EAST BATON ROUGE PARISH SHERIFF’S OFFICE CALLS FOR THE SOUTHSIDE, 3G
ADVOCATE THE SOUTHSIDE
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THURSDAY JANUARY 7, 2016 H B O C AG E • C O U N T RY C LU B • H I G H L A N D • J E F F E R S O N T E R R AC E • K E N I LW O R T H • P E R K I N S • U N I V E R S I T Y C LU B THEADVOCATE.COM
Darlene Denstorff
ON THE SOUTHSIDE
DDENSTORFF@ THEADVOCATE.COM
BREC taking basketball tourney entries Saturday is the entry deadline for BREC’s annual MLK Basketball Tipoff Classic, slated for Jan. 15-17 at Sports Academy, 1002 Laurel St. The tournament has a two-game guarantee. Age groups are 7-8, 9-10, 11-12 and 13-14. Cost is $75 per team. Call (225) 3449688.
Medicare lecture
“ABCs of Medicare,” a free public lecture presented by Christy Levy, is at 10 a.m. Monday in the fourthfloor conference room of Ochsner Health Center, 9001 Summa Ave. Registration begins at 9:30 a.m. and is limited to 20 people. Preregistration deadline is Sunday; call (800) 561-4127 or visit peopleshealth.com/ wellness.
Advocate staff photo by CHARLES CHAMPAGNE
Fireworks are shot into the night sky Dec. 4 during the Festival of Lights at the Old State Capitol in downtown Baton Rouge.
Museum uses ghostly tales to teach history of Old State Capitol to visitors
THINGS GO BUMP IN THE NIGHT BY REBECCA DOCTER Special to The Advocate
Teen Anime Club
One night while working in the
Bluebonnet Regional Branch Library’s Teen Anime Club meets from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday in meeting room 2 for anime and snacks.
basement of the Old State Capitol, Carl Smith said, he was exiting a bathroom stall when the door flew
Diabetes group to meet
Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center’s Diabetes Education and Awareness Group meets from 6 p.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday in the first-floor auditorium of the main hospital. The topic is “Dancing into the New Year” with speaker Theresa Townsend, fitness director at Leo S. Butler Community Center. No registration is required for the free meeting. Call (225) 765-8020 for details.
off the hinges and smacked into him, leaving him out of breath. Smith said the door’s hinges are designed to open in the opposite Photo by REBECCA DOCTOR
Maintenance supervisor Carl Smith stands in front of the Old State Capitol.
direction. He believes he was attacked. Perhaps by a ghost.
A free Active Older Adults class with instructor Jo Rose will be held at 11:20 a.m. Wednesday at the Southside YMCA, 8482 Perkins Road. Registration begins at 11 a.m. and is limited to 30 participants. Preregister by Sunday by calling (800) 561-4127 or visiting peopleshealth.com/ wellness.
äSee CAPITOL, page 2G
BY DARLENE DENSTORFF
ddenstorff@theadvocate.com
Crocheting and knitting
äSee SOUTHSIDE, page 3G
across the upper floors. Large, heavy doors sometimes open and shut on their own. The casts of ghost-hunting TV shows have made their way through the building’s hallowed halls, each reporting something different. Opened in 1847, the Louisiana Old State Capitol has stood the test of time, and many know the historical events that occurred, such as the impeachment proceedings for former Gov. Huey P. Long. Not many, however, know Confederate Gov. Henry Watkins Allen is buried in the building’s lawn. Museum curator Lauren Davis said after the Civil War, Allen fled to Mexico, as did many other members of the Confederacy. He died in 1866, and his body eventually was moved to Lafayette Cem-
BREC caters to Busy Bodies with slew of senior activities
Activity for older adults
Start 2016 in a crafty way by learning to knit or crochet at Bluebonnet Regional Branch Library. The Crochet Corner meets at 3:30 p.m. Jan. 14 and covers basic stitches, reading patterns and how to make a scarf. Bring a 5.0 mm (size H) or larger crochet hook. A limited supply of yarn will be provided. The Knitting Nook, which gets together at 10:30 a.m. Jan. 14 and Jan. 28, will teach you how to create items including dishcloths, scarves, shawls and blankets. Limited supplies are available. Bring a pair of size 8, 9, 10 or 10 knitting
“That’s the worst thing that ever happened to me, in there,” Smith said. A maintenance supervisor, Smith has worked at the Old State Capitol for the last eight years. During his time in the 168-year-old building, he’s had his fair share of scares. Smith had a paranormal experience before he worked at the Old State Capitol and said he’s not sure who the ghost might be, if that’s what it was. The bathroom incident is the only physical paranormal experience Smith said he’s ever had on the Old State Capitol grounds, but that doesn’t mean he hasn’t come in contact with other ghostly spirits he claims are roaming the halls. There’s a hot spot — a place with a sign of ghost activity— in the basement, which functioned as a prison and hospital during the Civil War, Smith said. He’s heard the click-clack of shoes roaming
Advocate staff photo by TRAVIS SPRADLING
Johnny Stassi unloads his Christmas tree Saturday afternoon behind BREC’s Independence Park Botanic Garden Center building, 7500 Independence Blvd., at one of the East Baton Rouge Christmas tree recycling program drop-off collection sites that will accept trees through Jan. 30. Other sites include Highland Road Park, 14024 Highland Road; Kathy Drive Park, off O’Neal Lane by Team Toyota; Flannery Road Park, 801 S. Flannery Road; and at LSU, in the lot across from Vet School on Skip Bertman Drive.
Tree recycling pickup scheduled during those two entire weeks. Christmas trees should be sepEast Baton Rouge Parish will arate from other unbundled offer curbside collection of trash and woody waste. Residents should remove trees for residents, except in Baker and Zachary. Recycling tinsel, stands, lights and orDirector Susan Hamilton said naments from trees before Christmas trees placed at the recycling them because those curb will be collected by Re- items can contaminate mulch public Services from Monday and compost. Plastic tree bags should not to Jan. 23. There will be only one pick- be used. up visit in each area, so trees should be left out at the curb Advocate staff report
Gloria LeBlanc spent the last Wednesday of the year the same way she spends most Wednesdays. She had her morning cup of coffee, exercised with around 40 of her friends and played board games at BREC Independence Park with members of the Busy Bodies. It’s a routine LeBlanc recommends for other seniors in the Baton Rouge area. Sheila Smith, the center’s head of adult leisure programs, said she stays busy organizing several senior programs for folks like LeBlanc who want to stay active. She started her day supervising the assembly of new table tennis equipment. In a room at the back of the park’s community center, Smith pointed to a photo of the Busy Bodies group. “Don’t they look like they’re having fun?” Smith said, adding that the exercise program stresses low-impact movement for cardiovascular conditioning. Smith said having fun while you exercise is a key to keeping fitness in your routine. Smith, 82, who has worked
Advocate staff photo by DARLENE DENSTORFF
BREC Busy Bodies members Gloria LeBlanc, Sallie Segura and Janet Davis play a game on Scrabble Dec. 30 at Independence Park Community Center. The women get together at least three times a week for exercise, snacks and board games. with BREC for 12 years, said she enjoys meeting new people and helping folks stay active. The average age of the Busy Bodies members is 80. Cheryl Michelet, director of communications for BREC, said programs like the senior exercise group and a popular Tea Dance held every week at BREC’s main building on Florida Boulevard provide seniors a way to stay active. The Tea Dance, which gets its name from its afternoon
start, draws a crowd of around 100 each week who enjoy refreshments and dancing. Musicians perform “high energy” music, Smith said, adding that the seniors enjoy fastpaced dances and “not that slow stuff.” The dance has been around for more than 30 years and has seen a few marriages and courtships blossom. Despite that longevity, many äSee BREC, page 3G