The May 28, 2024 Edition of The Feliciana Explorer

EXPLORER EXPLORER Feliciana

LA Night Jam set for June 8 - Public is Invited to International Event

LA Night Jam, a night time professional water sports competition and festival, makes its return for the third season in a row on Saturday night June 8th at TriLakes - the home of Bennett’s Water Ski and Wakeboard School.

Once again the event continues to attract the world’s top water ski jumping talent who will fly under stadium lighting for substantial cash prizes and points on the season-long Water Ski Pro Tour. Among those competitors is Hanna Straltsova, an athlete formerly from the nation of Belarus and who has called Zachary home for the past 6 years. She will be looking to defend her title here from the previous season - a season that included wins in every major event and two world championship titles. Her main objective this season is to remain undefeated on her way to also breaking the 200

foot barrier and the world women’s jumping record.

The men’s field will also include athletes who have won every major accolade in the world - None more so than former world champion and record holder Freddy Krueger. By far the most experienced competitor in the field, this Florida resident learnt most of his craft here at TriLakes and registered his first-ever professional victory in this state way back in 1995. His Louisiana connections are further cemented by the fact that he also earned his MBA while studying in LSU. Truely a dedicated athlete whom we welcome back annually to great support here in Zachary.

This event enjoys support from many great local entities - including our title sponsor Tides Medical, Louisiana’s Office of Tourism, Visit Baton Rouge and The Zachary Chamber of Commerce among many

others.

About the Venue - Bennett’s Water Ski and Wakeboard School Founded originally on False Riv-

er in Pointe Coupee Parish in the mid seventies and at its current 3 manmade lake

location in Zachary, EBR since 1980 Bennett’s is highly regarded as one of the premier facilities in the world for learning the sport of water skiing and wakeboarding.

Students from a wide array of age ranges are taught skills from complete beginner to world championship level from our highly capable and experienced instructors.

Event Details

When: Saturday June 8th - Gates Open at 5:30pm On-Water Action starts at 7:00pm

Where: Bennetts Water Ski and Wakeboard School 18605 Barnett Road, Zachary, LA 70791

General Admission: $20 per vehicle VIP Tickets are also on sale. Information: http://www.lanightjam.com

Second Circuit Appellate Court Judge Marcus Hunter Announces for for Newly Drawn Supreme Court Seat

Appellate Court Judge Marcus Hunter has officially declared his candidacy for the newly drawn Louisiana Supreme Court seat.

Judge Hunter has previously served as an attorney for Legal Services, a Public Defender, a State Representative, and a Trial Court Judge prior to his current position on the Second Circuit Court of Appeal.

Judge Hunter has released the following statement:

“Whether it was returning home after law school to embrace the family practice, providing necessary assistance at legal services, representing the indigent as a public defender, or returning to my second home in Baton Rouge as a State Representative where I advocated for all Louisianans, the people were always the reason for my commitment to public service and the next steps forward.

Marcus Hunter

in a 5.10% APY*, with a $2,500 minimum deposit. You’ll feel safe and confident, knowing your money is with a solid, stable, FDIC-insured community bank that puts your financial goals first.

This time is no different. Throughout my career trajectory, each transition has been a strategic step, chosen not just for the role itself, but for the unique opportunities and challenges it presented for the advancement of our common goals. My unwavering dedication to public service has always aligned with my professional ethics and aspirations.

If so honored to be elected as your next Louisiana Supreme Court Justice, I am eager to bring my cumulative experiences and skills to the higher Court, where I pledge to contribute to a shared vision for building a lasting and impactful effort to make Louisiana better together. I will ensure equal access to justice, apply the law without fear or favor, and treat all who come before our state’s highest Court with dignity and respect.”

Lifechanging: The East Feliciana Police Jury’s YES to Housing Choice Vouchers

B y P atricia S tallmann

rachal 2743@ gmail com

225-721-5534

Yes! to Vouchers

In 1968, in Washington, D.C., says the Reverend George Turner, Congress passed the Housing and Urban Development Act to help those in need of good, decent housing pay for it.

Fifty-six years later, on May 6, 2024, in Clinton, Louisiana, the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury made history by opting in.

“All we’re doing,” said Juror Kyle Fleniken on May 13, “is choosing to allow housing assistance in our parish…not only for our low- and moderate-income families, but also for the elderly, and for our veterans, the disabled, and the homeless… for a whole host of people.”

Fleniken represents East Feliciana’s District 6, which includes Highway 10 to the north, the East Baton Rouge Parish line to the south, the Amite River to the east, and Sandy Creek to the west. His vote at the May 6 police jury meeting, along with yeas from Dexter Armstead of District 2, Jason McCray of District 3, and Michael Cheatham of District 5, overcame

the nays of Vice President Chrissie O’Quin (District 1-A) and Kristin Chasteen (District 1-B) and the abstention of Richard Oliveaux (District 4-B).

Keith Mills, District 4-A, was absent, and President Louis Kent followed his usual practice of voting only to break a tie.

Prior to the vote, the Reverend Turner, who hails from Ethel, asked that the jurors “think of the people whose needs have been overlooked for the last 20 to 25 years.”

Faye Talbot, legislative assistant for State Representative Roy Daryl Adams, relayed a message from him: “Since [the voucher program] is being done in East Baton Rouge and Zachary successfully, he thought we should try it here.”

At that point, Parish Manager David Amrhein read aloud a letter Mr. Adams had addressed to Mr. Kent:

In the State of Louisiana, we have over 197,000 people in 94,000 households that are benefitting from the use of the Housing Choice Voucher Program. The program provides federal rental assistance by helping struggling seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, and working families

In Our Wellness Community

keep a roof over their heads, often by helping them find units in the private market.

As a member of the Louisiana House of Representatives and a resident who lives in East Feliciana Parish, I have personally seen how many families have struggled trying to make ends meet, and I realize that this program can be of great benefit to our residents who qualify for it; therefore, I strongly support the Housing Choice Voucher Program for the residents of East Feliciana Parish.

The vouchers, Reverend Turner has noted, can help those who qualify with either rent assistance or home ownership.

Learn the Details

“HUD establishes fair market rental rates,” Turner explained after the meeting. “A two-bedroom apartment, for example, can rent for $1,000 to $1,200 a month; a three-bedroom up to $1,500; and a four-bedroom up to $2,000. These fair market limits increase every year.

“Program guidelines require that renters pay no more than 30 percent of their monthly income toward the rent, and the voucher must cover the remaining 70 percent.

“Meantime, the voucher amount varies according to income.”

He recommends that persons apply for the program and receive pre-approval so that they can determine the amount of their monthly payments. Then, says Turner, “they can go shopping for housing, and during that part of the process they should inform the landlord that the voucher program will provide part of the monthly payment.”

A “Win-Win” for the Parish

The Reverend Turner asked that the jury approve the program, keeping in mind that housing assistance for those in need could benefit the entire parish. Should the program encourage new families to seek housing in East Feliciana, for example, their children would increase the public school student population and thus increase state funding for education.

Further, an increase in the population of the parish would increase the number of shoppers at local businesses and could very well bring in new businesses. New residents would bring with them skills that could benefit local employers.

Increases in home rentals and home ownership would increase the use of utilities and thus the revenue flowing to the towns and

Kimberly Meiners, MD, Receives United Hero Award

Lane Family Practice congratulates Dr. Kimberly Meiners for receiving the UnitedHealthcare Hero Award!

Each year, the United Hero program recognizes physicians and advanced practice providers for delivering highly-rated patient experiences.

Selection for the United Hero Awards is driven by extraordinary achievement on patient-experience surveys. This means that award winners are ultimately chosen by the people we serve — and the honor recognizes the high-quality care these providers deliver to their patients and to the community.

To win a United Hero Award, providers must hit specific targets on their patient-experience scorecards over the course of the year, with each target covering a critical area of the patient experience.

In 2023, the targets fell into three categories:

• Getting needed care, for which providers had to achieve a 92% or higher score to win

• Care coordination, for which providers had to achieve an 88% or higher score to win

• Doctor-patient conversations, for which providers had to achieve a 58% or higher score to win Congratulations to Dr. Meiners for this outstanding accomplishment!

Pictured L-R: Catina Robillard, Kimberly Meiners, and Katie Leger

villages, now struggling to maintain their infrastructure, including roads and water systems. East Feliciana is hard pressed as well to maintain the beauty of the parish, to find the money, for example, to oversee the improvement of blighted properties and the removal of those past reclaiming.

By improving the prospects of those in need, the Housing Choice Voucher program, the Rev. Turner told the jury, could very well help improve life for everyone in East Feliciana.

A Few Numbers

The voucher program, he explained on May 6, “is a national program…. The federal government administers the program “through the State of Louisiana,” and, “as of today, 52 parishes of Louisiana’s 64 are participating.”

Describing the program as a “win-win” proposition for East Feliciana, Turner emphasized that it wouldn’t cost the parish “one dime; it pays for itself and it pays for someone to administer it.” Later, asked by Oliveaux if he planned to apply for the administrator’s role, he replied that the federal, state, and parish governments are involved in determining the program’s administration. “Let me share,” he said. “I do not need a job.”

Describing himself as “blessed,” he repeated that his “main concern” “is to help those who cannot help themselves.

“We are obligated to help this segment of society,” the reverend said, adding that veterans who have fought abroad to protect our freedom ask for only “a little help.”

Not a Dime?

After the meeting, Turner explained that HUD, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, may consider several administrative options that would not cost East Feliciana that “dime”:

1) The government could extend the boundaries of a housing authority already operating in a nearby parish—for example, in East Baton Rouge or Pointe Coupee—to include East Feliciana.

2) The government could select a non-profit already existing within East Feliciana—for example, The People’s Workshop, which Turner himself founded in 2008, 16 years ago, when he returned home, he explains, after a long career in affordable housing, ready to help bring housing assistance to the place of his birth.

3) An entity not yet known to the parish could apply.

4) Of course, the reverend acknowledges, the parish could decide to create its own housing authority, an option he does not recommend. If the federal government were to agree, the parish would need to hire and train staff who could determine eligibility, inspect rental housing units and homes, and keep the accounting records.

Another possibility: The state could decide to pair the voucher program with an already-existing state-run program such as SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which is based in Clinton.

Should the state contact The People’s Workshop, Turner says, his only interest would be to bring

good housing authority jobs to the parish and train local residents to perform them.

Let the program and its administration “unfold,” he advises, one step at a time. Gather information from every source available. Sometimes, especially when working with the federal government, an early prediction of outcomes is not possible.

Even answering the question an audience member posed at the historic May 6 police jury meeting— How many vouchers will East Feliciana receive?—is difficult. Though large populations—New Orleans, East Baton Rouge Parish, Shreveport, Lafayette—appear to receive the largest number of vouchers, still, no one can predict how many people in East Feliciana will apply and how many will qualify

In addition, facts and figures and funding can change: Turner reports that he’s heard of a recent increase in funding for the program as well as an increase in the number of vouchers nation-wide.

Times Have Changed

Reassuring the jury that he understands audience members’ concerns about protecting the value of their own homes, “the days of project housing” he said, “are over.” Some residents, however, may associate the new program with the Section 8 vouchers and public housing projects of the past.

He noted that the “first affordable housing” structure in the parish, a $250,000 brick home “with tile floors”—which a qualified applicant bought for $175,000, with the government making the down payment—stands directly across the street from the home of the audience member who worried that housing assistance would cause neighborhoods to decline.

Nothing about the appearance of that home, says Turner, indicates that the owner qualified for help with home ownership.

When one person hoped that plans for any new construction would have to go through the parish planning and zoning process, P & Z’s J.R. Rouchon explained that a housing voucher is awarded to a person, “not a building,” and is based on that person’s income.

The voucher, he said, does not fund construction.

Any builder may buy property and plan to construct apartments, or houses for rent or ownership. Submission of the plans to the parish Planning and Zoning Committee is always part of the process.

A person who has a Housing Choice Voucher simply searches the housing that is available on the open market.

“I would not do anything to offend the people of this parish,” Reverend Turner assured the jurors and audience.

“At the same time, we have homelessness here. We don’t even have an emergency shelter here. The elderly…where do they go?

“All I’m asking you to consider is: We can’t do anything about the past, but what can we do to right the wrongs of the past?”

By “the wrongs of the past,” he says, he means the failure to accept help for those in need…adding that on May 6, the jury corrected that omission and made history with “a great achievement for East Feliciana.”

How to Apply

To learn about the voucher application process, Reverend Turner recommends attending informational meetings, such as the gathering he has arranged for Friday, June 28, at the Jackson Civic Center on Highway 10. Registration starts at 9 a.m., and the program will end by noon.

Representatives of the Louisiana Housing Corporation, some of whom have visited the parish previously to discuss affordable housing programs, will attend.

Publisher ’s Note: Daniel Duggan, Louisiana Housing Corporation, is the publisher and editor of The Feliciana Explorer and The Zachary Post.

West Feliciana Parish Council, May 13 Highlights

By the Feliciana exPlorer StaFF

At the public hearing that preceded the West Feliciana Council’s May 13 regular meeting, Parish President Kenny Havard provided an “overview” of revenues and expenditures for the Fiscal Year beginning July 1, 2024.

At a recent budget committee meeting, he said, members discussed “the development of a comprehensive road overlay program which included estimates and future costs.”

He reminded the council that his office had conducted “road counts,” that is, had studied traffic volume “on most of the roads in the parish” preparatory to deciding “exactly where we want to spend our money.”

A project of the past several years has led to designating $1.5 million “toward building a cover for the rodeo arena” at the sports park. The addition, he said, would increase the number of events, as groups could book the facility without fear of cancellation due to weather.

Most important, the cover would allow for the building’s use as a multipurpose center…as a shelter, for example, in the event of natural disasters and storms.

Parish crews are building “water and wastewater operations facilities” behind the maintenance building on Highway 61, “which will allow us to manage the water department better.”

Utilities crews are “currently in the middle of changing out all the water meters around the parish” and are upgrading water lines.

Mr. Havard also reported that several sewage funds are closing “at a

deficit.” He plans to schedule a rate study “to see if the parish has the will to raise rates so that the sewage systems can pay for themselves.”

Because the parish failed to follow the recommendation of studies “two or three councils ago,” the current administration must “pull money” from other accounts, such as the general fund or the water account, “and when we do that, we can’t upgrade the water system as we need to…because the sewer systems aren’t paying for themselves.”

He cautioned against further delaying the work, as costs for materials continue to rise.

The parish president also explained, during the public hearing, that the proposed amendment to Chapter 110, the Flood Damage Prevention section of the parish code of ordinances, “changes the flood plain maps from paper to digital,” following the direction of the federal government.

During the regular meeting, after Council President John M. Thompson cited a “letter of support” from State Representative Jeremy LaCombe, the Council voted to reappoint Paul Lambert, Jr., to the Port Commission.

To view the meeting via livestream, visit West Feliciana Parish Government, Parish Council, and click “Watch Council Meeting.”

The next meeting of the Council is June 10 at 5:30 p.m. in the Council Room of the Courthouse Annex, 4785 Prosperity Street, St. Francisville.

Jermi Adams Joins Audubon Regional Library Board

By the Feliciana exPlorer StaFF

Audubon Regional Library Director Trevor Collings reports that the East Feliciana Parish Police Jury recently appointed Jermi Adams of Jackson the library board’s newest member.

Mr. Adams, who attended his first regular board meeting on May 15, joins members Major Coleman, Larry Charles Freeman, and Roderick Matthews of St. Helena Parish and, representing East Feliciana, Martin A. Macdiarmid, Jr., Jackson, and Faye Talbot, Clinton.

For more news from the library, visit: www.facebook.com/audubonregional

On May 15, welcoming Jermi Adams, second from left, to the Audubon Regional Library Board are, from left, Roderick Matthews, Larry Charles Freeman, Faye Hoffman Talbot, Martin A. Macdiarmid, Jr., and Major Coleman. Photograph by Trevor Collings

Jermi Adams, Jackson, is the Audubon Regional Library’s newest board member. Photograph by Trevor Collings

EVENTS CALENDAR EVENTS CALENDAR EVENTS CALENDAR

EVENTS CALENDAR

May 28, 2024

Please submit calendar notices to: rachal2743@ gmail.com.

NOW: Register for Zachary schools summer camps. 1) ZHS Wrestling: June 17–20, 9 a.m.–1 p.m., ages 6–14, cost, $125 per wrestler; $25 siblings discount. 2) ZHS Baseball: June 10–13, 9 a.m.–noon, 5–14 years old, $120. 3) ZHS Agriculture Camp: July 15–19, 8 a.m.–1 p.m., 5–10 years old, $150. 4) Lady Broncos Volleyball and Basketball: June 10–12, kindergarten–seventh grade, $110 for one or $200 for both. 5) Volleyball: 8 a.m.–11 a.m., Basketball: noon–2 p.m. 6) Cross-country: June 24–27, first–sixth grade, 9 a.m.–11:30 a.m., $100. 7) Boys Basketball: May 27–31, Ages 4–14, 8:30 a.m.–noon, $110. 8) Rollins Place Elementary Arts and Science: July 8–12, completed first to fourth grade, 9 a.m.–3 p.m., $180 by May 2 or $200 after May. Visit zacharyschools.org/ summer-camps/ to register.

ONGOING THROUGH AUGUST 25:

“Evolution of the Revolution” art exhibit at West Baton Rouge Museum, 845 N. Jefferson Avenue, Port Allen. This fascinating multimedia installation, the product of collaboration between photographers and set designers Lynn Rossi and Nichelle Evans, features huge, colorful photographs depicting key moments in Black history. Presented by the California African American Museum and created by Surreal Box Cinema. For more information, visit www.WestBatonRougeMuseum.org.

Tuesday, May 28, and the Last Tuesday of Every Month at 6 p.m.: Free yoga (all levels) at the West Baton Rouge Museum, 845 N. Jefferson Avenue, Port Allen. Please do not eat beginning one hour prior to class, and please remember to bring a yoga mat. Classes convene in the Brick Gallery; please enter through the courtyard or the gravel driveway. For more information, visit www.WestBatonRougeMuseum.org.

Twice monthly at noon: OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute), Felicianas Chapter Lunch Club, invites all age 50 and older to join a friendly group of OLLI members to socialize and share ideas while enjoying a delicious meal at a local restaurant. Register the Monday before the luncheon by clicking https://ce.lsu. edu/olli/ under the Feliciana chapter or under Field Trips. May 29: Iron Horse in Jackson; June 12: The Francis in St. Francisville; June 26: Aqua Blue in Zachary; July 10: The Magnolia Café in St. Francisville; July 24: Petra Café in St. Francisville; August 7: Sonny's in St. Francisville; August 21: Community Grocery in Woodville, Mississippi. For more information, email ollifelicianasmembership@gmail.com.

Wednesday, May 29: The Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center mobile unit will provide free breast and skin cancer screenings and distribute colorectal cancer screening kits from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Audubon Market, 5452 Live Oak Centre Drive in St. Francisville. To determine eligibility, to make an appointment, or for more information, please call 225-425-8034 or visit marybird.org/services/get-screened.

Friday, May 31, through Saturday, June 1: The Ninth Annual Walker Percy Weekend in St. Francisville presents “Walker Percy and the Speculative South.” Tickets are available at: bontempstix.com/events/the-2024-walkerpercy-weekend-5-31-2024. Guests may attend only lectures and panel discussions or may add, at additional cost, the Progressive Front Porch Bourbon Stroll and the Taste of Louisiana Supper.

ONGOING through May 31: An Exhibition of Recent Work by Lynn Wood at Backwoods Gallery, 11931 Ferdinand Street in St. Francisville. Gallery hours are Tuesdays through Saturdays from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, please call gallery owner Joe Savell at 225-721-1736.

REGISTER NOW: Arts for All “Summer Art Camp 2024” with Angel Mcgee, for ages 7 through 14, will take place June 10 through 14. The camp “will teach students lots of great

art skills and will offer unique, fun projects: drawing while using many different mediums, portrait sketching, sculpting with a variety of products, watercolor painting, charcoal drawing with a twist, weaving, and MORE! Fee: $150 for the week. Contact Lynn Wood at birdmancoffeeshop@gmail.com to sign up.

ONGOING: SIX Hiking and Biking Trail

Locations in the St. Francisville area, dawn until dusk: 1) Tunica Hills Wildlife Management Area offers five hiking, biking, and ATV trails. Location: 18 miles north of St. Francisville off Highway 66. 2) Cat Island National Wildlife Refuge offers two hiking and Nature trails and three ATV trails. Location: 7 miles west of St. Francisville off of Creek Road. 3) Mary Ann Brown Preserve offers three hiking trails. Location: 8 miles southeast of St. Francisville off of Highway 965. 4) West Feliciana Parish Sports Park offers one hiking and biking trail. Location: 3 miles north of St. Francisville off of Highway 61. 5) Clark Creek Natural Area (in Mississippi, but close to St. Francisville) offers one hiking trail 25 miles north of St. Francisville off of Ft. Adams Pond Road. 6) Audubon State Historic Site offers one Nature and birding trail 6 miles southeast of St. Francisville off of Highway 965. For more information, visit StFrancisvilleLa.com, come by the Historical Society Museum at 11757 Ferdinand Street in St. Francisville, or email Devan@visitstfrancisvillela.com. Please check with the Sports Park to be sure that trails are open following the April 10 storm.

NOW through Friday, May 31: Application Period for Master Gardener Classes, August 1 through November 7 at the West Feliciana Parish Extension Office, 10032 West Feliciana Parkway in St. Francisville. The fee is $200. Master Gardener volunteers receive over 40 hours of horticulture training in botany, plant propagation, entomology, plant pathology, weed science, soils, pesticide safety, lawn care, vegetables, fruits, herbaceous plants, and more! Application forms are available from Horticulturist Jessie Hoover, jhoover@ agcenter.lsu.edu or 225-683-3101, or at www. lsuagcenter.com/FelicianaMG.

Saturday, June 1: Audubon's Nero, 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at Audubon State Historic Site, 11788 Highway 965, St. Francisville. Children may explore the world of John Audubon's pet hawk at Oakley Plantation in 1821. Along the way they will create a bird craft, make wildlife feeders to hang around the park, and see where Nero lived, and will take home the new coloring book on Nero at Oakley. The program is free with site admission. For more information, contact the park at 225-635-3739.

Saturday, June 1: Annual OLLI membership enrollment for 2024-2025 begins. Early Bird registration for Summer Semester classes is June 10–23; regular registration is June 24–July 17. For more information visit olli@ outreach.lsu.edu.

Saturday, June 1: The Inaugural Feliciana Wildflower Festival in Downtown Clinton (during the Clinton Community Market) and Downtown Jackson and surrounding areas will include education for kids and adults alike, entertainment, food, discussion panels, shopping, and fun activities for kids that include making wildflower crowns. Time: 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. Taking part: USDA–Natural Resources Conservation Service, Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry, Pheasants Forever, East Feliciana 4-H, Louisiana State University AgCenter, Southern University AgCenter, Wisteria Alliance, Maypop Hill, McKowen Farms, H Mercantile, The Green Door at H Mercantile, the Galvez Distillery, and many more educational institutions and businesses. The Wildflower Photography Contest is under way. For more information on the contest or to sponsor the festival or volunteer, please email felicianawildflowerproject@gmail.com. More information can be found at Facebook.com/ felicianawildflowerproject.

Sunday, June 2: Open Hearth Cooking from noon to 4 p.m. at Audubon State Historic Site, 11788 Highway 965, St. Francisville. Costumed interpreters will use period techniques,

equipment, and recipes to demonstrate just how much effort it took to create the meals of yesterday. You might even be able to sample some of the dishes for yourself! The program is included in the standard grounds charge. For more information, contact the park at 225-6353739.

Sunday, June 2: Behind the Barn Doors, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the West Baton Rouge Museum, 845 N. Jefferson Avenue, Port Allen. At the Big Red Barn on the museum's campus, guests will enjoy demonstrations on the craftsmanship of historic trades and agricultural practices, including blacksmithing with Ben Deshotels, tinkering with Gary Hart, and fiber arts with Linda Collins. Sign-up sheets will be available for future workshops for those seeking a more immersive experience. For more information, visit www.WestBatonRougeMuseum.org.

Wednesday, June 5: Tupelo Elvis Festival Gala and After Party, 6 p.m. at Tupelo Cotton Mill, 300 Elliott Street, Tupelo, Mississippi, with festival host Tom Brown and featuring Ben Thompson, Bill Cherry, Brandon Bennett, Cote Deonath, David Lee, Jeff Lewis, Jesse Aron, Jay Dupuis, and Nick Perkins backed by Tributes in Concert band. Visit tupeloelvisfestival.com for more information.

Register NOW: Youth Soccer Camp for boys and girls ages 6 through 13. Date: June 25 through 27. Place: West Feliciana Parish Sports Park, 10226 W. Feliciana Parkway, St Francisville, off Highway 61 north of Highway 10. Register by email at DenhamD@wfpsb.org.

Cost is $50; please pay by check or at tinyurl. com/ysmnaee3. For information on this and other sports camps, visit West Fel Royal Blue Club on Facebook.

Friday, June 7: Downtown Live Concert with Pants Party from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., 4608 Virginia Street in Downton Zachary. Enjoy an exciting live concert as well as food trucks, cotton candy, art vendors, and dancing under the lights on Virginia Street! For more information, please email ashleigh.mchugh@cityofzachary.org.

Friday, June 7: Le Café Français will host its monthly gathering at the West Baton Rouge Museum, 845 N. Jefferson Avenue, Port Allen: a cultural offering and program for those who speak French, are learning French, or simply support the French language and culture in Louisiana. Speakers of any variety of French and any level of comprehension are welcome. This program is open to the public and FREE of charge. Each meeting features a topic to spur discussion, live music often provided by John Richard and Tony Thibodeaux, and, as always, coffee and dessert. Time: 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. For more information, visit www. WestBatonRougeMuseum.org.

Saturday, June 8: LA Night Jam, Louisiana’s only water sports festival and professional extreme water sports competition and show, presented by Tides Medical, is back for its second consecutive year! Get ready for an amazing show on the water featuring night jumps by professional water skiers from around the world! You don’t have to go far for this top-notch entertainment in Zachary, at beautiful Tri-Lakes, home of Bennett’s Water Ski and Wakeboard School, 18505 Barnett Road. Tickets are $20 a car load. Visit LANightJam.com.

Saturday, June 8: Help Create Happy Tales for Happy Tails! Is there room in your home and your heart for one more? Stop by Happy Tails dog adoption day at Tractor Supply, 7327 Highway 61 in St. Francisville. Time: 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. But no need to wait! Call or email Michelle Hamilton, Happy Tail Rescue, for details about the dogs now looking for homes: 225-245-4123 or thehappytailrescue@outlook. com.

Saturdays, June 8 and 22: Greater Baton Rouge Model Railroaders will exhibit its model train collection from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 3406 College Street in Jackson, behind the Republic of West Florida Museum. No admission fee. For further information, or to book space at

no charge for a birthday party, please email maczilla1@bellsouth.net or call 713-858-9251.

Saturday, June 8, in St. Francisville: The Day the War Stopped. On a hot June day in 1863, Union soldiers under the flag of truce came searching for fellow masons in St. Francisville to bury their commander with masonic honors. Confederate masons put aside their differences and stopped the war for a short time to honor the higher calling of brotherly love. Also on June 8, Feliciana Lodge #31 will hold the Sixth Annual Feliciana Cup Jambalaya Cookoff. Does your lodge have what it takes to unseat Kentwood? Enter at: https://felicianalodge31. com/annual-cookoff.

Sunday, June 9: Old Time Jam from 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. at the West Baton Rouge Museum, 845 N. Jefferson Avenue, Port Allen. Jam sessions are open for any musician to join in to play tunes including country, Bluegrass, Gospel, Cajun, and folk music. The public is invited to bring refreshments, or join in by playing, listening, or dancing. This FREE event is open to the public. For more information, visit www. WestBatonRougeMuseum.org.

Tuesday, June 11: Dress Drive. The Slaughter Civic Club asks for donations of formal dresses suitable for bridesmaids, prom, or homecoming. The civic club will sell the dresses at its Back to School Bash, with all proceeds benefitting the Town of Slaughter and community events. Please drop off your dresses from 6 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. For more information, call Delaney at 225301-5734 or Adele at 225-931-2470.

Sunday, June 16: The Plantation Blacksmith. Come to Audubon State Historic Site, 11788 Highway 965, St. Francisville, between 10 a.m. and 3 p.m., and learn what a blacksmith did at Oakley in the early 1800s. Watch as he demonstrates the art of the blacksmith. The cost is the $5 grounds fee. For more information, contact the park at 225-635-3739.

Third Tuesdays—June 18: The East Feliciana Drug and Alcohol Awareness Council Monthly Meeting takes place at the East Feliciana Public Health Unit building, 12080 Marston Street in Clinton. Time: 5 p.m. This meeting is open to the public. Please use the side entrance. For more information, please call 225-663-0696.

Saturday, June 22: Audubon's Birds. Join one of the site’s park rangers to view and discuss the prints of Audubon, centering on the birds he painted at Oakley. Hear stories of the creation of a few of them. This is an ongoing activity from 10 to 1 p.m. in the museum. The program is included with park admission. For more information, please call Audubon State Historic Site, 11788 Highway 965, St. Francisville, at 225-635-3739.

MARKET DAYS

Thursdays—May 30 and June 6, 13, 20, 27: St. Francisville Community Market, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at 9961 Wilcox Street in St. Francisville. Call Claudene Cockrum, 225-715-3597, or Faye Ritchie, 225-245-1752, or email jritchie49@ bellsouth.net.

Saturdays—June 22, July 20, August 17, and September 21: “Pop-Up Tent Community Market.” Host: St. Francisville Tractor Supply. Time: 9 a.m. until 3 p.m. at the Tractor Supply parking lot, 7327 Highway 61. All products are welcome. No vendor fee at this time. Please contact Krista at Tractor Supply, 225-635-2223, if you plan to set up in June.

Saturdays—June 1, 8, 15, 22, 29: Zachary Farmers Market : 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Lee and Main Streets. Contact zacharyfarmersmarket@ gmail.com.

First Fridays—June 7: Jackson Market, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the town hall gazebo on Charter Street (Highway 10). Contact Ginger Goudeau at 225-933-4911 or ging130@yahoo.com.

First Saturdays—June 1: Clinton Community Market Day, 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. along St. Helena Street (Highway 10) in downtown Clinton. Contact hmercantilellc@gmail.com.

Natives of East Baton Rouge and the Feliciana Parishes, Scott and his father, Neal Haynes take pride in serving other hometown families

When you call, be assured that one of our own locals will take care of you.

Neal Haynes Funeral Service Assistant

Scott Haynes Manager

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