For the first time, Zachary city offices willclose and employees will getthe day off for Juneteenth in 2025. It became officialwhen City Council members adopted the 2025 holiday calendar at their Oct. 22 meeting Juneteenth, which commemorates the ending of slavery in the United States, is June 19. It has been afederal holiday since 2021.
Zachary’slong-standing practice of notincluding Juneteenthonits holiday calendar promptedtension this summer In June, NAACP leadersin Baton Rouge sentaletter to MayorDavid McDavid expressing their disagreement with thepolicy. Dayslater, residents, including former council member Lael Montgomery,attended acouncil meeting to urge thecityto begin closing its offices in observance of theholiday
Leila Pitchford AROUND ZACHARY
Libraries close for Veterans Day
All locations of the East Baton Rouge Parish Library will close on Monday,Nov.11, in observance of Veterans Day
All library resources, ebooks, downloads, and other information are available online 24/7 in the Digital Library at www.ebrpl.com/DigitalLibrary
All you need is alibrary card to check out resources. For more information about upcoming library closures, call (225) 231-3750.
Veterans Dayluncheonset
The city of Baker is hosting aVeterans Day Luncheonat 11:15 a.m. atOccasions Unlimited, 2160 Main St., Baker. Veterans can register at (225) 774-7044 or occasionunlimit22@ att.net.
ä See AROUND, page 2G
Zachary’sSalute to Veterans Parade setfor Nov. 11
Community news report
The Regional Veterans Park and city of Zachary’sfirstVeterans Day Parade is scheduled for 9a.m. Monday,Nov.11.
The Zachary Salute to Veterans Parade will follow the Regional Veterans Park’sannual ceremony,whichstarts at 7:30 a.m., and begins at the Bank of Zachary,concluding at Zachary High School Veterans of all ages are invited to participate, with local antique car owners offering their vehicles to honor them along the parade route. The antique cars will depart immediately following the Veterans Day ceremony at theRegional Veterans Park, located behind Lane Hospital. Veterans interested in participating can email Darren Spears, Regional Veterans Parade organizer,at darren.spears@zacharyschools. org or call the city of Zachary Mayor’s Office at (225) 654-0287. Local antique car clubs are coming together to supportveterans in the parade. If youown an antique car and would liketo drive aveteranalong the route, email Spears or pick up adriver formatCity Hall, 4700 Main St.
Council memberswere sympathetic to thoseargumentsmade in favor of making Juneteenth apaid holiday.But legally,their hands were tied, they said: They couldn’tgive workers theday offfor Juneteenth this year because the2024 holiday schedule had already been set When the2025 holiday calendarwas presentedtothe council at its Oct. 22 meeting, Juneteenth was missing from the list. The council
voted to add it when they adopted the schedule.
CityAttorney John Hopewell relayed an explanation he’d received from Zachary’shuman resources director “Noone suggestedtoadd that to thelist,”Hopewell said.“That’sthe reasonit’s not there. She doesn’thave any objection to it. It’sjust no one has suggested that that’ssomething theywant to do.” “Itshould have been sug-
gested,” council member Brandy Westmoreland responded. “Whenitcameup in June at themeeting, it was stated that it wasa misuse of public funds if we gave the day during the month and it wasasked to be notated that when the holiday schedule cameout for ‘25 that it would be added.”
Besides Juneteenth, Zachary city offices will close for 12 other holidays in 2025.
The council adopts and can modifythe holiday schedule
each year Hopewell notedthatthe addition of anew holiday willrepresentanexpense forthe city.But he was sure employees would be happy to hear the news. “I’m relatively certain there’snot going to be acity employeethat’sgoing to come at thenext meetingto complain because you guys gave them another holiday,” he said. “I thinkthat’sprobably going to be something that they’ll be OK with.”
TheLodgeAtLane decorated withblack and orangeballoons for Zachary’strunk-or-treat event.
The city of Zachary held its fourth trunk-or-treat eventon Oct.27indowntown Zachary Children enjoyed visiting different decorated trunks and vehicles for candy.There was funinHugYourPeople Memorial Park too with ahaunted maze,carnival games and fun on the playground.
Attendees enjoyed snoballs, hot dogs, cotton candy and kettle corn.
Members of ChiEta PhiSorority hand out treats Oct27.
PROVIDED PHOTOS
PROVIDED PHOTO
Grace Thornhill,11, of Zachary, earns the GirlScout Bronze Award with her invasiveplant species project.
Zacharystudent earns Girl Scout honor with invasive species awareness
Community news report
Girl Scout GraceThornhill,11, of Zachary, earned the Girl Scout Bronze Award, the highest award a Girl Scout Junior can earn
To earn this award aGirl Scout must demonstrate achievements in leadership development, project planning and taking actionto make apositive, sustainable impact on her community,a news release said.
Grace’sproject, conducted over the course of six months, focused on increasing awareness of invasive plantspecies in hercommunity She learnedthat Louisiana hasahighnumber of invasivespecies and that they can choke out native spe-
Zacharystudent gets Upper Iowa University honor
Community news report
Erica Callegari, ahealth services administration major from Zachary,has been namedtothe dean’s listfor summer 2024 at Upper Iowa University To be honored, the undergraduate must have earned aminimum 3.50 GPAand be enrolled as a full-time student.
AROUND
Continued from page1G
Libraryeventsannounced
cies. Grace thought it was important that people recognize these invasive plants and try to minimize their spread.
She researched common invasive species in the area and visited natureareas to see their pervasiveness.
From there she, with the helpofher troop, narrowed down the focus to two of the worstinvasive plants they came across: Christmasberries andChinese privet Grace designed and createda sign foratrailheadinforming hikersaboutthese invasive plants. The sign is postedatGirlScout Camp Marydale. Grace is asixth graderat Coppermill Elementary.She is amember of Girl Scout Troop No. 10373.
people were
intoEast
Parish Prison or issued asummons by the Zachary Police Department from Oct.24-30: RICHARD BICKLE: 64, 9670 Miles Jamison Road,Ladson, South Carolina, hit-and-run
EDITH BROWN: 59, 3829 S. Eugene St., Baton Rouge, failure to appear on outstanding bench warrants
JAMES CLAYTON: 64, 13725 Baptiste Drive, Walker, failure to appear on outstanding bench warrants
n LSU School of Theatre, in partnership with the East Baton RougeParish Library presents “RositayConchita,” achildren’s play directed by Marina DeYoe-Pedraza Based on the award-winning children’s book by Erich Haeger andEric González, “Rosita yConchita” tells the storyoftwo sisters trying to reuniteonDía de los Muertos(Day of the Dead). This production uses rhyming bilingual dialogue music and life-size puppets. It will be performed at 2:30 p.m. Nov.9atthe Baker Branch. Checkthe library website for other performances n “Cherokee Tales,” developed in partnership with the Cherokee Historical Association, introduces youngaudiencestothe Cherokeepeople througha series of stories. Recommended for children, grades K-6. It will be performed at 2:30 p m. Nov 23atthe Zachary Branch and3 p.m. Nov 24 at theBakerBranch. Check thelibrary website for other performances.
n The Pride-Chaneyville Branch Library, 13600 Pride-Port Hudson Road, has a couple of events. The Lagniappe Historic Dance &PastimeSocietywill teach 18thand 19th-century dances on Thursday evenings in November (excluding Thanks-
Lane volunteers recognized forservice
Communitynewsreport
Members of the Lane Regional Medical Center Volunteer Services program were recently recognized fortheir service to the hospital Service pins were awarded to: Diane Rouchon and Kate Tacey: 1,000 hours
JeanineMeese:500 hours
Vicky Dong: 50 hours The new Lane volunteer
uniform was introduced, incorporating the history of the“pink ladies”witha pink polo shirt, black vest and pink logo embroidered on the vest.
“Hospital volunteers can make ameaningfuldifference in someone’slife just by being there,” said volunteer services Director Theresa Payment. “Wheth-
er you want to give back to your community,meet new people, learn new skills, or see what it is like to work in healthcare,volunteering is arewarding experience.” Lane is recruiting new volunteers who are at least 18 years old and can commit to serving on aweekly or monthlybasis. Forinformation, call (225)-6586699 or email volunteer@ lanermc.org.
Lane Gastroenterology adds team member
Communitynewsreport
Zahf Shaikh has joined the staff of Lane Gastroenterology,6550MainSt., Suite 3500, Zachary
Shaikh earned his doctorate degree in osteopathic medicine from Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine in Stratford, New Jersey, and began his residency training at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School in Newark.
He completed his residency training in internal medicine and was chief resident at Hackensack University Medical Center.Shaikh completed his fellowship in gastroenterology at HMH Palisades Medical Center in North Bergen, New Jersey
He is board-certifiedininternal medicine and board-eligible in gastroenterology.Inaddition to colonoscopy screenings and upper endoscopies, Shaikh is trained in therapeutic endoscopic procedures, and dilation procedures, anews release said.
Shaikh specializes in diagnosis and
management of the digestive tract (esophagus, stomach, small and large intestines, liver,biliary tract, and pancreas); inflammatory bowel diseases, such as ulcerative colitis and Crohn’s; as well as liver and pancreatic diseases, includinghepatitis, cirrhosis, primary biliary cholangitis, pancreatitis and other autoimmune disorders.
The most common symptoms treated include heartburn, abdominal pain, diarrhea, incontinence, irritable bowel syndrome, constipation, bleeding, hepatitis and hemorrhoids.
“I am excited to be part of this community,” said Shaikh. “There is no betterjob than helpingmypatients stay healthy.”
He is amember of theAmerican College of Gastroenterology and American Gastroenterological Association.
Shaikh is accepting new patients with aphysician referral. For information or to make an appointment, call Lane Gastroenterology at (225) 658-6780.
ZACHARYPOLICEBOOKINGS
THOMAS DUDLEY: 53, 18199
John BroussardRoad, Prairieville, possessionofSchedule II drug
ASHANTI HAYES: 28, 11535 Saint Lawrence Drive, Baton Rouge, failuretoappear on outstanding bench warrants
BRYANT HARRIS: 27, 4331 Amerest Ave.,Baker, failure to appear on outstanding bench warrants
giving), from 6p.m. to 7:30 p.m. Wear comfortable shoes. 20-somethings are invited at 4p.m. Nov.15tomake book bricks and garden stones. Call (225) 658-1540 for information.
Save thedate
Nov.16: Memory Lane at the Market from 9a.m.to1p.m. Area residents are asked to share special memories/items with everyone. Not items to sell.
Nov.23: 9a.m. to 1p.m., Zachary Farmers Market Holiday Kickoff. The day will include drawings for Market Money and will celebrate Thanksgiving, football games andChristmas shopping.
Dec. 13: 6p.m. to 9p.m., Christmas in the Village and Mistletoe Holiday Shopping Market
Dec. 14: 8:30 a.m., Chasing Santa 5K and FunRun
Dec. 14: 10 a.m., Zachary Christmas Parade. Theme is Luau Under the Mistletoe. Visit zacharychamber.com/christmas-parade to register and find rules. Mayor David McDavid has been names the parade’s first grand marshal.
Dec. 14: 9a.m. to noon, Farmers Market MistletoeHoliday Shopping Market
Dec. 21: 9a.m. to 1p.m., Stocking Stuffer Saturdayatthe Farmers Market
Send news and eventsfor the Zachary area to zachary@theadvocate.com by noon Friday or call(225) 388-0731.
THE ZACHARYADVOCATE&PLAINSMAN,P.O.Box 588, BatonRouge,LA70821.(225) 388-0215
PUBLISHED EVERYWEDNESDAY Onlineattheadvocate.com/news/communities/zachary/ USPS NO.434-760
EDITOR
Darlene T. Denstorff zachary@theadvocate.com (225)388-0215
Zahf Shaikh, OsteopathicMedicine, has joined the staff of Lane Gastroenterology, 6550 MainSt., Suite 3500, Zachary.
BRIAN ROACH: 39, 21012 High Plains Road, Zachary,10 counts resisting an officer aggravated flight from an officer, obstruction of justice, possession/distribution manufacturing Schedule II drug, attempted first-degree murder, twocounts of aggravated criminal damage of property,hit-and-run, two counts of penalty for distribution or possession with intent to distribute, aggravated assault on apeace officer, sale, distribution, or possession of legend drug, prohibited acts
AUDREYANA ROSS: 33, 1210
PlazaDrive, Baker, hit-andrun
RODNEY WHITTINGTON: 49, 14523 W. BeaverDrive, Central, failuretoappear on outstanding bench warrants
MICHELLE YOUNG: 42, 11524
Troy St., Baton Rouge, fugitive warrant from Baker Police Department
Dong Rouchon Tacey Meese
Eerieweekfor ZacharysportsasBroncos fall to Central
The close out of October,Halloween and the beginning of November brought good and bad for yours truly and Zachary sports. My mood on Nov.1 was not great watching the Zachary/ Central game from home via the Central YouTube broadcast and sick. The rain and Central’s lack of facility availability prevented the ZHS broadcast team of Todd McClure and Thomas Scott from allowing us to watch from amore Zachary-centric perspective.
Warren Brady ZACHARY SPORTS
field goals andother opportunities were missed To this day my son,Wes, who was a sophomore on that 2016 team,tells me that he was out with aconcussion and theloss to Central doesnot counton hispersonal record (Wes likes to emphasize that he never lost toCentral from thetime he was 7in youthfootball, throughmiddleschool andatZHS)
night
Cross-country
On Nov.2,the ZHS crosscountry team competed in the East Baton Rouge Metro cross-countrymeet at Highland Road. The ZHS boys team finished the 3-mile course fourth overall and the girls finished eighth. The top finisher for the boys was sophomoreMaximo Gennaro who finished sixth overall (15:59.96). On thegirls side, the top fin-
isher was Blair Smith(27th) at 20:43.59. Both teams will be training for regionals (Nov.8atHighland Road Park) and thestate meet in Natchitoches on Nov.18.
Swimming
Also, on Nov.1-2, the ZHS swim team competed in the CCSL championship at Crawfish Aquatics and recorded school record breaking resultsfor coach Julie Peveto. The ZHSswim team
qualified swimmersin 17 events forthe finals on Nov. 2. Along the way, Joseph Johnson broke a school record previously held by Tristan Vessel in the 200-meter freestyle. A school record wasalso broken in the 200-meter medley relay by the ZHS team of Chloe Wedblad, Maddy Snyder,Evelyn Deroche and AvaOrdonio.
The girls finished third overall and the boys finished fourth overall.
It’sunlikely that an alternative broadcast would have changed the outcome as the Broncos fell for the second time in 10 years to the Central Wildcats at Central (14-3).
This was atough one as Central is aneighbor and the chances of an outright District 4-5A championship for 2024are no longer possible. All is not lostthough as awin by the Broncos over Catholic on Nov.7at the Bronco Corral to close out the regular season would likely result in a three-waytie for the championship if the Broncos can get their groove back. No brilliant observations or pithy comments on the Central game. No time for crying over spilled milk as the undefeated-in-district Catholic Bears come to town this week. My only observation is that the game looked eerily familiar to the last Broncos loss to Central in 2016,atCentral,where
Ialso have scars from 1986 when Central gaveus our only regular season loss in what was apretty good Broncos team that made adeep playoff runand finished theregular season 9-1. Sorry,thisisarivalry like it or notand those involved over multiple years do care.
The following year (my senior year) we beat Central 34-8, and yeah itwas a big deal at least to meand my teammates. My son, Wes, can and often points to thefollowing two years after 2016 when they won state championships and along the way beat Central by scoresof21-0and 49-17. He also likes to reiterate in case Ididn’thear him the first time that he“was out with aconcussion in 2016 when they lost.”
Moving on, coach David Brewerton and theBroncos could really use ahuge turnout from Zachary fans on Thursday to inspire the team as they go for aportion of the4-5A title and attempttobuild momentum for theplayoffs on senior
ByronSampson honoredasguest captainofZHS football game
The Zachary School Board and ZacharyAthletics honored Byron Sampson as the guest captain of the Zachary vs. Woodlawn home game Oct. 25. The guest captain is treated toapregame meal overlooking the stadium in the Academic Athletic Center and then escortedtothe sidelines to be introduced and to walk out with the ZHS football team captains and officialsfor the coin toss. They can also watch the game from the sidelines or in reserved seats with their guests.
Sampson is acustodianat Northwestern Elementary School. He was nominated by thecommunity and fellow employees for being such adedicated employee, according to anews release.
On the Friday of the game, Northwestern Elementary School surprised Sampson with apep rally in his honor
Many of the NES staff were up in the stands at the football game to cheer him on.
Northwestern Elementary’s PrincipalJonathan Coats said, “Mr.Byron hasemergedasa positive leaderand role modelat Northwestern Elementary The oncereserved and shy young man can now be seen helping students in the cafeteria or lending ahelping hand in the hallway. His commitment to his work is evident in his daily actions. He goes above and beyond daily to ensurethatour campus is safeand conducive to learning. Thank you, Mr.Byron. We value and appreciateyou.”
Those who nominated him shared that“Mr.Byron has become abeloved part of the kindergarten school. Not only does he help keep the school clean, but he also helps watch over all of the lost articles from students andhelps lost students in the hallways. “Heisdedicatedtohelping in any way needed.”
Sampsonwas named NorthwesternElementary’s Support Employeeofthe Year for the2022-23 school year
Volleyball
The ZHS volleyball team (11-15) under coach Cheri Perry did not advance to the playoffs but closed out the season on ahigh note with victories over Madison Prep (22-25, 26-24, 25-22, 2522) and Southern Lab (25-8, 25-23, 25-17) on the road. Warren Brady covers sports forThe Plainsman. He canbecontacted at zachary@theadvocate. com.
Turning65 or newtoMedicare? GetMedicareanswers at your home
We cantalkMedicarewhere youwant Ourpooloflocal licensed salesagentsmakes it easy to find alistening ear, a helping hand andaknowledgeable voice. We’llconnect youwiththe Medicare Advantageplaninfoyou need.Plus, Humana goes theextra mile to bringyou even more than youexpect. We call it human care Call
At Humana, it is importantyou aretreated fairly Humana Inc. andits subsidiaries comply with applicable federalcivil rights laws anddonot discriminate on thebasis of race,color,nationalorigin, age, disability,sex,sexualorientation,gender, gender identity,ancestry, ethnicity,marital status,religionorlanguage.English: ATTENTION: If youdonot speakEnglish,languageassistanceservices, free of charge,are available to you. Call 877-320-1235 (TTY:711). Español (Spanish): ATENCIÓN:Si hablaespañol,tiene asudisposición serviciosgratuitos de asistencia lingüística Llameal 877-320-1235 (TTY:711). 繁體中文(Chinese)：注意：如果您使用繁體中文，您 可以免費獲得語言援助服務。請致電877‑320‑1235（聽障專線：711）。 Y0040_GHHHXDEEN_24_AD_C
Attending the ZacharyRotaryClub’sOct.31meeting, fromleft,
and
ZacharyCityCourt;Judge
Zachary Rotary was honored to have Zachary City Court Judge David Conachen on Oct.31 speak about the role of the court. Conachen shared insights about recent initiatives and legal topics affecting the city.Hetalked about the importance of justice, fairness and civic responsibility.
During the October stateBoard of Elementary and Secondary Educationmeeting Oct. 9, Jamie Byrd was honored by BESE and state SuperintendentofEducationCade Brumley.
The meeting was held in the BESE boardroom at the Louisiana DepartmentofEducation’sClaiborne building in downtown Baton Rouge. Byrd is aspecial education teacher atZachary High School and was named aLouisiana Exemplary Educatorbythe LouisianaDepartment of Education. Honorees were recommended forthis recognition through aconfidential process where the candidates were unaware of
The third placewinner at the Lane Foundation’sgolf tournament, from left, is H&E Rentals, composed of teammates Jared Poche, Kenny Wall and Kade Scivicque.
Louisiana Foot &Ankle team of, fromleft, KevinLaird, Kyle Lindow, AlexStrahan and Steven Dearman won second place at the Lane Foundation gold tournament.
PROVIDED PHOTO
The Merit Electrical golf team of, from left,Chris Husser,Russell Gaudin, BlakeWhite and CaseyMcKenzie took home first placeatthe Lane Foundation golf tournament.
PROVIDED PHOTO
are Rotarian Frances Nezianya; Jennifer Hayes, ZacharyCityCourt; KawandaJackson,
