The St. Landry Parish School Board convened for a special retreat over the weekend to propose plans for dealing with an ongoing budget crisis. After the parish lost COVIDera federal funding in 2024, the district has been operating at a deficit, losing a projected $18 million in the 2025-26 fiscal year ending on June 30. With only $10 million left in the general fund going into the 2026-27 fiscal year, and no new revenues expected following the failure of a desperately needed millage in the May 16 election, the School Board must make sharp cuts in expenditures. Otherwise, it will run afoul of a state law that requires school districts to oper-
ate with a balanced budget. The weekend retreat was not for the board to take any specific actions, instead to present possible solutions to a public concerned about what effects
these cuts might hold for the community. “Today is only for ideas,” said St. Landry Parish Superintendent Milton Batiste III. Ideas were plentiful, with a
packed house of teachers, principals, administrators and parents in attendance. The main proposal was presented by Batiste, who stressed that the plan would likely change based on community feedback. The plan, if enacted, would consolidate several smaller schools across the parish.
The following is an overview of the possible school closures/ consolidations proposed during Saturday’s meeting: n Krotz Springs Elementary School: consolidated into Port Barre Elementary School and Port Barre Middle/High School n Eunice Central Middle School: consolidated into East Elementary School, Glendale Elementary School and Eunice Junior High School n Grolee Elementary School: consolidated into Park Vista Elementary School
Audit: UL staffer falsified expenses
School mishandled the incident, auditor says
BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer
The University of Louisiana at Lafayette mishandled an incident involving a former Athletics Department football recruiter who submitted false documents to get paid for unallowed alcohol and food costs, according to the Louisiana Legislative Auditor’s Office. It was one of three incidents of erroneous charges totaling $76,890 described in the auditor’s report issued Monday
The auditor’s report said that in May 2025, the UL Purchasing Department, through its routine internal controls, found that a football recruiter, from November 2024 through March 2025, submitted false documentation to justify some expenses. The employee’s action, called a misappropriation by the Auditor’s Office, may violate the state’s LaCarte Card and travel policy, as well as state law UL President Ramesh Kolluru, in an April 29 letter to the legislative auditor, said the university concurs in part with the findings. But provided “clarifications regarding characterization of certain events as misappropriations.”
The allegation was referred to the university’s Human Resources Department and Office of Internal Audit, which investigated and issued a report on March 16.
The UL Internal Auditor’s Office reported that the employee instructed vendors to include on receipts unallowable alcohol and food charges and list them as room rentals or event deposits,
ABOVE: Members and volunteers with PFLAG paint the Lafayette sign for Pride Month on Sunday at Pavillon de Cuisine in Lafayette BELOW LEFT: Keilford Coleman puts some touches on the sign. BELOW RIGHT: Shelly Landor paints under one of the Ts.
PROVIDED PHOTO
St Landry Parish schools Superintendent Milton Batiste III and School Board members listen to public comments during a special weekend meeting for dealing
STAFF PHOTOS BY BRAD KEMP
B-52 crashes after takeoff at military base
LOS ANGELES Eight people aboard a B-52 bomber that crashed shortly after takeoff Monday morning at a U.S. Air Force base in Southern California’s Mojave Desert are believed to be dead, according to the Air Force.
“Initial indications are that the crash was not survivable,” the Edwards Air Force Base posted on social media.
Shortly before 1 p.m., the airfield was closed and all inbound aircraft were being diverted. Meanwhile all non-commercial visitor passes for the base were suspended “to allow the installation to focus entirely on emergency response operations,” officials said in a statement
The Boeing B-52 Stratofortress, typically crewed by five people, is a long-range bomber that entered service in 1955. Designed to carry both conventional and nuclear weapons, it has been used in conflicts ranging from the Vietnam War to recent operations in the Middle East Edwards Air Force Base is home to a large portion of the U.S. Air Force’s aircraft test and development efforts and is about 100 miles north of Los Angeles.
Miss. police shoot at car; 1 killed, 1 injured
A child is dead and another person wounded after a Mississippi police officer shot at a vehicle while responding to a shoplifting call, authorities say The shooting happened Sunday after three people, including the child, got into a vehicle after exiting a Walmart in Senatobia, according to the Mississippi Bureau of Investigation, which is investigating the shooting As police tried to stop the vehicle, the driver drove toward them and almost hit an officer, according to the bureau An officer then shot at the vehicle, which drove away
The three people in the vehicle drove to a hospital, where the child was pronounced dead. MBI did not provide details on the child’s age or manner of death.
Police: ICE agent fired gun after car hit him
STAFFORD TOWNSHIP, N.J A federal immigration agent was struck by a vehicle Monday and fired his gun while attempting to apprehend someone in New Jersey, police said.
The agent’s gunfire possibly struck the vehicle as it left the scene, Stafford Township police said in a written statement.
“The agent reportedly sustained unknown injuries,” police said, adding that it was unknown whether the motorist was hurt Payton Johnson, who witnessed it, said ICE agents approached a man in a van. “They tell him to roll down his window, he’s inching forward, and you can tell it’s getting tense by his inching forward,” Johnson told WCAU-TV, adding that the driver “gunned it” and took off. There is no universal training standard for law enforcement to shoot at a moving vehicle. But most police departments and federal guidance bar shooting unless the driver poses an imminent threat of deadly force beyond the car itself.
‘Wuthering Heights’ first edition up for auction
LONDON — A rare first-edition copy of “Wuthering Heights,” complete with spelling mistakes, is up for auction for the first time in more than a century, as Emily Brontë’s tragic, tempestuous romance gains new fans through a big-screen adaptation.
Christie’s auction house said Monday that it’s the first copy of the novel in the publisher’s original cloth binding to be auctioned since 1908. Only about 250 copies of the first edition were printed, and this one has been in a private library since shortly after its publication in 1847. Being sold along with a copy of sister Anne Brontë’s “Agnes Grey,” it’s expected to sell for between $540,000 and $800,000 at a June 30 auction in London. Both books carry the male pen names the sisters adopted to get published: Ellis Bell for Emily and Acton Bell for Anne.
Killed skydivers were experienced
One
of
nation’s leading female jumpers among casualties
BY JOHN SEEWER and JOSH FUNK Associated Press
Several of the skydivers killed when their plane crashed moments after taking off from a Missouri airfield were experienced jumpers, including one of the nation’s leading female jumpers.
Federal investigators were at the crash site Monday, a day after the plane carrying a pilot and 11 passengers slammed into a field and burst into flames, killing all on board, authorities said.
Some family members of those who died were at the airport to watch the jump and witnessed the crash, said Bates County Sheriff Chad Anderson.
Authorities have not released the victims’ names, but friends and colleagues began paying tribute.
The United States Parachute Association, skydiving’s governing body said its technology director, Jen Sharp, was among those killed
“Jen was a remarkable force whose passion for the skies was matched only by her dedication to the people in our sport,” said Albert Berchtold, the organization’s executive director
Sharp taught skydiving instructors, wrote educational materials and made 6,800 jumps since her first one in 1989, according to her website.
She once jumped into Denver’s Coors Field ballpark while dressed as the queen of England and was part of the Everest Skydive in the Himalayas, her site said.
Kevin Payne, who had jumped with seven of the skydivers on the plane, said they were all different in nearly every way, except that they were all brought together as a “sky family.”
“There is a joy and peace and freedom to what we do. That’s what most people never understand,” Payne, of Parkville, Missouri, wrote in an email. “It’s not
about the adrenaline. It’s about really flying together with your family in that brief, exquisite instant that people who live their lives on the ground will never understand.”
Investigators have interviewed some witnesses, National Transportation Safety Board Vice Chairman Michael Graham said. The plane didn’t have a “black box” like those that record crash data on commercial planes, but investigators will look for other kinds of devices that could provide insights, he said.
Witnesses say the plane was roughly 100 feet from the ground when it made an abrupt left turn before crashing. It appeared to be losing power, and the pilot may have been trying to reach a highway to land when the plane stalled and went down nose first, said Dennis Jacobs, acting airport manager of Butler Memorial Airport. The plane was operated by Sky-
Wis. beagle research facility that drew protests is closing
BY PHILIP MARCELO Associated Press
A Wisconsin beagle breeding and research facility that’s been the site of recent violent protests is closing, and its remaining dogs are being taken in by a Florida rescue group.
Big Dog Ranch Rescue announced Monday that it has reached an agreement for the permanent closure of Ridglan Farms and the transfer of its 475 remaining beagles starting this week.
“Not one dog will remain,” Lauree Simmons the group’s founder, said in a news conference at a farm. “No more breeding, no more testing, no more anything.”
Yearslong opposition to the facility came to head in April when a large group of animal welfare activists stormed the property in an attempt to take away beagles, prompting police to use tear gas and pepper spray as they made dozens of arrests.
Some protesters were also arrested in March after they broke in and took 30 dogs from the facility, which is located in Blue Mounds, a small town about 25 miles southwest of the capital, Madison.
Big Dog Ranch Rescue said some of the beagles will go to rescue groups while others will be sent to its Florida and Alabama campuses where they will be spayed neutered and prepared for adoption.
The group bought roughly 1,500 of the facility’s more than 2,000 beagles in
April for an undisclosed price.
About 200 dogs were being transferred Monday, according to Simmons. Another 125 will be moved Tuesday The transfer of the remaining beagles will happen in August, as they are still puppies.
Simmons called on protesters to refrain from further demonstrations as it says Ridglan Farms has committed to permanently closing its dog breeding, sales, research and testing operations.
“Our focus now should be on supporting these dogs as they transition into their new lives,” Simmons said. “These dogs will get to experience safety and a normal life for the first time.”
Simmons said her group is also “working closely” with the Trump administration to stop funding studies that subject dogs to “invasive and painful experimentation.”
Ridglan Farms, in a statement, said all the dogs being transferred are “happy, healthy animals” with “extensive” state and federal inspection documentation.
“We hope these dogs will continue to flourish in their new homes,” the company said adding that it hopes that the “years-long harassment campaign targeting the research facility’s owners, staff and neighbors comes to an end.”
Ridglan Farms agreed in October to give up its state breeding license as of July 1 as part of a deal to avoid prosecution on felony animal mistreatment charges
Woman who died in jumping incident wasn’t hooked up to rope, police say
By The Associated Press
SAO PAULO — A Brazilian police investigator said Monday that the 21-yearold woman who died in a rope jumping incident was not attached to any safety equipment.
Andrea Levy told journalists that the three jumping instructors involved in the incident acknowledged that Maria Eduarda Rodrigues de Freitas was not connected to safety ropes when she jumped Saturday in the countryside of Sao Paulo state. Levy said the three instructors have been ar-
rested and could face manslaughter charges.
“They do not remember whether they forgot to attach (the ropes), or who was supposed to do it, or who failed to check. But the fact is the ropes were not attached to her,” Levy said.
De Freitas was buried on Sunday after the accident at Ponte do Esqueleto, an abandoned bridge in Limeira, a city 92 miles north of Sao Paulo.
The young woman had asked to be launched from the bridge airplane style, with two instructors hoisting her above their shoulders as she spread out
her arms. Footage shared online shows two men in white helmets launching her into a 130-foot abyss.
The instructors are wearing harnesses that appear to be attached to a security rope.
Rope jumping is an extreme sport that differs from bungee jumping in the type of cord used and the resulting motion of the fall. Bungee jumping uses elastic rubber cords that create a vertical, bouncing effect, whereas rope jumping uses low-stretch climbing ropes that convert the fall into a horizontal, pendulum swing.
dive Kansas City, he said. The crash site in the small town of Butler is roughly 65 miles south of Kansas City The Pacific Aerospace 750XL — a single engine turboprop plane — is a popular model in skydiving because it’s designed for the sport and can quickly take parachutists to jumping altitudes while using short runways. This particular aircraft, built in 2010, made nine successful flights in the days before the crash, including two on Sunday morning, according to FlightAware, a digital flight tracking company Federal investigators have voiced concerns about oversight for skydiving operators in past crash investigations and have cited the need for maintenance guidelines, training for pilots and stronger aircraft inspections. The NTSB said after a crash killed 11 people in Hawaii that the Federal Aviation Administration’s regulatory system isn’t strong enough to ensure the safety of skydiving flights.
Utah BASE jump kills 2
Extreme athlete performed with Madonna at Super Bowl
BY RUSS BYNUM Associated Press
A weekend BASE jumping accident in a Utah canyon killed two people, one of them a daredevil athlete best known for performing onstage with Madonna at the 2012 Super Bowl, authorities said. The sheriff’s office in Grand County, Utah, confirmed one of the dead was Andy Lewis, an extreme athlete known for feats in BASE jumping, a dangerous sport that involves parachuting to the ground after jumping from a tall fixed object such as a building, a bridge or a desert cliff overlooking a deep canyon. In BASE jumping circles, Lewis had a huge following and a reputation for pushing the envelope — leaping into tighter spaces or deploying his parachute later than his peers would dare, said John McEvoy, a BASE jumping instructor
in Twin Falls, Idaho, who has jumped with Lewis.
“He had an incredible level of athleticism and skill that was developed over years of practice,” McEvoy said. “But then he would take an incredible amount of risk.” Lewis was also a prominent figure in the niche sports of slacklining and tricklining, which combine elements of high-wire walking with aerial acrobatics — sometimes at perilous heights. Lewis went from obscure athlete to overnight celebrity when he appeared onstage in Madonna’s 2012 Super Bowl halftime show Dressed in a Roman toga, Lewis bounced and executed tricks on his inch-wide line like it was a trampoline while Madonna sang behind him.
“My phone actually rang itself to death three days in a row,” Lewis said soon afterward on Conan O’Brien’s late night show Emergency responders were dispatched Sunday to a report of people injured in a BASE jumping attempt at Mineral Bottom, a remote desert area near the UtahColorado line, according to the sheriff’s office.
Beagles that were purchased from a Dane County animal research facility play outside May 12 in Madison, Wis.
Trump looking for momentum at G7 summit
BY SYLVIE CORBET, AAMER MADHANI and DARLENE SUPERVILLE Associated Press
EVIAN-LES-BAINS, France
President Donald Trump started his visit to the G7 summit of leading industrialized nations on Monday by declaring his agreement aimed at ending the U.S. war with Iran is a potential breakthrough for global security and a chance for the U.S. to finally turn the page in its relationship with longtime adversary Iran.
The Republican U.S. president sought to make clear that he arrived in Evian-les-Bains with the wind at his back for talks with G7 leaders, including some who have been sharply critical of his managing of the 15-week-old conflict, which has led to a surge in global energy prices — though he did not immediately seem willing to lay out the details of what was in the emerging deal.
Some of those details are still to be negotiated in talks over the next 60 days, though Trump said the memorandum of understanding would likely be released after it’s signed on Friday
“I think a lot of great things are going to happen in the Middle East right now and very importantly the oil (price) is plummeting down and the stock market is shooting up like a rocket today,” Trump said at a meeting with the summit’s host, French President Emmanuel Macron, before they joined a working dinner with other leaders.
“The Iran deal that we made is going to bring a lot of success to the world,” he said.
Deal could change G7 dynamic Trump has had friction with Macron, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Italian Prime
Minister Giorgia Meloni over failing to consult them before the decision to go to war But sealing an agreement before jetting off to the summit might change the dynamic of the three-day gathering.
Macron at the start of Monday’s meeting congratulated Trump for finding a way to an agreement. “It’s a very important matter for peace of the whole world,” Macron said.
Trump has pushed back on the four European leaders members of the NATO military alliance — for their lack of support for the U.S. in the conflict
He’s expected to discuss with leaders the demining of the Strait of Hormuz. Britain and France have expressed interest in assisting with the demining once the conflict is paused. Fear of potential mines is among the reasons tanker traffic has come to a halt during the war, and clearing them will be crucial to regaining the confidence of commercial vessels.
Macron on Monday said France was ready to move within days
to deploy assets, including mineclearing vessels, to the region to help.
Senior U.S. officials told reporters that the while the agreement provides for the immediate opening of the strait and lifting of the U.S. naval blockade, it will take weeks for traffic to return to previous levels.
Macron invited the leaders of three nations that aren’t part of the G7 Egypt, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — to take part in a session on the Middle East on Tuesday, when Iran is expected to be a central focus.
Questions about incentives
Trump had fiercely criticized President Barack Obama for the 2015 nuclear agreement, which Trump argued failed to stop Tehran from advancing toward a weapon and funneled billions of dollars into the Islamic Republic’s coffers.
In 2018, Trump exited the deal, known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action. Britain, China,
France, Germany Russia and the European Union were also signatories to the pact.
Trump in an interview on Sunday with The New York Times pushed back on comparisons to the Obamaera nuclear deal. “We negotiated from strength,” Trump said. “He was basically paying them off.”
But Trump hasn’t explained how his agreement will address some key issues about Iran’s nuclear program, including who will be in charge of verifying that Iran is complying with the agreement and who will destroy or remove 972 pounds of highly enriched uranium believed to be buried under nuclear sites that were badly damaged by U.S. strikes last summer
The memorandum of understanding includes the possibility of releasing Iran’s frozen funds, sanctions relief and a $300 billion fund to help rebuild Iran — all of which would be tied to Tehran meeting certain benchmarks aimed at assuaging White House concerns, senior U.S. officials told reporters on Monday
Some Democrats and hawkish critics say Trump has failed to explain how the financial relief in his agreement will differ from what Obama did in the 2015 nuclear deal.
“For all his critique of JCPOA, we had international observers, we actually had an alliance there that included the Europeans, and Russia and China were all signatories,” Sen. Mark Warner, the top Democrat on the Senate Intelligence Committee, told CBS’ “Face the Nation” on Sunday
Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham, a close ally of Trump and an Iran hawk, expressed skepticism, saying that Congress will need to review and vote on any nuclear deal with Iran, and said he expects Vance — “the architect of the deal” — to present it.
Tariffs, war in Ukraine also focus Leaders are expected to discuss a range of economic and trade issues. Trump told the New York Post he’s warned Macron the U.S. will “have no choice” but to slap 100% tariffs on French wines unless Paris eliminates its digital tax on American tech companies, renewing a long-running threat from him that dates to his first administration.
Wines and spirits exported to the U.S. from the European Union currently face a 15% tariff.
In an interview with broadcaster TF1, Macron said Monday that it’s not “for the United States to decide what European or French law should be.”
Macron also invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for a working session with G7 leaders on Tuesday to discuss the Russia-Ukraine war Zelenskyy had offered to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin with Trump and European leaders at the G7 gathering, but the Kremlin didn’t reply, a Ukrainian official familiar with the matter told The Associated Press on the condition of anonymity Putin is wanted by the International Criminal Court for alleged war crimes, and France would be obliged as an ICC member to arrest him. The United States and Russia both oppose the court. Trump suggested that, after an Iran deal, he’ll now have greater bandwidth to focus on the RussiaUkraine war Madhani reported from Geneva, AP writers Samuel Petrequin and John Leicester in Paris; Volodymyr Yurchuk in Kyiv, Ukraine; Michelle L. Price and Collin Binkley in Washington; and Tom Beaumont in Des Moines, Iowa, contributed reporting.
California’s Newsom says DOJ is investigating him and his wife
BY SOPHIE AUSTIN and ALANNA DURKIN RICHER Associated Press
SACRAMENTO, Calif Demo-
cratic California Gov Gavin Newsom on Monday accused the Justice Department of launching a politically motivated investigation into him and his wife, saying the Trump administration was targeting him as he weighs a presidential bid.
Newsom, a longtime political rival of the Republican president, said in a video posted on X that federal agents have knocked on the doors of his friends and former employees, and have asked for records. Newsom didn’t provide specifics on the nature of the probe, but his office said the inquiry appears to have recently expanded into “increasingly
personal matters involving the Governor’s family and professional network.”
“Donald Trump isn’t just coming after me because of my mean tweets,” Newsom said, referencing his use of social media to mock Trump. “He’s coming after me because I’m considering running for president, because he hates that I’ve consistently called him out over and over again for his lies and deceit.”
The full details of any Justice Department inquires related to Newsom were not immediately clear But the revelations were likely to escalate accusations from critics that the Trump administration is using the law enforcement agency as a weapon to go after the president’s political opponents A person familiar with
the matter denied the existence of an investigation specifically targeting the governor but said there are multiple federal probes into people around him, including one related to his wife’s taxes. That probe began last year, and political leadership in Washington was not involved in the decision to open it, said the person, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to publicly discuss ongoing investigations.
Another probe is related to Newsom’s former chief of staff, Dana Williamson, who was indicted on federal charges that she was involved in a scheme to steal campaign money from former federal Health Secretary Xavier Becerra. Williamson in May pleaded
Infant formula recalled amid outbreak
BY ALYSE PFEIL Staff writer
State and federal officials are urging parents to discard all cans of Nara Organics Whole Milk Organic Infant Formula while the authorities investigate an outbreak of infant botulism linked to the product
As a result of the investigation, Nara Organics voluntarily recalled all cans of Nara Organics infant formula currently available in the U.S,” a news release from the Louisiana Department of Health said. Nara Organics formula is sold online and at Target, according to the Health Department.
All products should be returned to the store they were purchased from or thrown away immediately, and any household items and surfaces that may have been touched by the formula should be washed with hot soapy water, the Health Department says.
The formula may be contaminated with the bacteria Clostridium botulinum, which can cause infant botulism, a serious illness that can result when infants swallow or inhale spores from the bacteria that produce toxins
The toxins can make infants very sick, in-
BY MICHELLE GUMEDE Associated Press
cluding paralysis and difficulty breathing, the release said.
Most babies with infant botulism may develop constipation, poor feeding, loss of head control and difficulty swallowing, and they may have other symptoms like decreased facial expression, a weak or altered cry, or other signs of muscle weakness, according to the Health Department.
Caregivers should seek immediate medical care if their infant consumed a Nara Organics product and is experiencing symptoms, and infants should be monitored for 30 days after exposure to the formula, the Health Department says.
Infant botulism “is extremely treatable,” according to Cleveland Clinic.
“The treatment starts with an antitoxin called botulism immune globulin,” according to Cleveland Clinic. “Healthcare providers will give that to your baby through an intravenous (IV) line. This antitoxin works like an antidote, neutralizing the toxin circulating in your baby’s blood.”
Babies usually fully recover and the survival rate is 98% to 100%, according to Cleveland Clinic.
guilty to charges including conspiracy to commit bank fraud. That investigation, launched by President Joe Biden’s Justice Department, has expanded to include other staff, the person familiar
with the matter said. Newsom hasn’t been accused of any wrongdoing related to Williamson’s case. Jennifer Siebel Newsom, the governor’s wife, said the investigation showed that
Trump is unfit for office.
“There are clearly no boundaries to what Donald Trump will do to get his way or to challenge those who get in his way,” she said in a statement.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON
President Donald Trump meets with French President Emmanuel Macron during a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the G7 summit Monday in Evian-les-Bains, France.
the region. But logistical and military challenges underscored the fragile nature of the deal, which was set for a ceremonial signing Friday in Geneva.
A senior U.S. official told reporters that details of the agreement would be released within the next two days. The memorandum of understanding includes the possibility of releasing Iran’s frozen funds, easing sanctions and creating a $300 billion fund to rebuild Iran all of which would be tied to Iran meeting benchmarks, the official said.
The officials said technical talks would begin Friday after the signing ceremony and that Vice President JD Vance would lead negotiations for the U.S.
At the core of the pact is a planned reopening of the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial waterway whose blockage has choked the supply of the world’s oil and natural gas. Yet even a full reopening would not immediately alleviate the global energy crisis its closure created
Another potential obstacle concerns Israel, which joined the U.S. in launching the war on Feb. 28, but it is not party to the deal. The Israeli military launched airstrikes Sunday in southern Lebanon, where it is fighting the Iranian-backed Hezbollah militant group, and the Israeli defense minister said Monday that the country would not withdraw from land seized in Lebanon.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Monday said the agreement between
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the state Legislative Auditor’s Office reported. Nine expenses totaling $5,084, the report noted, were confirmed in part to have been misrepresented by the employee from November 2024 through June 2025.
The employee’s predecessor and supervisor are also suspected of submitting 10 additional and similar false expenses totaling $7,178 for the period from December 2021 through June 2024, the report states. Some of the misrepresent-
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n Grand Coteau Elementary School: rezoned into Cankton Elementary School and Leonville Elementary School
n Grand Prairie Elementary School: rezoned to Plaisance Elementary School.
Feedback from the audience on the proposed closing was focused heavily on the closure of Grand Coteau Elementary, with many suggesting that neither Cankton nor Leonville had the capacity to take additional students.
“Look at the feasibility of this. Cankton’s already bursting at the seams as it is,” one audience member said during public comment.
“I don’t think families want their kids taking 15- to 20-minute drives to get to school,” Leonville Elementary School Principal Whitney Zerangue said. “We’re already at capacity, so any students coming in would have to bring along a plan for portable buildings as well.”
Alternatives, including possible closure of Cankton Elementary School instead, were also discussed.
Batiste additionally proposed selling off several properties owned by the district, including the former Creswell Middle School building. The board also discussed how necessary staff reductions would be handled, including determining which positions would be eliminated. For teachers and administrative staff, performance evaluations are the primary
the U.S. and Iran was President Donald Trump’s decision. Netanyahu said Israel has its own interests, primarily protecting against a potential nuclear threat from Iran. He said Iran wanted Israel to withdraw from Lebanon, but he stood firm, saying Israel would remain in the buffer zone “as long as necessary.”
“I tell you, citizens of Israel, the struggle is not over We will need to continue to be vigilant, to remain strong and determined, to defend ourselves as necessary,” he said.
Other uncertainties center on Iran’s stockpile of highly enriched uranium, which the U.S. and Israel worry could be used to build an atomic weapon despite Tehran’s insistence for years that it has no aspirations to do so. The deal gives Iran just 60 days to decide what to do with its supply It took years for Iran and world powers to negotiate a 2015 agreement to rein in Tehran’s nuclear program.
Trump unilaterally withdrew the U.S. from that accord in his first term, setting the stage for the tensions that culminated in the current war Strait of Hormuz
Early in the war, Iranian attacks on ships brought traffic in the Strait of Hormuz through which a fifth of the world’s oil and natural gas passed before the conflict to a near standstill.
Trump implemented a blockade in response.
Iran’s deputy foreign minister, Kazem Gharibabadi, said Iran would not start implementing the agreement until after the signing ceremony The U.S military said the blockade will remain in
ed expenses were partially recovered through employee payroll deductions, the report said, or through the University of Louisiana Foundation. The employee resigned Jan. 20. The employee’s supervisor is still at the university, the report noted, but their LaCarte Card access has been revoked
The Legislative Auditor’s Office was notified in writing on Dec. 18 of the internal audit investigation, the report states. As of March 17, the university had not yet notified the District Attorney’s Office of the misappropriation.
Kolluru, in management’s response to the report, said
metrics for determining who gets let go first, followed by seniority Layoffs for bus drivers will be determined solely by seniority.
Due to a shortage of certified teachers, Batiste and the board assured those in attendance that financial cutbacks would not reduce the number of certified teachers employed by the district.
With the likelihood of reductions in the number of teachers employed by the district, concerns about class sizes were raised Currently the maximum pupilto-educator ratio is 33 students for every teacher for high school classrooms and 26 students for every teacher in elementary and middle school classrooms.
Board member Renee Aymond said many teachers who remain employed for next school year could have to accept class sizes closer to that state maximum.
“We have some teachers who have been spoiled with only having 10-12 students, while others in different schools have 26-28. That’s going to have to change,” Aymond said.
Batiste said it isn’t yet clear how much money proposed closures and staff reductions would save. Currently, the district is anticipated to finish out June with around $10 million in its general fund, while running a fiscal year deficit of around $18 million. Any successful proposal the board passes will likely need to cut at least $8 million worth of expenditures in order to break even for the 2026-27 fiscal years, with further cuts likely being necessary for 2027-28.
place “pending execution” of the deal.
“Do not attempt to cross until explicit direction is given,” it said Monday in an advisory to merchant ships.
Trump, who faced pressure to end the war ahead of congressional midterm elections in November, said that “a lot of great things are going to happen in the Middle East right now.”
“Very importantly, the oil is plummeting down, and the stock market is shooting up like a rocket today,” he said Monday at the G7 summit in France.
While the agreement provides for the “immediate” opening of the strait and lifting of the blockade, the process will take time because there are mines in the strait, and ships are unwilling to
the university promptly referred the matter to Human Resources and the Office of Internal Audit when it was discovered. The internal audit issued a report in March.
In another incident, the university’s monitoring controls, the Legislative Auditor’s Office wrote, detected $671 in unauthorized charges to a lost LaCarte Card in April 2025. The Lafayette Police Department was contacted immediately and the perpetrator was caught with the card in their possession.
The university verbally notified the Auditor’s Office in November and formally, along with the District Attorney’s Office, in writing in December
Willie Singleton-Guillory, who represents the St Landry Federation of Teachers, proposed a fourday school week as well as reducing the number of School Board members from 13 down to seven, although such a change would need to come from the state
Legislature
Additional discussions centered around a counterproposal from Park Vista Elementary School Principal Rachel Melancon who suggested initiating plans to convert the school into a magnet school.
“If we don’t have opportunities like this in the parish to offer to the community, we’re going to lose those kids to charters or private schools,” Melancon said.
Charter schools represent a further drain on education dollars in the parish and contribute heavily to St. Landry’s current financial situation. Because education money follows the child in Louisiana, school boards must transfer a certain portion of funding for each child in the parish enrolled at a charter school.
The total impact of charter schools on the 2025-26 School Board budget is an estimated $12.1 million, and the situation could get even worse, according to Batiste.
“Each charter school has expansion opportunities coming up, so that $12 million figure will probably go up,” said Batiste.
The School Board is scheduled to meet again at 5 p.m. Thursday for further discussion and possible action on matters pertaining to the budget shortfall. The meeting will be open to the public.
risk traversing it, according to a senior U.S. official who spoke to reporters on condition of anonymity to discuss outlines of the agreement.
Israel and Lebanon
The success of the deal rests at least partially on what happens between Israel and Hezbollah in Lebanon. Israel’s bombing of Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday nearly derailed the negotiations, and a previous attack led Iran to fire on Israel and Israel to fire back.
Defense Minister Israel Katz said Israel plans to stay “indefinitely” in land it holds in Lebanon, Syria and the Gaza Strip. He also threatened that if Iran attacks Israel over its strikes in Lebanon, Israel will strike Iran with “great force.”
A third incident identified by UL internal controls occurred in May and June 2025 when $70,245 in unauthorized activity occurred in two UL bank accounts, the report states. The university’s internal controls functioned as in-
Asked where Israel stands on the deal, David Mencer, a spokesperson in Netanyahu’s office told The Associated Press that Israel and the U.S. remain fully aligned on preventing Iran from obtaining nuclear weapons. But he added that Israel will not tolerate attacks from Hezbollah on its territory Israel and the U.S began the war apparently in lockstep, but the war has created deep fractures in that close relationship, with Trump eager to end a conflict that is deeply unpopular with the American public and Netanyahu intent on destroying Hezbollah. Trump appears to have grown increasingly frustrated with the Israeli leader, even occasionally publicly insulting him, including telling The New
tended, with the suspicious transactions being immediately denied by the financial institution and no UL funds being lost, Kolluru wrote in response to the report. “Because no funds were disbursed or misappropriated,” he wrote, “the uni-
York Times on Sunday that he was a “very difficult guy.”
Checking on homes
In a sign of the deal’s fragility, the Lebanese army called on residents not to rush to return to border villages, saying they should follow military instructions because of the danger of “Israeli violations and aggression.”
Many Lebanese who had fled following Israeli evacuation orders and intense fighting were heading south, however to check on their homes. Celine Fayad, driving south, said she will test how far she could go. Her village, Aitaroun, is along the border with Israel It was among the first to be occupied and lies in ruins.
“We were expecting to return,” she said. “Thanks to Iran.”
Ali Haidar was among the first to return to Nabatiyeh, the southern city at the heart of the latest Israeli military operations, where many central buildings have been reduced to dust.
“This used to be our home, our childhood home where we have all of our memories. This is where we grew up. Now it’s gone,” Haidar said. “We will return to rubble and sand. It’s better than being displaced.”
Hezbollah, meanwhile, credited Iran with a “major achievement” in reaching the agreement, which it said could lead to “the full liberation of our land, the return of our prisoners to their homeland and families,” and reconstruction of wardevastated areas.
Along with praising the deal, the militant group said it was committed to resisting Israel “until full withdrawal is achieved.”
versity did not classify this incident as a reportable misappropriation” under state law However, he said the university understands the Legislative Auditor’s Office position and will incorporate this interpretation in future reporting protocols.
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Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Sunday that the United States is prepared to carry out additional military operations across Latin America similar to the recent strike in Venezuela that killed Tren de Aragua leader Héctor Rusthenford Guerrero Flores, known as “Niño Guerrero,” signaling apotentially broader campaign against cartels and transnational criminal groups in the hemisphere.
Speaking on CBS’ “Face the Nation,” Hegsethsaid the Venezuelaninterim government had invited U.S military forces onto its territory to help eliminate the founder of the Venezuelanborn criminal organization, marking one of the clearest acknowledgments yet of direct U.S. military involvement inside Venezuela.
“They invited our military in because they have aforeign terroristorganizationon their soil in Tren de Aragua,” Hegseth said. “The founder and leader —wewere able to identify where he was and kill him, just like we would kill al-Qaida or ISIS.”
When asked whether
Defense Secretary Pete Hegsethspeaks Mondayduring ameeting with Ecuador’sPresident DanielNoboaatthe Pentagon.
Americans shouldexpect similar operationsincountries such as Ecuador and Guatemala, where Washington has expandedsecurity cooperation,Hegseth offered an unequivocal answer “Yes, they should,” he said Hegsethsaidthe operations would be conducted undera newregional securityframework called the
Americas Counter Cartel Coalition, which seeks to coordinateU.S. military and intelligence capabilities withpartnergovernments across Centraland South America to target cartel and gang leadership.
“It’scalled theAmericas CounterCartel Coalition, A3C, and we’re forming it withpartnergovernments
all around Centraland South America to go after,defeat anddestroy foreign terrorist organizations (and) drug cartels,” Hegseth said. The remarks suggest theTrumpadministration increasingly sees transnational criminal groups not as traditionallaw-enforcement targetsbut as terrorist threats warranting military
action,similartoU.S.campaigns against Al-Qaeda and ISIS in the Middle East.
“Wetreat these foreign terrorist organizations the sameway,” Hegseth said.
“Just like we do with drug boats when we identify they’re run by those FTOs.”
President Donald Trump announcedFridaythatU.S. Southern Command had carried outa“swift and lethal kinetic strike”thatkilled Niño Guerrero, the founder of Tren de Aragua,a criminal organization U.S. authoritiessay expanded throughoutLatinAmerica and into the United States.
Guerrero, 42, hadbeen one of the mostwanted criminal figures in the hemisphere. Washington hadoffered a $5 million reward for information leading to his capture andaccused him of transforming Tren de Aragua from aprison gang centered in Tocorón prison into asprawling transnational network involved in drug trafficking, extortion, kidnapping, human trafficking and migrant smuggling.
Hegseth tied the success of the operation directly to President Trump’sJanuary capture of Venezuelan strongmanNicolás Maduro,
arguing that themove fundamentally altered regional geopolitics.
“President Trump hadthe foresight to seize Maduro, change the relationship,” Hegseth said. “Now Venezuela, through our partnerships, we’re killingforeign terrorist leaders whohave terrorized the American people.”
Hegseth compared the emerging strategy to the U.S. counterterrorismcampaigns in Iraq, Syria andAfghanistan, whereAmerican forces spent twodecades targeting jihadistleadership through intelligence-driven operations and precision strikes.
“Just like we showed we were very good at with ISIS andal-Qaida in the Middle East for20years,” he said. He also portrayed the strategy as arevivalofthe Monroe Doctrine, the 19thcentury U.S. policy asserting Washington’sprimacy in the Western Hemisphere. Hegseth jokingly referred to it as the “Donroe Doctrine,” areference to Trump.
“It’sanincredible reinforcement of the Monroe Doctrine —now the Donroe Doctrine,” Hegseth said. “We’retaking back control of our hemisphere.”
29 tornadoes, derechoconfirmed in storms that tore throughIll., Ind.
BY ADRIANA PÉREZ ChicagoTribune (TNS)
At least 29 tornadoes ripped across Illinois and northwest Indiana last week, accordingtopreliminary reports from the National Weather Service. As residents of parts of these states were recovering and surveying the damage from adestructive derecho that swept through Wednesday night with up to 80 mph winds, theywere hit again less than 24 hours later with another round of severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.
Aderecho is awidespread and long-lived thunderstorm with damaging winds. As of the agency’slatest count
Sunday,17ofthe confirmed tornadoesfrom last week occurred in northernIllinois and northwest Indiana, and nine in central Illinois.
TheQuad Cities weather service office confirmed three tornadoes in western Illinois of unknown intensity that caused no known damage.
The 17 tornadoesinnorthern Illinois and northwest Indiana brought the area’stally for 2026 to 44 —already the third most of any year since recordkeeping began in 1950.
“This is well above average,already,for atypical year,” saidRafal Ogorek, ameteorologistwith the weather service’sChicago office.
The top two years with the most tornadoes in the office’sforecast area are 2024, with 63 confirmed
tornadoes,and 2023, with58. The entire state of Illinois typically averages 50 tornadoes annually Thursday producedthreeEF3 tornadoes —whichare characterizedbyspeedsof136 to 165 mph —that hit Streator,acity 81 miles southwest of Chicago; thevillage of Washburn, near Peoria; and the townsofHebron and Kouts in Porter County,Indiana. No major injurieshavebeen reported. The EF or Enhanced Fujita scale goes from 0to5,with an EF0 tornado starting at 65 mphand an EF-5 tornado being over 200 mph. Merrillville, in Indiana, was hit by an EF2tornado. This is the second time in three months atornado of that ve-
locity hasswept through thearea, after an EF3struckLakeVillage in Newton County in March, killing an elderly couple in their home.
As humanactivities such as fossil-fuel burning release heat-trapping gases intothe atmosphere and climate change intensifies, air in the Midwest is becoming more saturatedwithhumidity, akey ingredient of strong thunderstorms that can produce tornadoes. Research also indicates tornadoes are happening more often duringnontraditional tornado months,lasting longer and beginning sooner as winters become warmerand morehumid. Most tornadoes in Illinois occur between April1 and June 30, but
according to the weather service, nearly half of the state’stornadoes have occurred in the fall or winter in recent years. Increasingly frequent and intense severe weather, such as tornadoes andderechos,has cost Illinoisans billions of dollars in recentyears. In August 2020, a “ferocious” derecho downed trees andrattled windows from Iowa to Chicago, causing $11billion in damage. The National Oceanic and AtmosphericAdministrationretired its public database tracking billiondollar weather and climate disasters in May2025 as part of the Trumpadministration’srollbacks in federal spending.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY KEVIN WOLF
JanRisher
LOUISIANA AT LARGE
Everywall covered with art
Agiant, spooky funhouse ceramic jester by Linda Berman greets guests at the door —JeremyShapiro says he loves scaring himself with it on the way in. It was the piece that launched the whole scene in his New Orleans apartment.
Ataxidermied alligator in a pointed hat stands nearby, awink at the television show “Tiger King” that he pickedup at ashop on Magazine Street.
The pieces are among roughly 2,500, my estimate, not Shapiro’s, crowded across the walls, shelves, bookcases and ceilings of his topfloor apartment at Federal Fibre Mills.
Shapiro moved in last December.Since then, he has turned the 3,000 squarefeet into something closer to afever dream than a home.
Shapiro, who just turned 50, grew up in Los Angeles.He graduated from the University of Southern California in 1998 and ran avintage clothing store there from 2008 to 2016. His father went to medical school at Tulane, andhis parents came and went from the city for decades. Shapiro runs aticket business and stays off social media, which he said never appealed to him. He calls himself boring. The apartment argues otherwise. He contacted me months ago, after readingastory Iwrote about Becky and Wyatt Collins’ folk-art collection in New Iberia He was amassing his own, largely New Orleans-themed, and wanted someone to see it.
Iwent Friday,not surewhat to expect. From the moment he opened the door,the sheer volume of art shocked me, and all of it installed since December The other surprisewas discovering that Shapiro is as much a scenebuilder as he is acollector.Much of what fills therooms began as inexpensive folk art: hand-painted figures for $30 or $40,old $10 fruit-crate ads in $10 frames. He arranges the pieces into vignettes and then populates them, including atiny taco man in awhite suit beside ahot-dog man holding ateddy bear on the kitchen island.
Apainted blues lounge hangs in the hallway.Headded the singers and miniature beer cans himself In the dining room corner,he dressed two skeletons as Elvis Presley and Marilyn Monroe, a tribute to Louellen Berger’syearly skeleton display outside her mansion on St. Charles Avenue in October
He commissioned Jody Robert, aJackson Square artist, to make plasma-cut art that includes Mr Okraand Ruthie the Duck Girl. He drove to Lafayette to buy a Blaine Kern Mardi Gras float piece off Facebook Marketplace. Shapiro says the bookshelves in the living room werethe most time-consuming. Books alone just didn’tsit the way he wanted. So he started weaving in figures he found on eBay until the shelves became aseries of miniature worlds, odes to Michael Jackson, Dennis Rodman, “Full House,” E.T.and more. The bookshelf vignettes are his favorite part of the whole place
“It’sall there for areason,” he said.
Behind the residential spectacle is Shapiro’sconviction that artists deserve aliving —and that more people could affordtogive them one. He talks about the Jackson Squareartists the way other people talk about endangered species.
“So many hungry artists just trying to make art their living,” he
Region braces forheavy rainfall
Storms expected throughout theweek
BY JA’KORI MADISON Staff writer
Aflood watch has been issued by National Weather Service forecasters due to excessive rainfall expected to continue throughout theweek in Acadiana
Thewatch remains in effect through Wednesday at 7a.m.
“You shouldmonitor later forecastsand be alert forpossible flood warnings,” forecasters noted in the alert. “Those living in areas prone to flooding should be prepared to
take action should floodingdevelop.”
Local officials are urging residentstoprepare aheadofthe expected rainfall.
St.Landry Parish Sheriff Bobby J. Guidroz said forecasts indicate rainfall totals over the next three days couldrange from 7to15inches in some locations, while other areasmay receiveloweramounts.
“Weare asking our citizens to preparefor this weather event; secureproperty thatmay float or driftaway,asthiswill prevent
drainage systemsfromclogging,”
Guidroz said. “Be aware that some roads may flood; never attempt to drivethrough flooded streets.You could send water intohomes or worse, become stranded in avehicletaking on water.”
Guidrozadded that the St. Landry Parish government is providing sandbags andconducting flood mitigation efforts, while the Sheriff’s Officeispreparing rescue vehiclesand personnel.
“Do your due diligence and prepareyourselves,”Guidrozsaid.
Showers and thunderstorms are expected on Tuesday mainly before 4p.m., withhighs near 81. Chance
of precipitation is 90%, with rainfall amounts between one-half and three-quarters of an inch possible. Tuesday night, achanceofshowers and thunderstorms is expected before 10 p.m., followed by aslight chance of showers through 1a.m Additional showers and possible thunderstormsreturn overnight. Chance of precipitation is 60%. On Wednesday,showers and possible thunderstorms areexpected before 1p.m., with additional showersand thunderstorms likely during the afternoon. Chance of precipitation is 70%. Wednesday
ARTALL AROUND
ABOVE: The jazzgroup Mondamentals performs along VermilionStreet duringthe Second Saturday ArtWalk in downtown Lafayette. LEFT: The sidewalksofJeffersonStreetbustle with activity
BobbyJohnstarted business in 1959
BY KRISTIN ASKELSON Staff writer
ily operation intoastatewide businessknown for its customer service andfamily ownership. Hisson, Robert Lewis John Jr., later joined thecompany, and his grandson, RobertLewis John III, now leads the business. Born Jan.1,1937,inCrowley, Bobby Johnwas theyoungest of eight children born to Lebanese immigrants Thomas A. Johnand Maggie Mickoul John. Aftergraduatingfrom St.Michael Catholic High School, he attendedSpring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama,served in the NationalGuardand marriedhis hometown sweetheart, Roberta Hanks, in 1958. Outside of business, Bobby John was known for his devotion to his Catholic faithand communityservice.Heserved J&JExterminating
Robert“Bobby” JohnSr.,the co-founder of J&J Exterminating Co.who helped build thecompany into Louisiana’s largest familyowned pest controlbusiness, died Friday at his home surrounded by family.Hewas 89 Johnco-founded J&J Exterminating with his brother,Harry,in1959 whenhe was 22 yearsold. Over the next severaldecades, he helped grow thecompanyfrom asmall fam-
BY MATTHEW ALBRIGHT Staff writer
Louisiana has sent 44,614 checksworth atotal of $6.5 million to people who have unclaimed property held by state government, officials announced Monday Unclaimed property includes things likecash,stocks,
STAFF PHOTOSBYBRAD BOWIE
Along-sought after goal of advocatesaiming to rein in spiraling healthcare costshas been price transparency that letsconsumers seeup front what hospitals charge for routineprocedures.
An executive order by PresidentDonald Trump in 2019 set out aframework forprice transparency standards that hospitals had to meet for the first time. But in 2023,ananalysis by the group Patients Rights Advocate found that manyhospitalsinLouisianaand acrossthe nation were not meeting those standards.
Last week, wordcamethatthe federalgovernment is not ignoring the problem. Since April, The Associated Press reported, theTrumpadministration has sent out letterstomorethan 500 hospitals across the country,including 27 in Louisiana,warning them they were notmeeting thestandards.The hospitals could face penalties of up to $2 million annually if they don’t make aplan to post clear pricingdata in the near future.
Some big names on the list inLouisianawere Baton Rouge General’sBluebonnetcampus and its nearby rehabilitation hospital andManning Family Children’sHospital, part of the nonprofit LCMC network in New Orleans. Others on the list were mostly specialty hospitalsand behavioral facilities. Baton Rouge General said some of the issues had to do with how the information was displayedonits websiteand said it would be “making improvements.” Similarly,Manning Family Children’ssaidthat ithad pricing available on its website for years buttheyare workingtoensure the files meet therequirements. We are glad to see these twoinstitutions willing to work toward aresolution
We are also glad to see that theTrumpadministration is diligently pursuingthe issue Healthcare costs are one of themost stubbornly intractable problems in our economy.Families in America go bankrupt trying to pay forprocedures to save or improve thelives of loved ones
We believe price transparency isanimportant tool that will help consumers andproviders alike by making it possible to shop around for nonemergency care. We do notsee that the information requiredtobe postedonlineisonerous, but rather,itisuseful to consumers and employers, who often must absorb highercosts for their health plans when theiremployees don’thave clear information.
The administration is pushingfor hospitals to make it easier for patients toaccess theprice lists and to make surethey arebasedonreal costs and not just estimates.
We think that is reasonable.Weknowthere are many drivers of cost in our healthcare system, but allowing consumers to know what they are paying for is astart. Sometimesgovernment can help markets workbetter,and in this case, we see price transparency rules as nota cureall, but as an essential prescription forsuccess in the future.
LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE
WELCOME. HERE AREOUR
GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’scity of residence
TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com. TO SEND USA LETTER, SCANHERE
In “Children are now running our big cities,” syndicated columnist Froma Harrop pointsout theignorance and heedlessness of certain liberal mayors in running big cities. There are many other instances of this same lack of awareness coming from members of the conservative political chorus, particularly our president,who should know better.“If you don’tagree with it, destroy it or deport it”seems to be the ethic infecting both ends of the spectrum today This is thoughtlessness,short-sightedness and fanaticism from both ends of the political spectrum, and thepublic is in thrall to it. The abandonment of moderate politics has proven over time to be arecipe for disaster In the5th century B.C., the Athenian historian, philosopher and general Thucydides wrote thefollowing about fanaticism:
“What used to be described as a
Iwish to respond to Marcia Cooke’s letter concerning theuse of Title X funds. Itotally agree that women should have the knowledge to understand their fertility and to makewise decisions about becoming pregnant.However,I disagree withCooke’sconclusion that Natural Family Planning is unreliable NFP,aka Fertility Care, has been proven to be 99% effective when the woman makes 100% good observations for the mucus sign and records this information daily.Temperaturecan alsobeusedto track the woman’sovulation.
NFP has been taught and used effectively for morethan 50 years throughout the world without the need to depend upon pills thatcan have anegative impact on the woman’sbody
There are added benefits to the use of NFP/Fertility Carethat should be recog-
thoughtless act of aggression wasnow regarded as the courage one would expect to find in aparty member; to thinkofthe future andwait wasmerely another way of saying one was acoward; any idea of moderation was just an attempt to disguise one’sunmanly character;” and “the ability to understand a question from all sides meantthat one was totally unfitted foraction.”
Over two millennia later,this seems to be playing out in thestreets and in thehalls of governmentevery day, egged on by ashameless, mercenary media, and our “bread and circuses” culture seems to have no interest in trying to change. It seems as true now,asever,that those who fail to heed themistakes of history aredoomed to repeat them Have we really learned nothing in the last 2,100 years?
MYRON WALKER Baton Rouge
nized. From personal experience, Ibecame awareofabnormal changes within my reproductive system and when to seek medical treatment. Secondly,my husband and Iwererewarded by learning and practicing SPICE, an acronym for Spiritual, Physical, Intellectual, Creative/Communicative and Emotional intimacy,inour daily relationship. When avoiding pregnancy,wewould decide which aspect needed more attention. It helped us to explore areas more deeply SPICE touches on all important aspectsofthe relationship to express love in many ways.Somuch fun. Trained practitioners are available who can explain and guide couples whowish to experience this wonderful marital bliss. VIRGINIA ALMON Metairie
Onceupona time nurses wore white dresses andcaps. These items of dress were earned symbols. Theyalso wore white stockings andsupportive shoes. The capping ceremonywas so inspiring. Nursesspent long hours of instruction andpractice, which ledtoin-depth learning. Nurse aideswereavaluable part of the team. There was apracticeofa.m andp.m.care. Warm cloths were giventowipe the patient’sface andhands before meals. After breakfast, abed bath with foot soaksand aback rub were welcomed.Dentalhygiene wasalso part of the care. Bedlinens were changeddaily.The food was appetizing andhealthy.The above was done in the name of TLC, known as tenderloving care. In caseofanemergency,papercharts were available. Now computers areutilized, and if the powershuts down, there is no recordtoscan,I’m told.
Nurses’ shifts canlast 12 hours today. Those with familiessuffer the most. Now we seepeople on social media saytheybecamean RN in averyshort time of training.
Good luck with the strippeddown education. Icould write more, but I’ve said enough. Will things change?
Ihopeso!
MILLIE GALLO retired RN Baton Rouge
When will our governor set up atask force to deal with inferior roads and bridges that the citizens of this state have to drive over day after day?
When will our governor set up a task force to start giving retired state workers apermanent benefit increase each year as moststates do? The timefor this is now CLYDE LOYD Ruston
BARRYAMEDEE
After sending theOMV my $60 for a fuel usage fee for my hybrid vehicle, I realized just how angry everyone who owns one of these vehicles should be with their legislators for allowing this to pass. This has got to be one of the worst examples of “double taxation” there is. People putgasoline in these vehicles to begin with, and they only switch to electric when that fuel is about to run out, unlike true electricvehicles. It makes you wonder where the money from this fund is going and who benefited from getting the bill passed in thefirst place. Maybeyou could find out theanswer for those of us whoown one of these vehicles. Thank you for your timeand keep up thegood work.
Baton Rouge
State’sexpandedalligator season is worthcelebrating
Faimon Roberts
It may seem strange to talk about 10,000 alligators dying as athing worth celebrating, but hear me out. Last month, the Louisiana Legislature gave the go-aheadtostate wildlife officials to add arecreationalalligator hunting seasonthis fall in addition to the state’s already active commercial season. The new season will add about 10,000 tags to the 38,000 already offered in the state’scommercialprogram. In the new season, 5,000 hunters will be awarded two tags apiece. Eachtag is good for one alligator
The new season means hunterscould take almost 50,000 alligators from Louisiana’shabitats this year.A little more than 50 years ago, that numberwould have been almost unthinkable. The state’stotal alligator populationwas estimated to be fewer than 100,000.
Even if every tag is used, the new hunting season will barely make adent in thecurrent population,estimated to be around 3million
How we got here from where we were is atriumph of data-based conservation that involved all stakeholders, including landowners, conservationists, hunters and those who make alligatorproducts. By the 1960s, Louisiana’salligators were in trouble. Poachingwas rampant, regulations wereineffective.
Many large landownerswho leased their land for duck hunting,crawfishingortrapping tacitly allowed,ifnot supported, eradication of alligators, according to Bob Thomas, anaturalist andthe director of the Center for Environmental Communication at Loyola University
“If you see somebody with alight and agunshot, he’sbreakingthe law, but helping you out,” Thomas said Thesolutionconservationists came up with was simple. Landowners could lease marshes for egg collectionbyalligator farmers. who thenhad to return aportion of the hatched alligators to the marshes from which they came. The programcreated an economic incentive for those who previouslywouldhave
The newrecreational hunting season will addabout 10,000 tags to the 38,000 alreadyoffered in the state’scommercialprogram.
turnedablind eye to poaching. It also providedanavenue for thelegal sale of alligator products
The truly ingenious part of theplan rested in theproportionof4-foot alligators that egg collectors had to return to the marsh. Scientistshad determined that, in the wild, about 17% of alligators that hatched survived to that length. So, if acollector took 100 eggs, they would have to return 17 4-foot alligatorstothe wild within two years. By modulating the proportion, wildlife officials could boost or slowthe alligator population’s growth. Also in the program, hunting was bannedfor about adecade. When it was allowed again, it was under tight restrictions that pushed hunters toward males and helped themavoid egg-laying females.
In other words, no one —hunters, landowners, those who want alligator products, conservationistsorscientists —was left out of the process. The idea was radical in theway it married economic incentives withecological goals But it almost didn’thappen. Environmentalists opposed it,and membersof otherstate departments werealso skeptical, Thomastold me. But he said onceitgot going, thealligatorpopulation“exploded.” Now,the
population is so robust that the additionof10,000 tags to the state’s totalis barely ablip.
Louisiana can increase the number of alligatorskilled by hunters because, for ahalf century, we’ve been sogood at helping themlive. And as aside benefit, the program generates an estimated $250 million in economic activity in Louisiana. The alligator isn’tthe only species thathas made acomeback in Louisiana in recent decades: The black bear,the brown pelican and the bald eagle have as well. Thoserestorations weredifferent,but they have had similar success. None of these conservation efforts have been easy or happened overnight. It takes time andintentionalitytobring back an animal that has dwindled due to human action. And thereare plentyof species thatare still in need of focused restoration.
State Sen. Robert Allain, R-Franklin, who sponsoredthe bill calling for the recreational season, called the alligator program “the greatest conservation story in America.” Politicians areprone to hyperbole, but in the alligator’s case, that’scertainly worth celebrating.
Email Faimon A. Roberts III at froberts@theadvocate.com
Awelcomebreak from today’s repulsive, glue-factory politics
In the mid-1940s, 4-year-old Lamar Alexander climbedatree, frettedthat he could not climb down,and called forhis mother to help. This was before the noun “parent” became averb,and beforeadvanced thinkers decided that parenting is ascience, or an art, or both. So his mother simply told him, “You got yourself up there, you can get yourself down.”He did. He graduated from his freerange Tennessee childhood with astock of gumption that propelled him through apublic life spanningalmostaquarter of the nation’slife, working with 10 presidents. His career’sastonishing breadth began in 1963 as astaff member in Attorney General Robert F. Kennedy’sJustice Department.Alexander,now 85, was aWhiteHouse aide to President Richard Nixon,a two-term governor of Tennessee, presidentof the University of Tennessee, education secretary under President George H.W.Bush, and athree-term U.S. senator Hismemoir, “The Education of a Senator: From JFK to Trump,”tellshis story of many achievementsand afew disappointments (two attemptstowin Republican presidential nominations). His graceful but unembellished prose suits his penchant for understatement. Even if —no, especially if —you find today’spolitics repulsive,read this book while remembering Mark Twain’s warm endorsement of an exemplary congressional candidate duringthe seaminess of Gilded Age Washington: “The presenceofsuch aman in politics is like avase of attar of roses in agluefactory —itcan’textinguish the stink, but it modifies it.” The placidity of Alexander’smemoir is disturbed only,but emphatically,
and twice, byhis immoderate dislike of theadjective “moderate” when applied to him. He specifically deplores adescription of him as “of mild mien andasenatorial model of “moderate Republicanism” that is “as valuable as it is scarce.” Those words are from this column in 2009.
Thewrong lessonstotake from Platner, Paxton
Youcan explain away all the scandals that have beset GrahamPlatner,Maine’sDemocratic nominee for U.S. Senate. The tattoo of aTotenkopf, the death’shead emblem associated with Nazi concentration campguards? Thatwas a drunken mistake by ayoung Marine who didn’t know any better.His failure to remove it for nearly two decades?
The self-professed “military history buff” found out about those associations only recently
How about this shirtless profile on the anonymous chat app called Kik, favored mostly by the 13-to24-year-old set? He made some mistakes early in his marriage. The ex-girlfriends who told the NewYorkTimes his behavior was “unsettling” and, in onecase, physically abusive? The woman who says he manhandled her once worked for the conservative Heritage Foundation. QED, the accusation isn’tcredible.
That sure is alot of explaining to have to do, and some of the explanations seem unconvincing. So alternatively,you could simply say, “What about Ken Paxton?”
Paxton, the Texas attorney general who defeated incumbent U.S. Sen. John Cornyn in the Republican primary runoff last month, is at least as scandalicious as Platner.The Republican-controlled Texas House impeachedhim in 2023 for dereliction of duty and bribery,among other charges. As my news-side colleaguesreported: “His own senior staffers reportedhim to the FBI, alleging he illegally used his position to help aprominent donor,” and “his wife,state Sen. Angela Paxton, filed for divorce last year on ‘biblical grounds.’”(The Senate later voted to acquit him.)
It’shard to denounce Platner while supporting Paxton (or Donald Trump), but that won’tstop many Republicans from trying. The reverse is also true. Many Democrats will assure themselves that this is entirely different,even though it’smuch the same. It is arejection of the idea that character matters in politics.
Politicians needn’tbesaints. But nor should Americans mindlessly vote for whoever represents their party without any care for character Nominating those who are obviously unscrupulous and unstable is bad for the country —and, frequently,for America’sparties.
It mattered that Trump was vindictive,vain, pigheaded and unprincipled, because that’show we gotJan. 6, unpopular tariffs, abudgetdeficit of almost 6% of gross domestic product, and the current mess in Iran. That can be twistedtojustify standing by Platner: Trump is so badthatwe must do all we can to check him.
This is now the dominant narrative of both parties: Our opponents are intent on destroying everything right and just, while we are doing what we must. Every election has become an existential contest between all-powerful supervillains and …amoebas who have no capacity for independent thought and can only react automatically to negative stimuli. But we aren’tamoebas; we’re humans who have the capacity to make choices and draw lines.
Alexander writes that he has always“detested”being called “moderate,” a“lazy adjective” that describes “style morethan philosophy.” Homer nods, and Alexander errs.
George Will
There are political people, and heisone, in whom personal style is inseparable from —is an emanation of —aphilosophy.Of conservatism, properly understood. Aconservatism whose principles include flexibility is indispensable in a functioninglegislature, where negotiation and compromise are inescapable. Principles must be moderated to accommodate the inconvenient existence of others elected espousing different philosophies.
Edmund Burke, thefountainhead of modern conservatism,warned against purelyperformative politicians, of which America today has asurfeit They “makethemselves bidders at an auction of popularity,” and become “flatterers instead of legislators.” By them, “moderation will be stigmatized as the virtue of cowards, and compromise as theprudence of traitors.”
Politicsisneither ascience nor an art. It is acraft, like carpentry or playing shortstop. The dignityofa craft derives fromthe fact that it is acquired only through many years of repetitions. Hence, patience is aconservative virtue. Faux conservatives who proclaim on the Senate floor their principledrefusal to compromise of-
ten achieve their only intended result: cable television and social media resonance. This is actual conservatism: While campaigning for governor,Alexander met amother who said, “I am sad tonight. My twinboys are smart,but they’ll never find agood job around here, and I’ll never see my grandchildren.”Hence his protracted courtship of Japanese automobile manufacturers to locate plantsinTennessee. By 2006, bothofthat mother’s sons and one of her grandsons were working for Nissan. Alexander’spolitical craftsmanship was honed during almost six decades of apublic career whose diversityof offices filled is perhaps unmatched in American history.Ofthe 2,019 people who have been senators, few earned as much respect as Alexander,and like TedWilliams, he homered in this last at bat. Near the end of his Senate tenure, he and two other senatorsmet in the WhiteHouse Roosevelt Room to try to persuade themercurial president to pressuresome of his Senate acolytes to support amajor bill, theGreat American Outdoors Act. Pointing to aportrait of Theodore Roosevelt, one of Alexander’scolleagues said to Donald Trump: “If you support and sign this law,you’ll be thegreatest conservationist president since Teddy Roosevelt.” Alexander writes: “Trumpleaned back, folded his arms, and looked into space. ‘Wouldn’tyou say ever?’ Trumpasked.”
He endorsed the bill, which became law.AsOtto von Bismarck reportedly said, “You can do anything with children if you only play withthem.”
Email George Will at georgewill@washpost.com.
It’shelpful to remember how often these compromises go awry.Trump’selection denialarguably cost his party both Georgia Senate races in the 2021 runoffs, and MAGA primary challenges have ousted moderates from seats the GOP subsequently lost. The president’sunpopular policies are likely to do further damage this November.Asmay his meddling in Texas, where he endorsed Paxton because Cornyn —who boasted that he supported Trump’spositions 99%ofthe time —wasn’tabjectly servile enough. Paxton might have wonanyway,but it sure didn’thelp that the president weighedinonhis behalf. Platner also makes it more likely that Maine will return Republican Susan Collins to the Senate.
If both men survive their respective races they will arrive in Washington carrying all their baggage, containing who knows whatticking time bombs waiting to go off, with the rest of their caucus in the blast radius. When the eruption comes, party stalwarts will console themselves by saying the voters had spoken and there was nothing they could do. Balderdash. There is at least one thing they could’ve done: Refuse to support acandidate who doesn’tbelong in the Senate.
What’sthat, you say? Politics ain’tbeanbag? Republicans have been saying so for 10 years and it’sgotten them only grief. Many have kept their jobs, but at great cost. They’ve been left with abadly weakenedparty that will either struggle to win elections or need to rebuild itself as something other than acult of personality Their jobs now mostly consist of explaining the inexplicable and defending the indefensible. It’sapity to sell your soul for power.It’san embarrassment to sell it for nothing.
MeganMcArdle is on X, @asymmetricinfo. Email her at Megan.McArdle@washpost.com.
Reporters for The TimesPicayune |The Advocate won top awards for investigative reporting and public service journalism in the Louisiana chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists’ 2026 contest.
Reporters Jillian Kramer and Jeff Adelson won theAMark Award for investigative reporting for their 2025 series “Longing for Justice,” which explored chronic delays in the New Orleans court system,the reasons behind the backlogs and the anguish inflictedonfamilies of crimevictims.The A-Mark Foundationisa national nonprofit that makes grants to help award investigative reporting acrossthe country Contest judges noted their decision to give the award
to Kramer and Adelson “for notonly their journalistic revelations,but also their degree of difficulty.”Adelson built adatabase using hundreds of thousands of pagesofrecordsfor the series, with the reporters analyzing cases over a10-year period in Orleans Parish.
The judgesalso cited the results of the series,includingtwo ofthe oldest cases in the criminal court closing afterthe newspaper’s reporting on them —one after 16 years, another after 12.
The Times-Picayune staff also won SPJ’sEdAnderson Award for public service journalism for its probing follow-up coverage of the 2025 New Year’sterror attack on Bourbon Street. The samecoveragewas recently nameda finalist for theNational Center for Integrity in News Reporting’sprint
reporting award.
TheSPJ judges complimentedhow the staff followed “the aftermath of the tragedy,investigating the lack of security precautions and how thekiller got radicalized in the first place.”
“Too often in today’s resource-stressed newsrooms, the coverage stops with the news andnever delves into thedetails,” thejudges noted. “The T-Pnever gave up on this story, andits communityisbetter for it.”
Reporter SamKarlinalso won the second place Ed Anderson Award for public servicejournalismfor his series “Lethal Heat,” which revealed soaring heat-related deathsacross the state.
Reporter James Finn won second place in news reporting for his coverage of U.S. BorderPatrol sweeps late last year in New Orleans.
WorldCup fantours BR highlights
German Freddy visits LSU, Cane’s
BY JOYHOLDEN Staff writer
AGerman World Cup fan
namedFreddy, whohas been documenting his road trip through the South, made it to Baton Rouge to see LSU and Tiger Stadium on Saturday Hisadventureshavebecome quite viral.
Xuser @FreddyLA7 landed in Atlanta on June 5with two friends and startedtheir epic road trip across the Southon June 7. They are bringinga smallreplica of theWorld Cup trophy to every state they travel to. So far,they have driven through Georgia, Tennessee, Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, Louisiana andTexas. Their first American World Cup experience was at the match between Iceland and Argentina at Jordan-HareStadium at Auburn University
The German fans got an unexpected treat when they were given tours of theNew Orleans Saints practice facility and the New Orleans Pelicans practice facility after arriving in New Orleans.
The Pelicans posted, “We can confirm Freddy is real, is German and loves New Orleans,” in response to some posts questioning his authenticity After looking for alliga-
J&J
Continued from page1B
as an Eucharistic minister in area hospitals and nursing homesand wasactive in the Kiwanis Club. He alsosupported numerous charitable and religious organizations throughout Acadiana and beyond.
tors in aLouisiana swamp and an impressionable trip to BourbonStreet,Freddy and hisfriends stopped inBaton Rouge on their waytoHoustonfor the Germany vs. Curacao match on Sunday Freddy postedthat thetrio toured theLSU campus and saw Mikethe Tiger. They got aglimpse of Tiger Stadium Freddy posted, “Omgthis is insane,” toaccompany his videoofanemptyTiger Stadium. He then posted again to say it was the largeststadium he had ever been to.
Fortunately,Freddyand hisfriendsran into acouple Europeansoncampus who gave them atour of the LSU women’s soccer facility. He posted,“AfellowGermanand aBritish guywho workatLSU found us on campus and gave us atour of the soccer facilities andgifted us these stylishshirts,”beside three pictures of the LSU soccer field and meeting room
Freddy,like some other World Cupfansposting on social media abouttheir American experience,has not revealed his nameoridentity He placesa picture of soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo over his face andemojis over hisfellow travelers’faces
BeforeFreddyand his crew departed Baton Rouge for Texas,theystopped at the original RaisingCane’slocationonHighlandRoadnear theLSU gates
Freddy posted “Lives were
An avid pilot, hunter and fisherman, he maintained alifelong passion for aviation and the outdoors. He is survived by his daughter, ChristineJohn Casanova and her husband, Dr.Robert Casanova; his son,RobertLewis John Jr., andhis wife,Ann Mulea John; seven grandchildren; eight great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife,Roberta. Visitation will befrom 2p.m. to 8p.m. Thursdayand from8 a.m.to 9:15 a.m. Friday at Martin &Castille’sdowntown Lafayette location. Arosary will be recited at 6p.m Thursday AMass of Christian Burial will becelebrated at 10 a.m. Friday at the CathedralofSt. John the Evangelist in Lafayette. Burial will be private in Woodlawn CemeteryinCrowley.
LOTTERY
SUNDAY,JUNE 14, 2026
PICK 3: 5-3-9
PICK 4: 0-1-5-0
PICK 5: 6-2-0-2-8 Unofficial notification, keep your tickets.
RISHER
Continuedfrom page1B
said. “I wish locals would take greater advantage, as opposed to the artists being reliant on heavy tourist season.”
The artists’ creativity has pulled him in.
He cannot draw and says so without embarrassment.
“They are doing things thatI could never do in a million years, and it blows me away every single day,” he said. “I stare at some of the things in here and literally have no idea how the artist made it.”
His best argument for buying art is also his simplest: Art brings out emotion.
He compares the enjoyment to thatofattending a concert
“The difference with art is, if you buy it, you get to enjoy it for however long you own it,” he said. “It’s real and stays with us and it’s so much more affordable thanmost people think. Iwant themall to succeed.”
the farcorner of the dining room corner,hedressed twoskeletons as Elvis Presley and MarilynMonroe, atribute to the famous St. CharlesAvenue home that decorates its yard
skeletons in October
changed” as the caption beside Raising Cane’schicken fingers and Texas toast with the famous wood panelingin the background.
Having experienced an athletictaste of the capital city,Freddy and his pals continued on to Houston, where retiredNFL player J.J. Watt setthemupatanupscale hotel.
To topoff the Germans’ road trip through the South, they witnessed Germany defeat Curacao 7to1atNRG Stadium. The 2026 FIFA World Cup will conclude July19atMetLife Stadium, officially referred to during the tournament as New York New Jersey Stadium
Forall that, Shapiro is nearly finished with this project. He rents the apartment; its owners live nearby and plan to movein eventually.Hefigures he has threetofive years.
Fornow,every wall is spoken for Even the upstairs play room is finished, down to
RAINFALL
Continuedfrom page 1B
night, scattered showers and thunderstorms remain possible before more widespread rainfall develops overnight.Mostlycloudy skies areexpected with lows around 78 and southwinds
the Pop-a-Shot, where Shapiro properly shellacked me,84-7.
“This was probably all too much, to be honest,” he said, looking around. “You either go understated, or you go crazy.Iwent crazy.”
Even so, the too-muchness works. That he recognized what was happening and kept going anyway is what’sendearing. Shapiro can’tcompare notes on where he went to high school in New Orleans, but his apartment suggests something the city rewards: devotion taken alittle too far
between 10 and 15 mph with achance of precipitation at 60%.
Going into Thursday, showers andpossiblethunderstormsare expected before 1p.m., with additional storms developing through the afternoon. Rain chances are expected to continue into the weekend. Residents arealso being encouraged to review severe weather and hurricane preparedness plans as the Atlantic hurricane season begins. Lafayette Utilities System recentlyreleased its 2026 Hurricane Handbook, which includes safety information, evacuation guidance andemergency contacts.
at‐tendthe bidopening in person, butare highly encouragedtovirtually jointhe bidopeningsvia Zoom usingthe following link: https://us02web zoom.us/j/86599727923? pwd=cZP18juQuNbsFD6 pPXRD5lL5YAyZeY.1 In accordance with Louisiana RS 38:2212 electronicBidsmay be submitted on Vendor Ac‐cess(https://lafayettecs dgovla.tylerportico.com/ va/vendor-access/ registration). Bidders wishing to submit their bid electronically must firstberegisteredwithin LCG Vendor Access at the website listed above. The registrationprocess can takesometime; there‐fore, LCGrecommends registering days in ad‐vance of thetimethat bidsare due. It is the soleresponsibilityofthe biddertoensuretheir bid isdelivered (whether electronicallyvia Vendor Access, in person,orvia mail) to thePurchasing Divisionprior to the scheduled date andtime ofthe bidopening.Ven‐dorsmay requestthe bid electronicallyfromLay‐cia Batisteatlbatiste@ lafayettela.gov.Official Bid Documentsare avail‐ableonVendorAccess (https://lafayettecsdgov la.tylerportico.com/va/ vendor-access/ registration). Forques‐tions relatedtothe elec‐tronicbidding process, pleasecallLayciaBatiste at337-291-7173. Vendorssubmittingbids electronicallyare re‐quiredtoprovide the samedocuments as bid‐derssubmittingthrough the mail as soon as avail‐able. Only abid bond certified checkor cashier’s checkshall be submitted as thebid se‐curity. Electronic copies ofboththe frontand backofthe checkorbid bondshall be included withthe electronic bid. Bids must be signed in accordance with LRS Title38:2212(B)5.A Cor‐porate Resolution or Cer‐tificate of Authorityau‐thorizing theperson signing thebid is re‐quiredtobesubmitted withbid.Failure to sub‐mit aCorporateResolu‐tionorCertificate
STAFF PHOTO BY JANRISHER
Jeremy Shapirostands in his NewOrleans kitchen with abackdrop of artwork allaround. In
with
Welcoming arms
Some smaller U.S. cities embrace hosting World Cup teams’ base
BY LEAH WILLINGHAM Associated Press
In the shadow of Tennessee’s Signal and Lookout mountains, 8-year-old Beckham has been balancing on a fence for more than three hours, gripping a handwritten note and waiting for Spain’s national team to emerge.
“I love you and I look up to you,” the note reads, addressed to Pedri and Lamine Yamal. “Thanks for coming to my city I hope you win the World Cup.”
As the players run onto the field, his eyes grow wide.
“Dad,” he whispers, “they’re real.”
The scene was equally incredible to his father Jaxon McClure, a Marine Corps veteran who grew up in Chattanooga playing soccer with trash cans for goalposts, now coaches hundreds of local children and named his first child after one of the sport’s greatest stars.
This summer — 32 years since the United States first hosted the world’s biggest sporting competition Chattanooga is among several cities established as World Cup base camps, where visiting teams live and train between matches Spain — among the favorites to win the tournament but tied Cape Verde 0-0 on Monday — has set up camp at a boarding school on the Tennessee River in Chattanooga; Iraq is in a mountain resort town in West Virginia with fewer than 3,000 residents; and Germany is in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, where cobblestone
He’s entering second season with Giants
BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer
Former St. Thomas More and UL
wide receiver and special teams
standout Dalen Cambre is having the time of his life.
Last week, he completed a threeday voluntary OTA session with the New York Giants.
He’s now playing for one of the most successful NFL head coaches in John Harbaugh, who is also known as a special teams guru And Cambre and his teammates are ready to ride the wave of momentum created by the New York Knicks’ NBA championship.
All of this for a second-year NFL player whom many overlooked coming out of high school and college. Cambre said he fully appreciates his good fortune.
“I catch myself almost every practice, just looking at the New
streets and tobacco warehouses share space with German flags and TV crews.
Southern hospitality
A 144-foot underground waterfall beneath Lookout Mountain is lit up red and the Embassy Suites in downtown Chattanooga, where the Spanish team is staying, is adorned with la Rojigualda — Spain’s red and yellow flag. Giant banners featuring Spanish players and declaring,
York City skyline, because you can see it from our practice field and just being like, ‘Wow, this is unbelievable,’ “ Cambre said.
“I had never been to New York, and this is the reason I get to come to New York. So really it’s just amazing.”
Cambre made the roster as an undrafted free agent, primarily for his special teams skills. With virtually a brand-new coaching staff this offseason, Cambre is still approaching it like he’s an unproven rookie all over again.
“I’m honestly treating this second year as like rookie year two,” Cambre said. “I’m treating every day like it was a tryout again because we had almost an entire new coaching staff. So I had to show them that there is still stuff for me to improve on.”
Cambre said all the special teams coaches are new, so he’s still got plenty left to prove.
“I want to show them that I can do certain things that they ask — whether it be route running, catching passes, holding for field goals, running down on special teams
“Bienvenidos a Chattanooga” greeted La Roja as the team arrived at Chattanooga Airport.
City native Skip Schwartz said so many people are wearing Spanish jerseys that “you don’t know if they’re from Spain, hoping to get a glimpse or they are locals who have bought into the La Roja bandwagon.”
— whatever it takes to show those guys that I want to be here,” he said.
Cambre was credited with three tackles in seven games last season.
“In my eyes, I need to show the coaches that I’m a reliable, trustful guy that knows every aspect of the offense, and they can trust me for that spot to take a few reps at receiver if someone needs a break or if someone does happen to get hurt,” Cambre said. “I need to show the coaches that I’m that guy I’m that reliable guy that they can put in in case of those situations.
“I also need to show them that I’ll do whatever it takes on special teams.” Cambre is learning from the first family of football coaches these days with Harbaugh now in New York.
“He’s a motivator,” Cambre said of Harbaugh “He understands players and what they want and what they need and knows how to coach them. He takes meetings
BY DOUG FERGUSON AP golf writer
SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y The U.S. Open brought big wind and not nearly as much activity for a Monday, typical these days of practice rounds at majors that move to a different course each year
More players are coming early, not so much to avoid the rush but to avoid the wait.
ä U.S. Open Round 1, 6:30A.M.THURSDAY,USA
“It’s gotten terrible,” Justin Thomas said leading into the third major of the year “You have to sign up for tee times at the (British) Open and U.S. Open, and then people sign up with you and play in a foursomes. You can’t play nine holes in less than three hours.”
The way around that is to follow a script from Jack Nicklaus back in his prime — see the course early before it becomes populated with pros and amateurs, contenders and dreamers. Scottie Scheffler and Rory McIlroy took a detour on their way to Ohio two weeks ago to play Shinnecock Hills, the first time seeing it for the No. 1 player, a refresher course for McIlroy Jon Rahm arrived last Friday to see what he should expect for the U.S. Open. Patrick Reed, who hasn’t played
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY GEORGE WALKER IV
Spain midfielder Lamine Yamal, right, signs an autograph for Griffin Wamp, left, after arriving with teammates for the World Cup soccer tournament on June 5 in Chattanooga, Tenn.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY GEORGE WALKER IV
Spain forward Alex Baena walks across the tarmac after arriving with teammates for the World Cup soccer tournament on June 5 in Chattanooga, Tenn.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY NOAH K. MURRAY New York Giants wide receiver Dalen Cambre makes a catch against New York Jets cornerback Mario Goodrich during a preseason game on Aug. 16 in East Rutherford, N.J
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY DAVID J PHILLIP Scottie Scheffler watches his shot on the 13th hole during a practice round for the U.S Open tournament at Shinnecock Hills Golf Club in Southampton, N.Y on Monday.
Sanders weighs in on sports betting
Colorado coach also ponders possible improvements for college football
BY PAT GRAHAM Associated Press
DENVER Nobody has lived on the edge of the risk-reward nature of sports more than Deion Sanders over the years.
One place the Colorado coach won’t go: gambling on the college game, the likes of which has generated a scandal inside the very conference his team resides. Wagering has jumped to the forefront of college football as Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby won a court order early last week that restored his eligibility and set aside a ban by the NCAA for betting on pro and college sports. Colorado plays Big 12 rival Texas Tech on Oct. 3 as part of homecoming festivities.
“Somebody’s gambling on a sport they’re playing? You don’t think something’s wrong with that?” Sanders said in a recent interview with The Associated Press and before the latest court ruling with Sorsby “Just say that to yourself: This guy on my team is gambling on the sport, in the competition, that we’re about to go out there and have. Something’s wrong with that.” Sanders has plenty of thoughts on refining the game in this day and age of the volatile transfer portal and lucrative name, image and likeness deals. His takes include a salary cap in an effort to even the NIL playing field, hiring a retired coach as commissioner (a Nick Saban type), instituting some sort of an age limit, expand the College Football Playoff to 24 teams and, of course, a hard pass when it comes to betting (he’s talked to his squad about this topic).
“The game is still the game,” Sanders said. “The game is just positioned differently Money’s involved, and any time money’s involved people tend to migrate to what they think they can get out of it instead of what they could put into it — and that’s unfortunate.”
Bladder cancer diagnosis
A year ago, Sanders was going
through treatment for bladder cancer, which included having a section of his intestine reconstructed to function as a bladder.
Earlier this spring, Sanders stepped away from the team for a few days as he dealt with blood clots. But he said he’s “feeling great. I’ve got my old swagger back.”
Along with it, a new outlook, which includes actually taking vacation time. Sanders recently partnered on a beachfront property in St. Croix with his son, Shedeur, who’s entering his second season as a quarterback with the Cleveland Browns.
“I never would’ve done that, because I don’t go anywhere,” the 58-year-old Sanders said. “I’m stepping out, just living life.” Sanders missed football camps last summer in Boulder as he went through cancer treatments.
The Buffaloes finished with a 3-9 mark a year after making a bowl game behind Shedeur Sanders and Heisman Trophy winner Travis Hunter This offseason, it’s a more hands-on version of Sanders.
“I have everybody in that locker room because we said we want
them,” he said. “Because I sat there and watched tape on them and said, ‘That’s who I want, that’s what I want. Let’s go get them.’”
New landscape of college game
Sanders found it funny that his heavy reliance on the transfer portal once drew so many raised eyebrows.
“Now, everybody’s doing the same thing that I did,” he said. “But it was crazy back then, right?”
He’s seen and heard the plans from conferences — and the legislation proposals from lawmakers on how to adapt college football in this new landscape. It’s a lot to untangle, which is why he advocates for an authoritative figure to help oversee the sport.
“A guy like coach Saban and some of the other coaches that have walked away from the game not because they can’t coach anymore but because they were fed up with how things are operating,” he said.
Sanders also would be in favor of implementing a salary cap (see: NFL).
“So you can really have a consistency with the game,” Sanders
said “The thing about the pro game, everybody gets to spend the same amount of money It’s who is crafty in regard to business. College football isn’t like that. You may have a team that’s spent $40 million playing against a team who spent $10 million. You darn well know the outcome in that game.”
That leads him to his next point — a potential age cap
“You can’t have a 30-year-old man playing against a 21-year old man and think it’s fair,” he said. “Should be a transfer rule as well. You’re teaching kids not to fight through adversity when you’re having kids able to transfer two or three or four times.”
As for NIL, he momentarily pondered if anything might have been different for him had a similar system been in place when he was at Florida State.
“It probably wouldn’t have (changed),” said Sanders, a college and pro football hall of famer “I’ve had a pretty good run. I’m still running, too — still high stepping. I’m probably in the third quarter of this game (of life) and we’re winning. We’re up by about 21. I’m loving life.”
NCAA, Big 12 go to court against Texas Tech
Organizations file in court to ensure their ability to handle Sorsby’s eligibility
BY STEPHEN HAWKINS Associated Press
The NCAA asked a Texas appeals court Monday to stay a temporary injunction that cleared the way for Texas Tech quarterback Brendan Sorsby to play this fall despite being declared ineligible for gambling while the Big 12 Conference filed a federal lawsuit warning the Texas attorney general to stay out of a case that has rattled college sports. The filings in separate courts raised the stakes in the fight over whether Sorsby can play and who makes that decision.
In documents filed with the Court of Appeals for the Seventh District of Texas at Amarillo, the NCAA asked for an emergency motion to stay the June 8 injunction granted by a Lubbock County court in favor of Sorsby who has admitted he has a gambling addiction and has made thousands of bets, included some on his own team when he was a freshman at Indiana.
The NCAA also asked for a resolution of the case by Aug 28, which it said would spare the potential disruption of a ruling after Texas Tech begins its season on Sept. 5 The NCAA has long banned players for gambling, but Texas Tech
says Sorsby, who transferred there in January after the past two seasons at Cincinnati, would be better off on the team for his mental health and well being.
“The trial court’s temporary injunction sweeps beyond anything Texas law permits,” attorneys for the NCAA wrote “It undermines the integrity of college sports, rewrites member-adopted rules of the National Collegiate Athletic Association, immunizes Brendan Sorsby from discipline for admitted and serial violations of NCAA anti-gambling rules, incentivizes a run on courthouses across the country to challenge even the most obvious and straightforward student-athlete eligibility decisions and demolishes the status quo.”
The injunction last week from Judge Ken Curry prevents the
NCAA from being able to block Sorsby’s eligibility for what will be his final college season with a team among the favorites to win the Big 12. The Big 12, meanwhile, filed suit in U.S. District Court in Dallas seeking a court order backing its ability to use its bylaws for potential punishment against Sorsby So far, the Big 12 has not weighed in on the Sorsby case, but last week the Texas attorney general’s office warned the league of potential legal action from Texas Tech for any sanctions against the school or Sorsby
The Big 12 filing names Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the Republican nominee in the U.S. Senate race this fall, as well as Texas Tech leadership, including its president, chancellor and ath-
Braves pitcher Strider shut down for four weeks
ATLANTA Atlanta Braves righthander Spencer Strider will be shut down from throwing for four weeks because of inflammation in his right elbow, the team announced Monday
Strider, who had been placed on the 15-day injured list Saturday, will have another MRI at the end of that period and would begin “throwing progression” if tests were to show the inflammation had cleared, the team said.
Strider left Friday’s 7-5 loss at the New York Mets in the fourth inning due to right shoulder and elbow soreness.
Strider has a history of arm problems He underwent Tommy John surgery in 2019 and had the UCL in his right elbow repaired with an internal brace in April 2024.
Rangers place SS Seager on 7-day concussion list
ARLINGTON,Texas The Texas Rangers have placed shortstop Corey Seager on the seven-day concussion list, clearing the way for second baseman Josh Smith to return from a six-week absence that included a bout with viral meningitis
The move on Seager is retroactive to Friday, a day after he collided with Kansas City catcher Carter Jensen while trying to score from first base on a double by Brandon Nimmo.
The two-time World Series MVP stayed in the game and homered. Seager missed 19 games in May and June with back inflammation.
Manager Skip Schumaker said Seager mentioned a sore jaw while staying in the 4-2 victory over the Royals, then the five-time All-Star began reporting concussion symptoms after the game.
Reds’ De La Cruz could go on rehab assignment soon
CINCINNATI Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz could go on a rehab assignment this weekend if the next couple of days go according to plan. De La Cruz who has been sidelined since June 1 due to a right hamstring strain ran the bases and took some infield grounders before Monday night’s game against the New York Mets. He will run the bases again on Tuesday before a final decision is made. Manager Terry Francona said the likely rehab assignment would be to Triple-A Louisville, which is at Gwinnett this week. The Reds’ Single-A affiliate in Dayton is also on the road this week. De La Cruz left the May 31 game against the Atlanta Braves with right hamstring tightness.
Cameras stolen from Troy baseball team’s bus
OMAHA, Neb Troy’s first appearance in the College World Series has produced lots of Kodak moments for the Alabama school.
letic director It accused them of trying to prevent the Big 12 from exercising its own rules the school itself agreed to long ago.
“An athlete with an extensive, documented history of wagering on intercollegiate athletic contests
— especially his own team’s games
— presents a reputational and integrity risk to the conference and its championship competition that the conference has both the right and the responsibility to address,” attorneys for the Big 12 wrote.
“The Conference is not required to accept that risk on behalf of its fifteen other member Institutions, their student-athletes, their fans and its commercial partners. And no government official has the power to compel it to do so.”
The Big 12 board of directors, made up of presidents and chancellors from the league’s 16 schools, was expected to meet Monday Court records show Sorsby has acknowledged making thousands of bets on pro and college sports totaling at least $90,000 while at Indiana, Cincinnati and Texas Tech. That included 40 bets on Indiana while he was a freshman in 2022, though none on any of the games in which he played for the Hoosiers. While some guidelines for penalties related to gambling have changed in recent years, NCAA rules still call for a permanent loss of eligibility for any player who wagered on his own team. At least two schools, Nebraska in the Big Ten and Georgia in the SEC, have indicated they will not schedule Texas Tech.
Only Troy’s photographers are having to use borrowed equipment to capture them after thieves stole cameras and lenses valued at $35,000 from the team bus.
The theft was discovered after Troy arrived at Charles Schwab Field for its game against Ole Miss on Sunday According to a police report, a Troy official reported the theft shortly before noon. The bus had been parked near the team hotel since about 4:30 p.m. Saturday Omaha police spokesman Michael Pecha said Monday no arrests had been made and that the investigation continues.
Kentucky hires former Michigan State AD Batt
The University of Kentucky announced on Monday it has hired athletic director J Batt from Michigan State, a little more than a year after he left Georgia Tech. Batt follows retiring UK athletic director Mitch Barnhart, who has had the job since 2002, making him the longest-serving AD in the Southeastern Conference. Barnhart won’t take on a high-paying role at the school after Gov Andy Beshear questioned decision-making at the school.
“The championship standard has been established at Kentucky and we are committed to upholding that standard of excellence,” Batt said. Before leading Georgia Tech’s athletic department, he was executive deputy athletic director at Alabama and served as chief operating officer and chief revenue officer in the athletic department.
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO BY KIRK IRWIN
University of Colorado coach Deion Sanders stands on the sidelines before the start of a game between the Cleveland Browns and the Tennessee Titans on Dec. 7 in Cleveland
ASSOCIATED PRESS FILE PHOTO BY TANNER PEARSON
Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby is interviewed after a game against Baylor on Oct. 25 in Cincinnati.
First-timer Cape Verde stuns Spain
Match between tiny country, heavy favorite ends in draw
BY JAMES ROBSON Associated Press
ATLANTA So much for a supersized World Cup diluting the quality of soccer’s biggest tournament.
Tiny Cape Verde, making its debut at the World Cup, pulled off a stunning upset to shut out heavily favored Spain in a 0-0 draw on Monday
“This means everything for our country,” said Cape Verde coach Pedro Leitão Brito. “We have always said that we wanted everybody to see our country, our team and we have shown organization and braveness and this is proof of what our country is about resilience and to try to overcome hardships.” European champion Spain is one of the favorites to win the tournament and was -1200 to beat Cape Verde in its opening game But it could not find a way past a 40-yearold goalkeeper and a stubborn defense that had an answer to everything Spain’s superstars threw at them.
Not even sensational teenager Lamine Yamal, who came in off the bench in the second half, could turn a game that ended with wild and emotional celebrations inside the stadium.
“A dream” was how Cape Verde defender Steven Moreira described it.
Veteran goalkeeper Vozinha broke down in tears after the final whistle following his impressive performance to keep Spain at bay He was the player of the match, pulling off a string of saves at the
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Around 25,000 people entered a lottery for 1,000 tickets to watch Spain practice at Baylor School, a 600-acre private academy for students grade 6 through 12.
Meanwhile, tickets to watch Germany practice at Wake Forest University in Winston-Salem sold out in four minutes.
“It’s just fun to see everyone start to care about something they didn’t care about before,” said Savannah Lahey who manages soccer bar Small Batch Beer Co. in downtown Winston-Salem. The bar has extended its hours for watch parties and created a German-inspired menu featuring schnitzel sandwiches and sauerbraten for Germany’s opening match.
“It’s getting to make people feel at home, even when they’re not at home,” Lahey said.
At the Greenbrier in West Virginia, a historic resort that has hosted presidents and foreign leaders, Iraqi flags flew alongside the Stars and Stripes as the national team arrived for its World Cup training camp.
Teams chose from FIFA-approved base camps across North America, with higher-ranked nations getting the earliest picks. Spain selected Chattanooga over larger cities, including Chicago and Los Angeles, then worked
CAMBRE
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and fires you up or will get mad at certain players from the practice before. It’s not like a demeaning talk with these players. It’s a motivating talk to get them to perform better
“He’s a very personal coach, and he is not a type of dictator coach. He doesn’t say it’s his team and you’re going to do what I say He takes feedback from the players and kind of adjusts the way he coaches.”
Cambre gets to enjoy his early NFL days with a teammate from his hometown in former LSU wide receiver Malik Nabers
“We actually had dinner with the entire wide receiver room the other night, and we got on the topic of peeling crawfish,” Cambre said. “Me and Malik were trying to explain it to the other guys on the best way to eat crawfish and different ways to cook them and like what a crawfish boil is really like. It’s really nice not being the only one to kind of understand where I’m from. Me and Malik can both connect on that.”
biggest stage. Despite the majority of the crowd of 67,640 inside Atlanta Stadium appearing to be Spain fans, it was the Cape Verde supporters who cheered loudest. They continued their celebrations after the final whistle, singing and dancing in the concourse.
“All of us, we are happy because we work a lot to be here. We deserve to be here,” Vozinha said.
BELGIUM 1, EGYPT 1: In Seattle, Romelu Lukaku’s mere presence sparked an attack that led to Belgium’s lone goal only seconds after he entered as a second-half substitute, helping his team earn a draw with Egypt.
Lukaku came on in the 66th minute with Belgium trailing 1-0. He ran down the middle of the field and lurched to tap a cross from the right into the net, but Egypt defender Mohamed Hany did that instead, scoring an own-goal. The equalizing goal came only 23 seconds after Lukaku came on the field.
Emam Ashour had put the Egyptians ahead in the 19th minute with his first international goal.
end of the first half to deny Ferran Torres, Pedri and Aymeric Laporte.
The closest Spain came to finding a breakthrough was when Torres struck the bar shortly before halftime.
“We should have won today’s match with everything that happened, with all the favorable situations we created, but we lacked
freshness and a clinical edge,” said Spain coach Luis de la Fuente who had warned before the match that Cape Verde could be one of the surprise teams of the World Cup. Spain could have been the victim of an even bigger upset when Diney Borges had a late chance to win the game but saw his header saved by Spain keeper Unai Simon. Cape Verde didn’t win, but its
with Baylor to create an expansive headquarters around its training fields and media facilities. FIFA inspectors graded Baylor’s facilities, including the condition of the grass and its drainage and irrigation systems, the school’s operations and systems director Sam Green said. To preserve the pitches for Spain, Baylor’s players trained this spring on artificial turf, a sacrifice Green said seniors accepted without complaint. Hidden behind a tree line, two grass pitches form the center of Spain’s daily training. The airport
Cambre said it was cool being in the Big Apple during the Knicks’ Game 4 historic comeback win last week on their way to the NBA crown.
“It’s absolutely crazy,” Cambre said of the Knicks’ hoopla in New York. “Technically, the stadium and where most of the players live is on the New Jersey side, but we’re all about 20 30 minutes from New York City and Madison Square Garden.
“So we see and we can feel all the people traveling to and from Madison Square Garden or to bars and different places, different restaurants to go and watch the game.”
Now it’s a matter of transferring that momentum to the football
field
“There’s just so much excitement and we’re going to use that,” Cambre said. “The Giants are going to use that excitement, that fan base, and kind of roll with that into the football season. We’re all really excited for the Knicks, and we’re going to use that momentum, especially going into the football season.”
Email Kevin Foote at kfoote@ theadvocate.com
and their downtown hotel are minutes away and Atlanta — where Spain plays two group-stage matches is within easy reach. After Spain’s first official practice, players headed straight to the campus pool, where they “swam and laid out and had a good time” before returning to training.
For Schwartz, who now serves on Baylor’s board of trustees, Spain’s choice is meaningful because he and his teammates helped to lay Bermuda sod for their new soccer field when he played soccer at Baylor in the late 1980s and early
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since the PGA Championship last month, is said to have played the course more often than some of the Shinnecock members.
This is one of the most energydraining weeks of the year a product of the mental stress a course like Shinnecock and a major like the U.S. Open — tends to elicit. Thomas and Jordan Spieth arrived over the weekend and played practice rounds two days before the official start of practice rounds. They didn’t have the course all to themselves, but it felt like it. And it beat the alternative of long rounds when players hit different clubs off the tee, dozens of shots from the rough and closely mown area around the green, putting to all four corners of the green. Their preparation largely done, official practice days are now light work. That’s the Nicklaus way
“That’s why I never wanted to practice then,” Nicklaus said of the early part of the week at the majors. “I got my practice in the week before so I knew what I wanted to do, instead of waiting
performance rebuked some of the criticisms that the expansion of the World Cup from 32 teams to 48 would weaken the tournament.
The group of islands have about 2.5 miles of landmass and approximately half a million inhabitants, making Cape Verde the thirdsmallest nation by population to qualify for the World Cup. And even against a Spain team that is filled with superstar players, Cape Verde proved its worth on soccer’s
1990s. That field has since been replaced by an indoor tennis facility which serves as Spain’s media center — but the school now has three soccer pitches and one of the region’s premier soccer programs.
“If somebody had told me then that 40 years later Spain would be using this campus as the foundation for a World Cup, I wouldn’t even have tried to fathom it,” he said.
‘I’m cheering for Spain’
Tina Ankar, a first generation Palestinian American, said she became a soccer fan because of the World Cup and her boyfriend, who grew up watching games with his Mexican family At Spain’s open practice, hundreds of fans shouted “¡Vamos, España!” after nearly every touch Ankar found herself swept up in the energy
“I’ve got to watch these guys all the way to the end,” she said. “Now we really have someone to cheer on besides America.”
Before Spain’s first public practice, Baylor students slipped into the locker room and snapped photos of stalls freshly labeled with the names of Spain’s stars, debating which player had inherited “their” locker
“I sat in that locker room almost every single day this spring,” 17-year-old midfielder and graduating senior Heath Techasiriwan said.
Techasiriwan, a Filipino American and lifelong Lionel Messi fan who rooted for Argentina in 2022,
for everybody else. I didn’t like that. So I tried to get my practice in, and go back on Tuesday (of major week). I didn’t want to get stuck in that six hours.
“If I had been there the week before, why did I need to get there on Monday?”
McIlroy had limited practice time at the PGA Championship because of a nagging blister on his right toe. But then, he had come to Aronimink two weeks earlier for serious practice. But there was one image during his practice round when McIlroy had a small army tagging along inside the ropes, from TV personalities to equipment staff and photographers. It didn’t feel very productive to him.
“Too many people inside the ropes I think is the big part of it,” he said of the long practice rounds at the majors. “I think as well, guys are resigned to the fact that they’re going to play nine holes, so it’s OK to be out there for three hours. No one plays 18-hole practice rounds anymore the week of (a major). I guess it gives everyone the ability to play slow and hit as many balls as they like.” Tiger Woods used to have his own routine, playing first to have
Ashour, a midfielder who was playing in his 30th game for his country, took advantage of a defensive breakdown to give Egypt only its second lead in World Cup match. The Egyptians, who are playing in their fourth World Cup, still have never won a game at the tournament.
Belgium failed to advance past the group stage at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and has not won any of its last three matches in the tournament.
Egypt had numerous chances to increase its lead but could not put the Red Devils away Lukaku and teammate Kevin De Bruyne also had an abundance of opportunities to take the lead.
said there was no question who he will support this summer
“Without a doubt, I’m cheering for Spain,” he said. “I can’t see players like Pedri, Gavi and Lamine Yamal literally right in front of me and not cheer for them.”
Goalkeeper Mathew Ramirez commutes an hour each way to Baylor from Calhoun, Georgia. He grew up watching Barcelona with his father, who immigrated from Guatemala, and plans to watch Spain’s World Cup matches over carne asada with family and friends.
After practice, Yamal, who is 18, signed the 16-year-old goalie’s custom Barcelona jersey Ramirez told the star in Spanish: “Watching you play gives me happiness.”
Young fan’s superheroes
Back in Chattanooga, Beckham collects signatures and takes selfies with players before heading home in the Spain jersey his father said he slept in the night before. His father said Beckham kept repeating: “Wait, Dad They’re real. Lamine Yamal is a real person. I just thought they were like superheroes. They’re on TV.”
Chattanooga has come a long way since the neighborhood games McClure remembers. He is now a soccer coach to about 850 children, and the city has professional men’s and women’s teams.
“They could have gone anywhere in this country,” McClure said of Spain, “and they chose us.”
at least nine holes to himself.
One year at the Masters, he walked out of the clubhouse at 7:25 a.m. toward the first tee unaware of a wooden clock at the tee box indicating the course would open at 8 a.m. Not to worry His caddie, Steve Williams, moved the hands back a half-hour Woods stepped onto the tee at 7:28 a.m., saw the clock and moved the big hand back two more minutes and fired away He was on the links courses of the British Open around 6 a.m. Anything much later than that meant he had overslept. Scheffler had a dream day of practice at the PGA Championship before he won at Quail Hollow last year He was the only PGA Tour player on the course the Sunday before official practice because most everyone else was at two PGA Tour events that day Monday through Wednesday can be as slow “I don’t remember it being as bad as it is,” Thomas said. “The U.S. Open and PGA Championship to me are the worst. It’s getting treated more like the range and chipping green. I get that you need to get used to
— I totally understand that But it’s gotten to be a lot.”
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY GEORGE WALKER IV
Spain forward Lamine Yamal, left, defender Marc Pubill, center, and midfielder Gavi walk with teammates on June 5 in Chattanooga, Tenn. Spain has set up its home base in Tennessee.
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY ERIK S.LESSER
Cape Verde’s Dailon Livramento, left, and Sidny Lopes Cabral celebrate after a World Cup Group H match between Spain and Cape Verde in Atlanta on Monday. The game finished in a 0-0 tie. WORLD CUP ROUNDUP
UFC boss: White House
fight night a one-off
BY DAN GELSTON AP sportswriter
WASHINGTON By the time Justin Gaethje pummeled his bloodied foe to a pulp and celebrated a championship win with a backflip off the top of the wire-mesh cage, then shook hands with President Donald Trump — and even fistbumped Melania — this much about his company’s future was clear to the ultimate boss of UFC: Just say no to the White House. “It was an amazing experience, this was a one-of-one,” UFC CEO Dana White said. “It will never happen again.”
Oh, not because the show dubbed Freedom 250 and ostensibly held to celebrate Trump’s 80th birthday and the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence’s signing wasn’t by White’s accounts a smashing success. He crowed about merchandise sales and streaming service subscriptions, and how UFC surpassed its goals in every metric he could list at a news conference that stretched well into the dawn’s early light Monday And the setting? Almost impossible to top on a night when fighters essentially treated their walkouts like they were kids on a class trip. The allmale lineup toured the West Wing, the Oval Office, walked past presidential portraits through the Roosevelt Room, the Cabinet Room and the winners even got a meetand-greet with Trump.
Gaethje skimmed the copy of the Declaration of Independence that hangs in the Oval Office and said a prayer before he made the unusually long walk to the cage. Gaethje
battered Spanish-Georgian fighter
Ilia Topuria in the main event and won the UFC lightweight title.
“Usually I kind of blank out when it comes to getting ready to walk to the cage,” Gaethje said “It was pretty crazy, looking at the Declaration of Independence. The original one Their language was different I’m not smart enough to read that.”
Gaethje also banked a whopping $825,000 in bonus money for winning “Performance of the Night” and “Fight of the Night” honors. Trump stayed until the end of the seven-card show and generally seemed engaged with the fights — at one point he put on a white “USA” baseball cap — and certainly was all smiles each time a fighter who had a hand raised in victory then used it on a handshake with the president.
There were few blips on the big night and the blemishes that
did happen were at the expense of UFC’s two more problematic fighters
UFC middleweight champion
Sean Strickland was escorted out of the Ellipse watch party attended by thousands more fans by a group of police officers. Heavyweight Josh Hokit took it further with an unfounded attack based on a rightwing conspiracy theory about former first lady Michelle Obama. For all the hand-wringing ahead of the card, the show delivered on the star-spangled smackdown that featured pulsating patriotism from the Marine Band, tributes to first responders, active military and other White House-designated heroes. Gaethje and Ciryl Gane were crowned champions inside a blood-splattered eight-sided cage plopped in the open air right in the people’s house backyard on the South Lawn.
Texas routs Alabama behind third CWS cycle
BY ERIC OLSON AP sportswriter
OMAHA, Neb Adrian Rodriguez hit for the cycle and drove in seven runs, Ruger Riojas pitched six strong innings and the Texas Longhorns knocked Alabama out of the College World Series with a 14-2 victory Monday Texas (46-14) plays another elimination game Tuesday against the loser of Monday night’s Oklahoma-Georgia game. The Crimson Tide (42-21) went two-and-out in its first CWS appearance since 1999.
Rodriguez and the Longhorns cranked up their offense two days after Georgia’s Joey Volchko struck them out 15 times in a 7-1 loss.
The sophomore shortstop had a two-run double in the first inning, a two-run triple in the second, a single in the fifth and a two-run homer in the sixth For good measure, he hit an RBI double in the eighth.
The triple initially was scored as a single and two-base error after the ball dropped between center fielder Bryce Fowler and left fielder Eric Hines and rolled to the warning track. Official scorer Shamus McKnight changed it to a triple a few innings later after further reviewing video.
“Had it not been changed by the end of the game, yeah, I certainly would have said something,” Texas coach Jim Schlossnagle said. “I thought that was a clean triple. But I’m glad they made that change during the game.”
Rodriguez became the third player in CWS history to hit for the cycle and tied the CWS record for most RBIs and total bases in a game (12). The other players to hit for the cycle were Minnesota’s Jerry Kindall, against Mississippi in 1956, and Tennessee’s Christian Moore, against Florida
SCOREBOARD
(Keller 5-4) at Athletics (Perkins 2-3), 8:40 p.m. Tampa Bay (Rasmussen 6-2) at L.A. Dodgers (Wrobleski 7-2), 9:10 p.m.
Rory McIlroy, 1,603. 8, Jacob Bridgeman, 1,600. 9, Chris Gotterup, 1,589. 10, Tommy Fleetwood, 1,491. Scoring Average 1, Scottie Scheffler, 69.168. 2, Jake Knapp, 69.571. 3, Matt Fitzpatrick, 69.863. 4, Collin Morikawa, 69.899. 5, Cameron Young, 69.979. 6, Brooks Koepka, 70.011. 7, Si Woo Kim, 70.063. 8, Ludvig Aberg, 70.092. 9, Xander Schauffele, 70.142. 10, Chris Gotterup, 70.166. Driving Distance 1, Aldrich Potgieter, 328.4. 2, Michael Brennan, 324.4. 3, Gary Woodland, 322.8. 4, Chris Gotterup, 322.6. 5, Nicolai Hojgaard, 322.3. 6, Rasmus Hojgaard, 321.4. 7, Marco Penge, 320.8. 8, Jake Knapp, 319.8. 9, Min Woo Lee, 319.7. 10, Jesper Svensson, 319.3. Driving Accuracy Percentage 1, Russell Henley, 71.89%. 2, Aaron Rai, 71.13%. 3, Si Woo Kim, 69.75%. 4, Andrew Putnam, 69.51%. 5, Lucas Glover, 68.95%. 6, Tommy Fleetwood, 68.48%. 7, Kensei Hirata 67.96%. 8 (tie), Corey Conners and Emiliano Grillo, 67.54%. 10, Matt Fitzpatrick, 67.27%. Greens in Regulation Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. Total Driving 1, Scottie Scheffler, 55. 2 (tie), Ludvig Aberg and Jordan Smith, 62. 4, Michael Brennan, 63. 5, Sudarshan Yellamaraju, 65. 6, Kurt Kitayama, 67. 7 (tie), Neal Shipley and Cameron Young, 70. 9, Matt Fitzpatrick, 75. 10, William Mouw, 79. SG-Putti
State in 2024.
“Ruger actually came up to me later in the game and told me that they took the error off the board,” Rodriguez said. “So it was kind of surreal, because I remember C-Mo doing it with Tennessee when I was in high school. It’s kind of crazy that that’s all coming back when we’re here So it’s just a crazy moment.”
Rodriguez’s performance was another highlight in his comeback from a troublesome injury that has twice cost him playing time and forced him to bat lefthanded exclusively after having been a switch hitter He suffered a fracture to his left hand when he was hit by a pitch against Missouri last season and missed seven games. He had surgery to insert a staple in the wrist last fall, but he had an allergic reaction and needed another surgery in April that sidelined him eight games.
“Happy for him considering all the things he’s been through this year,” Schlossnagle said.
He entered the NCAA Tournament batting .277 with 31 RBIs, 11 doubles, two triples and three homers in 45 games.
In seven NCAA Tournament games, he is batting .667 (18 of 27) with at least two hits each game, 16 RBIs, seven doubles, a triple and two homers.
“I think that guy is one of the big heartbeats of that team,” Tide coach Rob Vaughn said. “He plays with a lot of energy Obviously playing the biggest position on the field at shortstop. Kind of threw us for a loop.”
Riojas (6-2) allowed two runs and struck out seven in six innings. Texas is 5-0 in his last five starts Alabama’s Zane Adams (85) was knocked out with two outs in the second inning. He gave up seven runs on seven hits and three walks.
Wyndham Clark, 4.54. 5, Collin Morikawa, 4.53. 6, Jacob Bridgeman, 4.48. 7, Harris English, 4.39. 8 (tie), Akshay Bhatia and Eric Cole, 4.38. 10, Ryan Gerard, 4.33. Eagles (Holes per) 1, Jake Knapp, 43.7. 2, Nicolai Hojgaard, 75. 3 (tie), Shane Lowry and Sahith Theegala, 79.2. 5, Sungjae Im, 80. 6, Matt Wallace, 82. 7 (tie), Tommy Fleetwood and Max Greyserman, 82.8. 9, Keegan Bradley, 96.4. 10, Michael Brennan, 88.2. Sand Save Percentage 1, 10 tied with .00%. All-Around Ranking 1, Scottie Scheffler, 156. 2, Ludvig Aberg, 258. 3, Collin Morikawa, 265. 4, Wyndham Clark, 283. 5, Sam Burns, 306. 6, Min Woo Lee, 309. 7, Chris Gotterup, 310. 8, Si Woo Kim, 312. 9, Jake Knapp, 315. 10, Ryan Gerard, 330. LPGA Tour Statistics Through June 14 Scoring 1, Nelly Korda, 68.26. 2, Hyo Joo Kim, 69.41. 3, Haeran Ryu, 69.81. 4, Hannah Green, 70. 5, Jeeno Thitikul, 70.22. 6, Ruoning Yin, 70.32. 7, Lydia Ko, 70.46. 8, Ina Yoon, 70.47. 9, Miyu Yamashita, 70.49. 10, Hye-Jin Choi, 70.52. Driving Distance 1, Julia Lopez Ramirez, 290.63. 2, Riley Smyth, 289.17. 3, Polly Mack, 283.14. 4, Auston Kim, 282.21. 5, Helen Briam, 279.75. 6, Laney Frye, 279. 7, Ina Yoon, 278.63. 8, Suvichaya Vinijchaitham, 278.46. 9, Nelly Korda, 278.03. 10, Nanna Koerstz Madsen, 276.95. Greens in Regulation 1, Haeran Ryu, .80%. 2, Helen Briem, .76%. 3 (tie), Isabella Fierro, Hannah Green, Nelly Korda, Jeeno Thitikul and Lottie Woad, .74%. 8 (tie), Narin An and Dongeun Lee, .73%. 10, Ina Yoon, .72%. Putts per GIR 1, Hyo Joo Kim, 1.69. 2, Minjee Lee, 1.71. 3, Minami Katsu, 1.72. 4 (tie), Mi Hyang Lee and Angel Yin, 1.73. 6 (tie), Ariya Jutanugarn, Nelly Korda and Gaby Lopez, 1.74. 9 (tie), Leona Maguire, Brooke Matthews and Chiara Tambulini, 1.75. 12, Chiara Tambulini, . Birdies 1, Aki Iwai, 178. 2 (tie), Hye-Jin Choi, Haeran Ryu and Lottie Woad, 159. 5, Jennifer Kupcho, 157. 6 (tie), Jin Hee Im and Ina Yoon, 153. 8, Ruoning Yin, 152. 9, Miyu Yamashita, 151. 10, 2 tied with 147. Eagles 1, Nelly Korda, 9. 2, Hye-Jin Choi, 8. 3 (tie), Ariya Jutanugarn and Ryann O’Toole, 7. 5, 8 tied with 6. Sand Save Percentage 1, Minjee Lee, .67%. 2 (tie), Nelly Korda and Jing Yan, .64%. 4, Lucy Li, .63%. 5 (tie), Youmin Hwang and Patty Tavatanakit, .62%. 7, Minami Katsu, .61%. 8, Jessica Poravsnik, .60%. 9, 2 tied with .59%. Rounds Under Par 1, Nelly Korda, .87%. 2, Haeran Ryu, .70%. 3, Hye-Jin Choi, .60%. 4, Ruoning Yin, .61%. 5, Aki Iwai,
ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO BY JULIA DEMAREE NIKHINSON
Featherweight fighters Diego Lopez and Steve Garcia square off in the ring during the first fight at UFC Freedom 250 on the South Lawn of the White House on Sunday in Washington, D.C.
Celebrating America’s 250thbirthday
Go red, white andblue in the garden
The Fourth of July is approaching, and thisyear’sholiday marks aspecial milestone:
GARDEN NEWS
The United States of America is officially 250 years old. Folks across the country are commemorating the occasion with lots of red, white and blue. Why not bring that color scheme into the landscape? At the LSU AgCenter Botanic Gardens at Burden in Baton Rouge, that’sexactly what staff members are doing as they refresh beds with warm-seasonannuals.Senior landscape manager Jason Stagg said there are plentyof patriotically hued plants that do well in Louisiana gardens.
LSU
Lucky Starpentasare excellent choices for hues of red and white
Reds
The Burden team is using Lucky Star Dark Red pentas for apunch of red in the Burden landscape this summer
The Lucky Star series, which was selected for the AgCenter’sLouisiana Super Plant program, features small,fivepointed flowers that come in a range of vivid shades.
“This particular variety of pentas is shorter,sowe’re using that on the front of the bed,” Stagg said. Flowers aren’tthe only way you can add color.Stagg likes the deep crimson of Redhead coleus, afoliage plant that thrives in our climate.
Whites
To mimic the white stripes and stars of the American flag, the Burden landscape prominently displays white-flowering lantanas —asummertime staple in Louisiana gardens. Stagg recommends the Bandana series, amidsize lantana that is a Louisiana Super Plant.
Blues
True blue plants are rare in nature. But there are afew —along with some that come close enough to evoke Old Glory’sblue field.
“I find that some of your best blue colors are with salvias,” Stagg said. “This is also agood thing because salvias tend to be taller speciesofplants, and they’re great for the background of the bed.”
One of his favorite salvias is yet another Louisiana Super Plant that’scalled Rockin’Blue Suede Shoes. For even taller options, go with Indigo Spires and Big Blue. For lighter shades,give some less-common plants a try.Plumbago offers clusters of sky-blue flowers while ageratum, also known as blue mistflower,provides textured blooms that look like tiny pompoms.
ä See GARDEN, page 6C
Thered brick house, built as the Protestant Orphanagein1927, as it appears todayat1328 North St.inBaton Rouge. Though BeverlyLively’s mother,grandmother andAunt Edna neverlived in the house,her aunts,Alma and Helen, lived there until they were oldenough to leave
Wall of memories
BY ROBIN MILLER | Staff writer
The story of Beverly Lively’s family plays out through the photographs covering the living room wall in her Baton Rouge home.
At the top is aphoto of Lively during her days as anurse for gynecologist Henry Miller.Justbelow that is asmall portrait photo of her brother.Hewas a businessman,owner of three lounges in Baton Rouge.
This is acopyofanold print that was probably taken about the time the girlsinthe orphanage movedfrom the oldhome on MainStreet to the newhome on North Street. BeverlyLively’saunts, Alma and Helen, nicknamed Snookie, movedfrom the orphanage’sMainStreet location to the house on NorthStreet at thistime.
And in thecenter is ashot of Elvis Presley,whom Lively met after his1956 Louisiana Hayride Tour performance in Baton Rouge High School’s auditorium. Shelooked into those blue eyes, he autographed thesouvenir for which she paid 25 cents, then punctuated the moment with akiss on her cheek.
See ORPHANAGE, page 6C
BR street market to host summer culinary series
Staff report In responsetogrowing interest in immersive food experiences, theBig
STAFF PHOTO BY ROBIN MILLER
AGCENTER PHOTO BY OLIVIA McCLURE
GARDEN
Continued from page5C
What aboutshady areas?
Incorporating color into shady gardens often can be tricky,asvibrant flowering plants generally prefer sunny locations. But with a little creativity,you can still make these areas look festive for the Fourth. For shaded beds at Burden, Stagg and his crew are relying on acouple of plants. Torenia, acompact plant that works great in bordersand containers, is available in blue and white. And red andwhite selections from the Beacon series of impatiens, a
ORPHANAGE
Continued from page5C
Then the scanofLively’s wall comes to agrinding halt on agroup shotoflittle girls with uniform pageboy haircuts posing in front of a bricked building that once wasknown as theProtestant Orphanage in Baton Rouge when it stood on Main Street downtown.
Though so many stories vie for attentioninthis room, this is the story most important to Lively,and at age 90, she doesn’twant it to be forgotten.
Shetookthe opportunity
Her grandmother,Annie Laura Dunn Roof, was hired as the orphanage’scook and later named matron. Lively’s mother, LauraClaraRoof, and three aunts wereraised in the house, though they weren’ttechnically orphans.
“This is my mother,” Lively said, pointing to agirl on the back row.“And this is my Aunt Edna.She wasthe oldest, and she was feisty.My mother was the second oldest. And then here is my Aunt Alma and my Aunt Helen.”
Standingonthe end in the back is Lively’sgrandmother.She was barely scraping by in Hammond, taking any domesticjob she could find to support her four daughters.
“My grandfatherabandoned her,and she was doing what she could to support her family,” Lively said “She was an excellent cook, and she heard from someone that the orphanage was looking for acook. So, she went to the orphanage and asked them to try her cooking, and if they liked it, they could hire her.They loved it.”
Underthese conditions
She immediately was offered thejob,but Annie Laura Dunn Roof had afew conditions —four,tobeexact. As the chef, she would have to move into the orphanage, so she asked if she could bring her four daughters. They agreed.
This was before World WarII, even long before the Great Depression. Though Lively can’tremember the exact year her mother’s family made the move from Hammond to BatonRouge, she emphasizes that it was necessary
“Times were rough, and they were so poor,” she said So began the Roof family’s long association with the Protestant Orphanage. The institutionhad been around since 1854, housing only parentless girls.
Itsfirst home wasthe “Bird Building” on the 500 block of Main Street in downtown BatonRouge The orphans moved further down Main Street in 1870 aftertheir original home was rented out to the Louisiana School for the Blind.
David Laatsch, ageneal-
SERIES
Continued from page5C
$150 per person or $250 per couple, available for purchase at breada. org/summer-culinary-series.
On July 15 and July29, “Taste Like aSomme” offers guests the opportunity to explore wine through theeyes of aprofessional sommelier.
Manyplantscan be used to create ared, white and blue landscape.
LouisianaSuper Plant, are atried-and-true choice for color in the shade.
PROVIDED PHOTO FROM BEVERLYLIVELY
BeverlyLively’sgrandmother Annie Laura Dunn Roof, seen here in lateryears,took ajob as the cook for the Protestant OrphanageinBaton Rouge in the early 1900s. Roof was living in Hammond and working to supporther four daughters after her husband abandoned the family.She movedher daughterstothe orphanageand laterwas namedthe orphanage’s matron.
ogy librarian forthe East Baton Rouge ParishLibrary, pinpointed its exact address as 1219 Main St. after adeep dive into the 1905City Directory
“I found it at the samelocation in the 1895 directory,” he wroteinanemail.
Theorphanage remained on Main Street untilmoving into its thirdand final home in thered bricked building at 1328 North St. in 1927.
“Theold orphanage was simply one lot tothe west of thecurrent location and faced Maininsteadof North,” Laatsch continued.
Theorphanage was governed by aboard of directors, which secured the $42,000 funding for the new building’s construction and operated the organization as aprivate institution.
NewhomeonNorth Street In theend, the NorthStreet homehad thedistinction the other two buildings didn’t it was designedand built especially for the orphans. The building accommodated 25 girlsand its staff, consisting of asuperintendent,two matrons, acook andlaundress.
“Mymother neverlived in the new orphanage,”said Lively.“She and my Aunt Ednahad aged outofthe orphanage by that time. My grandmother had left and was working for Kean’s Dry Cleaners. My mother worked with her,and Aunt Edna worked for Wolf’s Bakery when it was downtown.” Aunt Edna eventually joined theWomen’sAirforce Service Pilots,orWASPs, whoflew under the directionofthe UnitedStates ArmyAir Forces, which would later become theU.S. Air Force.
Level 3Sommelier Scott Higgins will teach the class how to evaluate wine with intention while enjoying a
charcuterie board that featuresseasonal ingredients from Red StickFarmers Market vendors. Participantswill learn the technique,structure and flavor profiling of wine. The event starts at 6:30 p.m.and is limited to 20 guests. Tickets are $100 per person or $175 per couple, available for purchase at breada. org/summer-culinary-series.
BREADAplans to continue the program throughout the year with future classes that highlight the flavors of each season.Guests are en-
Waitingroomrudeness
Aunt Almaand Aunt Helen were theonly twofamily memberswho moved into the new orphanage on North Street, living thereuntil they wereold enough to leave.
But when they were all livinginthe Main Street orphanage,anincidentoccurred thatchanged Annie LauraDunn Roof’s status from chef to matron.
“I don’tknow what was said or what happened, but Edna got mad and threw an orange at the matron during dinner,”Lively said. “The matronhad astick and began beating Edna withit, andmymother heardthe commotion. My grandmother came outofthe kitchen andjerked thestick outof the matron’shand and said, ‘At therisk of losing my job, Iwillnot allowyou to beat my childlikethat.’ She threw thestick away.”
Anew matron
In theend, thematron was fired, and Lively’sgrandmother was promoted tothe position.
Fromthere, the storiesare sporadic.Lively remembers hermother sharing recollections of walking to school and church from the Main Street location. Her mother was apoint guard forthe girls’ basketball team at a school that once stood on Nicholson Drive, while her Aunt Edna attended aschool on Convention Street.
Lively doesn’tremember theschools’ names, but research shows thatthe ConventionStreet school possibly was St. FrancisHigh School, which was torndown in 1961 to makeway for U.S. 110.
“That school isn’tthere anymore,and my grandmother always hoped that she would livelongenough to be able to take aride on theexpressway,” Lively said. “She died before it was complete.”
Lively’s Aunt Alma moved to Long Island, New York.
Her Aunt Helen married Alma’s husband’sbrother Lively’smother married Charles Whites Lively.The couple would become parents to Lively,her brother Kenny and sister Shirley BeverlyLively andher sister are the only survivors of their immediate family
Her mother never returned to the orphanage’s Main Street or visitedthe North Street location,though Beverly Lively would often takeher on Sunday drives down Main Street
“The building on Main Street had been torn down by then,” she said. “And she had no interest in going into the building on North Street.”
But hermother and aunts are forever part of theorphanage’shistory on the living room wall.
Email RobinMiller at romiller@theadvocate. com.
couraged to reserve their spotsearly
The Big River Economic and Agricultural Development Alliance is anonprofit organization dedicated to strengthening local food systems and supporting regional agriculture through the Red StickFarmers Market and Main Street Market.Through direct connections between producers and consumers, BREADA works to build ahealthier, more sustainable, and economicallyvibrant community.
Dear Miss Manners: Iwas in amedical office waiting room while myhusband was having atest done. I was the only one sitting in thewaiting room initially, until another person arrived. She had her cellphone on, and was watching aprogram when she walked in the facility.Noone was at the front desk at thetime of her arrival. The volume was very loud, and all that could be heard was one profanity after another.After afew minutes, Iasked her if she had headphones, because the program was so loud and offensive.
if people don’tstart saying something, we will be lost.
Businesses need to implement policies that require headphones with the use of cellphones in their offices. No one should be subject to listening to the mostdegrading and profane words that now seem popular with somepeople.
Gentle reader: If only Miss Manners had put in earplugs or rather,put on an eye shade —before she saw this.
But she is sadly familiar with apattern practiced by ordinary citizens, supposedly just going about their business:
She said she did not,and continued to listen, making no attempt to turn it down.
Itold her it was inconsiderateofher to play this type of program in awaiting room. She then threatened to “beat me up if I didn’tshut thef*** up.”
Itold her Iwould call 911 if that was her intention, and she then backed off.
Iknow you’re probably saying Ishould have just ignored her,but something in me would not let me. I feel we have allowed all decency to be slowly eradicated from our society and
1. Someone behaves with ablatant lack of consideration forothers.
2. Someone else scolds the offender
3. The offender threatens violence.
4. The offended threatens to call the police.
And oh, yes, there is another:
5. One or both of them invokesthe noble name of etiquette, claiming to be enforcing properbehavior.
Miss Manners is not grateful forthe assistance. But neither does she agree that suffering rudeness is
the only alternative. Even if there wasnoone at the desk, you could have found someone in authority to deal with this. Or you could have waited foryour husband elsewhere, sending him atext on where to find you. Dear Miss Manners: Ilove eating cherries, but how can Ieat them without offending anyone by spitting out the stones?
Gentle reader: Well, you could swallow them, but Miss Manners does not advise this. When you werea child, surely someone told you that this would make acherry tree grow in your tummy
It is the spitting part, which suggests propelling it out, along with some noise and saliva, which can be offensive. Instead, push the pit forward with your tongue and quietly deposit it in your hand or,better,a napkin if you are fortunate enough to have one within reach. Then what? Ashtrays have disappeared, so if there is no used plate around, into your pocket they go —offending only yourself or whoever does your laundry
Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www.missmanners.com.
Donating nonfoodessentials
Dear Heloise: Ihave asuggestion for donations to food pantries.I usually donatenonfood necessities such as toilet paper,trial sizes or small sizes of shampoo, laundry detergent,feminine supplies,toothpaste and more. Many people who use food pantries are living out of abackpack, so small sizes workbest.Pantries have ahigher number of customers when school is out, so this is agood time for an extra donation. Ialso include zip-close bags to keep thingsdry in abackpack that isn’twaterresistant.Can you imagine needing toilet paper and not having it?Also, as far as clothing drives, I’ll pick up acouple packages of underwear that are my size to donate. Someone who’smysize may be in need of it —Beverly P.,via email Beverly,these are useful items that we all need. However,some food pantries won’taccept anything but food items. So, it might be best to call and ask if your local food pantry or food bank is willing to accept and distribute nonedible items. —Heloise Reviving stalechips
make stalechipscrisp again is to useanair fryer. It is fast anduses much less energy. —RonT.,via email Blisterpackaging
Dear Heloise: Ihave agood wayofremoving medications from blister packaging. Iuse abasic potato peeler and use the end of the peeler to remove the eyes of potatoes. Ipush the end of the peeler through the foil at the edge of the blister,then Ifold the foil over The point of the peeler isn’tsharp enough to damage the medication. When I’ve finished peeling all of the blister’spacking material, Idumpthe contents into abowl, and this way, my thumbs don’tget sore. —JamesA., via email Wipe aftershopping
Dear Heloise: Just wanted to respond to the comments thatI’m seeing aboutusing wipesatthe grocerystore.I do use thembut on my way outofthe store to clean my hands, notonmyway in.
Kate, in Portland, Oregon
Dear Heloise: The best way to
Kate, agreed!You never knowhow many times an item washandledbyanother person.WhenI gethome from thegrocery store (or anyshopping trip),I always wash my hands before put-
TODAYINHISTORY
By The Associated Press
Today is Tuesday, June 16, the 167th day of 2026. There are 198 days left in the year
Todayinhistory: On June 16, 1963, the world’sfirst female space traveler,Valentina Tereshkova, 26, was launched into orbit by theSoviet Union aboard Vostok 6. Tereshkova spent 71 hours in flight, circling the Earth 48 times before returning safely
Also on this date:
In 1858, accepting the Illinois Republican Party’s nomination for theU.S. Senate, Abraham Lincoln said theissue of slavery in the United States had to be resolved, declaring, “a house divided against itself cannot stand.”
In 1884, designer La Marcus Thompson opened the first commercially successful rollercoaster,known as the Switchback Railway,in Coney Island, New York.
In 1903, theFord Motor Company was incorporated in Detroit, Michigan.
In 1933, President Franklin D. Roosevelt signedthe
Glass-Steagall Act into law, creating the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to bolster public confidence in the U.S. banking system.
In 1961, Soviet dancer and choreographer Rudolf Nureyev defected to the West, seeking asylum in Paris during atour by the Kirov Ballet.
In 1976, thousands of Black students in Johannesburg’sSoweto township demonstrated against the imposition of the Dutchbased Afrikaans language in schools; police opened fire on the students, killing at least 176 and as many as 700.
In 1978, President Jimmy Carter and Panamanian leader Omar Torrijos signed the instruments of ratification forthe Panama Canal treaties during aceremony in Panama City In 2015, real estate mogul Donald Trump launched his successful campaign forthe presidency of the United States with aspeech at Trump TowerinManhattan.
In 2016, Walt Disney Co. opened Shanghai Disney-
ting things away.ThenI wash them againafterward to removeanythingImay have pickedupfrom handling thebags. Sound excessive? Actually,it’snot. We all handle things that other people have touched, and without thinking about it, we then touch our eyes, our lips, or an earlobe. When doing this, we transmit bacteria to ourselves with the possibility of picking up aflu, virus or something worse. —Heloise
Wash your food items
Dear Heloise: We workina large grocery store here in Texas, and we often see people handling items such as tomatoes, looking them over,putting them back, then examining another tomato, and so on. If you wantthe fruit and vegetables that have been handled the least, always reach as high up as you can. Most folks take from the lower options, as it’s easier to reach. Before you eat these fresh foods, washthem well. Instead of soap, use baking soda to scrub off any germsand oil from a stranger’shands. —Bobby, Jake and Luis, viaemail Sendahinttoheloise@ heloise.com.
land, its first themepark in mainland China. In 2023, Daniel Ellsberg, the history-making whistleblower who leaked the Pentagon Papers, died at 92. Ellsberg was amember of the government-military elite who revealed longtime government doubts and deceit about the Vietnam War, inspiring acts of retaliation by President Richard Nixon that helped bring about Nixon’sresignation.
Today’sbirthdays: Author Joyce Carol Oates is 88. Country singer Billy “Crash” Craddock is 87. R&B singer Eddie Levert is 84. Boxing Hall of Famer Roberto Durán is 75. Pop singer Gino Vannelli is 74. Actor Laurie Metcalf is 71. Rapper MC Ren is 57. Golfer Phil Mickelson is 56. Actor John Cho is 54. Actor Daniel Brühl is 48.
Higgins
Judith Martin MISS MANNERS
Hints from Heloise
Actor Missy Peregrym is 44. Singer Diana DeGarmo (TV:“American Idol”) is 39. NFLwide receiver Justin Jefferson is 27. Tennis player Bianca Andreescu is 26. Actor Anna Cathcart is 23. Actor Charlie Bush-
LSU AGCENTER PHOTO BY OLIVIA McCLURE
GEMINI (May 21-June 20) A new look that makes you feel good about yourself will encourage you to go the distance and not settle for anything less than what you want. A unique suggestion will help you market yourself for success.
CANCER (June 21-July 22) Put more energy into your thoughts. Sticking to the truth and making your intentions very clear will be necessary when dealing with people who want something from you or those trying to change you.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) It's time to pay attention to how you look and feel. Take command of your future by engaging in events that connect you to an industry or group you'd like to participate in more.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22) A lively approach to helping others and to making the most with what you've got will be inspirational and send a strong message to others to pitchinandhelp.Bealeaderandsethigh standards.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 23) Flying under the radar will allow you to reach your goal without interference. Distance yourself from people who are overreacting. Disciplineandingenuityareyoursuperpowers.
SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) An open mind will lead to valuable information. Pay attention,stayintentondoingthingsright the first time and choose your words carefully and your battles wisely.
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Analyzeyour status, and put an end to what's holding you back. Walk away from drama and those using emotional blackmail to take
advantage of you Limit spending, and implement discipline in your daily routine.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Demonstrating how much you care and revealing what you are willing to do will help you win favors and the respect of those you respect most. Truth and honesty will carry your wants and needs to fruition.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Push forward with enthusiasm. A change you make at home or to your lifestyle will enhance your creative imagination and help you find your way to a better place or position.
PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Doing something entertaining or creative will improve your view of what's happening around you. Choose to speak your mind and to do your part when working with others.
ARIES (March 21-April 19) Think before you speak. Focus on doing what's right and helping those in need. How you spend your time will determine how your day will unfold. Refuse to let anger take over.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Opportunity will unfold through talks, kind gestures and not letting stubbornness get in the way of doing what's right. Reach out to experts, and you'll discover options you didn't know existed.
InstructIons: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a9x9 grid with several given numbers. The object is to place the numbers1 to 9inthe empty squares so that each row, each column and each 3x3 box contains the same number only once. Thedifficulty level of the Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday.
Yesterday’s PuzzleAnswer
THe wiZard oF id
BLondie
BaBY BLueS
Hi and LoiS
CurTiS
BY PHILLIP ALDER Bridge
We are lookingatsituations in which third hand should or should not follow the“third-hand high”mantra. Whichis right here?
Southisinfour hearts. West leads a fourth-highestdiamond two. After dummy plays low, shouldEast put in hisnine or rise with the king?
North knew that his hand was atad strong for afour-heart “weak freak” raise, but he knew that it was unlikely his side had aslam, and he wasworried that the opponentsmight be abletodo well in spades. East should work outwho haswhatin diamonds. He knows that South has the ace, because West would not have led a diamond away from theace. AndSouth presumablyhas threediamonds.West probably has the queen,and might have the 10 as well. (If West had startedwith 10-high diamonds, he likelywould have led from astronger suit.)
However, thekey point is that if East plays his king, declarer must gettwo diamond tricks: his ace and, later, dummy’s jack. But if East puts in his nine, perhaps he can hold Southtoone diamond winner.
Each Wuzzle is awordriddlewhich creates adisguised word, phrase, name, place, saying, etc. For example: NOON GOOD =GOOD AFTERNOON
Previous answers:
InstRuctIons: 1. Words must be of fourormore letters. 2. Words that acquire fourletters 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 wordsare not allowed toDAY’s WoRD ZIRconIA: zur-KOH-nee-uh: Awhite crystalline compound used forrefractories, insulation, enamels and glazes.
Average mark14words
Timelimit 30 minutes
Can you find 23 or morewords in ZIRCONIA?
YEstERDAY’s WoRD —REMADE
loCKhorNs
Whatawonderful promise! Be in churchthis Sunday. G.E. Dean
marmaduKe
Bizarro
hagar the horriBle
Pearls Before swiNe
garfield
B.C.
PiCKles
hidato
mallard fillmore
BRIEFS
FROM WIRE REPORTS
Foxtobuy Roku
in $22 billion deal
Fox Corp. has agreed to buy the streaming pioneer Roku in acash-and-stock deal valued at approximately $22 billion, including debt.
Roku will continue to be run as an open, partner-friendly platform, the companies said Monday,and thereappears to be no immediate changes thatcustomers will see. Fox andRokusaidthatthe combinedcompany willbecome thethird-largest player in U.S. television by share of viewing.
The deal will give Fox access to more than 100million globalhouseholds, along with the Roku channel and its firstparty data. Fox oversees a massivesports, news andentertainmentnetwork, as well as Tubi, which it acquired in 2020.
Fox will pay $96 in cashand
0.9693 shares of itsClass A common stock for each Roku Class Aand Class Bshare outstanding.The transaction is valued at $160 per Roku share.
Existing Fox shareholders areexpected to ownapproximately 73% of the combined company and Roku shareholders will own about27%.
The deal is expected to close in the first half of next year Target taps Mizrahi as newcreative director
NEW YORK Target is tapping designer and TV personality Isaac Mizrahi for anewly created role as creative director at largeasthe discounteraims to reclaim its reputation for stylish clothing on abudget
In Mizrahi’snew role, the fashion designer,who is known for his vibrant colors and who burst on the design scene in the late 1980s, will mentor Target designers, advise on product design and innovationand bring on fresh new partnerships, thecompany said Monday.Target said Mizrahi will work alongside Gena Fox, the retailer’ssenior vice president of design. With this move, the Minneapolis-based discounter is going backtoafamiliar partnership. Back in 2002, Target launched adesign partnership withMizrahi,marking theretailer’s firstcollaboration with amajor fashion designer Mizrahi’sexclusive clothing andaccessoriescollection forTargetpaved theway for the retailer’ssuccessful collaborations withother major designers ranging from Lilly Pulitzer to Missoni. Target’s partnership with Mizrahi ended in 2009.
UAWratifies deal, ends strike at key GM plant
The United Auto Workers strike at Dauch Corp.’sThree Rivers plant is officially over after the local union chapter ratified anew contract withthe key General Motors Co. truck axle supplier
About 80% of UAWLocal 2093 members voted to approve the new four-year deal that will increase top payfor union-represented workers to $30 an hour by 2030 from $22 now, accordingtothe union. Negotiators have cast the outcome as avictory after holding firm to wage and health care demands.
Nearly 1,000 workers at the plant in southwest Michigan walked out on June 1, demanding better wages,more time off, and no increasesintheir healthinsurance costs. Major politicians and political candidates including Gov. Gretchen Whitmerand U.S. Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed had visited the picket line. The deal also includes a $2,000 ratificationbonus and a$1,000 bonus after thefirst year. If it had stretched on, the walkout could have severely affected GM pickup production. Detroit-headquartered Dauch,formerly known as American Axle, makes axles and other parts at the plant that primarily go into several GM truck models.
has worsened inflation around the world.
BY STAN CHOE Associated Press
NEWYORK Stock markets rallied worldwide Monday,and oil prices easedafter theUnitedStates and Iran reachedatentative deal to extend their ceasefire and reopen the StraitofHormuztoget the global flowofcrude going again. The S&P 500 rose 1.7% on hopes that this time, theannouncement of an Iran-U.S. agreementwill mean along-term fix to aconflictthat
Stocks got alift after theprice for abarrel of Brent crude oil fell 4.8% to $83.17, back to where it was in earlyMarch. While that’s still above itspriceofroughly $70 from before thewar,it’slower than the $100 plus it cost just afew weeks ago. The hope is that lower oil prices will takepressure offhouseholds andbusinesses, whichhavehad to pay higher prices for everything from food to fuel to fertilizer becauseofthe war withIran.
Iran confirmed the deal, but it does notinclude afinalagreement on issues like Iran’snuclear program. Negotiationsonthat are expected to continue over the next 60
days, which leaves opportunity for hiccups thatcould derail the agreement.And even if the Strait of Hormuz does fully reopen on Friday as expected, it will likely take months for the energy industry to get back to full speed. For now,though, relief swept through financial markets worldwide.
On Wall Street, stocks of companies with big fuel bills were instant winners. United Airlines flew 3.9% higher, and cruise operator Royal Caribbean Group rose 6.6%.
Stocks of companiesenmeshedin the artificial-intelligence industry alsojumped. These stocks have yoyoedinrecent weeks, going from roaring to recordstosuddenly turn-
ing lower.The concern is whether suchstocksshottoo high, too fast because of AI mania, andtheir careening moves have sometimes reversed direction by the hour MicronTechnology rallied10.8%, and Advanced Micro Devices rose 7%.Nvidia’s climb of 3.5% was thestrongest force pushing the S&P 500 upward because the AI chip company is Wall Street’smost valuable company,giving it more weight on the index than any other SpaceX,ElonMusk’srocket company that also owns the AI company xAI, rose 19.6% in its second day of trading on Wall Street. Its successfuldebut
BY ALYSSA TISCH
The Detroit News (TNS)
CLAWSON, Mich. Jane Milesleanedovera worktableinsideAmericanFlag& Banner Co., carefully cutting and folding afire-damaged American flag before placing it inside a wooden display case for acustomer
Across the room, thestore’sonly two other employees were also busy.One washelpingcustomers browse flags and theother was stitchingaspecial “250” emblemonto acommemorative flag ahead of the nation’s upcoming milestone.
As theUnited States prepares to celebrate its250th anniversary in July,Metro Detroit flag businessesare seeinggrowing demand for theStars andStripes and other patriotic displays to mark the nation’s semiquincentennial amid economic uncertainty at home and awar with Iran overseas.
“It’sreally aluxury item,” said Miles of purchasing an American flag,with Betsy Ross-styled flags selling for $70 in her shop.
“If you’rean American and you want to fly one, you’re giving up something else. You’re notbuying that secondpair of shoes at TJ Maxx.You’regoing to buya flag. It’s a choice, andit’sapatriotic choice, and lotsof Americansare making it.”
Miles has been helpingAmericansmake that choice for nearly five decades.Her store, American Flag &Banner,has been in business for more than acentury.Founded in Detroit in 1917,the business has operated in Clawson for about 40 years. Miles and her husband took ownership 48 years ago after what she thought would be aroutine jobinterview
Responding to ahelp-wanted advertisement fora seamstressinThe Detroit News, Miles met thethen-owner Robert Erdman, whoinsteadsuggested the couplepurchase the business. Miles had an art degree and knew how to sew.Her husband had abusiness background from theUniversity of Michigan.
“We’ve beendoing it for 48 years,”Miles said. “SoI’m pretty good at it ” Over the years, Miles said the business has seen peaks andvalleys. In the months leadinguptoAmerica’s250th anniversary,there has been astrong peak. In high demandat the store arebothflags featuring the officially authorized America250 design, and Betsy Ross-styled flagsdisplaying a“250” emblem at thecenter of acircle of 13 stars.
The Betsy Ross design’scircle of 13 stars representsthe original colonies and haslong been associated with the nation’sfounding. However,Ted Kaye,secretary of the North American Vexillological Association, said the popularstory that Betsy Ross designed the first American flag is likely amyth.
&Dist. Co., another family-owned business in Flint, Michigan, whose roots trace back to 1966. Karri Carter JohnsonfromKleeMfg. &Dist. Co.saidthe companybegan after her grandfather accepted asewing machine as payment forrepairworkand started using it to makeflags and banners.
The business no longer manufactures, but Johnson and her sister still sell flags from the same building purchased by their grandparents morethan six decades ago.
“I like that we’re an integral part in celebrating the anniversary,” Johnson said. “People can come in andget theirflags and be proudtofly them and know that they weremade in the United States. We’vebeen around forever, andmostpeople always know whereweare andwhere they canget their quality.”
To createone of these BetsyRoss-style flags, American Flag &Banneremployees take an originalBetsy Ross flagand sew the 250 emblem onto it. The process takes roughly 15 to 20 minutes per flag, turning each one into ahandcrafted tribute to the nation’s250th birthday
“We’regetting really good at it,” Miles said. “I trace them in 20 seconds, pin them in another 10 and it probably takes six or seven minutes to sew one. Trimming it is the lengthiest thing about it.”
Thestore sells about10commemorative flagsa daywhile producing aroundfour daily in-house, keeping thethree-person operation busy as the anniversary approaches. Similar interest is being seen at Klee Mfg.
“She mayhavesewn oneofthe first flags, butthe Betsy Ross myth is just that. It’s a myth,” Kayesaid. “Francis Hopkinson, who was asignerofthe Declaration of Independenceand the designerofthe Great Seal of theUnited States, is very likely the designer of the American flag.”
For both businesses, the anniversary has renewed interest in where American flags areactually made. While many flags sold through large retailers are imported, both American Flag &Bannerand Klee Mfg. & Dist. Co.specializeinproducts made in the United States and say domestic manufacturing remains an important part of their business.
“There’sjust something alittle strange about buying aflag that symbolizes freedom and the United States that was made in China,” Johnson said. “Something withthat muchsymbolism is definitely something you want to buy that was made by someonein the United States, as opposed to it just being mass-manufactured in China.”
Few countries display and celebrate their national flagasprominentlyasthe United States, Kaye said: “Weare one of the most flag-waving countries of all. Few countries have as manyflags going as we do.”
BY BARBARA ORTUTAY AP technologywriter
SAN FRANCISCO Agroup of cybersecurity executives and experts is askingthe Trump administration to lift itsdirective preventingthe useofAnthropic’s latest artificial intelligence models by foreign nationals, saying the move could help U.S. adversaries morethanithurts them
Anthropic said Friday it has taken its latest artificial intelligence models, known as Fable 5and Mythos 5, offlinetocomply with the directive. The AI giant said it didnot believe the steps taken by the government were warranted by the concernitflaggedabout a potential security issue.
Anthropichas said it waslimiting use of someits latest technologytoselect customers because of its ability to surpass human cybersecurityexperts in finding and exploiting computervulnerabilities. TheSan Francisco-based company has had discussions with the White Housepreviously aboutthe latest models’capabilities.
In the letter Sunday,more than 100 cybersecurityexperts and leaders from companies including Adobe andNvidia asked theU.S government tolift the export controldirectivesonthe Anthropic models and “commit to an open, scientific and transparent process of handling AI risk assessmentsin thefuture.”
Theletter saidthatwhile An-
thropic’sMythosmodels are “quite good” at finding flaws in software and weaponizing exploits, they are ”not uniquely good at these tasks” andmanyofthe letter’s signatories regularlyuse otherfoundation and open-source models for securityaudits andtraining.
The letter said it is dangerous to take away thebestcyber defense capabilities “without agoodreason” when America’sadversaries are rapidly advancing.
China’smodels, the letter said, are“only months behind thebest American models,”and it is even likely that China’sgovernment hasaccess to private capabilities beyond what’sbeen madepublic.
The exportcontrolsmarked the U.S.government’smostsignifi-
cant step yettorestrict access to the mostadvanced AI models. Anthropic released Fable widely last week. That model is alimited versionofthe more advanced Mythos, to whichthe companyhas tightly limitedaccessdue to cybersecurity fears.
The Commerce Department did not immediately respond to arequest forcomment on Monday Friday’sdirective came 10 days after President Donald Trump signedanexecutive ordertoestablish aframework for the federal government to vet the national security risks of the most advanced AI systemsfor up to amonth before theirpublic release. Participation by AI developers wouldbe voluntary,the order said.
Jane Miles, owner of the American Flag& Banner Co., has been sellingAmerican flags for nearly five decades.
