for 5years. Bobby willbe remembered and missed for hiskindnessand generousheart and selfless givingnature. Relativesand friends of thefamilyare invited to attend amemorial visitation at Leitz-Eagan Funeral Home, 4747 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Metairie, LA on Friday, May 8, 2026 from 9:00 am until11:00 am. Afuneral mass will be celebrated in thefuneral home chapel at 11:00 am. Intermentwill follow in Lake LawnPark Mausoleum.

Delahaye, Linda Walls

Linda Walls Delahaye passedawayonThursday, April 30, 2026, at St.James Place in Baton Rouge,at theage of 79, followinga long battle with Alzheimer'sdisease. Linda wasborninNew Orleans andgrewupthere.She is predeceased by herparents, Dr.E.Garland Walls andMargaret Ingle Walls. Linda lived much of herlife in Plaquemine,Louisiana with herhusband, John LawrenceDelahaye, to whom she wasmarriedfor 54 years, untilhis death in 2023. Linda andJohnare survived by theirsons, Bradleyand Evan Delahaye.Linda wasblessed with amazing talentasan artist andwon several amateur art contests during heryoungeryears. In addition to herparents, and husband John, Linda is predeceased by herbrothersin-law,LandryDelahaye, andAlFlettrich. She is survivedbyher sons, Bradley John Delahaye, and Evan LawrenceDelahaye. Additionally, sheissurvived by hersister,Carolyn Walls Flettrich, sisters-in-law, Frances DelahayeKane, Betsy Delahaye, andLynn

Brennan, Lincoln Cassou, Bertrand John'B.J.'

LincolnDavid Brennan was born August 26, 1925, inMetairie, LA.Hehas been alifelongresidentof Metairie, LA (Old MetairieHog Alley).Hepassed awaypeacefully at his homeof66years on April 29, 2026, at theage of 100 Heisprecededindeath by his wife,VirgieMary Dufrene Brennan; his daughter, Lynn MarieBren‐nan;his parents, Harold GeorgeBrennan andEtelka LouiseLincoln;and his three brothers,HaroldG Brennan,Jr.,JohnJ.Bren‐nan,and Albert P. Brennan. Heissurvivedbyhis three lovingchildren, Ann Pineau, CarolB Ricau (PatrickRicau), andLin‐colnD Brennan, Jr.(Kerrin Brennan), 13 loving grand‐children, and28loving Great-grandchildren.Lin‐colnwas agraduateof MetairieHighSchool which he completedafter heenlistedinthe United StatesNavyonNovember 5,1943, at theage of 17, during WorldWar II. After

Bertrand (B.J.)J.Cassou III, 46, of Covington, Louisiana, passed away unexpectedly in his sleep on April22, 2026. Born on February 27, 1980, in Metairie,Louisiana, he was thecherished and only childofBertrand (Randy) and Gwyn Cassou. B.J.loved many,many things. Among those thingswere boiledcraw-

Robert "Bobby" J. Dauterive,age 85 of Kenner,LA, enteredinto heavenly peaceon Monday, April 27, 2026. Husband of thelate MarvelleLawler Dauterive Sonofthe lateLewis Joseph Dauterive andHilda Prattini Dauterive.Beloved father of thelateRobert Joseph Dauterive, Jr Brother of the lateLeRoy "Lee" Decomine Dauterive GrandfatherofVeronica Lawler(Adam) and ZacharyLawler (Courtney). Also survived by manyniecesand nephews. Bobby worked for the CityofKennerfor 16 years, the Treasure ChestCasino for 5years, Caterpillar Forklift Division for 9years, WesternElectricfor 18

4B ✦ Sunday,May3,2026 ✦ nola.com ✦ TheTimes-Picayune Delahaye, brother-in-law and sister-in-law, Michael and Lilette Delahaye, and numerous nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, please consider adonation to Alzheimer's Association, P.O. Box 96011,Washington,DC, 20090-6011. Visitation will be held at Wilbert Funeral Home, 24120 Railroad Ave, Plaquemine, LA 70764 on Tuesday May5 2026, from 10am until memorial services at 12pm, conducted by Father John Miller. Interment will follow at Grace Memorial Park, Plaquemine. Please share memories online at www.wilbertservices.com.

It is with great sadness to announce the passingof Patricia Ann Besson Desforges on Tuesday, April 28, 2026. She was 83 years old. Patricia, or Patas friends and lovedones called her, was born on November 1, 1942 to Louis Paul Besson andBeatrice Helen Walker Besson in Long Beach, Mississippi Pat had acareer as atravel agent,but the job she really loved was taking care of her family. She was aself-less and loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother. She prided herself on planning the perfect Christmas Eve celebration for her family every year. When she wasn't caring for everyone she enjoyed traveling, needle work, and reading. A devout Catholic, Pat was a parishioner of St. Mary Magdalen where she attended mass regularly.

Patricia is survived by her devout husband of 64 years, RonaldGraham Desforges; daughters, DeborahDesforges Bonnett (David) and Susan Desforges Strano (Donald); her sons, Stephen M. Desforges (Natalie) and David R. Desforges (Robin); grandchildren, Kyle Bonnett (Natalie), Kevin Bonnett (Ashley), Dr Allison Desforges (Dr. Jordan Gahagan), Ethan Desforges (Kathryn), Erica Desforges, Stephanie Desforges, Brooke Williams (Jared), Jeremy Desforges (Kyleigh), and Graham Strano; thelights of her life, her great-grandchildren,Scarlett, Brady and Roger Bonnett and Alexandra Williams; her brother, Robert Louis Besson (Lorraine); as well as various nieces, nephews, and cousins.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Louis Paul Besson and Beatrice Helen Walker Besson. Relatives and friends are invited to attend her services on Tuesday, May 5, 2026 at St. Mary Madgalen CatholicChurch, 6425 West Metairie Ave. Metairie, LA 70003. Visitation begins at 10:00 am until the Funeral Mass at 12:00 noon. Interment to follow at Lake Lawn Park Mausoleum, 5454 PontchartrainBlvd. New Orleans, LA 70124 In lieu of flowers, please dedicate masses in her name or donate to National Pro-Life Alliance, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, or Second Harvest Food Bank. To view and sign the online guestbook, visit www.lakelawnmetairie.co m

Jacquelin Marie, Robert Stephen, TonyaA.Vernon, Christina Adela, andVicto‐ria AmyDuke. Grandfather ofCharles E.,II, Stephanie, Maryann, andAndresElvir Hewas preceded in death byhis parents, Charles MarionDukeand Melville Laurent Duke,and his brother,GeorgeA.Duke. Charles wasraisedinIn‐carnate Word Parish where he attended Lafayette GrammarSchool and latergraduated from Alcee FortierHighSchool Helater attended Tulane and LSUuniversities. He was employed by TheCon‐tinentalGroup andStone Container Corp.for 34 years.Hejoinedthe U.S. Air Force andservedinSAC Heresided in Metairie for the last 53 yearsand wasa memberofSt. Christopher Parish. He served in sev‐eralroles,including Eu‐charistic Minister and ParishCouncil President. Hewas ordained aperma‐nentDeaconfor theArch‐diocese of New Orleansin 1989 andservedhis parish for over 37 years. Thechil‐drenofSt. Christopher School were of greatim‐portanceinhis life,as wereall thebabieshebap‐tized.Charlie also served asthe Chaplain forDoctors Hospitalfor 16 yearsuntil itclosed. Acelebration of Charles’lifewillbeheldon Saturday, May9,2026, at St. Christopherthe Martyr Catholic Church,3924 Der‐bigny St., Metairie,LA 70001. Visitation will begin at9:30AM, followed by Massat11:30 AM.Inter‐mentwillbe at Lake Lawn ParkMausoleum.Masses are preferredinlieuof ﬂowers. We also invite you toshare your thoughts fondmemories, andcon‐dolencesonlineatwww greenwoodfh.com.Your sharedmemorieswillhelp uscelebrate Charles’ life and keep hismemoryalive

WorniqueJoseph Evans enteredinto eternal rest on Monday, March 16, 2026, at the age of 73. Anative of NewOrleans, Louisiana, born on October31, 1952, to the late Albert Alphonse Evans, Sr. and VictoriaB Evans.

AFuneral Mass will be held at Corpus Christi CatholicChurch, 2022 St. BernardAvenue,New Orleans,LAonSaturday, May9,2026,at10:00a.m. andvisitation at 9:00 a.m.

Foss, CatherineBagnetto

CatherineBagnetto Foss, knownlovinglyto familyand friendsasCaki, passedawayonApril 16 2026, in herhometownof New Orleans, Louisiana, at the ageof83. Born on De‐cember24, 1942, Catherine was thebeloved daughter ofthe late Charlesand Viola Bagnetto.She was the cherishedwifeofthe lateEmile R. Foss,and is survivedbytheir daughter, Donna Frank(Richard) and grandchildren,Kristin Frank andMichael Frank. She is also survived by her brother,Charlie Bagnetto (Mary); nephews: Bryan (Amy),Jay (Ashley),and MarkBagnetto (Tammy); aswellasthe Bagnetto children: Olivia,Lily, Nicholas, Caroline,Emma, Luke, andCameron.Family was thegreatestjoy of her life, andshe adored being surrounded by them.She cherished everyfamily gathering,fromthe weekly red beansand rice dinners tolargercelebrationswith extendedfamilyand friends on Christmas. She loved sharingconversa‐tions andlaughterwith those around herand car‐riedthe spirit,warmth, and character of NewOrleans withher throughout her life. Catherine attended Sa‐credHeart of Jesuson Canal Street from Kinder‐gartenthrough High School Graduation and wentontostudy fortwo years at Loyola University She oftenreminisced about herdaysatSacred Heart,treasured those friendships,and wouldreg‐ularly

Sheenjoyed workingand heldnumerousoccupa‐tions in herlife, such as of‐ﬁce managerofthe Law Ofﬁce of SalAnzelmo and assistant at Continental Engineering. Hergoalwas alwaystoown herown business. Previous busi‐nesseswithher brotherin‐cludedowningThorough‐bredRaceHorsesand Peli‐can Ceramics Supply where shewas knownfor her determined nature.She carried that ambition and energyintoher next busi‐nessventure,Southport Hall. Herdream wasto own amusic andparty venue,and in 2004, after searching forthe rightlo‐cation, sheand herbrother madethatdream areality She embraced beinga businessownerwithpride and enthusiasm andin‐volvedfamilymembers and friendsinthe opera‐tions.She lovedwhatshe did andbrought herper‐sonalitytowork. Sheen‐joyed shopping,going to LittleLeaguebaseball games,the racetrack, and the Casino,where she playedCraps,a skillshe pickedupfromher late fa‐ther. As amemberofthe ItalianAmericanBocce ClubofGreater NewOr‐leans,the RedHat Society, the Clippers Carnival Club, and theHoliday Club,she delighted in beinga part of the community.Those who knewCatherine will re‐memberher as dedicated tofamily, strong-willed, and full of life.She leaves behinda legacy of love laughter, andmemories thatwillcontinue to live on inthe hearts of thosewho werefortunate enough to knowher.The family would like to thankthe staff of CAREAssociates Hospice andSummer‐House VistaShoresfor their care andattention. Familyand friendsare in‐vited to attend theMemor‐ial Mass on Monday,May 4, 2026, beginningat1:00p.m atGreenwood Funeral Home, 5200 CanalBlvd., New Orleans, LA 70124 with visitationat11:00 a.m. until Service time.Burialwillfol‐low at Greenwood Ceme‐tery. To sign theonline guestbook as well as share memoriesand condo‐lences, please visitwww greenwoodfh.com

Stephen Frank "Whitey" Hurstell, January14, 1953April21, 2026. Stephen Frank "Whitey" Hurstell, age73, passed away surrounded by family on April 21, 2026. He is survivedbyhis sons, Malcolm Fitzpatrick Hurstell and Stephen BenjaminHurstell (Ciara); his daughter, Emma Drumm Gonzales (Blake); his brothers, Thomas EugeneHurstell (Sheilah) and John Patrick Hurstell (Shaun); and his sisters KathleenHurstell Riedlinger (Michael), Mary PatriciaHurstell, and ElizabethHurstell Grashoff (Gary). He is also survived by many loving nieces and nephews.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Mary Fitzpatrick Hurstell and MalcolmLeo Hurstell, Sr.; his brothers, MalcolmLeo Hurstell,Jr. and Daniel Lawrence Hurstell; and his sister, Ann Mary Hurstell Bornand raised in the Gentilly WoodsneighborhoodofNew Orleans, Louisiana, Stevewas the thirdofnine children. He was an accomplished athlete in his youth, earning all-star recognitionat HarrisPlayground and on city teams.Heattended Jesuit High School,where he excelled as athreesportathlete. Stevewent on to graduatefrom Louisiana State University, earning both a Bachelor's degree in Accounting and aJuris Doctor. He later became a CertifiedPublic Accountant and earneda Master of Laws in Taxation fromthe Universityof Florida.

Stevewas lovedbyhis family and friends. Funeral serviceswillbeprivate

Raymond GeorgeLamy, Sr. passed away surrounded by his family on April 30, 2026, at theage of 93. He was born in New Orleans on May 10, 1932, and was along-time resident of theNew Orleans Westbank Raymond was agraduateofSt. Aloysius High School in 1950 where he was theclass salutatorian As astarfootballplayer, he was named to the1949 NewOrleans Quarterback Club. Upon graduation, Raymond earnedanacademicand baseballscholarship to LoyolaUniversity where he graduated in 1954 with adegree in accounting

After graduating from Loyola, Raymond was appointedasa second lieutenant in the U.S. Army where he admirably served our country in FortKnox, KY

Raymond had asuccessfulcareer in theinsurance industry. He was extremely dedicatedtohis family and community where he was aScout Leader, baseball coach, volunteer fireman, school PTAofficer, and HOA board member. He was an avid golferscoring several holes in one at Brechtel Park GolfCourse.Mostimportantly, Raymond spent his life as adevout CatholicservingOur Lord as alector,usher, alter server, Knightsof Columbus member, and Eucharistic Minister. He was extremely devoted to hisSt. Vincent de Paul SocietyConference in ImmaculateConception Parish.

Raymond was preceded in death by his parents John Earl and Camille Sperandeo Lamy; brothers John and Harold Lamy; belovedwife MarciaAnn; and sons Dennis Michael and Daniel Patrick. He is survivedbyhis sons Raymond,Jr. (Jann), Timothy (Kathleen), and daughter Leslie Champagne (Michael, Sr.); grandchildrenRyan, Rhett, Reid (Lacey), Toby (Julie), L. Nick, Kyle(Abby), DevenPaul, Trevor (Connie),and Michael Champagne, Jr. (Christine)aswellas10 great-grandchildren.

Visitation at Immaculate Conception Church, 4401 Seventh Street, Marrero, LA.onWednesday, May 6, 2026, at 11:00 AM followed by aCatholicFuneral Mass at 1:00 PM.Private interment at alaterdate. In lieu of flowers,donations may be sent to St. Vincent de Paul Society, ImmaculateConception Conference,4401 Seventh Street,Marrero, LA 70072.

Mary BeninateLandry was bornDecember 30, 1947 in Algiers, La to the

AndHelen Whittenburg Beninate Passed on April 22,2026. Preceded in death by herhusband Kenneth WayneLandry, Mary enjoyed traveling, gardening andqualitytimewithher friends and neighbors, but herpassion was making memories with herloving family.

Mary is survived by her threesons; Jacque (Maryfrances Porter), Jeffrey (Dana), and Jonathan. Three Grandchildren;Chloe, Elise,and Isabel Loving and devoted sister to Barbara Silva (Enrique),JohnA Beninate II (Nancy), Robert Beninate, andKimberly Beninate.

Aunt Mary to Christian andShawn Silva, SamanthaGilbert and Gabrielle Taylor, Alexander andMatthew Beninate, Noah,Charlie, Ajdin and Matthew II. Memorial Servicesfor Mary will be held at alater date.

On April 24, 2026, Marilyn Leissingerpassed from this life to be with her Lordand SaviorJesus Christ;she was 78. She waspreceded in death by herparents,Earl and Virginia Flakne. Sheissurvived by herhusband, Henry; daughters Jo Wynot andMary Leissinger; stepson DuaneLeissinger; grandsons Nevanand AudenWynot; stepgrandson EricLeissinger; her siblings, and manynieces andnephews. Anative of Carrollton, MO and aresident of Metairie, LA for 57 years, Marilyn devotedher life to serving others. Called to teaching, she shared her patience, warmth,and love of children'sliterature cooking, music,and the love of Christ with generationsofstudents, first at Atonement Lutheran and then,after earning her master's degree in early childhood education, as teacher and Principal of FaithLutheran School. Marilyn lovedthe outdoors andremained active throughout herlife. Swimming wasa passion from childhood through herparticipation in the 2014 Louisiana Senior Olympic Games. She also enjoyed tennis, walking, andphotographingwildflowers.With herhusband, Henry, she spentdecades geocaching as "Team Bamboozle," exploring landscapes across the countryand making lifelong friends Most of all,Marilyn cherished time with family, especially herhusband, daughters, grandsons, and theextended Flakne family. Contributionsmay be made to Radio Missions P.O. Box 1810, Walker, LA 70785. Funeralserviceswill be private. www.hartman hughesfuneralhome.com

Julius Lynn Lorentzson ofFairmontWV, age76, passedawaysuddenlyon Friday, April24, 2026. He was born in Norfolk, VA on February13, 1950, oneof twinsonsofthe late Sarah LynnBoe andJulius Alexander Lorentzson.He issurvivedbyhis wife and soulmate, KathrynHansen Lorentzson, who addeda sparkle to hislifethat never dimmed; hisbrother JosephLynnLorentzson and hisnephew, Blake Lorentzson, of Orange Park FL; andhis largeand ex‐tendedfamilyofreenac‐torsfromthroughoutthe country andbeyond. He has alovingfamilyinthe New Orleansarea, includ‐ing brothers-in-lawKarl Hansen; MichaelHansen (Ann);sisters-in-lawPeggy Austin(Charles);JaneMor‐gan (Tim); ElizabethLaird (Michael);and many niecesand nephewsand great-niecesand nephews. Hewas so happytobea partofthe family. Julius graduated from Florida State University,witha B.A. inHistory,and hada dis‐tinguishedcareer working for theFlorida Department ofLaw Enforcement, and the FederalBureauofIn‐vestigation in Clarksburg WV.Juliusand Kathyloved totravel. They made fre‐quent tripstoNew Orleans tovisit andcelebrate with family. Theirtravels to‐getherhavetaken them to all fiftystates, as well as several othercountries.He had alifelongpassion for learningand waswidely recognizedfor hisknowl‐edgeofAmericanHistory Heexpressedthispassion asa living historyreenac‐tor,authentically portray‐ing characters from Colo‐nialtimes throughWWII. His WWIIreenactments in‐cludedtakinghis prized restoredJeep to Normandy for D-Daycelebrations, and participating in parades. His most recent passion was hisportrayal of an Old Westcowboyasa cast memberinthe annual live action“TheGreat Durbin Train Robbery”,which he co- created. Julius also acted in short films. The uniquenessofhis person‐alitystood outatany gath‐ering,and he wasdeeply loved by allwho knew him. Henever meta stranger Relatives andfriends are invited to attend theser‐vices on Wednesday, May 6,2026, at Garden of Mem‐ories FuneralHome, 4900 Airline Dr Metairie Louisiana 70001. Visitation willbegin at 10:00 am,fol‐lowed by aservice at 12:00 pm. Aburialwilltakeplace immediatelyafter theser‐vices in Garden of Memo‐riesCemetery. Amemorial service will be held at a later date in Fairmont, WestVirginia. To offeron‐linecondolences,send flowerstothe family, or plant atreeinmemoryof Julius, please visitwww gardenofmemoriesmetairi e.com.

Lamy, Raymond George

Desforges, Patricia Besson

Leissinger, Marilyn Jo Flakne

Evans, Wornique Joseph 'Nick'

Hurstell, Stephen Frank 'Whitey'

Landry, Mary Beninate

late John ABeninateSr.

Duke Sr., CharlesEdward

Carrie Milton,affection‐atelyknown as "Cat", age 79, of Convent, Louisiana, peacefully transitioned on April19, 2026, leavingbe‐hind alegacyoffaith, strength,and deep love for herfamily. Born on April4, 1947, in Convent, Louisiana Carrie wasthe beloved daughter of thelateErma Joseph andJames Milton Step daughter of thelate Dorsey Joseph Jr.She was adevoted sister to Kevin Milton Sr RoyalMiltonSr. FreddieMiltonSr. andthe late TammyMiltonand Joseph Milton,sharing a lifetime of memories laughter,and enduring family bonds. Carrie wasa proudand loving mother to herson,the late Ryan Mil‐ton, whoprecededher in passingonApril 30, 2025. Herlovefor himwas unwa‐vering,and that same love extended powerfully throughgenerations.She wasa cherishedgrand‐mother to Brianne Barks‐dale,Zjelic'e Barksdale, Rian Barksdale, Lavonne Monroe,and JordynnMil‐ton, anda proudgreatgrandmothertoDaJaun Flemming,Brandon Barks‐dale,JoyousFuller, Jamari Jones, andDakotaTabor.A womanofmanytalents anddetermination,Carrie attended CypressGrove High School in St.James Parish &becamea gradu‐ateofL.W.Higgins High School.She then furthered hereducation at Audubon College, graduating with theClass of 1972. She ﬁrst pursuedher passionfor entrepreneurship,owning andoperating an antique andfurniture shop along thehistoricOrethaCastle HaleyBoulevard,where hercreativityand business spirit left alasting impres‐sion on thecommunity Laterinlife, shewentonto work forthe Transporta‐tion Security Administra‐tion at LouisArmstrong NewOrleans International Airport, whereshe contin‐uedtodemonstrate her dedication andstrong work ethic. Carrie's life wasalsorichinculture andtradition.Inthe 1970s, shewas honoredtobepart of thevibrant MardiGras Indian culture, masking with theApacheHunters alongsideher sister Tammy-an experience that reﬂectedher pride, re‐silience,and connection to herheritage. Aboveall Carrie wasa womanof strong Christianfaith anda dedicatedmemberofNew Home Ministries.She be‐came ordained as aminis‐terin2010 andcontinued to spread thegood word with everysoulshe met thereafter.She livedher life guided by thosevalues, instilling them deeply in herfamily-especially in her son,Ryan, andher grand‐daughters. Herwisdom, prayers, andunwavering belief in Godbecamea foundation that will con‐tinue to guidegenerations to come.She will be re‐membered as adevoted mother,grandmother, great-grandmother, sister andfriend-strong,faithful, andfulloflove. Also sur‐vivedbya host of nieces, nephews, cousins, rela‐tivesand friends. Herpres‐ence wasa blessing, her life atestimony,and her memory will foreverliveon in theheartsofthose who knew andloved her. Carrie Milton will be deeply missed, butnever forgot‐ten. Relativesand friends of thefamilyare allinvited to attend theFuneral Ser‐vice on Saturday,May 2, 2026 at 10:00 am at Little Mt.Olive BaptistChurch 3709 GeneralTaylorSt., NewOrleans,Louisiana 70125. Visitation will begin at 9:00 am.Burialwillbein Zion TravelersBaptist Church Cemetery in Con‐vent,LA. Professional arrangements entrustedto Majestic Mortuary Service, Inc. (504) 523-5872

Mohamed, Dr.Talaat Hassan

Dr.Talaat Hassan Mo‐hamed passedaway peacefully at hishome,

surrounded by hisfamily, onApril 28, 2026. Adedi‐cated healer,UnitedStates Navyveteran,and devoted familyman,heleavesbe‐hinda legacy of profes‐sionalexcellenceand pro‐found love.BornonJuly30, 1932, in Cairo, Egypt, Dr Mohamed graduatedfrom the AinShams University Faculty of Medicine in Cairo before immigrating tothe United States in 1959. Shortlythereafter, in 1962, he metthe love of his life, Betty(Logan) Mo‐hamed of Bethel,Kansas, inNew Orleans. They were married on October10, 1964, in Staten Island,NY, and resettledinNew Or‐leans in 1970, beginninga beautiful journeyofover61 years filled with shared memoriesand an enduring partnership.Dr. Mo‐hamed’s distinguished medical career spanned morethanhalfa century. Hespecialized in childand adult psychiatry andpsy‐choanalysis in private practice in NewOrleans, LA. Arespected Teaching Psychoanalyst,hewas a pillarofthe NewOrleans medical community,shar‐ing hisexpertise through long-standing affiliations withTulaneUniversityand LSU MedicalSchoolsand Hospitals,aswellasTouro, DePaul, RiverOaks, and Northlake Behavioral Sys‐tem Hospitals. He wasa proud member of the AmericanMedical Associa‐tion(AMA),the NewOr‐leans–BirminghamPsycho‐analyticCenter(NOBPC), and theCenterfor Ad‐vancedPsychoanalytic Studies (CAPS).His com‐mitment to service ex‐tendedacrosscontinents. Hebegan hismilitaryca‐reer as aSecond Lieu‐tenantinthe Egyptian Air Force before joiningthe UnitedStatesNavyRe‐serve MedicalCorps where he served with dis‐tinctionand retiredasa Captain after 21 yearsof honorable service. Atrue Renaissance man, Dr.Mo‐hamed wasa passionate art collector, alifelong lover of opera, akeen stock investor,and an avid globaltraveler. On autumn Sundays,hecould oftenbe found cheering on his beloved New Orleans Saints. He lovedanimals, especially themanydogs and cats hisfamilyhad overthe years. Yet, above all thesepursuits, he con‐sidered hisgreatest achievement anddeepest joy to be hisfamily. He was precededindeath by his father, Hassan Mohamed; his mother,Naomi Hasanin;his sister,Souad; his brothers,Musbah, Hus‐niah, and Fayak; hisstep‐mother, Sofia; hisstep‐brothers, Salahand Sami; and hisstepsisters,Suzan and Nabila.Heissurvived byhis belovedwife, Betty LouiseLoganMohamed; his children,Nabil (Bill) Mohamed (wife Milena), LilaMohamed,Susan Downhower,and SallyHar‐ney (husband Chris).He alsoleavesbehindfour cherished grandchildren: AlexDownhower,Kaylee Downhower, NabilMo‐hamed,and SofiaMo‐hamed.Hewillbedeeply missedbythe many friends,colleagues, and familymembers whose lives he so meaningfully touched.Relatives and friends areinvited to at‐tendthe funeralservices onTuesday,May 5, 2026, at GardenofMemoriesFu‐neral Home.Visitationwill begin at 10:00 a.m.,fol‐lowed by aservice at 12:00 p.m.Burialwilltakeplace immediatelyfollowing the service at Garden of Mem‐ories Cemetery.Tooffer online condolences, send flowerstothe family, or plant atreeinmemoryof Dr. Talaat Hassan Mo‐hamed,pleasevisit www gardenofmemoriesmetairi e.com.

Naquin, Shirley Mary LeBlanc

Shirley MaryLeBlanc Naquin, anative of Paincourtvilleand resident of Destrehan, LA, passed awayonApril 29, 2026,at the ageof92. Shirleywas a devout Catholic, acherished wife, belovedmother of ten, grandmother,great grandmotherand friend. Shegraduatednearthe top of herclass and forfeited ascholarship to LSU to marry her highschool sweetheart, Irvin Naquin, and to begin raising her family.Tosay she gave unselfishly is anunderstatement. Shenever askedfor "more", but gave hertime

her talentsand her love wholeheartedly to others. Her faith in God was unwavering and served as a rock for her throughchallenging times. She so often said "I leave it in the hands of theLord,"and truly trusted in Hisplanfor her. Shirley loveddancing and music. She shared stories of heryouth where she and Irvinwoulddance for hours. She wasa member of theSt. Lawrence the Martyr and St.Charles Borromeo church choirs and RiverParish CommunityChorus. One of her proudestmoments was being selected as a choirmember to sing for Pope John Paul II during his visittoNew Orleans in 1987. Shirleyalso was an avid candy maker, devoting 50+ years making pralines, fudge and otherconfections to raisefundsfor schools including St. Lawrence,Archbishop Chapelle,Archbishop Rummeland St.Charles Borromeo. In recognition of herfaithand service, she was honored for with theOrder of theSt. Louis Medallion. After her youngestwas in school, Shirleywanted to experience careerlifeand worked McDonald's restaurant for tenyears as ahostess, administrative assistant and crew member. She was proud to contributefinanciallytothe householdand to play a significant role in funding anew family home. In the last tenyears, she continued to demonstrate her giving nature, accompanying Irvintopray therosary and visitresidentsatthe Ormond Nursing &Care Center.

Shirleyissurvived by her husband,Irvin Naquin, Sr.,and childrenDavid (Pam), Judy, Dennis (Karen), Patrick (Julie), Irvin,Jr., Carolyn Teabout (Earl), Joy Calongne (Joel), Ann Jacobsen (Paul), Sandra Chambers (Jaysen) and John (Julie). She had 24 grandchildrenand 25 greatgrandchildren. She was preceded in death by parents, Charley and Clara Crochet LeBlanc, and siblings Hilda Rodrigue, Ruby Moon,Annie Russo, Delta Campo, Felix LeBlanc, Lena Jacobsen and Stella Lopez daughters in law Kelley and Rosemary, grandchildren Donna Siebenthall and Scott Naquin, and greatgrandson Ashton Siebenthall

Allservices willbeheld on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, at St.Charles Borromeo (SCB) Church at 13396 RiverRoad in Destrehan. Visitation willbe9:00am-noon followedbya Mass of Christianburial. Entombment willimmediately follow in theSCB mausoleum. At 1:30pm, there willbea gathering of family and friends at JerusalemShriners,1940 Ormond Blvd, Destrehan.

We wouldliketothank Southern Grace Hospice, especially nurse Alexis, for her compassion and excellent care of Shirley, Irvin and theentirefamily Special thanksalso to all who prayed,visited and sent messages of love and encouragement throughout this journey.

H.C. Alexander Funeral Home in Norco,LAin chargeofarrangements. Flowerscan be sent to the church after 8am on May 5th.

LeonardPicou wasborn inNew Orleans, LA on May 4,1956. Godcalledhim hometojoinhis heavenly FatheronSaturday, April 25, 2026 at 11:42 am in Uni‐versity Hospital.The last of ﬁve children born to the lateJosephine Picou, Leonard leaves to cherish preciousmemories, hisfa‐ther, Alonzo Picou; sib‐lings,Linda,Cheryland Eu‐genePicou (Darnell); nieces, Nicole Picou, DanielleLaurent (Darnel); nephew, Elliot Pellebon, Jr.; cousins,Charles andRegi‐naldGould,aswellasa hostofother familymem‐bers. In addition to his mother, he is also pre‐ceded in deathbya sister LoritaPellebon(Elliot,Sr.), nieces, Michelle andErin Pellebon. Leonardat‐tendedFrancis T. Nicholls SeniorHighSchool and was aretired employee of the LSUSchool of Medi‐cine, where he worked for 28 years. He waswell-loved

by thosewho knew him, and he hada zest forlife. Hewilltruly be missed. A Celebration servicehonor‐ing thelifeand legacy of the late LeonardPicou will beheldinthe Chapel of CharbonnetLabat Glapion FuneralHome, 1615 St PhilipStreet,New Orleans, LA70116 on Tuesday, May 5,2026 at 10 am.Interment ProvidenceMemorialPark. Visitation9 am in the chapel. Please sign theon‐lineguestbook at www.cha rbonnetfuneralhome.com. Charbonnet LabatGlapion Directors (504)581-4411

Pulitzer, Paula PaulaPulitzer, 89, of Dallas, TX, passed away peacefully on April 22, 2026, surrounded by the family she lovedfiercely and who adored her in return. BorninNew Orleans to Sam and Mina Brandt, Paula spent her earlyyears in Jennings, Louisiana, before returning to New Orleans as ayoung girl.At 15, she met theloveofher life,Simon "Si"Pulitzer, at Newman High School.They were highschoolsweetheartswho married when Paulawas 19 —and stayed togetherfor 67 years, building alife that took them across thecountry and around theworld, always side by side Paula was awoman of passionate pursuits. She played tennis, piano, organ, and mahjong. She learned to ski in her forties. She worked in makeup and fashion, modeled on local television,ran a cosmetics shopwithher sisterIsabel, andco-founded PulitzerPromotions withSi— abusinessthat continues to operatetoday. WhateverPaula took on, she took on fully. She was thekindof mother who showed up for everything.WithSitraveling during theboys' early years, she ran thehousehold, served as denmother forCub Scouts, and never missed amoment that mattered. She played organ whileher children and grandchildrensang beside her, and she taught her sons early to be passionateabout somethinginlife —a lesson she livedherself, every day.

Paulaand Si made friends everywhere they lived— NewOrleans, PacificPalisades, Henderson (Nevada), Dallas —and traveled widely,from Israeland ItalytoAlaska and South America. In 2020 they moved to theLegacy MidtowninDallas, where Paulabuilt an entirelynew circle of belovedfriends in her mid-eighties, because that is simply what she did. People were drawnto her. She battledpancreatic cancer for nearly two years with grace, dignity, and characteristic stubbornness —remaining strong and activeuntil the final months, and fighting on her own terms untilthe very end,including aspirited resistance to any suggestionthatshe needed a caretaker. Paulaissurvivedbyher sons Randy (Laura Lacritz) and Gary (Joy); her grandchildrenJessica (Yogi Schulman), Samuel, Miles (Zoe),Mina (Noah Cohen) Jake,and Max Pulitzer; her great-grandchildren Micah, Ivy, and Ari; her nieces Rhonda(Alex Ginsburg) and Renee (SteveGlazer), who were like daughters to her; her great-niece Samantha (Kevin) Padawerand their

childrenZoe andBrandt; andher belovedbrother-in -law Julian Levey. Shewas predeceased by herhusbandSiPulitzer, herparents Mina andSam Brandt, hersister Isabel Levey, and herdaughter-in-law Margot Rosenberg Pulitzer. Shewas Mom, Aunt Paula, Grandma, and Bubbe— andeach person whocalled herthose nameshad arelationship with herthatwas entirely, specifically theirown.She lovedher familyfiercely andindependently,and that love wasfeltbyevery oneofthem. Agravesideservice was held on April 23, 2026, at Anshei Sfard Cemetery in NewOrleans —the first day of theJazz &Heritage Festival— afittingfarewell for alifelonglover of music whoplayedpiano andorgan all herlifeand treasured hercollectionofJazz Fest posters. DonationsinPaula's memorymay be made to Chabad of Henderson (www.chabadofhenderson. org), Bonai Shalom of Boulder (www.bonaishalom.org), Shaare TefillaofDallas (www.shaaretefilla.org),or thecharity of yourchoice.

Senior Police Officer Teron Blatcher Rayentered eternal rest on April8 2026, at theage of 62, at Ochsner MedicalCenter, Jefferson Campus.She was borntothe late Bertrand and Elmonzia Blatcher,Sr. OfficerRay leda life of dedicationand serviceto her community.Through‐out herdistinguished ca‐reer,she contributedher talents in variousroles serving as acourt reporter for JudgeEdwin Lombard, a PBXoperatorfor Men’s Wearhouse,Dillard’s,and Harrah’sCasino, andlater asa 911 Operator forthe CityofNew Orleans. Her commitmenttopublicser‐viceculminatedinher tenurewiththe NewOr‐leans Police Department where sheservedhonor‐ablyasa Senior Police Offi‐cer.She leaves behind her greatestblessingfrom God,her loving daughter, Jon-Monet Rayaswellas her devotedsiblings, nieces, nephews, grand‐nephews,grandnieces and a host of familyand friends who will cherish her memory.May herlife ofgrace,service,and love continuetoinspire allwho knewher.Funeral Services willbeheldatRockofAges Baptist Church,2515 FranklinAve., NewOrleans, LAonMonday, May4,2026, at10:00 a.m. Viewingwill takeplace from 9:00 a.m. to9:30a.m.Interment –Greenwood Cemetery,5190 Canal Blvd NewOrleans LA. Please sign theonline guestbook at www.cha rbonnetfuneralhome.com. Charbonnet LabatGlapion Directors,(504) 581-4411.

Rivé,Courtney

Reinhardt

Courtney Reinhardt Rivé passedaway on Monday, April 27, 2026, at theage of 57.

Courtneyissurvived by herhusbandof27years, John Sandford Rivé Jr.; her daughter, Gabrielle Volaire Rivé;her son, John Sanford Rivé III;and hersister Pamela Susan Reinhardt. Shewas preceded in death by herparents, Robert MiltonReinhardt and ShirleyMcArthur Reinhardt Courtney wasbornand raisedinNew Orleans, Louisiana andattended MercyAcademy whereshe graduatedin1987. She earneda Bachelor of ScienceinManagement with aconcentration in Management Information Systemsfromthe University of NewOrleans in 1995, and later aMaster of ScienceinHealthcare Management in 2002. Courtneystartedher career in computerconsultingwhere she programmed, designed, and implemented information technology systems for a variety of industries.Most recently, she served in a long-standing role at 9th Way Insignia as an Information Technology ProgramDirector.The familywould like to express their appreciation to 9th Way Insignia forthe unwavering kindness andsupport they provided Courtney Courtney engagedin many philanthropic endeavors, serving as the CookbookChair forthe Junior LeagueofNew Orleans, co-chairing the Poydras Home ArtShow & Patron Party, participating in events promotingbreast cancer awareness, and volunteering for manyof herchildren'sactivitiesat Isidore NewmanSchool For Courtney, herfamily always came first. She couldbefound at all school functions and sportingevents to support herchildrenand deeply valuedthe importance of familytraditions. In her free time, sheenjoyed cooking, traveling, shopping,sittingonthe beach, reading for book club,and attendingsocialactivities at both the Southern Yacht Cluband theOrleans Club. Gifted with an eye for creativity, Courtney foundjoy in needlepointing,party planning, andany decorative pursuit. More than anything, she found her greatest happiness in time spentwith thepeople she lovedmost, herfriends andfamily.

Relativesand friends are welcome to attend Courtney's serviceson Monday, May4,2026 at Lake LawnMetairie Funeral Home, 5100 Pontchartrain Blvd New Orleans, LA 70124. Visitation begins at 10:00 AM followed by theFuneral Mass at 12:00 noon. In lieu of flowers, and for those whosodesire, thefamilyinvites donationstobemade in Courtney's memory to the CancerResearch Institute: (https://fundraise.cancerr

Ray, TeronBlatcher

Picou, Leonard

High courtrulingonVotingRightsAct doesn’thavetobeend of thestory

The decision bythe United StatesSupreme Court in Louisiana v. Callais to fundamentally alter the understanding of the 1965 Voting RightsAct is surely one of those landmark decisions —like Dred Scott, like Plessy,like Brown —thatwill deﬁne the courtfor decades to come. And like those cases, it is undoubtedly amilestoneinthisnation’slongmarch toward racialjustice. Or perhaps,ifthe courtisto be believed, theend of that march as it reaches its destination.

In a6-3 ruling, the court upheld the constitutionalityofthe Voting RightsAct itself, but it struck down Louisiana’s6th CongressionalDistrict, agreeing with plaintiffs that it is an unconstitutional racial gerrymander

The district was created by the LouisianaLegislatureinJanuary 2024 in response to legalchallenges to previous congressional maps thatminority voters said unfairly diluted their power at theballot box. At the time,Louisiana, which has six congressional districts, was using maps created in 2022 andhad one Black representativeinCongress. Alawsuit argued that because the state,where one-third of the population is Black,did not have two seats, or one-third of the delegation, determined by Black-majoritydistricts, that indicated themaps were in violation of Section 2ofthe Voting Rights Act, whichprohibitsdiscrimination in voting on the basis of race. Facing judicial pressure,the statecreated asecond district,snaking from Shreveport to Lafayette to Baton Rouge, where Black voterswere in themajority.That led to thecurrent case, where agroup of 6th District voters who described themselves as “non-African American”filedsuit, arguing the new maps made them the victims ofa racial gerrymander Writing for themajority, Justice SamuelAlito affirmed the court’s inclination in recentcases to move past race as theyardstick of fairness in American society.Incases involving affirmativeaction andcriminaljustice, it seems to be saying thatit’s time to looktoother measures of how our societyis faring in upholding theEqual Protection Clause of our Constitution

The ruling takes notethat“vast social change has occurredthroughoutthe country and particularly in the South, which have made great stridesinending entrenched racial discrimination.” It says that because of this, the framework of determining whether districts unfairly disenfranchise minorities needs to be updated.

In her dissent, Justice ElenaKagan,joined by Jus-

tices Sonia Sotomayor and KetanjiBrown Jackson, said that the ruling ”will set back the foundational right Congress granted of racial equality in electoral opportunity.”

It’shard to see how that won’tbethe case, particularly in today’shyperpartisan climate. While we feel thecourt may be right to declare thatSection 2was too broadly interpreted, we also find it disturbing that the court gave Louisianaand others little guidance as to the way forward. The Callais case now returns to thedistrict court, which presumably will have to hash out how thestate should proceed. But adding to the chaos, officials have postponed electionsfor House seats scheduled for May 16, even though early voting started Saturday When theSupremeCourt first held ahearing on Callais on March 24, 2025, we knew it was amomentouscase. When the court asked for arare rehearing Oct. 15, many felt thejustices were deadlocked on key issues.

It is no surprise to us that Louisiana is at the center of acase so central to our civil rights. Our state has ahistory punctuated by racial strifeasmuch as racial blending. In the 1896 Plessy v. Ferguson decision, the court famously got in wrong, using the Louisiana case to enshrine “separate but equal” as the legal doctrine underpinning segregation fordecades to come. In recent years, the descendants of Homer Plessy,a Black shoemaker from Treme, and John Howard Ferguson, the White judge whoruled that Plessy could not sit in arail car reserved forWhites, have united to promote racial justice in an only-in-Louisianakind of story

So we know that even when the SupremeCourt rules, that’snot the end of the story.The arc of the moral universe still bends.

Much of what the Callais ruling meansinpracticalterms is still to be determined. We urge our legislators and governor,who put forward thecurrentmap,toproceed carefully. Louisiana is likely to eliminate its second majority-Black district, but it is still possible to draw mapsthat are fair and representative of the will of abroad swath of citizens. Florida has approved new maps, and someother Republican-led states, like Mississippi, vowed to redraw mapsassoon as the ruling came down.

When the Voting Rights Act was passed, the meansand methods of disenfranchising Black voterswere perhaps moretransparent. There werepoll taxes and literacy tests designed with the speciﬁc intent of excluding minorities when lynchings and other brutal intimidation tactics of the Jim Crow era couldn’t.

Nowadays, however,barriers to voting can be moresubtle. Politicians have powerful tech tools to pick their voters, and we have seen an aggressive push by President Donald Trumpand Republicans countered by Democrats to redistrict in timefor midterm elections to help their party gain seats. Will we see afrenzy of gerrymandering now that the gloves are off?

It is no secret that somepoliticians of both parties would rather adiscouraged and apathetic electorate than one that holds them accountable. With this ruling, we must renew our commitment as voters. If politicians are certain that they can determine who holds power by slicing and dicing the electorate and pitting groups against one another,westill have the power to prove them wrong. By doing so, we honor those whomarched and fought and died forequal access to the ballot box.

PHOTOByL.S.DELAUNE

Along line of Black voters seek to register in the corridor of CityHall near the office of the Orleans Parish registrar after the VotingRightsAct passedin1965.

FILEPHOTO

Ellen Floyd,ofBoothville, fills out avoter registration application in Buras under the directionoffederal examiner Bruce Rhiddlehooverafter the Voting Rights Act passed in 1965.

COMMENTARY

Education moneyshouldmovefromStartoLAGATOR

An April 22 Wall Street Journal investigative report provides good reason for Louisiana’slegislature to move some education money away from one controversialrecipient, in favor of the LA GATOR scholarship program.

The main opponent of fuller funding for LA GATOR has been state Senate President Cameron Henry.The arguments he uses againstthat scholarship program, however, apply even more readily to aprogram called Star Academy —the subject of the Journalinvestigation —thatlastyear received $20 millioninLouisiana government funding. Asensible solution would be to take half ofthis year’s allocation for Star Academy and give it to LA GATOR instead

Let’sstart with Star Academy,a product of acompany called NOLAEducation, based in New Orleans butoperating in states across the country.For all we know, it might be the greatest thing since the ﬁrst time someone put mint and chocolate together.The Journal story,however,suggests it may be aﬂop.

Described as a“school within aschool,” Star Academy is aprogram of math and science instruction completewith specialized supplies and software, intendedfor studentswho have fallen behind academically NOLA Education and someschooldistricts across the country say the program dramatically improves graduationrates and test scores.

The Journal’sown reporting, though, shows anumber of jurisdictions contesting those statistics or expressing signiﬁcant unhappiness with the program. Amiddle school in Nevada, for example,actually dropped from two stars to one in the state’s ratings. And in St. Mary Parish here in Louisiana, “after initial gains in standardized test scores at FranklinJuniorHigh, scores

The LA GATORmascot poses for apicture withagroup of students from different schools duringanApril 22 rally for the school voucher program at the Pentagon

have since fallen sharply.” University of Southern California education professor Patricia Burchsuggested that the program hasn’tbeen subjected to evidence-based scrutiny. In other words,there’snodefinitive data, and there are asignificant number of red flags.

Nowconsider LA GATOR, which provides state-funded savings accountsfamilies can usefor arange of education-related options from privateschools to home-schooling needs to tutoring and special-ed offerings.

The main argument Henry has used against it, repeatedly,isthe lack of dataproving its efﬁcacy Well, of course therehasn’tbeen timein

just twoyearsfor formal, peer-reviewed studies, but there is indeed data of several important kinds. The Louisiana Department of Education reportsthat of parents already using LA GATOR, 99% saythey would recommend the program and 97% are satisﬁed withtheir children’sacademic progress. Eligible families have ﬁled more than 17,000 applications for the program for the 2026-27 school year,and apoll shows that 65%of Louisiana voterssupport “full funding” for it —meaning double the$43.5 million that Henry says is themosthewill allow Why should Henry and theLegislature skimponaprogramsopopular with the ultimatetestaudience, namely the parents themselves,and also popular with the gen-

eral public? Erin Bendily of the conservative Pelican Institute writes that, as it is, $42 million dedicated to education will go unused, thus reverting back to the state. Moreover “lawmakers have a$577 millionsurplus left over from the previous ﬁscal year …and an extra $292 millioninunspent cash from the current budget year.”

Clearly,Henry is being at least abit disingenuous by contending that giving more to LA GATOR would amount to “spending money that we don’thave.” Granted, Henry is worried not just about this next yearbut about setting aprecedent for funding levels in future years. Prudence is agood character trait. Still, the above numbers showthat he protests at least alittle too much.

Nonetheless, funds essentially are fungible. To an extent, money can be movedfrom one state government ﬁnancial pot to another.That’swhy apartial solution suggests itself. Even if Henry is worried about adding another $44 milliontoLAGATOR when there’snopeer-reviewed data but massive evidence of parental satisfaction, why not take $10 millionofthe $20 millionallocated for Star Academy and use it for LA GATOR instead? After all, Star Academy not only lacks peer-reviewed data, but also is subject to the signiﬁcant questions raised by The Wall Street Journal.

Rough arithmetic says this reallocationof $10 millioncould allow about another1,400 students, on top of the current 5,600,toparticipate in LA GATOR. Meanwhile,school systems thrilled with StarAcademy still would have a$10 millionpot from which to draw Then the state could closely monitor both programs —and determine in future years if one, or both, or neither,should receive further,signiﬁcant funding. If Henry wants evidence, this is the way to get it.

EmailQuin Hillyer at quin.hillyer @theadvocate.com

In Mississippi, immigrationcrackdown hits tooclose to home

Paperwork errors happen. Whenitcomes to complicated government programs,they happen alot.

Youknow the best way to ﬁx apaperwork error? Do alittle more paperwork. And, if you’re going to be really proactive,change thesystemsothat it’seasier to understand in the ﬁrst place.

Alas, that is not the Trump administration’sworking premise thesedays when it comes to treatment of peoplefrom elsewhere in the world.

The horror show out of Mississippi over the last few weeks is just the latest example of good people getting caught up in acrackdown on allegedly bad actors —but one that’s so scattershot and downright cruel that it’ssweeping up people who are doing their best to follow the rules, complicated though they often are.

legal guardians didn’tentirely understand the implications under immigration law of switching themfromaprivate schooltoa public one.

So last month, the two young men whose basketball coach has called them the heart of soulofthe team wereaccosted by Immigrationand CustomsEnforcement agents as they readiedtoboard their bus to school, zip-tied in frontoftheir friends and host father,separated from one another and taken to facilities in Jena, Louisiana and Houston.

playeda part,and theending for these two teens is happy,atleastfor now If only thatwerethe case for the many otherswe’ve all heardabout, and the many, many morewehaven’t, who ﬁnd themselves in similar situations.

The good news is that two students at Hancock High School, 18-year-old Israel Makoka and his 15-year-oldbrotherMax, are back home in Diamondhead, meaning Israelcan go aheadand graduate with his friends.

That doesn’tchange just howtraumatizing these recent weeksmust have been for thenatives of theRepublic of Congohere on student visas and their adoptedcommunity —all because their host parents and

As unlucky as they weretofall into ICE’sgrasp, theywereatleast fortunate to have done so in an area where mostpeople voted for President Donald Trump, who had promised to crack down on the worst of the worst but never said awordabout going afterkids at thelocal school.

To its great credit, thecommunity rose up in the teens’ defense and contacted federalrepresentatives who could help. To hercredit, U.S. Sen. Cindy Hyde-Smith did, ﬁnding the family an attorney and helping them navigatethe process. Thursday,the brothers were released back to host parents Gail andCliff Baptiste. It’snot clear exactly whathappened, but some combination of public shameand political pressure surely

I’mtalking about the militaryspouses and the people picked up at court, which by deﬁnition means theywere trying to comply with alegal process. I’mtalking aboutimmigrants who didn’tknow there was aproblem withtheir status or who saw their statussuddenly changed by administrativewhim.

I’malso talking about the few,like these brothers, who managed to get the attention of someone withpolitical inﬂuence. People like Donna Kashanian, theNew Orleans woman arrested while gardening after years in this country,who was released from custody after her friends and loved ones got her caseinfront of U.S. Rep. Steve Scalise. And People like PaolaClouatre,of BatonRouge, amom of two small children and wife of aMarine veteran who was detained for several months before being released withthe quiet help of U.S. Sen. John Kennedy

Like her fellow Republicans from Louisiana,Hyde-Smithapparently worked her inﬂuence behind thescenes.Like them, though, she didn’tuse the opportunity to

speak out about the larger issues raisedby the detentions. What ashame, because people like her could really do some good for some more good people. Even after immigration authorities’ ugly overreach in places like Minnesota,even after former Border Patrol chief GregBovino and ex-Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem were ﬁred, this latest incident suggests the administration has not pivoted from its reckless, senseless sweep. Meanwhile, Republicans en masse continue to follow aTrump-authored script that highlights horriﬁc but unusual instances of violent crimes committedbyimmigrants as evidence of the crackdown’sworth. When was the last time you heard one of them wonderhow many other scared people who’ve never hurt asoul have been ripped from the their communities, threatened with deportation or sent to countries where they have no ties? It shouldn’ttake congressional intervention to save each of these individuals. Not whensimply clarifying the rules— and showing alittle human decency would do the trick.

EmailStephanie Grace at sgrace @theadvocate.com.

It’sprobably no surprise tomost of you that most faith-based radio stations are basedinthe South. That includesLouisiana: About 74% of people wholive here are Christians of some kind. Butdid you know that nearly all U.S. residents live in places where they can listen to faith-based radio stations?

According to a2023-24Pew Research Center study,ofall Christians across our nation,33% would call themselves evangelical Christians, about 23% identify as Catholics and about 11% consider themselves Black Protestants. “Mainline” Protestants make up6% of that. Iwasn’tsurprised to learn that about 21% of all those surveyeddon’tclaim any faith or religion. One way or another, it seems they identify as aused-to-bewhatever,nothing special or “spiritual” if they bless their food, say prayers andhave lookedata Bibleoranother holy book from time to time. Iwas surprised to see that Buddhists are 2% of our state’sreligious population and Hindu, Jewish andMuslim faith followersare each less than1%of those who live in the state. Adifferent Pew study released in March

shows that no matter what faith or which religious practices we follow,awhopping 98% of U.S. residents live in places where faith-based radio stations can be heard. There are about 17,000 AM and FM radio stations in our country,and about 4,000 of them are religious radio stations, accordingtothe study.That’s about 25% of all radio stations in the U.S.

n North Carolina: 182

n California: 221

n Florida: 227

n Texas: 433

Will Sutton

The analysis from thePew-Knight Initiative goes beyond surface-level factoids to show with charts,data and maps where these radio stations are located, where they are concentrated and where it’smore likely that people in certain states listen to faith radio.

Louisianaisn’tamongthe states with the mostreligiousradio stations, but we have more than moststates.We’ve got 100 of these stations, according to thesurvey

Consider thenumber of faithradio stationsinthese states:

n District of Columbia (D.C.): 3

n Wyoming: 39 n Montana: 68 n Arkansas: 79 n Mississippi: 85 n Louisiana: 100 n Michigan: 135

Most of Catholic Louisianaisinthe state’ssouthern parishes. Certainly,there are non-Catholics in thesouthern part of thestate, including Baptists, Episcopalians, Lutheransand others whofall under theChristian umbrella without seeing Pope Leo XIV as their leader

Iasked Aaron Smith, director of data labs at Pew,tohelp me put Louisiana in context.

“Louisiana ranks 18thamong all states in the total number of religiousstations located in the state,” he shared. But of stationsthat play primarily religious content, Louisianaranks ﬁfth.

Smithsaid most religious stations consider themselves Christian radiostations. Someidentify as Catholic radio. “Eight percent of these stationsnationwide say they are speciﬁcally Catholic radio stations,”headded. “That’sexactlyinline with the share of religious stations in Louisiana that are Catholic.”

Per Pew,“Large majorities of White evangelical Protestants (76%) and Black Protestants (84%) say they listen to reli-

gious programming.” About 39% of nonChristians listen to sometype of religious radio. Iwas surprised to learn that comparable numbers of older and younger people listen. Among those 55 and older,47% listen. Among those 18-49, 44% listen. Who are these young people? Oh, Isee. Pew included streaming platforms. Amajority of religious radio listeners —59% —said they don’tlisten to these stations forpolitical commentary,and 55% say they rarely or never hear political commentary.These factoids are fascinating: Among those whoare Democrat or Democrat-leaning, 48% said they neither like nor dislike hearing it when they do hear it. Guess what? The Republican and GOP-leaning listeners said the samething: 48% of them. We are adivided nation, economically, housing-wise, politically,socially in so manyways. But it seemsthe religious among us are listening to someofthe same faith-focused programming and feel much the sameabout it.

Thank God, Allah, Jehovah and Buddha that something is centering someofus.

Email Will Sutton at wsutton @theadvocate.com.

Stephanie Grace

Quin Hillyer

STAFF PHOTO By JAVIER GALLEGOS

Barracks.

TheSmall Craft Advisorythat’s been in place will expire this morning,and we will waketochilly conditions withalight breeze. Otherwise, today will be abeautifulday.Expect anice,sunny, breezy and dryday with very lowhumidity. TheUVIndexisback at the “veryhigh”level,sobesuretoprotect your skin. Temperaturesthis afternoon will be belowaverage,rising only into the mid-70s.Winds willbelighter than yesterdayand northerly at 10 mph. Theweather for the last dayofJazz Fest is expected to be perfect

esearch.org/CourtneyRive)

Rivera,Clemencia

ClemenciaRivera passedawaypeacefullyon Sundaymorning,April 26 2026, at theage of 66, sur‐rounded by theloveofher family. Clemencialived a lifedefinedbydevotion, re‐silience, andquiet determi‐nation. More than 40 years ago, sheimmigrated to the UnitedStateswitha vision for abetterfuture. Through unwavering hard work as anaesthetician, shebuilt a beautiful life rooted in pur‐poseand sacrifice—ensur‐ing hertwo children re‐ceivedaneducation from preschool throughcollege, freeofdebt. This wasnot onlyher goal, butone of her proudest accomplish‐ments.She found greatjoy inlife’scelebrations. Clemencia lovedtodress beautifully forlife’sspecial moments findinghappi‐nessincelebrating each occasion with styleand pride.She especially trea‐sured hostingholidaysand birthdays,creatingmo‐ments that broughther familytogether. Thehome she createdinHarvey be‐camea gatheringplace filled with warmth,laugh‐ter,and lastingmemories oftenalongside her beloved sister,Luz-Elena (mayshe rest in peaceas well).Clemencia also hada passion fortraveland dis‐covery. Shetreasured the experiences of exploring the worldwithher children and family, eagertoshare withthemthe beauty of different cultures.She kept mementosofthese jour‐neys, includinga collection ofcurrencyfromthe coun‐tries they visited—small tokensofa life livedwith curiosity andwonder. A proud NewOrleanian and longtimeresidentofHar‐vey, Clemenciawas bornin

March1960 in Manizales, Colombia, to Luis Fabio Riveraand Luz-Dary Maria Freeman.She is lovingly re‐memberedbyher parents, Luisand Maria; hersisters LidaRothschild,Gloria Rivera, andLuz MariaFree‐man;her son, Erik Rivera, and daughter-in-law, Madi‐son Rivera; herdaughter, Maria Koch,and son-inlaw,Søren Koch;and her cherished grandchildren, EllaRiveraand Phillip Koch, andnephews Alexander Rothschild Christopher Rothschild,Se‐bastian Rothschild,and Michael Rothschild as well asniecesVictoriaRagusa, KelseyRagusa, andCaro‐lineRagusa. Clemencia’s legacylives on in thefam‐ily sheheldsoclose and, in the values sheinstilled love, perseverance,and the importance of always staying connected. Family and friendsare invitedto attendthe Memorial Visi‐tationatMothe Funeral Home, 2100 Westbank Ex‐pressway, Harvey Louisiana on Friday,May 8, 2026, beginningat9 a.m. until 11 a.m. AMemorial Masswillbeheldatthe fu‐neral home on Friday at 11 a.m.MemorialInterment willbeheldinWestlawn MemorialParkCemetery, 1225 WhitneyAvenue, Gretna, Louisiana. Thefam‐ily invitesyou to share thoughts, fond memories and condolencesonlineat mothefunerals.com

Rosenblum, Edward Jay

Edward Jay Rosenblum passed awaypeacefully on Friday, March13, 2026.He was born on June 26, 1956 to Miriam("Mimi") Segall WeillLucas and Charles Seelig Rosenblum, and is survived by hissister, Deborah ("Debbie") Rosenblum. Edward was a lifelong resident of New Orleans.Hegraduated from De La Salle High School,attended LSUin Baton Rouge,and followed

in his mother's footsteps working as aLouisiana municipalbond brokerfor over 35 years. Edward's true calling came at avery earlyage whenhedeveloped apassion formusic sparked by Carlos Santana. He accumulated a vast library of music locally,inBraziland NewYork and traveled extensively to hear jazz pianist,Oscar Peterson, among many others. He was an ardent Jazz Fest-goer.Hecombinedyears of meticulous dedicatedresearch with his extensive knowledge and experience to author thebook "Last Night When We Were Young|Standards and Sambas from Broadway to Brazil". He found far greaterjoy in giving copies of his published book to thosehethought wouldappreciate and learn fromits wealthof American songsfrom 1920 to 2020, and he personally deliveredthemtoplaces such as theOrleans Parish Prison. Beginningprior to thepandemicEdward spent countless hours at theNora NavraLibrary on St.Bernard Avenue as a source of inspiration, safety, support and kinship with theneighborhood and itsresidents. Aprivate family serviceand burial was held Wednesday, April 15, 2026 at HebrewRest Cemetery #3. Please consider adonation to the Nora NavraLibrary branch of theNew Orleans Public LibraryorWWOZ Radio station in Edward's memory.

Dracos DimitrySloss, better known as "Drake" died on April 26, 2026, after asix-monthbattlewith stageIVlung cancer. He is survivedbyhis brother, Lynes RobinsonSloss (Liz), his niece, NinaSloss McGuire (Ryan), and his nephew, JosephMerrick Jones Sloss (Kate).Hewas preceded in death by his parents, Nina O'Brien Sloss and Frederick Maclin Sloss, as wellashis nephew,

Alexander Dimitry Sloss. BornAugust 29, 1955, in NewOrleans, Drake attendedLaSalle School, Metairie Park Country Day and Tulane University, where he was amember of Delta Kappa Epsilon and graduated with aB.A.in history.Despite his New Orleans roots, Drake had an unparalleleddevotion to Bama football. Paired with his intelligence, he possessed an uncanny abilitytorecallplayers statistics, and storylines throughout theprogram's history.Inone of his final days,after hearing an attending physician's last name, Drake informedthe doctorhehad thesame last name as afootball player forLSU in the60's. The physician, happily taken aback,informed him that theplayerinquestion was his father.

Small in stature but formidable in presence, Drakewas thoughtful,observant, and content in his routines, especiallytime spent with friends and family.A keen observer of politics from an early age, he never shied away from spiriteddebate(whether invitedornot). At just six yearsold,hewas campaigning through his neighborhood withchants of "Boofor Schiro! Yay for Duplantier!" Drake was direct, sharp,and opinionated,traitsrivaled onlyby his sincere kindness and affablenature. His quick wit and humor madehim a constant source of amusement to hisfriendsand family

Drake remained deeply rooted in NewOrleans from birth, and he builta long and successfulcareer as afinancialadvisor,relying on his attention to detail,analytical mind,and innate skepticism. He eschewedfast-paced, bigcity life.Whenhis "favorite niece", Nina, moved to NewYork City, he found greatjoy in reminding her of "the horrors" of theBig Apple,despite not having stepped footthere since the80's. He was, in every sense,sui generis. To his family,hewillalways be remembered as adevoted son, aloyal brother, aloving uncle, and awellspring of amusement, providing humor and commentary that was as memorable as it was unfiltered. He once remarked to his brother, Whatwouldwe do without Liz?"Now, his family finds themselves asking what they willdo

withoutDrake. Although hisfriends andfamilywill miss himgreatly, thereis catharsis in knowing he is beyondthe reachofpain. AMemorialService will be held on Monday, May4 2026 at 1:00 PM at Trinity Episcopal Church,1329 Jackson Avenue. Visitation will begin at 12:00 PM Arrangements entrusted to Tharp Funeral Home. Expressionsoflove and sympathy may be placed andviewedat www.tharpcares.com. Roll tide.

Thelma Jo CallStalcup, age90, of Mandeville, Louisiana, passed away on Wednesday, April 22, 2026. Shewas born on February 7, 1936, in Gober, Texas, oneof10children of Bill andWillie Williams Call Shewas agraduate of Bailey High School and East Texas State University. Shealso studied at Southwestern Theological Seminaryin Fort Worth, Texas where she met andmarriedthe love of herlife. They spent their 58 years of marriage in Texas, NewMexico,and Louisiana. Followingcollegegraduation Thelma spent6 years teachingPhysical Education in theDallas and Arlington school systems. Thelmaspentfiveyears teachingatMeadowsDraughns Business College in NewOrleans thenwent on to be Assistanttothe Headmistress at Louise S. McGehee School where she spentthe last sixteen years before retirement. Thelma'slove of sewing notonlylead to alifetime hobbybut also professional dressmaking andalterations. Shespent many hoursmakinglovely quilts andwall hangings. Other hobbiesincludedreading andplayingcard games with friends in the Northshore Newcomers Club. Shespent many hourswith theHosana Quilters making quiltsto be donated to hospitals,

hospices, and otherphilanthropicorganizations. Her quiltswill be cherished by herfamilyfor many years to come. Shewill be dearly missed by all of herloving familyand friends. Thelma and Bob enjoyed travelingthroughout the states,Canada, Mexico, andEurope Sheissurvivedbyher children, Jeffrey Lee Stalcup(Jackie) andDavid Scott Stalcup(Rhonda); grandchildren, Alexandra Paige Stalcup, Gabriel Scott Stalcup, andAmber Elizabeth Stalcup(Garrett); andgreat-grandson, Kieran. Sheisalso survived by hersisters, Nancy Call Alexander (Donald), Retha CallOwens,and Carolyn CallJohnson (Jimmy); and many extendedfamily members and friends. Shewas preceded in death by herloving husbandof61years, Dr.Bobby LeeStalcup; herparents, Willie Ray Calland Willie PettusWilliams Call; and siblings, DorisCallMackey, Imogene CallSells,John Call, Royce Call,Loyce Call Murley,and Sophie Call Lansdell. Relativesand friends are invited to attendthe memorial serviceson Friday, May8,2026, at 11:00 AM at Covington Presbyterian Church,222 S. JeffersonAvenue, Covington,Louisiana. E. J. Fielding Funeral Home of Covington, Louisiana, is honored to be entrusted with Mrs. Stalcup's funeral arrangements. Herfamilyinvites you to share thoughts, memories, andcondolences by signinganonline guestbook at www.ejfieldingfh.com

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Stalcup, Thelma Jo Call

Sloss, DracosD.

Taormina, Manuel J.

Manuel J. Taormina, Jr passedawaypeacefullyat home on April 30, 2026. He is survivedbyhis beloved anddevoted wife of nearly 39 years, Hope Patin Taormina; hissisters, Mary AnnHymel (Charles), Joan Bayard (Timothy); Carmel

LSUsoftball team sets team recordsfor runs,hitsin victoryoverAuburn, 4C

Saints’ WR room starting to ﬁt Moore’s vision

BY MATTHEW PARAS Staff writer

New Orleans Saints coach Kellen Moore always has said he wants hiswide receiver room to resemble abasketball team

Thegroup now has enough bodies to ﬁll out an NBA roster After the NFL draft, the Saints have 12 widereceivers —including the three they selectedlast week. That’sonly one more than New Orleans entered trainingcamp with in Moore’s first season at the helm, but the dynamic of theroom has beenoverhauled in that span.

The latest additions —headlined by ﬁrstround pick Jordyn Tyson —stand to make the Saints much more explosive and versatile than 2025. But the makeover also has set up what should be an intriguing and competitive offseason, given theSaints eventually will have to trim the position ahead of theirinitial 53-man roster in late August.

“Everyquarterbackinour league, you know,wants and needs weapons, right?” Saints general manager Mickey Loomis said afterthe draft. “Theyneedguystoget the ball to, and hopefully they can do something

WOMAN’S TOUCH

BY STEPHEN WHYNO AP sportswriter

LOUISVILLE, Ky.— Cherie DeVaux spent theweek talking alot about the possibilityofbecoming the ﬁrst woman to train aKentuckyDerbywinnerasshe got ready to be just the 18thtoenter ahorse in the crown jewel of horse racing’sTriple Crownwith Golden Tempo.

DeVaux is just thesecond female trainertowin anyTriple Crownrace after Jena Antonucci won withArcangelo in the 2023 Belmont Stakes. She won the Derby in her ﬁrst opportunity,eight years since starting her own stable.

Charging from theback of the pack and down the stretchtowin the Derby,Golden Tempomadehistory for DeVaux, taking herbreathaway in theprocess and rendering her nearly speechless.

“I don’teven have any words right now,” DeVaux said. “I just can’t.”

“Being awoman or my genderhas never really crossed my mind in this journey of mine,” DeVauxsaid. “I’m gladI can be arepresentative of all women everywhere that we can do anything we set our minds to.”

During theweek, DeVauxshifted from downplaying what it would mean to be the ﬁrst woman to train a Derby winner to understanding she’s

ä See DERBY, page 3C

of the Kentucky DerbyonSaturday.

Within the next week or so, Joe Dumars will make the most importantdecisionhe’s had to make since taking over as the New Orleans Pelicans executive vice president of basketball operations

Dumars will decide who will be thenext head coach

Rod Walker

The person he chooseswill shape the immediate future of the franchise. It’ll be the team’sfourth coach sinceZion Williamson was drafted bythe Pels in 2019, following Alvin Gentry,Stan VanGundy and Willie Green. It’ll bethe ﬁfth coach if you include James Borrego, who served as interim coachthisseason after Dumars ﬁred Green 12 gamesintothe season. Borrego is acandidatefor thejob. Accordingto sources close to thesearch, Borrego is one of the fourcandidates who have emerged as the front-runners. He joins alist that includes Rajon Rondo, Steve Hetzeland Darvin Ham. The best guess here is Rondoand Hetzel are at thetop of the list.

Rondo, aformer standout point guard in the league, played the 2017-18 season Making case forfourPels’

LSUsolvesanissue

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

The offensewasn’tgoing to fix itself overnight. Twoweeksago,Jay Johnson called LSU’s two-outhitting issues a“deep-rooted problem. He said his players needed to shorten their swings and hit the ball up the middle andtothe opposite ﬁeld more often. More hard-hit line drives and ground balls and fewer ﬂy outs.

“It’snot theera that these players that we are coaching right now have grownup in,” Johnson said after LSU’s loss to Texas A&M on April 17. “A lot of them talk about exit (velocity)and distance andhome runs.” It took afew lineup changes, but those issues Johnson described may not be as deep-rooted as he once thought. LSUbeat South Carolina 6-1 on Saturday during theﬁrst gameofadoubleheader at Alex Box Stadium. The Tigersleaned on an array of opposite-ﬁeld singles, big two-out

hits and quality at-bats to pull away from the Gamecocks early and break their ninegame losing streak in Southeastern Conference play They scored five runs on six hits in the first twoinnings, taking a5-1 advantage by following the playbook Johnson laid out for them twoweeks ago. Freshman Mason Braun led off the first inning with asingle. Fellow freshman Omar Serna followed him with adouble before sophomore Derek Curiel hitinto a ground out, allowing Braun to score. LSU (26-21, 7-15 SEC) added another runon sophomore Cade Arrambide’soppositefield single. Three moreruns came across in the second inning on aCuriel one-out single that drove in Braun and atwo-run, two-out, opposite-field single from juniorSteven Milam On awindy day with gusts blowing in from center field,stringing together

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU center fielder Derek Curielraces home to score arun against South Carolina in the second inningon SaturdayatAlex Box Stadium

Trainer Cherie DeVaux kisses the trophyafter avictorybyGolden Tempointhe 152nd running

AP FILE PHOTOByCHRIS O’MEARA Tampa BayBuccaneers wide receiverTrey Palmer catches aballduring apreseason game against the Buffalo Bills on Aug. 23 in Tampa, Fla.

ä See SAINTS, page 5C

ASSOCIATEDPRESS PHOTOS By ABBIE PARR Golden Tempo,left, ridden by Jose Ortiz winsthe 152ndrunning of the Kentucky DerbyatChurchill DownsonSaturday Ortiz beathis brother Irad Ortiz Jr.onRenegade, right.

BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS

LSU women’s tennis team advances in NCAA regional

For the second consecutive year, the LSU women’s tennis team opened play in the NCAA Tournament with a win over Stephen F. Austin.

The Tigers won the doubles point, then picked up singles wins from Kayla Cross, Carolina Kuhl and Kinaa Graham to post a 4-0 win over the Ladyjacks at the LSU Tennis Complex on Saturday

The win moves LSU into the ﬁnal match of the Baton Rouge regional at 2 p.m. Sunday LSU (20-9) will face Rice (18-6), which avenged an early-season loss to TCU with a 4-2 win in Saturday’s ﬁrst match.

Tigers add ‘retired’ transfer Posen

Former five-star recruit hasn’t competed in three years

BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer

The LSU Tigers added another gymnast from the transfer portal — and one remarkable story Ariel Posen signed with LSU this week, three years after she retired from collegiate gymnastics at Georgia because of multiple leg and knee injuries

“The story continues,” Posen wrote on her Instagram account.

“I’m back!! I’m so excited to announce that I’ll be using my remaining eligibility to continue my gymnastics career at LSU on a full athletic scholarship.”

LSU coach Jay Clark said he ran into Posen in December while attending the wedding of former Tigers gymnast Elena Arenas Posen wasn’t a guest she was serving drinks and hors d’oeuvres at the reception.

“She said she was thinking about making a comeback, that she wanted to be part of something,” Clark said. “When we were there for our meet (in January at Georgia), Haleigh (Bryant) and I ran into her downtown. It sparked a thought.” Not long afterward, Clark got a call from PeteArenas, Elena’s father, who owns a gymnastics training facility in Athens, Georgia.

“He said, ‘She’s been in my gym for ﬁve weeks and she looks great on two events — bars and beam,’ ” Clark said. “ ‘She may be a great addition.’ ” Clark decided that Posen, a former five-star recruit, would be, at least on bars and beam, for the 2027 season. Whether Posen has any eligibility beyond that remains to be determined.

Posen went on to thank LSU’s coaching staff “for this incredible opportunity

“The moment I stepped onto campus, it just felt right,” she said. “The coaches, the girls, and the overall environment are exceptional and it truly felt like home.”

LSU gymnast Ashley Cowan waves to the crowd during team introductions before the meet against Auburn on Feb. 13 at the Pete Maravich Assembly Center LSU NOTEBOOK

“My journey hasn’t been conventional, but stepping away gave me the clarity to see exactly what I wanted, and the motivation to go after it.”

Two transfers so far Posen is LSU’s second transfer in this cycle, joining former Penn gymnast Skyelar Kerico, who competed from 2023-25 but did not have a routine in 2026. Both are from New Jersey Posen from Manalapan, Kerico from Toms River LSU is expected to look to add

one or two more transfers during this cycle. The Tigers lose only three seniors who were regular contributors last season: Ashley Cowan, Emily Innes and Courtney Blackson Cowan gets SEC honor Cowan, a senior, completed her career by earning the Southeastern Conference Brad Davis Community Service Award for gymnastics. A native of Hillsborough, North Carolina, Cowan competed at LSU from 2023-26 and won the 2024 SEC uneven bars title.

“She came as a walk-on and earned her way to the point where

she won an SEC championship and ended up on an athletic scholarship,” Clark said.

“She exemplified persistence, hard work, commitment, leadership and academic excellence. She’s just what you want a studentathlete to be. There’s no one more deserving.”

LSU swimmer Jacob Pishko also earned the Brad Davis award for men’s swimming and diving. Both Cowan and Pishko will receive $7,500 postgraduate scholarships and are eligible for the SEC’s male and female community service leaders of the year awards, which will be announced later this month.

Young still in control at Cadillac Championship

BY TIM REYNOLDS AP sportswriter

DORAL, Fla. Cameron Young didn’t have as easy of a time in the third round of the Cadillac Championship as he did while building a big lead Thursday and Friday

It didn’t seem to matter, either. Young is still in full control at Trump National Doral, after his round of 2-under 70 on Saturday got him to 15 under for the week. He had a six-shot lead over a group that includes top-ranked Scottie Schefﬂer into a potentially rainy ﬁnal round Sunday

“No lead is safe out here,” Young said. “I’m going to go try to execute my plan as if I’m right around the lead or just trying to have a good day out there, not necessarily with any thought toward where I’m at in the tournament.” Young had four birdies and two bogeys on Saturday

“The tournament’s in his hands right now,” said Scheffler, who shot a 3-under 69 to get to 9 under but hasn’t been able to close the gap on Young. “I can go out and have a really good round, and if he has another really good round he’s going to be a tough guy to catch. All I can do is go out and try and have a great round and see where that leaves me.”

Si Woo Kim (69) and Kristoffer Reitan (69) also were 9 under Ben Grifﬁn 68), Nick Taylor (72) and Matt McCarty (69) were 8 under Catching Young will be tough in any conditions. And nobody knows what awaits

players Sunday at Doral A lot of rain is expected on Sunday — more than an inch, according to some forecasts, with heavy downpours predicted for the afternoon — the tournament moved up its schedule for the ﬁnal round in an effort to beat the worst of the weather

Players will go off in threesomes, from split tees, with everyone starting between 7:309:40 a.m. It’s unknown if President

Donald Trump — the course owner will publicly appear in the ﬁnal round. He was expected to be at the course Sunday, though that was before the schedule for the ﬁnal round changed. Young shared the lead through three rounds at the Masters — tying for third at Augusta National after Rory McIlroy beat him by two shots. McIlroy had a six-shot lead after two rounds there and got caught, a lesson that’ll be in

the back of Young’s mind Sunday

“I don’t think there’s any reason to forget,” Young said. “But it won’t change really how I play, especially the front nine. I may be a hair more conservative in a place or two, but with the weather looking the way it does, that would be how I would be playing anyway.”

Scheffler beat Young by five shots in that ﬁnal round at the Masters. He’ll need to do better than that at Doral if he’s going to win on Sunday But the way he ﬁnished Saturday might have made his comeback chances a bit of a boost.

The 18th at Doral basically is two different holes — a brutal par 4 for those who don’t have enough distance for a 300-plus-yard carry over water and into a wider portion of the fairway, and a slightly less brutal par 4 for those who can get it out there. Schefﬂer is one of those who don’t have problems reaching the better spots of that fairway, and he took full advantage of that on Saturday

His approach from 172 yards stopped 4 feet from the cup. He made the birdie — just the ninth of the week at the ﬁnishing hole.

“Just ended up in a good spot and really nice 9-iron in there to ﬁnish off,” Schefﬂer said. “It’s always nice to have a little tap in at the last.”

Young actually had a closer approach on

LSU picked up doubles wins from Kenna Erickson and Ella McDonald at the No. 2 position, and Addison Lanton and Kuhl at No. 3.

Kostyuk wins Madrid Open by taking down Andreeva

Marta Kostyuk of Ukraine beat Mirra Andreeva of Russia 7-5 6-3 to win the Madrid Open title on Saturday

The two players, whose countries have been at war since Russia’s invasion in 2022, did not shake hands at the net after the match or pose together at the awards ceremony

The 23rd-ranked Kostyuk collapsed back onto the clay court and held her hands over her face after converting match point when Andreeva’s final shot flew long. After getting to her feet, she did an acrobatic backflip while the crowd cheered. Andreeva, meanwhile, slumped into her court-side seat and wept into a towel.

Kostyuk finished her victory speech with “glory to God and glory to Ukraine.”

The win was Kostyuk’s third WTA title.

Seidler family strikes deal to sell control of Padres

The San Diego Padres have reached an agreement to sell control of the team to an investor group led by Kwanza Jones and José Feliciano.

The family of late owner Peter Seidler formally announced the deal Saturday The sale must be approved by Major League Baseball. The deal with private equity billionaire Feliciano and his wife took shape last month at an MLB-record valuation of $3.9 billion. The Padres’ announcement didn’t give speciﬁcs on the members of the investor group or purchase price.

Seidler’s family began to explore a sale in November, two years after the death of the popular Peter Seidler who became the primary owner in 2020. His brother, John Seidler, has served as chairman since his death.

Furyk picks U.S. assistants for 2027 Ryder Cup team

U.S. Ryder Cup captain Jim Furyk said Saturday that Justin Leonard and Stewart Cink will be two of his assistants for the 2027 matches at Adare Manor in Ireland Furyk announced the selections at the Kentucky Derby Both were under consideration as captain.

Leonard played in three Ryder Cups, two of them U.S. victories. This is Leonard’s ﬁrst time as a Ryder Cup assistant. He was an assistant under Furyk at the 2024 Presidents Cup, and Furyk referred to him as “my right-hand man.” Cink played on ﬁve consecutive U.S. teams, including part of the 2008 U.S. victory at Valhalla. He was an assistant captain to Zach Johnson in Italy in 2023, a European victory

STAFF FILE PHOTO

MICHAEL JOHNSON

152ND KENTUCKYDERBY

DERBY

Continued from page1C

arole model to girls who might want to follow in her footsteps someday “I’m just glad Idon’thave to answer that question anymore,” DeVaux said a little over an hour after the crowning achievement of her career.“There was a joke about me being one and done, but Ithink I’m going to need to do this again.” DeVaux, who credits growing up with seven brothersand two sisters for her toughness, downplayed Golden Tempo’scracked heels as anonfactor. She also worked hard to get the colt into form long before the Kentucky Derby,trying blinkers and other things to gethim to focus.

Jockey Jose Ortizeven described Golden Tempo as lazy, but Ortiz showed what he and the horse could do on Saturday,winning the Derby for the ﬁrst timein his 11th try Ortiz navigated past 17 other horses around the ﬁnal turn and made ahard

“Being awoman or my genderhas never really crossedmy mind in thisjourney of mine. I’m glad Ican be arepresentativeof all women everywhere that we cando anything we set our minds to.”

CHERIE DEVAUX, Horse trainer

charge down the stretch. With acrowd of more than 100,000 watching and roaringat Churchill Downs, Golden Tempo passed favorite Renegade —ridden by Jose’sbrother Irad Ortiz Jr.—just before the wire to win the 11/4-mile race in 2:02.27 atodds of 23-1. Their parents were there to witness it. Iget to ride it almostevery year,but to get to win it, it’sjust special,” said Ortiz, who alsowon the Kentucky Oaks on Fridayaboard Always aRunner.“Ijust wish my grandpa was here, but

BY STEPHENWHYNO AP sportswriter

LOUISVILLE,Ky. Trainer

Chad Brown got the scary call last fall that Always a Runner hada seriouscase of pneumonia, something that would keep her from racing as a2-year-old.

“Thisﬁllywas struggling,” Brown said. “Her career was really up in theair.”

After more than amonth in aveterinaryclinicand treatment with ahyperbaric chamber,she began her racing career in February.On Friday night, Always aRunnershowedher toughness once againbywinning the KentuckyOaksagainstsome of the best 3-year-old ﬁllies around in the 152ndedition of theraceand theﬁrstrun under the lights in prime time at Churchill Downs.

“This filly is very resilient, very tough,”Brown saidafter winning the Oaks forthe first time.

“She didn’thave to be here today.She didn’thaveto run again. She could have neverrun, easily.I’vehad it happenwith several horses. The fact that not only did she overcome it and ended up here today as an undefeated horseinthe Oaks is just remarkable.”

Ridden by Jose Ortiz, Always aRunner made a move around the ﬁnal turn and needed every bit of the stretch to pass Bob Baffert’sExplora and and Mi-

Golden Tempo,ridden by Jose Ortiz, winsthe 152ndrunning of the Kentucky Derbyat Churchill DownsonSaturday in Louisville, Ky

Iknowhe’slookingfrom heaven.Just very happy that Iget my goal, my life dream goal achieved.” Golden Tempo paid $48.24 to win, $19.14 to place and $11.90 to show.Renegade paid $7.14 to place and

$5.46 to show.Ocelli —who didn’tget intothe ﬁeld until ThursdaywhenBrad Cox’s Fulleffort wasruled out— paid $36.34 to show Twohorsessaddled by the Bernhard family of BatonRouge competed Sat-

urday. Incredibolt, which went offwith27-1odds, ﬁnished sixth. Albus, which went offwith 50-1odds, ﬁnished 15th.

The Kentucky Derby went on with just 18 horses. Great White was alate

chael McCarthy’sMeaning before the finish line of the 1 1/8-mile race. Meaning wassecondby 11/4 lengths and Counting Stars third. Always aRunnerfinishedin1:48.62 and paid $13.04 to win, $7.46 to place and $5.44 to show Always aRunnerimpressedOrtiz,whohadnever riddenher in arace before the Oaks— just amorning workout. She’snow 3for 3. “Chad wasvery confident in her,” said Ortiz, who won five races on Friday at Churchill Downs. “He knew what he had. He told me, ‘Just go outthere,get to know herinthe work and you’re going to feel like a sports car,like she’saFerrari.’ And he was right. I loved the way she worked, and here we are. We won.” Brownwill try to pull offthe Oaks-Kentucky Derby double on Saturday with Emerging Market, who also had pneumonia as a2-year-old and has only raced twice. He hasalso never wonthe Derby Thefirst night Kentucky Oaks was onefor the history books, but also took place in front of large swaths of empty seats. Many of the100,000-plus fans who filled the grandstand and the track from the late morning through the afternoon had departed before sunset. The Oaks hastypicallybeen runbefore 6p.m.

scratch after flipping and throwing his jockey.Track veterinarians madethe call to scratch the long shot whogot into the field WednesdaywhenSilent Tacticwas ruledout because of afoot injury.The Puma was out, less than 12 hours before post time, because of aswollen leg from askin infection. Great White’s trainer,John Ennis, confirmed to The Associated Press that the big gray gelding and jockey Alex Achard werefine. Great White becamethe fifth horse scratched this week and the second Saturday.Silent Tactic was ruled out Wednesday,Fulleffort on Thursdayand Right to Party on Friday,with Great White, Ocelli andRobusta getting in. Askedabout whether Golden Tempo would run in thePreakness Stakes on May 16,DeVauxsaid the decisionwould be made in the coming days depending on how the horse is feeling. “We’re going to let him decide that,” DeVauxsaid. “We’re going to have to allow him to tell us because the horse is first.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOByJEFF ROBERSON

APPHOTO By CHARLIE RIEDEL

Awoman dons ablue flower hat beforethe 152nd running of the Kentucky DerbyonSaturdayat Churchill Downs.

AP PHOTO By CHARLIE RIEDEL

Awoman wearing apinkfeathered hat poses for a photo before the running of the Kentucky Derby on Saturday.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By GEORGEWALKER IV

The field rounds the firstturninthe 152nd running of the Kentucky Derby at Churchill DownsonSaturdayinLouisville, Ky

AP PHOTO By ABBIEPARR

Jockey Jose Ortiz celebrates after riding Golden Tempo to victoryonSaturday at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Ky

LSU softball enjoys record-setting day

Tigers sweep

Auburn to close regular season

BY JIM KLEINPETER

Contributing writer

After a record-smashing performance in the first game of Saturday’s doubleheader the LSU softball team had plenty left to finish off a sweep of Auburn in the nightcap. Alix Franklin staked the Tigers to a 2-0 first-inning lead with her second homer of the day, and Cece Cellura pitched a complete-game five-hitter as No 20 LSU boosted its postseason status with a 7-2 victory at Tiger Park. That game followed a 25-0 blowout in the first game as LSU set team records for runs and hits (24). Franklin hit her first career grand slam to spark a seven-run third inning, and Jada Phillips hit her first career dinger, a two-run shot, four batters later in the first game. The Tigers (37-16, 13-11 SEC) moved past Georgia for eighth place in the SEC and will play the Bulldogs on Wednesday at 7 p.m. in the SEC Tournament in Lexington, Ky With a No. 10 RPI ranking, the sweep likely puts LSU in a strong position to host a regional for the

Continued from page 1C

quality at-bats and hitting the ball low and hard were going to be keys for the Tigers. They executed that game plan through the ﬁrst two innings against South Carolina (22-25, 7-15).

“When we pop-up to short, ground out to short, (hit a) fly ball to center field, the appearance is we’re trying to do too much,” Johnson also said after the Texas A&M loss. “And trying to do too much is not a plan or a sign of a mature offensive baseball team. And that’s my responsibility And that will get fixed.”

LSU had only one extra-base hit on Saturday,butpowerhasn’tbeenabig issuefortheTigersthisseason.They entered Saturday seventh in the conferenceinhomeruns.Their problem has been generating “professional” at-bats up and down the order

“We have plenty of home runs, honestly We actually do,” Johnson said. “If you attached professional at-bats — which is what we’re known for (and) is a staple of why we have two national championships — with the power on this team, it would be plenty.” Milam and freshman William Patrick finished with two hits. Along with Milam, Curiel and Arrambide drove in multiple runs. The Tigers were 3 for 9 with runners in scoring position and 5 for 17 with runners on base.

LSU’s only run after the second came on a ﬁelder’s choice by Arrambide in the fourth. But the lead the Tigers had built was more than enough for the pitching staff to ﬁnish off the game.

“It’s a lot easier to pitch ahead than (when you’re) chasing runs and chasing zeros,” LSU sopho-

NCAA Tournament, which begins May 15.

“The offense was incredible,”

LSU coach Beth Torina said.

“There’s always a concern when you have a big game like that that your team takes their foot off the gas in Game 2, but our team didn’t do that. Our team understood the importance of the weekend and all the things they are playing for and did a good job executing that.”

LSU had 12 hits in the second game and led 2-1 until the fourth when Avery Hodge delivered a two-out, run-scoring single with another run scoring on an error on the play LSU put it away in the fifth on run-scoring doubles by Kylee Edwards and Maci Bergeron, and a run-scoring single by Tori Edwards.

“(Hitting) definitely was (contagious); the energy was awesome. I love what coach was talking about, just put your foot on their neck and don’t let up,” said Franklin, who had five hits and seven RBIs for the day “We did not let up. Twentyfive runs: Are you serious? We did not let up. We brought the energy into the last game. It was awesome the way we responded.”

Cellura allowed solo home runs to Ma’Nia Womack in the second and seventh innings for the visitors’ only runs in the series. She allowed ﬁve hits and had a seasonhigh seven strikeouts with two walks.

Jayden Heavener also had a strong outing with a three-hit shutout in the opener, the Tigers’ third consecutive shutout and 10th of the season She struck out ﬁve, issued three walks and allowed one runner past second after the ﬁrst inning.

“Jayden needed that, she needed to know she’s good, she’s ﬁne,” Torina said. “I think she is now Getting through that ﬁrst inning was huge, a big confidence boost for her and the team.”

LSU took control of the first game with eight runs in the ﬁrst inning, highlighted by two-run doubles by Bergeron and Jalia Lassiter The Tigers added seven more in the third inning as Franklin blasted her fourth homer of the season to left-center ﬁeld with the bases loaded.

Lassiter, Bergeron and Phillips knocked in three runs each in the ﬁrst game while Lassiter and Sierra Daniel had six hits apiece in the two games combined.

“I feel great about the season our team put together,” Torina said “We’re battled-tested, been through some things and come out on the other side. That’s going to make them stronger moving forward.

“I really like the resume we’re going to put forth to the committee. It’s really strong and I have a lot of faith they’re going to give us what we’ve earned next weekend.”

more right-handed starter William Schmidt said. “They did their job.” Schmidt, in his eighth SEC start, got through six innings for the ﬁrst time in conference play He surrendered ﬁve hits and fell behind in the count to enough hitters early in the game to drive up his pitch count, but he also walked only one batter and struck out seven.

After Schmidt, Johnson turned to ﬁfth-year senior right-hander Grant Fontenot to record the last nine outs. The veteran struck out four batters and allowed just one hit to ﬁnish off the game.

“That was sick,” Schmidt said of Fontenot’s effort. “It saves a lot of guys (for the rest of the series).” LSU faced South Carolina in Game 2 of Saturday’s doubleheader, but that game was not over by press time. Visit nola.com for a full report

Johnson, Tigers still working on high school recruiting class

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

On Tuesday, LSU coach Jay Johnson already was talking about his high school recruiting class. The NCAA Tournament, at least for now, has fallen out of reach for LSU. Barring an SEC Tournament title or a remarkable turnaround over the ﬁnal three weekends of Southeastern Conference play, Johnson’s program will miss a regional berth for the ﬁrst time since 2011.

That’s why he was asked about his freshmen for next season on Tuesday, with 10 games still left in the regular season at the time.

“There’s some seniors, obviously, moving along,” Johnson said. “So it’s kind of a turnover year for us.”

LSU knows the value of a strong freshman class. Jake Brown, Steven Milam, Kade Anderson, Jared Jones, Derek Curiel and Casan Evans were all signees and became star players on last year’s national championship-winning team.

Finding that next generation of young players is critical, especially after the Tigers lost eight high school signees to the MLB draft last summer Losing so many promising pieces to professional baseball deﬁnitely affected the Tigers this year

“We can’t fight guys getting $3 million in the fourth round,” Johnson said. “And so it’s a good class. There’s a lot of guys that can make some impact.”

According to Perfect Game, LSU has 24 players committed to its 2026 class. Three of those commitments are ranked inside the top 85 of ESPN’s latest MLB draft rankings, including left-hander Logan Schmidt, right-hander Jensen Hirschkorn and outfielder Malachi Washington. ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel, who puts together the rankings, noted that outside of his top 85, ﬁve of the next 11 high schoolers were LSU commitments. The Tigers also have eight signees in MLB.com’s top-100 draft rankings: Schmidt, Hirschkorn, Washington, right-hander Cooper Sides, right-hander Dylan Blomker, outﬁelder Anthony Murphy,

left-hander Lucas Nawrocki and ﬁrst baseman Dominic Santarelli.

Johnson believes that six of the Tigers’ signees will get drafted and sign in July He isn’t done building the class, either. LSU added a commitment from Mississippi right-hander Kolby Stringer on Monday

“We’re going to have six or seven guys drafted off this team, I think,” Johnson said. “Maybe eight, but I would probably say six would be my guess right now.”

The incoming freshmen have become a priority for Johnson, enough so that first-base coach Josh Simpson was away from the team Tuesday and Wednesday to check in with the Tigers’ commitments.

Among the reasons for Simpson’s trip, Johnson said, was so he could watch the signees play in person and “ﬁnd out how good they are, too. It’s been a while since they’ve signed and been committed.”

The early signing period for this year’s class opened on Nov 12. LSU has the No. 2 recruiting class in the nation, according to Perfect Game.

“I was considering doing it with him and (third-base coach Josh Jordan) last week and decided not to do that, which was the right decision,” Johnson said. “But today we needed to go cover some ground.”

Freshmen have begun to step up to the plate, literally and ﬁguratively for LSU in recent games

Second baseman Jack Ruckert and outfielder William Patrick have earned everyday roles. First baseman/outﬁelder Mason Braun and catcher Omar Serna have become staples at the top of the lineup.

LSU doesn’t want to ﬁnd itself in this position again, where it’s heavily relying on freshmen to start and produce in the SEC. That’s why the ascension of Braun and Serna has become so crucial for next season, when the likes of Curiel and Brown leave for MLB.

But as the Tigers rebuild their roster for next season there will be freshmen who will have to contribute right away in 2027. There’s too much talent and too many roster holes for that not to be the case.

By The Associated Press

STAFF PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

LSU pitcher William Schmidt delivers a pitch against South Carolina in the first inning on Saturday at Alex Box Stadium.

PHOTO By MICHAEL BACIGALUPI

coach Jay Johnson walks off the mound after making a pitching change against Southeastern on Tuesday at Alex Box Stadium.

STAFF PHOTO By PATRICK DENNIS

Alix Franklin, center of LSU celebrates after scoring in the fifth inning of LSU’s 8-5 win over Ole Miss earlier this season at Tiger Park. Franklin hit two home runs during a doubleheader sweep of Auburn on Saturday.

Banged-up Lakers rally around LeBron to end Rockets’ season

BY KRISTIE RIEKEN AP sportswriter

HOUSTON When leading scorers Luka Doncic and Austin Reaves were both injured in an April 2 game, coach JJ Redick admitted things felt bleak for the Los Angeles Lakers.

But instead of feeling sorry for themselves, the Lakers banded together to ﬁght through the adversity and beat the Houston Rockets in six games to move on to face top-seeded Oklahoma City in the Western Conference semiﬁnals.

Los Angeles has advanced to the second round for the ﬁrst time since 2023 when it lost to Denver in the West ﬁnals.

LeBron James had 28 points in Game 6 on Friday night, and the Lakers used a tenacious defense to hold the Rockets to their fewest points of the season in the 98-78 victory

“It speaks to his greatness,” Redick said of James “To me, he’s had the greatest career of any NBA player You can argue all you want and I really don’t care to postulate on who’s the greatest of all time, but he’s one of, if not the greatest of all time.

“And for him to do it again and answer the bell again, it’s really —

SAINTS

Continued from page 1C

special with it. And so I don’t think it’s unique to Tyler (Shough), but I do think that we needed that.”

Outside of established star Chris Olave, the receiving corps is made up of rookies looking to make their mark, young players at a crossroads and those on the fringe aiming to prove they belong Almost everybody has something to prove Take the players at a crossroads. Last fall, the Saints acquired Ja’Lynn Polk from the New England Patriots and claimed Trey Palmer off waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Polk and Palmer didn’t appear in a game last year because of injuries, and now that the Saints have invested a firstround pick in Tyson, their path to meaningful on-field action got a lot more difficult.

Polk or Palmer likely would have to beat out Devaughn Vele for the third spot, if Olave and Tyson start as expected. Vele, like Polk and Palmer, was acquired late last summer, but the former Denver receiver seized his chance midway through the year after Rashid Shaheed was traded and Brandin Cooks was released. Vele, 28, emerged as a go-to target in the intermediate portion of the ﬁeld — with 15 of his 25 catches traveling 10-19 yards through the air.

Polk and Palmer are each at a crossroads for different reasons.

Polk, a 2024 second-rounder, had a horriﬁc rookie year (12 catches for 87 yards) that saw the Patriots give up on him ahead of his second season, which was further derailed by a season-ending shoulder injury Palmer showed promise as a 2023 sixth-rounder, but more often than not he was buried on Tampa Bay’s depth chart. Neither player is solidified

it’s bafﬂing in some ways.”

Los Angeles raced out to a 3-0 lead in the series before losing two games to force Game 6 in Houston against a Rockets team that was missing Kevin Durant for ﬁve of six games.

The Lakers played the entire series without Doncic, but Reaves returned for the last two games to help them advance.

There was a chance their series with the Thunder would have started Sunday But Game 1 was pushed back until Tuesday night when the Raptors beat the Cavaliers 112-110 in overtime thanks to RJ Barrett’s 3-pointer in the ﬁnal seconds to force Game 7.

“Thanks to Toronto,” James said.

“Thank you, RJ Barrett. Appreciate it. Haven’t seen a shot in Toronto like that since Kawhi (Leonard).”

The 41-year-old James was thrilled to get a couple of extra days to rest and recover after averaging 38.5 minutes a game for his injuryplagued team in this series.

“Heck yeah,” he said. “I can go on the golf course now That’s what I’m thinking about.”

He said he’d start delving into preparation for the Thunder by Sunday

enough to assume his roster spot is guaranteed. On that front, they join a crowded group that includes Bub Means, Kevin Austin, Ronnie Bell and Mason Tipton — all players who have seen snaps the last few seasons because of injuries but will have to earn their spot in 2026. NFL teams usually keep 5-6 receivers on the 53-man roster, with some clubs going as far as to keep seven. For New Orleans, one of those spots may be occupied by a return specialist, as it drafted Barion Brown from LSU in the sixth round. Technically a receiver, Brown made his impact on kickoff returns by returning an SEC-record six touchdowns in college. Brown is a logical candidate to be the returner next season, but the Saints have other options rookie cornerback Lorenzo Styles and running back Ty Chandler — there if they want to pivot and free up the roster spot for a more conventional wideout.

In Moore’s ﬁrst season, the Saints ended up keeping eight of their nine draft picks on cutdown day That would be good news for not

Embiid leads 76ers to Game 7 win over Celtics

BY KYLE HIGHTOWER Associated Press

BOSTON Joel Embiid and the Philadelphia 76ers advanced to the Eastern Conference semifinals, beating the Jayson Tatumless Boston Celtics 109-100 on Saturday night to complete the NBA’s 14th comeback from a 3-1 deficit. Embiid finished with 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists. Tyrese Maxey added 30 points, 11 rebounds and seven assists. V.J. Edgecombe finished with 23 points and Paul George had 13. Philadelphia, the No. 7 seed,

will visit No. 3 New York on Monday in Game 1 of the second round.

The Sixers franchise, including its time as Syracuse Nationals, improved to 2-10 all-time in road Game 7s. Their only other win came in 1982 at the Boston Garden.

Jaylen Brown led Boston with 33 points and nine rebounds. Derrick White had 26 points, including ﬁve 3-pointers. Neemias Queta finished with 17 points and 12 rebounds. The Celtics struggled from the 3-point line for the third straight game, ﬁnishing 13 of 49.

Boston Celtics forward Baylor Scheierman defends against Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid during the first half of Game 7 in a first-round series on Saturday in Boston. The 76ers won 109-100 to complete a comeback from 3-1 down.

“It’s the defending champion,” he said. “So, it’s a tall task.”

The Thunder will be plenty rested after ﬁnishing its sweep of Phoenix on Monday night.

Redick credited the leadership of not only James but also fellow veteran Marcus Smart for helping steady his team after the injuries to Doncic and Reaves, who combined to average more than 56 points in the regular season.

“For us to be written off a few weeks ago and to win a playoff series is a big deal,” Redick said. “And it just speaks to the character of our team and the leaders of our team that they didn’t let go of the rope.”

Smart, who is in his ﬁrst season with the Lakers, is so proud of the Lakers for fighting through the injuries to win this series. And he thinks that togetherness will help them as they continue their postseason run.

“It means everything,” he said. “It shows our resilience and it shows the belief that we have our next man up… and it just shows that no matter how depleted we are, we’re always going to go out there and compete and give it everything we got.”

only Brown but also fourth-round-

er Bryce Lance — a 6-foot-3 wideout from North Dakota State who had a strong history of production in the FCS and ran an impressive 4.3 40-yard dash at the scouting combine.

The selections of Lance and Tyson also demonstrate how much the receiving room has changed in the last year Loomis said the Saints’ goal was to get taller at the position, and both players — Tyson is 6-2 — add much-needed size. Before trading for the 6-5 Vele in August, the Saints were set to be one of only two teams in the NFL without a wide receiver taller than 6-3.

Look close enough now, and the receivers have started to resemble a basketball team of all shapes and sizes. But to keep with the basketball analogy, the Saints also have a group that embodies the positionless, one-through-five style that has spread throughout the modern NBA.

Olave, Tyson and Vele have the flexibility to each play the X, Z and slot positions at wide receiver That frees up Moore to keep defenses guessing by mixing up where each player lines up. While some draft analysts have voiced concerns about whether Tyson and Olave are too similar as receivers, there are notable differences between them. Tyson is 2 inches taller and more aggressive at the catch point, which could translate to being better at contested catches. Olave, entering his ﬁfth season, is a polished route runner who wins just as much with his technical footwork as he does with his speed. Tyson, Olave and even Vele have injury concerns. But if they can stay healthy, that’s a trio that complements one another in their differences, while also having enough overlapping traits that can be hard to stop. Just like a basketball team.

WALKER

Continued from page 1C

with the Pelicans. That season was one of only two times in franchise history the Pelicans won a playoff series, sweeping the Portland Trail Blazers in the ﬁrst round before losing to the Golden State Warriors in the second round. Hetzel just ﬁnished his second season as an assistant coach for the Brooklyn Nets. Ham spent the past two seasons as an assistant with the Milwaukee Bucks. Here’s a look at the pros and cons of each candidate: Rondo

Cons: Coaching experience. Rondo has the least coaching experience of any of the four candidates. His only experience has been the past two seasons as a special assistant with the Bucks under Doc Rivers.

Pros: His time as an elite point guard could translate well to being a coach. His leadership during his one season playing for the Pelicans was undeniable. He was pretty much a coach on the ﬂoor Players in the league respect him for what he accomplished in his playing days when he made four All-Star games, one third-team All-NBA selection and won two NBA titles. There has been some precedent for former players, particularly guards, transitioning from player to coach. Jason Kidd, Steve Kerr and JJ Redick adjusted just ﬁne. Oh, and Dumars wants toughness. Rondo could instill that and get the most out of his team. The Pelicans haven’t really had that type of leadership in the locker room since Rondo’s one season in New Orleans.

One more thing: Of the names listed, a Rondo hire is the one that probably ﬁres up the fan base the most.

Hetzel

Cons: Like Rondo, Hetzel never has been a head coach. He isn’t a household name among casual fans, so he won’t ﬁre up the fan base like Rondo would.

Pros: Although he’s never been in the lead chair, he’s been around the NBA since the 2009 season when he started as an assistant video coordinator for Gregg Popovich with the San Antonio Spurs. He’s climbed the ladder from that position to player development coach to assistant. It helps that he spent four seasons in Detroit while Dumars was the Pistons president of basketball operations. That familiarity goes a long way, which is why Dumars still has Hetzel on his radar His climb up

the coaching ranks is similar to that of Phoenix Suns coach Jordan Ott, who also cut his teeth in the NBA as a video coordinator Ott got the Suns to the playoffs in his ﬁrst season. Hetzel is said to be a good motivator

Borrego

Cons: For some, seeing Borrego’s 24-46 record as interim coach this season would be sticking to the status quo.

Pros: The obvious one is Borrego has more head coaching experience than any of the other guys on this list. He spent four seasons as head coach of the Charlotte Hornets. He basically coached a full season this year with the Pelicans (70 games) as an interim coach and also served as an interim coach with the Orlando Magic in the 2014-15 season. Under Borrego, the Pelicans showed signs of the toughness Dumars desires, especially when the team was at full strength. The Pels went 10-5 during a healthy stretch after the All-Star break. It helps that Borrego is familiar with the team, which could make for an easier transition. Especially with him getting to lead the team through a training camp.

Ham

Cons: Ham lasted just two seasons as a head coach with the Los Angeles Lakers. Some say he lost the locker room, and others questioned his X’s and O’s during his time there.

Pros: Ham had success in L.A., leading the Lakers to the Western Conference finals in his first season and to the playoffs again his second season. He went 43-39 in his first season and 47-35 the second season. A former player, Ham got his first NBA coaching gig as an assistant in 2011.

Ham played two seasons for the Detroit Pistons when Dumars was the president of basketball operations there. So that familiarity could help. But Dumars made it clear in his season-ending session with the media that he wouldn’t base his hire on relationships.

“We are going to ﬁgure out what’s best for New Orleans,” Dumars said. “That’s the only thing I’m really concerned about. You can have someone you know for a long time that’s a possible candidate and you have a great relationship with them. But what if they are not good for the players? The idea that you know someone and that makes them a candidate?

“Yeah, that may be good for me personally, but I’m not playing (in the NBA) anymore. You have to ﬁnd out who is right for these 15 guys in that building. That’s the only thing that matters.”

STAFF FILE PHOTO By BRETT DUKE

Saints wide receiver Devaughn Vele catches the ball in a game against the New England Patriots on Oct. 12 at the Caesars Superdome.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ASHLEy LANDIS Los Angeles Lakers center Jaxson Hayes, left, forward LeBron James, right, run back after a basket in Game 6 of a first-round series against the Houston Rockets in Houston on Friday. The Lakers won the game and series.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JIM DAVIS

THE VARSITYZONE

Godfreycomes through

BY CHRISTOPHER DABE Staff writer

SULPHUR Theleast respected hitter in the John Curtis softball lineup came through when it mattered most in astate semiﬁnal.

Mount Carmelintentionally walked abatter to load the bases in the 10th inning to bring up No. 9hitter Brynn Godfrey,who faced a two-strike count and fouled off three pitches on the way to drawing awalk that drove in the decisive run in the Patriots’ 2-1victorySaturday at Frasch Park.

“Nobody thinks that Ican do that, that Ideserve to be out there,” said Godfrey, whose father,Jerry,isthe John Curtis head coach. “I’m just glad to do this for my team.”

Godfrey’swalk let pitcher Makayla Escude returnto the circle with alead for the ﬁrst time. The junior allowed ﬁve hits and walked

two (one intentionally). She allowed onerun on a wild pitch in the first inning but regained control of her chang eup after that.

The winadvanced fourthseeded Curtis— the reigning state champion —toface No 2Pineville in the LHSAA Division Iselect state ﬁnal. Pineville routedNo. 3Chapelle 13-1inthe other semifinal that ended after ﬁve innings. Curtis (21-11) lost agame in the middleofthe season against ateam that walked a batter to get to Godfrey

“At some point, Itoldher, ‘You’regoing to have to do something. Youcan’tjust keep letting people disrespectyou,’ ”Jerry Godfrey said. “For her to go up there and do that, of course I’m proud of herasa dad. But

she did what she was supposed to do.”

Brynn Godfrey,afirst baseman, spent the entire at-bat looking for the right pitch tohit

“I was just looking to stay in theat-bat,trying to ﬁnd a pitch that Iliked,” she said. “Theydidn’tthrow those pitches Iliked so Ijustkept fouling them off.”

The ﬁnal pitch went high foraball.Godfrey pumped her armsand shouted as she ran to ﬁrst base.

“I knewshe was going to geton,”Escude said. “I just felt it in me that she was goingtoget awalk.Asshe kept battling,Iwas like, yeah, we got this.”

Layla Alongidrove in Curtis’ ﬁrst run with asingle in thefourth inning after Tamryn King started the inning with adouble.

Shelbi Alphonsoscored Mount Carmel’sonly run after shereached on an infield single andadvanced

onebase each on apair of groundouts. She scored on a wild pitch.

Paige ReutherofMount Carmel pitched herway out of trouble multiple times. Curtis left14runners on base,10oftheminscoring position.

MountCarmel (23-5) lost asemifinal for the second year in arow “Welosethree seniors that start, but we getpretty much thewhole team back,” Mount Carmel coach CurtisMatthewssaid. “But it’s upsettingfor these kids because theyworktheir tails off.”

With her dad as the coach, Brynn Godfrey has been around softball for as long as she can remember But neverbefore Saturdayhad she come through in sucha moment with two outs in the 10th inning.

ContactChristopherDabe at cdabe@theadvocate.com

Hannan,Hahnville,Riverside roll to ﬁnals

BY CHRISTOPHER DABE Staff writer

SULPHUR Khloe Renton

hit an RBI single in the fifth inning and AvaKulivan pitched into the seventh beforerelieverHunter Connors got the final three outs as No. 3Hannan defeated No. 2E.D. White 1-0 in the Division II select semifinals Saturday at Frasch Park. Hannan kept adisciplined approach against standout pitcher Shelbee Gros, who struck out seven but walked five. The Hawks loaded the bases with two walks and asingle ahead of Renton’s RBI single.

BY DARRELL WILLIAMS Contributing writer

After twodays of rainouts,No. 1-seeded Brother Martin wasanything but rusty, least of allstarting pitcher Blaise Tingstrom, against Alexandria on SaturdayatKirsch-Rooney Stadium

Tingstromthrew anohitter over six innings and the Crusaders backed him with nine hits andﬂawless defenseina10-0 run-rule victory against No. 8Alexandria in theopener of the teams’ Division Iselect quarterﬁnalsseries at Kirsch-Rooney Stadium

“Well, youcan’tdoanythingabout MotherNature,” saidTingstrom,a senior right-hander who is 7-2 this season.“We didn’t do anything Thursday,but Friday we hitthe (batting) cage, andIthrewalittle bit.

“Wehavebeen veryfocused,though.”

Game 2ofthe best-ofthree quarterfinals is at noon Sunday at KirschRooney with athirdgame to follow,ifnecessary.The series winner will play in the semiﬁnals againstthe winnerofthe No.4 St. Thomas More vs. No.5 Rummelseries.

Theno-hitteristhe secondconsecutivefor Brother Martin (32-5). Drake Amedee, who will start Sunday,hurleda no-hitter in the regionals against No 17 Pineville.

“Drake inspired me,” Tingstrom said. “(Alexandria) is avery good team Allthreeofmypitches (fastball, curve, slider) were working well, andI tried to change the eye level against their hitters.”

Pitching six innings because of the 10-runrule, Tingstrom struck out five and walked one, that coming with one out in the sixth.

Nine Trojans were erased on groundouts. He retired the ﬁrst 14 battersbefore hitting CooperRobinson with two outinthe ﬁfth.

Tingstromwas able to relaxand just pound the zone nearly fromthe start. In the bottomofthe ﬁrst, the Crusaders scored four runs on two hits,anerror,awalk and ahit batsman against Trojansjunior Jack Lee, who has committedtoLSU. Leadoff hitter BradyMcCluskeywalked, andthe second hitter, catcher Tyler Durand, was hit by apitch.

Then came perhaps the play of the game. Thirdbaseman Bronson Leaumontpushedaperfect bunt betweenthe mound and thirdfor an infield hit. However,Trojans third basemanTrent Hennesey fielded the ball and, trying to get the ball quickly to first base, threw wide,allowing McCluskey to score andputting runners on secondand third. Colton Eliot followed with asingle, scoringpinch-runnerChancePecoraroand Leaumont for a3-0 lead with no outs. With oneout, Eliot scoredfrom third on Luke Gab’ssacrifice fly to left. “That was akey play,” Alexandria coach Greg Briggs said. “I think we kind of hung our heads and didn’tcompetelike we can “(Tingstrom) obviously is agood pitcher.Hemixed pitches, moved theball around andhepitchedwith good tempo. Ano-hitter that’sembarrassing.” Briggs replaced Lee with K.J. Wright to start the second. Wright, areliever who’d only pitched 92/3 innings thisseason,blanked the Crusaders untilhetired in the fifth, when Brother Martin scored three runs The Crusaders put the finishing touches on the win with athree-run sixth againstreliever Cole McCann. Enteringthe game, Lee hadstruckout 88 batters in 54 innings

“Weare where we are in large part because of (Lee),” Briggs said. “But (Saturday), he just didn’t have it. So we brought in K.J., who can really throw strikes.”

Alexandria (23-10), of District 2-5A, may have another tough time Sunday against Amedee.

“Tingstrom was really efﬁcient in the strike zone, got ahead early,got abunchof ﬁrst-pitchstrikes,” Brother Martin coach Jeff Lupo said. “He threw three pitches for strikes. He was really good.Itall startswiththose guys on the mound, and they’ve been really good the last three weeks.”

“I thought we did agood job of that today.”

Hannanwill play in the final against No. 1Vandebilt Catholic. The two-time reigningstate champs defeated No. 5PatrickTaylor 6-0 in theother semiﬁnal.

Division Inonselect

HAHNVILLE 6, ST.AMANT 4: London Lambert gotthe ﬁnalthree outs after No. 8

“I’m really proud of the kids,” Hannan coach Becky Lambertsaid. “Weworked hard allweek on being very disciplined in the zoneand not swinging outside the zone.

Hahnville broke atie with two runs in thetop of the seventh inning, advancing theTigers.

Adrianna Walton singled, stole second and went to thirdonathrow intothe outﬁeld beforeEmma Jackson bunted for an RBI single.A two-out walk with the bases loaded drove in the other run.

Thewin advanced No.8 Hahnville to face No. 10 Live Oak in the Division Inonselect state ﬁnal.

Hahnville scoredfour runs in thethird inning for a 4-0lead.Jackson singled in a run, followed by Shelby Theriot’sbunt for another run, RyleeVillasenor’ssacriﬁce

fly and Sophie Boudoin’s RBI single.

Division IV select

RIVERSIDE 11, ASCENSION CATHOLIC2: Bayli Melancon homered during aﬁve-run ﬁrst inning and Kamryn Cancienne struck out 14.

Olivia St. Pierre and Jaci Bordelon each doubled in a run before Melancon belted athree-run homerun for a5-0 lead. Leading 5-2 afterfour innings,Riverside scored ﬁve runs in theﬁfth and another in the sixth.

The Rebels, in the state ﬁnal forthe ﬁrst time since winning the title in 2023, will face No. 14 St.Frederickin Sunday’schampionship.

Godfrey

FILE PHOTO By KIRK MECHE

STAFF FILEPHOTO By BRETTDUKE

John Curtis pitcher Makayla Escude delivers againstChapelle on March 24 in Kenner.OnSaturday, Escudeand thePatriots advanced to theDivision Iselect state final witha 2-1win overMount Carmel in 10 innings in Sulphur

OUTDOORS

Threemenhaden bills clearSenatecommittee

BY JOE MACALUSO

Contributing writer

After passing aState House of Representatives vote, three menhaden bills are headed to the State Senate ﬂoor after passage in the SenateNatural Resources Committee last week.

The three House bills HB 757,HB872 andHB 886 —respectivelyseek civil penalties for menhaden operations fishing inside established buffer zones; that all menhaden boats, including the mother boat and smaller vessels, be equipped with tracking devices; and amove demanding public access to the data for the amount of menhadentaken from Louisiana waters.

The latter comes after ahandful of conservation organizations were denied access to what the menhaden industry —two foreignowned companies —and the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries call “harvest data.” Featherinthe cap

Wildlife and Fisheries’ Enforcement Division is thethird such state enforcement agency to earn North American Wildlife Law Enforcement accreditation joining cohorts in Florida and Alabamawith this distinction.

It means Louisiana’s agents complied with more than 70 rigorous,nationally accepted standards speciﬁcally developed for the profession.

“This milestonedemonstrates their dedication to operating at the highest standards in service to the public and the natural resources they protect,”

NAWLEA chairman John Cobb said. Cobb heads Virginia’s Department of Wildlife Resources.

Callingitamilestonefor hisdivision, state enforcement chief StephenClark said, “Our agentsand staff have devoted countlesshours to reviewing, strengthening and modernizing our policies and operations to ensure wemeet the highest national standards.”

Add 238

The annual Boating Lagniappe Dayheldatnine statewidelocationscertified 238boats during last weekend’s events As areminder,boaters born after Jan. 1, 1984,need astate-certified state boating certificate to operate a motorboat powered by aengine/motorin excess of 10 horsepower

Abig step

JosiahShockley and Landon Watts cuttheir ﬁshingteeth ﬁrst in age-group club tournamentsand thencompeted forthe Livingston Parish Bassmasters during their high school days

Today,they stand atop the college bassfishing world afterwinning theStrike KingBassmaster College Series that ended Thursday on Oklahoma’sKerr Reservoir.

Fishing with the Northwestern Stateteam, Shockley andWatts camefrom sixth place after the first round to outweigh the other 188 college teams inthe ﬁeld and earn aspot in the Bassmaster College Championship coming up in late August

Thewinners entered Day 2 with an 18-poundﬁrst-round catch, then added 17 pounds, 12 ounces for a35-12 total.

“Thisisabsolutely one of thebestfeelingsever,” Watts told theBassmaster reporter.“This is something

we have worked for and put in so much time on the water for “Tobeabletodoittoday in such aspecial way and with astyle that is so normal for us, it was awesome.”

They saidthey casta 3/8-ounceblack/blueStrike King jig with aZoom Speed Craw trailer and, “Wehad to dragitsuper, super slow,” Watts said.

Thecommission

Thursday’sWildlife and Fisheries Commission meeting will hear data from the stateShrimpStudy biologiststhen determineopening days forthe springinshore shrimpseason, adecision that has dominated every May meeting for more than 50 years.

The meeting is set to convene at 9:30 a.m. at state Wildlife and Fisheries headquarters on Quail Drive in Baton Rouge.

Comments,please

The Gulf Council is asking for fishermen across theGulffor advice “to gain abetterunderstanding of what’shappening on the water.”

The publication listed items like changes in the Gulf’s ecosystem andany “environmental problems, habitatconcerns, species interactions, changes in the distributionorabundance of ﬁsh, or anyother unusual ecosystempatterns you have observed.”

Theadvisoryindicated the council wantstounderstand how any or all of these issues affect the overall ﬁshery along with businesses and ﬁshing communities

After listening to Louisiana coastal and offshore anglers, it seems major concerns arewith habitat and species interaction, thelatter dealingwith an increased abundanceof

sharks in coastal and deepwater areas and dolphins in coastal andinshore waters.

Youcan submit comments to the“Fisherman Feedback Tool forFishery Ecosystem Issues” link on the Gulf Council’swebsite: gulfcouncil.org

The deadline is May 31.

MONDAY

LA. FINFISH TASK FORCE MEETING: 10 a.m., state Wildlife and Fisheriesheadquarters, 2000 Quail Drive Baton Rouge

MONDAY-TUESDAY

STATECOMMERCIAL FISHING

LICENSES: 9a.m.-3:30 p.m., 1025 TomWatson Road, Lake Charles; Neworrenewal licenses &boat registrations. Also (closed Noon-1 p.m.all venues): 9a.m.-3:30 p.m., Wednesday& Thursday, 200 DullesDrive, Lafayette. Call LDWF (225) 765-2898.

TUESDAY

GULF COUNCILSSS COM-

MITTEEMEETING: 7:3011:30 a.m., virtual meeting to reviewGulf ﬁshery for abundance by species in Gulf of America. Website: gulfcouncil.org

WEDNESDAY

LA. SHRIMP TASK FORCE MEETING: 1p.m., state Wildlife and Fisheriesheadquarters, 2000 Quail Dr., Baton Rouge

ATCHAFALAYA CHAPTER/ QUAILFOREVER CLAYS: 4p.m Bridgeview Gun Club, Port Allen.Individual 5-stand sportingclays shoot &topscorer shootout, food &drink, rafﬂe for Atchafalaya Region Chapter conservation programs. Email: Joseph Guercio: jsguercio1995@gmail.com

WEDNESDAY-SATURDAY NRA AMERICA’SRIFLE CHALLENGE MATCHDIRECTOR

SUMMIT: Camp Atterbury Indiana. Club and range volunteersincomprehensive instruction on safe, efﬁcient &engaging conduct of range competitions. Call NRA Public Affairs (703) 267-3820.

THURSDAY

LA. WILDLIFE& FISHERIES COMMISSION MEETING:

9:30 a.m., Joe Herring Room, state Wildlife and Fisheries headquarters, Quail Drive, Baton Rouge

HUNTINGSEASONS

TURKEY: Area A, through May3;Areas B&C closed. SQUIRRELS: Through May24, statewide, private lands only

AROUND THECORNER

MAY11— RED STICKFLY FISHERS PROGRAM: 7p.m., BluebonnetRegional Library, 9200 BluebonnetBlvd, Baton Rouge.Open to thepublic. Email Brian Roberts: roberts. brian84@gmail.com. Website: rsff.org

MAY14— BUGS &BEERS: 6:30 p.m., Skeeta Hawk Brewing, 455 N. Dorgenois St, NewOrleans. Casual fly tying. Open to public. Email A.J. Rosenbohm: ajrosenbohm@gmail.com. Website: neworleansflyfishers.com MAY14— JUNIOR SOUTHWEST BASSMASTERS MEETING: 7p.m., Seminar Room, Bass ProShops, Denham Springs.Boys&girls agegroup bass tournaments for ages 7-10,

PROVIDED PHOTO

Josiah Shockley, left, andNorthwesternState

dayStrike

with

PROVIDED PHOTO By

is set to close the Lagniappe Stageat 4:55

LIVING

‘I’m at thetop of the

Jazz Fest’s official photographer is hangingitupafter 36 years. He’s as much afixture as theflagpole.

True roots music

It took awhile,but NewOrleans singer RobinBarnesfound her‘LouisianaLove’

BY KEITH SPERA Staff writer

When Robin Barnes was invited to sing during Mayor Helena Moreno’sinauguration Mass in January,she was supposed to go on right beforeIrma Thomas

That sounded great to Barnes —she certainly didn’twant to follow the Soul Queen of New Orleans.

But after arriving at St. Louis Cathedral, she learned the order had been reversed.

“I waslike, ‘No, no. Please don’t. I don’twant to go after Irma,’ ”Barnes recalled recently

Shegathered up her courage and delivered aversion of the traditional hymn “Taste and See”that showcased her bright, clear voice’s full range, from soprano 1down to alto 2.

MORE @ JAZZ FEST INSIDE ä First Friday cubes. Page 10D ONLINE

“I sang my heart out,” Barnes said. “I gaveitmyall.” Afterward, she sat down next to Thomas.

“I said, ‘Did IdoOK, Miss Irma?’ She goes, ‘You did wonderful.’ Andthen I melted.”

Such moments mean alot to Barnes the very deﬁnitionofa workingNew Orleans musician.

For years, she’sbeen aﬁxture atlocal nightclubs, hotellounges,festivals and civic events ranging from District Attorney Jason Williams’ inauguration to the Carnival season greasing of the poles

She’scollected her share of accolades, notthe leastofwhich is beingpainted on aNorth Rampart Street utility boxas part of the Community Visions Unlimited‘s street art project.

“You know you’ve made it,” Barnes joked, “when you become amural in New Orleans on autility box.” Along theway,she crafted acouple of EPs. But her ambitious new “Louisiana Love,” released just in time for festival season, is her first full-length album under her own name.

on Sundayalongside her band, The FiyaBirds. er sup-

Surrounded by aslew of special guests, she showcaseshesup plevoice on originalsongs rangingfrom Cajun and zydeco to R&BtoMardi Gras Indian music.

BY DOUG MacCASH Staff writer

azz Fest photographer Girard Mouton IIIprobably travels around the FairGrounds’ infield more in one day than a racehorse ever did. He crisscrosses fromthe Gentilly stage to the Jazz Tent, andfrom the grandstands to Congo Square, shooting assignment afterassignment as he goes, picture after picture, after picture.

At 72 years old, Mouton could stillleave most folksinthe dust. Buthe’sdecided “to make the wise decision” and call it quits. The tall, slim,ever-smiling, 7th Ward native saidhecouldprobablywork for theJazz Fest producersfor years to come. Buthedoesn’twant to be like oneofthose proathletes or Supreme Court justices who don’t know when togive up.

“I’m at thetop of themountain,” he said, “I don’twant to slideback down or be pushed back down.”

Jazz Fest 2026 will be his last as an employee. He picked this mo-

Mouton talks to Victor Harris, the retired BigChief of the Mandingo Warriors, the Spirit of Fi-yi-yi, during the fourth dayofJazzFest.

ment to leave because of symme-

She’ll sing many of them when she and her band The FiyaBirdsclose out the 2026 New Orleans Jazz &Heritage

“I’ll

be coming to the Fest, and Ithink I’llbring my camera, but it won’t be the same pace.”

GIRARD MOUTON III, on next year’s New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival ä See BARNES, page 7D

try.“I’vebeen shooting JazzFest for 36 years,” he said, “almostexactly half of my life.”Inthat time Mouton estimates that he snapped about24,000photographs on ﬁlm —inthe early days —and 250,000 with adigital camera. Mouton said he was bitten by the

photographybug when,asa sixth grader, he pluckeda camerafrom acarnivalclawmachine.Itwas one of those old box-type cameras with the over andunder lenses. It cost him just 25 cents but would deﬁne the rest of his life.

See MOUTON, page 8D

Mouton started shooting advertisingimages forthe Festin1987 and he’sonly missed four years since.

STAFFPHOTOSBySOPHIAGERMER

NewOrleans Jazz Fest official photographer Girard Mouton III poses in the mediatent during the fourth dayof the festival at the Fair GroundsinNew Orleans. Mouton hasbeen photographing the event for 36 years and is retiring this year as the official photographer

SHELBy URSU NewOrleanssingerRobin Barnes

p.m.

DININGSCENE

For those who really dive in, theNew Orleans Jazz &Heritage Festival can feel like its own season in New Orleans, and it’s short one. But Jazz Fest food liveson throughoutthe year in different ways.

Here’show toget ataste of it when you want to satisfy an offseason cravingorbring a centerpiece dish to the next party, including afew that are now Jazz Fest memories.

Cochon de laitpo-boyfrom Walker’s SouthernStyle BBQ,10828 Hayne Blvd.

The cochon de lait po-boy has become one of the most popular dishes at Jazz Fest. Its vendor, LoveatFirst Bite, has adual identity with its restaurant,a counter-service barbecue joint on the lakefront in New Orleans East.

If you make the trip, it can be asurf-and-turf day with astop at theadjacent Castnet Seafood, the fish market and purveyor of fine po-boys and boiled crawfish.

Creole hot sausagepo-boyfrom Vaucresson Creole Café &Deli, 1800 St. Bernard Ave.

The Vaucressonfamilyhas been serving Creole sausage poboys at Jazz Fest since theﬁrst one in 1970. It was harder to ﬁnd outside of festival season until 2022, then they opened anew deli and cafe at the siteoftheir historicbutcher shop in the7th Ward. Now they’re working withchef BunnyYoung, who has greatly expanded themenu of Creole plate lunches and home-style cooking. Of course the po-boys arealways available, and links are sold to cook at home too. Creole file gumbo from Li’l Dizzy’sCafé, 1500 Esplanade Ave.

This definitive Creole gumbo is served daily at the Baquet family’s restaurant, now amainstay of the Treme in its next generation. The festival dishes trout Baquet (with crabmeat) and trout Dizzy (with shrimp and crawfish) make periodic appearances as specials, and,more rarely,so does the crawfish bisque.

Natchitoches meat pies from Mrs.

Wheat’s Local maker Mrs. Wheat’s ships nationally,with alineup of spicy or mild meat pies,crawﬁsh pies, shrimp and andouille pies, and crab and artichoke pies, in small and large versions. They’re served at afew restaurants, including the Howlin’ Wolf Den (907 S. Peters St.), in the freezer case at some groceries and sold hot at many Louisiana gas station delis. Order at meatpies.com.

Crawfish strudel and more from Cottage Catering, 1536 River Oaks Road, Harahan TheHarahan-based caterer

and bakery has a“festival store” section on its website, offering all of its Jazz Fest dishes in large, party-sized quantities for shipping or pickup, including the incredible crawﬁsh strudel and its white chocolate bread pudding, porkdebris and grits andshrimp and grits. Order through cottagecatering.com.

Crawfish bread from Panaroma Foods

This classicJazz Fest dish is served at the Fair Grounds as a slice of cheesy, meaty stuffed bread. The Marksville-based maker Panaroma Foods will ship whole loaves of crawﬁsh bread,

along with its sausage jalapeño bread and shrimp bread,from itskitchens in centralLouisiana. See nolacrawﬁshbread.com

Rawand charbroiled Lady Nellie oysters at Parleaux Beer Lab,642 Lesseps St The off-bottomoysters at Jazz Fest are beauties, farmedoff Grand Isle by Justin Trosclair.

In addition to raw, this year he added charbroiledoysters, which were plump, full of juice, snapping withchile butter sauce and topped with exceptionally good cheese.

He serves both styleseach Sunday at apop-up at Parleaux Beer Lab, the Bywater’sfamily-friendly taproom andbeergarden. Jama jama combofrom Bennachin Restaurant, 1212 RoyalSt. Jama jama, oneofthe signatureﬂavors of the Congo Squarearea at JazzFest, is a well-seasonedsauteed spinach dishthat’s always on the menu at this homeyAfrican eatery in the French Quarter,along with poulet-fricassee (chicken on astick) and fried plantains, together on its“Jazz Fest comboplate.”

Praline stuffed beignet,crabmeat beignet, pralines, from Loretta’sAuthentic Pralines, 2101 N. RampartSt.; and theFrench Market, 1100 S. Peters St Lorretta’sships orders for itsCreolecandiesaround the

country,and, at its Marigny restaurant andFrench Market stand, the menu includesthe Jazz Fest specialty of stuffedpraline beignets (along with some savory stuffedbeignets notservedat JazzFest). Forshipping seelorettaspralines.com.

Ya-ka-mein from MissLinda Green “Old Sober” is abeefy,brothy remedy in acup, the NewOrleansstreet food classic. Linda Green is the queen of ya-kamein, andapart fromJazz Fest she andher family set up at numerous otherfestivals and hold frequent pop-ups, often at 2304 WashingtonAve.For updates, seefacebook.com/ChefLindaGreen/.

Nell Nolan SOCIETY

Contact: nnolan@theadvocate.com

n Good Sports!

The annual Lark in thePark in City Park changed the festive format for 2026. “Flock to the Field”bannered thefun fundraiser,whichcalled social attention to the more than100 years of athletics in the park andspotlighted “City Park’senduring commitment to health, recreation, and community engagement throughits dynamic athletic programs andfacilities.” Fostered, too, are communitypride and youth development. Hahn Enterprises Inc. was the top sponsor,listed in the Cypress category.Inremainingcategories, sponsoring individuals were Laurie and Paul Sterbcow,Bartand Cherise Farris, and Suzanne and David Purvis. Further support came from Timber and Peggy Floyd, Sheriff Joseph and Lauren Lopinto,and R. Sharkawy and H.S.Pittman family,among many others.

Rebecca Dietz is the CPC (City Park Conservancy) president and CEO. Shestated about the newly formatted Lark, “This year we’re stepping upour game.”

Hundredsheaded to PanAmerican Stadium, on ZacharyTaylor Drive in City Park, for an exciting evening, thatkickedoff withapatron party featuringHufft Marchand Hospitality Group andmusic by Kristin Diable, and thenmoved to the three-hour main event. Attractions included an auction, specialty beverages, local restaurants, liveentertainment, and interactive fun. As concerned thedress code, it wasfeet ﬁrst.Flats, wedges,and sparkly sneakers were encouraged forcomfort(andpracticality) on the turf ﬁeld.

Headliners included “Flock” co-chairs LaurenLopintoand LaceyWatler and their committee, who answered to Beckie Daniel,Kristin Diable, Cheri Gimenez,Annie Harding,Sue Lampton,TaraTheriot Landry,Molly Loubiere, and Cole Louviere.Still others were KatyLovell, Jessica Marasco,Alexis Marceaux,JulieWise Oreck,Meredith Pinkerton,Gayle Reynolds,RhondaSharkawy,Sadie Stewart,BritnyTrahant, and NatashaWilson.

Former and current athletes, coaches, band members, cheerleaders and ofﬁcials formed part of the convivial crowd that commemorated City Park as amajor location for sports. And that’ssomething to cheer about!

n Blackand Gold Gallivanting

Buzzy-ness and business combined in the New Orleans Saints Training Facilityatthe Ochsner Sports Performance Center when the Jefferson Chamber of Commerce presented its Black and Gold Gala. The event, which had CF Industries as thePresenting Sponsor,featured casinogames, apunch wall activation featuringgiftcards for various restaurants and local businesses, andcenterpieces donated by Stern Studio to dress up the doings.

n Madfor hats!

Andfor Paris! Thanks to the annual Mad Hatter’s Luncheon given by theWomen’s Guild of the New OrleansOpera Association,and held in theHiggins Hotel, guests were transported sartorially to theCity of Light. At 11 a.m., the doors opened, the auction action began, and maestro Riccardo Leonida and Linden Uter provided music in the atrium. Yvonne LaFleur and Ella Bartlow (Shine BabyShine) presented the fashion show, and artist Terrance Osborne, Vice Consul General of the French Republic ThibaultBladek, andChevalier of the Academic Palms ChristineLeBlanc judged thehat contest. Excitement was pervasive for thewinners of the chapeau classiﬁcations of Most Beautiful, Most Whimsical, and, as “Best,” Ensemble, Theme, and Group.

Sponsorship camefrom the Robert Weinmann and Angel Wings foundations with thehost Higgins HotelNew Orleans, John Kent Florists, MelHuckabee,The Pioneers, andthe H. LloydHawkins Scenic Studio rating special thanks.

Topappreciation targeted thechairing trio of Rebeccka Coe, Joanne Mantis,and Susan Garic Mitchell.Their committee included committee chairs MaryAnderson and Jeanne McKay,Judith Bonner, Cherry Bordelon, Charlotte Bracey,Margie Breeden, MarylynnCahill,AmyCarbonette Cioll, Constance Cowart Young, MaryJane Daret, Sonya David,TorryDean, Marlene Duronslet, CentrellAlfredEwell, Rachel Givens,and Melissa Gordon. Adding to thelisting were Alice Heuer, Kirsh Kronenberg,Joanna Leopold, Melanie Manzella, Karen Milanese, Becky Moseley, Caroline Nead,Ana Ortega,Michele Parker, Nancy Watts, and Nikki Reed Yearwood. Kate Ferg heads up theWomen’sGuild as president, while James C.“Jay”Gulotta Jr presides over theNOOA.

Further attractions, along with atasty repast, were thefor-purchase bottles of Champagne and rosé donated by Bar Epilogue (in The Rink’sGarden District Book Shop), and the rafﬂe’sdiamond and gold earrings from Friend &Company

The luncheon, the41st one, banners the nameofa choice character from the tales of Alice in Wonderland. At the event, the Mad Hatter wasportrayed by CarlPhyfer, who also acted as master of ceremonies. His costumed cohorts werethe above Sonya David, Rebecca “’Becky” Moseley and Melissa Gordon, respectively as Alice, the Queen of Hearts, and White Rabbit. Margarita Bergen reprised her role as Caterpillar with gusto.

Aﬁnal attraction, amid so many, waseach table’s centerpiece. Plus, they werefor sale. The creativity came in the form of aclear slender vase ﬁlled with black-eyed Susan daisies, pink roses and baby’sbreath, and topped by asmall-brimmed black fedora banded by the luncheon’sthematic blackand-white striped ribbon and accented by asingle red rose. One guest, acenterpiece purchaser,took off her own hat, placed the new fedora on her head, and walked away humming “La VieenRose.”

Thevenue’sspacious layout gave the party pack plenty of room to network, browse, explore 100 auction items (including sports packages, Jazz Fest tickets, and acustom sportscoat by the Magazine Street-located KILBY), andlater, dance. As the featured entertainer for theVIP patron party, T-RaytheViolinist provided the initial music making. More entertainment came from CarlMack Presents. Wine and Southwestrafﬂesproduced in turn one and then two, lucky, andthrilled, winners. Everyone had the opportunity for fortunate feasting, complimentsofFLIKHospitality Group, Drago’s, andNothingBundt Cakes.

Mingling were Jefferson Chamber President Ruth Lawson,U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy,Jefferson Council member Hans Liljeberg and Stacey, Dr Paula Polito, JerryBologna, Ryan and Lizzie Rodrigue,Darrick and Sunni LeBeouf, John and NatalieBarranco, Kacey Hill,TarynGuidryAnderson, Sarintha Stricklin, Gia Llontop, Corey Rosales, AmyBoyle Collins,Ana Begovich, Jenni Daniel,and Olivia Stricklin. For starters. Alongwith the momentum of the gala was that of the music. Beckoning the legions to boogie the night away wasThe Mixed Nuts and their high energy hits.

Maryand RobertLupo, Tania Hahn

PHOTOSByREAGANLAQUE

Richard and LaceyWatler,Lauren and Joseph Lopinto

RebeccaDietz, Paul Sterbcow, LindseyWands

Joeand Cassie Giarrusso

Rebeccka Coe, Joanne Mantis, Susan Garic Mitchell

Seated-Melissa Gordon, VirginiaWeinmann Standing- CarlPhyfer,Becky Moseley

Ellie Mantis, Thibault Bladek

Christine LeBlanc,Kate Ferg,Cindy Paulin

JoeEagan,Paula Polito

PHOTOSKENNy MARTINEZ

Johnnyand JennyDomiano, JerryBologna, Wayne Francingues

Hans and StaceyLiljeberg,Ruth Lawson

Megan and Brian Poole

PHOTOSBy JEFFSTROUT

TRAVEL

BY AMANDAROSA Miami Herald (TNS)

Avintage store next to amatcha cafe next to aromance bookstore across the street from abrewery next to apilates studio. Crisp white walls decorated in murals you’d expect to ﬁnd in Miami’sWynwood ArtDistrict.

For the trend-seeking 20-something-year-olds of Fort Lauderdale, Thrive Art District, acommerce andartshub neardowntown, may be their new oasis.

“Wesay in private alot,‘We need to make Fort Lauderdale cool again,’”said Taymir Terrell, 28, who founded Alma Matcha with friend JessicaBinder,29, and opened their Thrive location last October

“Miami’sgot their thing going,”

Binder said. “Fort Lauderdale has got room for growth, so we want to be apart of that.”

What was once two city blocks of dingy industrial warehouses is now an alluring complex of stores, cafes, artist studios andevent space meant to attract Fort Lauderdale’sburgeoning population of youngprofessionals and South Floridians willing to drive from Miami and West Palm Beach Brothers Jonathan and Abraham Fish, Thrive’sco-founders and developers, said the idea was to bring something different to Fort Lauderdale

“It has to be big enough toreally change an area, to do something that’sreally going to makeadifference,” Jonathan Fish added. “Fort Lauderdale is just perfect because there’ssuch aneed for adestination like this overhere.”

Thrive Art District, about80,000 square feet of mixed-usespace in the Progresso Village area, certainly aims to ﬁll aniche. Tucked in between thehistoric Sistrunk neighborhood, the still under-construction FATVillage development and Flagler Village, aneighborhood popular with young people andfamilies, Thrive is meant to cater to downtown Fort Lauderdale’s

TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER

By ChristopherElliott

evolvingdemographics.

Fort Lauderdale, as Mayor Dean Trantalis boasted during his State of the City address last year,isin themidstofaneconomic “renaissance.” The post-pandemicyears have been deﬁned by areal estate boom, population surge and increase in jobs, especially in and around thedowntown area.Unlikeothermajorcities, downtown Fort Lauderdalehas seen an 83% increase in families with children since 2018, according to datafrom the FortLauderdale Downtown Development Authority

From ‘gross’warehouses

It started with acar ride around town.Years before the pandemic, the Fish brothers weredriving aroundFort Lauderdale looking for agem. They found it in on Fifth Streetand Eighth Avenue,where there was a60-foot-wide right of way “It just has so much opportunity,” Jonathan said. Thebrothers,who used to work in theinsurance industry,then

started approaching owners to purchase the warehouses in 2016, eventually acquiring about 10 buildings. When they presented theideafor theart districttothe FortLauderdale City Commission, “they thought we were dreaming,” Jonathan said. “Now we’re heroes,” Abraham quipped.

City Commissioner Steven Glassman, who represents the area Thrive is located, recalled when the Fish brothers invited him tourthe site sixyears ago, back when it was “really gross.

“I looked at them andsaid, ‘Really?’”Glassman said. “Itwas such ablighted area. Imean, it was just one rag shopafter another,greasy, dirty,derelict.I just couldn’tbelieve what theywere telling me their visionwas, but Ilovepeople with vision.”

The brothers’ vision and passion for the idea is what got Glassman on board. He worked closely with theFish brothers, who invested about $20 million in the project, to get Thrive to theﬁnish line. The

brothers said the city allowed them exceptions to certaincitycodes regarding setbacksinorder to build thedistrict as they intended.

Construction started in 2021. Businessesand artists started moving into the district in 2024. To date, Thrive is hometoabout 35 businesses andart studiosfor about adozen artists, wheremonthly rent startsat$600 forasmallstudio.

Incorporating art into the development was central to the Fish brothers’ vision, they said. Their father was an art dealer who raised his sons around art. But while their father was focused on theold masters, the brothersare more interested in street art and how it evolved from taboo to respected.

“Wealways felt that art is something that really uniﬁes and createssomething special.Whenyou createadistrict, it’s very important thatthere’satheme. What’sunique about the destination?” Abraham said. “Ours, Iwould say,isthe best way of going about it.”

Street art wasthe answer

The Fish brotherssay Thrive is home to, probably,“the largest outdoor gallery in theworld.” They started by inviting muralartists they were fans of to view the space and create aunique piece of art. Soon, other artists from South Florida andaround the world reached out, they said.

“Whenyou take an area that’s blighted, where nothing is really happening, and you activate it with arts andculture,it’sa magnet, Glassman said. “Itcreates an energy.Itjustmakespeople want to be there.”

Boomingbusinesses

WhenSotiria Sourlis came to Thrive foranArt Walk event, she immediately fell in love —with a storefront.

She wasn’talone, Abraham said. Acoupleofpeoplewanted the space forthemselves, but Sourlis andher restaurant GreekSugar got the prize.

“I love the brightness of this particular store. Ilove that it faces the music square where allthe events are. High ceilings,myneighbors, all the art outside, all the culture in the neighborhood,” Sourlis said. “I love my view when Istand here and Isee thetremendous mural in front of me. We’re happytobeapart of the Thrive community.”

Therestaurant alreadyhas repeatcustomers, she said. One fellowGreek woman drove fromDavie, Florida, for ataste of home.

Artist Chris Dyer,who sells customglass artworks, hada similar love-at-ﬁrst-sight story with Thrive. “I drovepastthe neighborhood and Iwas like, ‘Let me do asales pitch,’”herecalled. He contactedthe Fish brothers immediately and moved in last year The demand forspace at Thrive, either forstorefronts,studios or event scheduling, is high, theFish brothers said. Thrive regularly hosts events including art fests, car shows, music performances, yoga classes and other wellnessrelated events.

HamptonInn chargedfor canceled room afterwifehospitalized

My wife and Iwere booked into the Hampton Inn in Great Falls, Montana. On the morning of our trip, she wokeupwitha 102-degree fever anda severe cough.She was later diagnosed with pneumonia andhad to be admitted to the hospital.

Christopher Elliott

Icalled the hotel to cancel the reservation, but the desk clerk told me we’dstill becharged the full $173 because it wasa latecancellation. He said there wasnothinghecould do.

Icalled Hilton’scustomer service line, and arepresentative said the property

would have to handle it. Iasked for the hotel manager,but she wasinameeting.I left my numberbut never heard back. Ilater wrote to Hilton’scorporate offices and even sent acertified letter to Hilton corporate,but no one responded.Ijustwanta refund or acredit for afuture stay.Can youhelp me? —Bill Chellis,Camano Island,Wash I’m sorry to hearabout your wife’sillness, and Ihope she’sfeeling better. Hotels typically have strictcancellation policies —many require 24 hours’ notice or more to avoidpenalties. In your case, Hiltonwas within its rights to charge forthe night.But in the hospitality business, having theright to do somethingand doingthe right

thingare often not the same. Your paper trail shows you did everything you could to get help. Youcalled, you asked for amanager,you appealed to corporate, and you followed up in writing. (By theway,you can ﬁnd the names, numbers and email addresses of the Hilton executives on my consumer advocacy site, Elliott.org.) That’sexactly what consumers should do when they have alegitimate request for an exception to policy Washington Statehas aConsumer Protection Act that broadly prohibits“unfair or deceptive” practices. While it doesn’tspeciﬁ-

cally cover hotel cancellations, it does give consumers alegal avenue if acompany refuses to act in good faith. On afederal level, there’snoblanket law requiring hotels towaive penalties formedical emergencies, but the Federal Trade Commission does monitor businesses formisleading practices.The “may incur charges” wording in Hilton’sown cancellation notice arguably leftthe door open for somediscretion. When Icontacted Hilton, it reviewed your case again. Arepresentative said its front desk agent had correctlyfollowed policy but conﬁrmed that it overlooked

your follow-up requests. Hilton refunded your $173. Your case is agood reminder that policies are not always the ﬁnal word. If you have avalid reason —backed up by documentation —and you politely persist, companies can often bend arule. And when they don’t—well, you know how to ﬁnd me.

Christopher Elliott is the founderofElliott Advocacy,a nonproﬁtorganizationthathelps consumers solvetheirproblems. Email himatchris@elliott.org or get help by contacting himat elliott.org.

MIAMI HERALD/TNS PHOTOByCARL JUSTE The ThriveArt District, an arts and commercialhub in FortLauderdale, Fla., that caters to young professionals,

ARTS &CULTURE

Exhibitlooks at Holocaustsurvivors whoformedclub

Aphotograph from 1952, displayed in asection of the Museum of the SouthernJewish Experience’spermanent galleries, shows agroup of people posing on the front steps of the New Orleans Jewish Community Center

They are members of the New Americans Social Club —European Holocaust survivors who’d made their way to new lives in the American South.

“I remember when Iﬁrst started working here, seeing that and being like, ‘What’sthe New Americans Social Club?’ and putting it in the back of my head,” said Michael Jacobs, collections and exhibits curator.“Acouple of years later,I’m thinking about my next exhibit. Icome back to this photograph, andI’m like, ‘Wow,this would be areally good story.’”

Launching into his research, Jacobs learned that “there really isn’tthat much” recorded about the New Orleans club.

Areferral from KennethHoffman, the museum’sexecutive director, brought Jacobs toJohn Menszer,alocal attorneywho hasbeen interviewing local Holocaust survivors since the 1990s (his mother,Elaine, had been doing so since the 1970s).

That opened up atrove of photos, documents and oral histories, many of which have made their way into the exhibit “Holocaust Survivors in aNew Land: The New Americans Social Club of New Orleans,” on view through the end of the year.Anenlargement of the 1952 club photoison the title wall.

Galvanizingheadlines

Most of the club’searly meetingswere social gatherings and “mainly about becomingnew citizens, learning how to become Americans, historylessons, learning how to speak English,” Jacobs said. “But things really changed in 1961.”

In the news already were accounts of Adolf Eichmann’strial. As the Holocaust’sarchitect, Eichmann had eluded postwar justicebut was arrested in Argentina in 1960. Adisplay in the exhibit shows ads in New Orleans newspapers promoting TV coverage of his trial.

Then soon came the ﬁlm “Exodus,” telling the story of the creation of the state of Israel, due to make alocal premiere at the Civic Theater in New Orleans. George Lincoln Rockwell, leader of the American Nazi Party,announced that he and his followers would picket the opening. Members of the local Jewish community,including Holocaust survivors, organized to disrupt the protest. Rockwell and his followers were arrested by New Orleans police.

The two events combined to galvanize the New Americans So-

cial Club intoformal existence.

“Though theyhad already been socializing together for adecade, now they proudly and ofﬁcially named themselves,” sayswall

textnext to an “Exodus”lobby poster

TheAmericandream

Hurricane Katrina essentially

dissolved the club, but notbefore itsmembers hadovercome the challenges of making new lives in anew place. The exhibittells theirassimilation stories, their strides toward self-sufﬁciency and the close social ties established within their “chosen family.”

Aphotofrom1949 in the exhibit essentially starts the timeline. It shows afamily exiting aDisplacedPersons ship at the Port of New Orleans. “DPs” was newspaper headline shorthand for thenewly arrived. Agreeter is handing the family American ﬂags

Later,thereare reconstructed audio recordings of Yiddish poetry performedatSocial Club parties. Menszer’scontributions are recognizedina display of the

AT AREA MUSEUMS

n At 2p.m. Mondayatthe New Orleans Jazz Museum, therewill be apresentation by SteveRapport, whosework is on viewinthe exhibit “Less is More: The Photographyof SteveRapport.” More: nolajazzmuseum.org.

n The exhibit “Becoming Louisiana: BordersinMotion,” which uses reimaginedhistorical mapstotrace howthe geographic deﬁnition of “Louisiana” evolved in theyears before statehood,opensWednesday at theNous Foundation Gallery,602 ToulouseSt. More: nous-foundation. org. n At 6p.m. Wednesday, theMuseum of theSouthern Jewish Experience hosts a knish-making workshop led by chef Marisa Baggett. More: msje org.

n The Historic NewOrleans Collection will kick off a Courtyard Sessions music

tools—a camera, an audio recorder—heand his mother used in their interviewing, as well as panels thatproﬁle some of the Holocaust survivors they documented, complete with QR codes thattakevisitors to interview transcripts.

The passage to acceptance “wasn’talways perfect,” Jacobs said. A1945 Gallup poll asked if the U.S. should accept more Jewish refugees from Europe. Almost half of the respondents answeredthatthe country should acceptfewer.And there were culturalbarriers within their owncommunity once the DPs hadarrived.

“A lotofthe Jews here in the South were very Reformed. Alot of these Jews aremore Orthodox,” Jacobssaid. “So, of course there would be conﬂicts.

“I could imagine coming down here andseeing allofthe shellﬁsh. And the type of food down here must have been absolutely incredible or shocking to them

“I couldn’timagine just the culture shock,the weather,the people,the scene, everything around them, the sensory overload that theymust have hadhere. And for themstill to succeed—and in opening up dozens of new businessesherethatsupported them andthentheir children— it really is the idea of what we think of as the American dream.”

Dave Walkerfocuses on behindthe-scenes coverage of the region’s many museumshere and at www.themuseumgoer com. Email Daveatdave@ themuseumgoer.com.

PHOTO PROVIDED By MUSEUM OF THE SOUTHERN JEWISHEXPERIENCE

Afamily leaving aDisplaced Persons ship at the Port of NewOrleans receives flagsfrom agreeter in 1949. This photo is at the beginning of the‘Holocaust Survivors in aNew Land’ exhibit.

PHOTO By DAVEWALKER

The exhibit ‘Holocaust Survivors in aNew Land: The NewAmericans Social Club of NewOrleans’ is on view throughthe endofthe year at theNew Orleans Jewish Community Center

BOOKS

Author draws on La. folklore, culture in debut

BY JOY HOLDEN Staff writer

Author Kayla Hardy, who has a doctorate in English specializing in creative writing and African American literature, is a mythology expert and award-winning author and screenwriter Hardy served as an adjunct professor at Binghamton University and is an avid scholar and lover of Black folklore, mythology and Voodoo Her new book, “The Quarter Queen,” is a fantasy novel set in a racially divided, spellbound antebellum New Orleans where alchemists, witch hunters and enslavers all vie for power

At the center is reigning Voodoo queen Marie Laveau and her daughter “Ree,” who is everything her principled mother is not: spoiled and rebellious. But when Ree ﬁnds Marie comatose in the bayou, she must uncover the secrets of her mother’s life in search of a cure. Told in alternating timelines between Ree in 1846 and Marie’s rise to power 25 years earlier, “The Quarter Queen” is a portrait of a mother and a daughter in the throes of racism, magic and resistance. Although from Akron, Ohio, Hardy is inspired by her Louisiana Creole ancestry and familial lineage of root work and magic and she aims to tell diverse-driven horror and dark fantasy stories. This interview has been edited for length and clarity

What inspired you to write “The Quarter Queen?”

I spent my childhood summers in Louisiana, which was a culture shock, like people speaking French and Spanish and being Catholic but also practicing root work. I was like, “How can you do two things at once and really be two things at once?” I think that’s a question that probably stayed on

my mind for forever I grew up and wanted to be a writer, and I think I was always a super fan of Marie Laveau and the uniqueness of Louisiana culture.

At SUNY Binghamton, I was able to hone my skills as a Black folklore researcher, and at that time, I was reading a lot of Zora Neale Hurston and Voodoo rituals. How did you come up with Marie Laveau’s internal conflict of a free woman of color who had power and yet, couldn’t or wouldn’t do something about the enslaved people around her?

Marie Laveau was a female of color and essentially the ﬁrst in her line to be born free. Her mother and grandma were enslaved. There’s different narratives around if they bought their freedom or were released. The book starts with Marie, and

then I build the world around her

Everyone talks about her as the great Voodoo queen and the spectacle around it But I wanted to ask, “What was the interiority of her life like as a free woman of color with all of this power, and what did she do with it?” It’s a narrative about power This is a fantasy with actual magical power, so you can’t just be sipping tea all day

Now we know in a real historical context that even enslaved folks went to Congo Square with free people of color to gather and found a way to keep on keeping on. You ﬁnd a way to turn pain into joy

Modern readers may look at free people of color that were Creole who might get a bad rap, but they didn’t make the system in which they existed. They were born into

it and did not make these rules.

That being said, we’ve always had a way of subverting these rules to carve our own sense of freedom.

I wondered with Marie how this must be on her brain all the time. I just can’t picture how she could ever shut that off with her amount of privilege and power

I wondered if she wanted to ﬁgure out her role in this, if she felt guilt. I think maybe sometimes she would want to put the blinders on, because there’s only so much one can take with seeing those horrors every day How do we still have our own sense of agency?

Your characters are complex and nuanced. How did you develop those layers in your characterization?

It’s a tough thing when you have a dual timeline. And also you need to set up the “why” in the world. You have to also care about Marie enough before she goes into the

coma. We have to get a glimpse of what Ree thinks the problem is. Then Jon the Conjurer is an ideological villain, but he’s hardly the worst person in New Orleans. The problem is a system.

I started with Marie, who is our saint, so we have to have our sinner with Ree. I think the story is full of antiheroes. That’s the commentary on enslavement. We worry about our families, and is it fair to ask somebody to be a mother but also ﬁght for everyone else?

What do you want people to know about this book who may be unfamiliar with Marie Laveau and Voodoo? And what can you say about her faith?

That it is anything but demonic.

The loa (spirits) are here to help guide people in areas between the world and the spiritual world. Voodoo can be a spiritual practice factored alongside Catholicism. I’m not endorsing Voodoo, but I want to illustrate that this was done and continues to be done in this small section of the world.

It’s one of those things I knew going into it about Marie. I didn’t want her faith and practice to be in contention because it’s literally not for many people. She believes in God, but the institution may be corrupt. God is much bigger than four walls.

Anything that is institutionalized has the ability to control or warp us, but that God is bigger than that. It’s funny because there is so much of God in this book. Christ came to the broken, and He may choose the outcasts or someone like Marie.

Email Joy Holden at joy.holden@ theadvocate.com.

13-essay collection recounts segregated New Orleans

BY RIEN FERTEL

Contributing writer

“From the Back of a Bus Named Desire” by Brenda Quant, University of New Orleans Press, 184 pages.

In the late 1950s, while waiting for a late-night bus with her mother 10-year-old Brenda Quant took a ride on the Whites-only swing set at Washington Square. She became, in her words, “the happiest criminal in New Orleans.”

The nearest playground to her childhood home, Bunny Friend Park on Desire Street, was off-limits to her, as were the city’s other 100-plus Whites-only recreation areas. There were only 19 — scattered, dilapidated, heavily policed playgrounds reserved for Black children, so young Brenda was more than happy to oblige her mother’s transgressive encouragement.

She tested each swing, thinking about “the little White behinds that would sit in them the next day,” and, after ﬁnding the perfect seat and swinging “with the intensity of an Olympic athlete,” launched herself into the realm of moral lawlessness

“I became a repeat offender A habitual swing thief,” she writes. “I was never apprehended, and I am reported to be still at large, hiding out somewhere in New Orleans.”

A short, sweet essay on that episode leads off Quant’s debut, “From the Back of a Bus Named Desire.” A collection of memoir and history, the book emerged from a request by her godson, Shawn, for help with a Black History Month homework assignment on the Civil Rights Movement. A

Author Brenda Quant died in 2022, at the age of 75. ‘From the Back of a Bus Named Desire’ is a moving tribute to her city and herself.

lifelong teacher and activist, Quant, née Dyer helped organize several social justice advocacy groups, including the Equal Rights Congress.

Shawn’s homework became her own. She began reminiscing, writing, publishing work that led to the essays that eventually became Quant’s MFA thesis, earning her a degree in creative writing from the University of New Orleans in 2015 at the age of 70. The collection’s 13 essays are straightforward and, at times, sneakily experimental. They are conversational and often quite humorous. The work of a student, yes, but one with a knack for personal storytelling.

Quant’s strongest material follows the narrative track established by that initial homework assignment primarily what she calls the “inside-out world” created by

Jim Crow New Orleans

She writes of being in 10th grade and hearing the venomous anti-integration chants from the self-described cheerleaders who rallied against Ruby Bridges’ enrollment at William Frantz Elementary, located just four blocks from her house.

Quant remembers squeezing through crowds of White passengers to make her way to the rear of the city’s segregated public buses, all the while “denying that any interracial touching was happening.” A plank of varnished wood, simply known as the “screen,” divided White and Black patrons. The system forced riders to relocate the screens themselves, forward and back as passengers ﬁlled and emptied the bus, participating in their own partitioning. It was, she says, “a moveable

evil.”

In the waning years of segregated transportation, a group of her college friends tossed the partition out the window You can almost hear Quant laughing to keep from crying as she writes what happened next. Her friends were all arrested, but not before “some whites boarded the bus, and with no screen did not know where to sit.” When the end of the screen era finally came in 1958, the offending pieces of wood were set ablaze in a terrific bonfire. Reading these essays, one can envision another path for Quant: that of the academic historian. There are longer pieces here on the life of Harry Washington, who, once enslaved by our nation’s first president, in time found freedom in Sierra Leone; another on the legacy of rice cultivation. Although informative and well-written, these essays, set alongside the others, can’t

measure up to the author’s more memoiristic leanings.

More tantalizing is a hybrid essay on geophagy the widespread, though often shunned, practice of eating earth. Quant tells of being a young dirt eater, the shame of salivating after rains for “the thick, musky emanations of wet earth.” Eventually she takes comfort in choupique, that local ﬁsh capable of living in droughtstruck ponds for several days. She prized the taste of this socalled trash ﬁsh, which she likens to “mud on mud, in mud, with a side of mud.”

The collection ends with an exploratory exercise, a series of ekphrases, dramatically composed descriptions of visual art think back to your high school reading of Keats’s “Ode on a Grecian Urn” — originating in an Ancient Greek form of rhetoric. Literally meaning “to speak out,” this is where Quant excels.

There are nods to an aunt’s cherished antique umbrella, a set of furniture handcrafted by her father, a friend’s lush dessert: “Emily’s chocolate cake is the anti-vanilla, a velvety black hole blanketing out sound, subsuming and negating its crystal white ingredients noiselessly, hungrily a comforting eclipse, reassurance that darkness will follow light.”

It’s perhaps ﬁtting that the collection ends with such loving, lyrical personal odes. Quant died in 2022, at the age of 75. “From the Back of a Bus Named Desire” is a moving tribute to her city and herself.

Rien Fertel is the author of four books. He can be reached at rienfertel@gmail.com.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Kayla Hardy, author of ‘The Quarter Queen’

PROVIDED PHOTO

Festival’sLagniappe Stage at 4:55p.m. Sunday

But it took ahealth scare, and a reckoning with ancestral history, to ﬁnally make her own songs and “Louisiana Love” areality ‘A bright light’

The Barnes family goes back many generations in New Orleans. Music runs in the family.

The most prominent example is Barnes’ late cousin Dave Bartholomew,the trumpeter and bandleader who earned his Rock &RollHall of Fameinduction by co-writingand producing themajority of Fats Domino’shits.

“I hope I’m making him proud,” Barnes said.“That’sone of the things I’m always trying to do.”

She’sthe seventh child in her family and the only girl. Her father and brothers are all musicians. But her parents encouraged her to go to school for business instead She double-majoredinmarketing and management, then completed the University of New Orleans’ Master of Business Administration program in ayear and a half. Her businessbackground has come in handy when she reads contracts and mulls marketing strategies.

She understands the importance of professional diversiﬁcation. She has worked as abrand ambassador and launched afitness program called Move Ya Brass. In 2018, she appeared on the shortlived Bravo TV reality show “Southern Charm NewOrleans”alongside close friendand former newscaster Tamica Lee.

But she always knew she wanted to sing, from 6years old on.

She cuts acolorful ﬁgureonstage, often wearing feathered headdresses. Working steadily at hotels and at functions across town, she built afanbase that includes some prominent individuals.

“Robin is abright light,” Moreno said last week. “She radiates kindness,positivity and love.

“I was drawn to hertalentand music years ago, and nowI’m grateful to call her adear friend. Everything that she radiates on stage is exactly who she is as a person, just atrue gem of our city.” Abeautiful partnership

Music has given Barnes much more than aprofessional career

When attending arehearsal at a musician’s“jazz frat,” she brieﬂy met one of his roommates,abass player,and was smitten. She was later told his name was Bob. She spent fruitless hours searching Facebook for “Bob the bass player,” to no avail.

Fast forward acoupleyears. Barnes’ father had served as her bass player since she wassix.As her bookings expanded to headlining three different hotellounges, he decided to retire.Her piano player offered to call in abass player he knew That bass player turnedout to be “Bob,” whose actual name was Pat Casey Barnes wasted no time: “I asked him that night, ‘What are you do-

ingfor the rest of your life?’And he goes, ‘I guessplaying bass with you?’”

Her father,a lifelongmusician, advised her not to date amusician. But six months after Casey joined Barnes’ band, they were acouple. They got married in 2017 andoften performasa duocalledDaLovebirds.

“Wehave two different personalities,” Barnessaid. “I’m very much the business, the go-getter, the marketing. My husband is very laid back, as he would be as abass player.He’sthe backbone, thesupport system.It’sa beautifulpartnership.

Singingninegenerations

One reasonBarneshad never made afullalbum was that she had too many options.

“I hadtoﬁnd my sound. AnyNew Orleanian can perform any type of genre. But that is also confusing when doyou pick which genre you want to do when you can do them all?”

Then,in2022, doctors discovered atumorinher leg. Twoyears later,itwas diagnosed as malignant. The tumor was removedin May 2025, and she continuesto undergo treatment.

Suddenly mortality, andthe notion of racing against time, were real considerations.

For nine-plus generations, the women in her family had passed down recipes and lore by oral tradition, eldest daughter to eldestdaughter But Barnes’ grandmother diedafter Hurricane Katrina, before she’d fully described the family recipes.

“Therewent an entire nine generations of recipes (that in) afamily of cooks, noneofus of my generation know,” Barnessaid. “So Igot to see thedirect impact of loss.”

In thewake of her cancer diagnosis, she startedthinking about how she could possibly explain nine generations of stories to her young daughters? She would do it in song.

And instead of “pushing against” whoshe was as aLouisiananand New Orleanian,she would “dive moreintoitand go deeper.”

She delved intoher family’sgenealogy. Shefound French,Nicaraguan and African roots on her father’s side, Nova Scotian, Irish, Barbadianand African ancestry on her mother’s side. She resolved to “createmyoral traditionofanalbum that flows from the beginning allthe way through theLouisiana tapestryand ends whereweare now, which is NewOrleans.”

The result is “Louisiana Love.” Therecord reveals itself like a drive on Interstate 10 fromLake Charles to New Orleans.

“I think of it as aﬂow down the Mississippi,” Barnessaid. “It’s honing in on what is so beautiful about our culture as awhole. The lineage is something special to pass down to my daughters.

“The more Idove into it, (the more) Ifound myself. Ifound that

pride of being proud of where you come from. My debut album tells the world, ‘This is who Iam. This is where Icome from.’” It takesavillage

She wouldn’tembark on that journey alone. She sought collaborators who were experts in their respective genres: “I stalked half of these people forthree years.”

The album opens and closes with incantations from Big Chief Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes and the North Side Skull andBone Gang. At the Cajun&Zydeco Festival, shecame across three artists on herwish listgathered together fora jam session —Jourdan Thibodeaux, Drake LeBlanc and CedricWatson. She breathlessly explained her recording project, andthey allagreed to be part of it.

“They blessed this album,” Barnes said. “You can hear the joy and authenticity.”

The title song, “Louisiana Love,” is asort of Cajun/pop hybrid. She explainedtoLouis Michot,ofLost Bayou Ramblers, whocontributes ﬁddle, that she wanted it to sound like an anthem of “Louisiana love, from falling in love to just loving where you come from.”

Dwayne Dopsie and Rockin’ Dopsie Jr.spice up the zydeco pop of “Eh Ma Belle.” “That is just ﬁre. That song gets people moving.”

“Don’tGo” tends toward the R&B side of contemporary zydeco. Zydeco artist Rusty Metoyer was originally slated to be on “VaDansé” with Thibodeaux and LeBlanc. Butwhen he heard “Don’tGo,” he requested to be on that track too. HaSizzle and BigFreedia cutup on “Hey Na (Iko Iko),” which updatesthe NewOrleans standard “Iko Iko.” Barnes “wanted to bring the worldwegrew up with, ‘Iko Iko,’ to the new,which is bounce music.”

TheSoul Rebels contribute brass andbeats to theR&B popsong “SawMyBaby.” Ivan Neville’s keyboard funks up “Doctah.”

“A Mother’sLove” is aspokenwordinterlude by poet Sunni Patterson. One keyline is, “Home is notjust where the heart is/But homeisreally where your mama lives.”

Barnes’ two daughters, ages 3and 6, inspired somesongs directly.The ballad “A Creole Lullaby,”withfiddlebyCedric Watson, is exactly what the title implies.

WhenBarneswas diagnosed with cancer,she felt “the fear of (her daughters) never hearing my voice, of (not leavingthem) something that can be passed down to their daughters.” She wanted to “write something that they can (use to) put their babies to bed.”

“A Creole Lullaby,” Barnes says, “sometimes makes me cry when I hear it.”

Herdaughterscontribute to “Dey Say Run,” asweet song of claps and voices that is “an act of inheritance madeaudible.”

Legendary Mardi Gras Indian Big Chief Monk Boudreaux and his grandson, J’wan Boudreaux, appear on “Hands Up.” The video forthe song is ajoyous swirl of Indian feathers and beads.

She recorded Monk Boudreaux at his home while he sewed his Indiansuit.Helooked directly at her and spoke the words, “Get yourself together and show who youare andwhere youcome from to the world/And believe me, you’re the one.”

His words affected Barnes deeply: “Togive me that blessing and to be anativedaughter… it’s usually anative son.”

Just as it took her awhile to ﬁnd Pat Casey,ittook her along timeto ﬁnd“Louisiana Love.” Shecouldn’t be morepleased with it.

“The next album might be different. But this album is me. I am New Orleans. IamLouisiana. These are my roots.”

Email KeithSpera at kspera@ theadvocate.com.

PROVIDED PHOTOByCHANSEyAUGUSTINE

RobinBarnes and her band

performatFrench Quarter Fest 2026.

ConfessionsofaLouisiana hawk-watcher

Iwas walking to our backyard compost pile the other morning when Ispotted asmall gray mound near the sweet olivetree. There were littletufts of this and that —what Itook to be theleavings of amourning dove whohad, it seemed, been quickly lifted fromone worldtothe next. Isuspected one of our neighborhood hawks had enjoyed arecent kill. Red-tailedhawks are common throughout Louisiana, andI often seeone or two on morningwalks down my city street. My days start early,and it’sa habit of mine to scan the sky while Istroll, curious to seeifthe moon is still up.

DannyHeitman AT RANDOM

Idon’t always see the moon, but sometimes, if I’m lucky, I’ll spot a raptor up above thetree line, circlingonwind Ican’tfeel from my lowly vantage point on the sidewalk.He’shunting for breakfast, which must be achallenge for a hawk wholives in the city

My Peterson Field Guide, tattered now fromyears of consulta-

tion,tells me that the red-tailed hawk is acommon creature “of roadsides and woodland edges.” Its favored habitat is “open country, woodlands, prairie groves, mountains, plains, roadsides (and) field edges,” as Peterson putsit. For open country hawk-watching in Louisiana, Ilike best the long drives we take to seein-laws in Acadiana. The flat terrain and wide pastures are aparadise for hawks, and it’s alively thing to see them gliding high above the cows, who don’tlook like they mindthe company Hawks alsoseem to like recently reaped fields wherethe land, empty of everything but stubble, gives

themaclear view of miceand other good things to eat. That autumn timeafter the sugar cane harvest seems like afestive season for hawks in our part of the world. The hawks where Ilive don’t have such grand pickings, but they seem to get by Thereare two parks in my neighborhood andsome open lots the hawks might like.I sawone at the park lastyear eyeing the squirrels. I’vealsoseen themaround my place, which is only half an acre but has enough birds andother wildlife to interest apredatorin searchofa meal. Sometimes, while sipping coffee on the patio,I’ll hearared-tailed hawk nearby

The sound is unmistakable, like akettle shrieking to aboil. The hawk’smost vivid calling card greeted me the other day as Iwas putting away the lawn mower.There, at the base of an oak, wasasingle, large feather the kind of quill big enough fora Founding Father to scribble his thoughts. The pattern of white and tawny bars matched the proﬁle of ared-tail. The feather reminded me that I share my homewith lots of other residents —including many, I’m sure, that I’ll never even see. Email Danny Heitmanat danny@dannyheitman.com.

With tips fromhis dad, who took family photos, and how-to books from the library,Mouton taught himself to shoot. After graduating fromSt. Augustine High School, he receiveda scholarship to the Rochester Institute of Technology in New York, where he studiedphoto lab management.

Before thedigital era, every photorequired chemical processing and printing. So, for the time being, Mouton’s career path was assured. Afterastint studying business at theUniversity of Southern California, Mouton returned home,wherehelanded ajob as acolor lab tech at NASA’s Michoud Assembly Facility

The Space Shuttle Challenger disaster in 1986 staggered thespace industry and cost Mouton his position. Searching for new opportunities, he made contact with the Jazz Fest, who regularly used advertisingphotographers.

He started shootingadvertising images for the Fest in 1987 and he’sonly missed four years since. He sat out twice in the early ’90s, he said,and the festwas cancelled twice due to the COVID pandemic.

Moutonsaid showing the Festivalin its best light is part of the job. People wearing ponchos standing in puddles

isn’t“advantageous for the Festival,” he saidlaughing. He’s also responsible for gettingshots of thesponsors’ boothsand products

Mouton said he learned right away that thephoto pits at the foot of the stages are certainly convenient, but not always optimal, unless you want to be “shooting up the musician’snoses.” It’salsohard to shoot people who move around alot, he said. Plus, he said, it’s tough to shoot

acts that arespreadout across thestage, like theNeville Brothers band usedto be, with Cyril way over to theleft, Aaron and Charles in the middle and Art farto theright. Cyril, he said, could be in sunlight, while Art was in shadow

TheNeville Brothers band is gone now,along with alot of the older acts

The big change over the years, Mouton said, hasbeen the addition of national stars, such as Bruce Springsteen in 2006

and Stevie Nicks this year.They’re necessary to bring in the crowds to pay the bills, he said.There just aren’t enough local musicians with that kind of following. This year,henoted,Lorde didn’t wantany photos.

Mouton said that when he started shooting the Fest, he wasthe only ofﬁcial cameraman.Now there are ﬁve Fest photographers. He said he doesn’tlike the word retirement, because “when you retire, the next thing is you expire,” he said. But anyway, it’snot really retirement, sinceit’sonly two weekends per year

Formuchofhis time with theJazz Fest he’salso worked at Target, ﬁrst in their photo processing department until it went extinct, and later in the loading department.

His timewiththe Fest has been an achievement, he said, and has provided some notoriety.“Iwas in Trader Joe’s and alady stopped me and said, ‘I recognize you from Jazz Fest.’”Truth is, all Jazz Fest regulars know Mouton by sight if not by name. Tramping between tents with hisCanonstrappedover hisneck, he’sasmuch aﬁxture as the ﬂagpole. What’shegoing to do whenthe last weekend in April 2027 rolls around? “I’ll be coming to the Fest,” Mouton said, “and Ithink I’ll bring my camera, but it won’t be the samepace.”

Email Doug MacCash at dmaccash@ theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTOSBySOPHIA GERMER

NewOrleans Jazz Fest official photographerGirard Mouton III snapssome photos during thefourth dayofthe NewOrleans Jazz&HeritageFestival at the Fair Grounds.

Mouton walks the festival groundsduring the fourth dayofJazz Fest.

Dear Heloise: Shoes can develop odors quickly,especially after long days. Asimple solution helped in my house: Isprinklebaking soda inside each shoe before bedtime andlet it sit overnight. Baking soda absorbs moisture and neutralizes odors.Shake it out in the morning,and the difference is noticeable right away After dealing with one too many unpleasant odors, I madethis part of my routine. You can repeat it as needed. —EricW.,in Omaha,Nebraska

Keep theshower flowing

Dear Heloise: Weak water pressure in the shower can make mornings frustrating. Mineral buildup often clogs the tiny holes in the showerhead over time. Iﬁxed mine without replacing anything by doing this: Fill aplastic bag with white vinegar and secure it around the showerhead using arubber band. Let it soak for afew hours or overnight. The vinegar breaks down the buildup and clears the openings. After dealing with uneven spray for months, Itried this andnoticed the difference right away.Remove thebag, run hot water,and wipe the surface clean. The ﬂow should improve almostinstantly —Teresa G in Phoenix,Arizona

Keep icecream scoopable

Dear Heloise: Rock-hard icecream can be tough to serve straight from the freeze, but asimple storage trick keeps it soft enough to scoop. Place the ice cream container inside aresealable plastic bagbefore returning it to the freezer.This helps block out cold air and slows down freezing.

Istarted doing this after bending one too many spoons by trying to dig into frozen dessert. Now the texture stays smooth and scoopable without waiting. It also helps prevent ice crystals from forming on top —asmall change but abig improvement when dessert time rolls around! —Brian C.,in Madison,Wisconsin Send ahint to heloise@heloise. com.

By The Associated Press

Today is Sunday,May 3, the 123rd day of 2026. There are 242 days left in the year

Todayinhistory:

On May 3, 1999, the Bridge Creek-Moore tornado struck the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, causing 41 deaths and nearly 600 injuries; the tornado’stop wind speed of 321 mph was the highest ever recorded on Earth.

Also on this date:

In 1802, Washington, D.C., was incorporated as acity.

In 1937, Margaret Mitchell won the Pulitzer Prize for her novel, “Gone with the Wind.”

In 1948, the Supreme Court, in Shelley v. Kraemer,ruled that covenants prohibiting the sale of real estate to Blacks or members of other racial groups were legally unenforceable.

In 2016, in astunning triumph for apolitical outsider,Donald Trumpall but clinched the Republican presidential nomination with aresounding victory in the Indiana primary.(Trump would defeat Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton in November 2016 for his ﬁrst presidential term.)

In 2021, an elevatedoverpass on aMexico City metro line collapsedonto aroad, killing 26 people and injuring dozens just as asubway train was crossing over the section. At least one car was trapped beneath the rubble.

In 2023, a13-year-old student shot dead nine children and aschool guard at a school in Belgrade, Serbia.

Today’sbirthdays: Singer Frankie Valli is 92. Singer Christopher Cross is 75. Actor Amy Ryan is 58. Actor Bobby Cannavale is 56. Music executive-entrepreneur Damon Dash is 55. Actor Christina Hendricks is 51. Actor Dule Hillis51. Country musician Eric Church is 49. Golfer Brooks Koepka is 36. Country singer Ella Langley is 27. Actor Rachel Zegler is 25.

SELA Board of Directors includes VivianaAldous, Vice

Amy

Secretary JoyDerise, Betty Tedesco,President AshleighCastro,TreasurerDavid Mancina, KarlitaCochran, Jessica

Brewster, StaceySchexnayder.Not pictured is DavidCatherman.

RaisingHopeSoiréeraisesfunds forNAMISELA

The Raising Hope Soirée is one of the largest annual fundraisers for theNational Alliance on Mental Health Southeast Louisiana. This year’sevent included an evening of live jazz, aFood is Art experience, signature cocktails, camaraderie and asilent auction at the Lakehouse in New Orleans. Thefunds raised support free mental health education, advocacy and family support. This year,NAMI SELA honored Virginia Weinmannasthe 2026 Champion of MentalHealth.

JudgeKevin J. Centanni,from left, Sen. Bill Cassidy, Helen Cassidy,Raising Hope Chair Betty Tedesco, NAMI SELA Executive Director Nick Richard and NAMI SELA Treasurer Dave Mancina

Michael and Karen O’Brien, ChampionofHopesponsors of 2026 Raising Hope

Raising Hope ChampionofMental Health Honoree Virginia Weinmann

PHOTOSByCHUCK BILLIOT

NAMI

President

ybarzabal, WhartonMuller, Darlene Cusanza,

Jenkins

Hints from Heloise

FIELDS STORMING THE

‘We’re notsaturated yet’:Louisiana’s localleaders hope foreconomicgains from youth sports complexes

BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer

Last weekendatthe Youngsville SportsComplex near Lafayette,70 teams competed in ayouth baseball tournament, hundreds of people played soccernearby and ESPN trucks were there to broadcast the Conference USA Beach Volleyball Championship games also happening on-site

For Josh Smith, Youngsville’sassistant director of parks and recreation, the level of activity was nothing special.

IDEAS INNOVATION &

“It was aquiet weekend, actually,” he said.

Welcome to the booming world of youth travel sports, which has transformed out-of-the-way areas across Louisiana —likeasugar cane ﬁeld in Youngsville —intocomplexeswithmeticulously maintained playing surfaces, high-techlighting and camera systems, busy concessionsbooths, concert venues and other creaturecomforts for young athletes and their families.

Over thelast dozen years, communities statewide have investedhundreds of millions in facilities in Broussard, Ruston, West Monroe, Baton Rouge, Westwego and other locations as the youth sportsindustry in theUnited States has grown intoa$40 billion annual colossus. Parents with the means to do so spend hundreds or thousands ayear on registration fees,equipment, lessonsand travel in an effort to give their young baseball, soccerorvolleyball players acompetitive edge.

That spending hasmanypolitical andbusiness leaders in Louisianaand nationwide seeing dollar signs.

Over the last 30 years, more than 100 large“destination”-style sports complexeshave been built across theU.S., from Disney’sESPN Wide World of Sports Complex in Florida to the Rocky TopSports World in Tennessee.

ä See COMPLEXES, page 2E

ABOVE: The Conference USA Beach VolleyballChampionship took placeApril23-26 at the youngsville Sports Complex near Lafayette.

PROVIDED PHOTO

BOTTOM: John AlarioJr.,former president of the Louisiana Senate and former speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives, throws abaseball to hisgrandson Maddox Alario, 6, following the dedication ceremony of the newAlarioyouth Sports ComplexonJan. 23 in Westwego.

STAFFFILE PHOTOByCHRIS GRANGER

Statelooks to be at center of newnuclear energy sector

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer

For the past year,former SpaceX

engineer Ben Kellie has been building anuclear power company that will use new technology to provide cleaner and safer energytolarge, industrial users like petrochemical reﬁneries and artiﬁcial intelligence data centers.

Last week, Kellie cametoNew Orleans in search of the kind of deals and ﬁnancing neededtogrow his Los Angeles-based company, Applied Atomics, at the state’s ﬁrst Nuclear Strategy and Supply Chain Summit.

Hosted by Louisiana Economic Development, thetwo-day event at the Windsor Court Hotel brought together more than 200investors,

energy executives, industrial contractors and federal regulators to network, mingle anddiscussall aspectsofanuclearenergy sector that many experts believe is on the cusp of anew era of explosive growth.

“It was impressive to have such abroad-based coalitionofpeople interested in nuclear power in one room with acommon goal,”said Kellie, whose company helped sponsor the event. “I think everybody is trying to ﬁgure out where this is going to go and how we build up overtime.”

Gov. Jeff Landrywants Louisiana to be at the center of whatever that new nuclear energy sectorlooks like.

At aglobal energy conference in March in Houston, Landry unveiled his nuclearenergy strategy for the

state.Itseeks to position Louisiana as ahub for nuclearpower plant fabrication —building the modular components that will make up the next generation of plants. It also calls for expanding existing plants like Waterford3and Riverbend.

At the summit at theWindsor Court, LED began workingthrough thedetails of what it will taketo implement that strategy.

“Wehave200 of themost impressive people in theindustry upstairs,”LED Secretary Susan Bourgeois said ahead of thesummit.“We want feedback and direction from them aboutwhat they need. This will lead to the work planabout building Louisiana out as anuclear leader.”

ä See NUCLEAR, page 2E

PROVIDED

‘Nuclear renaissance’

Attendees at the summit included leaders in energy services and utilities Bernhard Ca pi ta l’ s principal Jeff Jenkins, Entergy Louisiana CEO Phillip May and Turner Industries CEO Stephen Toups, who announced at the summit that his industrial construction company is expanding its nuclear fabricationbusinessinLouisiana. Representatives from major corporations, including Dow,Meta and the venture capital arm of Nippon Steel, were there, too.

Nuclear Regulatory Commission Chair Ho K. Nieh opened the summit with remarks on the Trump administration’spriorities, while David LaCerte, aformer Louisiana secretary of Veterans Affairs who now sits on the Federal Energy Regu-

COMPLEXES

Continued from page1E

Though notonthe same scale as the country’slargest facilities, Louisiana’s sports complexes serve locals throughout the week and tournaments on the weekends, bringing in revenue through rental fees, sponsorships and concessions while boosting local economies by hosting visitors needing meals, lodging and entertainment.Small businesses —from restaurants to T-shirt shops and entertainment centers —have cropped up around the complexes to provide related services.

Though popular,these sites —which are often built with public funds—can be controversial, as some studiesquestiontheir economic benefits and others show thegrowth of travelteams is an unfair advantage for wealthy families.

In Youngsville, Mayor Ken Ritter said the investment in thetown’s complex has paid off by bal anc ing community access with rentals to tournament organizations.

“It definitely put us on the map,” Ritter said. “It’sa huge driver of quality oflife, which has fueled population growth here.”

Tale of 2sportscomplexes

Neighboring cit ies

Youngsvilleand Broussard —both suburbs of Lafayette —showhow sports tourism can spark growth.

On the same day in 2011, residents in both towns voted to implementnew sales taxes that would support their parks and recreation departmentsand raise money to build complexes that would be used by the community and also serve travel tournaments.

The now-121-acre Youngsville facility opened in 2014 on donated sugar cane ﬁelds The 122-acre Broussard Sports Complex debuted three years later,and leaders in both towns say the complexes have fueled dramatic growth.

In Youngsville, the city’s population grew from 11,000 in 2014to over 20,000this year,and many of thenewcomers are regular users of the complex their tax dollars support. On weekends, they share the space with visitors coming from as far away as Japan, China and Venezuela. Combined, the locals and visitors led to 1.5 million visits to the site last year,according to parks and rec data.

Broussard’ssports complex, about 16 minutes northeast, had about1million visits in 2025, generating $21 million in related spendingina town that historically has been ahub for oilindustry-related businesses. The populationhas climbed to about17,000, a

latory Commission, hosted a “ﬁreside chat.”

They were joined by dozens of investors and executives from companies that wantapiece of what Landry in his opening remarks called“theworld’s second nuclear renaissance.”

One attendee was scouting forsites to build what his company says will be a$7 billion facility that turns nuclear wasteintofuelfor nuclear power plants. Another was looking for opportunities for hisLondon-based company, which plans to build small modular nuclear reactors atop offshore platforms.

Kellie is lookingfor asite in New Orleans for atesting and training centerfor Applied Atomics. The facility will house anonnuclear simulator —ascaled-down version ofone of the company’spower plants— that will also be used to train future employees.

“SpaceX didn’treinvent the rocket. Theytook existing rocket technology and modernized it,” Kellie said of Applied Atomics’ business model.“That is whatwe are tryingtodo withnuclear —make it affordable, easier

roughly 30% jump since the complex opened Lafayette’sconvention and visitor’sbureau and its economic developmentagency support bothfacilities, and their operators say there’s enough demand to justify both

“Wepartner with Youngsville becausesome tournaments are too big forany one facility to host,” said Broussard Mayor Ray Bourque.“We understand our economy is bigger than our borders.”

Region’s biggest?

Youngsville and Broussard are some of Louisiana’s ﬁrst big travel sports facilities. Several othershavefollowed suit.

The185-acre Ruston Sports Complex, completed in 2022, notched ahalf-million visits last year and is contributing to the growth of aonce-sleepytown of about22,000 people that will soon be home to the$370 million Radiance Technologies microchip packaging facility andthe state’s ﬁrst Buc-ee’s.

Afew weeks ago,the facility hosted 92 travel baseball teams, which used every available field, according to Matt Cotton, thetown’s parksand recdirector Forfamilies of players who can’t attend every game in person,fancy cameras use artiﬁcial intelligence to track the ball to stream the action online.

About30miles east of Ruston’splaying ﬁelds, the West Monroe Sports &Event Centeropened in 2024 with indoorspace forbasketball, volleyball, pickleball and more. In January,the New Orleans area welcomed the $45 million John Alario Jr.Youth Sports Complex.Leaders of the Westwegofacility, which hosted its ﬁrsttravel tournament in February,are already hopingfor an expansion that would bringdormitory-style rooms for teams.

One of thefacility’sdraws is its proximity to New Orleans.

“When you come here, you get to go onaswamp tour or take aside trip to the French Quarter,” said Jefferson Parish President Cynthia Lee Sheng. “When my kids played travel sports, we were often stuck in agym in themiddle of nowhere with acrappy motel and bad coffee.”

In Baton Rouge, Elite TrainingAcademy opened its indoor sports facility in 2024, and theownersare already planning amassive expansion

Last week,the EastBaton Rouge Parish Metro Council paved the way for atax incentivetosupport theacademy’splan to build what could be the biggest indoor sports in the region. Thebusiness’sinvestors include billionaire Todd Graves, founder of Raising Cane’srestaurants, and Joe

to build using modern software to bring down cost.”

Cleaner, safer?

Landry’s focusonnuclear power aligns withPresident DonaldTrump’sinterests.

The Trump administration has invested billions in nuclear energy and pushed to speed up the regulatory approval processfor new and expanded nuclear power plants.

The movement long predates boththe sitting president and governor.President Barack Obama started paving the wayfor more nuclear power nearlytwo decades ago. And President Joe Biden’s2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and2022 Inﬂation Reduction Act both set aside billions for new nuclear capacity.

At the state level,former Gov.JohnBel Edwards’ Louisiana Climate Action Plan in 2022 included nuclear in the recommendations to meet agoal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2050. In 2023, the Louisiana Public Service Commission unanimously approved adirective to study new nuclear plants in thestate. Driving the interest is de-

mand for power sources that do not emit the greenhouse gassesthatcause extreme weather Environmentalists note that while nuclear power is cleaner in some respects thannatural gas, it is not a truly clean energy source, like wind and solar,and its radioactive waste carries healthand safetyrisks.

Experts say thelatest versions of cooling technology used in the kind of mini power plants generating a lotofthe buzz at themoment —smallmodular reactors that can be deployed behind thefence of large individual users or in energy “parks” that serve agroup of several plants andreﬁneries— are safer than those usedin older plants.

“It’sfundamentally the sametechnology but smaller machines and in the process of making them smaller they have investedininherent or passive safety,” saidMichael Corradini, professor emeritus in the Department of Nuclear Engineeringand Engineering Physics at the University of WisconsinMadison.

Expertsalso point out thateven among the legacy

plants, like Waterford 3and Riverbend, the safety record is good.

“Riverbendand Waterford 3havebeen very well-run plants,” Corradini said. “It’s important to remember also that even withThree Mile Island(thePennsylvania nuclear plant that nearly melted down in 1979), nobody waslost or hurt on-site.”

Chernobyl, the high-proﬁle Russian disaster in 1986, was different. “That was a faulty design,” he said.

Benchstrength

The bigger challenge for widespread deployment of nuclearpower at themomentisthe cost. Nuclear power is expensive to build and the handful of projects in recent years have been built have come in late and over budget.

New designs take timeto demo and scale up. Companies looking to ramp up arelooking forclients and ﬁnancing. AppliedAtomics, which is backed by venture capital,has raised $8 million so far.Itneeds alot more.

“Weneed companies that need green power,” said Leigh D’Angelo, Applied

Atomics chief marketing ofﬁcer.“We need someone to ﬁnance build-out of construction.” Toups, of TurnerIndustries, believes Louisiana’s biggest role in the emerging nuclearsector will be in doing the kind of work his company does —fabricating the modular components that are portable, smallerand can be reassembled on-site forindividual users. “There arehundreds of companies like us that are going to make up this nuclear supply chain …building the stuff, thepipes, the modules, the subassemblies that are going to go in all the nuclear reactors,” he said.

ToupssaidLouisiana’s deep bench strength in industrial construction —seven of the 10 largest industrial construction companiesinthe U.S., including Turner,are basedinthe state— make Louisiana well positioned to build nuclear power plants.

“Ifthere is aboiler maker or apipemakeranywhere in the globe, they came from Louisiana,” he said.

Email Stephanie Riegel at stephanie.riegel@ theadvocate.com.

buidlinga

District is

Burrow, quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals and former LSUstar Lake Charles is also getting in on the act,planning an indoor sports complex on thesite of thedemolished Capital One Tower using $23 millioninCommunity Development Block Grant Disaster Recovery funds. Expenses addup

Despite theoptimism and investmentinyouth sports, some saycomplexoperators need to setrealistic expectations.

Ritter,the Youngsville mayor,saidhis town’sfacility finished lastyear in the red, with $1.6 million in revenue and$3.8 million in expenses.

“Insurance, utilities,repairsand maintenance all addup, so the complexis supported by adedicated sales tax,”hesaid. “Our community made that investmentearly.”

Critics say thegrowthof travel sports —prompting families to spend thousands ayear —excludes low-income kids. There also have been high-proﬁle failures. In Arizona,one of the country’s biggest sportscomplexes the320-acre BellBankPark —filed for bankruptcy in 2023. The site was sold later that year andrebranded Arizona Athletic Grounds.

But in communitieslike Broussard and Youngsville, where the complexes have become part of everyday life, thoseconcerns are far removed

Kristi Comeaux, owner of the custom screen-printing andembroiderybusiness

LDD Concepts in Youngsville, has seen business and personalbeneﬁts from the town’s investment because hercompanymakes shirts andsouvenirs for leagues andteams, andher family members areregulars on gamenights.

“Our sixth grader plays track, softball andsoccerand we’re basically at the complexseveral times aweek,” she said. “Theykeep it clean and safe, so she walks around the place like she owns it.”

Email Rich Collinsatrich. collins@theadvocate.com.

Ritter

Bourque

Toups

STAFF FILE PHOTOByDAVID GRUNFELD

With the TPC Louisiana golf course at rear,a 90-acre swath of land sits along Nicolle Boulevard where plans call for

$20.6million-plus youth sports complex between Avondaleand Marrero. The Louisiana Stadium and Exposition

buildingthe complex, and Jefferson Parish will operate it.

TALKING BUSINESS

ASK THE EXPERTS

Fish fry producer sets growth strategy to boil

BY IANNE SALVOSA Staff writer

Louisiana Fish Fry Products

CEO Joe Tuza says he plans to make the Baton Rouge brand a national player

Tuza is a newcomer to Louisiana and started his role last summer previously working in Richmond, Virginia, for Sauer Brands, best known for Duke’s Mayonnaise.

Tuza sees a parallel between the loyal consumer bases of the 100-year-old condiment brand and the Louisiana Fish Fry Products which was started in 1982 by Tony’s Seafood founder Tony Pizzolato.

The company already has a footprint across the country, with its top-selling ﬁsh fry mix present in 90% of grocery stores in America. Louisiana Fish Fry Products rakes in over $100 million in annual revenue and has more than 200 employees spread across its headquarters and production facility, distribution centers and warehouses.

“Being new here, I had misconceptions about Cajun food,” Tuza said in an interview at the company’s Plank Road headquarters, next door to Tony’s Seafood.

“People will say it’s too spicy, or it’s too complicated, or ‘I wouldn’t even know where to start to make that.’ Part of what we’re trying to do is demystify Cajun food for consumers and making it simpler for them.”

In this week’s Talking Business, Tuza talks reaching new consumers, sales growth and goals as the company’s new leader

This interview has been edited for length and clarity

Can you talk a little bit about the audience you’re trying to reach?

I think the home chef hasn’t gone away There might be more time crunch than they’ve had in the past. One of the pieces that benefit us, particularly, say, a gumbo or

jambalaya is that proteins have become more readily available and easier to manage.

When you start thinking about mom, who’s leaving work at 4 or 5 and trying to ﬁgure out what’s for dinner that night. Because the kids are coming home from school or practice, and she’s like, well, “I have some sausage in the fridge, and I have a rotisserie chicken that I bought. What am I going to do with it?”

Those types of products for us, we call them our bases Those types of products are really quick. You can make products on a Tues-

day night, and you can have a Cajun meal in 30 minutes. That’s who we’re targeting with those types of products. What are some of your other goals and priorities as leader of the company?

It’s critical that we remain a key part of Baton Rouge. It’s critical that we maintain the homeliness that the kind of part of the community that we are and maintain that.

We have employees who have been here for 40 years working here, and so there’s something right going on. My goal is to make sure that I understand what works

Q&A WITH JOE TUZA

LOUISIANA FISH FRy PRODUCTS CEO

in that culture and how we ampli-

fy that going forward. That’s really critical for us. Of course, sales growth is critical. Expansion is critical for us as an organization to survive. It’s a good opportunity for us to bring Cajun to the world. Our competitors aren’t necessarily Cajun companies.

Some of them sell Cajun foods and that we compete against, but not many of them wake up every day like I do and think nothing but Cajun food, and I think that’s what helps differentiate us as well is we as a company are 100% focused on the categories we are in.

What have you noticed among other companies that work in a similar vein, and are there any challenges or certain trends that you all may be experiencing right now?

If you’re running a soft drink business, you know 99% of households are going to buy soft drinks.

If you’re running a crawﬁsh boil company, your opportunity is a little bit more limited. That probably is one of the tougher pieces we’re up against. We do a really good job of the folks who buy us, they buy us a lot and so we will get folks who will buy our products, six, seven, eight, times a year which is a lot for what we sell. How do we get those folks who aren’t buying us in the household ever, any of our products or any of our category to go, “Hmm, I should do something different for dinner tonight What should I do?” What we’re trying to do is offer as many solutions as we can. How are you going to get there?

We have opportunities to get our products in the grocery store and distribution. We have one product that’s in 90% of grocery stores in America. The next product below that is in about 50%.

Just basic fundamentals, if we could get four or five items into 90% of the grocery stores in America instead of just one, that, by itself, is what I would call just sales execution, just getting it in the store, the first part. The other area for us is going to be innovation. We’ve recently launched a number of new items that are that early on are showing great success. We came out with a Cajun Reserve boil, a premium crawfish boil or seafood boil product, came out with some new bases, seafood bisque, jambalaya, and we’re coming out with red beans and rice bases, so people can sometimes make products easily and quickly at home and in under 30 minutes.

Any plans in the near future to increase your team?

As the business grows, we deﬁnitely will. We’ve added a few new roles since I started here

In the last six months, we’ve added some new roles under research and development to be able to make sure we’re creating some really great new products. We’ve added a few sales roles. Today, I went out and walked the plant with our vice president of operations, and tried to say where are our bottlenecks if we were to grow this percent? We’re already having those conversations as to what’s next. We’re adding headcount as needed. We’re looking to see where we can invest as needed, and we’re excited about where the growth is going to come from and how we’re going to get there. We start moving into product lines that we can’t make here, we will use outside manufacturing the order to meet demands, but as of right now, most of which everything we make is made right here.

AROUND THE REGION

Hancock Whitney is venturing into north Mississippi

Newest branch marks bank’s ‘next chapter’

BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer

Hancock Whitney Bank is continuing to expand beyond its traditional Gulf Coast base.

The Gulfport, Mississippi-based bank — which has a major presence in New Orleans is opening a new branch in June in a suburb of Jackson, Mississippi.

The new Flowood ﬁnancial services center, which joins a second Jackson-area location that’s been in operation for less than a decade, is one of only a dozen or so Hancock Whitney branches north of Interstate 20, which cuts across north Louisiana and bisects central Mississippi.

the bank’s area market president, said in a prepared statement.

“We’re growing with purpose to meet the evolving ﬁnancial needs of Mississippians.”

Hancock Whitney’s Greater New Orleans regional director, Liz Heﬂer, said the bank plans to grow by acquisition and continues to evaluate potential transactions.

Like its competitors large and small, Hancock Whitney is navigating challenges and opportunities unique to 2026.

Most of the institution’s nearly 200 locations are clustered near the Gulf Coast in ﬁve states from Texas to Florida.

The planned opening signals the bank’s new focus on a metro area of about 600,000 people that’s less than a three-hour drive from its headquarters but wasn’t part of its footprint for more than a century

“Our planned Flowood ﬁnancial center represents the next chapter in our continued growth across the Jackson metro area,” Leigh Pace,

Hancock County Bank was founded in 1899 in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi. It acquired its New Orleans-based rival Whitney Bank in 2011 and a few years later began its expansion into central Mississippi. Now Hancock Whitney is the largest bank headquartered in the region.

Today, the institution has more than $35 billion in assets, $29 billion in deposits and about 3,600 employees. Roughly a third are located in greater New Orleans, and about half of that team works in Hancock Whitney’s downtown building, 701 Poydras St., the former One Shell Square.

Hancock Whitney declined through a spokesperson to comment on the planned expansion. In an interview last year, however,

Last year, it acquired the Tampa, Florida-based wealth management ﬁrm Sabal Trust Co.

Hefler said the bank has been aiming to grow its market share by adding more consumer accounts, hiring more small-business bankers and growing loans, deposits and fee income in the middle market space, which includes companies with revenues between $50 million and $1 billion.

As of June 30, the most recent date for which ﬁgures are available, Hancock Whitney was the second-largest bank in Louisiana, with a nearly 13% share of the market, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. It has less than 6% of the market in Mississippi, where it is the state’s sixthlargest bank.

Slowly falling interest rates mean lower loan yields but potentially more demand, and uncertainty surrounding commercial real estate — the office market, in particular — could mean credit losses, experts say Regional banks, meanwhile, struggle to compete with the economies of scale buoying their big bank competitors when trying to keep up with expensive technology and fraud prevention costs. In that atmosphere, many banks are prioritizing fee-based income from wealth management and other services.

The new Jackson-area Hancock Whitney branch will offer personal, commercial and small business banking, along with wealth management, lending and other ﬁnancial services.

Staff report

South Louisiana businesses and nonprofit groups recently announced the following promotions, new hires and resignations.

New Orleans

Oscar Carlsson has been appointed to the board of directors of Rep Data, as the market research ﬁrm scales up its investment in Europe following the acquisitions of survey tool ReDem and research platform SightX Based in Stockholm, Carlsson is the founder of Milo Advisory and previously spent more than 20 years at the research technology company Cint.

Chloe Seydel has been hired by Arnaud’s Restaurant to lead the

108-year-old restaurant’s dessert program as head pastry chef. Seydel is a New Orleans native with experience working at the Ace Hotel, Caesars Superdome and Smoothie King Arena.

Baton Rouge

Donald Price has been hired by Stone Pigman Walther Wittmann as special counsel. Price began his career as a plaintiff’s attorney at Dué, Price, Guidry, Piedrahita and Andrews in Baton Rouge and, most recently, worked on regulatory issues and coastal land loss litigation as special counsel for the Louisiana Department of

Natural Resources.

Lindsey Duplessis has been hired by Currency Bank to become its Ascension market president, where she will lead its planned expansion into Ascension Parish.

Duplessis has previously held senior management roles with Renasant Bank and Capital One, where she has focused on commercial lending, business development and long-term client relationships.

The nonproﬁt Better Louisiana announced the addition of seven new members for the ﬁrst quarter of 2026.

They include: Jon Atkinson president and CEO of The Idea Village; James Craven, chief physician executive at FMOL Health; Jeffrey

Goodman, CEO of the Committee of 100 Shreveport-Bossier; Greg Hamer, president of B&G Foods; Andy Kopplin, president and CEO of the Greater New Orleans Foundation; Patrick Moore managing partner and president of Moore Planning Group; Jim Tucker, president and CEO of CommCare Management Corp. and former speaker of the Louisiana House of Representatives.

The board of directors of Women’s Hospital has elected three new ofﬁcers: Janet Olson is chair, Nick Speyrer is chair-elect and Dr Shawn Kleinpeter is secretary/treasurer Across Louisiana

Dr Kanchan Upadhyay, Jenny Anderson and Samantha DeWitt, of the Vernon Oncology Clinic, are now part of the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center network.

The Alexandria-based network will expand the clinics services

with more early detection and supportive care services.

Upadhyay, who has been in practice since 2022, will continue to provide internal medicine, hematology and medical oncology services from the Leesville clinic.

Nancy Credeur has been hired as the director of educational technology for Lafayette Parish school system. Credeur has more than a quartercentury experience as an educator, most recently having been named the LPSS Elementary Principal of the Year for the 2025-26 school year

Do you have personnel changes to share or other ideas for our business coverage? Drop us a line at biztips@theadvocate. com.

Carlsson

Seydel

Upadhyay

Duplessis

STAFF FILE PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

The Gulfport Miss.-based Hancock Whitney Bank which has a major presence in New Orleans, is expanding beyond its traditional Gulf Coast boundary.

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NATION &WORLD

Alaska villageseeks to revive polarbeartourism

BY MARK THIESSEN Associated Press

ANCHORAGE,Alaska Late everysum-

mer,hulking white bears gather outside atiny Alaska Native village on the edge of the continent, far above the ArcticCircle,to feast on whale carcasses left behind by hunters and to wait for the deep cold to freeze the sea.

It’saspectacle that once brought 1,000 or moretourists each year to Kaktovik, the only settlement in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, in a phenomenon sometimes called “last chance tourism” —achance to see magnificent sights and creatures before climate change renders them extinct.

The COVID-19 pandemic and an order from the federal government halting boat tours to see thebears largely ended Kaktovik’spolar bear tourism amid concerns that the tiny village was being overrun by outsiders.

But Kaktovik leaders are now hoping to revive it, saying it could be worth millions to the local economy and give residents another source of income —provided the village can set guidelines that protect its way of life and the bears themselves.

“Wedefinitely see the benefit for tourism,” said Charles Lampe, president of the Kaktovik Inupiat Corp, which owns 144 square miles of land.“The thing is,itcan’tberun like it was before.”

Atinyvillage

As far back as the early 1980s, anyone in Kaktovik with aboat and knowledge of the waters could take afew touristsout to watch the bears as they lumbered across the ﬂat, treeless barrierislands just off the coastortore into the ribs of a bowhead whale left by subsistence hunters.

Tourism in Kaktovik soared in the years after federalofficials declared polar bears athreatened species in 2008.The rapid warming of the Arctic is melting thesea ice that the bears use to hunt seals, and scientists have said that most polar bears could be wiped out by the end

of the century As visitation boomed, the federal government imposed regulations requiring tour operatorstohave permits and insurance, and that began to squeeze locals out of the industry, Lampesaid. Larger outof-town operators moved in, and before long, crowdsoftourists were coming to Kaktovik —avillage of about 250 people—during the sixweek viewing season.

The town’s twohotels andrestaurants lost out on somebusiness when large operators began ﬂying tourists in fromFairbanksorAnchorage for day trips. Locals complainedthattouristsgawkedatthem or traipsed through their yards.

Small plane capacity became an issue, with residents sometimes battling tourists to getonﬂights to or from larger cities formedical appointments, forcing those left stranded in the cities to get expensive hotel rooms for the night.

Renewing tourism, with changes When the pandemic struck, Kaktovik paused visitation.Then

NewOrleans

in 2021, the federal government, which manages polar bears, halted boat tours, mostly over concerns abouthow tourists were affecting bear behavior andoverrunning the town

Alaska Native leadersare now in talkswith the U.S. Fish and WildlifeService to address those concerns and reignitethe industry,perhaps as early as 2027. The agency toldThe Associated Press in astatementthat it’s working with Kaktovik “to ensure that any future opportunities are managed in away that prioritizes visitor safety, resource protection, and communityinput.”

Among the changes Kaktovik leaders wanttosee is alimit on how long aboat can sit in the water near thebears. Toolong, Lampe said, and the bears get used to humans —making for adangerous situation whenbearswanderinto town looking for food.

Duringthe heightofthe tourism boom,itbecame tougher to haze bears out of town, even with thetown’s bear patrol shooting at

themwith nonlethal rounds. The patrol had to kill about three or four bears per year,compared with maybe oneper year before the boom,Lampe said.

“Our safety wasatrisk,”Lampe said. In 2023, a24-year-old woman and her1-year-old sonwere killed in a polar bear attack in Wales,infar western Alaska. It wasthe ﬁrst fatal polar bear attack in nearly 30 years in Alaska, theonly U.S. state hometothe species.

Since the boat tours in Kaktovik were halted, the bears once again seem more fearful of humans, Lampesaid.

Encouragingrespectfulvisits

Polar bear tourism coincides with Kaktovik’ssubsistence whaling season. When acrew lands a whale, it’susually butchered on a nearbybeach. While the communityencourages visitors to watch or even help, some were recording or takingpictures without permission, which is considereddisrespectful, Lampesaid.

Working

bears rest on a beachon abarrier island near Kaktovik, Alaska, on Sept. 18, 2019.

as atwo-orthree-day experience.

Native communities that are ready fortourists “want them to comeand be educated and walk awaywith agreater understanding of ourpeople andour way of life and our culture,” she said. Roger and SoniaMacKertich, of Australia,werelooking forthe best spot on theplanet to view polar bears in the wild when they came to Kaktovik in September 2019. They spent several days in the village, took awalking tour led by an elder and bought souvenirs madebylocal artists, including a hoodie featuring apolar bear For Roger MacKertich, aprofessionalwildlife photographerbased in Sydney, thehighlight wasthe boat tours to see bears roaming on the barrier islands or taking adip in the water.The bears paid them no attention.

“That’snearly as good as it gets,” he said.

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Part of what puts NewOrleans over thetop doesn’t show up in adataset. Walkable neighborhoods, live musicevery night, world-classfood, anda culturalcalendar unlike anywhere elseare notjustamenities.These arethe community features that bringyoung professionals to GreaterNew Orleans andkeeps them here

This report comesasyoung workersacrossthe countryare actively decidingwhere to live.89% of workersaged 20–29say they would relocate fora job if thepay supports theirideal lifestyle,morethan anyother age group.Ifyou know arecent grad weighing theircareer options, pointthemtoWorkNOLA.comfor local job listings andDestinationGNO.com foreverything they need to know about making themovetoGreater NewOrleans.

Turnsout thebestcityinAmerica to startyourcareeralso has thebestsecondline.

Sherry Rupert, CEO of the American Indigenous Tourism Association, suggested that Kaktovik market itself

BY JONAH MEADOWS Staff writer

While large corporations tend to dominate the headlines of business pages, statistics show small businesses serve as the backbone of the American economy

According to the most recent U.S. census data, companies with fewer than 100 employees gener-

ate $11.6 trillion in annual business revenue and account for more than 32% of all jobs at ﬁrms with employees nationwide.

In Louisiana, which had just three companies on last year’s Fortune 1000, such ﬁrms employ an even larger share of the workforce 37.6% of employees and generate $145.7 billion in revenue every year

In honor of National Small Business Week, which kicks off Sunday, we wanted to hear from small business owners across the state. In the latest installment of our occasional One Big Question feature, we asked six business owners “What is the biggest challenge of running your small business?”

IAM CHRISTIAN TUCKER

President and CEO, ILSI Engineering, New Orleans civil engineering ﬁrm

Between the budget shortfalls of the city and Sewerage & Water Board and other various different agencies, it’s a lack of opportunity. Funding is limited, the federal government isn’t spending like they were before and that lack of trickle -down is real. I mean, meaningful opportunity to lead to prime work and to be trusted with projects that match our actual capabilities.

The expertise is here, the experience is here, the past performance is here. What’s missing is the trust from public agencies to put that work in our hands as locals only instead of constantly giving projects to large multinational ﬁrms that depend on small firms like

ONE BIG QUESTION

LAKEISHA ROBICHAUX

CEO, Chief of Minds, Baton Rouge organizational development ﬁrm

Maintaining the visionary role, because oftentimes we tend to want to put our hands in a little bit of everything, so getting out of the day-to-day operations of things can be a challenge. We’ll get a project that I’m very interested in, and I want to jump in and say, “Hey, what’s going on? I think we should do this.”

We have to trust our team to do the work and implement it even though we’re excited about it. You have to be positioned to let that work ﬂow like it’s supposed to ﬂow, so I can make sure we’re getting the revenue the projects that we have great culture across the organization and that the systems are working like they’re supposed to.

GREG AND LISA ROACHE

President and CEO, Gainey’s Concrete, Holden precast concrete manufacturer

zero tolerance for drug and alcohol at our company and after we make them a job offer, they fail the pre-employment drug screen. It’s a really bad problem when you think of all the effort, because everyone gets interviewed three times.

NENETTE GRAY

Founder and CEO, Lemonade Creative Marketing, Baton Rouge marketing ﬁrm

Navigating through uncertainty would be my biggest challenge dealing with the erratic nature of tariffs, the instability of the economy, supply chain disruptions, managing changing client expectations.

Another big one is handling the cash ﬂow crunches while still being able to grow Resiliency is absolutely necessary as an entrepreneur if you want to succeed. Entrepreneurship is not for the faint at heart It’s just absolutely not.

ours to really get the local work done and to understand what’s under the street and what’s under the surface and what’s above it, how to navigate the agencies and how to get real results that keep projects moving forward We live here. We hire here. We invest here. We regenerate dollars here. We’re a part of the tax base. The challenge is not whether small business can do the work, it’s whether we’re given the opportunity to prove it at the level that we know we can deliver

RUSSELL PERRONE

President and owner, Perrone & Sons, New Orleans produce distributor The hardest part is insurance, both auto and wind-hail insurance. You can drive down our streets

and you see billboard after billboard of personal injury attorneys going after trucks.

Every time one of my trucks gets on the road with our name to advertise, we are a target for these lawyers to go after if we’re in an accident. That’s really put a damper on wanting to do business in the state.

We’ve been through the Great Depression, we’ve been through World War II, and each generation has faced their problems, but most of our problems are not related to a particular industry taking advantage of bodily injury payouts.

Every time I wake up with an alert on my phone, I hope it’s not an accident because even a little 5 mph fender bender winds up costing a couple hundred thousand dollars.

Fewindustriesdependonsuchavastarray of raw materialsand high-techproducts, or have such complex business relationshipsamongsuppliers,designers, vendors, or contractorsasthe construction industry

JonesWalker’sConstruction Team helpsclients from across theindustrymanage allofthese moving parts

We understand thecomplexdynamicsbetween —and theuniquepriorities of —industryparticipants andcraft solutionsthatminimizedisputes, managerisks,and help keep projects moving from conception to completion

Ourclients’projectsare equallydiverse andinclude major infrastructure,manufacturing facilities andplants, hospitals, marine facilities,and airports,aswellasthe products andservicesnecessary to complete such facilities

Lisa Roache: The most difficult thing is communication and making sure that everyone is on the same page and aligned. Greg has a lot of ideas. He has more ideas in an hour than most people have in a lifetime. Someone needs to be able to hone those, take them and execute them. If not, it’s chaos in a company

Greg Roache: I’m the president, Lisa is CEO, and we’re husband and wife and we’re 73% owners, so it’s very unique that owners actually can fulﬁll these roles. In order to run a precast plant, we need lots of skilled positions — project managers, estimators, safety plant management, all with strong semi-engineering skills. But then we need unskilled people, too. So, getting quality people into the company is a challenge

LR: Contributing to it is the fact that people can get medical marijuana cards so readily We have a

ALFONZO BOLDEN Co-founder and co-CEO, Cajun Nation Cajun Seasoning Co., Lafayette food producer

Everybody has a seasoning now — everybody — and the biggest challenge has been staying ahead of that. We use a major co-packer in this area, and those same seasoning companies are using the same co-packer

The lead time, at one time, was two weeks. Now, it’s four to ﬁve weeks. So, we’re trying to locate a second co-packer so we don’t have all of our eggs in one basket. That’s been the biggest challenge. Also, as of late, a big challenge is the fuel surcharges impacting our shipping. Recently, it may be up as much as 10%, so it really impacts the bottom line.

Email Jonah Meadows at jonah. meadows@theadvocate.com.

Largecommercialconstruction projects often face disputes over delays, defectivework cost overruns, andsubcontractor failures.For Louisianaproject owners,resolving these conﬂictsisa legal obligation andbusiness strategy.Early planning, contracts, andclaims canturnsetbacksintorecoveryopportunities, protecting investments andstrengthening delivery.

Effective preparationevaluates projectriskand contract structure,since deliverymethods and pricingshaperesponsibility.Indemniﬁcation provisions,schedules,and liquidated damages provideleverage, whilealigned litigationstrategy andearly insurerinvolvementsupport business objectives.Documenting issues, preserving evidence,meeting bond requirements,and presenting supportedclaimsenhance credibility,resolve disputes,and safeguardproject success Jones Walker is proudtohelpleadthe wayfor Louisiana’s construction industry as it navigatesacomplex legal environment.

FILE PHOTO By ANTHONy McAULEy

Small Business Administration chief Isabel Casillas Guzman, left, and Iam Tucker, head of New Orleans engineering firm ISIL, stand on the site of the $1 billion River District project, where Tucker’s firm is prime civil engineering contractor, on July 5, 2024.

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LOUISIANA

BACK AT HOME

First Louisiana patient out of isolation following sickle cell gene therapy

BY MARGARET DELANEY Staff writer

The first patient in Louisiana to re-

ceive genetically edited therapy for sickle cell disease went home this week after months in isolation at Manning Family Children’s Hospital in New Orleans.

Daniel Cressy, 23, is one of many patients in line to receive this treatment for a possible cure for painful, unpre-

dictable chronic condition. Next week, Manning Family Children’s will begin the process of harvesting stem cells from a 14-year-old from Monroe.

Sickle cell disease is a chronic condition that causes intense pain throughout the body, often leading patients to multiple hospitalizations in their lifetime. With new gene editing, doctors hope this will be a “functional cure” for those with sickle cell.

After

surviving

BY MARGARET DELANEY

Staff writer

To Mackenzie Johnson, boredom was the enemy

As a daughter to two basketball coaches and high school counselors in Dry Creek — just outside of DeRidder — she was always at the ready She was 19. She was in school. She was a healthy, ex-college athlete. Then, in the fall of her sophomore year of nursing school at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, she started having unusual

Louisiana consistently ranks among states with the highest sickle cell disease prevalence per capita. About 80 babies are diagnosed each year Medicaid covers care for roughly 3,000 people with the condition, but the total number living with it is unknown, though the state is building a registry In 2023, 1,430 people were hospitalized with sickle cell disease in Louisiana. Sickle cell disease manifests in the ﬁrst year of life, but babies with the condition often appear completely healthy

Most parents only learn their child has the condition after a routine heel prick in the hospital.

That’s because, during infancy, the body still relies on fetal hemoglobin, a type of oxygen-carrying protein that’s produced in the womb.

But, in sickle cell patients, the gene that makes fetal hemoglobin is turned off shortly after infancy Those with

brain bleed, La. patient returns to health care

symptoms: headaches, nausea, vomiting, ear pain and personality changes.

“I just didn’t care about anything,” Johnson said.

On her 20th birthday, when she was home for Thanksgiving, her mother insisted she go to the doctor They went to the ER. Johnson was sent back home that night with a migraine diagnosis. The next morning, she woke up and told her parents there was something wrong.

“My body is shutting down,” she told them. “I can feel it.”

She went back to the hospital and insisted on a scan of her brain. That CT scan showed she had a hemorrhagic stroke, or bleeding in the brain.

The hospitals began to make calls to other programs that could treat Johnson. Dr Cuong Bui, a vneurosurgeon at Ochsner Health, contacted them directly because he thought her brain bleed was something more rare.

One of the more common causes of brain bleeds is an aneurysm,

ä See THERAPY, page 2X ä See BLEED, page 2X

PROVIDED PHOTO

After surviving a dangerous brain bleed while a nursing student, Mackenzie Johnson, right, went on to become a nurse practitioner

At left is her surgeon, Dr Cuong Bui.

STAFF PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

Daniel Cressy Louisiana’s first patient to receive gene therapy for sickle cell disease, leaves Manning Family Children’s Hospital in New Orleans on April 21. Staff members held a small parade for him as he walked from his room and went outside for the first time in weeks.

Psychedelic retreats spring up across the world

Booming business has few safety guardrails

BY MATTHEW PERRONE Associated Press

WASHINGTON Surging interest in the purported beneﬁts of psychedelic drugs has given rise to books, documentaries and conferences dedicated to the mind-altering substances. Now add one more business to the list: psychedelic retreats.

Hundreds of outﬁts across the world are offering multiday trips where attendees pay for drug-assisted experiences claiming to promote psychological healing, personal growth and other beneﬁts.

Many have safety procedures in place, but they still carry “potential for physical, psychological, and interpersonal harms,” researchers who surveyed dozens of retreats wrote in a recent paper in JAMA Network Open.

Currently no psychedelics have been federally approved in the U.S., although that may soon change. On Saturday, President Donald Trump signed an executive order directing the Food and Drug Administration to accelerate reviews of psychedelics that show potential for conditions like post-traumatic stress disorder The order also directs law enforcement agencies to quickly lower restrictions on any psychedelic approved by the FDA.

THERAPY

Continued from page 1X

the chronic condition have a mutation in the hemoglobin gene that makes blood cells stiffen and curve into a crescent shape that easily clots and gets jammed up in their joints, causing intense pain

Dr Benjamin Watkins, a pediatric hematologist-oncologist, came to Manning Family three years ago after participating in early clinical trials of using gene editing to mimic healthy hemoglobin at Emory University. Those trials found a 97% success rate in reducing pain for people with sickle cell disease

Cressy contacted Watkins and the team at Manning Family far before the FDA approved a stem cell gene therapy for sickle cell patients. He was ﬁrst in line for the treatment when the New Orleans hospital started taking patients.

“I really just wanted to be cured so I could ﬂy,” he said He sought treatment so he can get his pilot’s license, which the disease currently prevents him from obtaining. Once he found

BLEED

Continued from page 1X

according to Bui. However, for Johnson, the bleeding was a cerebral cavernoma deep in her brain. The malformation is caused by a cluster of abnormally thinwalled blood vessels.

“It looks like a raspberry, and blood can leak out and ultimately bleed,” Bui said.

The causes of cerebral cavernomas are, by and large, spontaneous and unknown and most patients are asymptomatic until the bleeding causes irritation in the brain. For Johnson, the bleeding caused her to have seizures and some of the leaking blood went into the ﬂuid spaces in her brain.

Johnson was picked up by Acadian Air Med and ﬂown to Ochsner in New Orleans

She was still talking on the ﬂight and remembers mentioning to her mother that she wanted to be an in-ﬂight nurse one day Less than 24 hours after landing, everything got worse.

Johnson stopped breathing while getting her CT scan. Doctors intubated her and put her on life support.

“We were in a ﬁght for my

been used for centuries by Indigenous cultures.

No matter where they operate, experts say there are no industrywide standards or regulations for how participants are screened, prepared or monitored afterward.

could impair their ability to respond in an emergency Important questions when evaluating retreats include: n Do retreat staff have training and equipment to handle a medical emergency?

think it could stop them from attending.

“When you’re really desperate and hoping to access something that you think could help you, there’s an incentive not to be truthful,” McGuire said.

The only drug to come before the FDA thus far, MDMA, was rejected as a PTSD treatment in 2024 due to concerns about its safety and effectiveness

Dr John Krystal, a Yale School of Medicine psychiatrist who has followed the ﬁeld, says psychedelics should be approached as “a serious medical procedure that carries risks that must be carefully managed.”

People who work in the ﬁeld say today’s retreats are far safer than those of prior decades, when psychedelic experiences were almost always conducted underground with few safety precautions

“The sheer visibility of psychedelics has led to more demand for these retreats,” said Brad Burge, who has worked with psychedelic nonproﬁts, drugmakers and retreat operators for nearly 20 years. “That growing market has allowed retreats

out his treatment would be the ﬁrst, “I ﬁgured I should share what it’s actually like so other patients know it’s possible,” he said.

In March 2024, Manning Family Children’s became a treatment center for multiple gene therapies available for sickle cell patients. Then, the process began for Cressy to receive treatment It took the hospital, and Cressy, 18 months to coordinate with Louisiana health insurances to cover the massive bill these therapies front from $2.2 million to $3.1 million depending on the therapy That doesn’t include the hospital stays, chemotherapy and other costs.

The gene therapies for sickle cell disease are intended for the most severe forms of the chronic condition where patients, despite doing everything right, they still stuffer

Patients must be older than 12 and within the last year have had at least two vaso-occlusive events, extremely painful episodes that commonly lead to emergency department visits.

While these treatments are for both young and older adults, the therapy can

life,” Johnson said. “My body was declining really fast.”

Johnson was taken to surgery, where Bui drained the excess blood to relieve the excess pressure in her brain. Her brain bleed was coming from the basal ganglia, a part of the brain that controls motor control, habit formation and emotional processing It’s located in the center of the brain and is difﬁcult to access surgically Bui and his team at Ochsner elected to monitor Johnson’s cavernoma instead of surgically removing the malformation.

“For some reason, unbeknownst to anybody, (the cavernoma) stopped bleeding,” Johnson said. Johnson was on life support for a couple of weeks, in the hospital for a month and home by Christmas.

Since then, Johnson recovered with no issues No more bleeding. No seizures. Instead, she decided to continue life as she had before.

Building back up

Just two weeks after coming home from brain surgery, Johnson began her ﬁrst semester of clinicals at UL nursing school. All the while, she was in occupational and physical therapy four times a week.

to expand their services, hire more medical and coaching staff and take safety more seriously than we’ve ever seen in the past.”

Psychedelic retreats

Virtually all the drugs offered at retreats are illegal under U.S. federal law, including magic mushrooms, ayahuasca, MDMA and LSD.

Retreat companies will not always make that explicit or sometimes claim that they are protected by a rare legal exemption for religious organizations that traditionally use psychedelics.

But only a handful of groups have formally obtained that legal status, including the Native American Church, which uses peyote in its ceremonies.

Some retreats are held in countries that don’t restrict psychedelics, including Peru and Brazil, where ayahuasca a psychedelic brew of Amazonian plants — has

only prevent future damage to the body, not reverse the effects of years with sickle cell, according to Watkins.

Harvesting, editing, healing Cressy’s stem cells were harvested in both August and September and sent to a genetics lab in Scotland, where the stem cells were genetically edited to reset his body’s switch for protection from the searing, unpredictable pain of his chronic disease.

Although there are three types of gene therapy offered at Manning Family Children’s, Cressy’s does not correct his sickle cells. It reverts his genes back to his fetal hemoglobin — before the sickle cell disease switched on.

In early March, Cressy underwent chemotherapy for four days, removing the sickle-celled hemoglobin in his body to make room for the new genetically edited cells While in hospital, the team at Manning Family thawed out his new stem cells, received at -180 degrees Fahrenheit from Scotland, transferred to a syringe and given to Cressy down a tube in his chest.

“It’s the easiest part of the

Before continuing her education, she looked to Bui for advice: Was this a good idea for her recovery? According to Bui, this was exactly what she should be doing.

“The saying ‘use it or you lose it’ applies to the brain just as much as it applies to our physical bodies,” Bui said. “In neuroscience, it’s one thing to take care of the immediate problem, but ultimately, what we do is we hope to restore or preserve function. It’s ultimately about getting back to normal function.”

That encouragement from Bui was what Johnson needed to go full steam ahead.

Despite long hours in therapy where the team at Our Lady of Lourdes retaught her basic motor skills like walking up the stairs, relearning simple math and how to do a puzzle, Johnson graduated nursing school in four years. She did so with honors and with the help of her care team, best friend Heidi Garcia and her boyfriend Jordan Johnson, who drove her places, helped button her shirts, brewed her coffee and folded her laundry

“We were only 20 years old,” Johnson said. “And they were stuck with me, but we got through it.” After graduation, Johnson

“If there is no regulation, what does that mean about the quality of care you’re going to have?” said Joshua White, founder of the Fireside Project, which runs a hotline for people experiencing distress during psychedelic trips. ”I certainly fear that there could be a race to the bottom where there is no liability or accountability.”

Standards vary

With essentially no oversight, potential attendees are on their own when vetting different options.

“It’s really important that somebody interested in a psychedelic retreat do their research, talk to the organizers or facilitators to get more information about what is being offered and how,” said Amy McGuire, a biomedical ethicist at Baylor College of Medicine and co-author of the JAMA Network Open study

McGuire and her colleagues documented a wide range of practices, including some companies offering multiple psychedelic drugs over the course of their retreats.

Many retreats have health professionals on site, but their roles and responsibilities are often vague. In some cases they take psychedelics alongside participants, which

n Is there a hospital nearby and transportation to get there?

n Do staffers spend signiﬁcant time helping participants prepare and process the experience?

Websites that compile user reviews, such as Retreat. guru, are one source for this information.

One of the most important safety steps happens before any retreat begins: screening out people with serious medical conditions who shouldn’t take psychedelics.

More than half the retreats surveyed for the study excluded participants with mental illnesses such as schizophrenia.

“Psychedelic drugs may worsen symptoms of psychotic disorders, such as schizophrenia,” noted Krystal, who was not involved in the research. “It is important that patients are carefully screened to ensure that appropriate patients enter treatment.”

Significantly, all the retreats said they rely on potential customers to truthfully disclose their medical history and health conditions.

That approach carries risks, the authors noted, since people suffering from severe afﬂictions may withhold information if they

Discontinuing medications

Another potentially risky practice: Nearly 90% of the surveyed retreats require or recommend that attendees stop taking certain medications, including antidepressants, before using psychedelics. These so-called “washout periods” ranged from one day to six weeks before the psychedelic experience.

Medical experts say safely tapering off antidepressants like Prozac can take six to 12 weeks and requires professional supervision.

“The patient needs to realize that by going off their medicine they’re at greater risk of recurrence or exacerbation of their symptoms,” said Dr Jeffrey Lieberman, a Columbia University psychiatrist. “They should be monitored regularly to make sure nothing bad happens.” The rationale for halting antidepressants comes from research that combining those drugs with psychedelics may cause excess levels of serotonin, a brain chemical that influences mood, sleep and other functions. But retreat operators may also be trying to make sure the medications don’t dull the intensity of the psychedelic experience, according to McGuire.

a newborn,” Watkins said. “And the side effects of having chemotherapy — hair loss, nausea, mouth sores — gets better as these stem cells grow then start to heal him.”

For now, Cressy is still looking to the skies for his next adventure Before his gene therapy, Cressy applied for his pilot’s license with the Federal Aviation Administration but was denied due to his condition. After his isolation period is finished, he plans to get back to ﬂight training.

process,” Watkins said. “It takes two minutes.”

Then, they watched him.

For weeks or months after receiving new or altered cells, the body has to catch up. Within 24 hours, the genetically edited cells found their way to Cressy’s bone marrow Then, those cells need to ramp up to make all of the white blood cells, red blood cells and platelets he lost during chemotherapy

“These are like greatgreat-great-grandmother cells,” Watkins said. “They divide and replicate and

started as a trauma nurse at Ochsner Lafayette General. Then, years later, as she had reminded her mother, she became an in-ﬂight nurse for Acadian Air Med.

“I ended up flying as a flight nurse for the same helicopter that airlifted me to Ochsner ﬁve or six years ago,” Johnson said. “I transferred probably hundreds of hemorrhagic strokes.”

Not one to stand still for too long, Johnson went back to school after ﬂying for a few years to pursue a masters for nurse practitioner at McNeese University. At the end of her courses, Johnson had to complete specialty hours working with patients.

She gave Bui a call.

“I just thought it would be amazing to learn from the man that saved my life,” Johnson said.

A few days and a four-hour

make more, new cells.”

When the bone marrow cells mature enough, a process that takes about four weeks, the new cells can make their way into the blood stream.

During that time, Cressy was isolated and given medication to control his pain and prevent viruses, bacteria and fungus from infecting is fragile new blood system.

This week, he headed home. He’s still on strict orders to stay away from possible infection.

“It’s kind of like having

drive later, Johnson walked into Ochsner in New Orleans, not as a patient, but as a caregiver

“Seeing her walking back into the clinic in scrubs instead of a hospital gown was definitely one of the more surreal moments that I’ll never forget,” Bui said. “To really stand next to someone in your clinic that you once were standing over their hospital bed, that I now see as a colleague, I think that’s incredibly powerful.”

Johnson spent four days with Bui and his neurosurgery team at Ochsner She was in some of his surgeries. She spoke to families. She even brought her mother and daughter to visit with the team.

“I’m very proud of her and what she’s done. She’s taken a personally bad medical situation. she’s turned one of

Join us on a health journey through 2026 with ‘BEYOND THE SCALE: Addressing Louisiana’s

The FAA confirmed to Cressy that other sickle cell patients who underwent gene therapy were able to ﬂy again. Cressy befriended one of them, creating a brand called “Privileged Pilots.” He has been speaking at aviation and sickle cell events, explaining the process to people who might want to do the same. For now, Cressy is still on isolation while at home and will be continuously monitored by his doctors and team at Manning Family Children’s.

“I want people to see that what was once impossible is possible,” he said. “If I can do it, they can do it.”

the hardest moments of her life to a purpose that’s bigger than herself. As caregivers, you can’t teach that kind of empathy,” Bui said. “Mackenzie has really earned it.” Now 33, Johnson is married to her high school sweetheart, Jordan, and is a nurse practitioner at Bardin Dermatology in DeRidder Despite doctors telling her children wouldn’t be in her future because of the pressure it puts on the body, Johnson has two young children. She still has her cavernoma and revisits Bui and Ochsner every three years for scans.

“I was at the lowest of lows. Now, I’m a nurse practitioner building a house with a third kid on the way,” Johnson said. “I’m trying to get some roots. I’m trying to make a difference in the community that I’m from.”

ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO By JESSIE WARDARSKI

Participants lay face down on the grass on Oct. 15, 2022, during an integration circle at an ayahuasca retreat in Hildale, Utah.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER

Daniel Cressy sits on a hospital bed on July 30 as his blood stem cells are harvested as part of the process to remove sickle cell disease at Manning Family Children’s Hospital in New Orleans. Cressy is back home after being in isolation after the therapy.

EatFit Live Fit

Whenmostpeoplethinkabout menopause,theythinkabout hotﬂashes,nightsweatsor maybeevenmoodswings.

ButwhatI’vebeenhearingmoreand morefromfriends,colleaguesandreaders —issomethingdifferent:“Ijustdon’tfeel likemyself.”

Thatfeelingcanshowupinways thatdon’talwaysseemconnectedat ﬁrst—skinthatsuddenlylookscrepey, jointpain,brainfogorrestlesssleep. Youmightnoticechangesinweightor muscletone,orevenshiftsincholesterol levelsdespitenochangestoyourdietor exerciseroutine

What’sbehindit?Often,itcomesback toestrogen.

“Wehaveestrogenreceptorsalloverour body—brain,skin,heartandmuscle,”says ElizabethLapeyre,M.D.,aboard-certiﬁed OB/GYNatOchsnerHealthandmedical directoroftheMenopauseandWomen’s WellnessCenteratOchsnerBaptist.“So whenestrogenlevelsstartdipping,that’s whenwestartnoticingchangesinso manyaspectsofourwellbeing.”

This“head-to-toe”effectisoneofthe mostoverlookedpartsofmenopause.It’s literallyasystem-wideshift.

Takethebrain.Manywomendescribe walkingintoaroomandforgettingwhy they’rethere,orstrugglingtoﬁndwords mid-sentence.That’snotimagined.“There arethreetimesinyourlifewhenyour brainchanges:puberty,pregnancyand perimenopauseormenopause,”said Dr.Lapeyre.“It’snotpermanent,but that’swhywomenstarthavingthese cognitivechanges.”

Sleepoftenunravelsatthesame time,whetherfromnightsweatsor simplywakinginthemiddleofthenight andnotbeingabletofallbackasleep. Andoncesleepisoff,everythingelse

follows:energy,appetite,mood andevenmetabolism.

Bodycompositionshifts,too.As estrogendeclines,maintaininglean musclebecomesmorechallenging. Thatcanshowupasagradual lossofstrength,moreabdominal weightgainandchangesinhow yourbodyrespondstothesame routinethatusedtowork.

Evencholesterolcanchange. Estrogenhasaprotectiveeffecton cardiovascularhealth,andwhenit declines,LDLcanstarttorise.

Andthenthere’sskin.Collagen productiondropsquickly.Womencan loseupto50%oftheircollageninthe firstfiveyearsaftermenopause.Skincan feelthinner,drierandmorefragilealmost overnight.It’soneofthemorevisible— andsurprising—signsthatsomething significantisshifting.

That’salsowhereagrowingquestion comesin:Whataboutusingestrogen directlyontheskin?

Topicalestrogenforfacialskinhas beenstudiedfordecades,withsome datasuggestingimprovementsinskin thickness,hydrationandelasticity.

“It’simportanttonotethatnotevery symptomisgoingtobehormonerelated,”saidDr.Lapeyre.“Therecanbe overlapwiththingslikethyroidissues, sleepproblemsorstress—buttoooften, womenaretoldeverythingis‘normal’

withoutreallydiggingdeeperintowhat’s goingon.”

Partofthehesitationaroundtreatment comesfromoutdatedfearsabout hormonetherapy.

“Alotoftheconcernaround hormonescomesfromolderstudies thatwenowunderstandwereﬂawed,” saidDr.Lapeyre.“Thewaywethinkabout hormonetherapytodayismuchmore nuancedandmuchmoreindividualized. Andnowweknowthat,formostwomen, hormonereplacementtherapyissafe, whichisabigshiftfromwhatweused tothink.Anditdoesimprovemany ofthesehormone-relatedissuesthat womenareexperiencing.”

Hormonetherapycanincludeestrogen, progesteroneand,insomecases, testosterone.Eachonehasaspeciﬁcrole, andthetreatmentscanbelife-changing.

MollyKimball,RD,CSSD,isaregistereddietitian withOchsnerHealthandfounderofOchsner’sEatFit nonproﬁtinitiative.Formorewellnesscontent,tuneinto Molly’spodcast,FUELEDWellness+Nutrition,andfollow @MollykimballRDand@EatFitOchsneronsocialmedia. Emailnutrition@ochsner.orgtoconnectwithMollyor scheduleaconsultwithherteam.

ManyFDA-approvedoptionsare bioidenticalhormones,meaning theyarechemicallyidenticalto whatyourbodyproduces.That’s differentfromcompounded hormones,whicharecustommixedandnotFDA-regulated animportantdistinctionwhenit comestoconsistencyandsafety Withinthatconversation, testosteroneisoneoftheareas gettingmoreattention—andoften confusion.Whileitmayhelpwith energyandlibidoinsomecases,it’s notwithoutrisk.

“Testosteronetherapyinwomenisa bitofthewildwest,”Dr.Lapeyrenoted, emphasizingtheimportanceofcareful dosingandmonitoring.Sideeffects canincludeacne,oilyskin,enlarged pores,facialhairandmoodchanges likeirritabilityoraggression,whichcan improveifdosingisadjustedorstopped Othersideeffects,likeadeepeningof thevoicewhentoomuchtestosteroneis given,arenotreversible.

Thebottomline:Ifsomethingfeelsoff it’sworthpayingattention.

Thisstageoflifeisn’tsomethingyou simplyhavetoendure.Itshapeshowyou feeleachday—yourenergy,yourfocus, yourrelationships,andhowyoushowup forthepeoplearoundyou.Withevolving scienceandmoretreatmentoptions available,it’sworthhavingaconversation withyourdoctoraboutwhatmightbe rightforyou.

Foradeeperunderstandingofwhat’s happeningduringmenopauseandhow tonavigatethephysicalandcognitive changes,listentothefullconversation withDr.ElizabethLapeyreontheFUELED Wellness+Nutritionpodcast,available nowwhereveryougetyourpodcasts.

Cholesterolguidelinesaffectpatientsasyoung as 9

BY KARL HILLE

The Baltimore Sun (TNS)

BALTIMORE Updated for the ﬁrst time in six years, clinical guidelines for screening and managing cholesterol now recommend earlier screenings —asyoung as 9years old —for those with afamilyhistoryofheartdisease, among other standards of care.

“Shifting the paradigm toward proactive prevention strategies earlier in life can meaningfullychange the trajectory of cardiovascular disease and lead to better

healthoutcomes forpeople decades later,” Johns Hopkins cardiologist SethMartin,amember of the guidelinewriting committee, said in astatement on the Hopkins website Introduced at theAmerican College of Cardiology’s annualScientificSession in NewOrleans on March 28, the guidelines includea new frameworktohelpdoctors calculate personalized risk assessmentsconsidering each patient’sunderlying conditions. These can include afamily historyof congestedarteries,arthritis,

In2024, 14.8% of Louisianans avoided or delayedneeded health care due to cost according to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Avoiding or delaying neededhealth care has been associated with increasedpreventable hospitalizations and missed opportunities to prevent disease and managechronic conditions, all of which can lead to worse and more expensivehealth outcomes.

Health care prices are higherinthe United States than in other countries. In 2024, U.S. health care spending grew 7.2%, reaching $5.3 trillion —that’s$15,474 per person.

On average, 11.5% of Americanadultscould notsee their doctor due to cost withinthe past 12 months. Louisiana had the sixth-highest percentageofadults whodid not seek caredue to health care expenses.

According to America’sHealth Rankings analysis, the prevalence of avoiding caredue to cost is higher among:

n Women compared with men

n Adults ages 18 to 44 have aprevalence more than four times higher than adults age65 and older

n Hispanic,American Indian/AlaskaNative andHawaiian/PacificIslander adults compared

early menopause, and several pregnancy-related issues like preeclampsia or gestational diabetes. The guidelines alsoencourage shared decision-making between doctors and patients and emphasize reducing blood levels of low-density lipoproteins, or bad cholesterol, andotherfatsand lipids at earlier ages

“Weknow that lower LDL cholesterollevels are better when it comes to reducingthe risk of heartattacks, strokesand congestive heart failure,” Johns Hopkins Dr RogerS.Blumenthal, chair

withAsianand white adults.

n LGBTQ+ adults comparedwith straight adults.

n Adults whohavenot servedinthe U.S. armedforces comparedwith adults whohave served.

Additionally,75% of adults ages 18 to 64 whowereuninsured in 2025 saidtheyskipped or postponed gettingneeded health care in the past year due to costs, compared with 37% of adultswith health insurance. Even among those withhealth insurance, many adults are underinsured, meaning their coveragedoesn’t allowaffordable accesstohealth care.

These states had the lowest percentageof adultswho avoided health care needs due to cost in 2024, in ascendingorder:

n Hawaii with 6.4%; n Vermont with 7.9%; n Iowa with 8%; n Massachusetts with 8.1%; n NorthDakota with 8.2%; n NewHampshire with 8.6%; n SouthDakota with 8.9%; n Maine with 9.2%

of the guideline writing committee, said in thestatement. “Wealsoknowthat bringing elevated lipids and blood pressure down in young adults supports optimal heartand vascular health throughout aperson’slife.”

The guidelines were jointly published in theJournal of the AmericanCollege of Cardiology andCirculation on March 13. They come at atime when one in 10 American adults has tested positivefor high blood cholesterol, accordingtothe Centers for Disease Control andPreven-

tion. Specialists believe the actualnumberofpatients suffering from high cholesterol might be one in four adults. High blood cholesterol increases the risk of narrowing or hardening of the arteries, blocking blood ﬂow,and increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. Blumenthal said 80% to 90% of apatient’srisk depends on habitsthatcan be changed to support hearthealthy living and keep cholesterollevelswithin a normal range. These include eating aheart-healthy diet, engaginginregular,brisk

physical activity,avoiding tobacco,getting enough sleep and maintaining ahealthy weight. He said focusing on lifestyle interventions should be aﬁrst or foundationalapproach.

In addition to screening children witha family history of heart disease, the guideline recommends that everyone get aone-time screening forlipoprotein(a), which can reveal genetic factors that increase individual risk forheartdiseaseby40% or more. Additional testing can help doctors reﬁne care for each patient.

BROUGH TT OY OU BY

Molly Kimball RD,CSSD

Honoring Our DedicatedNurses

BlaineG.,RN | NewOrleans

ThisNursesWeek,wecelebratenotonlythecompassionanddedication thatdefinenursingtoday,buttheboldvisionshapingitstomorrow.From cutting-edgetechnologyandadvancedpracticeleadershiptoinnovative patientadvocacyandcommunityimpact,thefutureofnursingisbrighter thanever.

Acrossourhospitals,clinics,classroomsandcommunities,Ochsnernurses areleadingchange,drivingaccesstocare,providingextraordinarypatient experiencesandredefiningwhat’spossibleindeliveringthehighest qualitycare.

Thisweekwehonoryou–yourvoice,yourpurposeandthepromising futureyou’recreatingforyourself,ourpatientsandtheprofession.

Cultivating community

BY CATHERINE S. COMEAUX

Contributing writer

Lafayette’sGrande Dame de MahJongg, Pat Link, is experiencinga peak inpopularity,just like the strategic tile game she loves.

At 92, in what she calls her third era of life (teachingand tour organizing were her ﬁrst two), she has turnedher homeintoa Mah Jongg parlorwhere shewelcomes players, up to six times aweek, to clack tiles and enjoy the comradery that forms around the tables

The game has multiple accepted spellings, but Link teaches and plays bythe rules of the National Mah Jongg League, which uses “Mah Jongg.”

On arecent gameday,Linkwelcomed newplayers to learn more about the game that is played obsessively by its adorers. With coiffed hair,full makeup and anaura of calm concentration, she presided over her Vegas-style automated table in aback room of her home

The‘Grande Dame de Mah Jongg’ in Acadiana shares

joyin tabletop game

Clarksdale andhome

By the timeyou read this, I should be on the last day of my canoe trip downpart of the Mississippi River —that is, if the good Lord is willing and the creek don’trise, as my mom would say These days, Ilive closer to the Mississippi River than Iever have —less than amile, as the crow ﬂies. And yet, forall that proximity,this will be my ﬁrst timepaddling it.

Our all-female crew plans to put in at Clarksdale, Mississippi, and head south. We aren’tsure yet where we’ll be getting out —it depends on the current and our strong backs.

The Father of Rivers has deﬁned so much of my life. Living my childhood in Mississippi and much of my adulthood in Louisiana, I’ve thought of the river itself as abridge from one state to the other

The river shaped the lives of those whocame before me, too including my great-great-grandfather,who came to NewOrleans from Liverpool, England, then decided to head north on the Mississippi and got off at Vicksburg. Iwonder how carefully he considered that decision. Isaid yes to this adventure thinking Iunderstood what Iwas agreeing to. Idid not.

The logistics alone have humbled me. In my mind, Ihad all the gear Ineeded. I’ve had it for years. Then, about three weeks ago, Irealized Ihad none of the gear —yeolde ﬁre strikes again. Goodneighbors stepped in and helped me ﬁll the gaps —camping mattress, duffelbag, head lamp, large hat, sun clothes. The required mosquito netting to drape over said hat arrived this week. This is not the American West, where my crew and I have paddled before. Out there, mosquitoes werenot aconcern, and the nights were so cool and clear we didn’teven sleep in the tents. We just lay under the giant sky dotted with stars from east to west.

The ladies around Link’stable —with its well-lit, self-rolling dice —had dabbled in some of these variations.

Carol Saucier,the longest-playing participant with45yearsoftile clacking un-

As the table suckeda setoftilesdown a hole in its center,she gave players aquick history lesson while showingoff her antique wooden tile set whichincludedwhat she playfully called, “Mr.Babineaux’sred book of rules,” explaining, “I’m originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, but forsome reason,Iwant to Cajun-ify Joseph Park Babcock.” Babcock, born in Lafayette, Indiana, was an employee of Standard Oil in China who brought “Mah-Jongg” to the UnitedStates in theearly1920s. His redbook of rules is considered closer to therules of China where the game originated —closer than theover 40 known variations played globally

der her belt,learned theWright-Patterson variation,created by the Ofﬁcer’s Wives Club at theAir Force base of the same name. Someone had played Riichi, aJapanese form, on vacation once.

Beforeshe connected with Link, Leslie Leonpacher learnedaformofparty Mah Jongg which the table dubbed “Cahj Jongg,” when they heardher descriptionof the loose rules and lack of cards.

Around Link’s tables, players follow the rules of theNational Mah Jongg League whichuses “the card” —asmall folding brochure coveredinwhatappears to be colorful hieroglyphics but actually are lists of various hands (patterned tile combinations) needed to win. Link explained that, as you play,the patterns become ingrained in your mental muscle memory

At the table,players swiftly discarded and pulled symbol-rich printed tiles, attention focused,calling out, “Three dot Eight bam …Six crack …Red dragon.”

“The game is stimulating and challenging. It’sneurologically goodfor you,” Link said.

“Unless you lose allthe time, then you want to kill people,” one player said, countering with asmile, despite being down $2

Themonetary stakesare low,serving more as away to keep scoreratherthan to getrich; some days they play only for prizes.

Justwhen players have memorizedthe hands listed on the card,the Mah Jongg New Year rolls around on April 1, and the ä See MAHJONGG, page 2Y

On the Mississippi in April, the sky is still giant, but it comes with considerably morecompany As the trip has inched closer I’ve felt atrepidation I’mnot accustomed to feeling. The Mississippi River can be beautiful and brutal in equal measure. Something about this trip has asked moreofmebefore Ieven get in the boat.

Songs, poetry and friends have pushed me forward.

In 2022, my husband and I drove to Lake Itasca in Minnesota, to the headwaters of the Mississippi. Standing there was morepowerful than Icould have anticipated. Families were wading across, children jumping

ä See RISHER, page 2Y

PatLink plays Mah Jongg at her home

STAFF PHOTOSByLESLIE WESTBROOK

Players shuffletiles between games of Mah Jongg at the home of PatLink on April 10 in Lafayette

Afold-out card containing the official hands andrules of the National Mah Jongg League is kept near aplayer’stiles during agame. The playablehandsare changed each year by the League, and newcards are provided to members.

STAFF PHOTO By JANRISHER

The mighty Mississippi River beginsits journeyinLakeItasca, Minnesota. Thislittleboy and his family easily walkedacross the river, in true Indigo Girls’ fashion in five steps.

ASK THE EXPERTS

Youth gaming labs support social emotional skills

BY JONI HESS Staff writer

Years before esports programming became a thing in New Orleans, nonproﬁt Unchained Realities began with a group of friends who wanted to improve youth outcomes by focusing on athletics, education and community building.

Its founder, Gentilly native Brent DeLarge, has since expanded the organization into a gaming hub that offers internships, esports labs and social connections at schools, public recreation centers and other locales across New Orleans. Its subsidiary, NOLAGROWN also introduces kids to graphic design, screen printing and photography

Through a partnership with the New Orleans Recreation Department, the organization cut the ribbon on its third and fourth esports lab last year

Unchained Realities now has esports labs at Joe Brown Park in New Orleans East, Milne Playground in Gentilly, Cut-Off Recreation Center in Algiers and the Lyons Center Uptown.

This interview has been edited for length and clarity

How did you guys bring in the gaming aspect of Unchained Realities? During the pandemic, communicating through the game was one of the only ways to hang out with my friends. We thought, ‘We need to do something like this for kids.’

But we didn’t know what or how

We later started working with this school that was connected to the YMCA and we got someone to donate 10 gaming PCs. We had students unbox them. We didn’t know much about curriculums but we started teaching lessons

about design and media for about six weeks. And how did you grow from there? Maybe a year or two later the YMCA reached back out to us, and we ran free play where kids would come out and play video games with us. We started learning more about the gaming space from an educational standpoint.

Can you tell me about how the partnership with New Orleans Recreation Department came to play? I heard that NORD was trying

Q&A WITH BRENT DELARGE FOUNDER OF UNCHAINED REALITIES

Tube.

to get into the esports space. I had a relationship with NORD, so I reached out to (CEO) Larry Barabino, and he brought me to the table. What other places do you offer programming? Our newest thing is we’re teaching at the Juvenile Justice Intervention Center on Saturdays for four hours. We have two different sets of kids that do curriculum and play games with us. We do ﬁeld trips where we go on site or they come to us and we talk to kids about the jobs they could pursue in the gaming world. Can you give some detail about the curriculums you’re teaching? Sometimes the gaming environment can be stressful. Kids get frustrated when they lose. We teach them about triggers and social emotional learning skills to better manage their emotions. We introduced our kids to Unreal Engine, which creates games such as Fortnite. We teach kids how to set up a stream through Twitch or You-

Continued from page 1y

National League issues new cards with new hands to learn one of the reasons cited when people talk about the cognitive benefits of the game. At the nonautomated table in Link’s dining room, the tiles made a clicketyclacking sound as they were shuffled. Collectively shifting and tumbling the hard, smooth tiles, each player relaxed their focus and the chatting flowed. There was talk of plans for the weekend, upcoming tournaments and past games. The question arose, “Why is Mah Jongg so popular now?”

“I would love to know,” said Link, who has been playing for 32 years and teaching the game for over a decade, adding, “I’ve met so many people. My life wouldn’t be as rich without Mah Jongg. I’m never lonely.” A couple of players cited the pandemic, as it was a game people could play outdoors. Coming out of those isolating times, people were eager to gather together and reconnect. Another person mentioned the 2018 movie, “Crazy Rich Asians,” which features an intense Mah Jongg scene. No matter the reason, the game is hot right now — even the South Regional

Library branch of the Lafayette Public Library is hosting lessons. By her estimates, Link has taught over half of Lafayette’s players. She has devised lesson plans to teach groups of four to six players the National Mah Jongg League variation in eight weeks. She starts with learning the tiles, then the history, then the “touchyfeely” of the tiles, followed by the rules in incremental steps. Her final advice to learners is to play online as much as possible to create the mental muscle memory required to play swiftly since the game is most fun

when it ﬂows at a good pace. (On realmahjongg.com her handle is “allons.”)

Link is an advocate of the National League rules — the standard for tournaments. People seek her out for her commitment to the rules as well as her no-nonsense approach which she mixes with a dry sense of humor. Using the organizational skills she honed in her second era of life as owner of the tour company Allons a Lafayette, she recently helped her granddaughter host a highly successful charity fundraising tournament in Shreveport. In Lafayette, she hosts an

annual tournament, sched-

uled for June 23 this year, at the Petroleum Club.

“For Pat, it’s about building community,” Leonpacher said.

One of Link’s recently widowed students shared that Mah Jongg helps her to ﬁll the void after her husband’s death. It’s a planned event that allows her to meet people, giving her an added dimension to life

“Pat is the Grande Dame of Mah Jongg,” said player and student Ali Romero. “If you get invited to play at her house, you say ‘yes!’” She recalled a time when

Link had encouraged her with a wry comment that made her laugh.

“When I was new, I was nervous. Pat’s kind of scary,” Romero said. “Once, I kept complaining about not having a good hand, and she said, ‘Well, Ali, maybe you’re not a good player.’”

To an outsider, these words might sound harsh, but to sit at the table with Link and witness her take delight in the game is to know that her words are taken as encouragement by the players who adore her and show up regularly for the community she has created.

Continued from page 1y

would become. I also couldn’t help thinking I knew a thing or two those young parents couldn’t yet imagine about where their children’s lives were going and who they might become. I think of Lake Itasca every time I hear the Indigo Girls’ “Ghost.” The song traces the Mississippi from those Minnesota headwaters — small enough for those children and me to cross in ﬁve steps — to something so vast it hardly seems connected to where it began.

The mighty and the tender, always braided together

Then there is Heraclitus, who wrote more than 2,000 years ago: “No man ever steps in the same river twice, for it’s not the same river and he’s not the same man.” I would substitute woman there, but the truth of it has outlasted the noun by millennia.

The river I paddle this week is not the river at Lake Itasca not the river my ancestors went up or crossed, not even the river I saw last Tuesday from the bank.

And I am not the same woman who said yes to this trip, either

One of my favorite quotes, often attributed to St. Augustine, has also been with me as this trip approached: “The deepest desire of the human heart is to belong, to be welcomed, to know you are seen and worthy of kindness.” I cannot verify he wrote it more than a thousand years ago, but I cannot argue with it, either The women I’m paddling with make me feel all of those things. Most of them I’ve paddled with before. One of them found the outﬁtter, arranged the details and made the whole adventure possible. What a blessing to have friends who make me feel like I belong. That is no small gift. Finding people who make me feel welcomed, seen and worthy of kindness is the journey I always want to take. These women also make me laugh. And somewhere between Clarksdale and wherever we take out, I suspect that may be what this trip is really about.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Brent DeLarge supervises a group of students while they game in one of his programs.

MAH JONGG

Players slide tiles into the center of an automatic shuffling table.

STAFF PHOTOS By LESLIE WESTBROOK

Pat Link, clockwise from top right, Jo Tu, Jane Sawvel and Dolores Champagne play Mah Jongg at Link’s automated table.

THERE’S GOOD NEWS,TOO

Theseare storiesofglobalprogress, compiled by the media group Fixthe News andshared in partnership with The Advocate/The Times-Picayune.

Each story overview is linked to an original report or story with more information.

NEWWEIGHT-LOSS PATHWAY

Researchers at StanfordMedicine andthe University of Colorado, Boulder, studied pythons’ extreme “feast-and-famine” metabolism to uncover new clues about weight loss. After eating massivemeals, pythons experience dramatic physiological changes and produce hundreds of metabolites.

One molecule —called pTOS— increased more than 1,000-fold. When scientists administeredthis molecule to obese laboratorymice it suppressed appetite and caused weight loss comparable to GLP-1 drugs likeOzempic.

“Although it’stoo soon to tell whether this metabolite, called pTOS,will translate to anew weight loss drug in humans, the studysolidifies the powerofstudying extremes in the animal kingdom. Reptiles have repeatedly gifted humans with clinically significant drugs,” med stanford.edu reported.

The pTOS molecule appearstoact directly on the appetite and feeding behaviors of the mice, causingthe obese mice to eat less thanthe control mice.After 28 days, the obese mice lost 9% of their bodyweight. Although promising,the findings are still early,and it’sunclear whether pTOS can be developed intoasafe and effectivetreatment for humans. Still, the discovery opens apotential newpathwayfor obesity therapies

ECUADORCONSERVATION

Last month, the Wildlife Conservation Society reported that Ecuador officially recognized the

STORIES OF GLOBAL PROGRESS,COMPILEDByFIX THE NEWS

NEW WEIGHT-LOSS PATHWAY

CourtlandPotter,7,lets JeremyHumphreyofAce’sReptile Emporium place aballpython on her arms.After eating massive meals, pythons experience dramaticphysiological changes and produce hundreds of metabolites.One molecule —calledpTOS—increased more than 1,000-fold.When scientists administered this molecule to obese laboratorymice, it suppressed appetite and caused weight loss comparable to GLP-1 drugs likeOzempic.

Llanganates-Yasuní Connectivity

Corridorasa Special Conservation Area,linkingLlanganates National Park in theAndes withthe yasuní Biosphere Reserve in the Amazon. Covering about2,159 square kilometers, the corridor represents a major step in protecting biodiversity and sustainableland use.The initiative, launched in 2024, involved ecological studies,community engagementand collaboration among localgovernments, civil societyand more The corridorspans from high Andean páramo ecosystemstolowland tropical humid forests, creating a continuous ecological transition betweenAndean and Amazonian

Powering Progress

landscapes— which supports diverse habitats and allows the movement of species.Because of this, the corridor functions as acritical climate refuge. Sebastian Valdivieso, CountryDirector of WCS Ecuador,saysthisrecognition helps to safeguard biodiversity and supports localcommunitieswhose livelihoods depend on healthy ecosystems.

CHILDPOVERTY FALLS

Newdata shows that child poverty in Scotland is declining, with rates falling from 25% (2020-23) to 21% (2022-25), while remaining lowerthan the UK average.The improvement, as reported by the Child Poverty ActionGroup,reflects

policy efforts such as targetedsocial security measures and more accurate data collection using administrative records alongside surveys. However, the statistics arestill considered “in development,” meaning furtherrevisions arepossible as methodologies improve.Despite progress, around one in five children in Scotland still liveinpoverty, highlighting ongoing challenges.The ScottishGovernmentremains legally committedtoreducing child poverty to below10% by 2030/31 underthe Child PovertyAct.

PHILIPPINES’ TRANSPORT Commuters in Manila successfully pushedfor safer,moreinclusive

streets by organizing collectively and influencing public policy, according to The WorldResources Institute. In acity whereonly about 6% of residents owncars, most people rely on walking,cycling or public transport— yetinfrastructure and funding historically prioritized vehicles, leaving commuters with unsafeconditions.

During the pandemic, when transit shutdownsexposeddeep inequalities, acoalition of transportworkers, cyclists and community advocates formed.The Move As OneCoalition unitedadiverse group of jeepney drivers, bus operators, commuters, disability advocates, women’s groups, youth organizers, LGBTQ+ activists and cycling groups.

“By organizing across sectors, the coalition has turnedfragmented demands into collectiveaction, reframing transportation as apublic service that shapesthe livelihoods, health and opportunitiesofmillions, The WorldResourcesInstitute reported.

Armed withdata, the coalition found that “just 1% of road spending supportedpublic transport, walking or cycling.”Through advocacy,public campaigns and direct engagement withpolicymakers, theysecured major reforms— influencing decisions affecting an estimated$946 million in immediate transportfunding and $12 billion in medium- and long-term funding This includesthe creation of pedestrian boulevards, bikelanesand adedicatedbusway.The movement also improvedwages and working conditions fortransportworkers.

Fixthenews.com is asolutions journalism newsletter that ﬁnds stories of progressand shares them withreaders from across the world. Acclaimed author Steven Pinker calls Fix theNews“thebestsource for positivenewsonthe internet.”

With thousands of Shellmen and womenacross thestate,we areworking everyday to reduce emissions, while increasing efﬁciencyinour operations

Our tomorrowdepends on whatwedotoday.Together, we arepowering progress forabrighterfuture. Louisiana is where we live and we’reproud to call it home.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By MICHAEL JOHNSON

Congregation raises money to tackle medical debt

BY BOB WARREN Staff writer

In the end, turns out it wasn’t

much of a dilemma at all.

Mount Olivet Episcopal Church in Algiers Point in New Orleans had some money set aside and the thinking was that it would help purchase a statue of Mary But then the church’s pastor, the Rev. Bill Terry found himself researching a sermon on Christian engagement. That research turned up a church in South Carolina whose congregation raised money to partner with a nonproﬁt, Undue Medical Debt, that purchases medical debt and then “forgives” debtors

“So I did my due diligence,” Terry said one recent morning The company was legit. So was the debt relief program.

“I preached my sermon about it,” Terry said. “It fits with the beatitudes; they call us to relieve suffering.”

A church member was so moved that she pledged a donation, saying, “We don’t really need a statue, but people can use our help,” Terry said. “I agreed.”

So did the church leadership and many of its congregation of 30-35 people And after a funding campaign that just wrapped up in the weeks after Easter Mount Olivet was able to send around $17,000 to Undue Medical Debt.

‘It’s just math’

It might not sound like a lot but that $17,000 was enough that the nonproﬁt could purchase $1.7 million of debt, said Allison Sesso, Undue Medical Debt’s president and CEO.

In the coming weeks, nearly 1,500 New Orleans area residents will receive notiﬁcation that their medical debt has been erased

Because medical debt is typically part of a hospital’s “bad debt portfolio,” it’s often sold at pennies on the dollar, Sesso said. She said the company has erased more $40 billion in debt since its founding in 2014.

“It’s not magic,” she said, “It’s just math.”

Mount Olivet traces its roots to 1846, when services were held in the parlor of the Hughes Hotel a couple of blocks from the church’s current location on Pelican Avenue. The congregation formally organized in 1848 and was admitted into the Episcopal Diocese of Louisiana in 1851. Terry, 74, is a New Orleans native, Navy veteran and a former insurance underwriter who “became a priest in my 50s.” For

Looking for La. faith

The newspaper is inviting ministers from across Louisiana every faith tradition, every denomination, every corner of the state to contribute ﬁrst-person columns on faith for occasional publication in the Louisiana Inspired section.

Topics are wide open, as long as they’re rooted in faith. Write about doubt, community or why ancient traditions still matter Write about what faith looks like in a ﬂood zone, a small town or a hospital room. Write about why you do this work.

Columns should be 550–750 words, ﬁrst-person, written for a general audience, original and unpublished. Submissions do not guarantee publication and will be edited for length and clarity

Promotional content and attacks on other faith traditions are not a fit. Honest, personal writing about faith in Louisiana life is.

To submit, email the following to Jan Risher at jan.risher@ theadvocate.com:

n The completed column (550–750 words)

n A headshot

n A bio of no more than 100 words

n The name and address of your church or place of worship

n The best contact phone number for the minister (not to be published). Louisiana has always had a lot to say about faith. We’re listening.

years, he led St. Anna’s Episcopal Church on Esplanade Avenue. He was a recognizable ﬁgure around Treme, with his white beard and ponytail and his commitment to annually chronicling the city’s murder victims with each of their names written on a large board outside the church

He retired from St. Anna’s in 2023 and has been at Mount Olivet for the past couple of years.

“I’m a priest and retirement doesn’t work for me,” Terry said with a grin.

At Mount Olivet, Terry says, he not only found a charming, old church that has been a ﬁxture in Algiers Point since the 1800s, but also a congregation that hungered to spread kindness and become known beyond the stained-glass windows of the sanctuary

Looking for an identity

Partnering with Undue Medical Debt doesn’t only help area residents struggling under the weight

of debt, it is part of a local congregation shaping its image.

“This place (Mount Olivet) has been looking for an identity that goes beyond that lovely building on Algiers Point,” Terry said.

Several times during a conversation inside the church one recent morning, Terry refers to the Beatitudes the blessings taught by Jesus in the gospel of Matthew They include several well-known phrases, including “Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted,” and “Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.”

“Undue Medical Debt was a perfect ﬁt. We’ve become a beatitudes church,” Terry said.

“Imagine you’re sitting at home worrying about paying off the bills and you get a letter that says, simply, your debt is forgiven,” he added. “That sounds like something Jesus would say.” Terry was astounded as he researched medical debt. Nearly a

quarter of Louisiana’s population, he said, struggles with medical debt.

“Most people don’t realize it, but medical debt is traded like a commodity in this country,” he said.

Sesso said for-proﬁt companies buy and sell that debt. Undue Medical Debt buys blocks of debt but instead of then trying to collect it as some other companies might, it forgives the people carrying the debt.

Buying, selling debt

Sesso said Undue Medical Debt analyzes a number of factors, including income and debt ratio, to determine eligibility Then letters are sent to people telling them they’re now clear of that debt.

Some of the people might have been uninsured Others had insurance that didn’t cover all the bills.

“It’s not a personal failing,” she said of people who face medical debt. “What did they do wrong? They got sick.”

Undue Medical Debt isn’t new to Louisiana. In 2024 it partnered with the city of New Orleans and Ochsner Health to forgive some $59 million in debt for 66,000 New Orleanians. Ochsner also said in 2024 that it was teaming with Undue Medical Debt to wipe out the debt of nearly 200,000 patients across its system.

Terry said Mount Olivet members made donations, and the church worked with the nearby Old Point Bar, a well-known Old Algiers meeting spot, on a fundraiser in March. Band members and bartenders dug into their tip jars to help, he said.

Hazel Pomfret, a Mount Olivet member who lives in Algiers Point, called the debt relief effort a “nobrainer.”

“It puts us on the map,” she said.

“It tells people we care about the community

Email reporter Bob Warren at bwarren@theadvocate.com.

Student teaches kids how to manage money

BY DAHLIA BAZZAZ Seattle Times (TNS)

Editor’s note: This story was created by Dahlia Bazzaz for the Seattle Times. Louisiana Inspired features solutions journalism stories that provide tangible evidence that positive change is happening in other places and in our own communities solutions that can be adopted around the world.

SEATTLE Seventeen-year-old Siddhi Tandon didn’t set out to start a financial literacy program She was just trying to ﬁgure out what to do with her ﬁrst paycheck.

Three years ago, the student at Lakeside School in Seattle had earned about $500 working as a camp counselor, and went to a Chase bank location to cash the check After hearing about the different kinds of accounts she could open, she got her ﬁrst sense of just how little she knew about money management

“I realized this was going to be important in my life going forward,” she said. “This is such a gap and something I never learned in school.”

That experience — part confusion, part curiosity — pushed her down a ﬁnancial literacy research rabbit hole She pored over YouTube videos and articles that explained budgeting, investments loans and the stock market Then, last year, she decided to share that information with everyone else, starting an organization called “Cubs of Wall Street.”

Tandon now gives free ﬁnancial literacy workshops to students at libraries and schools across Washington state, reaching more than 4,500 students so far She also authored a book released in

formula.

“Budgeting is not simple. This is a really good rule to get kids started thinking about this,” she said.

Part of what makes the sessions effective, she believes, is that they’re led by someone close in age to the audience. Students are often more willing to engage, ask questions and see themselves in the material.

That relatability shows up in the kinds of questions she gets. In some sessions, students reference financial research or specific stocks. In others, she explains what a bank account is.

The range, she said, highlights just how uneven access to ﬁnancial knowledge can be.

February, “What I Learned About Money,” aimed at helping kids understand the basics of managing money early Her efforts reflect a broader gap lawmakers have repeatedly tried and failed to address in Washington. This year marked the third consecutive attempt to require financial literacy in schools; proposals with bipartisan support did not make it through the 2024 or 2025 legislative sessions, and again fell short this year The issue has gained traction nationally, where more than two dozen states now require some form of financial literacy education, up from just five in 2018. Her sessions are designed to

meet students at different levels. Some arrive already familiar with investing concepts, while others are starting from scratch. The lessons begin simply, covering how money is earned and what it means to budget, and then move to more advanced topics like investing and different kinds of interest. Tandon often uses examples that feel accessible to younger audiences for example, comparing investments to collectibles like Pokémon cards that gain value over time. She also introduces foundational concepts like the 50-30-20 rule, which breaks income into 50% needs, 30% wants and 20% savings. But she’s careful to frame it as a starting point, not a rigid

Tandon’s own learning curve included early mistakes. She remembers panic-selling a stock during a dip, only to watch it rebound the next day, a lesson in how volatile markets can be and why long-term thinking matters. Now, she shares those experiences openly, along with practical steps students can take, like opening a bank account, understanding taxes on a ﬁrst job or simply thinking differently about saving small amounts of money

“Every bank account started is a huge win,” she said.

While she continues to expand her program, Tandon sees schools as a critical part of the solution, and an area where more could be done.

“School prepares us to get a job,” she said during a TedX talk she gave last year about her journey to becoming ﬁnancially literate “But what it doesn’t prepare us to do is manage the money that we earn from a job.” For now she’s helping to ﬁll that gap herself.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By SCOTT THRELKELD

The Rev. Bill Terry hugs a member of the congregation after his final Mass at St. Anna’s Episcopal Church in New Orleans on July 23, 2023. Now at Mount Olivet Episcopal Church in Algiers Point, Terry has led an effort to raise money for medical debt relief.

STAFF FILE PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

Tutor Ashlyn Miller helps Mason Gray, 10, and his brother, MJ, 11, with math skills during an after-school program on Oct. 8, 2024. Like Miller, Siddhi Tandon helps students by giving free financial literacy workshops at libraries and schools across Washington state.

SUNDAY, MAY 3, 2026

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 — HeritAGe: HEH-rihtij: Something transmitted by or acquired from a predecessor

Average mark 40 words

Time limit 60 minutes

Can you find 58 or more words in HERITAGE?

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

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

wuzzLes

Overcoming adversity

Today’s deal is from a recent team match in Turkey. We know that four spades failed at the other table.

We don’t know why West at this table chose to lead a club, dummy’s first-bid suit, but it gave declarer nothing that he couldn’t get on his own. Dummy’s jack of clubs won the opening lead.

The contract would be cold if the trumps split 3-2, so South cashed the ace of spades and led a spade to his king, getting the bad news. He led a low heart from his hand. The defense took two heart tricks and led a club to South’s king. South ruffed a heart in dummy and discarded a diamond on the ace of clubs.

♠

TAURUS

help you get what you want.

GEMINI (May 21-June 20) Get ready to go for it. You can be powerful without letting your ego get in the way Avoid unnecessary arguments, and set the stage for your success.

CANCER (June 21-July 22) Use your energy to engage in helping others or to participate in a cause that concerns you. A constructive idea applied to how you earn your

The king of diamonds was followed by a diamond to the ace, leaving this position (at left). South led a spade to dummy’s queen and led the club from dummy. He scored his eight of spades “en passant” Very nicely done!

Tannah Hirsch welcomes readers’ responses sent in care of this newspaper or to Tribune Content Agency inc., 2225 Kenmore Ave., Suite 114, Buffalo, Ny 14207. E-mail responses may be sent to gorenbridge@ aol.com. © 2026 Tribune Content Agency

living will be the push you need to get ahead. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Get involved in an event, activity or pastime that motivates you to learn something new Your input will make a difference, and the people you encounter will have a positive impact on how you live and move forward.

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) An honest assessment regarding your skills will make a difference in how others perceive you. Let intelligence guide you and detail help you reach your objective. LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) You have more possibilities available to you

than you think. A change of scenery will spark your imagination and help you direct your energy accordingly You have plenty to look forward to, so stop procrastinating.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Bantering with those closest to you will result in opportunities, insight and a fresh start. You will get good results from constructive ideas, joint ventures and being true to yourself.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Start changing your surroundings to meet your needs. How you live will have an impact on how you

perform. Self-improvement is prominent. CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Less talk will spare you grief. Focus on home, comfort and all the things that put a smile on your face. Refuse to let outside influences interfere with your schedule.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Update your look, pamper yourself and live in and enjoy the moment. Take better care of yourself. Look after your emotional well-being and start mapping out your future.

PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Opportunity knocks; open the door. Get out, mingle and discover what’s

new and exciting. Rely on your judgment in financial matters to avoid scams and aggressive sales tactics.

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Keep your thoughts and emotions to yourself, and offer patience, understanding and love to the people you encounter Overreacting will ruin your day and disrupt your domestic environment.

1. Central Park.2.The Big Apple.3.The Statue of Liberty.4.Bronx Park.5.BrooklynBridge. 6. The East River. 7. Rockefeller Center 8. Times Square. 9. Museum of Modern Art. 10. TheHigh Line. 11. Brooklyn, the Bronx, Manhattan, Queens, StatenIsland.12. New Amsterdam. 13. Mayor of New York City 14. Stephen A. Schwarzman Building. 15.Wall Street.

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?

Saturday's Cryptoquote: I've neverlosta game;I just ran out of time. —Michael Jordan