Louisiana Life Magazine July/August 2022

BEST HOSPITALS P.44

FAULKNER BOOK STORE IN NEW ORLEANS

The places around the Pelican State where your favorite authors lived, ate, drank and wrote

LITERARY LOVERS TRAVEL GUIDE JULY/AUGUST 2022

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FEATURES

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Literary Lovers Travel Guide

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Relief, Found

44

Best Hospitals

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JULY/AUGUST VOLUME 42 NUMBER 4

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HOME

FROM THE EXECUTIVE EDITOR’S DESK

Mia and Minor Jahncke looked to architect Davis Jahncke to build a house that seamlessly combines classic period details with a contemporary edge

Lucy the Cow : A Sequel 14

PELICAN BRIEFS

News and updates around the state

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KITCHEN GOURMET

Served alone or with your favorite grilled goodies, these salads will help keep you out of the heat of the kitchen 56

NATURAL STATE

Caroline Dormon and the legacy of Briarwood Nature Preserve in Saline 60

TRAVELER

Jump in, the water is fine at these waterways in ShreveportBossier City

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LITERARY LOUISIANA

The best thrillers, chillers and mixers for reading by the pool, at the beach or on the road 18

MADE IN LOUISIANA

Printmaker Kate Tucker celebrates native species and folklore in rural north Louisiana 22

ART

Baton Rouge artist Mary Lee Eggart combines nature, faith, spirituality and a prayer for peace

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FARTHER FLUNG

Memphis beckons with new hotels, fantastic food and a wealth of history 64

PHOTO CONTEST

A Great Egret, the symbol of the National Audubon Society, wades through wetlands at Avery Island

Louisiana Life (ISSN 1042-9980) is published bimonthly by Renaissance Publishing, LLC, 110 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005; (504) 828-1380. Subscription rate: One year $10; no foreign subscriptions Periodicals postage paid at Metairie, LA, and additional mailing entry offices. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Louisiana Life, 110 Veterans Memorial Blvd., Suite 123, Metairie, LA 70005. Copyright © 2022 Louisiana Life. No part of this publication may be reproduced without the consent of the publisher. The trademark Louisiana Life is registered. Louisiana Life is not responsible for unsolicited manuscripts, photos and artwork, even if accompanied by a self-addressed stamped envelope. The opinions expressed in Louisiana Life are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the magazine or owner.

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FRO M TH E E X E CUTIVE E D ITOR ’ S D ES K

P O D C A ST

Lucy The Cow: A Sequel

Louisiana Insider Catch up on the latest podcast episodes

I

In the last issue of this magazine (May/June) I wrote this column about Lucy the Cow. When I was a kid, a neighbor had a farm (and yes, he was actually named McDonald) and, with the agreement of my parents, gave a calf to me.

That cow was transported from New Orleans to Avoyelles Parish (with her head sticking out of a sack on the back floorboard of the car and me sitting on the back seat to provide company and solace.)

An uncle in Bordelonville, who raised cattle among other farm chores, took on the upkeep of Lucy. Occasionally I would visit her though cows really don’t come panting for joy like dogs do. Nevertheless, she was mine. I never found out how Lucy’s time came to an end. My parents never told me, so I just assumed she lived a happy life in bovine bliss before being herded to cow heaven.

In response to that column, I received a letter from a nice lady in Lafayette whose husband also had been given a calf. Amazingly that calf too was named Lucy. The end of the story, however, had a heavy splash of reality.

Every evening her husband would go in the yard and talk to Lucy, the lady reported. “I figured Lucy would continue living to a ripe old age,” the lady remembered, because her husband was very soft-hearted. Things changed, however, when his mother moved to Lafayette and told him that the calf needed to be slaughtered otherwise, she would be too old to be marketed as tender baby beef.

“Needless to say, when the day came to get the calf to bring it to the slaughterhouse, I had no plans of going in the back yard,” the lady remembered.

EPISODE 88

Jim Brown – Stories To Tell

But Lucy must have sensed that something was amiss. “They spooked her, and I had to go calm Lucy down to be led away to be slaughtered,” the lady wrote. “I’m pretty soft-hearted too and I went inside and cried.

“Dinnertime would be different,” the lady recalled. “No one wanted to eat the meat from Lucy and I ended up giving most of it away.”

Here then the lady from Lafayette left us with two life lessons: • Never have a pet cow.

• And for goodness sake don’t name the cow Lucy.

Jim Brown, former Louisiana Secretary of State, Insurance Commissioner and State Senator, makes a return visit to the podcast and for good reason. He always has a lot of stories to tell. Brown joins Louisiana Insider to tell tales from his latest book, “My Louisiana Odyssey: A Memoir,” including a late night phone call from Bill Clinton and flying with Edwin Edwards. Guest: Jim Brown

EPISODE 87

Cajun Through the Lens There are many stories to be told about Louisiana’s Cajun culture; most joyous, a few heartbreaking, all part of a lifestyle that has flourished in southern Louisiana.

Conni Castille, a ULL documentarian who has specialized in chronicling Acadiana, joins Louisiana Insider to discuss the virtue of rice and gravy, properly ironed shirt collars, even a disease that has afflicted some Cajun families. Guest: Conni Castille

ERROL LABORDE EXECUTIVE EDITOR

LOUISIANA LIFE WINS NATIONAL AWARDS Louisiana Life magazine was recently named a finalist for Magazine of the Year in national competition by the International and Regional Magazine Association. The trade organization’s members include state publications. Entries were in the competitive 35,000 or less circulation category. Louisiana Life also won a Gold for best Cover as well as Silver in the Nature and Environment Feature category and a photography Award of Merit for “Gator Hunt.” It was the cover of the “Gator Hunt” feature which appeared on the November/ December 2021 issue that won the Best Cover award. Louisiana Life’s sister publication, Acadiana Profile, won the prestigious Magazine of the Year award. In 2019, in an unprecedented result, Louisiana Life and Acadiana Profile tied for the Magazine of the Year award. Congratulations for the success of both magazines go to Managing Editor Melanie Warner Spencer, Art Director Sarah George (who also won the Art Director of the Year award) and Sales Manager Rebecca Taylor. May next year bring two in a row. See related display; pg. 10.

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EPISODE 86

Magazine of the Year! Hey, That’s Us! Acadiana Profile, Louisiana Life’s sister publication, was recently named Magazine of the Year by the International and Regional Magazine Association.

Louisiana Life was also named as one of the finalists. Guest: Melanie Warner Spencer, managing editor of Louisiana Life and Acadiana Profile

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AWARD WINNING! Louisiana Life won 7 gold, silver or bronze awards at the 2022 Internation and Regional Magazine Association Award Contest GATOR HUNT

LOUISIANA LIFE NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2021 SPORTSMAN’S PARADISE TOP DOCTORS

Alligator Hunting in the Sportsman’s Paradise PG. 32

NOV/DEC 2021

EDITORIAL EXECUTIVE EDITOR Errol Laborde MANAGING EDITOR Melanie Warner Spencer ASSOCIATE EDITOR Ashley McLellan COPY EDITOR Liz Clearman WEB EDITOR Kelly Massicot FOOD EDITOR Stanley Dry HOME EDITOR Lee Cutrone

TOP DOCTORS

PG. 44 PM 10/15/21 5:14

NovDec.indd

1

FINALIST Magazine of the Year ART DIRECTOR Sarah George LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER Danley Romero

BRONZE Overall Art Direction

SALES SALES MANAGER Rebecca Taylor (337) 298-4424 / (337) 235-7919 Ext. 7230 Rebecca@LouisianaLife.com

BY KEVIN RABALAIS

Alligator Hunting in the Sportsman’s Paradise

GATOR HUNT GOLD Cover

RENAISSANCE PUBLISHING

SILVER Nature and Environment MERIT Photo Series

MARKETING COORDINATOR Abbie Whatley PRODUCTION PRODUCTION MANAGER Rosa Balaguer Arostegui SENIOR DESIGNER Meghan Rooney CIRCULATION SUBSCRIPTIONS Jessica Armand DISTRIBUTION John Holzer ADMINISTRATION OFFICE MANAGER Mallary Wolfe CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Todd Matherne For subscriptions call 877-221-3512

Conserving and maintaining the ideal habitat for Louisiana’s official insect

Plight of the Honeybee

By CHERÉ COEN Photos by ADRIENNE BATTISTELLA

SILVER Art Direction BRONZE Hed & Dek MERIT Special Focus Issue

MAISON DE LA LUZ IS HOUSED IN A FORMER CITY HALL BUILDING AND FEATURES THE DECADENT BAR MARILOU WITH ITS SECRET ENTRANCE TO THE HOTEL LOBBY ACCESSIBLE ONLY BY GUESTS.

BY CHERÉ COEN

PHOTOS BY SARA ESSEX BRADLEY AND HAYLEI SMITH

LA

It has never been so easy to staycation with sophistication and style in the Pelican State

BRONZE Travel Package 110 Veterans Blvd., Suite 123 Metairie, LA 70005 (504) 828-1380 128 Demanade, Suite 104 Lafayette, LA 70503 (337) 235-7919 xt 7230 LouisianaLife.com

NATURAL STATE

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n either side of the boat stretches the vast wetlands of south Louisiana. Farther south, several miles beyond this ruler-flat landscape, lie Vermilion and West Cote Blanche bays — and beyond, the Gulf. Three hours of such uniformity, coupled with summer heat, inspires drowsiness. Then everything changes.

At the helm, Heath Romero steers us into a new passage, and in the distance rise, improbably, two hills.

“Those are the salt domes of Weeks and Avery islands,” he says. They are, according to the U.S. Geological Survey, the highest elevated points along the Louisiana Gulf Coast, with one marker at Avery Island registering 165 feet above mean sea level.

The unlikely sight gives Charlotte Leavitt comfort.

“When I see the domes,” she says, “I know I’m home.”

Leavitt attends Clark University in Massachusetts

Preserving and Protecting At Avery Island fighting coastal erosion is as much of a daily activity as cultivating peppers STORY AND PHOTOS BY KEVIN RABALAIS

(Top) Smooth cordgrass is an important tool in fighting shoreline erosion on Avery Island. (Middle) Heath Romero ferries workers to replant the perennial deciduous grass.

(Bottom) Thousands of egrets return each year to Avery Island’s “Bird City.”

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BRONZE Department

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CO N T RIB UTORS

Cheré Dastugue Coen

Jeffrey Roedel

WRITER

WRITER

Cheré Dastugue Coen is a food and travel writer, photographer and author and owner of the whimsical blog, “Weird, Wacky & Wild South.”

Her fiction includes two series of Louisiana romances and the “Viola Valentine” paranormal mystery series under the pen name of Cherie Claire. Coen remains passionate about her home state of Louisiana, believing that gumbo, crawfish étouffée and chicory coffee makes all things right with the world.

Jeffrey Roedel is a producer, director and journalist focused on Southern makers, artists and creative thought. A graduate of LSU and the University of Southern California’s Production Workshop, he’s the former editor of 225 in Baton Rouge. In 2020, he released a collection of mantras for creativity called “Life Is Gonna Try to Put a Lot of Polo Shirts on You.” His album of pandemic poetry and music called “Distance” was released in 2021.

John R. Kemp

Liz Clearman

WRITER

COPY EDITOR

John R. Kemp writes about art for Louisiana Life, Acadiana Profile and New Orleans Magazine. He also has written and co-authored numerous books, including his most recent “Expressions of Place: The Contemporary Louisiana Landscape”; “New Orleans: The First Three Hundred Years”; and “A Unique Slant of Light: The Bicentennial History of Art in Louisiana.” For many years, Kemp covered the New Orleans art scene for the WYES New Orleans public TV show, “Steppin’ Out.”

Liz Clearman is originally from Houston. She lives with her 13-yearold daughter and two cats and is a lawyer by degree, but hasn’t practiced in over 16 years. Instead, Clearman chooses to use her JD in the higher education realm. She spends her time working at home, doing virtual boot camp in her living room, taking long walks with her daughter and watching whatever new show pops up on Netflix.

LEAD PHOTOGRAPHER

Danley Romero A native of Lafayette currently residing in the Lake Charles area, Danley Romero specializes in portrait photography. Romero considers it an honor to contribute to his state’s flagship magazine, Louisiana Life, and takes a particular sense of pride in his association with its sister publication Acadiana Profile.

Most gratifying are the experiences that collaborating with the two magazines afford: meeting and photographing many of Louisiana’s most talented, accomplished and interesting citizens — the people who help to make our state the wonder it is.

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S AL ES

REBECCA TAYLOR Sales Manager (337) 298-4424 (337) 235-7919 Ext. 7230 Rebecca@LouisianaLife.com

Coming up!

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2022 LOUISIANA LIFE

CHARMING TOWNS PG. 42

SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2021 LA NOUVELLE LOUISIANE CHARMING TOWNS

LANOUVELLE LOUISIANE THE BEST OF WHAT’S

NEW

AROUND THE STATE

SEPT/OCT 2021

THE JAMES 710 IN LAKE CHARLES IS THIS YEAR’S BEST NEW RESTAURANT

Nouvelle Louisiane

SeptOct.indd 1

8/13/21 4:35 PM

The Best of What’s New in Louisiana

Haunted Louisiana Spooky things to do and places to visit

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 13

PEL I C AN B RIE FS

Decadent Dining The Supper Club in Baton Rouge dazzles with sophisticated fare and luxe interior

BY LISA LEBLANC-BERRY

NEW IBERIA

QUEEN MOTHER CELEBR ATED

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NEW ORLEANS

Toasting 20 Years Tales of the Cocktail returns to New Orleans July 25-29 for in-person celebrations to herald its 20th anniversary. Enjoy special events, festivities and educational initiatives (70 unique sessions, seminars, roundtables and panels featuring over 250 industry leaders), the 16th annual Spirited Awards (for the world’s best bars and bartenders) and an all-new New Orleans Cocktail Tour series, plus digital programming via the virtual TOTCF platform (talesofthecocktail.org).

LAFAYETTE, NEW ORLEANS

Kudos to Seafood Queen Lake Charles Chef Amanda Cusey of The Villa Harlequin, crowned Queen of Louisiana Seafood at the 15th annual Louisiana Seafood Cook-off in Lafayette (for her pan-seared red drum over tomato polenta with a crawfish cream sauce) is representing Louisiana at the Great American Seafood Cook-off in New Orleans Aug. 6.

Competing for the first time at the Cajundome in June, Chef Cusey received her European training at Tante Marie Culinary Academy in Surrey, England followed by multifarious cooking stints culminating with head chef posts in Dublin’s former Fiorentina and the erstwhile pop-up EATily under Irish Chef-restaurateur Oliver Dunne, holder of a prior Michelin star who returned in 2014 to modify his flagship Bon Appetit in Malahide (facebook.com/ GreatAmericanSeafoodCookOff/).

ADDITIONAL NEWS BRIEFS ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

PHOTO COURTESY SUPPERCLUB;

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The retro glamour of Baton Rouge’s swank new hotspot, the Supper Club, owned by Brandon Landry (founder and CEO of Walk-On’s Sports Bistreaux) is enticing diners with its seductive décor and luxuries such as Beluga caviar, baked Alaska and crème brûlée flamed tableside.

Dinner offerings include elaborate seafood towers, lobster bucatini with truffled pomodoro and exceptional Japanese A5 Shichiri Wagyu steaks. Musical playlists appreciably shift by the hour. Tips: Cocktail attire; make reservations (supperclubbtr.com).

The Iberia African American Historical Society has been awarded a Rebirth Grant from LEH to host the first-ever Queen Mother Moore Legacy Symposium and Celebration July 27.

Venerated globally as a pan-Africanist, civil rights activist and educator with honors from various African nations, Moore was born 124 years ago in New Iberia.

She pioneered international organizations abroad and was also the founder of the reparation movement now being discussed in Congress. The July celebration (livestreamed) includes a symposium at the Silman Theatre with leading U.S. scholars. Supporting organizations: Nelson Mandela Museum, Margaret Walker Center, Ernest J. Gaines Center, Envision da Berry and Shadows-on-theTeche (IAAHS.org).

L IT ERARY LOUISIANA

Summer Reading List The best thrillers, chillers and mixers for reading by the pool, at the beach or on the road

BY ASHLEY MCLELLAN

ADVENTURE AWAITS

LONELY PL ANET FLORIDA & THE SOUTH’S BEST TRIPS Choose your next adventure with the latest “Florida & the South’s Best Trips” from Lonely Planet Travel Guides. The full-color guide explores more than 30 road-trip destinations from the Blues Highway to the Appalachian Trail, and stops in Kentucky, Georgia, Alabama, Florida and more.

Whether it’s a spur of the moment weekend getaway or a dream travel destination, the guide features sample itineraries, tips, maps, budgets and postlockdown up-to-date information. 352 pages, paperback, $22.99. Pair with: cold brew coffee and a day planner

FANTASTIC JOURNEY

The Ballad of Perilous Graves Music, mystery, magic and suspense, “The Ballad of Perilous Graves” by Alex Jennings casts a spell that will keep readers turning the page until the very end. Main characters Perilous “Perry” Graves, his sister Brendy and their friend Peaches must outwit a colorful cast of otherworldly troublemakers as they vie for the preservation of the soul of New Orleans. New York Times bestselling author Walter Mosley has called this debut novel from Jennings, “A hallucinatory wonder of a debut with hints of dark humor and the intellectual challenge of Samuel Delany.” 464 pages, hardcover, $25.99.

Pair with: a tiki-inspired zombie cocktail

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COOKING UP TROUBLE

Bayou Book Thief Fans of classic sleuths, Agatha Christie mysteries and cookbook-lovers alike may enjoy this classic tale of mystery and suspense set in the historic Garden District of New Orleans. Young widow Ricki James returns to New Orleans to start a new life and is excited to turn her passion for collecting vintage cookbooks into a job by curating the Bon Vee Culinary Museum’s giftshop. But what happens when a dead body is discovered among some dusty donations? Ricki must dig into the past to discover the truth about both the deceased and her own past. Award-winning mystery writer Ellen Byron’s “Bayou Book Thief” is the first in her latest “Vintage Cookbook Mystery” series. 304 pages, paperback, $8.99. Pair with: a hot toddy and a freshly baked snickerdoodle

THRILL SEEKER

Forty Days and Forty Nights “Forty Days and Forty Nights” follows Clementine Price, an Army Corps of Engineers officer, as she fights to protect her community from a catastrophe both natural and man-made along a raging Mississippi River. Lurking in the shadows is someone who seeks to create chaos through the disaster, threatening to endanger the entire region and start a civil war. Price must gather a team of professionals and everyday people from the community to stem the tide of impending disaster. Husband and wife writing team Justin Scott and Amber Edwards’ first collaboration is a nonstop thriller filled with plenty of characters, adventure, danger and suspense. 366 pages, paperback, $20.00. Pair with: classic “Dark and Stormy”

ADDITIONAL BOOK REVIEWS ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

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LO UIS IANA MADE

Freedom of the Press Printmaker Kate Tucker celebrates native species and folklore in rural north Louisiana

BY JEFFREY ROEDEL PHOTOS BY ROMERO & ROMERO

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ith one bare foot steering the large silver press wheel, and two hands secure around the climbing boy’s bottom, his rainboots dangling over her ash-colored shop apron, this tangle of limbs and kinetic energy somehow stands in perfect poise, producing striking prints even so. With fresh ink sinking into paper, and cotton and linen, and then resting there to stir up stories of quiet afternoons, or wild encounters, or even legends.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 19

LO UIS IANA MADE

A typical scene at the Tucker farm house a few short years ago, this kind of assured balancing act remains familiar fuel for Houston-born artist Kate Tucker whose Owl House Studio products have stretched from unique frameable prints, greeting cards and holographic stickers, to all manner of textiles.

From T-shirts and tea towels to azure-hued table runners, placemats and napkins ready for Sunday supper, the pieces are an adventurous blend of offerings from the former environmental engineer who takes inspiration from children’s folktales and her new bayou surroundings in equal measure.

Careening swallowtails, lurking gators, onlooking owls and a heron making delicate ripples, coexist with the more mythical and decidedly odd.

Tucker’s cruising wood duck paddles along with human legs. Among her menagerie are curious jackalopes, a dazzle of diving mermaids, a prancing,

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AT A GL ANCE HOMETOWN

Mound, Louisiana AGE

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OCCUPATION

Illustrator, product designer MEDIUMS

Printmaking, textiles WEB AND SOCIAL

owlhousedesign.com, @owlhousestudio on Instagram

tooth-baring rougaroux, even a cloaked, haunting mystic figure with the tickling label “Hot Sauce on my Broom.”

Her block prints and products can be ordered directly online or found at the Attic Gallery, the oldest female-owned gallery in Vicksburg, Mississippi, and at Frameworks Gallery in Baton Rouge.

“I like the directness and physicality of the method,” Tucker says of block printing. “And that suits my style. I’m not someone who does a lot of gentle shading. I like bold lines.”

Tucker’s route to tiny Mound, Louisiana, currently the least populated official village in the state with fewer than two dozen residents, was as bold and circuitous as the curving snakes she loves illustrating. After studying both studio art and science at the University of Virginia — where she “found a way to have the most amount of hours in class while getting the least credit for it with the least efficient double-major ever” — Tucker worked in Houston as an environmental scientist specializing in petroleum detection and mediation.

Then she and husband Taft welcomed a daughter, and her career perspective shifted.

“I didn’t want her seeing me do something every day that wasn’t making me happy,” Tucker says. “I realize it’s a privileged position to choose a different path, but I wanted to set an example for her of challenging yourself and trying new things.”

The Tuckers settled in Mound, near Taft’s family farmland, and with a little help from Taft’s father Jim, they built Kate’s press from scratch.

“People thought we were nuts,” Tucker says.

Soon the weird wilds of Louisiana inspired her with every species she encountered on their property.

Red-winged blackbirds blew her mind. Hosts of fireflies filled her nights.

“Even if you know all about bioluminescence, it still is just really a wonder to see,” she says.

Her environmental science experience informs where her block printing might go, too.

“It’s still evolving,” she says, “but it’s a swirling of science, mythology, wildlife and what I would call a lot of local intrigue.”

Few of her works display this more than her mosaic-like scenes, with an almost otherworldly magnetism holding various creatures together.

They are choreographed dances of wonder.

One, called Wild Magic, is “just animals and bugs,” as she puts it, but to Tucker, the image shines with a mythic, symbolistic quality.

Perhaps this balance is ultimately rendered most in the mind of the viewers, but it must start with Tucker at the press, perhaps bare foot, perhaps thinking about her children’s homework or a scraped knee or a loose tooth, and working with traditional inks and cut blocks and illustrations that come together into something more.

“These all mean a lot to me,” Tucker muses.

“They’re about there being something magical and powerful happening every day, but on such a small scale so that you may not realize it.” n

What’s the biggest misconception about printmaking? I think many folks are confused about the difference between an art print and a block print. Block printing is old school and very hands on. I carve my blocks by hand, then for each print, I ink the block and roll it through the press. Before I had a press, I would print by rubbing the back of the paper with a wooden spoon. Each block print will have slight variations that make it unique.

What is your favorite myth or folklore story and why? As a child I loved The Talking Eggs, based on a Creole folktale, where the characters come across this crazy house on bird legs and the old lady, or witch, that lives inside.

Later, I read Baba Yaga from Slavic folklore, and it’s virtually identical. I absolutely love when the same story pops up across cultures — which happens surprisingly often — because it just highlights how we all basically want the same things. I was also drawn to the idea that visiting this strange, magic house changes your fate, but only according to your actions and nature.

And this curiously pops up in your Owl House logo. The house on bird legs in my logo references that idea, yes, although in the folktales the house has chicken feet. They’re a reminder to keep an open mind, especially when you encounter something new and strange.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 21

ART

The Beasts Will Teach You the Beauty of This Earth

Baton Rouge artist Mary Lee Eggart combines nature, faith, spirituality and a prayer for peace

BY JOHN R. KEMP

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T

he ancients believed birds were messengers of the gods linking humans to the supernatural world. Baton Rouge artist Mary Lee Eggart’s colorful drawings of various birds represent her deep spirituality, faith and love of nature. More recently, however, her usually uplifting drawings have taken a darker turn to reveal a spiritual sickness in a society exposed by the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Baton Rouge native, who has degrees in art from LSU, has lived with art all her life. For many years, her mother directed a community arts program in Baton Rouge and her father was a talented designer and artist.

Her uncle, William Moreland, was a noted abstract landscape painter and chair of the art department at the University of Louisiana-Lafayette. And her grandfather was a botanist who introduced her as a child to “the beauty of flora and fauna functioning in their ecosystems.” Together, they watched and studied birds in his backyard. That, she says, started her lifelong “fascination with birds.”

In addition to art, Eggart had a 31-year career as a cartographer, illustrator, designer and instructor at LSU. Though she retired in 2011, she still freelances, making

(Facing page ) A Prayer for Justice and Compassion (Left) COVID Nevermore (Right, Top) Hope for a Better Normal (Right, Bottom) In Memory of a Gentle Soul

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 23

A RT

maps for publications nationwide. But it is her exquisite colored pencil drawings of birds and the spirituality behind them that give expression to this phase of her life.

“The forms, colors and textures of the birds offered many design options to explore visually,” she says.

“But the study of art history — ­ particularly the highly symbolic work of the Middle Ages — opened up the possibility of exploring birds metaphorically and thus

24 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

melding my love of nature with the Catholic faith I was raised in and still adhere to. The medieval artists saw God in what He had created. What better way to know God than by celebrating His creation? In almost every culture and creed, past and present, the bird represents the human soul or the human spirit. The vast majority of my drawings feature birds as the main character, representing humankind in general and, depending on the type

ADDITIONAL ARTWORK ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

(Facing Page) Quarantine (Left)Prayer for Peace(Bottom) Mary Lee Eggart

EXHIBITS CAJUN

Shawne Major: Schema Abstract compositions as metaphors for culture and belief systems, through Jan. 7.

Paul and Lulu Hilliard University Art Museum, Lafayette. hilliardmuseum.org CENTRAL

35th September Competition Annual juried competition, July 8 through Oct. 8.

Alexandria Museum of Art. themuseum. org PLANTATION

Eugene Martin: The Creative Act

of bird, particular characteristics, concepts or virtues pertinent to the subject of the drawing.”

Inspiration for her drawings comes from various sources in nature, art history and her Catholicism. The flight of an egret, for instance, inspired her series “Choir of Angels” and a visit to the Scrovegni Chapel in Padua, Italy, inspired “Allegories of Virtue and Vice.” Her series “Circles of Prayer” emerged after touring Stonehenge in England. As these concepts come to her, she searches for images and “related iconography” to complete the composition. Prayer, virtue, angels are symbolic and uplifting elements in her religious faith. Then came the horrors of COVID and new imagery arose in her compositions with titles such as “COVID Nevermore,” “A Prayer for Justice and Compassion,” “Quarantine,” and “Hope for a Better Normal.”

The birds featured in each drawing tell stories of hope.

In “COVID Nevermore,” a take on Edgar Allan Poe’s famous poem, the ravens are a “foreboding omen” but one that “possesses healing power.” The woodpecker seen in “A Prayer for Justice and Compassion” symbolizes “the diligence necessary to achieve tolerance and justice.” The rooster and flowers in “Hope for a Better Normal” represent “hope for a new day” and “the virtues

and qualities we should cultivate in support of the common good.”

Even though these drawings give promise rather than portraying doom, Eggart says she rarely comments on social or personal events in her work.

“But the coronavirus pandemic changed life as we knew it,” she says. “It revealed the injustices, inequities and toxic polarization lurking in our way of life, but at the same time reminded us of the things we do and should value most: our interdependence with all of humanity and with the natural world. I was moved to create these drawings, which explore how much we need each other.”

Eggart, who is represented by the Baton Rouge Gallery and LeMieux Galleries in New Orleans, is now working on a new series of drawings that wing away from the pandemic toward images of prayer and peace.

Titled “Peace Prayer,” she describes this new work as “exploring the idea that peace is not just the absence of war but an attitude of the individual heart” that “if nurtured” can spread from one individual to another throughout the world.

“Each drawing,” she says, “will study a virtue or concept which needs to be cultivated to achieve this peace.”

What a noble thought for today’s world of pandemics, wars, riots and political polarization.

For additional information, visit maryleeeggart.com. n

Abstract collages by this Washington, D.C. artist, through Oct. 2. LSU Museum of Art, Baton Rouge. lsumoa.org NOLA

The Matrix of Creativity: Where the River Meets the Sea Contemporary Black artists, through July 30. New Orleans African American Museum. noaam. org NORTH

A Survey of Recent Paintings

by William Dunlap Southern artist William Dunlap, through Aug. 6.

Masur Museum of Art, Monroe. masurmuseum.org

HO ME

Classic New Orleans with a Twist Mia and Minor Jahncke looked to architect Davis Jahncke to build a house that seamlessly combines classic period details with a contemporary edge

BY LEE CUTRONE PHOTOS BY SARA ESSEX BRADLEY

“T

his house began on a napkin,” said Mia Jahncke, referring to the initial drawing by her fatherin-law, New Orleans architect Davis Jahncke, who designed the house as his last project before retiring from a career of more than a half century.

“Davis noodled a front elevation concept,” said Minor of the casual pen-to-napkin start that soon gave way to a two-year project in which every detail of the new 3,400-square-foot residence was thoughtfully considered and executed.

According to Mia, father and son thought through every aspect of the house from furniture placement and paint colors to fixtures and hinges.

The couple had looked for a house for more than a year when the Irish Channel property — a lot with the partial remnants of a shotgun (later refaced with an

26 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

(Above) Architectural watercolors by Jim Blanchard of Davis Jahncke projects are displayed gallery style in the family room. (Right) French doors lead to the back porch and yard, where Minor designed the landscaping.

arts and crafts façade) that had burned down, was put on the market in 2018. In fact, Minor, who grew up in the nearby Garden District, had written a letter to the owner inquiring about the house, but never heard back. The couple bought the listing with the plan of building a new house that paid homage to the historic nature of the surrounding houses and included classic period details, but also had a contemporary edge and was “future-proofed” with durable materials, energy efficiency and security.

Having carved a niche in historic preservation and renovations through the years (his New Orleans work includes updates of residences, Trinity Church, Galatoire’s, Commander’s Palace and Antoine’s), Davis was the ideal architect for the project. The Jahnckes knew that in addition to giving the house historic character and

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The den and full bathroom amenities in the hall double as a private guest suite thanks to pocket doors. The day bed on the right belonged to Mia’s grandmother, a work by Robert Gordy hangs between the windows.

AT A GL ANCE ARCHITECTURE

Davis Jahncke

INTERIOR DESIGN

Davis Jahncke, Mia and Minor Jahncke SQUARE FOOTAGE

3,400

OUTSTANDING FEATURES

Large kitchen with wall of storage and hidden pantry; flex room that can be a formal living room or den with pocket doors, turning space along with the powder room and hidden shower into a private guest suite; custom wooden starburst above the dining room chandelier; ornamental arches in the foyer and master bath; electric vehicle charger.

modern convenience, Davis would design a floor plan that maximized square footage (while still proportionally compatible with neighboring houses) and met the needs of their young family. The couple (Minor leads the Global Treasury Team at Freeport-McMoRan, Mia is an in-house attorney for Houston-based McDermott International) had one son at the time and found out they were expecting another the day they moved in. “[Davis] is adamant about creating ‘true living spaces,’” said Minor. “He likes big rooms and truly functional spaces.”

While staying on budget was important, the couple said Davis’s insistence on a certain level of quality and

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on subtle but important details where others often cut corners, was worth the extra time and expense.

The design called for features with historic precedents such as roof tiles, “rooster cone” roof finials, Dutch drop siding and solid ironwork outside; French doors, high ceilings and brass hardware inside. At the same time, contemporary materials such as Hardie board and double-paned windows ensure longevity.

When the HDLC required that there be a door and steps at the front-most part of the house, which was at odds with the designated parking area, Davis cleverly designed French doors that look like windows and a

ADDITIONAL HOME IMAGES ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

porch with hidden steps to accommodate the stipulation without giving up the more efficient design of a front door placed at the farther end of the driveway with a brick pathway highlighting and leading to the entrance.

Such ideas were driven by the site and the design of the house. Others, according to the couple, were drawn from Davis’s repertoire of “go -to” favorites. For instance, as he often does, he placed the electrical outlets in the baseboards, where they are less noticeable. He also had the crown moldings installed upside down, included a built-in wet bar with a glass-front cabinet for displaying glassware, and created continuity with a limited palette of colors and repetition of motifs, such as the ornamental arch introduced in the foyer and replicated in the master bath.

“Some things were not even on our radar,” says Minor, pointing to specifications such as using a piece of molding under a gutter and using round downspouts. “But they make a world of difference.”

Minor, who often accompanied his father on job sites as a child and is interested in real estate development, designed the landscaping to complement the house and be simple enough for easy maintenance. The back “lawn” is made of artificial turf that stays green all year and is safe for children.

Minor also enjoyed getting to know craftspeople with whom his father had long-established relationships.

The interior design was mostly a mix of Davis’ and Minor’s decisions along with the timely arrival of some inherited pieces that made their way from both Minor’s and Mia’s families. The latter includes an unusual custom marble and brass dining table was used as a conference table in Davis’ office and an antique daybed and portrait paired together the same way they were in Mia’s grandmother’s house.

The casual observer might not readily know whether the Jahnckes’ house is a renovation of an old house or a new construction. The lines between past, present and future are deftly blurred in a timeless New Orleans classic loved by its owners.

“I knew how beautiful Davis’s work is and Minor is very talented too,” said Mia. “I trusted in them.

They took a lot of time to make decisions, but they make fabulous decisions. It was worth it.” ■

(Above right) Mia and Minor Jahncke in their dining room, where a table originally made for the conference room of Davis Jahncke’s firm, serves as the dining table.

(Right) The spacious kitchen features a large island and an entre wall of built-in storage and a hidden pantry (not shown).

Abstract painting, Allison Stewart.

K ITC HE N G OURME T

WILD RICE SAL AD 1½ cups chicken broth ½ cup wild rice ¼ cup pine nuts 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil ¼ cup diced red onion ¼ cup diced celery 1 cup green peas 1 tablespoon red wine vinegar 1 apple, cored and diced 1 tablespoon chopped scallions (green part only) 1 tablespoon chopped parsley 2 tablespoons chopped mint coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste COMB INE chicken broth

and wild rice in a small pot, bring to a boil, cover, reduce heat and simmer until tender, about 45 minutes. Cool, then transfer to serving bowl.

TOA S T pine nuts in a

Embracing Salad Season Served alone or with your favorite grilled goodies, these salads will help keep you out of the heat of the kitchen

BY STANLEY DRY PHOTOS AND STYLING BY EUGENIA UHL

30 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

T

hese are the dog days of summer when appetites wane and sweating over a hot stove is the about last thing anyone wants to do. In other words, it’s salad season. Fill up the salad bowl, pour a cold beverage and throw something on the grill. This month’s salads are ideal accompaniments for the grilled meats, poultry and seafood that are frequently the centerpieces of summer dining. Some of these recipes do require a little cooking, but it is minimal. One of these salads, along with crusty bread and some cheese, can constitute a meal on its own.

At the heart of a good salad is a fresh vinaigrette. The essential ingredients are oil, vinegar or lemon juice, salt and freshly ground black pepper. Often the oil is extra

dry skillet over medium heat until fragrant, about 3 minutes. Add pine nuts to wild rice.

In the same skillet, cook onion and celery in olive oil until barely softened. Add to rice mixture. Blanch peas in boiling salted water for 1 minute, drain, refresh under cold water and add to the salad. Add vinegar, apple, scallions, parsley and mint and combine well. Season with salt and pepper.

Makes 4 servings.

MORE RECIPE ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

virgin olive oil, but consider nut oils like walnut, too.

Vinegars re a matter of personal preference. Proportions of oil and vinegar vary, depending on the source. The ratio of three to one, oil to vinegar, is often cited, but, depending on the salad ingredients and the acidity of the particular vinegar, I often find that too acidic. I usually prefer four parts oil to one of vinegar, and some like an even higher proportion of oil. Again, it’s a matter of personal taste. Some like to add a bit of Dijon mustard.

Others will incorporate the yolk of a hard boiled egg.

Either produces a smooth and creamy dressing. Add herbs and garlic or shallots, depending on taste, the ingredients in the salad and the other parts of the meal.

The arugula salad featured this month is one of my favorites because of its contrasting flavors and textures — peppery arugula, sour cherries with their hint of sweetness, crunchy, slightly bitter walnuts and the rich, sweet saltiness of Parmesan.

The wild rice salad also offers various flavors and textures — the nutty wild rice, the slightly resinous taste of pine nuts, the crunch of apples, the herbal sweetness of parsley and mint.

The potato salad made with a mustard vinaigrette is a change of pace from our usual version made with mayonnaise. The amount of vinaigrette required for this salad will vary, depending on the type of potatoes. I like Yukon Gold here; red potatoes are another good choice.

And finally, the simplest and most elegant salad of all — a fresh crab salad that anyone would be happy to make the entire meal. n

POTATO SAL AD WITH VINAIGRETTE 6 medium potatoes 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar 2 tablespoons hot water ½ cup extra virgin olive oil Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste ¼ cup chopped scallions (green and white parts) 2 tablespoons chopped parsley 2 tablespoons chopped chervil (optional) COO K potatoes in lightly salted

CR AB SAL AD 1 pound lump crab meat 2 tablespoons lemon juice ¼ cup mayonnaise 1 tablespoon chopped parsley cayenne pepper to taste salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste IN A MEDIUM B OW L , combine

crab, lemon juice, mayonnaise, and parsley. Toss gently to combine and season with cayenne, salt and pepper. Makes 2 to 4 servings.

water to cover until tender. Drain and set aside until just cool enough to handle. Peel warm potatoes and slice into mixing bowl. In a separate bowl, combine mustard, vinegar and boiling water and whisk until combined, then slowly add oil, whisking to create a creamy emulsion. Pour dressing over warm potatoes and turn gently to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Add scallions, parsley and optional chervil, if using, and combine. Makes 4 servings.

PASTA SAL AD

ARUGUL A , WALNUT, DRIED CHERRY AND PARMESAN SAL AD 6 cups loosely-packed arugula ½ cup walnut pieces ¼ cup dried sour cherries 1½ tablespoons olive oil 1½ teaspoons balsamic vinegar Coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper Parmesan cheese COMB INE arugula, walnuts,

and cherries in a salad bowl.

Whisk olive oil and vinegar until emulsified; add to salad ingredients and toss. Season to taste with salt and pepper and toss again. Divide salad among 4 plates.

Using a vegetable peeler, shave strips of Parmesan over the salad.

Makes 4 servings.

½ pound pasta 1 (6-ounce) jar marinated artichoke hearts, drained 6 anchovy fillets 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil 2 teaspoons capers, drained and rinsed 6 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan coarse salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 tablespoon chopped parsley COO K pasta in boiling salted

water according to package instructions. Meanwhile, chop artichoke hearts and anchovies and place in mixing bowl, along with olive oil and capers.

W HEN PA S TA IS R E A DY, drain in

a colander, then add to mixing bowl and toss to combine. Add grated Parmesan. Toss. Season with salt and pepper, add parsley and toss. Cool to room temperature. Makes 4 servings.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 31

BY CHERÉ DASTUGUE COEN PHOTOS BY SARA ESSEX BRADLEY ILLUSTRATIONS BY S.E. GEORGE

MARIE-MADELEINE HACHARD arrived in New Orleans in the early 1700s with a group of Ursuline nuns. She wrote of her new home in the French colony and that collection of personal accounts would become one of the first books about Louisiana.

The rest, as they say, is literary history.

So many famous authors have called Louisiana home, such as Tennessee Williams, William Faulkner, Anne Rice and James Lee Burke. Some have gone on to win national prizes; Shirley Ann Grau and John Kennedy Toole took home Pulitzer Prizes and Ernest J. Gaines won an impressive assortment of awards. Many others, such as Mark Twain, O. Henry and Truman Capote, would repeatedly visit the state.

The list of fiction writers who lived in, worked in and visited the Bayou State is too extensive to include here. Instead, we offer a sample tour of literary Louisiana to whet your appetite.

LITERARY LO TRAVEL GUID

NEW ORLEANS

William Faulkner

In 1925, William Faulkner lived on the ground floor of a circa-1840 French Quarter townhouse at 624 Pirate’s Alley, where he also penned his first novel, “Soldier s Pay. He subleased the space from artist William Spratling. Faulkner originally came to visit writer Sherwood Anderson (who lived in the Pontalba Building). The Pirate’s Alley building is now home to Faulkner House Books.

VERS E

“Burn” Nevada Barr writes mysteries featuring protagonist Anna Pigeon, a national parks ranger. Her 16th book in the series, the 2010 “Burn,” takes place in New Orleans.

“New Orleans Sketches” These stories were written in 1925 by William Faulkner while living in New Orleans.

“For the reader of Faulkner, the book is indispensable,” wrote Paul Engle in The Chicago Tribune.

ACADIANA

James Lee Burke Best-selling and award-winning author James Lee Burke utilized New Iberia for his novels, including his popular Dave Robicheaux mysteries. Burke spent much of his youth in Acadiana and used downtown sites such as Victor’s Cafeteria and Clementine’s restaurant on Main Street as hangouts for Detective Robicheaux. The city offers a “James Lee Burke’s Iberia” trail, and other sites include the Iberia Parish Courthouse where Robicheaux had an office and the Grotto of Our Lady of Lourdes next to City Hall.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 33

“A Confederacy of Dunces” John Kennedy Toole never lived to see his New Orleans-based novel in print through LSU Press, nor it winning the Pulitzer Prize in 1981. The book centered around quirky Ignatius J. Reilly and was called a “masterwork” by the New York Times Book Review.

NEW ORLEANS

ACADIANA

TIM GAUTREAUX Another award-winning author, Tim Gautreaux, sets his stories in Acadiana. Gautreaux was born in Morgan City and attended Nicholls State before teaching at Southeastern. “The Next Step in the Dance” takes place by Houma and won the 1999 SEBA Book Award. He won the 2009 Louisiana Writer Award by the Louisiana Center for the Book.

34 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

LYLE SAXON Like Grace King and Frances Parkinson Keyes, Lyle Saxon was a famous writer in his day. He wrote many books, one of which, “Lafitte the Pirate,” would be used for Cecil B. DeMille’s movie “The Buccaneer.” He lived at 534 Madison St., where John Steinbeck married Gwyn Conger in the courtyard in 1943. “In the 1930s he championed the French Quarter to artists and writers, talking up its cheap rent and atmosphere,” said author Frank Perez, who offers a Literary Heritage Tour of New Orleans. “They coalesced around him, an artistic salon type of thing.”

Sookie Stackhouse series Sookie Stackhouse is a small-town waitress who reads other people’s thoughts, but becomes taken with a vampire whose mind is unreadable. The 13 novels by Charlaine Harris take place in Bon Temps, outside Shreveport.

“The Feast of All Saints” Anne Rice tackles gens de couleur libres, or free people of color, in pre-Civil War New Orleans.

NEW ORLEANS

Frances Parkinson Keyes

Frances Parkinson Keyes wrote 40 of her 51 novels at her French Quarter home at 1113 Chartres St., including her New Orleans-set novel, “Dinner at Antoine’s.” Keyes helped restore the house and courtyard, which was once owned

by Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard and was built in 1826 for the grandmother of New Orleans chess champion Paul Morphy. Today, the Beauregard-Keyes House is open for tours and includes Keyes’ 1950 writing study.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 35

NEW ORLEANS

F. Scott Fitzgerald

F. Scott Fitzgerald rented rooms at a boarding house at 2900 Prytania St., across from Lafayette Cemetery No. 1, and he routinely frequently the Roosevelt Hotel for Sazerac cocktails.

The May 25, 1929 issue of The New Yorker featured “A Short Autobiography” of Fitzgerald in which he wrote, “1919: The Sazerac Cocktails brought up from New Orleans to Montgomery to celebrate an important occasion.”

36 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

BATON ROUGE

ROBERT PENN WARREN A Kentucky native, Robert Penn Warren studied and taught at several universities, including LSU. It was in Baton Rouge that Warren co-founded “The Southern Review” literary journal. His Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, “All the King’s Men,” was loosely based on Louisiana Gov. Huey P. Long and was adapted into movies.

CENTRAL LOUISIANA KATHLEEN E. WOODIWISS of Alexandria changed the course of the historical romance genre when she published “The Flame and the Flower” in 1972, a novel featuring a strong heroine and sex scenes.

The book sold more than 2 million copies in its first four years.

KIMBERLY WILLIS HOLT writes young adult and chapter books, including the National Book Award-winning “My Louisiana Sky” that was made into a film.

REBECCA WELLS hails from a cotton farm in Rapides Parish and sets her books in central Louisiana, including the New York Times bestsellers “Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood” and “Little Altars Everywhere.”

The LSU graduate is also an established playwright and actress.

NEW ORLEANS

Walt Whitman The “Leaves of Grass” author came to New Orleans in 1848 to work as a newspaper correspondent. He and his brother lived at the Fremont Hotel across from the St. Charles Hotel, and on Washington Avenue in the Garden District for a time. “He was greatly influenced

by Louisiana,” said author Frank Perez, who offers a Literary Heritage Tour of New Orleans.

SHREVEPORT

William Joyce William Joyce of Shreveport has written and illustrated dozens of children’s books, many of which became bestsellers and were adapted into television shows and films. His repertoire includes “Santa Calls,” “The Guardians” series and “Dinosaur Bob and His Adventures with the Family Lazardo.” He won an Oscar for his heartfelt short film, “The Fantastic Flying Books of Mr. Morris Lessmore,” Emmys for “Rolie Polie Olie” on the Disney Channel and was the 2008 Louisiana Writer of the Year.

NEW ORLEANS NEW ORLEANS

JOHN KENNEDY TOOLE An unusual statue on Canal Street pays homage to a character from John Kennedy Toole’s prize-winning “A Confederacy of Dunces.” His quirky protagonist, Ignatius J. Reilly, stands sentinel in front of what used to be D.H. Holmes department store, also mentioned in the book.

Toole graduated from Tulane in 1958, and in 1959 served as an assistant professor of English at the University of Southwestern Louisiana (now ULL) and lived on Convent Street in Lafayette. He taught at Dominican College in New Orleans from 1963-1968 and lived in an apartment at 390 Audubon St. and at 7632 Hampson St.

CENTRAL LOUISIANA

ARNAUD “ARNA” WENDELL BONTEMPS A native of Alexandria, Arnaud “Arna” Wendell Bontemps was an African-American poet and short story writer.

His birth home serves as a museum in Alexandria, part of the state’s African American Trail.

George Washington Cable George Washington Cable was born in 1844 in an Annunciation Square home in New Orleans.

He fought for the Confederacy during the Civil War. After returning home, he lived in the Garden District at 632 Dumaine, then 1313 Eighth St. “Today Cable is primarily remembered for his books ‘Old Creole Days’ and ‘The Grandissimes,’ both of which were received by ‘old’ New Orleans society as critical statements on the racial status quo as well as their mores and speech,” writes Susan Larson, who wrote the book, “The Booklovers Guide to New Orleans.”

PHOTO COURTESY WIKIPEDIA USER FARRAGUTFUL LOUISIANALIFE.COM 37

“The Moviegoer.”

Walker Percy’s debut novel, set in New Orleans, won the National Book Award in 1961.

“The Awakening” Kate Chopin’s novel set in New Orleans and Grand Isle follows a woman and her unorthodox views on society, considered by some as one of the earliest feminist novels.

“All the King’s Men” Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, this Robert Penn Warren novel describes the career of politician Willie Stark, a back-country lawyer who is corrupted by a lust for power.

“A Lesson Before Dying” One of many acclaimed novels

by Ernest J. Gaines, “A Lesson Before Dying” won the National Book Critics Circle Award for fiction and was made into a HBO film.

PHOTO COURTESY WIKIPEDIA USER Z28SCRAMBLER 38 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

BATON ROUGE-NEW ROADS

Dr. Ernest J. Gaines

Dr. Ernest J. Gaines hails from Riverlake Plantation in Oscar, spending his childhood in Cherie Quarters, the plantation’s former slave cabins. Gaines achieved both critical and popular acclaim in 1971 with his novel “The Autobiography of Miss Jane Pittman,” which won nine Emmy Awards as a film adaptation. Three more novels were made into films and his works have been translated into 19 languages. Visitors may learn more about the acclaimed writer at the Ernest J. Gaines Center at the Edith Garland Dupré Library on the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus.

NEW ORLEANS

GRACE KING Grace King became livid at George Washington Cable for his criticism of Creole society.

A magazine editor suggested she write her own stories so she established a literary salon at her home at 1749 Coliseum St. It was here she hosted Julia Ward Howe, Joaquin Miller, Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner.

NORTH LOUISIANA

JENNIFER BLAKE

Romance pioneer Jennifer Blake, whose books have sold millions throughout the world, was born near Goldonna as Patricia Maxwell. She began with mystery suspense under her real name but her first romance as Blake, 1977’s “Love’s Wild Desire,” became an international best-eller. She served as Writer-in-Residence for the Northeastern Louisiana University and is a charter and honorary member of Romance Writers of America.

NEW ORLEANS

Truman Capote Truman Capote used to brag that he was born at the Hotel Monteleone. His mother, Lillie Mae Faulk, was living there when pregnant with Capote but the author came into the world at Touro Infirmary. (The writer did spend time at the hotel and bar.) He resided at 711 Royal St. for a time, writing “Other Voices, Other Rooms” while there.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 39

NEW ORLEANS

William Burroughs

Beat writer William Burroughs, author of “Naked Lunch,” “Junkie” and the script for the film “Blade Runner,” was published by the city’s Loujon Press, along with Jack Kerouac, Henry Miller and Allen Ginsberg. He lived in Algiers briefly at 509 Wagner St. between 1848-1849. “Burroughs came to New Orleans after being arrested in Texas for public indecency and drunk driving, but New Orleans was full of temptation,” writes Susan Larson in “The Booklover’s Guide to New Orleans.” “He cruised Lee Circle and Exchange Alley, notorious drug hangouts at the time, and eventually he was arrested for drug possession; he fled to Mexico rather than stand trial in New Orleans and face a two-year stint in Angola.”

40 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

NORTHSHORE WALKER PERCY moved to Covington later in life, but he lived in New Orleans for a time at 1450 Calhoun St. and at 1820 Milan St. His first novel, “The Moviegoer,” set in the Crescent City, won the U.S. National Book Award for Fiction.

Another award-winning Northshore author is ELLEN GILCHRIST, National Book Award winner for “Victory Over Japan.”

WHERE THE WRITERS IMBIBED

North Louisiana

Kate Chopin

NEW ORLEANS

ANNE RICE Many visitors come to New Orleans in search of vampires immortalized in Anne Rice’s bestselling novels. Vampires aside, Rice lived at 1237 First St. in the Garden District, a Greek Revival and Italianate house built in 1857 that she used as the setting for “The Witching Hour.” Rice also owned St. Elizabeth’s Children’s Home at 1314 Napoleon, built as an orphanage in the 1830s by the Daughters of Charity.

William Faulkner once included his Four Roses bourbon as a vital element to writing.

“My own experience has been that the tools I need for my trade are paper, tobacco, food, and a little whiskey,” the famous American author penned.

So it’s no wonder many New Orleans bars can count famous literary figures as customers.

SHREVEPORT

CHARLAINE HARRIS Charlaine Harris hails from Mississippi but she set her paranormal mystery series featuring mind-reading waitress Sookie Stackhouse in Bon Temps, Louisiana, a small town outside Shreveport. The series was adapted into several seasons of “True Blood” on HBO and many scenes, including the pilot, were shot in Mansfield and Shreveport.

The Carousel Bar at the Hotel Monteleone welcomed numerous writers, such as Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, Tennessee Williams, Eudora Welty, Anne Rice, John Grisham and Rebecca Wells. Williams also enjoyed the New Orleans-born Ramos Gin Fizz at the Bourbon Orleans Hotel and Café Lafitte in Exile, one of the oldest gay bars in the country. Mark Twain

is believed to have frequented the Old Absinthe House, among other writers.

Other bars attracting the literati include the Napoleon House, Finn McCool’s in Mid-City, Maple Leaf Bar and the Roosevelt Hotel, where Fitzgerald loved to sip Sazeracs.

Frances Parkinson Keyes was a prolific magazine writer and author, living at the historic

Kate Chopin moved to New Orleans with her husband, Oscar, in 1870, living on Jackson Avenue, then at Pitt and Constantinople and finally at 1413-15 Louisiana Avenue. Oscar Chopin worked as a cotton broker but went bankrupt, said Emily Toth, author of “Unveiling Kate Chopin.”

“They had to move to his family land in Cloutierville,” Toth said.

When Oscar died in 1882, Kate Chopin had an affair with married man and moved to St. Louis in 1884 to flee the scandal, but also to care for her ailing mother and to place her children in better schools, Toth explained. Readers of her classic, “The Awakening,” might relate her indiscretion in Cloutierville with her novel’s character, a woman who also has an affair.

The plantation where Chopin lived was long used as a museum dedicated to the writer, but unfortunately burned down in 2008.

Beauregard House in the French Quarter, once the residence of Confederate Gen. P.G.T. Beauregard and chess champion Paul Morphy. She began writing Louisiana novels, and was most known for her “Dinner at Antoine’s,” which became a national bestseller in 1948.

Keyes used the famous New Orleans French-Creole restaurant in many of her novels. n

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 41

RELIEF, FOUND After struggling with painful lymphodema symptoms for nearly 30 years, Brenda Bohrer finds releif through a new surgical procedure performed in Baton Rouge

BY FRITZ ESKER PORTRAIT BY ROMERO & ROMERO

T

here are so many activities that are a big part of daily life that people take for granted. That is, they take them for granted until one day those activities become painful and difficult to do.

Then seemingly simple tasks bring frustration and sadness. For 52-year-old Brenda Bohrer, lymphedema made the ordinary act of standing in line at the grocery store a painful and challenging task. But through suction-assisted protein lipectomy surgery (SAPL), she has seen a dramatically improved quality of life.

The symptoms of lymphedema first showed up for Bohrer when she was 23.

She noticed her legs were swelling, but she didn’t have the money to do anything about it. A year later, she was working at a hospital as a vocational rehab counselor when one of her legs became noticeably larger than the other. A doctor she worked with sent her to the emergency room. The ER doctors dismissed her, thinking it was simply a bladder infection.

After a while, she went to a vascular doctor. That doctor told her to wear compression socks. But she wasn’t instructed on how long she needed to wear them. Her insurance didn’t cover them, and they wore out fairly quickly. She couldn’t afford new ones. She didn’t know compression needed to be maintained.

Eventually, after a series of invasive tests, she was diagnosed with lymphedema. Ten years ago, her symptoms got worse. She developed cellulitis in one leg.

“I could not walk or get out of bed,” Bohrer said.

She got a rocephin shot, which worked temporarily. But she also started noticing her other leg was swelling now, too. She spent a lot of money on different treatments.

None of them worked, and she went back to compression socks. The pain remained.

“I hurt every day,” Bohrer said. “I couldn’t stand for any period of time. I would have to quickly find a chair.”

Not only did Bohrer have problems with pain and everyday activities, her swollen legs stood out on her petite 5-foot- 0, 106-pound frame.

This continued until 2019. When she was getting ready to pick up her daughter from the airport one day, Bohrer felt the pain of cellulitis coming on. She went to the ER for rocephin shot. This time, the effects of the shot faded within 24 hours. She noticed her one leg was “crawfish red.” She was in serious pain and shivering intensely. She went to urgent care for a second rocephin shot, and this one had better results.

But in February 2020, the extreme pain and shivering returned. Bohrer thought she might have just had the flu, but noticed the crawfish red coloring in her legs. Again, she turned to urgent care for a rocephin shot.

This time, the shot’s effects didn’t even last

24 hours. By the time Bohrer returned home from urgent care, her legs turned red again.

She packed a bag and headed to the ER, which led to a six-day stay in the hospital.

Things turned around for Borher when she went to Baton Rouge General’s Lymphedema Clinic. There, she met Dr. Dhaval Adhvaryu, who told her of a new procedure he recently studied in Switzerland. This procedure was SAPL. Soon, Bohrer began seven months of preparation for the SAPL procedure. The prep included new, customized compression for her legs. SAPL is similar to liposuction in that it removes diseased fat tissue to improve lymphatic flow and reduce swelling. When Dr. Adhvaryu performed the procedure on Bohrer, he removed a liter of diseased tissue from her leg.

The difference was noticeable immediately.

“When I got out of surgery, the first thing my daughter said was ‘Oh my God, your leg is so skinny!’” Bohrer said.

Bohrer said the surgery is not meant to be a cure, but it has been a significant improvement for her. The lymphedema was at stage two; now it is back to stage one.

“It’s a feeling of relief,” Bohrer said. “My ability to stand has improved greatly.”

Bohrer gives all credit to Dr. Adhvaryu, who she said has an encyclopedic knowledge of the lymphatic system.

“I feel so grateful that my doctor took an interest in me,” Bohrer said. n

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 43

ABBEVILLE

THERE IS ONE MAJOR SOURCE that provides credible ongoing analysis of hospitals: Medicare, which, as the federal health insurance program for people 65 and older, as well as certain younger people with disabilities, often provides funding for many of the big bills. As part of its informational services, medicare.gov reports on evaluations of hospitals based on queries of patients.

The Louisiana Life editorial staff sifts through the data every year in order to create a one-of-a-kind list that demonstrates the state’s hospitals according to locality. To qualify for this list, at least 60 percent of the patients queried had to give the hospital a top overall ranking of 9 or 10 (on a scale from 0 [lowest] to 10 [highest]).

These are the top general service hospitals as seen through the eyes of those who have experienced them firsthand — the patients. Note, however, that several hospitals in the state did not have any information available on Medicare’s website and therefore could not qualify to be on the list.

Abbeville General Hospital 118 N. Hospital Drive (337) 893-5466 ALEXANDRIA Christus Central Louisiana Surgical Hospital 651 North Bolton Ave. (318) 449-6400 Christus St. Frances Cabrini Hospital 3330 Masonic Drive (318) 487-1122 Rapides Regional Medical Center 211 4th St. (318) 769-3000 BASTROP Morehouse General Hospital 323 W. Walnut (318) 283-3600 BATON ROUGE Baton Rouge General Medical 8585 Picardy Ave. (225) 387-7767 Ochsner Medical Center - Baton Rouge 17000 Medical Center Drive (225) 752-2470 Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center 5000 Hennessy Blvd.

(225) 765-6565 Surgical Specialty Center of Baton Rouge 8080 Bluebonnet Blvd.

(225) 408-8080

The Spine Hospital of Louisiana 10105 Park Row Circle, Suite 250 (225) 763-9900 Womans Hospital 100 Woman’s Way (225) 927-1300 BOGALUSA Our Lady of the Angels Hospital 433 Plaza St. (985) 730-6700 BREAUX BRIDGE Ochsner St. Martin Hospital 210 Champagne Blvd.

(337) 332-2178 CHALMETTE St. Bernard Parish Hospital 8000 West Judge Perez Drive (504) 826-9500 COVINGTON Avala 67252 Industry Lane (985) 801-3010 St. Tammany Parish Hospital 1202 S. Tyler St. (985) 898-4000 COLUMBIA

CROWLEY

HOUMA

Acadia General Hospital 1305 Crowley Rayne Hwy. (337) 783-3222

Leonard J. Chabert Medical Center 1978 Industrial Blvd.

(985) 873-2200

DELHI Richland Parish Hospital 407 Cincinnati St. (318) 878-5171 DERIDDER Beauregard Memorial Hospital 600 S. Pine St. (337) 462-7100 EUNICE Acadian Medical Center 3501 Hwy. 190 (337) 580-7903 FRANKLINTON Riverside Medical Center 1900 South Main St. (985) 795-4431 FORT POLK Bayne-Jones ACH 1585 3rd Street Fort Polk (337) 531-3118 HAMMOND

Physicians Medical Center 218 Corporate Drive (985) 853-1390 Terrebonne General Health System 8166 Main St. (985) 873-4141 INDEPENDENCE Lallie Kemp Medical Center 52579 Hwy. 51 South (985) 878-9421 JENNINGS Jennings American Legion Hospital 1634 Elton Road (337) 616-7000 JONESBORO Jackson Parish Hospital 165 Beech Springs Road (318) 259-4435 KAPLAN Abrom Kaplam Memorial 1310 W. Seventh St. (337) 643-8300

Caldwell Memorial Hospital, Inc 411 Main St. (318) 649-6111

Cypress Pointe Surgical Hospital 42570 South Airport Road (985) 510-6200

Citizens Medical Center 7939 U.S. Hwy. 165 South (318) 649-6106

North Oaks Medical Center 15790 Paul Vega MD Drive (985) 345-2700

Ochsner Medical Center-Kenner 180 West Esplanade Ave. (504) 464-8065

CUT OFF

HOMER

KINDER

Lady of the Sea General Hospital 200 W. 134th Place (985) 632-6401

Claiborne Memorial Medical Center 620 East College St. (318) 927-2024

Allen Parish Hospital 108 6th Ave. (337) 738-2527

KENNER

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 45

TOP HOSPITALS

LAFAYETTE

MAMOU

NATCHITOCHES

OPELOUSAS

SLIDELL

WEST MONROE

Lafayette Surgical Specialty Hospital 1101 Kaliste Saloom Road (337) 769-4100

Savoy Medical Center 801 Poinciana Ave. (337) 468-5261

Natchitoches Regional Medical Center 501 Keyser Ave. (318) 471-2628

Opelousas General Health System 539 East Prudhomme St. (337) 948-3011

Ochsner Medical Center Northshore, LLC 100 Medical Center Drive (985) 646-5000

Glenwood Regional Medical Center 503 McMillan Road (318) 329-4600

NEW IBERIA

PINEVILLE

Iberia Medical Center 2315 E. Main St. (337) 364-0441

Alexandria VA Medical Center 2495 Shreveport Hwy. 71 North (318) 473-0010

Our Lady of the Lake Surgical Hospital 1700 W. Lindberg Drive (985) 641-0600

Ochsner Lafayette General Medical Center 1214 Coolidge Ave. (337) 289-7991 Ochsner University Hospital and Clinics 2390 West Congress (337) 261-6000 Our Lady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center, Inc. 4801 Ambassador Caffery Parkway (337) 470-2100 Park Place Surgical Hospital 4811 Ambassador Caffery Parkway (337) 237-8119 LAKE CHARLES Christus Ochsner Lake Area Hospital 4200 Nelson Road (337) 474-6370 Lake Charles Memorial Hospital 1701 Oak Park Blvd.

(337) 494-3000 LAKE PROVIDENCE East Carroll Parish Hospital 336 North Hood St. (318) 559-4023 LULING St. Charles Parish Hospital 1057 Paul Maillard Road (985) 785-3644

MANSFIELD Desoto Regional Health System 207 Jefferson St. (318) 872-4610 MANY Sabine Medical Center 240 Highland Drive (318) 256-1232 MARRERO West Jefferson Medical Center 1101 Medical Center Blvd.

(504) 347-5511 METAIRIE East Jefferson General Hospital 4200 Houma Blvd.

(504) 454-4000 MINDEN Minden Medical Center No. 1 Medical Plaza (318) 377-2321 MONROE Ochsner LSU Health Monroe 4864 Jackson St. (318) 330-7515 St. Francis Medical Center 309 Jackson St. (318) 966-4000 MORGAN CITY Ochsner St. Mary 1125 Marguerite St. (985) 384-2200

46 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

NEW ORLEANS New Orleans East Hospital 5620 Read Blvd.

(504) 592-6600 Ochsner Clinic Foundation 1516 Jefferson Hwy. (504) 842-3000 Southeast Louisiana Veterans Health Care System 2400 Canal St. (800) 935-8387 Touro Infirmary 1401 Foucher St. (504) 897-8247 Tulane Medical Center 1415 Tulane Ave. (504) 988-5263 University Medical Center New Orleans 2000 Canal St. (504) 702-3000 OAK GROVE West Carroll Memorial Hospital 706 Ross St. (318) 428-3237 OLLA Hardtner Medical Center 1102 N. Pine Road (318) 495-3131

RACELAND Ochsner St. Anne General Hospital 4608 Hwy. 1 (985) 537-8377 RAYVILLE Richardson Medical Center 254 Hwy. 3048 (318) 728-4181 SHREVEPORT Christus Health Shreveport-Bossier 1453 E. Bert Kouns Industrial Loop (318) 681-5000 Ochsner LSU Health Shreveport 1541 Kings Hwy. (318) 675-5000 Overton Brooks VA Medical Center 510 East Stoner Ave. (318) 424-6037 Specialists Hospital Shreveport 1500 Line Ave. (318) 213-3800 Willis Knighton Medical Center, Inc. 2600 Greenwood Road (318) 212-4000

Slidell Memorial Hospital 1001 Gause Blvd.

(985) 643-2200 Sterling Surgical Hospital 989 Robert Blvd.

(504) 690-8200 SPRINGHILL Springhill Medical Center 2001 Doctors Drive (318) 539-1000 SULPHUR West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital 701 East Cypress St. (337) 527-7034 THIBODAUX Thibodaux Regional Medical Center 602 N. Acadia Road (985) 447-5500 VILLE PLATTE Mercy Regional Medical Center 800 E. Main (337) 363-5684 VIVIAN North Caddo Medical Center 815 South Pine St. (318) 375-3235

WINNFIELD Winn Parish Medical Center 301 W. Boundary Ave. (318) 648-3000 WINNSBORO Franklin Medical Center 2106 Loop Road (318) 435-9411 ZACHARY Lane Regional Medical Center 6300 Main St. (225) 658-4000

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 47

SPONSORED

Traveling Around Louisiana Admit it—it’s time for a little fun. Summer vacation is here, and it’s way too hot for chores or toiling over work. Take some time off in the summer months and experience Louisiana with an adventure to a nearby city.

52 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

R

Revel in the cool A/C of a hopping restaurant while sampling regional flavors or satisfy a craving for creativity by viewing art installations across the state. Park the RV at one of Louisiana’s beautiful campgrounds and cool off with a dip or a boat ride in a recreational waterway or hit one of the state’s many family friendly attractions. While relatively small for, Louisiana packs a punch with diverse offerings and multicultural experiences that you can’t find anywhere else. And, its size makes it easy to take a short road trip that feels like it takes you a world away.

From vibrant murals to public sculptures to free museum admission, revel in the arts across New Orleans courtesy of The Helis Foundation with its Art for All

program. The Helis Foundation provides With over 100 participating restaurants, access to the city’s rich visual arts scene the question of where you want to eat has an for visitors and locals to New Orleans, answer that’s just a mouse click and a short whether they’re strolling along Poydras drive away. Greek, Italian, French, Asian, Street to view Poydras Corridor Sculpture Cajun, Creole, Caribbean, African—you get Exhibition, a collection of 16 sculptures by the idea. Almost every kind of cuisine from renowned local and international artists, or around the world is being prepared by an enjoying Unframed, Downtown’s first multiEatLafayette restaurant, and this is your mural exhibition of large-scale artwork. summer to take a culinary cruise around the Louisiana residents may enjoy free globe with one amazing dining experience admission to some of New Orleans’ most after another. beloved institutions on select days year-round, Come on, you know you’re hungry— including Ogden Museum of Southern Art, breakfast, lunch, dinner, snacks and New Orleans Museum of Art, New Orleans late-night—it’s all there, and it’s all at Botanical Garden, Contemporary Arts EatLafayette.com. The answer to the question, Center, and Louisiana Children’s Museum.

“Where you wanna eat!?”

To learn more, visit TheHelisFoundation.org.

Discover the charm of Natchitoches #ArtforAllNOLA (pronounced “Nack-a-tish”), Louisiana, where When the question is where you want to history lives and memories are made. This eat, the answer is EatLafayette. EatLafayette family-friendly historic town was established is your complete guide to the very best in 1714, making it the oldest city in Louisiana. locally owned and operated restaurants in the heart of Louisiana’s Cajun & Creole Country. It’s all part (Left)Poydras Corridor sculpture “Opening & of the summer-long celebration of Closing” by Fritz Bultman (Bottom, left) Burger Lafayette’s love affair with food, the from Burgersmith, one of EatLafayette’s particalways evolving and energetic food ipating restaurants (Bottom, right) Angalia the scene the city call’s EatLafayette.

African lion at the Alexandria Zoo

PHOTOS COURTESY HELIS FOUNDATION; EATLAFAYETTE; ALEXANDRIA ZOO

Explore the history and culture at Fort St. Jean Baptiste State Historic Site or the Cane River Creole National Historical Park.

Discover natural fun at Gator Country Alligator Park or Lost Treasure Mining Company. Tour the town by foot, car, horse and carriage, or boat to learn about the past, the present, and a little folklore along the way.

With a multitude of family-friendly accommodations, you can have a quiet lake-side getaway or splash at a hotel pool.

And food options are abundant, ranging from fast casual to fine dining. Whether you prefer indoor comfort or sunset views over the lake, there is a restaurant calling your name in Natchitoches.

Order your visitor’s guide at Natchitoches. com or by calling 800-259-1714.

Summer fun is just around the corner in Alexandria/Pineville. Go wild at the Alexandria Zoo and visit the new Aussie Aviary. Guests can get up close with the colorful and chatty cockatiels, parrots, and parakeets on Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays from 10 a.m. - 4:30 p.m. Then, cool off at Four Seasons Bowling, where kids ages 2-15 years can bowl two free games all summer long.

Wayback’s Arcade in Pineville is like the one you loved “way back,” but with a big difference—you won’t pay quarters, tokens, or even swipe a card to play a game. Wayback has over 80 modern and vintage arcade games, a dozen pinball tables, novelty/sport games, competitive PC and retro console gaming. With free play, onsite food options, and multiple party rooms, this is one summer activity the entire family will love.

For more family-friendly summer attractions, visit alexandriapinevillela.com. ■

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 53

N AT URAL STATE

I

Preferred Natives Caroline Dormon and the legacy of Briarwood Nature Preserve in Saline STORY AND PHOTOS BY KEVIN RABALAIS

56 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

n March 2022, three months into her role as caretaker of Briarwood Nature Preserve in Saline, Bayli Quick turned off Louisiana Hwy 9 to find the tall pines along Caroline Dormon Road ablaze. Rather than turn back, Quick drove into the flames. She had neighbors to check on, not to mention the buildings, endangered trees and native wildflowers within the 211-acre preserve. A few weeks later, with everyone and everything secure, the roadside remains charred, the air tinged with smoke.

Beside blackened pines lie trees that toppled after a tornado struck in April, several weeks after the fire.

Quick, age 23, smiles, unfazed by the damage.

This, after all, is merely part of the cycle at Briarwood, birthplace of Caroline Dormon (1888-1971), godmother of Louisiana conservation. Dormon burned through her days, seeking intimacy with nature and educating others about the mysteries and gifts of the land. “When I know so many lovely things,” she wrote, “I feel greedy in keeping them all to myself.” To the public, therefore, she willed Briarwood, which boasts “the most complete botanical and wildlife sanctuary in Louisiana.” This year, Briarwood celebrates its 50th anniversary.

(Top left) A Florida yew, one of “In her 83 years, she did it all,” the world’s rarest trees, thrives at Quick says of Dormon, whose many Briarwood. (Top right) Briarwood lives included teacher, author, curator Bayli Quick stands on the site botanist, conservationist, preserof Dormon’s birth. As a child, Quick vationist, ethnologist, landscape regularly visited Briarwood with her designer, naturalist, horticulturist, grandfather. historian, artist and archaeologist.

She also attained many firsts: first

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 57

N AT URAL STATE

AT A GL ANCE

LOCATION

Natchitoches Parish FLORA

Spider lily, six species of native irises, mountain laurel FAUNA

Henslow’s sparrow, Louisiana pigtoe, bobcat

woman to work for the Department of Conservation — Division of Forestry; first to create a conservation education program in Louisiana schools; first woman to become a member of the Society of American Foresters.

At Briarwood, her family’s summer home and her residence from 1917, Dormon began to collect and catalogue native plants and trees. She wrote books that include “Flowers Native to the Deep South” (1958) and “Natives Preferred” (1965) and spearheaded the movements for a state arboretum and to make Kisatchie a national forest. After visiting Kisatchie, she wrote, “There the idea was born — all this beauty must be preserved for future generations to enjoy.” Dormon praised the writing of John Muir, heeding his plea to “explore, enjoy, and preserve” nature. In Louisiana’s wild places, she found, as she wrote, “all that is beautiful and uplifting in a rather sordid world.”

On Briarwood’s trails, Quick points out the tree where Dormon played as a child, the cabin where she wrote, the house that contains her art supplies, library and collections of birds’ eggs and arrowheads. Dormon’s possessions permeate this place. For Quick, so too does her spirit. As Briarwood’s only full-time employee, Quick propagates and sells plants. She manages Briarwood’s social media accounts and handles all publicity. When a tree falls, she starts the tractor and moves it or finds an arborist. She creates and sells Briarwood’s merchandise and grows animated when talking about her plans for the preserve’s new heat press. “I want the merchandise here to be national park quality,” she says. When one of Briarwood’s properties has a problem, she fixes it. “I’m not trained in electricity or plumbing,” she says, but the tone in her voice suggests not yet, as though these are among the many skills that she’s eager to develop.

“Everything here is based on our friendships and through donations,” Quick says as she passes through the trails of Briarwood. Within several hundred yards, she sees crane-fly orchid; barbed rattlesnake-root; red salvia (“Hummingbirds love this.”); pitcher plants; Louisiana bluestar; wild ginger; “Grandpappy,” the more than 300-year-old longleaf pine and Dormon’s favorite tree at Briarwood; a bigleaf magnolia, which grows leaves up to three feet long and flowers as much as 14 inches across. “The first time I saw one, it looked prehistoric,” Quick says before leading the way to her favorite tree, a Florida yew that Dormon traveled to the Sunshine State

58 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

to obtain. This tree, its species critically endangered, continues to thrive at Briarwood. Beneath it, Quick looks up in wonder, as someone who has tapped into one of life’s secrets that hides in plain sight: The world reveals itself to those who look deeply.

Fortunate are individuals who recognize, early in life, their passion and purpose. Quick embodies Dormon’s legacy. In January 2022, when she assumed her role as curator of Briarwood, she worried about the gaps in her knowledge. “Then I realized something,” she says. “You never stop learning. There’s always something new to see and do. That’s the beauty of it.” n

ADDITIONAL IMAGES ONLINE AT LOUISIANALIFE.COM

DID YOU KNOW?

Facts and Figures • The Louisiana State Arboretum was dedicated in 1964 for the preservation and protection of native trees and shrubs.

In 1966, the state legislature named the arboretum’s lodge after Caroline Dormon.

• Kisatchie became a national forest in 1930 thanks to Dormon’s efforts. The United States Forest Service donated land from Kisatchie for the establishment of Caroline Dormon Junior High in Woodworth, which opened in 2012.

Kisatchie has a 10.5mile Caroline Dormon Trail for hiking, biking, and horse riding.

(Left) Briarwood preserves wildflowers native to the south and continues to educate the public.

(Above) Dormon’s log cabin.

(Right) In 1964, the Carnegie Institute of Technology in Pittsburg held an exhibition of “Contemporary Botanical Art and Illustration.” Of the 72 invited artists, Dormon was the only woman.

• In 1947, Edith Stern hired Caroline Dormon to select plants for the Wild Garden at Longue Vue’s House & Garden in New Orleans. Each spring, Longue Vue honors Dormon during its annual Louisiana Iris Day. Dormon also served as a consultant for Hodges Gardens, now Hodges Gardens State Park, in Sabine Parish.

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 59

T RAVELE R

Lake Claiborne State Park

FOR THOSE WHO PREFER A POOL…

Cooling Off Jump in, the water is fine at these waterways in Shreveport-Bossier City

BY CHERÉ COEN

S

ummertime and the living is … hot! Louisiana may be a sportsman’s paradise, but finding places to cool off this time of year can be daunting, especially in the great outdoors where waterways veer toward tepid and slow-moving.

For those in the Shreveport-Bossier City area, don’t despair. There are many options for cooling off this summer. Here are a few to get you into water.

ROBERT L. NANCE PARK

This sweet little park along Black Bayou Lake in Hosston, a quiet backroad’s ride north of Shreveport, offers a little something for everyone. There’s a children’s play area, boat ramp to get a variety of craft on the water, a pavilion for socializing and a pier. It’s a quiet spot for relaxing on a summer’s day, so bring a picnic, cool beverages and kick back.

EARL G. WILLIAMSON PARK

Over on Big Lake near Mooringsport, the 40-acre Earl G. Williamson Park provides a public boat ramp, fishing pier, RV camper hookups and primitive camping spots,

60 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

sports facilities and picnic areas. There’s also a swimming area, although here’s the rub, the park will be closed until mid-August for renovations, said Doug Rainwater, the park’s assistant director.

But make plans for late summer, as Williamson hosts fishing tournaments and special events regularly. Plan for mid-week, if possible, for weekends get crowded, Rainwater said.

Both Nance and Williamson are parish parks and admission is free.

LAKE CLAIBORNE STATE PARK

Lake Claiborne is a 6,400-acre reservoir and offers a cordoned off beach for swimmers within the state park.

The beach area, along a lake inlet that’s protected from boaters and waterskiers, is open daily.

The park contains two-bedroom cabins within its woods, some with a view of the picturesque lake and all outfitted with a full kitchen and living areas. About an hour outside both Shreveport and Monroe-West Monroe, just north of Interstate 20, the state park makes for an ideal getaway to enjoy fishing, swimming and hiking or biking on its many nature trails.

WATER PARKS

Kids of all ages can easily spend a day at Splash Kingdom Oasis water park in Shreveport. The park with a religious theme offers water slides that range from kiddie pools and lazy rivers to the thrilling Geaux! Slide! Win! that moves visitors over steep drops and splashes, ending with a dramatic plunge into a pool. And that’s just one of the many thrilling rides, plus there’s everything in between.

For hours, admission fees and more information, visit splashkingdomwaterpark.com. n

Shreveport and Bossier City are home to several top-notch casinos, many of which offer delectable pools.

It’s not unusual for folks to check in just to hang by the water’s edge during the steamy months of Louisiana summer.

For instance, Horseshoe Casino in Bossier City offers a Day Pool for hotel guests ages 21 and over.

There are cabanas, fire pits and bars serving cool drinks, so get your feet up and sunbathe after a cool splash in the pool.

Naturally, there’s a tropical theme to the Margaritaville pool for visitors to waste away in luxury. Like Horseshoe, Margaritaville offers cabanas, fire pits and The Busted Coconut island-style bar serving boat drinks with funny names, Jimmy Buffett style. Visitors may also want to order a cheeseburger in paradise while taking in the sun and waters.

FA RT HE R F LUNG

A City with Soul Memphis beckons with new hotels, fantastic food and a wealth of history

BY MISTY MILIOTO

W

hile barbecue and the rich music scene are reasons enough to visit Memphis, it turns out that the Bluff City has much more to offer. Of course the hopping nightlife on neon-lit Beale Street shouldn’t be missed, nor should Sun Studio for the touch of nostalgia it provides as a recording studio for the likes of Elvis and Johnny Cash, but Memphis has surprises around every corner.

EXPLORE

Book a private tour of Memphis with A Tour of Possibilities, and learn about the impact African Americans have had on the city. The customizable tours are available for 2.5 to 6.5 hours. When you’re ready to kick back and relax, stop by Old Dominick Distillery for a tour and tasting. Domenico Canale established the whiskey brand in Memphis in 1866, and his

62 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

PHOTO COURTESY: TIGER& PEACOCK; CATHERINE & MARY’S; OLD DOMINICK’S DISTILLERY

(Left) Tiger & Peacock (Right, Top) Halibut with mushrooms, turnips, calabrese sofrito and nduja at Catherine & Mary’s (Right, Bottom)Straight Wheat Whiskey from Old Dominck Distillery

fifth-grandsons have revitalized the brand. Memphis also has a growing craft beer scene. Hampline Brewing Company recently opened, while Wiseacre Brewing Company and Ghost River Brewing Company recently opened additional taprooms in the city. For something a bit more family-friendly, be sure to visit the Memphis Botanic Garden for Alice’s Adventures at the Garden. This new seasonal exhibit runs through December and features larger-than-life literary-themed sculptures. Also be sure to visit the National Civil Rights Museum, a complex of museums and historic buildings that explore the history of the Civil Rights Movement.

DINE

Louisianians familiar with Josephine Estelle (the Italian restaurant inside the Ace Hotel) in New Orleans will fall head over heels for Catherine & Mary’s. This sister restaurant from chefs Andy Ticer and Michael Hudman combines their love of Southern ingredients and the Italian way of dining. Meanwhile, award-winning Chef Kelly English recently opened Pantà — a Catalan-inspired restaurant with tasty gin and tonics, and a fantastic patio. Another new restaurant focusing on gin and tonics is Tonica, a Spanish-inspired restaurant that also features a nice selection of salads, soups and tapas.

STAY

Located in the heart of downtown Memphis, Big Cypress Lodge is a wilderness-themed resort located within the soaring 32-story Bass Pro Shops Pyramid. In addition to the rustic-elegant guest rooms and suites, the property features a 535,000-square-foot indoor Cypress Swamp teeming with fish and alligators, ROCK ROYALT Y an underwater-themed bowling alley, an archery range and two sky-high culinary OK, so you can’t visit outlets. Be sure to check out the obserMemphis without vation deck with its panoramic views of celebrating the King the Memphis skyline. Meanwhile, The of rock ‘n’ roll. Elvis Memphian recently opened in Midtown’s Week takes place this Overton Square Entertainment District year Aug. 9-17 with a lineup of events that with a rooftop bar (Tiger & Peacock) includes appearances and an Instagram-worthy ground-floor by celebrities and restaurant (the Complicated Pilgrim). musicians, live Hyatt Centric Beale Street also recently concerts, panel opened, making history as the first hotel discussions, to reside on Beale Street. It features 227 meet and greet guest rooms and suites, downtown’s opportunities, parties, the annual only resort-style pool (with a zero-entry Candlelight Vigil infinity pool, cabanas and a deck for live and more. Not to entertainment), a 24-hour fitness center, be missed, the Elvis a riverfront rooftop bar and lounge (Beck Tribute Artist Contest & Call) and a Latin-inspired restaurant is an opportunity (CIMAS). This summer, Caption by Hyatt to watch Elvis Beale Street Memphis will open with 136 impersonators compete for the top guest rooms located on the corner of Beale cash prize. and Front streets.n

LOUISIANALIFE.COM 63

PHOTO CONTE ST

Powerful Plumage A Great Egret, the symbol of the National Audubon Society, wades through wetlands at Avery Island.

BY KELLI DARBONNE, MOSS BLUFF

64 LOUISIANA LIFE JULY/AUGUST 2022

TO SUBMIT YOUR PHOTOS, VISIT LOUISIANALIFE.COM