The Acadiana Advocate 04-06-2025

COASTAL EXPECTATIONS

New restaurants redefine the Gulf Coast dining scene

BY IAN McNULTY | Staff writer

arm-to-table restaurant sourcing is one thing. At the restaurant The Hope Farm in Fairhope, Alabama, radishes and carrots, mint and scallions all come from beds within arm’s reach of the outdoor patio tables.

About an hour away in Pensacola, Florida, cooks at Pearl & Horn broil oysters with blasts of umami-boosting black garlic and miso borrowed from Japanese cuisine. Fried snapper is served with a classic French beurre blanc blended with a chile sauce from the chef’s Eastern European homeland.

And over in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, the restaurant/butcher shop Butcher Baker has artisanal bread and charcuterie next to outright exotica. Cue the raw, marinated soft-shell crab. It’s an exceedingly rare dish at restaurants anywhere. This one can be found in a strip mall in small-town coastal Mississippi. Louisianans head to the Gulf Coast for sun, sand, boating and maybe some bushwackers Adventurous food and refined dining aren’t typically among their expectations.

But that’s changing. Parts of the Gulf Coast are among the fastest-growing areas of the United States More people from Louisiana and around the South are choosing the region to live and work, not just for vacations. The economic boom that’s transforming the cities and towns stretching from Pass Christian to the far reaches of 30A is also transforming its restaurant and hospitality industry

ä See DINING, page 6A

Butcher Baker in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, a combination butcher shop and restaurant, brings casual, inventive meals, like this night’s mix of octopus, local pork chop, bread and raw, marinated soft-shell crab

Scholarships fall short of college tuition costs

BY PATRICK WALL | Staff writer

Janna Jordan’s family lives in Prairieville, about a 30-minute drive from LSU. This fall, her daughter Abby Veillon will head to Mississippi for college.

Louisiana has long offered a merit-based scholarship, Taylor Opportunity Program for Students or TOPS, to entice students to choose one of the state’s public colleges or universities But Abby, who will attend the University of Southern Mississippi, is among the growing number of high schoolers who don’t meet TOPS’ academic requirements. Even if she were eligible, the award amounts have been frozen since 2016 while tuition continues to rise.

“TOPS is not going to keep us in state,” Janna Jordan said, “whether we get it or not.” Nearly 30 years ago, Louisiana made its students a compelling offer: Earn good grades and test scores in high school and your in-state college tuition will be covered, courtesy of a TOPS scholarship. The deal proved immensely popular Participation and costs rose steadily until the 2020-21 school year, when 56,000 students earned nearly $321 million in awards, according to state data. Then, suddenly, the numbers started falling. This school year, there are fewer than 48,000 TOPS recipients the lowest count in a decade — getting $270.4 million, about $50 million less than four years ago.

ä See TOPS, page 7A

Trump halts $363M in Louisiana reimbursements

BY STEPHEN MARCANTEL | Staff writer

DeRidder corn and wheat farmer David Smith said he wanted to try out something new this year on his farm. He started tinkering with the idea of adding cover crops over small acreages but wanted to expand it to hundreds of acres.

“It is not a moneymaking thing. In fact, you spend money You just want to improve your soil,” Smith said.

He couldn’t justify the cost in the current agricultural economy with its high input costs and low commodity prices. So he looked at applying for a U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resources Conservation Service program that would have partly covered the cost of seed. The agency helps farmers identify conservation concerns on their operations and works to ensure availability of resources for future generations.

ä See FUNDS, page 7A

STAFF PHOTOS By CHRIS GRANGER

Dining at the bar at Butcher Baker in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, a combination butcher shop and restaurant, brings casual, inventive meals.

Netanyahu to meet with Trump on Monday

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu will meet on Monday with President Donald Trump in Washington to seek a better tariff deal for Israel and to discuss the war in Gaza, the situation in Syria and the Iranian nuclear program, an Israeli official said. Netanyahu is in the Hungarian capital Budapest where he was warmly welcomed by Prime Minister Viktor Orban in defiance of an arrest warrant issued against Netanyahu by the International Criminal Court in November over Israel’s conduct in Gaza.

The Israeli official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Orban and Netanyahu jointly phoned Trump and, on the call, the Israeli leader raised the 17% tariff the U.S. is due to impose on some Israeli goods. Israel hoped to escape tariffs by announcing an end to all remaining tariffs from the U.S. in advance but that failed to work.

The president urged Netanyahu to come to Washington to discuss it, the official said. With the Passover holiday a week away, Netanyahu’s aides suggested a visit later in the month, but the White House wanted the meeting this very Monday, he said.

Zelenskyy meets military leaders from Europe

KYIV, Ukraine Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy met the leaders of the British and French armed forces in Kyiv Saturday to discuss the potential deployment of a multinational peacekeeping force to Ukraine, despite the reluctance of U.S. President Donald Trump to provide security guarantees The U.K. Ministry of Defense said that officials addressed the structure, size and composition of any future “reassurance force,” while the chief of the defense staff, Adm. Antony Radakin, emphasized that the U.K. would look to “build on the formidable capabilities of the Ukrainian army and put them in the strongest possible position to deter Russian aggression.”

The weekend discussions are planned to set the ground for a further meeting between defense ministers in Brussels and the Ukraine Defense Contact Group on Friday Britain has been promoting the idea of a European-led peacekeeping force for Ukraine in the event of a ceasefire but it has said such a force needed a U.S. “backstop” to make it credible in the face of possible Russian reprisals.

Building a force big enough to act as a credible deterrent — U.K. officials have talked about possibly 10,000 to 30,000 troops — would be a considerable effort for nations that shrank their militaries after the Cold War but are now rearming.

Trump, who has been pushing for a ceasefire in the war in Ukraine, temporarily paused military aid to Kyiv and has repeatedly said that the country will never join the NATO military alliance.

Endangered tortoises

born at Pa. zoo

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — A pair of critically endangered, nearly 100-year-old Galapagos tortoises at the Philadelphia Zoo have become first-time parents.

In an announcement Friday, the zoo said it is “overjoyed” at the arrivals of the four hatchlings, a first in its more than 150year history The babies are the offspring of female Mommy and male Abrazzo, the zoo’s two oldest residents. The quartet is being kept behind the scenes inside the Reptile and Amphibian House for now, “eating and growing appropriately,” the zoo said. They weigh between 70 and 80 grams, about the weight of a chicken egg. The first egg hatched on Feb. 27 and more that still could hatch are being monitored by the zoo’s animal care team.

“This is a significant milestone in the history of Philadelphia Zoo, and we couldn’t be more excited to share this news with our city, region and the world,” President and CEO Jo-Elle Mogerman said in a statement.

The zoo plans a public debut of the hatchlings on April 23, as well as a naming contest

Protesters tee off against Trump, Musk

‘Hands

Off!’ rallies held across the U.S

BY DAVE COLLINS Associated Press

Crowds of people angry about the way President Donald Trump is running the country marched and rallied in scores of American cities Saturday in the biggest day of demonstrations yet by an opposition movement trying to regain its momentum after the shock of the Republican’s first weeks in office.

So-called Hands Off! demonstrations were organized for more than 1,200 locations in all 50 states by more than 150 groups including civil rights organizations, labor unions, LBGTQ+ advocates, veterans and elections activists. The rallies appeared peaceful, with no immediate reports of arrests.

From the National Mall and Midtown Manhattan to Boston Common and multiple state capitols, thousands of protesters assailed Trump and billionaire Elon Musk ‘s actions on government downsizing, the economy, immigration and human rights In Seattle in the shadow of the city’s iconic Space Needle, protesters held signs with slogans like “Fight the oligarchy.”

Demonstrators voiced anger over the administration’s moves to fire thousands of federal workers, close Social Security Administration field offices, effectively shutter entire agencies, deport immigrants, scale back pro-

tections for transgender people and cut funding for health programs.

Musk, a Trump adviser who owns Tesla, SpaceX and the social media platform X, has played a key role in the downsizing as the head of the newly created Department of Government Efficiency He says he is saving taxpayers billions of dollars.

Kelley Robinson, president of the Human Rights Campaign advocacy group, criticized the administration’s treatment of the LBGTQ+ community at the rally at the National Mall, where Democratic members of Congress also took the stage.

“The attacks that we’re seeing, they’re not just political. They are personal, y’all,” Robinson said.

U.N. urges relief efforts in Myanmar as quake deaths rise

BY GRANT PECK Associated Press

BANGKOK The death toll from last week’s massive earthquake in Myanmar rose to 3,455, state media said Saturday, as U.N. agencies and foreign aid donors ramped up their emergency relief efforts.

The 7.7-magnitude quake hit a wide swath of the country, causing significant damage to six regions and states including the capital Naypyitaw The earthquake left many areas without power, telephone or cell connections and damaged roads and bridges, making the full extent of the devastation hard to assess.

It also worsened an already dire humanitarian crisis triggered by the country’s civil war that has internally displaced more than 3 million people and left nearly 20 million in need, according to the United Nations.

The military government’s leader, Senior Gen. Min Aung Hlaing, has said the earthquake was the second most powerful in the country’s recorded history after a magnitude 8 quake east of Mandalay in May 1912.

Min Aung Hlaing told Cabinet members Saturday that the quake’s death toll has reached 3,455, with 4,840 injured and 214 missing according to a report on state television MRTV

He said 5,223 buildings, 1,824 schools, 2,752 Buddhist monasterial living quarters, 4,817 pagodas and temples, 167 hospitals and clinics, 169 bridges, 198 dams and 184 sections of the country’s main highway were damaged by the earthquake.

Myanmar’s military seized power in 2021 from the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi sparking armed resistance that is now believed by analysts to control more territory than the army

Members of the U.N. Security Council “recognized the need to strengthen rescue, relief and recovery efforts and to scale up immediate and rapid humanitarian assistance in response to the requests to help the people of Myanmar, supported by the international community,” its president, Jérôme Bonnafont of France, said in a statement Friday

“They’re trying to ban our books, they’re slashing HIV prevention funding, they’re criminalizing our doctors, our teachers, our families and our lives.”

“We don’t want this America, y’all,” Robinson added. “We want the America we deserve, where dignity, safety and freedom belong not to some of us, but to all of us.”

In Boston, demonstrators brandished signs such as “Hands off our democracy” and “Hands off our Social Security.”

Mayor Michelle Wu said she does not want her children and others’ to live in a world in which threats and intimidation are government tactics and values like diversity and equality are under attack

“I refuse to accept that

they could grow up in a world where immigrants like their grandma and grandpa are automatically presumed to be criminals,” Wu said.

Roger Broom, 66, a retiree from Delaware County, Ohio, was one of hundreds who rallied at the Statehouse in Columbus. He said he used to be a Reagan Republican but has been turned off by Trump.

“He’s tearing this country apart,” Broom said. “It’s just an administration of grievances.”

“They need to keep their hands off of our Social Security,” said Archer Moran of Port St. Lucie, Florida.

“The list of what they need to keep their hands off of is too long,” Moran said “And it’s amazing how soon these protests are happening since he’s taken office.”

The president planned to go golfing again Sunday, according to the White House.

Asked about the protests, the White House said in a statement that “President Trump’s position is clear: he will always protect Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid for eligible beneficiaries. Meanwhile, the Democrats’ stance is giving Social Security, Medicaid, and Medicare benefits to illegal aliens, which will bankrupt these programs and crush American seniors.”

Activists have staged nationwide demonstrations against Trump and Musk multiple times since Trump returned to office. But before Saturday the opposition movement had yet to produce a mass mobilization like the Women’s March in 2017, which brought thousands of women to Washington after Trump’s first inauguration, or the Black Lives Matter demonstrations that erupted in multiple cities after George Floyd’s killing by police in Minneapolis in 2020. In Charlotte, North Carolina protesters said they were supporting a variety of causes, from Social Security and education to immigration and women’s reproductive rights.

Hundreds of people also demonstrated in Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, a few miles from Trump’s golf course in Jupiter, where he spent the morning at the club’s Senior Club Championship. People lined both sides of PGA Drive, encouraging cars to honk and chanting slogans against Trump.

Feds say judge can’t order return of mistakenly deported Md. man

BY MICHAEL KUNZELMAN Associated Press

WASHINGTON A federal judge didn’t have the authority to order the Trump administration to broker the return of a Maryland man who was mistakenly deported from the U.S. to a notorious El Salvador prison, government attorneys argued Saturday as they urged an appeals court to suspend the ruling.

U.S. District Judge Paula Xinis on Friday ordered the administration to “facilitate and effectuate” Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s return to the U.S. by late Monday night. Justice Department lawyers asked the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to immediately pause the judge’s order

“A judicial order that forces the Executive to engage with a foreign power in a certain way let alone compel a certain action by a foreign sovereign, is constitutionally intolerable,” they wrote.

The appeals court asked Abrego Garcia’s lawyers to respond to the government’s filing by Sunday afternoon.

Abrego Garcia, a 29-year-old Salvadoran national, was arrested in Maryland and deported last month despite an immigration judge’s 2019 ruling that shielded him from deportation to El Salvador where he faced likely persecution by local gangs.

His mistaken deportation, described by the White House as an “administrative error,” has outraged many and raised concerns about expelling noncitizens who were granted permission to be in the U.S. Dozens of supporters gathered at the Greenbelt, Maryland, federal courthouse for Friday’s hearing. A cheer erupted in the courtroom when Xinis ruled in favor of Abrego Garcia, whose wife, a U.S.

citizen, was in attendance.

Xinis, who was nominated by President Barack Obama, said there was no legal basis for Abrego Garcia’s detention and no legal justification for his removal to El Salvador, where he has been held in a prison that observers say is rife with human rights abuses.

“Plenty of tweets. Plenty of White House news conferences. But no actual steps taken with the government of El Salvador to make it right,” he told the judge on Friday

Abrego Garcia’s attorney, Simon Sandoval-Moshenberg, said the government has done nothing to get his client back even after admitting its errors.

theadvocate.com/eedition Archives: theadvocate.newsbank.com

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JOSE LUIS MAGANA

Demonstrators hold up signs Saturday during a ‘Hands Off!’ protest against President Donald Trump at the Washington Monument in Washington.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO

Maha Aungmye Bonzan Monastery, commonly known as the Me Nu Brick Monastery, is damaged after last week’s earthquake in Innwa, Tada-U township, Mandalay, Myanmar

Israelitroopsdeploytonew security corridor in Gaza

BY NATALIE MELZER Associated Press

TELAVIV,Israel Israeli troops deployed to anewlyestablished security corridor across southern Gaza, the military announced Saturday,aspressure on the Hamas militant group increased weeks into the renewed war

Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday announcedthe new Morag Corridor and suggestedit would cut off the southern city of Rafah, which Israel had ordered evacuated, from the rest of Gaza.

Amilitary statement said troops with the 36th Division had beendeployed. It was not immediately clear how many,orwhere exactly the new corridor was located. Morag is the name of aJewish settlement that once stood between Rafah and Khan Younis, and Netanyahu had suggested it would run between the cities.

Maps published by Israeli media showed the corridor running the width of the narrow coastal stripfrom east to west.

Netanyahu had said it would be “a second Philadelphi corridor,” referring to the Gaza side of the border with Egypt farther south, which has been under Israeli control since last May

Last month, Israel shattered aceasefire in Gaza with asurprise bombardmentafter trying to pressureHamas to accept proposed new termsfor the truce that had taken hold in January.Hundreds ofPalestinians have beenkilled.

Israel quickly reasserted control over theNetzarim corridorthatcutsoff the northern third of Gaza, including Gaza City,fromthe rest of thestrip. The Philadelphi and Netzarim corridors run from theIsraeli bordertothe Mediterranean Sea

“Weare cutting up the strip, and we areincreasing the pressure step by step, so that they will giveusour hostages,” Netanyahu said Wednesday.His defense minister has saidIsrael would seize largeareas of Gaza and add them to its so-called security zones

Saturday’sannouncement came shortly after aWhite House official confirmed that Netanyahu on Monday would again meet with President DonaldTrump, their second meetingatthe White House since Trump took office in January.The U.S. hasbeen amediator in ceasefire talks, alongwith Egypt and Qatar, but also supportedIsrael’s resumption of fighting.

Followinghis previous meetingwith Netanyahu,

Trump made the surprise proposal that displaced Palestinians in Gaza be permanently resettled outside the territory and he suggested that the United States take “ownership” in redeveloping the area. Palestinians, Arab nations and rightsgroups sharply criticized the idea. Israel has pledged to escalate thefighting with Hamas until themilitant group returns theremaining hostages taken in the Oct. 7, 2023,

attack thatsparked the war, disarmsand leaves the territory

Israel last month again halted all supplies of food, fuel and humanitarian aid to Gaza in another application of pressure on themilitant group and theterritory’s over 2million Palestinians. Rights groups saythe tactic is awar crime. Gaza relies largely on humanitarian aid, and its residents cannot easily leave.

Hamas says it will only release the remaining 59 hostages —24believed to be alive —inexchange for the release of morePalestinian prisoners, alasting ceasefire and an Israeli withdrawal from Gaza. The group has rejected demands that it lay down its armsorleave the territory

BY EDITH M. LEDERER, WAFAA SHURAFA and LEE KEATH Associated Press

UNITED NATIONS— Phone video from one of 15 Palestinian medicskilled by Israeli forces last month appears to contradict Israeli claims that the medics’ vehicles didnot have emergency signals on when troops opened fire on them in southern Gaza.

The footage shows the Red Crescent and Civil Defense teams driving slowly with their emergency vehicles’ lights flashing, logos visible, as they pulled up to help an ambulance that had come under fire earlier.The teams do not appear to be acting unusually or in athreatening manner as three medics emerge and head toward the stricken ambulance.

Their vehicles immediately come under abarrage of gunfire, which goesonfor more than five minutes withbrief pauses. The owner of the phone can be heard praying.

“Forgive me, mother.This is thepath Ichose, mother, to help people,” he cries, his voice weak.

Eight Red Crescent personnel, six Civil Defense workers and aU.N. staffer were killed in the shooting before dawn on March 23 by Israeli troops conducting operations in Telal-Sultan, adistrict of the southern Gaza city of Rafah. Troops then bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, buryingthem in a massgrave. U.N. and rescue workers were only ableto reach the site aweek later to dig out the bodies.

The Palestinian Red Crescent Society’svice president, Marwan Jilani, said the phone with the footage was found in the pocket of one of itsslain staffers. ThePalestinian ambassador to the United Nations distributed the video to the U.N. Security Council. The Associated

Press obtained the video fromaU.N.diplomatoncondition of anonymity because it has notbeen made public.

One paramedic who survived, Munzer Abed,confirmed the veracity of the videotothe AP.Two blockshaped concretestructures visible in the video are also seen in aU.N.video released Sunday showing therecovery of thebodies from the site—a sign they areinthe same location.

Askedabout the video, the Israeli military said Saturday that theincident was “under thorough examination.”

The Israelimilitary earlier said it opened fire on the vehicles becausetheywere “advancing suspiciously” on nearby troopswithoutheadlights or emergencysignals.

Theinitial account of the vehicles not having emer-

gency lightsonwas mistaken, an Israeli military official told journalistsSaturday evening. Theofficial spoke on condition of anonymity in line with regulations.

The head of the Palestinian Red Crescent Society,Younes Al-Khatib, called for an independent investigation.“We don’ttrust any of the army investigations,” he toldabriefing at the U.N. on Friday.

Onemedic,Assaadal-Nassasra, is still missing, theRed Crescent says. Abedsaid he saw al-Nassasrabeing led away blindfoldedbyIsraeli troops. Al-Khatib said the organization hasaskedthe military where it is holding the staffer Al-Khatib said the slain men hadbeen “targeted at close range” and thata forensic autopsy report would be released soon.

AmongGaza’sdead are15 Palestinianmedicskilledlast month by Israeli forces, who then bulldozed over the bodies along with their mangled vehicles, burying them in a mass grave.

The war is the deadliest andmostdestructive fightingever between Israel and Hamas. It has leftmuch of Gaza devastated and most of its residents displaced, often multiple times.

Families of hostages at theirweekly rally again pleaded fora ceasefire deal to bringeveryonehome from Gaza,alive or dead.

“Netanyahu is working hard to ensure our hostages die, rather than working hard to save their lives,” said Efrat Machikawa, niece of hostage Gadi Moses. Associated Press writer FatimaHussein in West Palm Beach, Florida, contributed.

The Oct. 7attack on southern Israel killed about 1,200 people, mostly civilians. Some251 hostages were taken, most of them released in ceasefire agreementsand other deals. More than 50,000 Palestinians have been killed in Gaza during Israel’s offensive according to Gaza’s Health Ministry.Itdoesn’tsay whether theyare civilians or combatants but says the majority have been women andchildren. Israel says it has killed around 20,000 militants, without providing evidence.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOByARIEL SCHALIT

People protest SaturdayinTel Aviv,Israel, demanding the immediate release of hostages held by Hamas in the Gaza Strip.

31995 2025 0

g Years

ThreeDecades,Countless Miles, OneTrusted Name!

SterlingAutomotiveGroup celebrates 30 years of growth,excellenceand customercommitment

By Amanda McElfresh | amcelfresh@theadvocate.com

Group.

“Evenafter decadesofsuccessinthe automotivebusiness, theleadershipteamat Sterling AutomotiveGroup (Sterling) does notrestonits laurels. Thesales andservice staff receiveongoing trainingastotried and true practices alongwithsharing innovative ideasand technicalupdates regarding customer buying trends,customer service andnew vehicles coming to themarket. Many managers anddirectors areoften at Sterling Acadianalocationsbeforesunrise,evaluatingthe business landscapetosee where theremay be additional opportunitiesfor thecompany to grow andprosper andserve ourcommunity,” said ArtLeBlanc,Sterling Dealer Principal.

Strong relationships betweenemployees andcustomersand avisiontoselland service qualitynew andpre-owned vehicles aresome of themainreasons Sterling Automotive Groupiscelebrating its30thanniversary this year.Today,Sterlingincludesninenew vehicledealerships in Opelousas, Lafayette, Jennings andAbbeville,fourPremium Select locationsinLafayette andBroussard,aValue Pre-OwneddealershipinOpelousas,plus aVehicle AccessoriesCenterinLafayette, CollisionCenterinOpelousasand Wholesale Auction Center in Lafayette.

“RobertCookhas been theGeneral Manager andco-ownersincetheearly2000’s,whichhas allowedmetodevelop andgrowour business footprintasI have trust in Robert andour Sterling team to serveour communitywith care andtrust,” said ArtLeBlanc Sterling’s 30th anniversarycoincides with itsState of Louisiana- MotorVehicle Commission recognitionasbeing the2024top new vehiclesales dealership groupinLouisiana forthe second consecutiveyear, an awardit haswon afterfacingcompetition from larger dealership groups locatedincitiesthroughoutthe StateofLouisiana.The companyhas continuedtogrowsteadily andcurrently has thefollowing dealership locations:

•SterlingChryslerDodge Jeep Ram, 5504 I-49 Frontage Road,Opelousas,LA

•SterlingBuick-GMC,5853I-49SouthService Road,Opelousas,LA

•SterlingFord, 5524 I-49 Frontage Road,

Opelousas, LA

•SterlingLincoln,5524I-49FrontageRoad, Opelousas, LA

•GenesisofLafayette,6600JohnstonStreet, Lafayette, LA

•SterlingHyundai,6606JohnstonStreet, Lafayette, LA

•SterlingKia,125SouthcityParkway,Lafayette,LA

•SterlingCDJRSouth,2110VeteransMemorial Drive, Abbeville,LA(soon to move to a newstateoftheartlocationinMaurice,LA)

•SterlingCDJRWest, 414Fredand Ruth Zigler Memorial Drive, Jennings,LA

•SterlingBuick-GMC West,414 Fred and Ruth Zigler Memorial Drive, Jennings,LA

•SterlingPremium Select,2307Kaliste Saloom Road,Lafayette,LA

•Sterling PremiumSelect, 5001 Johnston Street,Lafayette,LA

•SterlingPremiumSelect,6829Ambassador CafferyParkway,Broussard,LA

•SterlingPre-Owned,5478I-49NorthService Road,Opelousas,LA

“I believeour successisina largepart due to ourvalues. We really putfocus on taking care of people,bothour employees andour customers. Theemphasis is consistently on wantingtodoagoodjob foreveryonewe serveinour community,” said Jeff Cook, SalesDirector.

Even after30years,the vision at Sterling remainsthe same –toserve thecommunity withpride,professionalismandacommitment to excellence.Thatisachievedwithvalueslike starting theday with agoodattitude, being open andtransparent,improving skills and habits, treatingcolleaguesand customerslike family,takingresponsibilityand initiative andbeing grateful for theopportunity to help people

“I definitelythinkrepeatbusinesshas been ahugepartofour success. That is duetothe fact that we take care of customersbefore andafter thesaleand we have long-term employees whocareand shareour values That helpsa lot, because youcan’t grow and runabusinesslikethisbyyourself. We’re fortunatetohavegoodand loyalemployees that have done much to getustothe next level,”saidRyanLeBlanc,Assistant General Manager.

TheSterlingteamisproud to have many repeat customers. Many families have been purchasingtheir vehicles at Sterling for generations. Alongwiththat, Sterling has continuedtoexpandits online footprintand hassuccessfullyattracted newcustomers from outsideofthe region andstate “Wedidn’t have theopportunity and technology to trulysellvehiclesoutside of this region 15 or 20 yearsago.Now,it’snot abig deal anymorefor us to sell avehicle to someoneinMichiganorCalifornia. We’ve made it aprioritytostayrelevant, update salesand servicetools andtechnology and be in thespaces whereweneedtobe. At the same time,the fundamentals stay thesame. It boilsdowntobeing honest andtreating people fair andhonest,”saidJeff Cook

TheteamatSterlinghas also successfully navigatedbusinesschanges,aswellas outsidechallenges. Like dealershipsacross thenation, Sterling hasfaced some delays in acquiringparts andinventory alongwith dealingwithand assistingcustomersto acquirevehiclesdue to today’scostofvehicles andhighinterestrates.Aselectronic vehicles becomemoreprevalent,Sterling’s team hasadapted to learningmoreabout EV operationand servicealong with providing fast EV charging stations at allofSterling’s newvehicle dealerships. In addition,many of today’scustomersare more educated than ever before as to vehicleproductsand features andoften come to Sterling dealershipswithspecific wantsorquestions about theirpreferred vehiclewhich we arepleased to accommodate.

“We’ve always beenatransparent and honest dealership,sothe fact that customers have more information aboutvehicle choice is great with us.Weactuallylikeitbecause it makesfor amoreefficientprocess. It also makesusreallybeonour game so that we canassistcustomers to make agooddecision as to theirvehicle needsorwants for themselves,” said Robert Cook.

Sterling Automotive Grouphas awide selectionofnew vehicles made by Chrysler, Dodge, Ram, Jeep,Fiat, Buick, GMC, Ford, Lincoln, Kia, Hyundai, andGenesis.Visit www.saveatsterling.com to finda dealership near you.

Sterling Buick GMC West 414 Fred and Ruth Zigler Memorial Dr,Jennings

Sterling

Caffery, Broussard

Sterling Ford Lincoln 5524

Sterling Hyundai 6606 Johnston St, Lafayette

Sterling Kia 125 Southcity Prky,Lafayette

A road trip to explore

what’s new along the Gulf Coast before the prime travel season plotted out visits in three states over three days.

It surfaced newly minted gems that are raising the bar for Gulf Coast dining And behind those restaurants are stories of next-generation chefs making their mark, changing customer expectations inspirations from around the globe and the far-reaching influence of food-obsessed Louisiana.

“In the summer, half the parking lot here is filled with Louisiana license plates,” said Bill Briand, chef at The Hope Farm and its soon-tobe-open sibling restaurant Little Bird in Fairhope.

“These people know how to eat, and if they’re coming this way we want to feed them.”

Big change in a small town

Raw soft-shell crab, a Korean specialty would be an outlier on any Gulf Coast menu, and that’s also true at Butcher Baker, a small restaurant that opened in Ocean Springs in February

The same dinner brought more familiar fare, like a pork chop from Pearl River Pastures near the state line, falafel made with zipper peas from Florida and bread baked by the chef’s wife The common thread, from the crabs to gins for the house cocktails, is a robust embrace of local sourcing by chef Michael Paoletti.

Paoletti saw an opportunity to bring something new to his hometown by tapping the growing diversity of small, hyperlocal producers proliferating in the region, and to contribute to a growing local restaurant scene.

“If we can do this here, then you can push the culture forward,” Paoletti said.

“Ocean Springs has always been about art, and cuisine is art too. Will it catch on?

That’s a risk you’re always taking when you do new things.”

Much is new around Ocean Springs these days. Long known as an artsy haven across the bay from the casino high-rises of Biloxi, downtown Ocean Springs now has a booming hospitality and nightlife scene between its cottages and lacing oaks.

That’s spreading outside downtown too. At the newly opened ranch-to-table restaurant 4-Bulls on U.S. 90, barbecue plates and burgers are made with meat from the owners’ farm in Grand Bay, Alabama, and there’s an option to pick your own steak from the meat case and have the kitchen grill it to spec. On the water just across Old Fort Bayou, the historic Gulf Hills Hotel & Resort has emerged from a renovation and modernization. Its bar, once called the Pink Pony, was a venue for Elvis Presley early in his career Now it’s back with a retro chic vibe as the Sunset Lounge, where visitors can sip martinis with a view of the sun sinking over marshes just beyond. Back downtown, the local leading light for fine dining is Vestige, which serves a single tasting menu per night, with an approach blending the Ocean Springs roots of Alex Perry with techniques from his wife Kumi Omori’s native Japan. Paoletti took inspiration from Vestige’s example, and today he and Perry share intel on sources and producers.

Stephanie Paoletti, the chef’s spouse, runs the bak-

ery Sweet Enchantments a few doors down from Butcher Baker in the same strip mall. The couple has more on tap, with three different concepts coming to the new food hall Crave, set to open this spring in downtown Ocean Springs — one for charcuterie one for baked goods and a raw bar for local oysters and chilled seafood.

“A decade ago, we wouldn’t have been open more than a month,” Paoletti said. “But things are changing, and if we grow the scene, and give people more, then more things will happen.”

A campus of cuisine

ThenextstopwasFairhope, the small town down the bay from Mobile, and its destination restaurant The Hope Farm.

Downtown Fairhope is a tight grid chockablock with shops and galleries and that appealing mix of modern style and old-school Gulf

Coast roguishness. A day that can start with coffee and a quinoa breakfast bowl at Provision (part cafe, part wine bar part boutique market) can end around the corner and a world away at Bone & Barrel, a dive tavern with a friendly welcome and a guy strumming acoustic cover songs on the back patio.

The Hope Farm sits outside of downtown, across Highway 98, past the conventional range of the golf carts that command the downtown streets.

One minute you’re driving by chains and strip malls, the next you’re in a campus of buildings and patios done in beach house white and weathered wood. In the daytime, pollinators flutter among blossoms in raised beds; in the evening, fireplaces flicker warmly in the patios.

Breakfast and lunch are served in a building called the Barn. In the evening, the

focus shifts to the main dining room, called the Hall, with a more elevated menu blending French, Deep South and Creole influences.

Open-air patios in between are lined with raised farm beds, while a cluster of shipping containers hidden behind a tall fence hold hydroponic farms stacked with racks of produce, with one section devoted just to mushrooms. Briand and his chefs have the pick of the harvest for their menus, as do the bartenders.

Briand joined The Hope Farm last year A New Orleans native, he started at Emeril’s Restaurant and cooked for years at Herbsaint and Cochon. He still maintains close ties to New Orleans, and he’s been recruiting talent from the Crescent City

“It really seems to be growing here. It’s the people coming through from Louisiana, and new folks moving to the area, and a new generation that’s more interested in food and where their food comes from,” Briand said. “I tell my people, if you want to work on the beach and sling food, go do that. We’re doing something different.”

Beyond the beach

Annual Gulf Coast vacations tend to follow familiar patterns. People make the same stops for gas (and maybe jerky). Some stay in the same lodgings and hit the same restaurants by the beach from one trip to the next.

In Pensacola, though, visitors are being lured away from the typical beach fare of steamed seafood, pine-

apple salsa and burgers with a more upscale dinner downtown.

Pearl & Horn toggles between surf and turf (a whole snapper or Colorado lamb chops), with touches of flavor from chef George Lazi’s homeland in the Republic of Georgia.

The restaurant design follows the same dueling land and sea idea. One dining room, the Pearl Room, has a large raw bar and a marbletopped cocktail bar under clusters of pearlescent lights. It connects to the more rustic Horn Room, with plants stretching up between curving, forest green booths.

Pearl & Horn started as a smaller concept in 2021, and its popularity propelled it to today’s much larger location by the end of 2023 In that growth, Lazi reads signs of a changing appreciation for cuisine, fueled by more exposure to new ideas.

“Historically, Pensacola has been a few years behind the trends, but I think we’re seeing a renaissance,” Lazi said. “We see people coming home from different towns and colleges bringing what they’ve seen and learned, it’s changing now.”

Downtown Pensacola is very different from Pensacola Beach. It remains a Valhalla of eclectic dive bars, like the bordello-red Elbow Room, with its carpeted walls, and the Azelea Cocktail Lounge, a bunkerlike den outside with a repository of permanent twilight within.

But the area is also seeing

an upswing for nightlife and dining, especially around historic Palafox Place. Within a few blocks, you can sample wine from self-serve dispensers at Cask and Flask, throw back shots at O’Riley’s Pub or see how fast the mechanical bull will throw you at Wild Greg’s Saloon, where line dancers in cutoffs and cowboy boots fill the floor On Saturda y mornings, the nonetoo-fancy Palafox Farmers Market packs the median (or whatever they call a neutral ground in Florida) with throngs of visitors shopping for everything from produce to Guatemalan pastry and artisan coffee. Pearl & Horn is in a quieter part of town, about a mile away and close to the legendary Joe Patti’s seafood market, always jostling with locals and the tourists stocking up for condo cooking. Lazi’s new restaurant is giving them all a reason to dine out instead. In February, USA Today named Pearl & Horn to its list of 44 recommended

think ‘just OK’ isn’t OK anymore. The food has to have a purpose, a reason, a flavor to take with you.” Email Ian McNulty at imcnulty@theadvocate.com.

STAFF PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

Chicken ballotine is finished with a satsuma jus at The Hope Farm restaurant in Fairhope, Alabama.

STAFF PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

Oysters from local grower Point aux Pins are served on the half shell at The Hope Farm in Fairhope, Alabama.

STAFF PHOTO By IAN McNULTy

The Pearl Room has both a raw bar and cocktail bar at Pearl & Horn restaurant in Pensacola, Florida.

STAFF PHOTO By CHRIS GRANGER

The Barn, part of The Hope Farm restaurant in Fairhope, Alabama, serves breakfast and lunch and hosts events, while the main dining room serves an elevated dinner menu

STAFF PHOTO By IAN McNULTy

The Horn Room is one of two dining areas at Pearl & Horn restaurant in Pensacola, Florida.

Lazi

Smith would have been one of the hundreds of Louisiana farmers who participate every year in federal programs like the Environmental Quality Incentives Program and the Conservation Steward Program, among others.

But a sweeping freeze by President Donald Trump put all current and future contracts on hold as the administration evaluates that programs are “focused on supporting farmers and ranchers, not DEIA programs or far-left climate programs,” said U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins Louisiana farmers were expected to receive around $363 million from fiscal year 2025 to 2031 through EQIP, CSP and other programs, according to data collected by the Policy Design Lab. EQIP and CSP are partly funded through the Farm Bill. Former President Joe Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act added nearly $20 billion in investments to the USDA conservation programs over a five-year period, with many focused on climatefriendly initiatives

The projects farmers can participate in include improving water quality and retention, reducing soil runoff, and improving soil health by installing fencing for livestock. But the main goal is to help improve ef-

ficiency in farming, Michael Deliberto, associate professor in agricultural policy at LSU, said.

‘They rely on programs’

The number of farmers who apply for these programs vastly outweighs the money available. In 2023, Louisiana received $25 million in EQIP funds and $28 million in CSP funds distributed across 825 contracts. But more

than 3,700 farmers applied.

The programs have become an essential part of incentivizing the improvement of Louisiana’s farmland, experts say Farmers, now faced with an uncertain future and increasing costs, will be more likely to push off or forgo those improvements to their land.

Deliberto added that practices are beneficial to beginner underserved and veteran farming operations.

“The producers I talk to, they rely on these programs It really is the epitome of what a partnership is when you think of about the USDA’s role in helping our producers remain productive and really remain in business,” he said

While Smith did not enter a contract for his cover crops, other farmers across the state and nation made improvements to their land with the belief they would

be reimbursed. The federal government reneging on those contracts could erode trust in the USDA and government programs, said John Coppess, a professor at the University of Illinois and author of the Policy Design Lab’s data collection.

“You have a farmer that signed a contract, put his own money into the practice and expects a reimbursement. It really shocked me when they froze that re-

test scores.

“Clearly we’re trending in the wrong direction,” said Kim Hunter Reed, Louisiana’s higher education commissioner “I’m very concerned about it.”

The pandemic’s academic disruptions and major hurricanes appear to have played a role in the downturn, as the number of eligible students has dipped in recent years. But also, as the awards fall short of college costs, the program has become less alluring. More eligible students are turning down TOPS, a trend that preceded COVID-19, according to an analysis by the state Board of Regents, which oversees public higher education.

Some students are passing on college, while others are leaving Louisiana. The highest-achieving Louisiana students can receive scholarships in other states that dwarf TOPS, which no longer covers the cost of instate tuition and fees. Now, state lawmakers want to reverse those trends. Bills that will be introduced when the legislative session starts this month aim to expand program eligibility and participation. One would increase the existing award amounts and create a new award for the highestscoring students that pays $12,000 annually — thousands more than what TOPS recipients currently get.

“We’re trying to get our best and brightest to stay here,” said Rep. Christopher Turner, R-Rustin, who co-authored the bill. “I just want to see us educate and take care of our own.”

A shrinking scholarship

The Taylor Opportunity Program for Students, which began under a different name in 1998, was one of the country’s first state-funded scholarships to

focus only on students’ academic achievement and not their financial need. Today, Louisiana spends nine times the national average on merit-only aid, according to an analysis by the Southern Regional Education Board, a nonprofit research group. TOPS became a hugely popular entitlement for students who score 20 or above on the ACT and earn a 2.5 GPA or higher (TOPS Tech, a separate scholarship that pays for two years of vocational training, has different eligibility rules.) The program grew exponentially: Within five years, its cost doubled to nearly $111 million as 41,000 students received scholarships tied to current tuition rates.

In 2016, faced with a massive budget shortfall, the state Legislature for the first time only partially funded TOPS, covering about 70% of recipients’ tuition bills. To contain future costs, lawmakers also froze the award amounts at that year’s levels.

At the same time, the state has cut back on higher-education funding. To make up the difference, public colleges and universities have raised tuition and fees, which reached an average of about $10,200 at four-year institutions in 2024, according to the Board of Regents. But TOPS amounts, which vary by institution, have been flat for nearly a decade. They range from about $3,200 at most community colleges to about $5,100 at Grambling State University and just under $7,500 at LSU’s Baton Rouge campus. (Higher-scoring students also get annual stipends of up to $800.)

“That gap between the cost to attend (college) and the amount that TOPS pays, there’s a significance difference there,” Sujuan Boutté, executive director of the Louisiana Office of Student Financial Assistance, told lawmakers last year

TOPS acceptance rates have steadily declined since 2018, just after the amounts were capped. By 2023, only 81% of eligible students accepted their awards, a 10year low The acceptance rate for the most selective TOPS award, called Honors, was 73% — 11 percentage points lower than a decade earlier

A study by Boutté’s agency and the Board of Regents found that a growing number of those highest-performing students are leaving Louisiana. In 2021, about 83% of students who turned down Honors awards went to college in other states. Their top three destinations were Southern Mississippi, Alabama and Mississippi universities.

Such schools aggressively recruit Louisiana’s strongest students by offering more money than TOPS, Boutté told lawmakers.

“What they’re saying is, ‘Oh hey we see your award is capped,” she said. “‘We’re going to offer you what equates to a full ride.’”

Meanwhile, students who stay in Louisiana are shouldering the higher cost of college. In 2021, graduates of Louisiana’s public institutions had more debt, on average, than their peers in the South and nationally, according to the Southern Regional Education Board analysis.

“Louisiana faces challenges in college affordability,” said the group’s senior analyst MJ Kim, “with declining state support, increasing student costs and growing reliance on student borrowing.”

Topping up TOPS

Lawmakers want to tackle the affordability crisis by giving more TOPS money to more students In 2023, just 20% of eligible students accepted TOPS Tech. One big reason is that the award can only be used for certain occupational programs, such as computer science, nursing or indus-

trial technology House Bill 161 by Rep. Jason Hughes, D-New Orleans, would let students spend the money on more types of training.

House Bill 70 by Rep. Ken Brass, D-Vacherie, would give students a new way to qualify for TOPS Tech. In addition to either earning at least a 2.5 GPA or scoring 17 or higher on the ACT, they could also take early-college courses during high school to access that award.

House Bill 77 by Turner and Rep. Laurie Schlegel, R-Metairie, would make the biggest changes to TOPS by essentially raising the award amounts

The bill would decouple TOPS from 2016 tuition rates, creating standard amounts across schools. The amounts would vary by TOPS achievement level, giving more money to students with higher grades or

Beginning next academic year, students would get $3,500 for TOPS Tech, $6,000 for Opportunity, $6,500 for Performance and $9,000 for Honors. The bill also would establish a new category Excellence, that provides $12,000 to students who score 31 or higher on the ACT

At most schools, the amounts would be a major increase over what students get now At LSU, which has higher tuition and TOPS rates, students would keep getting the higher amount.

Schlegel said the changes would help Louisiana retain outstanding students who “heavily recruited” by other states “and offered packages they can’t turn down.”

“It puts us a competitive advantage,” she said.

The bill’s cost is still being calculated, but it could

imbursement, essentially breaching the contract,” Coppess said.

He added that it’s unclear how much money is currently owed to Louisiana farmers but said that EQIP alone already obligated north of $1 billion for fiscal year 2024.

On Feb. 20, the USDA announced the release of $20 million in IRA funding for contracts under EQIP, CSP, and the Agricultural Conservation Easement Program. The money, which Rollins said would be released in portions, only represents 0.35% of the NRCS’s $5.7 billion budget.

Smith, who has worked on NRCS conservation projects in the past, said that the recent freeze will not affect him, adding that he will plant cover crops some other time. He also said he feels that this freeze will come to pass and funding will be restored, whether it’s how Biden left it or under a new coat of Trump paint. Still, he believes that the government should honor their current contracts and pay farmers for the work they have done

“If I was expecting them to pay X amount of money, because they said they would, and then all of a sudden someone says, ‘no,’ I would have a problem with it. That’s why we have a contract,” Smith said. Email Stephen Marcantel at stephen.marcantel@ theadvocate.com.

increase TOPS spending by up to $35 million, Turner said Paying for it could be a challenge, as Gov Jeff Landry has proposed a standstill budget for next fiscal year and lawmakers must find $200 million to keep teacher pay flat. Steven Procopio, president of the Public Affairs Research Council of Louisiana, a Baton Rouge-based think tank, said it would be hard to put more money into TOPS without raising taxes or cutting other programs. Yet there are also upsides to giving more generous scholarships, he added “The idea that we’re keeping more high-quality students in state might have a cost,” he said, “but there’s a definite benefit of that as well.”

Email Patrick Wall at patrick.wall@theadvocate. com.

LOUISIANAPOLITICS

Johnson, Scalisewantjudgesbarredthatblock Trump

would alreadybedone.

WASHINGTON —Atarecent town hall in New Orleans, U.S. Rep. Troy Carter was asked why Democrats were doing so little to block the flood of President Donald Trump’sexecutive orders. Carter replied that with Republicans holding majorities in both chambers of Congress and controlling the White House, Democratic lawmakers could do littleexcept talk loudly and go to court

The courts have been the Democrats’ most effective tactic.

Individual federal district judges have temporarilydelayed orders to fire federal workers, ban transgender rights and freeze congressionally approved federalfunding, among other issues. Six emergency applications have reached the U.S. Supreme Court in battles includingthe revocation of birthright citizenship and the use of the Alien Enemies Act to deport immigrants.

Now Republicans are trying legislation to block what are called “nationwideinjunctions”.

The majority GOP House this week is expected to pass the “No Rogue Rulings Act” by Rep. Darrell Issa, R-California. It would essentially forbid single judges from issuing nationwide directives —preliminary injunctions or temporary restraining orders —that postpone implementation of apresident’sexecutive orders. If passed, the bill would go to the Senate for consideration.

House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, said Tuesday: “Under the existing framework, one singular district court judge out of 677 of them, anywhere in America,can subvert the will of the duly elected president carrying out his constitutional duties. We’ve got to step into this.”

Johnson cited aHarvard Law

Troy Carter pushes for milk substitutes

Aposter of federal judges targeted by right-wingHouse Republicans

Reviewstudy to underline his contention that Democrats are targeting Trump. The 2023 analysis found national injunctions were used sixtimes against Republican PresidentGeorge W. Bush,adozen times to stallpolicies of President Barack Obama and in 14 cases for President Joe Biden, both Democrats. Trump faced 64 in his first term and about that many since taking office Jan. 20.

Earlierthis month, Stephen Vladeck,aGeorgetown law professor who writes alegal affairs blog, identified 67 cases in which federal judgesruled on temporary relief in 2025. Not all re-

sulted in anationwide injunction. Fifty-one individual federal trial judges nominated by seven different presidents in 14 districts issued orders delaying implementation of Trump initiatives, he said. Part of the reason for the increased number is that Trump has issued 107 executive orders, themost since President Franklin D. Roosevelt signed 99 during his first 100 days, Vladeck said. Supporters say nationwide injunctions give courtstime to consider legal issues without clogging theirdockets with hundreds of similar cases Opponentsfrom bothpoliti-

cal parties, depending on whose president is in the White House, say theprocedure is politically motivated.

At aSenate Judiciary committee hearing Wednesday,Notre Dame law professorSamuel Bray and panel chairChuck Grassley,anIowaRepublican who has filed abill like Issa’s, agreed that pursuing class-action lawsuitswas preferable to a single judge stalling an executive order Democratic members of the committeeargued such apath would take so long thatany damage by apresidential order eventually found unconstitutional

“The reality is thatthe number of injunctions issued against the first andsecondTrump administrations areevidence of a president who is clearly violating the law,”saidSen.Dick Durbin, D-Illinois.

Both Republicans and Democratshaveturnedtonationwide injunctions to combat orders from the opposing party’spresident.

Forinstance, as aRepublican attorneygeneral,Jeff Landry in 2023 went to U.S. DistrictJudge Terry Doughty,aTrump nominee in Monroe, for apreliminary injunctiontoforbid Bidenadministrationofficials from communicating with social media platforms abouttamping down erroneousCOVID-19 information. The 5thU.S. Circuit Court of Appealsbacked Doughty,but the Supreme Court did not. Trump andsome of his GOP supporters have called for impeaching judges. That has brought the “No Rogue” bill to the forefront.

Johnsonsaid“impeachment is an extraordinary” action. Removal from the bench has been usedsparingly over history and only whenthe judge wasaccused of committing acrime —never for acontrary ruling.

Sen. JohnN.Kennedy,R-Madisonville,toldThe Washington Post last week that he opposes impeachment but is open to the ideaoflimiting nationwide injunctions.

Regardless of howitplays out, the nationwide injunction legislationallows Republicans another way to showtheir support for Trump.

“The abusesthatwe’ve been seeing with some of these districtcourt judgesthatjust feel their role is to try to stop the duly elected president of the United States andDonald Trump because theydisagree with his policies,” House Majority Leader Steve Scalise,R-Jefferson, said Tuesday.

Email Mark Ballardat mballard@theadvocate.com.

BUZZ staff reports

New Orleans Democratic U.S. Rep. Troy Carter again joined with South Carolina Republican Rep. Nancy Mace in an effort to get alternatives to cow’s milk in schoolcafeterias. The legislation, which was filed Wednesday,would change 78-year-old laws that put acarton of milk on every school breakfast and lunch tray Unless milk is included

with each meal, school boards face the likelihood thatreimbursement for the cost of the entire meal will be denied.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture sends local school districts roughly $1 billion each year for milk.

Butalot of those cartons are tossed in the trash unopened.

Carter said many children of African Americans, Latino, Native Americans, Asian Americans and other ethnicities get sick from milk.

“My wife and children are all lactose intolerant, so I knowjust how uncomfortable consumingdairy milk can befor someonewho cannot process it,” Carter said. “Weneed immediate reforms in ourschools to ensure all children have safe and appropriatedietary options.”

U.S. Rep. Troy Carter is moving forward witha bill that would require schools to offer aplant-based drink along with cow’s milk.

“The federal government is wasting $400 million of our tax dollars ayear by mandating that every school kid getting nutrition assistance has acarton of cow’smilk on thetray even

though millions of them don’twant it and get sick from it,” saidMace.

“Thirty percent of kids throw themilk away in thecarton, and hundreds of millions of tax dollars

wasted is not spilled milk. Kids should have ahealthy choice in lunchrooms,” she added.

The Agriculture Department’sNationalSchool LunchProgramallows milk substitutes, but the requirements areburdensome andschoolsaren’t reimbursed.

The bill by Carterand Mace, which is similarto onethatwas filedduring the last Congress, would require schoolstooffer a plant-based drink along with cow’smilk.

Landryonly fooling with newstate pet It’sbeen five months sinceBengaltiger Omar Bradleymadehis debut in TigerStadium forLSU’s game against Alabama afterGov.JeffLandry’s weekslong push to geta

tigerinthe stadium forthe first time since2015. At the time,jokesters on social media poked fun at the “Rent-A-Tiger,”in dozens of posts, but for April Fools’ Day this week, the governor gotinonthe laughs.

“Today,IsignedanExecutive Orderdeclaring Omarthe state petofLouisiana!April Fools!” Landry postedonXonApril 1. The post came with an image of Landry walking on the football field beside aleashedcartoon Omar. Omar, who is now around 2yearsold, came to Louisiana on loan from Floridabasedpurveyorofexotic animalinsurance policies Mitchell Kalmanson, after the LSU veterinary school declinedLandry’srequest thatthe university’slive mascot Mike VII make a gameday appearance.

just aplace to live, it’s aneighborhood

senior living experiences. Our enchanting community invites you to explore life’s exciting opportunitiesand defiesyourexpectations of whatseniorliving should be.Weare dedicated to providing outstanding senior living experiencesfor those seeking thebest in life. At TheVincent, youenjoy an exciting,adventurous,social, and enriching lifestyle. Come by for atourand experience the warmth andsupport of our community foryourself!

Mark Ballard

CAPITOL

Johnson

STAFF PHOTO By MARK BALLARD

in the hall outsidethe office of U.S. Rep. Andy Ogles,R-Tenn. The judges have temporarily stalled executiveorders issued by President DonaldTrump.

Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., joined by Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., the GOP whip, left, talks to reporters Tuesday at the Capitol in Washington.

Senate GOP approves framework for tax breaks, spending cuts

BY LISA MASCARO, LEAH ASKARINAM and KEVIN FREKING Associated Press

WASHINGTON Senate Republicans plugged away overnight and into early Saturday morning to approve their multitrillion-dollar tax breaks and spending cuts framework, hurtling past Democratic opposition toward what President Donald Trump calls the “big, beautiful bill” that’s central to his agenda.

The vote, 51-48, fell along mostly party lines, but with sharp dissent from two prominent Republicans. It could not have come at a more difficult political moment, with the economy churning after Trump’s new tariffs sent stocks plummeting and experts warning of soaring costs for consumers and threats of a potential recession. Republican Sens. Susan Collins, of Maine, and Rand Paul of Kentucky, both voted against the measure.

But with a nod from Trump, GOP leaders held on. Approval paves the way for Republicans in the months ahead to try to power a tax cut bill through both chambers of Congress over the objections of Democrats, just as they did in Trump’s first term with unified party control in Washington.

“Let the voting begin,” Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., said Friday night.

Democrats were intent on making the effort as politically painful as possible, with action on some two dozen amendments to the package that GOP senators will have to defend before next year’s midterm elections.

Among them were proposals to ban tax breaks for the super-wealthy, end Trump’s tariffs, clip his efforts to shrink the federal government, and protect Medicaid, Social Security and other services. One, in response to the Trump national security team’s use of Signal, sought to prohibit military officials from using any commercial messaging application to transmit war plans. They all failed, though a GOP amendment to protect Medicare and Medicaid was accepted.

Democrats accused Republicans of laying the groundwork for cutting key safety net programs to help pay for more than $5 trillion tax cuts they say disproportionately benefit the rich.

“Trump’s policies are a disaster,” said Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer, of New York, as is Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency, he added “Republicans could snuff it out tonight, if they

Trump goes all in on tariffs

President gambles heavy price will pay off for Americans

BY ZEKE MILLER and STEVE PEOPLES Associated Press

WASHINGTON Not even 24 hours after his party lost a key Wisconsin race and underperformed in Florida, President Donald Trump followed the playbook that has defined his political career: He doubled down.

begun even as his party tries to learn from its mistakes in the 2024 presidential election.

wanted.”

The Republicans framed their work as preventing a tax increase for most American families, arguing that unless Congress acts, the individual and estate tax cuts that GOP lawmakers passed in 2017 will expire at the end of this year

The Senate package pulls in other GOP priorities, including $175 billion to bolster Trump’s mass deportation effort, which is running short of cash, and an additional $175 billion for the Pentagon to build up the military from an earlier budget effort.

Wyoming Sen. John Barrasso, the No. 2 ranking Republican, said voters gave his party a mission in November, and the Senate’s budget plan delivers.

“It fulfills our promises to secure the border, to rebuild our economy and to restore peace through strength,” Barrasso said.

The framework now goes to the House, where Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Benton, could bring it up for a vote as soon as next week as he works toward a final product by Memorial Day

The House and Senate need to resolve their differences. The House’s version has $4.5 trillion in tax breaks over 10 years and some $2 trillion in budget cuts and pointed at changes to Medicaid, food stamps and other programs Some House Republicans have panned the Senate’s approach.

Republican senators used their majority to swat back Democratic amendments, often in rambunctious voice votes.

Among the more than two dozen amendments offered were several to protect safety net programs Several Republicans, including Sen. Josh Hawley, of Missouri, joined Democrats in voting to preserve some of those programs, particularly regarding health care. Collins opposed the entire package in a warning against steep Medicaid cuts

Collins said the potential reductions for that health program in the House bill “would be very detrimental to a lot of families and disabled individuals and seniors in my state.”

Paul questioned the math being used by his colleagues that he said would pile on the debt load. “Something’s fishy,” he said.

One Republican, Sen. Bill Cassidy, of Louisiana, expressed his own misgivings about tax breaks adding to the federal deficits and said he has assurances that Trump officials would seek the cuts elsewhere

“This vote isn’t taking place in a vacuum,” he said, a nod to the turmoil over Trump’s tariffs.

SUNDAY NEWS SHOWS

ABC’s“ThisWeek”: Kevin Hassett, director of the White House National Economic Council; Sen Cory Booker

D-N.J.; former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers.

NBC’s “Meet the Press”: Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent; Sens. Adam Schiff, DCalif., and James Lankford, R-Okla.

CNN’s “State of the Union”: Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins; Gov Tim Walz, DMinn.; Reps Nicole Mal-

liotakis, R-N.Y., and Hillary Scholten, D-Mich. CBS’ “Face the Nation”: Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick; Sens. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., and Maria Cantwell, D-Wash.; NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte; Rep. Don Bacon, RNeb.

“Fox News Sunday”: Attorney General Pam Bondi; Sens. Markwayne Mullin, R-Okla and Chris Coons D-Del. The Associated Press

Trump’s move on Wednesday to place stiff new tariffs on imports from nearly all U.S. trading partners marks an all-in bet by the Republican that his once-fringe economic vision will pay off for Americans. It was the realization of his four decades of advocacy for a protectionist foreign policy and the belief that free trade was forcing the United States into decline as its economy shifted from manufacturing to services.

The tariff announcement was the latest and perhaps boldest manifestation of Trump’s second-term freedom to lead with his instincts after feeling his first turn in the Oval Office was restrained by aides who did not share his worldview How it shakes out could be a defining judgment on his presidency

The early reviews have been worrisome.

Financial markets had their worst week since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, foreign trade partners retaliated and economists warned that the import taxes may boost inflation and potentially send the U.S. into a recession. It’s now Republican lawmakers who are fretting about their party’s future while Democrats feel newly buoyant over what they see as Trump’s overreach.

Democratic activists planned to participate in rallies across the country Saturday in what was shaping up as the largest demonstrations since Trump returned to office in January. “The winds are changing,” said Rahna Epting, who leads MoveOn, one of many organizing groups. Trump is unbowed.

He has promised that the taxes on imports will bring about a domestic manufacturing renaissance and help fund an extension of his 2017 tax cuts. He insisted on Thursday as the Dow Jones fell by 1,600 points that things were “going very well” and the economy would “boom,” then spent Friday at the golf course as the index plunged 2,200 more points.

In his first term, Trump’s tariff threats brought world leaders to his door to cut deals This time, his actions so far have led to steep retaliation from China and promises from European allies to push back.

Even some Trump supporters are having their doubts.

Frank Amoroso, a 78-yearold resident of Dewitt, Michigan, said he is concerned about short-term rising interest rates and inflation, although he believes the tariffs will be good for the country in the long run.

Amoroso, a retired automotive engineer who voted for Trump, said he would give the president’s secondterm performance a C-plus or B-minus. “I think he’s doing things too fast,” he said. “But hopefully things will get done in a prudent way, and the economy will survive a little downfall.”

Rep. French Hill, R-Ark., in a telephone town hall with constituents on Thursday night, expressed reservations about the broad nature of the tariffs.

Hill, who represents a district that includes Little Rock, said he does not back tariffs on Canada and Mexico. He said the administration should instead focus on renegotiating a U.S trade agreement with its two neighbors.

“I don’t support acrossthe-board tariffs as a general matter, and so I don’t sup-

port those, and I will be urging changes there because I don’t think they will end up raising a bunch of revenue that’s been asserted,” Hill said. “I wish I thought they did, but personally I don’t think they will. But I do support trade diplomacy.”

Still, much of Trump’s “Make America Great Again” coalition remains publicly supportive.

Doug Deason, a prominent Texas-based Republican donor, said he loves the president’s tariff plan, even if it causes some economic disruption.

“He told us during the election there would be pain for every American to get this ship turned around,” Deason said. “It is hard to watch our portfolios deteriorate so much, but we get

it. We hope he holds course.”

As Trump struggles with the economy, Democrats are beginning to emerge from the cloud of doom that has consumed their party ever since their election drubbing in November They scored a decisive victory in Wisconsin’s highprofile state Supreme Court election on Tuesday, even after Elon Musk and his affiliated groups poured more than $20 million into the contest. New Jersey Sen. Cory Booker then breathed new life into the Democratic resistance by delivering a record 25-hour-long speech on the Senate floor that centered on a call for his party to find its resolve.

Booker told The Associated Press afterward that a significant political shift has

“I think you’re seeing a lot more energy, a lot more determination, a lot more feeling like we’ve got to fight,” Booker said. “You can’t sit back any more. You can’t sit on the sidelines. There’s a larger, growing movement.” Booker a 2020 presidential candidate, acknowledged he is not ruling out a 2028 run, although he said he is focused on his 2026 Senate reelection for now There is broad agreement among Democrats — and even some Republicans, privately at least — that what Trump has unleashed on the global economy could help accelerate the Democratic comeback.

Ezra Levin, co-founder of the progressive resistance group known as Indivisible, has been critical of Democratic officials’ response in recent weeks to Trump’s leadership. But on Friday, he was somewhat giddy about the political consequences for Trump’s GOP after the tariffs announcement.

“Raising prices across the board for your constituents is not popular,” Levin said. “It’s the kind of thing that can lead to a 1932-style total generational wipe out of a party.”

Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas, and Isabella Volmert in Dewitt, Michigan, contributed to this report.

Louisianapoisedfor abright economic future with new projects andsuccessful workforcetraining

By Amanda McElfresh | amcelfresh@theadvocate.com

This articleisbrought to youbythe LouisianaCommunity andTechnical CollegeSystem

Louisianacitizenshave more opportunitiesthan ever before to receiveanaffordableeducation that leadstowell-payingjobsandfinancialstability,thanks to theworkofseveral organizationsacrossthe state. TheLouisiana Communityand TechnicalCollege System (LCTCS)isplaying akey role in creating those opportunities, with short-term degree andtraining programs that allowstudentstoearncertifications in amatterofmonthsorevenweeks.Someofthe most in-demandLCTCS programs areinareas including healthcare,broadband andskilled trades such as electrical work,plumbingand construction

“All over thestate,wehaveseenthe abilityof thesecollegestobenimbleand flexibleand develop acurriculumorinitiatives basedonindustryneeds,” said SusanBourgeois,Secretary of Louisiana Economic Development. “Thatnimblenatureis really critical to thesuccess of ourwork. Thereisa direct line betweenindustry needsand creating the solution relatedtoit.”

BourgeoisjoinedLCTCS System PresidentDr. MontySullivan, LouisianaWorkforce Commission SecretarySusanaSchowen andRichard Nelson Secretaryofthe LouisianaDepartmentofRevenue fora recent discussion aboutthe connectionsbetween LCTCSand workforcedevelopment acrossLouisiana A videoofthe full conversation is availableatwww nola.com andwww.theadvocate.com

Nelson notedthatthe typesofcareers LCTCS prepares students for willcontinuetobeneededwell into thefuture, even with technologicalchanges such as artificial intelligence.

“It’sverydifficult to automate theworkofa plumberoranelectrician.Those skills will always be in demand,” he said.“We have gotten alot of bad policy outofthe wayand made it more competitive

for people to stay here.There is goingtobea lotmore economic activity.”

Last year,LCTCS institutions graduatedmore than 35,000 students,a newrecord. Dr.Sullivan said he is optimistic that number cangroweven more.The system is workingtoeducate people in Louisiana’sworkforce abouttrainingopportunities to improvetheir skills,whether they want to grow in theircurrent careersorpivot to somethingdifferent. Bourgeoissaiditisalsoimportant to start raising awareness amongmiddleand high school students aboutthe opportunitiesthatwillbeavailable for them.Nelsonadded that he hopesstate leaderscan findwaystoaddress potentialbarrierssuchaslack of childcareand tuitionrates to ensure everyone in Louisianawho wantsanLCTCS educationcan receiveone

“Wehaveanopportunity to tackle generational povertyinLouisiana head-on,”Schowen said.“We are in amomentintimewhere we canchangeLouisiana When we put thesepeopleinthese jobs,welower crimerates.Weimproveeducational outcomes We improvehealthoutcomes. We make allofthose things better by this kind of work,and LCTCSis rightatthe core of it.”

LCTCSincludesBaton RougeCommunity College, BossierParishCommunity College, CentralLouisiana TechnicalCommunity College, Delgado Community College, LouisianaDelta CommunityCollege,Fletcher TechnicalCommunity College, Northshore Technical CommunityCollege,Northwest LouisianaTechnical CommunityCollege,Nunez CommunityCollege River Parishes Community College, SouthLouisiana CommunityCollege,andSOWELATechnicalCommunity College. Visitwww.lctcs.edutolearn more aboutan institutionnearyou

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By ALEX BRANDON

President Donald Trump reads The New york Post Saturday as he arrives at Trump National Golf Club in Jupiter, Fla.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By J SCOTT APPLEWHITE

EDUCATION

Mass layoffsrattlingHeadStart leaders

BY MORIAH BALINGIT

AP education writer

WASHINGTON Theproblems for Head Start began days after President Donald Trump took office.

Trump’sadministration announced it would freeze federal grants —the primary funding for the early educationprogram that serves more than half amillion low-income children. Thencame glitches with the funding website that forced nearly two dozen Head Start centers to close temporarily Even after the fundingfreeze was aborted —and the website was restored—those whorun the programs remainedonedge. On Tuesday,the administration gave them another reason to worry: mass layoffs.

Scores of government employees whohelp administer Head Start, which is federally funded but run by schools and nonprofits, have been put on leave. Preschool operators say they have received no communication from the Office of Head Start and don’t know who to turn to if they have questions aboutgrants or need theoffice to sign off on equipment expenditures. They fear the program, which serves some of the nation’s neediest kids and families, could fall victim to the Trump administration’ssweeping cuts.

Head Start was started six decades agoaspartofPresident Lyndon B. Johnson’sWar on Poverty

While the early childhood program has enjoyed bipartisan sup-

port sincethen, some Republicans have emphasized itsshortcomings and criticized efforts to increase funding. AndProject 2025, the policy blueprintcreated by the conservative Heritage Foundation, called for eliminating Head Start altogether

Joel Ryan, head of the WashingtonState Association of Head Start, said he is worried the administration is slowly dismantling theprogram without outright eliminatingit. “It doesn’thaveto be fromanact of Congress,” Ryan said.“Youcan kneecapprograms simply by cuttingsignificant numbers oftheir workforce.”

Preschools need federal staff

Head Start operates in all 50 states, helping families who are homeless or are in poverty.Parentswho otherwise would not be able to afford childcarerelyon it when theyworkorgotoschool.

Supporterssay that underscores the importance of Head Start to the economy and at-risk children alike.

At leastfive of the12regional offices for Head Start were closed Tuesdayaspartoflayoffs at the Department of Health and Human Services, according to the National Head Start Association. While individual preschools’funding re-

mainsunchanged,the association’s statementsaidthe cuts happened without a“clearplanfor how the administrationintends on supporting Head Start.”

Some worryHead Start will become partisan.

“What Idon’t wantHead Start to be is apolitical football,” said Rhett Cecil, executive director of the Indiana HeadStart Association. “Because aRepublicanhousehold, aDemocratichousehold, a libertarianhousehold couldbea Head Start household.”

In mid-March, HealthSecretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whosedepartment oversees Head Start, visited aHead Start in Alexandria, Virginia, praising the program and its staff.

“I had avery inspiring tour,” Kennedy said in avideo on his department’s Instagram account. “They’re getting the kind of education andsocialization that they need.”

Still, advocates worry theGOP’s efforts to slash thefederal budget will ensnare programs like Head Start

Already, the staff layoffs have caused concerns. HeadStartpreschools in Washingtonstate had been awaiting approval toreplace downed fencing around aplayground and to purchase arefrig-

erator for acenter.Ryan said he fears some operators will lose funding because grant applicationswon’tget processed. Panic, then closures

The preschools are deeply reliant on federal money. During the brief hold on federalgrants, no program was impacted moreimmediately.Unable to makepayroll theday of thefreeze, several Head Start centers temporarily closed —cutting off child care forlowincome families, for whom aday without workisoften aday without pay

The news aboutthe funding freeze emerged in January as Head Start leaders fromacross the country were together at the Capital Hilton, afew blocks away from the White House, preparing to meetwithCongressmembers. Gathered in aconference room, many leaders simultaneously realizedtheywere locked outoftheir funds.

“You could almostfeel the wave of panic alloverthe room when Ithink we allrealized at the same time that everyone was locked out of that payment managementsystem,” said Chanda Hillman, executive director of Early Flowers Learning. The group operates 17 Head Start campuses in rural parts of southwestern Michigan. Afew hourslater,Hillman had to makethe call: She would shut down the Early Flowers Learning campuses.

“Thatmeant all of the families were not going to have anywhere to have their kids,” she said.

‘Theycannotgotowork’

Halfway across the country,Cecil of the Indiana Head Start Association learned about the reported freeze from aHead Start director,

WE’RE ASKING EXPERTS ACROSS THESTATEHOW TO TACKLE THEBIGGEST CHALLENGES FACINGLOUISIANA SCHOOLS.

andimmediatelybegan to

fret.

The closure of Head Start centers across the state would leave families in apinch. But he also worried about those who would be furloughed —Head Start is Indiana’s 78th largest employer with nearly 4,000 staff.

Not longafter came another confusing piece of news: Head Start was never supposed to be apart of the funding freeze. So why,Head Start directorswondered, had they been shut out of the funding portal? Asked about the pause, the Department of Health and Human Services respondedwith an automatic message that said it was freezing all communication.

Even after the freeze was aborted and the Head Start portal was supposed to be fixed, many centers discovered they still could not accesstheir funds. Aweek later,at least 45 grant recipients across the country were still locked out, and many were on the verge of closure.InWaukesha, Wisconsin, Head Start programsshut their doors andfurloughedmostoftheir staff. The programs would not reopen until the following week whentheir leaders could access the funds.

Unable to make payroll,two Head Start centers that served rural communitiesinwestern NewYork shut their doors, laying off 84 employees and leaving the families of morethan 200 children without care. They would notreopen untilFeb. 10, when they werefinally ableto draw downfunds. Head Start leaders said members of Congress frombothparties wereintouch during the crisis, working to get them answers. For Hillman, it raised hope that Head Start will continue to enjoy bipartisan support —even if some conservatives oppose it.

Rising rivers, floods hit waterlogged communities

BY BRUCE SCHREINER and OBED LAMY Associated Press

DYERSBURG, Tennessee. Another round of torrential rain and flash flooding came Saturday for parts of the South and Midwest already heavily waterlogged by days of severe storms that also spawned some deadly tornadoes.

Day after day of heavy rains have pounded the central U.S., rapidly swelling waterways and prompting a series of flash flood emergencies in Missouri, Texas and Arkansas. The National Weather Service said 45 river locations in multiple states were expected to reach major flood stage, with extensive flooding of structures, roads, bridges and other critical infrastructure possible.

At least seven people were killed as the tornadoes destroyed entire neighborhoods, with more twisters possible in places this weekend. Flooding killed at least two more in Kentucky — 9-year-old boy swept away Friday on his way to school, and a 74-year-old whose body was found Saturday inside a fully submerged vehicle in Nelson County, authorities said. And interstate commerce is affected — the extreme flooding across a corridor that includes the major cargo hubs in Louisville, Kentucky and Memphis could lead to

Iran’s

shipping and supply chain delays, said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at AccuWeather

The outburst comes at a time when nearly half of NWS forecast offices have 20% vacancy rates after Trump administration job cuts twice that of just a decade ago

Louisville Mayor Craig Greenberg said Saturday that the Ohio River had risen five feet in 24 hours and would continue to swell for days.

“We expect this to be one of the top 10 flooding events in Louisville history,” he said.

Flash flood emergencies continued to be issued Saturday across Arkansas, Mississippi and Tennessee, with more heavy rains and damaging winds in the mix.

Hundreds of Kentucky roads were impassable Friday because of floodwaters, downed trees or mud and rock slides, and the number of closures were likely to increase with more rain Saturday, said Kentucky Gov Andy Beshear.

Downtown Hopkinsville Kentucky, reopened early Saturday after floodwaters from the Little River receded, giving a much needed reprieve, but still more rainfall was on its way Saturday and Sunday, Mayor James R. Knight Jr said.

“We got a little rain but most of it went north of us,” Knight said Saturday

“Thank goodness on that.

Gave us a little break.”

Flash flooding is particularly worrisome in rural Kentucky where water can rush off hillsides into low-lying areas. Less than three years ago, dozens died in flooding in the Appalachian region of eastern Kentucky In north central Kentucky, emergency officials ordered a mandatory evacuation for Falmouth, a town of 2,000 people in a bend of the swelling Licking River, as the rising water summoned fears of damaging floods. The warnings were similar to catastrophic flooding nearly 30 years prior when the riv-

currency falls to record low against dollar

BY NASSER KARIMI

and JON GAMBRELL

Associated Press

TEHRAN, Iran Iran ’s rial

currency traded Saturday at a record low against the U.S. dollar as the country returned to work after a long holiday, costing over 1 million rials for a single greenback as tensions between Tehran and Washington likely will push it even lower The exchange rate had plunged to over 1 million rials during the Persian New Year, Nowruz, as currency shops closed and only informal trading took place on the streets, creating additional pressure on the market. But as traders resumed work Saturday, the rate fell even further to 1,043,000 to the dollar, signaling the new low appeared here to stay On Ferdowsi Street in Iran’s capital, Tehran, the heart of the country’s money exchanges, some traders even switched off their electronic signs showing the going rate as uncertainty loomed over how much further the rial could drop.

“We turn it off since we are not sure about the successive changes of the rate,” said Reza Sharifi, who works at one exchange.

Iran’s economy has been severely affected by international sanctions, particularly after U.S. President Donald Trump unilaterally withdrew America from Tehran’s nuclear deal with world powers in 2018. At the time of the 2015 deal, which saw Iran drastically limit its enrichment and stockpiling of uranium in exchange for lifting of international sanctions, the rial traded at 32,000 to the dollar

After Trump returned to the White House for his second term in January, he restarted his so-called “maximum pressure” campaign

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By VAHID SALEMI

A currency exchange bureau worker counts U.S dollars Saturday at Ferdowsi square, Tehran’s go-to venue for foreign currency exchange, in downtown Tehran, Iran.

targeting Tehran with sanctions. He again went after firms trading Iranian crude oil, including those selling at a discount in China Trump meanwhile has written to Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, trying to jumpstart direct talks between Tehran and Washington So far Iran has maintained it is willing for indirect talks, but such discussions under the Biden administration failed to make headway Meanwhile, Trump is continuing an intense airstrike campaign targeting the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen, the last force in Tehran’s self-described “Axis of Resistance” able to attack Israel after other militant groups were mauled by Israel during its war on Hamas in the Gaza Strip Mehdi Darabi, a market analyst, said he believed that foreign pressures in recent months caused “expectations for the possibility of a decrease in oil sales and more inflation, and it caused a higher rate for hard currencies,” according to Tehran’s Donay-e-Eqtesad economic newspaper A pensioner who gave only

his first name, Saeed, for fear of reprisals, said if Iran stopped its hostile policy toward the outside, financial relief could be possible.

“If we want to live a comfortable life, we should maintain good ties with our neighbors,” he said. “We shouldn’t bare our teeth at them. They will do the same.”

Economic upheavals have evaporated the public’s savings, pushing average Iranians into holding onto hard currencies, gold, cars and other tangible wealth. Others pursue cryptocurrencies or fall into get-rich-quick schemes.

Meanwhile, internal political pressure remains inflamed still over the mandatory hijab, or headscarf, with women still ignoring the law on the streets of Tehran. Rumors also persist over the government potentially increasing the cost of subsidized gasoline in the country, which has sparked nationwide protests in the past.

Iran’s theocracy has responded by dialing broadly back hijab enforcement and easing restrictions on at least one political figure.

Mexico confirms 1st case of bird flu

By The Associated Press

damage in 22 counties from tornadoes, wind, hail and flash flooding.

Tennessee Gov Bill Lee said entire neighborhoods in the town of Selmer were “completely wiped out” by a tornado with winds estimated by the NWS of up to 160 mph.

On Saturday, dozens of people in Dyersburg, Tennessee, arrived at a storm shelter near a public school in the rain with blankets, pillows and folding chairs. George Manns, 77, said he was in his apartment when he heard the tornado warning and decided to head to the shelter Just days earlier, the city was hit by a tornado and caused millions of dollars in damage.

er reached a record 50 feet high, resulting in five deaths and 1,000 homes destroyed.

Over in Arkansas, weather officials pleaded with the public to avoid all travel unless absolutely necessary due to the widespread flooding.

On Saturday BNSF confirmed that a railroad bridge in Mammoth Spring was washed out by floodwaters that caused the derailment of several cars. No injuries were reported, but BNSF had no immediate estimate when the bridge would reopen.

Since Wednesday, more than a foot of rain has now fallen in parts of Kentucky,

and more than 8 inches has fallen in parts of Arkansas and Missouri, forecasters said Saturday Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong wind shear and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf.

At least two reports of observed tornadoes were noted Friday evening in Missouri and Arkansas, according to the NWS. One, near Blytheville, Arkansas, lofted debris at least 25,000 feet high, according to weather service meteorologist Chelly Amin. The state’s emergency management office reported

“I grabbed all my stuff and came here,” Mann said, who brought a folding chair and two bags of toiletries, laptops, iPads and his medications “I don’t leave them in my apartment in case my apartment is destroyed. I have to make sure I have them with me.” Schreiner reported from Shelbyville, Kentucky Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Jonathan Mattise and Kimberlee Kruesi in Nashville, Tennessee; Adrian Sainz in Memphis, Tennessee; Jeff Martin in Marietta, Georgia; John Raby in Charleston, West Virginia; and Hallie Golden in Seattle contributed.

N.Y. public schools say they won’t comply with DEI order

BY DAVE COLLINS Associated Press

New York state officials have told the Trump administration that they will not comply with its demands to end diversity, equity and inclusion practices in public schools, despite the administration’s threats to terminate federal education funding.

Daniel Morton-Bentley, counsel and deputy commissioner of the state Department of Education, said in a letter dated Friday to the federal Education Department that state officials do not believe the federal agency has the authority to make such demands.

“We understand that the current administration seeks to censor anything it deems ‘diversity, equity & inclusion,’” he wrote. “But there are no federal or State laws prohibiting the principles of DEI.”

Morton-Bentley also wrote state officials were “unaware” of any authority the federal Department of Education has to demand that states agree with its interpretation of court decisions or to terminate funding without a formal administrative process.

The U.S. Department of Education did not immediately respond to emailed

requests for comment.

The Trump administration on Thursday ordered K-12 schools nationwide to certify within 10 days that they are following federal civil rights laws and ending any discriminatory DEI practices, as a condition for receiving federal money. Federal funding comprises about 6% of the total funding for New York K-12 schools.

“Federal financial assistance is a privilege, not a right,” Craig Trainor, acting assistant secretary for civil rights, said in a statement when the demand was made. He said many schools have flouted their legal obligations, “including by using DEI programs to discriminate against one group of Americans to favor another.”

The certification demand asked state and school leaders to sign a “reminder of legal obligations” acknowledging their federal money is conditioned on compliance with federal civil rights laws. It also demands compliance with several pages of legal analysis written by the administration.

The demand specifically threatens Title I funding, which sends billions of dollars a year to America’s schools and targets low-income areas.

Morton-Bentley wrote that the state Education Depart-

ment has already certified to the federal government on multiple occasions that it is complying with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, most recently in January He said the federal department is basing its demands to end DEI programs on a faulty legal interpretation.

“Given the fact that you are already in possession of guarantees by NYSED that it has and will comply with Title VI, no further certification will be forthcoming,” he wrote. He also said the administration’s stance is an “abrupt shift” from the one taken by the first Trump administration, citing comments in 2020 made by then-U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos that diversity and inclusion were “cornerstones of high organizational performance.” He wrote the administration has provided no explanation of why it changed positions. Critics of the certification demand said it conflicted with Trump’s promise to return education to schools and states.

The threat of financial sanctions is similar to ones the Trump administration has been leveraging against colleges in its effort to crack down on protests against Israel that it deems antisemitic.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By JON CHERRy

Carole Smith walks through her flooded home on Saturday in Frankfort, Ky

THE GULF SOUTH

‘Influx’ of newcomersflockingtoPassChristian

‘There’s construction goingoneverywhere’

BY MARTHA SANCHEZ Sun Herald

Often when Glynn Illich’sphone rings, it’sanother call from Louisiana. He keepshearingfamiliar laments about weariness with city life. Andeveryone is asking aquestion: What about moving to the Mississippi Coast?

“It’sbeautiful,” said Illich, alocaldeveloper,standingonthe back porch of agleaming new Pass Christian property

“Look at this. It’s$400,000. Any other placeinthe country, this is $800,000. And it’squiet as achurch mouse out here.”

Growth is surging in thecity’s sprawling Timber Ridge subdivision, where Illich has built homes since Hurricane Katrina

The neighborhood also reflects how the coast is changing. The population here is rising faster than most parts of the state,and U.S. Census data shows Harrison County grew by about 5,000 people in the last four years.Newcomers are moving in from Louisiana and across the country

“It’sadifferent way of life,” said Steve Scherrer,from Chicago, who just bought ahouse in Timber Ridge.

Now he sees out-of-state license plates all the time. Plushnew subdivisions are emerging off old county roads. Billboards for customnew properties are advertisingbeside Interstate 10. Builders areracing to develop new businesses andenlargeroads to fit the area’sgrowing numbers.

Timber Ridgegrowing

Developers say the migration is energizing the local economy.And Mississippi is about to eliminate its incometax. That could draw even more wealthy buyers eager to live in one of the last affordable beach communities in thecountry In Timber Ridge, new homes are still rising from lotsofred dirt.

Thereare about1,100 properties so far,and some spots are still open in theback of thesubdivision. But spaceon the million-dollarwaterfront is runningout.

“There’sconstruction going on everywhere,” saidMeresa Morgan, president of the property owners association. She was born in Wiggins and returned from Houston five years ago, when the pandemic closed offices and suddenly she could work remotely. Now she is retired

Thebiggestchange in the neighborhood since shegot there? “Just the influx,” she said, wheeling her polished Suburban through streets where purple and gold flags dominate the few flyingfor Ole Miss, and Jet Skis park beside golf carts in driveways.

She turns down another block of tall homes andwood beams that will soon hold more properties. “This is anew build,”Morgan said. She points to more. “This is a remodel. And somebody’sgetting ready to build on that lot.”

Real estate agents say thenew builds will keepselling

“We’re getting allofthese bigname companiesthat are about to be building and come here,” said Summer Newman, president of

Almost twodecades since Hurricane Katrina,the people who once vacationed here are returningtoretire. Newbuilds rise more than adozen feet off the ground. Population since the pandemic has dropped in NewOrleans and risen in all three of Mississippi’scoastal counties. Morgan saidroughly 60%ofpeopleinTimberRidge are now full-time residents.

SignsofLouisiana nativesmovinginare especially clear in Bay St. Louis and Pass Christian because they are just ashort drive away But New Orleanians arealso scrolling real estate websites for properties in Ocean Springs. More subdivisions are rising north of Interstate 10 where insurance costs are lower.People are coming from Oklahoma, Tennessee and Texas. Some are still learning to sayold French words with the right Southerndrawl and correctly pronounce Biloxi.

“Ifyou are lucky enough to be able to work from home, and decide where it is youwant to live, whywould youwanttolive in a big city?” said Stephen Dinjar,who grew up in NewOrleans, moved around the country and bought a houseinTimberRidge two years ago with his wife,Sheila.

“Why wouldn’tyou go to apretty little town like Pass Christian?” he wondered.“Isee moreand more people making the choice.”

Dizzying growth

theGulfCoast AssociationofRealtors. “It’s going tobring jobs. It’s going to bring people. We’regoing to need morehouses.”

Louisianaresidents moving

Theappeal is notentirely new.

Families from Louisiana have long bought second homes on the coast for weekendgetaways, and building started in Timber Ridge by the 1970s. Butthe difference now is stark.

Still, so muchgrowth can be dizzying. The issue is dominating several local elections, and many candidates are vowing to preserve beloved neighborhoodsfromdevelopers. An influx of wealthy out-of-staters who sometimes buy homes in cashhas also raised prices.

Morgansaid some longtime Timber Ridge residents “are not as fond of all the growth.” Others jokethey wish leisure magazines that praisethe coast as an undiscoveredparadisewould just keep quiet

Butthe wordisout already

Scherrer discovered the local charm afew years back while exploring the Gulf Coast on his 48foot boat. He worried about safety in Chicago and was tired of Illinois taxes.

“Welikedthe people,” he said. “Weliked the area. We thought, ‘OK,let’sbuy ahouse down here andwe’ll move.’ So that’s what we did.”

Real estate agentsand developers say demand has calmed slightly this year because of insurance costs and interest rates.

The coast’sgrowth is steady but not as explosive as someparts of Florida and Texas. It could still take years for TimberRidge and other subdivisions to fill all the way.

But people keep coming.

Jerry andJoyce Pendleton also arrived twoyears agofrom OklahomaCity, Oklahoma. Theycame from aranch house and had never lived on pilings. But on vacation, once they veered off the interstate when they saw the sign forbeaches, and they were hooked.

“Wewanted to go back to asmall town,” Joyce Pendleton said. “People thought we were kind of crazy.”

Nowthey wave at neighbors passing on golf carts and have even attended some board of aldermen’smeetings. Jerry Pendleton is starting to golf and wears a red Cruisin’ the Coast T-shirt. He explains it simply: “We’re really just beach people.”

Illichisstill buildingabout 20 propertiesayear andtargeting Facebook advertising to Louisiana residents. He estimates he has built somewhere between 300 and 350 houses over the years. Most have been bought by outof-state retirees andempty-nesters. He locked up another spotless new homeone recent morning and looked downthe street. Three lots were empty except forsome trees near the property line.

But soon more homes will rise there. People keep calling.

“I’llhave this wholearea built,” he said. “I’m working on the plans right now.”

Stephen Dinjar,who grew up in NewOrleans, and wife, Sheila purchased ahomeinTimber Ridge when theymovedfrom Dallas two years ago.

PROVIDED PHOTOSByHANNAH RUHOFF

Colorful homes line astreet in the growing Timber Ridge subdivision in Pass Christian, Miss.

200 protest Trump policies, cuts

Issues range from Social Security to LGBTQ+ rights

BY CLAIRE TAYLOR Staff writer

At least 200 people gathered in downtown Lafayette on Saturday, joining tens of thousands across the country protesting President Donald Trump and his policies during rallies, protests and marches.

Most at the Lafayette protest were from the parish. They included young children, high schoolers, young adults and the elderly using walkers or in wheelchairs, breathing with the help of oxygen.

They protested Trump’s policies and Elon Musks’ DOGE cuts, including Immigration and Customs Enforcement grabbing immigrants off the streets; thousands of layoffs of federal employees; and possible cuts to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid

Many waved flags and carried placards stating

things like “Cajuns are Migrants”; “No Human is Illegal”; “Hands Off Our Neighbors, No More ICE Raids”; “Hands Off Gaza”; “Hands Off Civil Servants” and “Save Cancer Research.”

Lafayette, like much of Louisiana, leans heavily Republican.

During the 2024 presidential election, Louisiana voters supported Trump 60% to Kamala Harris’ 38%. Lafayette Parish voters followed suit, with Trump winning 65% of the vote and Harris 33%.

Addressing the crowd Saturday, U.S Marine veteran Kris Broussard, of Lafayette, said he swore an oath to the Constitution that says, “All men shall be free. All men and women shall be equal.”

“So hands off veterans rights. Hands off women’s rights. Hands off Black rights. Hands off queer and

trans rights,” Broussard said. “We are the Constitution We are the force that makes this country roll.”

The eroding of LGBTQ+

State pauses work on coastal project

New strategy may replace Mid-Barataria diversion

BY MIKE SMITH Staff writer

Gov Jeff Landry’s administration has ordered a 90-day pause on work on Louisiana’s biggest-ever coastal project, the controversial Mid-Barataria Sediment Diversion, arguing the state cannot afford the more than $3 billion plan and stressing that it must be smaller in scale.

The decision, confirmed by the state’s coastal officials, took effect Friday It halts nearly all work related to the project, which has been planned and studied for years and broke ground in August 2023 on the west bank of Plaquemines Parish near Ironton. Funds related to the 2010 BP oil spill are intended to pay for it, but state coastal officials say rising costs mean Louisiana will be on the hook for hundreds of millions of dollars, if not more. While not officially killing the project, the pause moves what many once considered the linchpin of the state’s coastal restoration plans further out of reach. Only initial work had been allowed to continue in recent months at the site as the state negotiated with Plaquemines Parish over its future.

State coastal officials say they are now developing ideas for a smaller diversion and want to move forward with construction of a large-scale land bridge in Barataria Basin using dredged sediment to build it.

Prominent coastal advocacy groups expressed dismay over the move and urged the state to reconsider. They note that marsh-building projects using dredged sediment eventually erode just like the rest of the coast, whereas the Mid-Barataria project mimics the way south Louisiana was built in the first place.

But state officials say a decision had to be made.

“This thing is just costing us a fortune right now, so we have to quickly suspend it for 90 days, and that way we at least stop the bleeding,” said Gordon Dove, chairman of the board overseeing the state’s Coastal Protection and Restoration Authority

Tony Alford, who chairs the governor’s advisory commission on coastal affairs, offered similar comments. The CPRA issued a statement saying a small amount of work would continue, including relocation of a pipeline in the area and site maintenance.

Dove said he hopes to announce a new strategy to move forward with in a month or two, but stressed that the state intends to push ahead with planning for other projects in the meantime, including the land bridge that would stretch more than 20 miles. Coastal advocates say the Mid-Barataria diversion was meant to nourish that land bridge with sediment, but Dove maintains there are other options.

A smaller diversion would cause far less harm to commercial shrimping and oyster growing in the area, one of the main criticisms of the Mid-Barataria

ä See DIVERSION, page 2B

rights brought Ezra Torres, of Lafayette, to the event He told the crowd about a proposed law in Texas that would make it a felony to

represent yourself as a gender you were not born with.

“You don’t want me in the women’s restroom as a trans man,” he said.

Jana Young, of Lafayette, grew up in a conservative Christian family She said she is frustrated with the current administration and the billionaires who are ruining it, slashing and burning cancer research and Social Security

“I feel like I can’t stay silent anymore,” Young said. “What’s happening now is not Christian.”

Two-time cancer survivor Jan Skinner, of Lafayette, protested to save funding for cancer research. A breakthrough by a Houston researcher whose work was funded by the National Institutes of Health saved her life. Now, NIH funding is being cut.

It’s time, Skinner said, for people “to wake up and understand if we don’t demand action, democracy can die on our watch.” Kathy Reed, of Lafayette, protested because she sees the nation sliding into totalitarianism and autocracy

“It’s time for the GOP to do something,” Reed said. Al Trazi, of Rhode Island,

FOOD AND FRIENDS

ABOVE: Dancers enjoy the music of the Dustin Sonnier Band during the Scott Boudin Festival on Saturday

Sheila Smith refills the trays with Pepper Jack Rollups for hungry customers in the Billy’s

STAFF PHOTOS By ROBIN MAy

RIGHT:

Boudin tent.

STAFF PHOTO By BRAD KEMP

Residents march during the Hands Off protest of President Donald Trump and his policies at the intersection of Jefferson and Lee streets on Saturday in Lafayette.

Loyola hasplans forhotel on former Dominicancampus

Proposal for historic buildings still in early stages

BY STEPHANIE RIEGEL Staff writer

For roughly acentury,an order of Dominican nuns from Ireland educated girls and young women inside an Italianate building with colonnaded galleries and adistinctive cupola steps from St. CharlesAvenue.

Loyola University took over the building and surrounding campus in the 1980s, and while some buildings on the property were used to house Loyola’s lawschool,othersended up sitting vacant. Now,the school is planning to turn the iconic building and two other historic propertieson the campus into aboutique hotel with aconference center,restaurant and bar

The proposal, stillin its early stages, includes ahotel with up to 100 guest rooms spread over 57,000 square feet in the 7200-7300 blocks of St. Charles. The iconic Dominican college building, called Greenville Hall, would house aconference center and hotel rooms on its second floor Twohistoric mansions in the 7300 block of St. Charles would have additional rooms and be connectedbya new building, where most of the hotel would be located.

The goal of the project is to find anew use for the buildings that will serve the university,benefit the community and generate revenue for Loyola, developer BillHoffman,of Woodward Interests, told about 50 neighborhood residents Wednesday night at ameeting to unveil the project.

Loyola selected Hoffman and his partner,Paul Flower, several years ago to come up with aconceptualplanfor the unused structures on the Broadway campus.

Some neighborsare concerned about parking, drainage and the live oaks that shade the campus. They’re also worried about what the new building, which could be up to six stories, will do to the character of their neighborhood.

“Loyola wants to build something that is taller than anything else on St. Charles,” said Vivienne Hayne. “This is aunique neighborhood. What discussion is there aboutrespect for the historical charac-

ter?”

Hoffman saidhis team recognizesthat, “whatever we do has to fit in with the neighborhood.”

Rich history

Loyola’s4.2-acre Broadway campus is located five blocks up St. Charles from theuniversity’s main campus. It encompassestwo square blocks bounded by St. Charles, Broadway, Dominican and Lowerline streets. Pine Street runs throughthe middleofit.

Greenville Hall, the oldest building on the campus, datestothe 1860sand was built by the Dominican nuns as St. Mary’sAcademyfor Girls. In 1910, the school became St. Mary’s Dominican Collegeand gradually expanded over the next 75 years to include adorm and additional educational buildings.

When the college closed in 1984, Loyola bought the property and moved its law school and lawlibrary to two of the newer buildings on thecampus.Itusedthe dorm for graduate student housing.

Butsomeofthe older structures on the campus have beenunderutilized or even vacant sincecoming into the university’spossession. In 2019, former Loyola President TaniaTetlow’sadministrationasked developers to submitplans forthe properties.

Woodward was selected, but the development process was delayed because of thecoronavirus pandemic and has been slow to restart. In the meantime, Tetlow left to become president of Fordham University.Her successor,Xavier Cole, declined todiscuss the university’s broader visionfor commercializingthe Broadway campus. In aprepared statement, theuniversitysaid, “There are no preliminarydetails about scope, logisticsor operations.Ifany further plans are actualized, Loyola will sharethose planswith the community.”

Thestatement added: “The developerhas committedto adhering to Loyola’sstrategicgoals andpriorities.”

Full of questions

Whatwas presented on Wednesdaywas conceptual only,the developers’ attorney,MikeSherman, told neighbors. Woodward hasn’t finalized architectural plans or filed for any permitswith the city.The developers don’thaverenderings or a price tagthey’rewilling to share.

But citylaw requiresthat universitiesupdate their Institutional Master Plan everyfew yearsand notify neighbors of any changes SinceLoyola’supdated master plan includes the proposal for the new hotel, the development team let neighbors in on what they’ve come up with so far

As envisioned, the proposalcalls forrenovating Greenville Hallat7214 St Charlesintoaground-floor conferencecenter with about 20 rooms on the second floor

The bulk of the hotel would be across Pine Street in astructure that would include the newly constructed building and the twohistoric houses. Oneofthose houses, agrand stone mansionwith aport cochere known as Veritas Hall, would have about 10 rooms and serve as theentrance of the hotel.

The other house,called Sacred Heart, would have three guest rooms and afitness center

The newly constructed building would house arestaurantand maybe as many as 60 or 70 guestrooms. Sherman likenedthe project to theHotel St.Vincent in theLower Garden District or HotelPeter andPaulin theMarigny Neighbors came ready with questions and concerns that centered primarily on parkinginthe neighborhood,already tight because the campus doesn’t have enough off-street parking for its law students, and how constructing anew building would impact drainage.

They also voiced concerns about the new building, whichwould frontLowerline Street and, someargued, tower over the 19th-century single-familyhouses on the block.

“I think neighbors understand wanting touse thehistoric buildings and put them back intocommerce,” said Donna Miceli, who attended the meeting. “The angst is aboutthis newconstruction.”

With respecttoparking, Hoffman said the hotel will have valetservice butacknowledged that won’tsolve the existing problem with lawstudentsparking in the neighborhood.

“This hotel is not going to makethat problem anybetter,but it won’t exacerbate it,”Hoffman said. He also assured them that thelive oaks on the property would not be touched.

Email StephanieRiegel at stephanie.riegel@ theadvocate.com.

and Lee streets on Saturday in Lafayette.

PROTEST

Continued from page1B

DIVERSION

Continuedfrom page1B

project.Underthe previous plan, shrimpers and oyster growers in the diversion area would have to move farther out or findanother line of work

Nearly $380 million had been setaside to help those affected by the project, including commercial fishers and buyouts for homeowners.

Dove says the $380 million will not be nearly enough compensation and is worried aboutthe prospects of lawsuits.Contractors could,however,also sue over thelost work if theproject is canceled, anditisunclear whether theroughly $500 million already spentcan be recouped.

The diversion project wouldfunnelupto75,000 cubicfeet persecondof waterand sediment from the Mississippi River into theBarataria Basin to rebuild lost wetlands.It was projected to build 21 square miles of land over 50 years and was issued apermit for construction by the U.S. ArmyCorps of Engineers afteranexhaustiveenvironmental study Coastal advocates say it matches the scaleofLouisiana’sland-loss crisis, with the state having lost some 2,000 square miles over the last century.Sea level rise is projected to worsen the probleminthe decades ahead.

“Efforts to delay this project are dangerously misguided, squandering valuable timeand jeopardizing hundredsofmillions already invested in ourcoast, allwhile disregarding the robustscience underpinning ourcoastal masterplan,”said Simone Maloz, campaign director of theRestore the Mississippi River Delta coalition, referring to the state’s 50year blueprint for salvaging as muchofthe coastas possible

“In aplace losing land faster than almost anywhere else on theplanet, we have no time to lose putting our communities andculture at further risk.Thereissimply no alternative that provides agreater chance of survival for the people, wildlife and economy of Louisiana.”

Kim Reyher,executive director of the Coalition to Restore Coastal Louisiana, said the organization was“disappointed by this development,but the river can still do what it’salways done: build and sustain land and life in our wetlands.”

“Wecall on our leaders to focusonacting with urgency and using Deepwater Horizonsettlement funds for projects vetted through our master plan,” shesaid.

‘It’sfallingapart’

Alford said adiversion around athirdofthe size of Mid-Barataria, or possibly less, was among the optionsbeing studied He andDovesaid that while they respect the positions of those favoringthe diversion,they simply cannot seeaway forward.

They also arguedthat marsh-building with dredgedsedimentcould build land faster without harming commercial fishing. They said they are not abandoning the state’s master plan, pointing out the land bridge is included in it.

Landry made similar commentswhen he spoke before alegislative committee in November, saying theproject would “break our culture.”

Beyond those concerns, Alford argued that“you just can’tafford it.”

“You look at the coast and how much of the land is falling apartaswego forward, and it’s falling apartalot faster than replenishing or getting thatkind of result in 50 years,” he said of Mid-

Barataria’sprojected land-building.

Some$2.92 billion in BP funding has been approved for the project, but Landryhas said the cost has now risen to at least $3.1 billion.

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, akey member of the trustees group overseeing the BP funds, says the contract includes amaximum guaranteed price and that contingency funding is in place for costincreases.But NOAA notes that cost increases because of delays caused by the state are not covered under the maximumguaranteed price.

Landry shifted the state’sposition on the projectafter taking office in 2024. He abandonedthe state’sprevious legal position that it did not need apermit from Plaquemines Parish, which firmlyopposes the project and has filed suit to stopit. An agreement with the parish had allowed limited work to move forward.Workdoneincludes siteclearing, utility relocations,drainage improvements and accessdredging. The 90-day pause will now see equipment moved offthe site, which Dovesays will save money Using the BP fundsfor adifferent project would likely trigger the need for approvals and scientific analysis that may take several years.

STAFF FILE PHOTOBySOPHIA GERMER

Awide dirtpath is made as the Mid-BaratariaSediment Diversion projectbegins construction near Myrtle Grove on Aug. 28.

STAFF PHOTO By BRADKEMP

Trump

his policies at the intersection of Jefferson

Hills,Clothilde Sonnier

AMass of Christian Burial willbeheld on Tuesday, April 08, 2025,at 10:00amatSts. Peter& Paul Catholic Church in Scott for Clothilde Sonnier Hills, age 100, who peacefully passed away on March 27, 2025, at her residence in Scott, with her loving familymembers at her side. The familyrequests that visitation be observed on Monday, April 7, 2025 from 10:00 AM until 8:00 PM and will continue on Tuesday, April 08, 2025 from 8:00 AM until time of services. A Rosary will be recited on Monday, April 07, 2025 at 7:00 PM in Martin & Castille's in SCOTT Location.

Obituaries "Doc" Sonnier, Iris Sonnier Boudreaux, Bertha Sonnier, ClaudeSonnier,Eva Sonnier,Ulysses Sonnier, Johnny Sonnier,Mathilde SonnierBroussard,and Louise Sonnier. Her journey beganin Ossun, Louisiana,where the SonnierFamilyoffourteen began. Asimplecommunity where she learned the value of hard workand dedication. Having memoriesofthe Great Flood of 1927,aswellasthe Great Depression of 1929,shaped her character and influenced the course of her life. Growing up with all those siblings led to many DIY games,such as golf, a hole in the groundwhere, with astick, you hita crushedtin can-or how about usingcicada shells to recreatewedding and funeral processions. It was during these times that averyclose-knitfamilywas compelledtosupport and care forone anotheraswellasother members of thatsmall community.

part-time at Saul Sonnier s Real Estate and Insurance Company. Her volunteerworkand hobbies included sewing and sewing club which served thelocal catholic church in Broussard Louisiana, forseveral years. She managed the office at Camp Maryhill in Pineville,Louisiana, and helpedorganize and attendedseveral St.Lo AssociationReunions/ Rafflesthathonored the anniversary of thesinking of the U.S.S. St.Loon October25th, 1944, when her brother, Ulysses, lost his life.The association continues to this dayto honorthe shipmates that lost theirlives and also the survivors.

Intermentwill be held in Sts. Peter &Paul Cemetery. Survivorsinclude her daughter,Patricia"Pat" Ferguson (Scott),and son Neal F. Hills, asister Annette Sonnier; her grandchildren, Carolyn Patton, Joseph Jude Romero, Hiromi Hills Martinez (Jason), Sean Patrick Hills(Leslie), and Claire Ferguson Cantu (Peter); her great-grandchildren, Delaney Romero Smeltzer (Joshua), Nadine Romero, Katherine Hancock (John), Ethan Hill, Jaydn Patton Hanfiro (George), Johnathon Patton (Alaina), Ryan Hills, Natalie Hills, Joseph Anthony Hills, Kendall Hills, Emma Page

Goutierrez, Jasey

Goutierrez; and her greatgreat-granddaughter

Victoria Grace Hancock She was preceded in death by her parents, Jean Baptiste Sonnier and Aline Legere Sonnier; both of her spouses, Frank W. Hills and Lloyd Broussard; her daughter, Carrie Hills Romero Durand and husbands, John Harry Romero II and Frank R. Durand; her grandson, John Harry Romero III, and her siblings, Agnes Sonnier, Anna Sonnier Arceneaux,Leon

Atage seventeen, she graduated from Scott High School in 1941after having gone through the Ossun school.Wantingtosupport the war effort, she volunteered to type messagesonthe teletypewriter for the Civil Defense. Shealsoworked for Western Union where she developed her love of traveling.

Shemarried Frank Hills, and from that marriage came Carrie,Neal, andPat Laterinlife, she married her secondhusband, Lloyd Broussard, who passed awayin2011. So,whatisthe secret to this longevity? As she puts it, "Hard work. Sometimesthree jobsin the same day!" Herdifferentjobsincluded becoming certified by Spencer Business College in New Orleans in 1942,she was sent to Chicago, Illinois, and St.Louis, Missouri with Western Union to encode and transmitencrypted messages during the war effort. While in New Orleans,she worked at CharityHospitaland was employed at Higgins Boatworks, which manufactured landing craft for the Normandy beaches. In Lafayette, therewere twenty-seven yearsatthe Louisiana Departmentof Highways.The 30 yearsat Evangeline Downs Racetrack werespent cashing winning tickets at the clubhousewindow! The 74 years of working

Believe it or not, withall this that she had goingon in her life,she stillmanaged to be an avid traveler to Canada; Belgium; Denmark;Holland;France; Austria; Israel(Jerusalem); Switzerland;U.S.(Amish Country in Pennsylvania, Washington, D.C,Colorado, Washington, Virginia, Arkansas, California, Florida, Nevada (Las Vegas), Texas (San Angelo, San Antonio), NewMexico; Italy(Rome, Florenz, Venice); England (London); Germany; Japan (Okinawa); and theBritish Isles

Have youeverhad afictional novel writtenabout your life?OnMay 18, 2017, Sara Domingue Spence published"For the Duration,"which was deeply aligned with her life and family during World War II

On theafternoon of June 2nd,2024, in theCityof Scott,a Celebrationwas heldinher honor at the Knights of Columbus Hall Many family members and friends were in attendance, alongwithseveral local dignitaries. We are Blessed to have had theopportunitytoexperience some or most partsofClothilde Sonnier Hills' 100 years. Her life is an inspirationtoall who knew her and amodel we should strive to emulate. She nevergave up,driven by her unwavering determination. Alife that we, as afamily,are proud of. This is not asad "Good-Bye" buta "Until We Meet Again" farewell! Pallbearers willbeScott Ferguson, RussellJ Arceneaux, DouglasJ Sonnier, Jacques Arceneaux, JeromeBuller, JoeBroussard,Peter Cantu, Edward Sonnier,

David Sonnier and Bruce A. Broussard. Honorary Pallbearers willbeNealF.Hills, Dwain J. Sonnier, JoeJ.Romero, and Rodney J. Williams. There willbea reception at theKCHall, 123 Lions Club Rd,inScott LA.following thegraveside service. Special thanks to the staff of Our Ladyof Lourdesand Heart of Hospice for theircompassionateand gentle care. In lieu of flowers,donations can be madeinmemoryofClothilde S. Hills to HeartofHospice,901 Hugh WallisRdS Suite B104, Lafayette, LA 70508. View theobituary and guestbookonline at www.mourning.com Martin& Castille Funeral Home -SCOTT,802 Alfred Street,Scott, Louisiana 70583, 337-2342320.

AFuneral Service will be held on Monday, April 7, 2025, at 11:00 am at Fountain Memorial Funeral Home in Lafayette, LA for Gary Lamson, 74, who passed away on Thursday, April3,2025, at Our Ladyof LourdesRegionalMedical Center in Lafayette, LA Visitation willbeobserved at FountainMemorial Funeral Home in Lafayette, LA on Monday, April 7, 2025, from 9:00 am until the time of service. Interment willfollow in Fountain Memorial Cemetery in Lafayette.PastorJacob Aranza, SeniorPastorof Our Savior's Church in Lafayette, willofficiate. Gary Lamson, was born May13, 1950, in Lafayette, LA and was alife-long resident of Acadiana. He graduated fromLafayette High School in Lafayette. After

high school, Gary attended Louisiana State University and went on to complete law school at San Fernando ValleyCollegeof Law.Gary dedicated his career serving as alandman for Lamson Petroleum andanindependent contractor for MKMand Associates, Inc. Additionally, he founded theLafayette Vineyard Church in 1986 and served in the ministry until 1999. Gary was active in his communityand wasa member of thePetroleum Club, theLafayette Association of Professional Landman, theAmerican Association of Petroleum Landmen and the University of Louisiana Rebounders Club. He wasa true loverofmusic, as well as askilledmusician on multiple instruments, especially thebass. Jamming outtomusic wasone of his favorite pastimes. Gary wasanavidfan of Alabama footballand University of Louisiana at Lafayette basketball. He wasfiercelyproud of his kids and grandchildren andknown for his boundless generosity. Gary had an immense love for Hawaii,frequenting theislands over 45 timesinhis life. Gary is survived by his belovedwife of 23 years, Carol TrosclairLamson, of Lafayette, LA; histhree sons, Garret Lamson and hiswife,Tasha, of Lafayette, LA, Gerren Lamson andhis wife, Morgana, of Austin, TX and Gannon Lamson andhis wife, Amanda, of Flower Mound, TX; histwo daughters, Tori Perrodin andher husband, Joah,of Youngsville, LA andTiffany Lamson,ofNew Orleans, LA; hisstep-daughter, Kathryn TrosclairWeaver andher husband, Melton, of Youngsville,LA; hissister, Kaye Crockerand her husband, Jim, of Montgomery,TX; his22 grandchildren, Timothy, Robyn, Kaiser, Elijah, Genevieve,Leia, Asher Annalise,Pierce, Parker, Davi, Ellie,Amelia, Wesley Audrey, Everett, Helen, Bek, Lincoln, Ila, Landon andWyatt andnumerous dear nieces, nephewsand friends. He waspreceded in death by hisparents, AlfredEllis andHelen Maloney Lamson andhis half-brother,PaulMarx. Honored to serve as Pallbearers are Garret Lamson,GerrenLamson, GannonLamson, Joah Perrodin,Melton Weaver andKaiser Lamson

Honorary Bearers will be Pierce Lamson,Mark Miller,Joseph Cummings andDino Griffin. The family wishes to thankthe staff of Acadian Ambulance and OurLady of Lourdes Regional Medical Center for thecompassionate care given to Gary andhis family. With love and Aloha, Gary's legacywill live on.Onlineobituary andguest book may be viewed at www.fountainm emorialfuneralhome.com. FountainMemorialFuneral Home and Cemetery,1010 Pandora St.337-981-7098 is in charge of arrangements.

Democracythriveswhena fair-minded press keeps citizens informedand shines alight on issues of widespreadimportance.

With the helpoflarge and smalldonors across Louisiana, we arestriving to publish journalism thatmakes a differenceinpeople’slives and that improves the state we alllove.

Butthis missionrequires continued support. We need to fortify, expand, and sustain our work foryearsand decades to come. Please

Lamson,Gary

OPINION

OUR VIEWS

Look ahead for real reformsafter amendment’s defeat

The defeat of Amendment2 on thestatewide ballot last month should not mean the endfor some individual proposals within the amendment. If legislators give voters amenuofoptions for reform rather than amassive,all-ornothingpackage, realreform mightactually happen.

And the shape of that reform could be largely if not entirely,along the general lines envisioned in thefailed Amendment2

Among the parts of the package that should be salvaged one way or another, considerthreeto start with.

We agree Louisiana should makepermanent the $2,000 teacher pay raise that otherwise will expireatthe end of thecurrent school year

We agree the state should move awayfromthe business inventory tax. And we agreethatproperty taxes should not be assessed on medicines in storage. The teacher pay raise can andshould be accomplished statutorily, one way or another, in the coming legislative session.Althoughitwas technicallytime-limited whenfirst introduced, nobody ever really expected it to disappear Attractingand keeping goodteachers should always be apriority.Before the$2,000 addition, theaverage teacher pay inLouisianaofaround $54,000 was substantially below the southern average of more than $59,000, accordingtothe Southern Regional Education Board. To be competitive,Louisiana needs tokeep the$2,000 and addmoreontop.

Meanwhile, Amendment2’s proposalto incentivizelocal governments to eliminate thelocal businessinventorytax is agood idea. Only nine states fully tax business inventory. Louisiana should join the other 41 states that wisely realizethat atax that applies even tounprofitable businesses, while requiringsignificant paperwork burdens atop the actual tax costs themselves, is both unfair and economically counterproductive.

Louisiana’sinventory tax system involves some complicated trade-offs, but one wayoranother,the tax ought to be phased out. Finally,for parishes that stillchoose tocharge inventory taxes, Amendment Twoincludeda smart recommendation toprohibit those taxes from applying to prescription drugs. If medicine can be stockpiled cheaply to guardagainst future price hikes, government should nottax its storage.

Overall, the basic thematic thrustofAmendment 2—namely,reducingexemptionsand complications in the tax code andproviding legislators at least alittle more ability to adjust to changing circumstances —was agood one. It would help going forward, though, if there were more rhyme and reason as to when,where and why the Legislature merits more discretionon how to spend which revenues. Amendment2 was confusing, in that it provided more discretion in some places whileremovingdiscretion entirely in others.

In recent days, anumber of legislators have said they “got the message” that voters prefer reforminbite-sized chunks. If thelawmakers follow up accordingly,boththe stategovernment’s finances and the state’seconomycan benefit.

LETTERSTOTHE EDITOR ARE WELCOME. HERE AREOUR

GUIDELINES: Letters are published identifying name, occupation and/or title and the writer’scity of residence

TheAdvocate |The Times-Picayune require astreet address andphone number for verification purposes, but that information is not published. Letters are not to exceed 300 words. Letters to the Editor,The Advocate, P.O. Box 588, Baton Rouge, LA 70821-0588, or email letters@ theadvocate.com.

Chuck Schumer is right, and James Carville is right. They don’twant the Democratic Party getting pulled into MAGA’s cyclone of ruinous policy.To get to safety, they are reining in the left flank for whom the fight is all. The hotheads don’trecognize that bad timingloses battles

SenateMinority Leader Schumer took agood deal of incoming after he pushed his caucus to help pass theRepublicans’ continuing resolution, thus not causing agovernment shutdown. The ensuing chaos would have rattled Americansmorethan Donald Trumpand Elon Musk have already done. Do Democratswant to be seen compounding anxieties?

ing amistake.”

Democratic Sen. John Fetterman understood the gamewhen he rightly noted that shuttingdown thegovernmentwould be “a gift for theRepublicans.” House Speaker Mike Johnson seemed tobeegging Democrats on to do just that, undoubtedly,tofend off theanger of scared consumers, investors, retirees and anyone dependent on Medicare or Medicaid.

As Napoleon famously said, “Never interrupt your enemy when he is mak-

Democrats now have agrand opportunitytolet the public see what it stands tolose under the MAGAbulldozer.Republicans are messing up the economy faster than even their opposition could have imagined. Why would Democrats want to movenews cameras away from theGOP reps scared to hold town halls? Which brings up one smart thing Democrats can do and aredoing: hold their own town halls in congressional districtsrepresented by Republicans.

Rep.Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez clearly sought to be the face of agovernment shutdown. She had previously called for defunding the police, defended prostitutes propositioning boys on the way to school and railed against theexecutive order banning transgender kids born male from competing in girls’ sports. About 80% of Americans agree, as should anyone whocares about fairness in girls’ sports.

AOC not gettingher star turn before thecameras must have been agrave disappointmenttoFox News.Chuck Schumer may not be the mostcharismatic figure to representthe party,but

Electionsdrive

The aftermath of an election always brings analysis from all corners, and Louisiana’srecent vote rejecting four constitutional amendments on the March 29 ballot was no exception. Many had theories as to what it all meant. Wasthis arebuke of Gov.Jeff Landry’s agenda, or were voters sending amore nuanced message that theballot measures were too complex?

Will Sutton and Quin Hillyer.It’sa

at least he’snot adisastrous choice to address ordinary Americans. Democratic strategist Carville also drew fire foradvising Democrats to lay low forthe timebeing. Southernizing Napoleon’scounsel, he advised Democrats to “play possum,” that is, go limpinstead of fighting every Republican provocation. The midtermsare less than two years away Democrats should assemble ameatand-potatoes message forapreelection onslaught. They don’thave to promise cheap eggs or free neck lifts. They just need to makeclear that they’re not the ones sending food prices higher and stock values lower

And importantly,Democrats are the only hope forrestoring America’s sinking reputation as defender of Western democracy.Turning Canada into an enemy is plain insanity Republicans would just love to draw Democrats into their mayhem.Again, Democrats should not rise to the bait. They should take acue from Pogo and play dead until they are ready to swing into action.

Froma Harrop is on X, @FromaHarrop. Email her at fharrop@gmail.com

Longtimepolitical observers came to different conclusions. Andso did manyofyou, our letter writers. It is always interesting to me to see the reactions after voters have their say AndIknow manypolitical junkies also devour every word of our coverage after any election. In theOpinion section, we had several pieces looking at the election from different angles. ButIhave to say,one of my favorite features is our “Behind theHeadlines” conversations with veteran columnists. The one after the election featured Stephanie Grace,

chance to put you at the table to hear their takeaways. Iwould bet manyof you had similar reactions. As someonewho listens to podcasts, Ilove the experience of having that kind of up-close view withthose in the know We hope to continue doing these conversations and finding topics that interest you. If you have any ideas fortopics you’d like to hear ourcolumnists expound upon, send them my way We also hope you will want to engage with our next Town Square topic. With Easter and Passover around the corner and Eid al-Fitr just passed, we thought we would ask you to focus on issues of religious faith. We want to know:How important is your faith to your daily life, and what role, if any,should it play in civic life? Send your responses to letters@theadvocate.com. We will publish aselection of the best responses in afuture edition. For ourletters log, Ican update you

on two weeks in March. For March 6-13, we received 84 letters. It was clear that the constitutional amendments began to get moreattention as the election got closer.Wehad five letters on the topic, and outside of national politics, that wasthe mostof any issue. Four of those letters were about Amendment 2and one was about Amendment 3. We received four letters on our Opinion coverage, and three letters each on the death penalty and DOGE For the week of March 13-20, we received 96 letters. The hottest topic of that week, outside of national politics, wasthe return of the death penalty to Louisiana. We received 10 letters on the topic with eight opposed. The next mostpopular topic wasthe use of the term Gulf of America, which was the subject of six letters, with four opposing the new name.

Arnessa Garrett is Deputy Editor | OpinionPageEditor.Emailher at arnessa.garrett@theadvocate.com.

Arnessa Garrett

Froma Harrop

COMMENTARY

When Louisianansneedhelp, OneDoorshouldopen

Perhaps the most important bill in Louisiana’supcoming legislative session will be one almost everyone can agree on. Designed to make it easier for people to movefrom society’seconomic margins to more comfortable, productive working lives, it should be a“winwin” for everybody To be introduced by Stephanie Berault, RSlidell, in the House and Patrick McMath, RCovington, in the Senate, the bill would institute the so-called “One Door” approachto publicassistance that has worked tremendously well for Utahsince 1997. The basic idea is simple: Those who need public assistance should be able to navigate the system with the equivalent of “one-stop shopping,” with asinglecaseworker,rather than going to multiple offices, filling out multiple and largely duplicative forms and waiting for multiple bureaucraciestoprovide ofttimes conflicting responses. Better still, while disabledpeople should be able to receive help with more ease and certainty,the

whole rest of the system should be designed to move people from assistance to work rather than miring them in near-endless dependency.

“The purpose of this is to start in asubstantial way to address generational poverty in Louisiana,” Berault said. “Wecan move the people who can have the dignity ofwork and selfsufficiency back into the workforce at atime when we have announced to the world that we are open to business and we are going to needmore people active in the workforce.”

The key element in the bill is to put the federal benefits programs into arenamed “Louisiana Works” agency that makes job training and recruitment available in the same place as the food and cash grants —and, to repeat, with asingle case worker for each beneficiary who can help therecipients match up all the available aid and training.

Consider acouple with two children trying to stay together and trying to work, but both lacking adequate job skills or training. If

each scrapes up 30 hours of weekly gig work at $10 an hour,together they earn just over $30,000 per year.Food alone costs their family at least half that, which is why they are eligible (upto$40,560 per year) for thefederal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (commonly called “food stamps”) and for cash allowances through TemporaryAssistance for Needy Families (commonly called “welfare”). Wisely,both SNAP and TANF carry work or work-training requirements.Yet right now,the couple would need to go to one office for SNAP,one forTANF, another for the keyworkforce training they need to give them the skills for better jobs,and more. Meanwhile, employers needing workers don’thave a ready,easy,one-stop stateoffice to help them match available and willing workers with ready jobs.

If Berault’s One Door bill passes, though, asingle caseworker can manage each applicant to match needs withresources (including helping refer confused recipientstoother government programssuch as Medicaid or housing assistance even though

notactually managing those programs), all while directing the ultimate focus toward muchimproved job readiness and employment. Louisiana desperately needs better coordination. ALouisiana Workforce and Social Services Reform Task Force reported in late January that Louisiana had the lowest TANF “work participation rate” in the nation (3.5%) in 2020. That’spathetic. And, in a problem that would be solved by having “one door” and asingle caseworker rather than multiple ones: “Themost prominent barrier for every population of recipients is navigating the complex set of requirements for demonstrating eligibility for numerous independent programs.”

That’swhy,for example, “The audits of SNAP identified significant errors in the tracking of data. .Further,the audit identified that over eighty percent of participants lost services due to nonfinancial reasons (e.g. reporting issues), many of whom would re-enter the system less than 90 days later.”

Reentry,that is, only after wasting everybody’stime with

more paperwork and more rigmarole.

The conservative Pelican Institute think tank, which has tirelessly advocated the One Door approach for years, noted that in 2021 the state’sadministrative costs for TANF ($56.2 million) actually exceeded the direct cash assistance ($37 million) it provided to needy families. Not only should the new set-up do abetter job serving would-be workers, but it also should save administrative costs and, eventually, taxpayer dollars.

Alot more statistics could be cited, more examples given, but the sensibleness of One Door should be obvious —and entirely non-ideological, too.

“It genuinely is astory that can be embraced by everybody,” said Susana Schowen, Secretary of the Louisiana Workforce Commission. “[The goal is] lifting people out of poverty,providing pathways to self-sufficiency,reducing welfare rolls, and ensuring that our employers have the workers they need to prosper.” Quin Hillyer canbereached at quin.hillyer@theadvocate.com.

It’s past time to focusonthe dignityofgovernmentwork

We’ve all heard the language those backingthe ongoing,reckless purgeofthe federal workforceare usingtojustifytheir actions: Government employees are nothing but bureaucrats, or worse, deepstatesaboteurs of the politicians who trash them. Government is rife with not just waste but fraudand abuse —the latter two of which are firing offenses if actually proven, which those throwing aroundthis phraserarely even try to do.

rent, let alone who do important work on behalf ofall of us. Who’d support this level of collective cruelty then?

Like manynarratives, this one is powerful.

eton privilege who rebelled, worked fora time in coal mining and wound up figuring out how to keep mines from collapsing for theDepartment of Labor,saving countless private-sector worker lives.

In justifying the DOGE-driven assault on the publicworkforce, President Donald Trump claimed without evidencethat “many of themdon’twork at all. Many of them never showed upto work.”

Butthen, so is agrowing counternarrative.

This storyline is nothingnew,and it’s been weaponizedagainst workers at all levels of government. Before Trump, there were people like former Gov.Bobby Jindal, who would sneeringly boast of havingremoved 30,000 “bureaucrats” from Louisiana’spayroll— never mindthatthe reality wasfar more nuanced Youhave to dehumanize people in your mindto talkabout themthatway,and certainly to do what the Trumpadministration is doing —locking them outenmasse; firing them without cause andsometimes saying oops, nevermind;mocking them with Elon Musk’schildish chain saw. You can’t think of them —orhave your supporters think of them —asfellow citizens who must put food on the table and pay the

It turns out that if you’re open to hearing them, stories that undercut the stereotype of the lazy,freeloadinggovernment worker are incredibly easy to find, because they’re all around us. That was one of thetakeaways of astirring conversation at last week’s New Orleans Book Festival, led by bestselling native-son Michael Lewis, author of “Moneyball” and “The BlindSide.” Lewis first setout to document the work —and I’m not making this up, the fascinating stories —behind government service duringthe firstTrumpadministration, in his book, “The Fifth Risk.”Heand some other prominent writers arenow out with anew book, based on aWashington Post series andaptly called “Who is Government?The Untold Story of Government Service,” and its publication could not have been better timed.

In the introduction, Lewis is explicit, writingthat the project’s ambition is to subvert the “lazy and stupid” stereotype of thepublic servant.

If you’d attended their panel at Tulane University last week,you would have heard Lewis tell the tale of achild of Princ-

You’dhave heard Casey Cep talk about theman who oversees the nation’snetwork of military cemeteries, which have higher customer service ratings than private companies like Costco and Chick-fil-A.

“I thinkthe storyRon Walters allows us to tell is that alot of people are working very hard to meet theneeds of the American people. And that workismeaningful,” she said.

You’dhave heard W. Kamau Bell describe interviewing afederal employee he happened to know,and getting an earful from his goddaughter about the sense of purpose she found as an antitrust paralegal for theDepartment of Justice.

Andthe stories weren’tjust told on one stage.

Elsewhere at thebook festival, courtly former National Institutes of Health director Francis Collins practicallyseethed over the dismantling of his former agency, which has discovered breakthroughs on along list of devastating diseases and is working towardmore. He saidit’sparticularly shortsighted to fire recent hires with fewer job protections, as the Trump Administration has done, because the newly hired often bring new skills, ideas and talent.

AndRockefeller Foundation President

Rajiv Shah told the story of how American health care workers and military personnel wenttoWest Africa adecade ago and stopped the spread of the deadly Ebola virus before it could come to U.S. shores. That happened when Shah ran USAID, the humanitarian agency that wasTrump’s first high-profile target fordestruction. As always, there’sa“to be sure” here, as journalists put it. To be sure, government does not always operate efficiently or heroically,and not every public employee is astar or even a top performer.Where potential taxpayer savings exist, they should be identified and targeted. When bad behavior happens, it should have consequences. And where outdated regulations and technology prevent government workers from doing the best job they can for the public, they should be aggressively confronted; on that, Isuspect mostgovernmentemployees would agree. Regardless, there’sapowerful story to tell —ormore like millions of them about what the people whowork forour government —for us —do, and whythey do it.

At this momentofwanton, senseless, mean-spirited destruction, these stories are urgent.

And they have the added power of being true.

Email Stephanie Grace at sgrace@ theadvocate.com.

Orleansschoolleaders must be transparentwithmoney

Congrats, Dr.Fateama Fulmore.

Congrats, Orleans Parish School Board. The Orleans Parish School District is moving forward with apermanent school superintendent. The board chose Fulmore at a Wednesday meeting. She dropped “interim” from her title, and now, though she sits in the same chair in the same office, she has certainty that her decisions matter Public school charter students in highschool have seen several superintendentscome and go since they were in elementary school. I’m hoping that Fulmore will get agood, seven- to 10-year run to establish stability andto give her,and the board, adecent chance to significantlyimprove public education in New Orleans. It’ll take that longto repair some of the damage done in thelast two decadeswith the charter school “experiment.”

Fulmore has achance todo something that other superintendents have not done: She candevelop aboard-charter-community vision that better appreciates and respects the various ideas and philosophies about public school

education with data and firm accountability,including traditional school perspectives with new approaches from charters and others.

Fulmore was selected from a pool of 20 candidates, becoming one of two finalists. The other was Dr.Sharon Latten-Clark, the District 2representative on the Louisiana StateBoard of Elementary and Secondary Education and leader of Sophie B. Wright High School. The board voted 5-2 in favor of Fulmore Board members Nolan Marshall Jr.and KaTrinaChantelle Griffin votedno. Griffin said though Clark wasn’tselected, she extends “sincere congratulations to Fulmore.“Thefuture of our children is too important for division, and Iremain committed to working alongside Dr.Fulmore to ensure that every student in New Orleans has access to ahigh-quality education.” She looks forward to board accountability,“holding us accountablefor the success and well-beingof our students, families and educators.”

State Sen. Joe Bouie, afrequent OPSB critic,had hopedthe board would go in adifferent direction for leadershipaswell. Now he’s readyto“circle the wagons around(Fulmore) and give her an opportunity to demonstrate wheth-

er she can save our system.”

Unfortunately,Fulmore is stepping intoher permanent role as too manyhave lost trust in the board and the district

There’sa significant budget shortfall. Not having $36 million, as was reported last year,isone thing.Not having $50 million,the updated number,ispotentially so crippling that there could be massive layoffs, school closures and yet another school reorganization. It can’tbeastopgap step.

Ourschool children are owed better

Someone —orsome people madeacolossal financial error Budget and funding calculations

were based on a12-month calendar year and not the monthsshorter school year.I’m not a certified public accountant, a forensics accountant or achief financial officer,but Idid take a “finance fornonfinancial managers” course when Iwas responsible for an entire newsroom budget.Calendar year,quarterly and monthly calculations are different yet tied together.Our instructors didn’tspend any time explaining how to spread nine or 10 months of money across an entire year

The board is blaming Mayor LaToyaCantrell for backing out of asettlement to pay the district what they think they’re owed. If there ever was alegitimate agreement, it’sreasonable to expect payment. With or without an agreement, students, educators, parentsand taxpayers deserve to know more about such asignificant miscalculation.

“Wehave no comprehensive explanation about the miscalculation,” Bouie said Thursday.“We know very little about who, how, and the board’s position on ensuring that can never happen again.” The complex legal and moral debateabout what the city owes thedistrict will be resolved in time. Meanwhile, in March, the school board approved aFulmore

plan to use district savings and someofa budget surplus to soften the financial blow this year

And what about next year?

To be fair,the school has provided explanations about the inflated revenue projections, but none that have resonated as understood with the public.

“My objective is to be the person whoworks hardest forchildren to get what they deserve,” Fulmore said during aTuesday night townhall.

Board President Katie Baudouin is happy with making Fulmorepermanent. “The district is on agreat path right now,and I think that (Fulmore’s) leadership really played abig role in getting us here,” Baudouin said after the meeting.

Fulmore worked hard to earn her shot at running an entire school district as asuperintendent. “This is adream cometrue,” Fulmore told reporter Marie Fazio. That dream can rapidly evolve into anightmare if Fulmore, Baudouin and the board don’tcome clean with facts —including a timeline —about how such acolossal financial mistake was made in waysthe public can grasp. We deserve to know

Email Will Sutton at wsutton@ theadvocate.com.

Quin Hillyer

Stephanie Grace

Will Sutton

STAFF PHOTO By SOPHIA GERMER Superintendent of Orleans Parish schools Fateama S. Fulmore

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LSUgym clinches itsshot to repeat

Tigers earn 15th regional titlebynipping Mich.St.

BY SCOTT RABALAIS Staff writer

The champs are going backto the championship meet.

The LSU gymnasticsteamleft no doubt against astrong field in Saturday’sNCAA Pennsylvania regional finalthatitwould be returning to Fort Worth, Texas,later this month to try to repeat as NCAA champions.

The Tigers, the No.1overallseed,posted their fifth straight score of 198-plus and seventh overall with a198.050,edging out No. 8Michigan State(198.000) forthe regional championship at RecHallinUniversity Park, Pennsylvania.

Both the Tigers and Spartans areamong the eight teams to advance to the NCAA championshipsthatare set forApril 17-19 in Fort Worth.

It is LSU’s34th NCAA championship appearance and 15th regional title.

Whilereturning to theNCAA

Shores, LSUbeat conditions, Oklahoma

BY KOKI RILEY Staff writer

NORMAN, Okla. Many LSU baseball fans were calling for JayJohnson to shake up his rotation. The LSU coach had stuck with the same starting rotation —and in the same order since opening weekend. But after acouple of rocky outings from right-handedjunior Anthony Eyanson and right-handed redshirt sophomore Chase Shores to start Southeastern Conference play,there were Tigerfaithfulwho wanted to see achange. Johnson stuck to his guns, anditispayingoff. Eyanson bounced back with consecutive starts where he didn’tallow an earned run, and Shores took his big step forward Saturday At L. DaleMitchell Park against No.10 Oklahoma, Shores allowed no earned runs and three hitsinfive innings to help No.7 LSU push past the Sooners 3-2. The victory clinched LSU’sthirdseries sweep in four weeks of SEC play

“This is agood accomplishment,” Johnson said. “How we’ve played consistently over 33 gamesiswhat you’d like to see. And for

WALLS FALL DOWN?

Saints’offseason tells us they really believein foundation of roster

The New OrleansSaints are telling us something this offseason. They’re saying last season wasan aberration. Amirage. Aflukey outlier of acampaign. They’re essentially blaming the 5-12 season on bad juju and, to an extent, bad coaching. How else to explain their offseasonsofar?

Jeff Duncan

The Saints’ worst season in nearly two decades spurred team officials to change their coaching and training staffs —and not much else.

The front office remains intact.

The roster is largely the sameone that finished last in theNFC South a year ago.

Seventeen of the 22 players who started the 2024 season opener will return, and if you includecornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry —who moved into thestarting lineup after Marshon Lattimorewas traded in November it’s18of22. In fact, 44 of the 53 players on theactive roster from ayear ago are back this season. Through trades and free agency, the Saintsadded afew veterans that should play key roles in safety Justin Reid,receiver Brandin Cooks, defensive tackle Davon Godchaux and guard Dillon Radunz, but mostofthe additionsare backups or role players.

Bobcatsreverse fortunes on Cajuns

BY KEVIN FOOTE Staff writer

ä See DUNCAN, page 5C

PROVIDED PHOTO By LSU ATHLETICS

LSU gymnasts smileastheyupdate the NCAA bracket after advancing to the final eight SaturdayinUniversityPark,Pa.

STAFF ILLUSTRATION By TANyARAMIREZ

BROADCAST HIGHLIGHTS

Florida beats Auburn to reach championship game

Walter Clayton scored 34 points, Alijah Martin chipped in 17, and the Florida Gators erased an eightpoint halftime deficit to reach the national championship game with a 79-73 victory over Auburn in the Final Four on Saturday night in San Antonio.

The Tigers led 46-38 after the first 20 minutes, but Florida burst out of the locker room with a 13-3 run to go ahead 51-49 on Clayton’s basket.

Neither team led by more than four points over the next 14 minutes of game action until Clayton’s jumper put Florida ahead 73-68 with 1:33 remaining. SEC Player of the Year Johni Broome finished his collegiate career with 15 points and seven rebounds for Auburn.

Ex-LSU star Fowles to enter Naismith HOF

BY REED DARCEY Staff writer

LSU great Sylvia Fowles soon will be enshrined into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

On Saturday, the hall announced that it will induct Fowles as part of its 2025 enshrinement class, a group also headlined by Sue Bird, Maya Moore, Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard.

Fowles — who won two WNBA titles, a league MVP award and four Olympic gold medals after her decorated career left Baton Rouge ended in 2008 — led the Tigers to the Final Four in all four years of her collegiate career

“I don’t think (any) one of us go into this thinking that we’re going to be Hall of Famers,” Fowles said. “You just do your job and when it’s all said and done, the job is complete and here we are.”

The 6-foot-6 center is LSU’s alltime leader in rebounds (1,570), blocks (321), career double-doubles (86), games played (144) and postseason games played (20). Her 2,234 career points rank fifth in program history In the WNBA, Fowles played for the Chicago Sky and Minnesota Lynx. She was a two-time Finals MVP, a four-time defensive player of the year and an eighttime all-league selection. She was named WNBA MVP in 2017, a season in which she averaged 18.9 points and 10.4 rebounds per game while shooting 66% from the field. Fowles also shined on the international stage She helped Team USA win gold in every Olympics

of a women’s NCAA Tournament game on March 18, 2006, in Nashville, Tenn.

from 2008-21. Only Diana Taurasi (six) and Bird (five) have more gold medals. In November, Fowles also was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame. She’s following the same path that her former LSU teammate Seimone Augustus took in 2024,

when she was enshrined into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame all in the span of a few months. Including Fowles, eight LSU players or coaches are in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame:

Augustus, Pete Maravich, Bob Pettit, Shaquille O’Neal, Van Chancellor Sue Gunter and Kim Mulkey

This year’s Naismith enshrinement ceremony is scheduled for Sept. 6 in Springfield, Massachusetts. According to ESPN, no class has ever inducted three women as players until this year

Anthony, Howard going into HOF twice in one year

BY TIM REYNOLDS

AP basketball writer

Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard are going into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame later this year not once, but twice. And LeBron James and Chris Paul are part of the group that’s headed to the Hall as well, even before their playing careers end.

Anthony and Howard were announced Saturday as members of the Class of 2025, as was the 2008 U.S. Olympic men’s basketball team that they played on — dubbed the “Redeem Team,” the one that captured gold at the Beijing Games and started a still-going run of five consecutive Olympic titles and counting for USA Basketball’s men’s program. Also selected for enshrinement were WNBA greats Sue Bird, Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles, Chicago Bulls coach and two-time NCAA champion Billy Donovan, Miami Heat managing general partner Micky Arison and longtime NBA referee Danny Crawford. “I made it to the real basketball heaven,” Howard said. “It’s crazy.”

Enshrinement weekend is Sept. 5-6 at the Mohegan Sun in Uncasville, Connecticut, and the Hall of Fame in Springfield, Massachusetts.

“When the call comes and in my case, I saw Springfield on the phone,” Anthony said on the televised announcement “You know what time it is when Springfield is on the phone. You know who it is. You get the phone call and you hear, ‘You’re in.’ And I think for me, it was a burden off of my shoulders.”

Donovan won back-to-back titles as a college coach with Florida. Arison oversaw Miami’s path to NBA titles in 2006, 2012 and 2013. Crawford worked NBA games for 32 seasons and was picked to work the NBA Finals in 23 of those years.

“For some, this is an individual honor,” Arison said. “But for me, this speaks to what our entire Heat family — players, coaches, staff and fans have built together.” Combined, the five players selected as individuals Bird, Moore, Fowles, Howard and Anthony were part of 11 WNBA or NBA championship teams, won 15 Olympic gold medals, made 37 AllNBA or All-WNBA appearances and were named as All-Stars 45 times in their careers.

“Surreal,” Bird said of her selection. “I don’t think there’s any way to really wrap your head around it.” The Redeem Team’s selection

means that Dwyane Wade, Chris Bosh, Jason Kidd and Kobe Bryant already enshrined as Hall of Famers — essentially now go in for a second time James and Paul, who are obviously both locks to get into the Hall after they retire, also played for that Olympic team, as did Anthony, Howard, Michael Redd, Carlos Boozer, Deron Williams and Tayshaun Prince.

That team’s managing director was Jerry Colangelo, who now chairs the Hall of Fame.

“We developed a set of standards where all the guys lived by those standards,” said former Duke coach and 2001 Hall of Fame inductee Mike Krzyzewski, who coached that 2008 Olympic team

“They were the best group of guys. I wish like crazy that Kobe was here. He was really the key guy, I think. As many great players as we had at that point, he was the greatest and everyone looked up to him.”

Bryant, his daughter Gianna and seven others were killed in a 2020 helicopter crash. Bryant was enshrined posthumously into the Hall later that year

The Redeem Team had that moniker because it was the team tasked with restoring USA Basketball’s place atop the world stage, after the 2004 Olympic team only managed a bronze medal at the Athens Games. The Redeem Team went 8-0 in Beijing, winning those games by an average of 27.9 points.

“USA Basketball is thrilled to see the 2008 U.S. Men’s Olympic Team elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame,” USA Basketball CEO Jim Tooley said. “The Redeem Team’s celebrated run in Beijing marks a pivotal moment in U.S. men’s Olympic basketball history and has propelled us to five straight gold medals.

“Carmelo Anthony and Dwight Howard, members of that team and individual inductees, are two of the many legends in this Class who have contributed to our organization’s success over the last 20-plus years, including Sue Bird, Billy Donovan, Maya Moore and Sylvia Fowles.”

The UConn women’s program already had coach Geno Auriemma, Swin Cash (enshrined as a player) and Rebecca Lobo (enshrined as a contributor) in the Hall of Fame, and Bird and Moore going in together will add to what’s always a huge weekend in New England.

“They’re hall of famers for me, they’re hall of famers for their family, they’re hall of famers for everybody — they’re even hall of famers for UConn haters,” Auriemma said. “That’s one thing they can all agree on.”

Duke’s Flagg, USC’s Watkins pick up Wooden Awards

LOS ANGELES Cooper Flagg of Duke and USC’s JuJu Watkins are adding more hardware to their trophy cases.

Flagg, a freshman forward, was named the John R Wooden Award winner as the nation’s top men’s player, beating Auburn’s Johni Broome by 178 votes on Saturday. He is Duke’s eighth Wooden winner, the most of any school.

Flagg averaged 18.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 4.2 assists while leading the Blue Devils to the Final Four

The other finalists were Walter Clayton of Florida, Mark Sears of Alabama and Braden Smith of Purdue. Watkins, a sophomore guard, won the women’s award. She beat out UConn’s Paige Bueckers, who won in 2021, by 46 votes.

SMU names Barnes women’s basketball coach

DALLAS Adia Barnes was named SMU’s new women’s basketball coach Saturday after nine seasons at Arizona, where she led the Wildcats to the national championship game four years ago.

Barnes takes over an SMU program that is coming off a 10-20 record in its first season in the Atlantic Coast Conference. The Mustangs were 2-16 in league games.

The hiring came a week after SMU fired Toyelle Wilson, who was 55-64 overall in four seasons SMU’s only NCAA Tournament appearance was in 2007-08. Arizona was 169-114 under Barnes and made four consecutive NCAA women’s tournaments from 2021-24, including a 54-53 loss to Stanford in the 2021 national title game. The Wildcats were 19-14 in their first Big 12 season, going 10-8 in conference play

Arizona’s Marte on IL after straining hamstring

WASHINGTON — Arizona second basemen Ketel Marte was put on the 10-day injured list Saturday, a day after leaving the Diamondbacks’ 6-4 victory over the Washington Nationals in the first inning with a strained left hamstring suffered while running the bases. Marte hit a long ball to the wall in center field and, as he rounded first base and headed to second, he started to stutter-step. He pulled in slowly for a standup double while holding his left hamstring.

“To see him pull up like that in the first inning was not, no one in the dugout was feeling good,” said right fielder Corbin Carroll, who hit two home runs and drove in three runs for Arizona.

Nebraska coach dismisses transfer receiver Gilmore LINCOLN, Neb Nebraska receiver Hardley Gilmore, who transferred from Kentucky in January, was dismissed from the team, coach Matt Rhule announced Saturday The second-year player from Belle Glade, Florida, had come to Nebraska along with former Kentucky teammate Dane Key and receivers coach Daikiel Shorts Jr and had received praise from teammates and coaches for his performance in spring practice. Rhule did not disclose a reason for removing Gilmore.

Gilmore was charged with misdemeanor assault in December for allegedly punching someone in the face at a storage facility in Lexington, Kentucky, the Lexington Herald Leader reported on Jan. 2.

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTO By MARy ANNE CHASTAIN

LSU center Sylvia Fowles reacts after a foul call in her favor after she scored against Florida Atlantic during the first round

AP FILE PHOTO By SETH WENIG

Former New york Knicks forward Carmelo Anthony reacts after hitting a 3-pointer during a game against the Sacramento Kings on Dec. 4, 2016 in New york.

AP FILE PHOTO By MARK J TERRILL

Former Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard dunks the ball during a game against the Denver Nuggets on Sept. 18, 2020, in Lake Buena Vista, Fla.

CAJUNS

Continued

on the two offenses for the second straight day

The two teams combined for fivehits Friday.On Saturday,Texas State got seven hits comparedtofour for UL.

“There werealot of balls that we leaped on,” Deggs said. “It was unfortunate hitting into three doubleplays, but we’ll bounce back tomorrow.It’ll be abrand-new day tomorrow with new conditions.

“It (the wind)beats up on you.Higgy (Conor Higgs) at least had two jacks today (that thewind held up). It can beatuponyou mentally.”

The game was scoreless until the seventh inning when 8-hole hitter Sam-

son Pugh hita groundball through the left side with two outs for a1-0 lead. It was Pugh again in the ninthwithatwo-out RBI double to give the visiting Bobcats a2-0 lead. That madea winner out of TexasState starter Jesus Tovar,who hurled afour-hit shutout with no walks and two strikeouts.

UL starter Andrew Herrmann was two outsshy of acomplete game,giving up two runs on six hits, three walks and four strikeouts in 81/3 innings. Reliever Tate Hess gave up the double in the ninth.

“They matched each other, but Ithink thebiggest difference is wewalked three, and he (Tovar) didn’twalk any,” said Deggs,who lamented getting arunner thrown out at thirdonabasehit toright to end theseventh.

“Thatwas bigright there,” he said. “We’ll never know what wouldhavehappened. Stupid, stupid, just trying to force theissue. Iwas waving him. It is what it is.It’snot smart making an outright there withtwo outs. Iwas trying to set up afirst and third.”

The rubbergame of the series is scheduled for 1p.m. Sunday,and Deggs is convinced the wind will be blowing in the opposite direction.

“I’ll betyou whatever you want to bet on it,” Deggs joked. “I’m sure both teams do (have arms left). It’ll come down to filling up that strike zone andmaking plays. The ball will be jumpingalittle bit different tomorrow.”

Email KevinFooteat kfoote@theadvocate.com.

GYM

Continued from page1C

championships is the headline for the Tigers, having Konnor McClain back on floor is acompelling subhead.The All-Americasophomore performed on floor for the first time all season after beomg limited to uneven bars and balance beam after recovering from atorn Achilles she suffered in May during apre-Olympicmeet.

McClain replaced freshman Kailin Chio, who competed in the other three events, and got a9.90on floor.LSU’sbig scorein the event came from senior Aleah Finnegan, who tied her season-best with a 9.975. LSU started on uneven bars and had a49.450 led by

Continued from page1C

No, what you saw in 2024 is essentially what you’re going to get in 2025, give or take afew rookies from the draft. Essentially,the Saints are running it back, which is apuzzling way to respond to the club’sworst season in nearly two decades.

If you were hoping the disastrous season would inspire team officialsto drain theswamp or overhaul the roster,you’re out of luck. General manager Mickey Loomis leaned into the injury excuse after the disappointing season, and his actions this offseason have backed up his words Team officials are essentially saying the roster was good enough, but the health and coaching were not. In that way,the transition to the Kellen Mooreera looks and feels more like the one Dennis Allen oversaw in 2022 than the overhauls Jim Haslett and Sean Payton orchestrated in 2000 and 2006, respectively

Youmight recall that after the Saints flat-lined to 3-13 under MikeDitka in 1999, Haslett and thengeneral managerRandy Mueller brought in 25 new players, including 11 starters, the next year,and the results were instantaneous. The Saints went 10-6and wonthe NFC West. Payton oversawasimilar overhaul in 2006, with 10 new starters and 23 new players.The new-look Saints responded with a

a9.925 from freshman leadoff gymnast LexiZeiss. The Tigers held aslim49.45049.425 lead on the Spartans, who competed on floor Michigan Statethenthrew astrong 49.650 on vault at LSU, butthe Tigersresponded with somethingeven better.Led by9.95s from Chio (tying her career-high) and Finnegan as well asacareer-high 9.925 from Kylie Coen,LSU posted a49.675 on beam, its best NCAA regional score ever in that event. At the halfway point, LSU ledMichigan State99.12599.075.

The Tigers basically coasted home from there as both teams matched scoresinthe final two events and kept No. 9Kentucky (197.625) and No.16Arkansas (197.375) at arm’slength. LSU went 49.575 on floor with aseason-high-tying 9.975 from

10-6 record and their firstever trip to theNFC championshipgame.

Instead of backhoes and bulldozers, the Saints have attacked theroster this offseason with aspatula and touch-uppaint. They appear to be followingthe blueprint executed recently by the Los Angeles Rams, who were able to reload while remaining competitiveinthe wake of their Super Bowl title in 2021. TheRams, after bottomingout at 5-12 with an aging, bloated roster in 2022, refused to blow things up. Instead, they employed a less extensive makeover They were selectively frugalinfree agency,pared or traded off some high-priced talentand remodeled the roster around ahandful of core players.

By the time trainingcamp began in 2023, the Rams had44new playersonthe 90-man roster,including eight new defensivestarters.

“Tome, in arebuild,you would just bulldoze the housedown and rebuild from thegroundup,”Rams general manager LesSnead said in 2023. “But again when you have someone like Matthew Stafford, players likeCooper Kupp, Aaron Donald …there are some weight-bearingwalls there that we still have, and we’re gonna rely on those.”

The key to theRams’ successful remodel was thedraft. They nailed both the 2023 and 2024 lotteries, hitting on top picks Jared Verse, Braden Fiskeand Steve Avila, while scor-

LSU

Continuedfrom page1C

me, that’sthe story ” Shores struggled withhis control at times, walking four batters. But he kept the ball on theground (forcing seven groundouts) and didn’tgive up muchhard contact.

The only run he allowed was apassed ball that squirted past senior catcher Luis Hernandez in the second inning.

“I thought(Iwas) just mixing pretty good, (that) was kind of the strong suit of today,” Shores said, “getting ahead, just attacking hitters.”

lowed just one unearned run in four innings to earn his fourth save.

Cowansurrendereda run-scoring single with two outs in the ninth inning that cutthe LSU(30-3,10-2SEC) lead to one, but he stranded the game-tying run at secondbase by forcing afly out to end the game.

“He’s the best. Iwouldn’t trade himfor anybody,” Johnson saidofCowan.

“The mostvaluable pitcher in college baseball as faras I’mconcerned.”

5-7) answered with arun in the bottom half of the inning, LSUstretchedits lead back to twointhe fourth after Curiel’sdouble down the left-field line scored junior Chris Stanfield from first base.

“Whether it’srain delays and finishing at 2a.m. or 28 degrees andwindy,” Johnson said, “you nameit, they stay in the fight, stay prepared.”

Finnegan. The Tigers had nothing better than a9.90 on vault for a49.350, discardinganuncharacteristic 9.75 fromChio.But LSUheldon to the regional titlewhen Michigan State beam anchor GabrielleStephen fell and got a9.30. Finneganfinished first on floor and in afirst-place tie on beam with Chio, Arkansas’ Joscelyn Roberson and Kentucky’sSharon Lee. Michigan State’sNikki Smith finished first in the all-around(39.650), tied for first on vault withteammate Sage Kellerman(9.95) and was first on bars (9.975). Regionalindividual titles were decided in Thursday’s semifinals

For more LSU sports updates, sign up forour newsletter at theadvocate. com/lsunewsletter

ing on mid-and late-round picks Puka Nacua, Kobie Turner,Byron Young and BeauxLimmer

The results have been impressive. While retooling theroster,the Rams posted back-to-back 10-7 seasons and made the playoffs each year.They’ll enter the upcoming season as the favorites to win theNFC West

The Saints are trying to thread the needle in asimilar fashion. There are differences, though.

For one, theSaints don’t have thegravitas of aSuper Bowl title to appease the fans during thetransition. Secondly,they have not been nearly as aggressive as the Rams were on defense, where theSaints plummeted to 30th in the league rankings despite enjoying relatively good health. Surprisingly,the Saintshave elected to keep their front seven almost entirely intact from ayear ago. Andfinally,you could argue the weight-bearing walls for the Saints —Cam Jordan, Demario Davis, Tyrann Mathieu, Alvin Kamara and Erik McCoy

—are not as sturdy as they were afew years ago. Regardless, one thing is certain: To pull this off, the Saintswill need to draft well, and certainly better than they have in recent years.

Moore and company need to find their versions of Verse and Nacua this year to kick-start the transition. If not, those weight-bearing walls might crumble the sameway they did in 2024.

The weather played abig part in Shores’ outing. With 40-degree temperatures and strongwinds blowing in from center field,driving theball in the air proved to be an almost impossible task.

“This is maybe the least conducive to run-scoring conditions we’ve played in since I’vebeen thecoach at LSU,” Johnson said.

Junior right-handerZac Cowan replacedShores in the sixthinning and al-

Saturday’swintry conditions also played apart in quieting theLSU bats.The Tigers hadjust twohits after the fifth inning and went 1for 13 with runners on base. Hernandez and sophomore Steven Milam werethe only Tigers with multiple hits. But LSU still jumped out to an early lead in the second inning thanks to an errorfromOklahoma second baseman Kyle Branch. Freshman Derek Curiel hit agroundball with two outs that went right through the freshman’slegs, allowing tworuns to score and handingthe Tigers a2-0 advantage. After Oklahoma (23-8,

Curiel’s hitextendedhis on-base streak to 33 games, breaking LSU’sprevious freshman on-base record (since at least 1985) set by Mike Fontenot in 2000.

“Thatmeansa lot, obviously to me and my family Ithink that’sgreat,” Curiel said. “I think it’s asteppingstoneinmycareer here, butobviously I’mhereto do more.”

LSU’s road trip continues on Tuesday in Thibodaux when the Tigers face Nicholls State. Thegame was rescheduled from its original date of Feb. 19. First pitch is slated for 6p.m. and thegame will be available to stream on ESPN+. Email Koki RileyatKoki. Riley@theadvocate.com.

LSUstarting pitcher

Chase Shores allowedno earned runs and three hits in five innings in awin over Oklahoma on Saturday at L. Dale Mitchell Park in Norman, Okla

FILE PHOTO By PATRICK DENNIS

PROVIDED PHOTO By LSU ATHLETICS

LSU gymnasts celebrateafter winning the NCAAregional title on SaturdayatRec Hall in University Park, Pa

ALL-METRO STAR OF STARS BASKETBALL

GIRLS MOST VALUABLE PLAYER

JOHNSON

STAFF FILEPHOTO By MICHAEL

Lafayette Christian forward KaliyahSamuels finishesa layup against Sacred Heartduring theDivisionIII select championship game on March 7inHammond.Samuels averaged 19.2points and11rebounds pergame in leadingthe Knights to the state title.

KALIYAHSAMUELS LAFAYETTECHRISTIAN,JR. • FORWARD

IfLafayette Christianwas going to extendits state championship streak to five,coachErrol Rogers knew Kaliyah Samuels would have to be abig partofit.

There wasn’t muchquestionabout Samuels’ talent.The question was whether she could avoid the bug that plagued her in her first two seasons. Samuels suffered an ankle injuryasa freshman and aseason-endingkneeinjuryasa sophomore.

“So Itold her before the season, if shecan stay healthyand playthe wayshe wasplaying before injuries that she would carry us,”Rogerssaid And Samuels did just that.

The 6-foot junior post playeraveraged 19.2 points, 11 rebounds, four steals, three assists andthree blocks en routeto leading the Knights

to the Division III select state championship. It was the Knights’ eighth state title across three divisions in nine seasons.

“She didn’t do anything extraordinary,”Rogers said.“Weknewthe talent was there. She didthe same thing she was doing her first twoyears.The only difference is that she stayedhealthy.

For her efforts, Samuels was named the Acadiana Advocate’sAll-Metro StarofStars

Most Valuable Player.

“There was no other personworthyofthat award,” Rogers said.“I’m not beingdisrespectful when Isay that. But when youlook at whowe played against, no one came close to doing what shedid this year.She is deserving of everything shegets.”

Eric Narcisse

Lafayette Highguard Kevon’te Landrygoes up for adunk against Sulphur on Feb.21 at NorthsideHigh School in Lafayette. The 6-foot-4 Landry averaged 23 points and 10 rebounds in leading the Mighty Lions to the District3-5Achampionship.

KEVON’TELANDRY LAFAYETTEHIGH, SR • FORWARD

Lafayette High’s Kevon’te Landry was instrumental in theMighty Lions’ success for thepastfour seasons.

Afour-year starter, Landry established himself as aforce offensively and defensively en routeto becomingthe go-to-playercoach CliftonBrown needed.

Although pleased with the wayheperformed in his first three seasons, Landrywas determined to makehis seniorseason hisbest.

And he did.

The 6-foot-4,190-pound Landryaveraged 23 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, twosteals and twoblocks per game for aLions teamthat won the District 3-5A championship.

Forhis efforts, Landrywas namedthe Acadiana Advocate’sAll-Metro Star of Stars Most Valuable

Player.

Landry had some stellar performances during theseason, butnone better than hisshowing in his final game as aLionwhen he finished with atriple-double in Lafayette High’s55-51 loss to Hammond in the firstround of theDivisionI select playoffs.

“Hewas our everything,” Brownsaidafter the game.“He did everything he couldtohelp us win this game.

“Wejust came up alittle bit short.

Landry finished witha game-high 28 points,18 rebounds, sevensteals and four assists. “I’mgoing to miss him,”Brown said.“Not just as abasketball player. I’m goingtomiss himas aperson.”

EricNarcisse

GIRLS COACHOFTHE YEAR ERROLROGERS LAFAYETTECHRISTIAN

Lafayette Christian coachErrol Rogersloves winning and he lovesitevenmore when his Knights are doubted.

After losing starguard Jada Richard to graduation, some expected the Knights’ state dominance to end.

But that wasn’t the case.TheKnights, who endedthe season on a24-gamewinning

GIRLS ALL-METRO TEAM

KIRA JOHNSON Lafayette High, Sr

KENZIE MARCEAUX North Vermilion, Jr

JUSTYSE GEORGE Teurlings Catholic, Jr

MI AMOR

McQUEEN Opelousas, Sr

AERIEL AMOS Northwest, Jr

streak, finished the year 29-5and wontheir fifth consecutivestate championship.The state title was the Knights’ eighth —across three divisions —innine years.

For his efforts and the success of his team, Rogers was named the Acadiana Advocate’sAllMetro Star of Stars Coach of the year EricNarcisse

ALYRIA GREENE Abbeville, Sr

KALIYAH SAMUELS Lafayette Christian, Jr

TAYLOR BARNABA JS Clark, Sr

MADISON CLARKE Highland Baptist, Jr

ALI BROUSSARD Vermilion Catholic, Jr

GIRLS HONORABLE MENTION

North

URIJA CARMOUCHE Southside, Jr

KAMRYN GEDWARD St. Martinville, Sr

TORA SAVOY Midland, Jr

CAROLINE LAVERNE St. Edmund, Jr

TAELYN TAYLOR Lafayette Christian,Sr.

Jarissa Davis,New Iberia;BaileyWashington, Rayne; Addison

Northwest;

Jane

Kaylei Delahoussaye, Catholic-N.I.; Kristian Thomas,Westminster;Kayla Fox, Northside; Tris Breaux, Lafayette High; E’MyaReese, Church Point;CamriPrimeaux, Midland; Alaysia Arvie, Crowley; Blaire McCauley,

BOYS COACHOFTHE YEAR DANNYBROUSSARD ST.THOMAS MORE

For the second consecutiveseason, St.Thomas More finished as theDivision Iselectstate runner-up The journeyofgetting there was quite impressivewhen youconsider theCougars graduated two1,000-point scorers from their 2023-24 team.

The Cougars are always tough defensively buttheytook it to another levelastheybroke

BOYS ALL-METROTEAM

KEVON’TE LANDRY LafayetteHigh, Sr

JAYDON NORBERT Southside, Sr

JAYDEN FRANCIS Northside, So

GRAYSON ROY

St.ThomasMore, Sr

BRAHYLON ARTHOLEE Opelousas, Sr

theschool recordbyholdingopponentsto39 points per game in theregular season en route to finishing 32-6.

For hisefforts and thesuccess of histeam, DannyBroussardwas named theAcadiana Advocate’sAll-Metro Star of StarsCoach of the year

EricNarcisse

JARRISON REESE Church Point, Jr

CHAYSON GRAY Abbeville, So

JOSH WILSON LafayetteChristian,So.

MATTHEW GORDON LafayetteRenaissance,Jr.

JAIDEN MITCHELL Catholic-New Iberia,Sr.

BOYS HONORABLE MENTION

JYRIN BESSARD VermilionCatholic, Sr

MARKEZ DAVIS Northwest, So

JAVONTRE CHARLES Beau Chene, Sr

LAWRENCE PICKNEY JS Clark, Sr

RODERICK TEZENO OpelousasCatholic, Jr

Stevie Brasseaux,

Vermilion;

young,Iota; Sierra Joseph,

Molli

Thibodeaux,Midland;

St.Thomas More; Peyton Dean,Lafayette Christian.

STAFF FILE PHOTOByBRAD KEMP

Floyd Flugence, Crowley; Tristan Lewis,Catholic-N.I.; Elijah Guidry, St. Thomas More;Lavar Duncan, Northside; C.J.Charlot, Beau Chene; Bryson Sledge, David Thibodaux; Cayden Lancellin, Westgate;Jordan Senegal, Teurlings; Ja’Nathan Dalcourt, David Thibodaux; DJ Kelly,Ascension Episcopal; Reginald Lavargne, Northwest; Jon’Tavion Etienne, Lafayette Renaissance;Kam Thomas,Breaux Bridge; Kylon Polk, Loreauville; Semar Flugence,ESA

LIVING

DannyHeitman

Ihave my late friend and fellow journalist Relma Hargus to thank for introducing me to cedar waxwings many years ago. Youmight already know about these beautiful birds, which are most visible in Louisiana in late winter and earlyspring.

They’re about as big as cardinals, mostly olive and bright yellow,with red wing tipsthat resemble wax and inspire their funny nickname. The most striking feature is the black bandit mask across their eyes, fitting for abird that loves to plunder Cedar waxwings pillagefruit and berries, and they work quickly,often stripping atree in minutes before moving on As Relma suggested, if you see acedar waxwing, pause and take note. Its presence is aglancing gift, one to savor precisely because it won’tlast long. Relma had aknack for living in the moment, which can be a complicated thing for anyone who works in adeadline-driven newsroom. She saw the frantic hands of our office clock as little more than afriendly wave. Many an editor sighed in defeat as the appointed hour arrived and Relma’scopyhad not yet arrived.

She was awoman prone to private reveries, perhaps more interested in the coming of waxwings than the urgencies of dailyjournalism.

All of this came to mind a few weekends ago as my wife and Iwere having breakfast on the patio. Abusy day loomed, and we were headed inside when my wife spotted the season’sfirst waxwing on our hollies. If we hadn’tlingered that morning, we would have missed it.

Iwas working from home a few days later when, fromthe corner of my eye, Ispotted our stand of holliesasthey trembled in the afternoon sun. Every tree wasalive with cedar waxwings, drawn to the big red berries adorning the leaves. Birds crowded the branches,some upsidedown as they reached for the best meal.

Fifty or more birds worked the trees in alively swarm, darting back and forth like bees rising from ahive. The legal pad on my desk included along list of assignments to finish,messages to answer,meetings to attend.

Ihadn’tpenciled in any appointmentswith waxwings

Then Ithought of Relma and her advice about waxwings the notion that their arrival is reasonenough to pause. Igrabbed some binoculars from anearby shelf,training my gaze on asingle waxwing within the flock. He was perchednear athick bunch of berries that were mounded like grapes at an emperor’s feast. With astonishing speed he gobbled them up, each berry sliding downhis gullet as quicklyasamarble into a sock. Iwatched it all for afew minutes, then returned to my keyboard, my smartphone, my list of things to do.

I’d made time for asmall miracle of spring. Somewhere, Isuppose, dear Relma was smiling.

Email Danny Heitman at danny@dannyheitman.com

Louisiana-basedtailorclothes Barron Trump, Jayden Daniels, EliManning andmore

FORGOOD MEASURE

BY JANRISHER | Staff writer

uestion: What do Barron Trump, Jayden Daniels andEli Manning have in common?

Answer: Their tailor is Baton Rouge’sNathan Pearce

Though Nathan Pearce may not be ahousehold name even in Baton Rouge,the 34-year-old entrepreneur saystojustgive himtime

If the growthofhis business over the last seven yearsisanindicator, he seems to be on his way

In January,Barron Trump wore aPearce Bespoke suit to his father’s presidential inauguration.

Remember thegray three-piece suit Jayden Daniels wore in 2023 whenhewon theHeisman? That was also by Pearce Bespoke.

‘Get into thesuitbusiness’

Pearce grew up in Birmingham,Alabama,went to school at Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi, and right out of college, he promptly started his first company—aclothing manufacturing business. That initial business ended up closing, butthe experience of buying a closed L.L. Bean mill in Tylertown, Mississippi, and then rehiring many of theemployees taught him alot of lessons.

“Being asales guy and abrand build-

er and abig-idea guy trapped inside a manufacturing company —that was not my idea of adream job,”Pearce said.

Even so, manufacturing introduced him to alot of people, includingan older man who was atraveling tailor from theNew York Cityarea.

Their relationship changed the trajectoryofPearce’slife.

“He called meand was like, ‘Well, now that you’re out of the factory,what are you going to do next?’”Pearce

ä See TAILOR, page 4D

Is therea cemetery where gravesbuck tradition?

BY ROBIN MILLER Staff writer

Blameitonthe gravedigger

As the story goes, he’sresponsible forthe incorrect layout of the St. Joseph Catholic Church Cemetery at 401 S. AdamsAve., in Rayne, which caught the eye of “Ripley’sBelieve It Or Not!” in 1997. Ripley’sfeatured the cemetery in its syndicated newspaper comic panel on July 24, 1997, declaring that not only did the gravesites’ north-south placement buck the cemetery tradition of east and west, it was also the only cemetery in the United States with graves facing the wrong way ‘Wrong WayCemetery’

This may account forits local nickname, the “Wrong Way Cemetery.”

ALouisiana State Historical Marker standing kitty-corner commemorates the cemetery’s incorrect layout, concluding that no one really knowswhy or how this happened.

the nickname, the ‘Wrong Way Cemetery.’

Which prompted DeeJeffers’ inquiry

“I grew up in Branch, and I have relatives buried in that cemetery,” the Baton Rouge resident said. “Weknew the graves were facing the wrong way, but no one ever said why. Is there anyone out there who might know why?” Author and local historian Tony Olinger stepped up with the answer

“Wehave no proof one way or the other,soit’ssort of alegend,” he said. In 1880, the community of Pouppeville decided to move its community amile west. The Southern Pacific Railroad was coming through, and the town wanted the benefit of being located along its route, now run by the Union Pacific Railroad. The community not only changed its location but also changed its nametoRayne in honor of railroad executive B.W.L. Rayne.

“Whenever the railroad came through in 1880, the priest at St. Joseph decided to move the church to Rayne,” Olinger said. “So they actually moved the church on logs and rolled it to the new location with mules and horses. They would move the logs from the back to the front until they got it to the city block where it stands now.” The block had been donated forboth the church and cemetery

PROVIDED PHOTOS Pearce BespokeLafayette associate Cole LeBlanc, from left, is pictured with clients Jayden Daniels and Barron Trump

PROVIDED PHOTO Nathan Pearce, CEOofPearce Bespoke

STAFFPHOTO By ROBIN MILLER

The gravesites in St. Joseph Catholic CemeteryNo. 1in Rayne are positioned north and south instead of the traditional east and west, which earned it

TRAVEL

Soak up beautifulbloominggardens in La.and beyond

BY CHERE COEN Contributing writer

There’ssomething innately heart-soaring about walking among flowers and greenery after winter’sstretch of bareness. It’s akin to turning on awarmlight in adarkened room.

We’re fortunate in Louisiana that winter’s“lease hath alltoo short adate,” to borrow asonnet phrase from Shakespeare (he remarked on summer,but as we know,summer feels endless). But spring gives us acolorfulwindow betweencold, rainy winterand the onset of humid summer

Here are some lovely gardens to enjoy spring blossoms, both close to home and within ashort drive.

Within Louisiana

Afton Villa, St. Francisville, aftonvilla.com

Every spring andfall, Alton Villa’s20acresofformal gardens are open to the public. From now until June 30, stroll the grounds and enjoy the famous ruinsgardens, aformal parterre garden ancient live oak trees, ahistoric family cemetery and much more. New Orleans Botanical Garden,CityPark, neworleanscitypark.org

City Park’s10-acre Botanical Garden—the city’sfirstpublic classical garden —containsmore than 2,000 plant varieties from around the worldand is home to 15 statues at the Enrique Alferez Sculpture Garden, the Conservatory of the TwoSisters and the Historic New OrleansTrain Garden. Louisiana residents are admitted free every Wednesday LongueVue House and Gardens, New Orleans, longuevue.com

This former home of philanthropists Edith and Edgar Stern contains eight acres of gardens designed by 20th-century landscape designer Ellen Biddle Shipman. Visitors may tour boththe historic home and gardens.

American Rose Center,rose.org

The national home of the American Rose Society,the 118acre wooded tract near Shreveport is the nation’slargest park dedicated solelytoroses. Peak bloom times are April to June and SeptembertoOctober,but the park is openyear-roundwith walking trails, apicnicarea and achildren’splayground. While in Shreveport, visit the R.W. Norton Art Gallery for its 40 landscaped acres featuring azalea gardens, trails and more. The BiedenharnMuseum &Gardens, Monroe, www.bmuseum.org

This museum complex includes the Biedenharn home built by Joseph Biedenharn, the first bottler of Coca-Cola. Enjoy the home’s antiques and artifacts and the

TRAVEL TROUBLESHOOTER

By ChristopherElliott

BiedenharnMuseum &Gardens

nearby Bible Museum andthe Coca-Cola Museum, but don’tmiss the home’sformal English gardens,greenhouse and fountain. Jungle Gardens,AveryIsland, www.junglegardens.org

We know the McIlhenny family forgivingusTabasco,but Edward A. McIlhenny opened his 170-acre gardens to the public in 1935 and it’s been apopular attraction ever since. Visitors will enjoy camellias, azaleas and assorted plants as well as wildlife, the 900-year-old Buddhaand the “Bird City” rookery Nearby is Rip VanWinkle Gardens on Jefferson Island, 15 acres of semi-tropical gardens surroundinga mansiononce hometo American actor Joseph Jefferson. After touringthe gardens, enjoy lunch in Café Jefferson overlook-

ing the lake. www.ripvanwinklegardens.com

Kisatchie National Forest, www.fs.usda. gov/kisatchie The Wild Azalea Trail in the Kisatchie National Forest’sEvangeline Unit of the Calcasieu Ranger District, west and southwest of Alexandria, provides aglimpse into thestate’sonly native azalea variety.

Trail maps may be picked up at tourist welcomecenters and the Wild Azalea Trail end points at the Kisatchie National Forest’sValentine Lake Recreation Area and Woodworth Town Hall. Briarwood Nature Preserve, Saline, briarwoodnp.org

Thirty minutes from Natchitoches, this pristine acreage was once home to Caroline Dormon,

Booking.comrentalinItaly

a20th-century naturalist who helped create theKisatchie National Forest and the Louisiana StateArboretum.Today her homesteadisopen to the public to view native flowers and shrubs of central Louisiana —look for Louisianairises this month —but tours must be scheduled, weather permitting.

Baton Rougeand Lafayette City Gardens

The Botanical Gardens at Independence Community Park in Baton Rouge is managed by the Baton Rouge Garden Club, and the public is invited to walk through thegardens at no charge. Lafayette Master Gardeners maintain ademonstration garden at the Ira Nelson Horticulture Center on theUniversity of Louisiana at Lafayette campus, filled with plants and educational information. Within aday’s drive Bellingrath Gardens, outside Mobile,Alabama, bellingrath.org

The 65 acres of Bellingrath Gardens, and the homeofWalter and BessieBellingrath, come alive this time of year,first with its brilliant display of 250,000 azaleas. Blooms continue throughout thespring with special events at Easter and the Gulf Coast Chinese LanternFestival, April 17 through June 15.

GarvanWoodland Gardens, HotSprings, Arkansas, www.garvangardens.org

The gentle rolling hills by the shores of Lake Hamilton provide theUniversity of Arkansas with fertile ground forawide variety

of flowers, shrubs and trees. To check bloom times on the flowers gracing Garvan’s210 acres, visit Garvan’sFacebook page. HoustonBotanic Garden, Houston, hbg org

Aformer golf course southeast of downtownisnow hometonative plants, flowers and trees at the 132-acre Houston Botanic Garden. The attraction surrounded by SimsBayou offers several themed gardens, such as culinary and coastal prairie, and the Susan Garver Family Discovery Garden that features ahands-on experience. Classes and special events are offered throughout the year CallawayResort&Gardens, Pine Mountain, Georgia, www.callawaygardens.com Spring at Callaway starts with 150,000 tulips and 20,000 azalea blooms! In addition to spring blossomsonthe 2,500 acres by Mountain Creek Lake, visitors may enjoy fishing, hiking, the Virginia Hand Callaway Discovery Center and Cason’sGarden with its new art installation, “Flights of Color,” acolorful display of kites. Gibbs Gardens, Ball Ground, Georgia, www.gibbsgardens.com

Gibbs is knownfor opening at the onset of spring and the flowering of its 20 million-plus daffodils on morethan 50 acres, truly a sight to see. As the daffodil explosion ceases, the garden’sazaleas bloom in early April. Gibbs has alarge collection of native azaleas, but also 1,200 Encore azaleas foratotal of morethan 3,000 azaleas.

Christopher Elliott

Irecently used Booking.com to reserve an apartment in Menaggio, Italy,for two nights. Idecided to use Booking.combecause of its reputation and the property’spositive reviews. Before Ileft, Inoticed the ratings forthis place had tanked, and Inervously reached out to Booking.com, letting them know my concern and to makesure they would stand behind the booking.Theysaid they would. My concernwas that manypeoplewere arriving and not able to getinto the place and being forced to book elsewhere —basically,a fraud. ABooking.com representative assured me they had been incontact with the host and that everythingwouldbe fine.

AtCitédes Arts

Tickets areonsale for Cité desArts’ production of “Reunion,”written and directed by Patricia Cravins. The showwillhave threeperformances at the theater, 109 Vine St., Lafayette, duringFestival International de Louisiane. The showfocuses on aprominent Creole family that’s forced toconfront along-heldsecret at an annual family reunion.

Performances will be 2p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturday, April 26, and 2p.m. Sunday, April 27. Tickets are $25 and can be purchased by visiting citedesarts.org/events/reunion-

As expected, Iarrivedand couldnot get accesstothe place, though Itried for a number of hours using all phone numbers. Iimmediately contacted Booking.com but didnot receivearesponse until days later. Ihad to find anotherplace in the middle of peak season,whichwas no easy feat. But the listing stayed online,even as the negative reviews piled up Booking.com ultimately responded that if Ihad contactedthem during the stay, they would have been able to help me. But Iwas proactive and reachedout before my stay andatthe beginning of my stay, and was met with silence.

Iwant all of my money back, and Iwant Booking.com to cover my extracosts. Can you help? —Tom Mason,Long Grove, Illinois Booking.com should have found youa newapartment while it investigated the property.Instead,

it appears arepresentative gave you assurances that youwould be able to access therental, despite strong evidence to the contrary Your question exposes apractice that I’ve long suspected but have neverbeenable to prove: that call center representatives rarely read their own website. (If they had, they would have at least looked into your concerns.)

Youhad apretty good sense that you were getting the blowoff from Booking.com. Ilooked at your chat thread and noticed that you were getting canned responses from the“Booking Assistant,”which was most likely either AI or an AI-assisted representative.

Youmight have escalated your concern to ahigher level. I

publish the names, numbers and email addresses of the Booking. com customer service managers on my consumer advocacy website, Elliott.org. Abrief, polite email to one of them might have fixed this Unfortunately,myadvocacy team and Ihave been seeing too many of these kinds of cases recently It feels like online agencies are no longer staffed by humans, but by AIs that can’tunderstand even the most basic customer service problem. Ihope I’m wrong about that.

Icontacted the company on your behalf. ABooking.com representative apologized for your experience and said it usually investigates any potentially sus-

ON THEARTSAND CULTURESCENE

written-and-directed-by-patriciacravins-2025-04-26-14-00.

Also, registration is open for the theater company’s two-week filmmaking workshop, “Movie Magic 101,” forstudents in the sixth through 12th grades.The workshop runs from 1p.m. to 3p.m.June 30July 11 at the theater. Cost is $330 for the course.Paymentplans are available. Visit citedesarts.org

At NuNu

Tickets areonsale for aperformance by Austin singer-songwriter J.M. Stephens at 7p.m. Friday, April 11, in theSingleton’s Pure Listening Room at NuNu Arts& CultureCol-

lective, 1510 Courtableau Highway, Arnaudville. Tickets are$20, and complimentary drinksand redbeans and rice will be available. Visit events.humanitix. com/nunu41125. ‘‘AliceinWonderland’ Tickets areonsale for BatonRouge BalletTheatre’s production of “Alice in Wonderland.” The newly choreographed, full-length ballet will be performed at 2 p.m. April 12-13, in the Raising Cane’s River CenterPerforming Arts Theater, 300 St.Louis St., Baton Rouge. Tickets are$35-$55. Visit batonrougeballet.org/springconcert.

SciArtsPlayFestival

picious listings “swiftly.”

“In this instance, we recognize that we did not support as quickly as we normally would and have been in touch to apologize to the customer directly,” the representative added. “Wecan confirm the property has been suspended from our platform while aproper investigation is carried out.” In addition to refunding the total amount of the original booking, Booking.com also covered the difference in cost for the alternate accommodation.

Christopher Elliott is the founder of Elliott Advocacy,anonprofit organization that helps consumers solve their problems. Email him at chris@elliott.org or get help by contacting him on his site.

The LSU School of Theatreand the College of Science announced the return of theSciArts NewPlay Festival, showcasing threestaged readings of newaccurate science plays selected from morethan 150 submissions acrossthe nation. Along with thereadings,there will be twokeynote speakers: Holden Thorp, editor-in-chief of Science, and Doron Weber,vice presidentof the Sloan Foundation. All events will takeplace in the Studio TheatreinLSU’s Musicand Dramatic ArtsBuilding, Dalrymple Driveonthe LSU campus. Tickets arefreebyvisiting lsu.edu/cmda/ theatre. At BatonRouge Gallery Baton Rouge Gallery center for contemporary art, 1515 Dalrymple Drive Baton Rouge,isshowing theexhibit “Real-Life Experience:JuriedHigh School Exhibition” through May1 The exhibit features approximately 70 original works of art by public and private high school students in EastBaton Rouge Parish. Hours arenoon to 6p.m. Tuesday through Sunday.Admission is free. Call (225) 383-1470 or visit batonrougegallery.org.

PROVIDED PHOTO Don’tmiss theformal English gardens, greenhouse and fountain at the

in Monroe.

PROVIDED PHOTOFROMCITy PARK

By The Associated Press

Today is Sunday,April 6, the96th day of 2025. There are 269 days left in the year

Todayinhistory

On April 6, 1917, the United States entered World WarIasthe House joined the Senate in approving a declaration of war against Germany that was then signed by President Woodrow Wilson.

On this date:

In 1830, Joseph Smith and others met in Fayette, New York, to form theChurch of Christ —now known as The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

In 1862, the Civil WarBattleof Shiloh began in Tennessee as Confederate forceslauncheda surprise attack against Union troops, who beat back the Confederates thefollowing day

In 1896, the first modern Olympic games formally opened in Athens, Greece.

In 1954, Sen. Joseph R. McCarthy, R-Wis., responding to CBS newsman Edward R. Murrow’s broadside against him on “See It Now,” claimed in remarks filmed forthe program that Murrow had,inthe past, “engaged in propaganda for Communist causes.”

In 1968, 41 people werekilled by a pair of explosions spurred by anatural gas leak at asporting goods store in downtown Richmond, Indiana.

In 1994, Rwandan President Juvénal Habyarimana and Burundian President Cyprien Ntaryamira were killed when the jet they were riding in was shot down by surface-to-air missiles as it attempted to landin Kigali, Rwanda.

In 2012, five Black people were shot, three fatally,inTulsa, Oklahoma; Jake England and Alvin Watts, who admitted to targeting the victimsbecauseoftheir race, pleadedguilty to murder andwere sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Today’sBirthdays: Scientist James D. Watson is 97. ActorBillyDee Williams is 88. Film director Barry Levinson is 83. Actor JohnRatzenberger is 78. BaseballHall of Famer Bert Blylevenis74. ActorMarilu Henner is 73. Actor Michael Rooker is 70. Minnesota Gov.Tim Walz is 61. FootballHall of Famer Sterling Sharpe is 60. ActorPaul Ruddis56. Actor Zach Braff is 50. Actor Candace CameronBure is 49. Musician Robert Glasper is 47.

What’s theetiquette betweentwo doctors?

Dear Miss Manners: I’m aphysician,soIamusedtopeople addressingmeas“Dr.Jones.”

first name, or should Ialways address them as “Dr.Smith?”

That includes both patientsand nonphysician staff in thehospital where Iwork. Even out in public, if Irun into someone from thehospital, it is common for them to address me as “Dr.Jones.”

However,when Igotoamedical office as apatient, whether it is my primary care physician, the dentist, the optometrist or another specialist, they invariably address me by my first name. It is my impressionthat Iamnonetheless expected to address them as “Dr Smith,” whether in person or in subsequentcorrespondence.

What is the etiquette for apatientwho is aphysician addressingthe doctor providing care? Is it acceptable formetouse their

Dear Heloise: Reading the“Meatloaf Like Mama’s” letter really made me want to writeyou. To remind people of the letter,the reader has four boys/men, and shemakes agreat meatloaf. So, why didn’tshe teach themhow to make it?

Gentlereader: Did you just now notice this inequity? Or have you always addressed your patients with titles and surnames, since you expect them to use yours?

Because that is the rule. Respect should be reciprocal. It rarely is, in these situations. Doctors tellMiss Manners that they should be so addressed because they earned theright to that title, and that they use patients’first names tobefriendly and put them at ease.

Butpatients are also entitled to honorifics, just by virtue of being adult human beings. Furthermore, they do not consult doctors because they are looking to makefriends.

So these are formal situations, in which patients are in need of dignityand professional distance. As Miss Manners has pointed out,when people are friends, they either both have their clothes on or neither of

them do. Youcould use the ploy of responding in kind, using your physician’s given name. Or, slightly more tactfully,you could ask, “Shall we call each other ‘doctor,’ or do you prefer to use first names?”

Butthiswould only establish that you, too, are on that august level they assume. Youcould makeboth points by pleasantly saying, “I don’tcall my patients by their first names —itseems fairer andmore dignified to call them ‘Mr.’ or ‘Ms.’ Or ‘Doctor,’ as the casemay be.”

Dear Miss Manners: Is there a “best”or“correct” waytoseat couples at adinner party using place cards? My husband and Ienjoy speaking with other people, andwesplit couples up when we host. However,our friends seat couples together Should oneask couples in advance whether they’d prefer to be seated together or separately?Itseemsashamenot to

ask, since we would have liked to have been asked, but it puts guests on the spot forananswer Gentle reader: Why would you want to be seated together? Or asked another way, if you and your spouse wanttohave dinner together,why are you accepting an invitation to adinner party? It is the duty of guests to socialize with the hosts and other guests. The rule is to separate couples so that they can do so. They should not be asked, because no one wants to declare apreference forbeing apart. If there is acompelling reason (“My wife broke her arm and can’tmanage the fork”), the guest should declare it.

Sendquestions to Miss Manners at herwebsite, www missmanners.com; to her email, dearmissmanners@ gmail.com; or through postal mail to Miss Manners, Universal Uclick, 1130 Walnut St.,Kansas City,MO64106.

When Iread that “the oldestson is getting married and asked his future bride to get the recipe,” Itruly wondered why he did notget the recipe and learn howtocook ithimself. Are we still in the20th century? In fact, as amother,teaching your sons howtocook will make them more appreciate awoman who can cook for them as well. Idon’tmind some traditions, but isn’tittime for menand theirmotherstolearnthat their daughters-in-law are not servants? Let’snot assumethat the womanissupposed to do the household chores just because

she is female. In fact, if more mothers taught theirboys to do laundry,cook and clean, Ithink we would seemoreprogress in equality. —Jeanne H., via email Jeanne, Iagree withyou. There is no reason why cooking dinner shouldn’tbeashared experience. Ahusband can make the salad while his wife prepares something else. Whoever finishes first sets the table.And thereisno reason why agirl can’tbetaught to change atire or safely use a hammer,drill or sander.

Some women want tostick to traditional roles, but some do not. Ibelieve that we mustall learn to take care of ourselves because you can’talways depend on someone elsebeing there for you. —Heloise Forthe birdsand squirrels

Dear Heloise: Glen Allen, in Virginia, said he fed birds and squirrels bread. This is not recommended at all as it contains sugar, sodium and carbohydrates There’snonutritional value in

them. It is not digested well by them, and additionally,the bread can get moldy.Stick to seeds and suet. —Eileen F.,Glenwood, Iowa

Bingingonmunchies

Dear Heloise: Ialways had ahard time with my weight and just could not seem to stop binging on ice cream, nuts, pizza, chips, and other foods that Ididn’t need to eat. Idecided to sit down and make alist of “why Iwas overeating” and form abackup plan. Ibegan to realize what the triggers were: ajob Ididn’treally like, anger over manyofmy husband’s demands, and frustration with my children. It was timefor achange! Iquit my job and started my own business. (I love it!) Isat my husband down andhad avery frank discussion with him concerning what Iwould do and wouldn’tdo (including doing all the cooking and cleaning). Irefused to give my children money anymore and told them that as adults, it was time forthem to grow up and support themselves.

Believe me, I’m sticking to my plan. The results have been good. Inolonger weigh 187 pounds. —BarbaraB., St. Paul, Minnesota Barbara, manywomen often deal with their frustration, sorrow and anger by binge-eating. Glad to know that you’re doing better with the help of these hints! —Heloise Stretching outclothes

Dear Heloise: Frugal plumber here! Everyone likes to make

Ialso do this with my young kid’sclothes. Pants and shirts will last formonths and are longer forlength. —A.P., via

Judith Martin MISS MANNERS

Hints from Heloise

James Gunn predicts ‘Superman’ to the rescue

BY KRYSTA FAURIA Associated Press

LAS VEGAS — The 2025 box office has been hit with a deficit Can the James Gunn-dubbed “summer of ‘Superman’” save it?

Warner Bros showed off a diverse and starry slate of its upcoming films on Tuesday, but the night was carried on the shoulders of Clark Kent.

“I really do believe in this movie And I do believe that there is a lack of human kindness, or at least a degradation of human kindness,” Gunn said. “This is a movie that celebrates kindness and human love.”

At the annual CinemaCon convention and trade show in Las Vegas, Gunn — the director and writer of the first film in the new iteration of the connected DC Universe — brought out its stars, who gushed over their experience making the film.

“It’s a great honor to play a role that exists so clearly in the public consciousness, to the point where everyone I think, even if you haven’t seen a film or read a comic you sort of know what the Superman symbol means and you know what it stands for,” said David Corenswet, adding that he hopes to “illuminate something new about the character, or even just bring the beloved character to a new audience.” Corenswet was joined onstage by Rachel Brosnahan, who plays Lois Lane, and Nicholas Hoult, who plays Lex Luthor.

“James makes a family out of

TAILOR

Continued from page 1D

said. “I’m like, ‘I’m gonna start another clothing brand.’ And his response was, ‘You should get into the suit business.’”

To which Pearce replied “Dude, I don’t know anything about suits.”

The man said, “Well, I’ll teach you.”

So, Pearce spent several months zigzagging across the country, following the traveling tailor Along the way, he learned how to measure, the styling terminology, what goes with what and how to pair it with other pieces and patterns.

In the process, he fell in love with the business.

“I thought it was the coolest model I’d ever seen,” Pearce said.

Compared to the manufacturing business with “ridiculous overhead” and loads of W2 employees and the headaches that go with that, Pearce said the tailoring business seemed like a breeze.

Not to mention the lack of equipment to maintain.

“I don’t think a lot of people know this about manufacturing, but when one thing goes wrong, everything goes wrong,” Pearce said. “Every brand that we made clothes for, every retailer that we made clothes for one machine goes down, and they’re all in trouble.”

Versus the old tailor who had no inventory, no retail store, no lease and no employees and big margins.

Pearce says he was excited to go to work every day “I just remember thinking I could do something with this,” Pearce said.

Selling suits ‘in the swamps’

About that time, he moved to Baton Rouge to be with Anne Hawkins, who he eventually married.

CURIOUS

Continued from page 1D

Graves faced the church

“So, soon after, I’m sure the priest wanted the graves moved from the old graveyard to the new graveyard,” Olinger said “And if you think about it, the man who moved the graves dug them so they would be facing the church, which was north of the graveyard.”

Though this makes perfect sense, Olinger again reiterates that he has no proof of what the gravedigger was thinking. The only story that continues to circulate around the community, and even on the internet, is that the gravedigger wasn’t familiar with cemetery protocol, which led to the establishment of the Wrong Way Cemetery.

every set,” Brosnahan said. “The set is full of people who want to be there, who love making these movies. And it’s such a joy to come to work every day. As many of you have probably heard from other people, it’s not always like that.” Gunn was announced as the

film’s director in 2023, shortly af-

ter he and Peter Safran became co-chairs and co-CEOs of DC Studios. “We appreciate and share your passion for this art form,” Safran told a room full of theater owners. “It’s the fulcrum of our ambitious

He told her he was getting into the suit business.

“The joke became that if I could sell suits in the swamps of Louisiana, anybody could sell suits anywhere — and I could probably teach ’em how to do it,” he said.

“And that’s how we launched.”

He credits the idea of duplicating himself as part of his secret to success.

He sells franchises to others and teaches them how to do the measurements and other details related to helping a client choose all the elements related to a suit. Currently, he has 60 franchises or “territories,” as he calls them. Each goes through training to learn the art and science of measuring, styling and customer service.

North and south or east and west — does it really matter? Apparently so.

East-west tradition

In Christian tradition, bodies traditionally are buried facing east with tops of heads pointing westward based on an interpretation of Matthew 24:27 that Jesus’ second coming would be from the east: “For as the lightning comes from the east and shines to the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man.”

This custom also follows Judaic traditions, which dictate that the body be buried facing east in the direction of Jerusalem as soon as possible after death. In Islam, the body faces east toward Mecca. Before that, Pagan religions buried their dead facing the rising sun in the east So, the tradition wasn’t a new concept when the

Pearce Bespoke works with seven factories overseas to cut

gravedigger took on the assignment It’s obvious that he simply didn’t know

No sure way of knowing

“We have no way of knowing if the gravedigger dug the graves to face the church, but back then people didn’t have educations,” Olinger said. “And today there’s no way to research it. I don’t even know if the priest knew it was happening, but by the time it was discovered, it was too late. Everything was already pretty much laid out the way it is now.”

The cemetery’s 2,093 graves, most of which are above-ground tombs, now occupy a city block.

“The northeast corner is where the first graves were placed after they were exhumed from the original cemetery,” Olinger said. “That’s now known as St. Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery No. 1, but it’s full now So,

DC Studios slate and it’s what inspired James to shoot all over the world and push filmmaking technology to its limits, to propel moviegoers out of their homes into your theaters.” The film will be released theatrically in July amid a summer of

and sew the suits and promises some of the fastest turnaround in the world.

“We’re the first and only custom clothing franchise,” Pearce said.

“No one’s ever done it before.”

Respectful deadlines

Cole LeBlanc, a landman based in Lafayette and originally from Abbeville, has owned a Pearce Bespoke franchise for about a year The venture into Pearce Bespoke allows him to balance his longtime oil and gas business with his passion for clothes.

He works with two clothiers, both trained to measure and work with clients to design their suits, shirts and sportscoats.

“The franchise has good training protocols, training videos and support,” LeBlanc said. “From even what it was a year ago till now, it’s much easier to integrate a new clothier and get them off and running.”

A sports coat can range from $750 to $3,000, depending on fabrics and details. A suit starts at $1,000 and can go up to $5,000. Shirts are around $250, LeBlanc said.

“The average turnaround from order placement is about three to

superhero titles, including “The Fantastic Four: First Steps” and “Thunderbolts.”

In addition to “Superman,” Warner Bros. teased some of its April releases on the convention’s main stage, like Ryan Coogler’s “Sinners” and “A Minecraft Movie,” but they also looked further down the road for 2025.

In a nod to cinephiles, the studio kicked off its presentation by bringing out the stars of Paul Thomas Anderson’s “One Battle After Another,” including Leonardo DiCaprio and Regina Hall. The film is set to hit theaters in September

“I’ve been wanting to work with Paul for over, gosh, almost 20 years now. He’s one of the most unique talents of our time,” DiCaprio said. “With this film, he’s tapped into something politically and culturally that is brewing beneath our psyche. But at the same time, it’s an incredibly epic movie and has such scope and scale.”

Director Joseph Kosinski and producer Jerry Bruckheimer also treated the audience to an extended sneak peek of “F1,” Brad Pitt’s Formula One racing drama premiering in June. In addition to Hollywood studios and stars boasting the theatrical menus they believe will lure audiences to cinemas, the annual convention is also a time to discuss current industry debates, like how long movies should stay in theaters and the extent to which studios should get into production with streaming companies.

four weeks,” LeBlanc said. LeBlanc says that while the business “leans toward luxury,” it’s not exclusive to those with a high net worth.

“Customers who come to us appreciate what we do,” LeBlanc said. “It’s very intentional. We provide a service. We’re there to take care of a customer We’re not just selling them a garment.”

A balancing act

The company recently launched new technology that offers a 3D suit visualizer so clients are able to see what their suit will look like from every angle.

Pearce also recently named a new company president, Shafik Mina, who lives in Canada. Mina is a former franchisor who sold his company last year

“Anytime you can improve your board of advisers is a good thing,” Pearce said. “Shafik felt like a great fit for the company I focus on what I’m good at the visionary stuff, making sure that we’re growing so that we can continue expanding, the creative side of the business. I hire for what my weaknesses are.”

In the last few weeks, Pearce was in Michigan and back to Palm Beach, where he was measuring and working with clients, some of whom he met through Barron Trump.

Pearce is learning a lot about balancing his work with his family life.

Two events had a big effect on his work/life balance in January Not only did Barron Trump wear a Pearce Bespoke suit to the inauguration, but Pearce and his wife welcomed Lucy, their second daughter, to the world days before the inauguration.

The proud papa says Eliza, who is 2, enjoys doting on her baby sister

Good thing Pearce Bespoke makes women’s clothing too.

Email Jan Risher at jan.risher@ theadvocate.com.

Olinger said. “The sun is supposed to rise in the east at your feet, and that’s how they’re all buried there.” As for St. Joseph No. 1’s Ripley’s designated distinction of being the nation’s only north-south cemetery, Olinger said that no longer stands. “There have been other cemeteries that are northsouth that have been found around the country since then,” Olinger said. “But when Ripley’s did the piece on this one, it was the only one that was known at the time.”

there’s a new cemetery, called St. Joseph’s Catholic Cemetery No. 2, about a mile south of Rayne.”

Where do those graves face? “Oh, they’re all buried east and west there,”

Do you have a question about something in Louisiana that’s got you curious? Email your question to curiouslouisiana@ theadvocate.com. Include your name, phone number and the city where you live.

ASSOCIATED PRESS/INVISION PHOTO By CHRIS PIZZELLO

James Gunn, from left, writer director and producer of the upcoming film ‘Superman’; Rachel Brosnahan; Nicholas Hoult; and David Corenswet, cast members of the upcoming film, appear onstage during the Warner Bros. Pictures presentation at CinemaCon on Monday at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Nathan Pearce, CEO of Pearce Bespoke, and client Jayden Daniels at the Heisman Trophy event in 2023.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Trace young, wearing a Pearce Bespoke suit, is flanked by LSU standout athletes Flau’jae Johnson and Olivia Dunn.

STAFF PHOTO By ROBIN MILLER

The gravesites in St. Joseph Catholic Cemetery No. 1 in Rayne are positioned north and south instead of the traditional east and west, which earned it the nickname the ‘Wrong Way Cemetery.

Abbey Road’s historic Studio One carefully refurbished

Scores of songs were recorded there

BY HILARY FOX Associated Press

LONDON In Abbey Road’s Studio One, even a lick of paint could ruin everything.

Famous for hosting Adele, Harry Styles and U2, it’s where the scores of “Star Wars,” “Harry Potter” and “Wicked” were recorded, as well as the soundtracks of blockbuster games like “Call of Duty,” “Halo” and “Final Fantasy.” It’s also where Ryan Gosling delivered his memorable “I’m Just Ken” for “Barbie.”

Nearly a century after its opening, Studio One underwent a sixmonth, multimillion-dollar refurbishment, with the main priority being the preservation of one very important thing: the sound.

“What we don’t want to do is change the acoustics, so every minute detail in the room has been conserved and preserved, so the sound doesn’t shift,” said Sally Davies, managing director of Abbey Road Studios.

The reverb of the 4,844-squarefoot room has been maintained at 2.3 seconds, the same as it was in the 1970s. There’s been no redecorating or style makeover, leaving the original art deco wall panels untouched.

“We have simply washed down the walls to preserve that sound,” said Davies, adding that the floor was re-sanded and oiled, but not varnished.

Most of the upgrades, she explained, are technological upgrades in the control room. “This room is just about preserving that magic.”

A pilgrimage for music fans

Opened in 1931, this hallowed hall once a nine-bedroom house on a grand suburban street in London’s St. John’s Wood neighborhood became the world’s first recording studio.

It’s where stereo was invented and it’s visited every day by music fans from around the world, who are happy just to stand on the street outside.

Elgar, who recorded his “Land of Hope and Glory” with the London Symphony Orchestra. It’s also hosted other music greats like Maria Callas, Igor Stravinsky, Daniel Barenboim, Fats Waller and Glenn Miller

Due to its huge size, more than double Studio Two, it can fit a 100-piece orchestra and 100-member choir at the same time — which is perfect for recording film soundtracks, and explains why six to seven out of every 10 Hollywood films are scored at Abbey Road, according to the studio

History being made

whether a pink instrument or piece of clothing.

Oscar-nominated composer

Daniel Pemberton has been recording in Studio One since 2009 and calls his “creative home” a “spectacular space.”

“Outside, it just looks like a normal house. And then you come in and you find this space in it that’s like almost the size of a football pitch. In fact, I have played football in there once,” he laughs.

Pemberton is known for scoring “Spider-Man: Across the Spider Verse,” “Ferrari,” “The Trial of the Chicago 7” and creating the “Slow Horses” theme song and “Strange Game,” with Mick Jagger

“What’s so exciting about a room like Studio One is what happens on the day is what happens for the rest of time,” he says. “It’s like history is being made, whether it’s good history or bad history or whatever, you’re making a moment then.”

Pemberton notes the stories, whether personal or musical, that have unfolded within the walls of Studio One.

“The ghosts are insane in there,” he said.

Davies agrees that the history adds to the enchantment.

“You walk into this room and you can feel it. There is a magic in the sound It sounds phenomenal. There is a spirituality in who has been here, who has performed here,” she says. “So when we see artists come through, you know that immediate reaction of, ‘Oh my gosh. I’m in Studio One.’”

To celebrate the reopening last week, Abbey Road Studios showcased an unusual art form for the space: dance, which incorporated Pemberton’s scores, remixed by resident artist Jordan Rakei and choreographed by Joseph Toonga.

Davies says that more than a million people a year make a pilgrimage to the crossing outside, many to recreate the cover of The Beatles’ “Abbey Road” album and that number could increase after Sam Mendes’ upcoming biopics starring Paul Mescal, Barry Keoghan, Harris Dickinson and Joseph Quinn as the Fab Four And while John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr are famously known for using Studio Two, they also made history in the larger Studio One, which they used for the world’s first global live performance, a rendition of “All You Need Is Love” beamed to television sets around the world in 1967.

Standing on the balcony, overlooking the 40-foot-high room, Davies points out the original screen that was used to show “Raiders of the Lost Ark” (1981) while musicians played along to record the soundtrack.

Before The Beatles, Studio One had already cemented its place in music history, when it was opened by British composer Sir Edward

Since then, everything from “The Lord of the Rings” trilogy to Marvel’s “Black Panther” and “Guardians of the Galaxy” to “Barbie” were scored in Studio One.

For the last, all the musicians came in with something pink,

“It kind of like threw me back a bit like, wow, it really is big,” said Toonga of the first time he saw the studio. He then incorporated that feeling into a dance which spanned hip-hop, krumping and ballet.

Up next, the first client to record in Studio One since the refurbishment is a hush-hush Hollywood franchise.

But there are lots of secrets at Abbey Road.

‘Personal, political and wildly effective’ New Orleans poet debuts new collection

BY RIEN FERTEL Contributing writer

“Libre” by Skye Jackson, Regalo Press, 120 pages Skye Jackson’s debut poetry collection, “Libre,” leads off with a poem that, back in 2021, won her deserved acclaim.

The first lines of “can we touch your hair?” takes readers to a crowded Mardi Gras street scene.

“at the parades, everyone / wants to touch my hair,” Jackson writes, especially “two white women” who “try to convince me / that they love my hair.”

The pair gropes with their eyes, assures with honeyed appraisal, before disregarding personal boundaries and social norms by reaching out with unwelcome fingers, providing Jackson with the poem’s tense and terse finale: “then suddenly / just like my ancestors long ago, / i am pulled apart / soft / by pale hands / from all directions.”

Personal, political and wildly effective despite its brevity, “can we touch your hair?” wrestles with centuries of history in this present moment. It’s no wonder that former U.S Poet Laureate Billy Collins chose Jackson’s poem for inclusion in the Library of Congress’s Poetry 180 program, a project dedicated to encourage high school students to read one poem each day of the academic year For a young poet working on an MFA degree at the time, this was a significant triumph.

“Libre” is no less a success, a fiercely unwavering collection that heralds a major new talent Jackson, who was born in New Orleans, attended the New Orleans Center for Creative Arts and UNO’s Creative Writing Workshop and is presently a visiting writer and lecturer at Xavier University. She is a perceptive documentarian of her hometown’s past, present and future, its joys and pains

In “i remember,” one of the collection’s strongest poems, Jackson asks New Orleanians if they recognize the sounds of a gentrifying city under the scourge of blue bikes, Starbucks and European Wax Centers.

“do you hear that,” she asks, “it’s the sound of my mama’s voice / as she taps on the window glass / when we drive down burgundy / she points to a renovated row / of candy-colored shotgun houses / and says: / i remember / when only black people / lived over there.” Jackson has a gift for sticking the landing, as in this poem’s final lines: “gentrification is just / another word / for revenge get ray nagin on the prison phone / let him know that this chocolate city / has officially melted.”

A sequence of poems follows Jackson on an amorous interlude to Europe, where she and her lover haunt hotel rooms and museum galleries — assessing these spaces with a critical eye and often humorous tone. The museums provide the more provocative and fecund subject material. At the Musée d’Orsay, she judges Manet’s “Olympia” as a painting that “captured what appears to be / the first ever recorded side-eye / cast towards a white woman.”

In the marvelously titled “#medusawasblackyall,” Jackson sizes up Cellini’s famed bronze of Perseus holding the Gorgon’s severed head and sees herself in the sculpture’s reflection “once, long ago, / poseidon held a fistful / of my black locs / just like this,” she writes “picture a girl built pretty and open / like a temple, only to be destroyed. / be kind: you are looking at ruins / further ruined.”

The titles of her poems are often worth the price of admission. Always rendered in lowercase, like her lines of verse, these titles some-

times become mini poems themselves, revealing precursors that only hint at the thematic complexities to come. In “my dad doesn’t known how to fight the wasps in the mailbox,” a small-scale household calamity turns into a half-serious commentary on the state of modern America. After watching her father try and fail to chase the pests away, she offers the following: “don’t you know / we’re in a housing crisis / good real estate / is hard to come by.”

Note the complexity of layers that end “when the half black man i’m in bed with calls my hair nappy,” a mountain road crash of a poem, featuring numerous jackknife twists that can only culminate in catastrophe.

“i open my mouth to speak / (& want to say / to him / tell me again / how much / your white mother / loves you) / but instead / i say / my curls are beautiful / i love my hair / so quiet / that i can’t even / convince myself / of it / but he’s / already / fast asleep.”

Jackson is unafraid to honor her literary lineage. Lorraine Hansberry, Lucille Clifton, Elizabeth Bishop, Toi Derricotte, Claudia Rankine, Jericho Brown, and Charles Simic all receive shout-outs in these pages.

But she also doesn’t steer clear from those deserving of lyrical reprimands: the Vermont Uber driver who tells her only White people live in the area; a store manager who shockingly defends stocking her shelves with mammy paraphernalia (“but they sell, my dear skye / people buy them”); and even Faye Dunaway, in the deliciously titled “avoid your heroes / trust me.”

In that poem, as throughout this collection, an uncomfortable, racially coded encounter sets Jackson’s verses flowing. In two of the book’s final poems she details similar encounters with older White men at a literary seminar in Key West. Both woo and ultimately betray her trust with micro- and macro-aggressions that render her, at those exact moments, incapable of responding.

“you are holding back something inside you,” she writes after one experience. “you want to say things but you cannot say things.”

But she says them now, not holding back, weaving herself and her experiences into these poems. I can only hope that, no longer silent, she is as the title of her book insinuates free.

Rien Fertel is the author of four books, including, most recently, “Brown Pelican.”

Influential music artist Carl

Perkins was a king in his own right

BY BARBARA SIMS Contributing writer

“Carl Perkins,The King of Rockabilly” by Jeff Apter, Citadel, 240 pages

Carl Perkins was not the bestlooking singer in The Million Dollar Quartet, he ultimately did not sell as many records as the other three Elvis Presley Johnny Cash and Jerry Lee Lewis — and he’s not the best known.

But according to biographer Jeff Apter, Perkins was the most influential in the development of rock ’n’ roll, especially in the realm of rock’s signature musical instrument, the guitar And he wrote and performed the first rock anthem, “Blue Suede Shoes,” charting in the Top 10 in Billboard’s pop, country and rhythm-and-blues categories. Besides, he was arguably the nicest, maintaining strong friendships with Presley, Roy Orbison and Cash, and later rock stars, particularly George Harrison, but also Paul McCartney and Eric Clapton. Though alcohol had a grip on him for a time, addiction was not a major theme of his life. He married young and had the same devoted wife until death parted them. His sons joined him in later life to form a rockabilly band that enjoyed considerable success in the U.S. and Europe.

Judged by these and other standards, Perkins’ life may be considered the most desirable and successful among his Sun (Records) peers, though Presley has been crowned the king of rock ’n’ roll and Lewis contended he was the king. Apter has avoided this controversy by naming Perkins the king of rockabilly, which many critics consider the precursor of all rock music to come. Perkins, like Cash and many other poor country children during the Depression, picked cotton to help support his family from the time he was 5 years old. That such labor was required is illustrated by the fact that many rural schools in the South were not in session during “cotton picking time,” incidentally the name of a song by Cash. Perkins left school permanently at age 12 to work in the fields year-round and at 14, he and his two brothers formed a band that developed a following in the honky tonks in the area of his hometown, Tiptonville, Tennessee.

Apter recounts the story of Perkins hearing Presley on the radio in 1954 and, with a little push by his wife, traveling to Memphis, Tennessee, to seek an audition with Sam Phillips The head of Sun Records was impressed by his singing and guitar playing, as well as his songwriting, and lost no time in recording several sides by his band, including “Blue Suede Shoes.” This record was an instant hit and earned him an invitation to appear on Perry Como’s national radio program.

An auto accident that almost wiped out the band occurred as they were traveling to New York for the show By the time he and his brothers had recuperated enough to make the date, Elvis had covered “Blue Suede Shoes,” and Perkins’ bid for fame was seemingly lost forever Add to that the fact that Lewis had arrived at Sun and was occupying a great deal of the energy of Phillips and his brother/sales manager, Jud Phillips. After a few months of limbo at Sun, Perkins signed with Columbia Records and then a succession of other labels, none of which were able to help recapture the momentum of “Blue Suede Shoes.”

It was only with the British Inva-

sion that Perkins’ star began to rise again. Perkins was a hero to the Beatles, whose early recordings included Cash compositions “Glad All Over,” “Honey, Don’t,” “Everybody’s Trying to Be My Baby,” and “Matchbox.” Tours with the Beatles and the Rolling Stones were followed by an invitation by Cash to join his band as guitarist and sidekick. Appearing on ABC’s “The Johnny Cash Show” gave Perkins the visibility that heretofore has eluded him.

Apter depicts Perkins’ decision to leave the Cash entourage in 1974 as influenced by the death of his two brothers, one by suicide, and a desire to spend more time at his home in Jackson, Tennessee. But eventually it ushered in the most satisfying years of his life with the formation of a band with his two sons, the C.P Express. They quickly got bookings not only in smaller venues closer to home, but in New York and Europe. It was also a time of solidifying his friendships with his numerous musician friends in England, spending extended periods in the homes of Harrison and McCartney Another high point was the making of a Cinemax video shot live with Perkins and those he had grown to know since the debut of “Blue Suede Shoes” 30 years before. Appearing on the show were Harrison, Ringo Starr Dave Edmunds, Rosanne Cash and Clapton. Cash and Lewis sent testimonials.

Apter is clearly a Perkins fan and has undertaken an exhaustive exploration of the life of an innovative guitarist, songwriter and singer who learned his craft by working alongside Black sharecroppers who sang blues and rhythm-and-blues in the fields and listening to the spirituals and country music that surrounded him in Tennessee. No one individual did more to bring about the fusion of these elements to form a new music, rock ’n’ roll, than Perkins.

As an employee of Sun Records in the late ’50s, I had the honor of writing the liner notes to his first album, and I agree with Apter’s assessment. Perkins was not as striking in his performance style as others in The Million Dollar Quartet, but he was the most multi-talented, as a performer and singer, a fine rock guitarist and a songwriter He’s a pioneer who deserves respect both as an entertainer and a fine human being. A series of strokes led to Perkins’ death in January 1998. During his life or posthumously he was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and several similar musical institutions for musicians and songwriters. Both his farm upbringing and his honky-tonk experience ultimately led to his fusion of Black blues and rhythm-and-blues and the native country music he heard on the radio.

PAPERBACK

PROVIDED PHOTO

New Orleans poet Skye Jackson

commodity Hot ot

Asauna-based fitnesschain foundedinMarrero hassurpassed 750locations worldwide

BY RICH COLLINS Staff writer

It’sthe oldest cliche in the fitness industry: “No pain, no gain.” New Orleanian Stephen P. Smith has learned that lesson in multiple ways.

Aformer champion bodybuilder and arena football player,Smith has pushed his body to the limit in pursuit of athletic goals. He’salso an entrepreneur who launched asuccessful global brand before having to completely reinvent his business, which led to the launch of an even biggerenterprise.

The first venture, Planet Beach, is aglobal

BY BLAKE PATERSON Staff writer

son team that’sbecome expert at building brands and turning them into franchises, innovating when necessary

IDEAS INNOVATION &

chain of tanning salons that reached more than 350 locations worldwide before concerns about health risks stopped theindustry’sgrowth.

Thefollow-up— Hotworx—isaninternational fitness chain thatallowsusers to do yoga, Pilates or ride astationarybike in 7-foot-by-9-foot saunas heated to 125 degrees. In the eight yearssince itsdebut,the chain has racked up twice as manylocations as Planet Beach at its peak, and it achieved themilestone in half thetime.

Both businesses, along withseveral related ventures, are runfrom aheadquarters in Marrero, where Smith leads a90-per-

“You’ve got to refresh and reinvent all the time, andthatwill allowyou to grow,”Smith said. “I had this great core team from Planet Beach, and we were in this tough industry,” he said.“Butknowing that franchisingreally is our core competency,Iwanted to get them the right product.”

Anative of McComb, Mississippi, Smith opened his firstgym in nearby Oxford after he graduated from Ole Miss in the mid1980s. Work brought him to NewOrleans a few years later,where, in 1996, he andhis business partner, NancyPrice, launchedthe first Planet Beach tanning saloninastrip mall in Uptown.

The duo franchised the brand and, over ä See CHAIN, page 2E

“You’vegot to refresh and reinventall thetime, and that will allowyou to grow.”

of Hotworx

STEPHEN P. SMITH, founder

Landrygot amajor boosttowardhis $50 billion goal in March thanks to a one-twopunchofannouncements. First, Venture Global announced another $18 billion investment at its Plaquemines Parishfacility.Then, Hyundai announced its $5.8 billionsteel mill near Donaldsonville That puts Landry’s administration just $10 billion short of his goal of $50 billion in announced projectsbythe end of September Heading up Landry’seconomic development agenda is LED SecretarySusan Bourgeois. In an interview,she said the$50 billion goal Economic investmentscould

Standing at aWhite House podium last week after Hyundai announced plans to build amultibillion-dollar steel millinAscensionParish, Gov.Jeff Landry made abold prediction about Louisiana’seconomic fortunes Before thesummerisover, he said, his administration willhave announced $50 billion in new investments from businesses interested in settingup shop or expanding in thestate “That is arecord, Mr.President,” Landrysaid,peering over hisshoulder at President DonaldTrump. Indeed, it would likely surpass the best years on record in Louisiana. The state’sbest year for economic

development announcements was in 2023, when Gov.JohnBel Edwards’ administration touted $25 billion in newcapitalinvestments. That was the highest single-year total, according to Louisiana Economic Development’s annual report. The largest of those projectswas Venture Global’sannounced $7.8 billionexpansion of its liquefied natural gas export facilityin PlaqueminesParish. In 2024, during Landry’s first yearinoffice, Louisiana announced $16.1billion in new capital investments, according to LED. Most of thatcameinDecember,when Meta announced plans to build a$10 billion datacenter in north Louisiana

STAFFPHOTO By BRETT DUKE

Stephen Smith, whose first venturewas the global tanning salon chain Planet Beach, has pivoted intothe hot yoga industrywith Hotworx. Both businesses, along with several related ventures, are runfroma headquarters in Marrero

One Acadiana offering ReturntoLearnfunding

One Acadiana launched itsrebrandedscholarship program for students continuing their education at select post-secondary education institutions in Acadiana.

The organization announced the Return to Learn Scholarshipthat will go to students who are returning to school for either for their last semesters or after time away to help them graduate.

Scholarship oftengoout to students for their first year of college, leaving fewer opportunities exist for students continuing their education, One Acadiana officials said It alsoisseekingdonationsfrom regionalbusinesses to fund the scholarship and help reach agoal of awarding $15,000 in scholarships to local students across the region.

“When our students gain the credentials necessarytofill highdemandroles, our region thrives,” President and CEO Troy Wayman said. “This scholarship is adirect investment in our workforce by providing local studentswith the financial assistance needed to earn those credentials, settingthemup for opportunity and successherein Acadiana.”

Since the start of the scholarship programin2021, One Acadiana has awarded nearly $60,000 to more than 35 students across the region thanks to donations from business and communityleaders.

Students must be enrolled,fulltime or part-time, in afour-year degree program, two-year degree program, or one that qualifies for the M.J. Foster Promise Program. Students must also have aminimum 2.5 cumulative GPA(good academic standing) and meet the other requirements.

Scholarship applications are open until May 2.

Fast-growing FlyGuys makes Inc. 5000list

Lafayette-based Fly Guys was among the privately owned companies in Acadiana to make Inc. 5000’s list of fastest-growing companies in the southeastern U.S. FlyGuys, areality data capturing tech company with an office in downtown Lafayette, wasranked 97th on the list and was one of three from Acadianatomake it. It was noted for its 112% growthover the last two years. Others to make the list were Work Designs of Eunice (75% growth) and Brothers Services of Youngsville (75% growth).

The companies on this listshow a remarkable rate of growth across all industries, the report shows. Between 2021 and 2023, these 192 private companies had amedian growth rate of 114%;by2023, they’d also added 11,493 jobs and $8.1billion to the region’seconomy Parade of Homes to showcase latest trends

The AcadianHome Builders Association is holding its 63rd annual Parade of Homes from 1p.m. to 6p.m. Sunday and April 12-13. Theassociation will hold exclusive open house toursofthe latest

Fool’sTake: Step on the gas?

home design,architectureand interiordecoratingtrends at over 25 homes crafted by Acadiana’spremier builders. Each home on the tour highlights arange of architectural styles, floorplans, buildingmaterialsand landscaping, andmanyhomes are furnishedbylocal interior designers. The eventinspires every taste andbudgetfromcharmingstarter homes to expansive estates. “Itisanhonor to showcasethe incredible craftsmanship, innovation and dedicationofour local builders, who continue to elevatethe standard of living in Acadiana,” said Blake Romero, Parade of Homes chair. “Acadiana builders are deeply invested in the communities they serve and work tirelessly to create homesthat reflect theunique culture,style and valuesofAcadiana.

The ParadeofHomesoffersanopportunitytoexplore abroad range of beautiful homes in person, meet with ourbuilders and askthemimportant questions.”

Visitthe Parade of Homes mobile apponApple and Google Play for more, including an interactive map, detailed home listings, builder contacts and pricing information KLFY tolaunch streaming service

KLFY will launch astreaming service in April that will focus on local news, podcasts and interviews.

Stationmanager ChrisCookannounced it during aconversation with Jan Swift on the Discover Lafayette podcast. The service will be available on Roku, Amazon Fire and Apple TV as away for the station to reach audiences where they consume content

The stationKLFY first went on the air on June 3, 1955, and has been aCBS affiliate sincethat day

Anative of Alexandria, Cooks was aphotographer beforemoving to Lafayette. He talked with Swift about theevolving landscapeofTV news, the impact of local journalism and how KLFY stays connected with its audienceina fast-changing digital world.

NewWalk-On’sconcept to openinCarencro

Anew prototype of thepopular Walk-On’sBistreaux andBar will open in Carencro.

Baton Rouge-based franchisee TenEight ConceptsonThursday closed on thepurchase of the2-acre property near at 3500 N.E. Evangeline Thruway in front of theCenter Square shopping center forjust under $1 million, land record show Developer CarrolCastille was the seller.

The site will be part of anew concept for the brand that will include moreemphasis on deliveryorders and with adedicated to-go space and an expansionofits cateringoptions, reports indicate.

It’sthe latest addition to ashopping center that will later house a CLB Community Bank office anda 11,000-square-foot addition to the current building.

No tenantshave been securedfor the addition, said Clinton Shepard, commercial real estate agentwith Lee &Associates

CHAIN

Continued from page1E

Issued March 26toApril 1

Commercial alterations

BARBER: 608 N. Pierce St description, new barbershop; applicant, barbershop; contractor, Marshall Porter Construction; dollar amount notposted.

OFFICE: 1317 Surrey St., description, renovationofexisting metal building forphase 2ofHabitat forHumanity center renovation; applicant, Vermilion Architects; contractor, RomelEnterprises; $50,000.

OFFICE: 5750 JohnstonSt., description, renovationtoexisting office space and new conference room forGrayInsurance; applicant, MoliereChappuis Architects; contractor, NCM Contractors; $50,000.

OFFICE: 5750 JohnstonSt., description, partition and create additional space for Adley Services; applicant, Moliere Chappuis Architects; contractor, NCM Contractors; dollar amount not posted.

INDUSTRIAL: 102 Ibex Lane,Broussard, applicant, notlisted; contractor, Gleason Ledet Construction; $628,000.

CHURCH: 302 W. Main St Broussard, description, renovation and expansion of cafeteria; applicant, St.Cecilia School;contractor, ARL

INVESTMENTS

Continuedfrom page 1E

is “optimistic,but we believe we will achieve it, and hopefully very soon.”

At abudget hearing on Monday, Bourgeois told lawmakersthat her agency has three times as many projects in its pipeline as it did when she took over 14 months ago. Those aren’t“spaghetti on the wall” projects, she said. They’re projects that LED staff areactively working on.

“We’ve got areal shot at them, she said.

Ifall187ofthoseprojectscameto fruition,itwouldamountto$135billion in capital investments, she said.

Bourgeoissaidthe restructuring of LEDduring last year’slegislative session created workflows thathave allowed staff to moreaggressively pursue leads. She also saidMeta’sdecision to invest in the state “made people go,‘Wait, what’s happening in Louisiana?’”

There’sbeensomuchinterest, Bourgeois said she’sgiven her senior staff permission to start“saying no.” She told lawmakers thatif theydon’twant LEDtoturn down projects, they need to betterinvest in her agency

She’s askingthe stateLegislature for aone-time, $150 million allocation to create adedicated site development fundthat LED can tap into if, for instance, it needs to quickly finance anew road or rail spur to makeapropertymore desirablefor investors.She’s also asking for another $2 millionto hire adedicated “SiteCzar” and to develop asite-selection database. (The current site-selection website that LEDusesisownedby Entergy.)

Relocating,and stayingput

Last week, LEDunveiled anew economicdevelopmentstrategy —its first in morethan 15 years

even more results,” he said. “You sweat more,and your sweat has more detox.”

BUILDINGPERMITS

Construction; $1.3 million.

Newcommercial

RESIDENTIAL: 1310 EBroussard Road, SuiteM,description, townhome development for Villas at E Broussard; applicant, BHAArch; contractor, DSLD; dollar amount notposted.

RESIDENTIAL: 1310 EBroussard Road, SuiteB,description, townhome development for Villas at E Broussard; applicant, BHAArch; contractor, DSLD; dollar amount notposted.

RESIDENTIAL: 1310 EBroussard Road, description, townhome development for VillasatEBroussard; applicant,BHAArch; contractor, DSLD; dollaramount not posted.

RESTAURANT: 803 BertrandDrive, description, construction of Smalls Sliders that will includesitework, placement and connection of modular building to prepared foundation and building servicesand other details;applicant,Abrams Architecture&Design; contractor, Thomson Brothers Construction; $877,200.

RESIDENTIAL: 105 Marblehead Ave., description, 94 cottage-style buildingswithin largerdevelopment of Acadian Point;applicant,Level

that calls forgreater emphasis on fast-growing sectors like technology andlife sciences while also doubling down on legacy industries like energy and manufacturing.

Bourgeois said consultants who helped craft the strategy found “that people insideofLouisiana actually have aworse opinion of Louisiana than people outside of Louisiana.”

Bourgeois is seeking $15 million from the state Legislature to fund anational marketing campaign to convince businessesand “high-potential” talent to notonly relocate to Louisiana,but also to stay put.

Bourgeois said Louisiana also needs to adopt a“whole of government approach” to economicdevelopment, where LED is working side-by-side with agencies like the Louisiana Workforce Commission and Department of Transportation andDevelopment to attract and retaintalent. Bourgeois said that could be accomplished through an executive order

Bourgeois saidsuccess can’t only be measured in capital expenditures or job creation totals. It also hastotake into account the wages that workers will receive.

LED is expected to back aproposal in the upcoming legislative session for anew “high-impact” jobs incentive.

Jobs anddollars

Hyundai’sinvestment is expected to create 1,300 permanent jobs —morethan any other project announced in the last decade, according to data from Conway Projects, aconsultingfirmwhich tracks corporate expansions, provided by Leaders fora Better Louisiana, anonprofit economic development organization. According to LED, the permanent jobs Hyundaicreates will have an average salary of $95,000, slightly above the median household income of around $92,000 in Ascension Parish, according to federal data.

Construction &Development;contractor, none listed; $11 million.

RESTAURANT: 3204 E. Milton Ave., description, Whataburgerrestaurant construction; applicant, not listed; contractor, Edna Lumber; $800,000.

Newresidential

100 HEARTH ST.: ManuelBuilders, dollar amount not posted.

503 TRADITIONS DRIVE: Manuel Builders, dollar amount not posted

402 FLORES COURT: ManuelBuilders, dollar amount not posted.

604 GUNTER GRASS COURT: Hays Homes, dollar amount not posted.

110 REDFERN ST.: BaileyHome Builders, dollar amount not posted

100 SUBLIME ST.: Broussard, Provence Homes, $45,000.

118 STAR LANE, BROUSSARD: DSLD, $134,007.

701 SUMMERST.,BROUSSARD: DSLD,$142,077.

304 SUMMERST.,BROUSSARD: DSLD,$134,007.

222 TATUM LANE, YOUNGSVILLE: DSLD,$87,360.

302 AFTERGLOW LANE, YOUNGSVILLE: DSLD,$124,320.

111 EAGLESTON ST., YOUNGSVILLE: DSLD,$132,660.

Notall of theannounced investmentshavesimilarjobsnumbers attached. Venture Global’s$18 billion investment announced in March will createnonew permanent jobs, according to LEDdata. The LNG export terminal has also comeunder scrutiny from environmental advocacy groups for its impact on the surrounding communitiesand its contribution to greenhouse gas emissions.

Landry’seconomicdevelopment agenda faced its first major setback in the March 29 election, when voters rejected an amendmenttothe section of the state constitution that deals with taxes and budgeting. The governor argued theamendmentwould have made Louisiana’stax system more attractive to business investment. But the amendment faced atorrent of opposition from both religious organizations on the right who worried aboutlosing property tax exemptions and acoalition of community, social justice and advocacy organizations on the left who argued the 115-page amendmentwas too complicated and would result in amore regressive tax system.

Also, announced investments are one thing. Shovelsinthe ground areanother. Hyundaiand Meta both must clearregulatory hurdles before they can start building. Entergy’splantopower Meta’sdata center is already facing scrutiny from advocacy groups.

Nevertheless, LED’sefforts so far are winning bipartisanpraise from lawmakers.

“Thank yousomuchfor your leadership,” state Rep. Jason Hughes, D-New Orleans, told Bourgeoisatahearing Monday. “There is such arenewed sense of excitement across the state of Louisiana. Ithink everyone wakes up just wonderingwhatthe new big thing is going to be.”

EmailBlake Paterson at bpaterson@theadvocate.com.

Shares of Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) were recently down about 10% from their 2024 recordhighs. Exxon Mobil is one of the largest integrated energy companies on the planet, with amarket value recently topping $510 billion. The key to its business approach is diversification. Operating around the world, it produces oil and natural gas from onshore and offshore developments, transports these commoditiesthrough its midstream systems, and processes oil and gas at its chemical and refining plants. The company’sbusiness model and balance sheet are both built to survive swings in energy prices. Its relatively low debt load allows it to borrow during hard times to keep funding its business and supporting its dividend —which recently yielded asolid 3.4%. (The dividend, another attractive feature, has been hiked for 42 yearsina row.)

Exxon Mobilisa well-run energy company.Itwould be asolid addition for investors seeking energy exposure at today’sprices. But the stock has been cheaper, and the yield higher,inthe past. With uncertainty rising inthe energy patch, this could be aharbor in a stormy sea. Or,ifyou don’tmind waiting, it could also be agreat stock to keep on your wish list in case the energy market hits a trough. Alower price would mean an even higher dividend yield.

the next decade, saw it spread acrossNorth America. But there was troubleahead for the industry

As the number of tanning salons was growing, so was awareness of thehealth dangers of tanning beds,whichincrease therisk of skin cancer,accordingtothe World Health Organization and other experts. By 2010, when federal legislation added a10% tax to tanning services to discourageindustry growth, Smith knewthe venture couldn’t survive without major changes.

To adapt, Planet Beachbegan offering other services, like massage machines and“redlight facial therapy” but, nevertheless, was losingfranchisees.

“Itwas the dark ages of my career,” Smith said.

‘Sweat’equity

Then, in 2014, there was amoment of inspiration that changed everything While on vacation with several Planet Beach execs in Jamaica, Smith wasdiscussinghis loveof “hot yoga” with his business partner’shusband, Jerome Price, who suggested Smith figureout away to offer yoga classes in asauna.

Smith said he put down his rum drink and began brainstorming how the idea could work.

“Working outinaninfrared

sauna cuts down the time you do yoga to 30 minutes, and you get

After that vacation inspiration, Smith wentona deep dive into sauna technology,specifically infrared saunas, which useinfrared radiation to heat objects —and bodies—directly, rather than heating the air around them.

Atechie and tinkerer by nature, Smith sketchedupinfrared sauna designs, then found amanufacturingpartner in Chinatoinvestin the idea with him.

“Weboth rolledthe dice on each other,” he said. “Wedesignedit withher engineers, and she built the prototype, then shipped it directlytoatrade show in New York City.

In 2015 in New York, Planet Beach unveiled the first “Hot Box Detox”prototype. Based on the positive reception there,the company began adding infrared saunastosome of its remaining locations, wherethe results were promising.

“The saunas created more velocity,” Nancy Price said. “They brought members in multiple times aweek, versus once amonth for ateeth-whitening session or spraytan.”

Soon after,Smithand company decided theinfrared sauna concept needed to stand on its own and could useabetter name.

In 2016, they spent afew hundred dollars on aweb platform that crowdsources ideas for brand names and logos. The winning suggestion was thename “Heatworx,” which Smithlater changed to Hotworx. Thegym’s first freestanding lo-

cation opened in 2017 in Oxford, home to Smith’salma mater.Alocation soon followed in Marrero, true to the Hotworx team’s roots in the New Orleans suburbs. After those early store openings,the franchise really caught fire.

Healthyheat?

At Hotworx locations, gym members enter asauna that holds up to three people. Some saunas areset up forisometric work like yoga or Pilates; others contain exercisebikes or other equipment. Wall-mounted screensinside each sauna show instructional videos that lead members through 15or 30-minute exercise routines. Smith said thecompanyowns all its ownsoftware, along with itscustom email marketing platform and customer relationship managementsystem. It holdsa patent on the saunas and has apatent pending on arowing machine. The gym markets primarily to women,but about17% of its members are men, said Smith.

Exercising in heat increases thedetox effects of sweating and also hasa variety of other health benefits, said Smith, who said infrared heat also speeds up the metabolism and dilates capillaries to increaseoxygen supply.Hesaid this will increasewound healing andpotentially decrease inflammation. The success of the brand has been healing for Smith, who is relishing the chancetobuild a brand that doesn’t have thesame baggage as the tanning industry He likens the feeling of success to his emotional state whenenjoy-

ing one of his favorite sports. “It’slike freedom, man,” he said. “It’slike skiing on awide-open slope.”

Hotfranchise

Over thelast seven years, Hotworx has growntoroughly 750 locations nationwide —including 12 in greater New Orleans. Nearly 150 new locations opened last year alone. The first overseas Hotworx locations are open in Ireland, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, and the company recently signed agreements with franchiseeswho want to open locations in Canada and Mexico.

“I feel that this brand is going to be aratioof1 forevery 100,000 peopleinthe country,” Smith said “If you’ve got 1.1 millioninametro area, you’re going to have 11 locations, and that’show it turned out in Memphis, which was one of the first cities we really fully developed.”

Hotworx claimsmore than 250,000 members, manypaying a $59 or $79 monthly fee for various benefits.

Price said the memberships are the “bread and butter” of the company’sbusiness model.

Despite the rapid growth of the fitness brand, many New Orleanians have no idea it started in their hometown.

Smith said that’sbeen partly by design.

“The strategy has been to just do our thing, grow the brand, make sure ourfranchisees areprofitable, and eventually,people will take note,” he said.

EmailRich Collins at rich. collins@theadvocate.com.

Motley Fool

BUSINESS WITH BRIAN CLEMENT

Homebuilderpredicts$10,000 pricehikefor La.houses

BY TIMOTHY BOONE Business editor

The homebuilding industry has had arough fewyears.Inflation, soaring insurance premiums and aseries of interest rate hikes have conspired to keep existing homeowners on the sidelines and firsttime buyers out of the market altogether

BrianClement has heard the complaints from south Louisiana homebuilders for severalyears now.Hefeels their pain. He’sthe Louisiana state representative withthe National Home Builders Association and apast president of theLouisianaHomeBuilders Association. Clement is also aveteran of the housing industry with more than 25 years experience.Heco-owns CA Homes in Lafayette with his father-in-law, BobAustin.CA Homes builds upper-end houses in the $800,000 to $1.1 millionrange. It also develops subdivisions and sells lots to other builders. In this week’sTalking Business, Clementdiscusses the stateofthe local homebuilding market, what he thinks tariffs will do tothe cost of building materials and what steps he would like to see Congress take to help out the industry Comments have been edited for length and clarity What is the homebuilding market likeright now in south Louisiana?

It’ssoft right now.There is starting to be abuildup of inventory, but the interest rates have kept people on the sidelines. We have a lot of people looking at houses, but we just can’tseem to get anybody to pull the trigger on buying’em. I think it’sthat rates are just alittle out of their reach right now.We feelthe demand is there. We just can’tget these buyers in ahouse right now Interest rates haven’tdroppedenough?

Not quite. Idid see yesterday there was a5.99% for a30-year conventionalloan. We’reunder 6%, so there’shope.Ithink if it settles in around 5.5%, we could probably start making some things work. Iwould like to see theprice of material comedown some. That

wouldreallyhelp. Thecostof housing is an issue. We sawabig jumpinhousing prices in 2021, 2022. Those costs really haven’t comedown much

What areyou hearing from builders? They see alot of foot traffic, but they’renot getting them to sign contracts andget ‘em over the finish line.They have open houses, theyhave great turnouts, serious buyers. They’re even getting some to comeback two andthree times They’recoming back with tape measuresand placing furniture and then they kind of disappear

Thebuyer’sagentssay,“Look,they were rightthere ready to do it,but at thelastminute theychanged their mind. They’re going to wait andsee.” We’rethinkingitall has to do with interest rates

Are youconcernedabout building materialcosts goingup? Iknow there’salot of concernaboutthat with tariffs.

We are concerned. Housing costs are already high. Iknow that they talked about 25% tariffs on our National HomeBuilders board. They estimated that those tariffs on soft lumber alone would increase the price ahouse between $7,500 and $10,000. That’sa big hit if that numberholds true. We are seeing the price of oil, gasolineand diesel tapering down some.Hopefully that helps with transportation costs. Maybe we’ll get some relief from that.

Is insurance afactor in allthis?

Yeah,it’safactor.Whenpeople look at homes, you have to add that into your monthly costs.Thatwas never an issuebefore, but now it is. Your business is primarilyinAcadiana, but do you see anysortofdifferencesamongthe homebuilding markets in south Louisiana? Isit on the state board. Italk to alot of guys across thestate. That sentiment is prettymuch the same

statewide as here in Acadiana. They seethe same things we’re seeing here.

In New Orleans, they’re using a method of putting on aroof called fortified roofing, and Ithink that has given them somerelief with insurance. Ithink that’skind of helping those guys.

Arethereany thingsthat give you signs of optimism about what’s going on in the market?

At thebeginning of the year,the mortgagerate wasabout 7.5%. It’s been trending down, like yesterdaywas 5.99%.The interest rates arestaying the same, but mortgage rates are moving down. So I think we’re getting there. It looks likethe economy is positioning itselfwhere it’sgoing to correct that mortgage rate to get it where people can afford it. We see agood opportunity coming up in the short future. How are things looking forCAHomes this year?

We’reinupper-end market right now. We’rebuilding homes that sell for between $800,000-$1.1 million. We’re hoping to do probably seven or eight of those this year compared to fivelastyear. Some are spechomes andsomeare custom homes. In the smaller home market,the cost of materials and the interest rates kind of pushed

those customers to the sideline, and we stopped building those and got into the bigger homes. In the higher-end market, alot of the buyers are cash buyers, so the interest rate is not really afactor,which helped us alot in that market. Do you see anythingthat could be done on thestate or federallevel to makethings easier forbuilders?

Yeah,the newenergy code that cameout. (The American Innovation andManufacturingAct, which was passed by Congress in 2020, phases down the use of existing refrigerants and establishesrequirements for new refrigerants with alower carbon footprint.) We really need alot of help with that. The cost of air conditioning is almost as expensive as the cost of framing ahouse because of the new code. That has really hampered us alot. That’sbeen atough one to deal with.

What does that involve?

It’s different types of Freon that we have to use that is alot more expensive. It’sadifferent type of unit that will receive that Freon. Our nationalguy figuredthatcost between $20,000 and $30,000 per house just to have the other energy code.

Email TimothyBoone at tboone@theadvocate.com.

The Louisiana Menhaden Industry: An Economic Engine for CoastalCommunities

Thisarticle is brought to youbythe Louisiana CommercialFishing Coalition LLC

Formorethan acentury,Louisiana’s commercialmenhaden fishery has been apillar of the state’s coastal economy, providing stable jobs,sustaining businesses, and fueling essential industriesworldwide. From the Gulf waters to global markets,menhaden fishing supports communitiesand industriesthatrely on its valuable marine ingredients –fish mealand fish oil –for aquaculture, petfood, and human nutrition.

Leading the industry,OmegaProtein andits fishing partner Ocean Harvesters, along with Daybrook Fisheries and its fishing partner Westbank Fishing,operate one of the largest and most productive fisheries in America. Theirwork transforms Gulfmenhaden into highvalue products thatdriveinnovation and sustainabilityacrossmultiple industries.

AVital Industryfor Louisiana

More than fishing, the menhaden industry drives the economyand supports communities:

•$419M annual economicoutput

•2,000+ direct &indirect jobs

•$25M in state &local taxes

•$50K+ annual wageswithbenefits

Thesewell-paying jobs,particularly in rural areas, sustainLouisiana’s working coast through multiple generations. In a state wherecommercial fishing is deeply

woven intoour culture, themenhaden industryensures that economic opportunityremains arealityfor coastal families

Regional Economic Impact Together,OmegaProtein and Ocean Harvestersgenerate well over $100 million in economicactivityannually, benefiting Vermilion Parish and surrounding areas.With aworkforce of morethan 260direct and skilled employees,thesecompanies provide stable, high-wage jobs,offering morethan $21 million in annual payroll and benefits –making them among thelargest and highest-paying employers in theregion. Likewise, Westbank Fishing, aLouisianabased, U.S.-owned company,plays avital role in Plaquemines Parish, with all its catchprocessed locally at Daybrook FisheriesinEmpire, LA. Together,these operations support over400 employees, making it the largest employerinsouthern Plaquemines Parish.In 2023,total employee compensation, including wages, bonuses,and benefits, reached $36.5 million,

underscoring the industry’s critical economicrole in theregion. Statewide, the Louisiana menhaden industry procures goodsvalued at over $62.4millionfrombusinessesin32 parishes.Beyond its coreoperations in Plaquemines($11.4million) and Vermilion($7.4 million) parishes, significantindustry-relatedexpenditures

flowinto: JeffersonParish ($6.4million) Terrebonne Parish ($6 million),Lafayette Parish ($5.9 million), OrleansParish ($3.7 million),East BatonRouge Parish ($3.5 million) and Lafourche Parish ($3.2 million), among others Additional parishes benefiting from over $1 millionin industry-driven spending include St.Mary,St. Martin, Calcasieu, Iberia,St. Tammanyand St.John the Baptist.Many othersreceive between $500,000 to $1 million, reinforcing howthe menhaden industry fuels localeconomies farbeyond coastal fishing communities This widespread economic footprintin Louisiana underscores the industry’s vital role in creatingjobs, supporting small businesses, and

sustaining Louisiana’s working coast statewide.

CommitmenttoSustainability and Innovation

When theLouisiana menhaden industry thrives,sodoour coastal communities.Weare committedto both economic growth andresponsible stewardship of ourunique coastal environment. Ourworksupports:

•A science-driven approach to fisheries management, ensuring responsible harvest levels and minimalenvironmental impact

•Long-term jobstabilityfor generations of fishingfamilies

•Innovation in marineingredient production to improve nutrition worldwide

Louisiana’s menhaden industry has long-balancedeconomic prosperitywith responsible stewardship of our marine resources.Through science-based managementand ongoing innovation, we remain committedtosustainable fishingpractices that protect ourwaters, support ourcommunities,and drive economic growth.Aswelook to the future, this industry willcontinue to provide stablejobs, strengthen local businesses, anddeliver essentialproducts that powerglobal nutrition—ensuring that Louisiana’s working coast thrives for generations to come.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Brian Clement is co-owner of CA Homes in Lafayette and the Louisiana staterepresentativewith the National Home Builders Association.

LOUISIANA

Returning as afirstpatient

Howbodydonationworks in Louisiana

BY EMILYWOODRUFF Staffwriter

When MichelleMoore’smom, Betty, was diagnosed with ALS at age 64, the progress of the disease wasswift and devastating.Bythe time she moved in with her daughter in New Orleans in 2018 —about nine months into her diagnosis—she was in apower wheelchair and communicated throughtextmessaging.

Faced with the inevitable progression of an illness thathad stolen her independence, Moore said sheand hermother focused on what they could control.

“Wecouldn’tchange what was coming,” Moore said. “So how do we make the most of the time we have, and not let life go to waste?”

For her mother,that answer came in the form of body donation. Ahospice worker mentioned it to her as an option, and shelatched on to the idea as away shecould stick around for alittle bit longer,servingapurpose.

“This disease takes so much away from you,” Moore said.

“But if someone else can learn somethingbecause of her life —literally her body —then that would be wonderful to contribute to.”

In Louisiana, programs at LSU and Tulane accept whole-body donations to train future doctors, scientists, dentists and other medical professionals. Unlike organ donation, which typically benefits asingle recipient, body donation serves abroader educational mission, training

PROVIDED PHOTO

After beingdiagnosed withALS at 64

Betty McCloud Bacon decided to donate her bodytoscience through LSU.

medical professionals with hands-on experience.

The firstpatient

In amorgue on Perdido Street in New Orleans,bodies storedinfreezers at LSU Health Sciences Center have abig job ahead of them:They will be thefirst patient of new medical students, the silentteachers guiding them through the

fundamentals of human anatomyand clinical care.

Each year,LSU Health NewOrleans receivesabout 250 donated bodies that areusedfor gross-anatomy labs for firstyear medical students, surgical training for residentspracticing procedureslike knee replacements or spinal fusions, ultrasound-guided needleinsertion training, and hands-on workshops for emergency medicine and traumacare simulations. The impact of asingle donationisfar-reaching, said Jay Mussell, aprofessor in the department of cell biology and anatomy

“Oneindividualmay provide training for 100 different people,” Mussell said.

That reach,Mussellsaid, comeswith a great responsibility

“Truly,noone will ever be moreintimate withaperson’sbody than those of us doing gross anatomy courses,” said Mussell. “AndIdon’ttake that lightly.”

LSU students hold amemorial forbody donorsafter the completion of their course.

The ceremonies are meant to honorthe individuals whomadethe donation and acknowledge the profound educational gift they gave.

“The day of memorialization is really not about (the students) at all,” he said. “It’sabout understanding howyou stand on theshoulders of giants andhow you have to acknowledgethe individuals that enabled you to have that personal growth.”

ä See DONATION, page 2X

Technology canhelp personalize sleephealth

N.O. doctor details advancements

BY MARGARETDeLANEY Staff writer

Dr.Michael Darin is asleep doctor and director of sleep medicine at Ochsner Baptist in New Orleans. He thoughthewas having good sleep, until he got the Oura Ring.

The smart ring, developed by a Finnish company,tracks sleep, activity and body signals like heart rate, providing personalized insights into health and wellness throughanaccompanying app Theringrangesinprice from around $200 to $500.

Marketcompetitors include similarrings designedtomonitor sleep by Samsung, Ultrahuman, Amazfit, Ring AIR, RingConn and others.

“It’sreally interesting that most of us think we have someidea of what’sgoing on in oursleep,” Darin said. “The truth is, we have no idea. On average, 40% of Louisiana adults reported sleeping less than seven hoursina 24-hour period, according to America’sHealth Rankings analysis of the Centers forDisease Control and Prevention’s2022 Behavioral Risk Factor SurveillanceSystem.

The primary indicators of bad sleep are present the morning after: Howlongdopeople stay awake?Whatdotheyremember from the night before? How many timesdid theywake up?

New technologies, including devices like the Oura Ring that monitorheartrates,breathing levels and more, can moreaccurately determine sleep health —and the best waytofixit.

Howmuchshouldpeoplesleep?

To give people an accurate number of hours for each person to sleep is counterproductive to getting better sleep, according to Darin.

According to the American AcademyofSleep Medicine, nearly 70 million Americans have asleep disorder.

Insomnia is the most common, with30% of adultsexperiencing short-term insomnia (when going to sleepbecomes difficult aftera traumatic eventorfor ashort period of time) and 10% of people experiencing long-lasting insomnia (persistent difficulty falling asleep foroverthreenights a week for threemonths).

“Discussing the number of hours of sleep is not so much to tell people to try to get more sleep,” Darin said.

“If they trytofollowthe exact recommendations, mostlikely all it’sgoing to do is makethem more anxious.

Between seven to nine hours of sleep anight is generally believed to be the ideal range to maintain sleep health, but not everyone needsthe same amount.

ä See SLEEP, page 3X

HEALTH MAKER

New drug can extend life expectancy, BR doctor says

Pancreatic cancer treatment can add months for patients

BY MARGARET DeLANEY

Staff writer

Dr William Russell specializes in radiation oncology in Baton Rouge. He graduated from the University of Mississippi School of Medicine in 1984.

Russell is double-board certi-

fied in internal medicine and radiation oncology served six years in the U.S. Army and 16 years in the U.S. Air Force, and taught internal medicine at Wilford Hall Air Force Medical Center

He currently has interests in prostate brachytherapy and conformal treatment planning for breast, lung, prostate, head and neck and gastrointestinal cancers at Ochsner MD Anderson Cancer Center

Most recently, Russell has worked to bring Pluvicto to Baton Rouge — a federal Food and Drug Administration-approved, breakthrough medication for

patients with advanced prostate cancer that has spread to other parts of the body

The medication could be lifechanging for many patients in Louisiana, where prostate cancer remains the most common type of cancer in the state.

Nationally, about 1 in every 8 men will be diagnosed with prostate cancer in their lifetime, and Louisiana’s rate is 32% higher than the national average. What is the current level of care and treatment for prostate cancer?

Prostate cancer is obviously a very common cancer in men, and it’s more prevalent as men get older

Usually men with prostate cancer are treated with either surgery or radiation. In rare cases, some other outliers that are used, such as cryotherapy and partial-prostate treatments, but the majority of men who have prostate cancer will not die from the disease.

There are a group of men (about 1 in 44), either despite local treatment or who already present with metastatic disease, are likely to die of their prostate

cancer With prostate cancer, we just need to know who needs to be treated. We have a variety of tools at our disposal now

Over the past decade, how have prostate cancer detection technologies improved?

The use of MRI for prostate cancer detection and the use of a scan called a PSMA PET scan have changed the game in prostate care.

We’ve also begun to move the dial with genetic testing — not the gene test people get in their blood, looking for a risk of cancer This test is actually an analysis of their prostate cancer, their genetics and how likely this disease is to progress and cause pain and suffering.

I have a lot of patients with prostate cancer who don’t need radiation or surgery We just follow their progress. But when men start having higher risk factors, or they have imaging evidence of disease, that’s worrisome.

The surgeons have gotten very good at surgical resection for prostate cancer — radiation oncology has come a long way

When I came to Louisiana from

Researchers seek to prove treatment delays symptoms of Alzheimer’s

BY LAURAN NEERGAARD and SHELBY LUM Associated Press

An experimental treatment appears to delay Alzheimer’s symptoms in some people genetically destined to get the disease in their 40s or 50s, according to new findings from ongoing research now caught up in Trump administration funding delays.

The early results — a scientific first — were published Wednesday even as study participants worried that politics could cut their access to a possible lifeline.

“It’s still a study but it has given me an extension to my life that I never banked on having,” said Jake Heinrichs of New York City

Now 50, Heinrichs has been treated in that study for more than a decade and remains symptom-free despite inheriting an Alzheimer’scausing gene that killed his father and brother around the same age If blocked funding stops Heinrichs’ doses, “how much time do we have?” asked his wife, Rachel Chavkin. “This trial is life.”

Two drugs sold in the U.S. can modestly slow worsening of early-stage Alzheimer’s by clearing the brain of one of its hallmarks, a sticky gunk called amyloid. But until now, there haven’t been hints that removing amyloid far earlier — many years before the first symptoms appear — just might postpone the disease.

The research led by Washington University in St. Louis involves families that pass down rare gene mutations almost guaranteeing they’ll develop symptoms at the same age their affected relatives did — information that helps scientists tell if treatments are having any effect.

The new findings center on a subset of 22 participants who received amyloid-removing drugs the longest, on average eight years. Long-term amyloid removal cut in

drug

half their risk of symptom onset, researchers reported Wednesday in the journal Lancet Neurology

Despite the study’s small size, “it’s incredibly important,” said Northwestern University neuroscientist David Gate, who wasn’t involved with the research.

Now participants have been switched from an earlier experimental drug to Leqembi, an IV treatment approved in the U.S., to try to answer the obvious next question

“What we want to determine over the next five years is how strong is the protection,” said Washington University’s Dr. Randall Bateman, who directs the Dominantly Inherited Alzheimer’s Network of studies involving families with these rare genes. “Will they ever get the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease if we keep treating them?”

Here’s the worry: Bateman raised money to start that confirmatory study while seeking National Institutes of Health funding for the full project but his grant has been delayed as required reviews were canceled. It’s one example of how millions of dollars in

Chapel Hill, North Carolina, we were the first center to set up three-dimensional treatment planning. That was a huge leap forward.

We have gotten better at understanding who needs to be treated, better at confining the treatment to the areas we want to treat, avoiding the organs we don’t want to injure and have a better understanding of the biology of cancer

I remember seeing early PET scans at Chapel Hill in the early ’90s. Duke was one of the centers that worked on it. We were able to see cancer in cells and areas that appeared structurally normal.

In other words, everybody could understand better what stage their cancer really was. But, even though we have gotten better at this, there are still men who develop metastatic disease.

Tell me how the new cancer drug Pluvicto, works.

Pluvicto was recently approved by the FDA for men whose prostate cancer has not responded to standard treatments. It works by finding and attacking cancer

DONATION

Continued from page 1X

Not all body donation programs have maintained that standard.

High-profile scandals at other institutions — including one involving a Louisiana man whose remains were dissected before a paying audience at a for-profit event — have raised questions about how donated bodies are used and whether families can trust what happens after death. LSU has had some donors question the process following such incidents at other institutions, officials said. Louisiana is a first-person consent state, meaning individuals must register themselves to donate; next-of-kin donations are rare and heavily vetted. LSU also returns cremated remains to families, which is not guaranteed by every program. How does it work?

cells while leaving healthy cells alone, which can mean better results and fewer side effects.

Pluvicto is given intravenously once a week for six weeks (six doses). It’s a drug that is needed for a small group of men where therapy hasn’t worked, who only have disease we can see on a PSNA PET scan (a scan that allows us to see metastatic prostate cancer with a very high degree of specificity).

For that group of men who reached the point where they were resistant to therapies, this drug was able to prolong their lives by eight months, according to the initial studies.

Eight months doesn’t sound like much, but it does if you’re looking at a potential one-month lifespan with cancer.

While not a cure, Pluvicto offers hope helping to extend life expectancy and slow tumor growth for men in our area who are battling advanced prostate cancer

Email Margaret DeLaney at margaret.delaney@theadvocate. com.

Rodrigue’s own mother signed up to be a body donor in 1981. She used to joke that students would “have a lot of fun with her” because of all her ailments.

“She loved the idea of being able to come here and have students work on her as their first patient,” Rodrigue said. Families can expect to receive the cremated remains around three years after death. There is no cost to donating, unless the donor is more than 200 miles outside of LSU, in which case the family would need to cover transportation costs. For some, potential savings in cremation costs may be a draw, though the university takes care to prevent financial incentive from becoming a motivation for donation.

While they are meeting current needs, additional donors would allow LSU to expand educational opportunities, such as allowing fewer students per cadaver or providing more specimen availability for advanced training, Rodrigue said.

research have been stalled as NIH grapples with funding restrictions and mass firings.

At the same time, researchers wonder if NIH will shift focus away from amyloid research after comments by Dr Jay Bhattacharya, who was confirmed March 25 as the agency’s new director

“One of the reasons I think that we have not made progress in Alzheimer’s, as much as we ought to have, is because the NIH has not supported a sufficiently wide range of hypotheses,” Bhattacharya told senators, responding to one who brought up an example of earlier science misconduct unrelated to current research.

Scientists don’t know exactly what causes Alzheimer’s a minddestroying disease that affects nearly 7 million Americans, mostly late in life. What’s clear is that silent changes occur in the brain at least two decades before the first symptoms — and that sticky amyloid is a major contributor At some point amyloid buildup appears to trigger a protein named tau to begin killing neurons, which drives cognitive decline.

Each donor’s use is determined based on their condition That determines if they will be embalmed and used long-term for dissection or frozen and used in advanced clinical training for residents or faculty performing procedures that require a realistic tissue feel, such as pelvic floor reconstruction. If a donor body wasn’t found until a day or two after death, the program may not be able to use it. Certain infectious diseases, such as MRSA, some types of hepatitis and HIV also preclude donation, said Tara Rodrigue, program administrator of the Bureau of Anatomical Services at LSU School of Medicine. A high body mass index that exceeds storage tank limits can also disqualify a donor. What happens after death depends on the circumstances. If a donor dies at home, the coroner is sometimes involved; any case requiring an autopsy or involving trauma such as a gunshot wound or car accident, typically disqualifies the body If the death occurs under hospice or in a hospital, a medical professional contacts LSU to begin screening. Rodrigue’s team reviews the donor’s medical history to determine eligibility. Once accepted, LSU’s contracted funeral home retrieves the body and brings it to the morgue, where staff assess its condition and decide whether to embalm it for longer-term use or freeze it for shorter-term clinical training.

‘Your second job is done’ Near the end of her life, Rodrigue’s mother developed Alzheimer’s. She wasn’t able to have meaningful conversations with her But body donation was something her mom had talked about for decades. Seeing it through gave Rodrigue peace.

“I grew up knowing that she always wanted to be a donor, and so that’s the one thing that I feel that I was able to do, was make that happen,” Rodrigue said. Similarly, Michelle Moore felt body donation was part of her mom’s legacy Betty was someone who always wanted to keep busy who worked as long as she could through her ALS diagnosis, and whose friends and family knew her to be humble and always looking to be helpful to others.

Two years after LSU’s contracted funeral home came to get her mom after she passed away Moore received a call that her mom was “ready for pickup.” She went alone to retrieve the ashes, which were placed in a box inside a bag. She placed the box in the front passenger seat of her car, talking to her mom and chuckling to herself over the reunion.

It was, she said, a moment of a sense of completion for both of them — “like your second job is done.”

Email Emily Woodruff at ewoodruff@theadvocate.com.

WE WANT TO HEAR FROM YOU

The Louisiana Health section is focused on providing in-depth, personal accounts of health in the state.This section looks at medical innovations, health discoveries, state and national health statistics and re-examining tried and true methods on ways to live well.

Health editions will also profile people who are advancing health for the state of Louisiana. Do you have a health story? We want to hear from you. Email margaret.delaney@ theadvocate.com to submit health questions, stories and more.

Jake Heinrichs prepares for his March 12 infusion treatment with an experimental anti-amyloid Alzheimer’s

ASSOCIATED PRESS PHOTOS By HEATHER KHALIFA

Jake Heinrichs hugs his wife, Rachel Chavkin, on March 12 at their home in New york. Heinrichs is part of the study of an experimental treatment that appears to delay Alzheimer’s symptoms.

Eat Fit Live Fit

BROUGHT TO YO UB Y

Cautionary tales: Howmuchshould youtrustthatwellnessinfluencer?

Iseeiteveryday:socialmediafeeds filledwithadvicefrompeoplecalling themselvesnutritioncoachesorwellnessgurusbutwhohavehadnoformal educationorcrediblefoundationinthe field.Theysharepersonalstories,often dramaticoremotional,andpromisequick fixesforeverythingfromweightstruggles tochronicillnesses.

Whensocialmediaalgorithmsserveup wildlypersuasiveself-appointed“experts” playingtoourvulnerabilitiesandfears,it canbedifficulttodiscernwhatislegitimatecontentandwhat’sjustunchecked self-promotion.

Letmeclarifysomethingrightupfront:I havealotofrespectformanyholisticand complementaryapproaches.Functional medicinetherapiescanabsolutelyhavea placeinourwellnessjourney—provided theycomefromcredentialed,welltrainedprofessionals.Infact,Ioften findmyselfworkinginthat“middle space,”embracingbothtraditionaland integrativetherapies.Iamgratefulfor conventionalmedicineandthetalented, dedicatedproviderswhopracticeit.I alsoseethevalueofnaturalapproaches andtargetedsupplementswhenthere’s soundevidencebehindthem.

Thatisthekey differencethat deservesour focus.Licensed experts—bethey medicaldoctors,dietitians, chiropractors oracupuncturists—havealot morecredibility thanunregulated influencerswho mayhavelittle tonoapplicable educationor oversight.

Arecent NewYorkTimes article illustrated how many online personalities promote wellness tests or therapies that lack credible backing. Some influencers may haveundisclosed financial ties to the products they promote, conveniently sidestepping vital conversations about potential downsides or scientific uncertainty.

Documentingdeception

Addingtotheconversationisthe Netflixdocuseries“AppleCiderVinegar.”It chroniclestheself-spunsagaofBelleGibson,anAustralianwellnessinfluencerwho claimedtohavecuredherterminalbrain cancerthroughdietalone.Spoileralert: sheneverhadcanceratall,noranyeducationorcertificationsinthefield.Gibson’s

BY THENUMBERS

radiantsocialmediapresence,cookbook andrecipemobileappluredinmillions whoweredesperatelysearchingforhope, butherentirepremisewasalie.

Whilethisisanextremestory,itcan serveasacautionarytaleremindingus howquicklymisinformationcanspread andharmthosewhotrustitblindly.

Goodadviceorjustagoodstory?

Foradeeperlookintowhywecanbe sosusceptibletothis,Iinterviewedtwo experts,Dr.JohnSawyer,aneuropsychologistwithOchsnerHealth,andMelanie WarnerSpencer,ajournalistwhofrequentlycoverswellnesstopics.

Youcanlistentothefullinterviewon mypodcast,FUELEDWellness+Nutrition. Belowisasummaryofourconversation.

“Whenweseesomethingthataligns withwhatwethink—orwhatwehope —tobetrue,weoftenturnoffthepart ofourbrainthatsays,‘Wait,isthisreally accurate?’”Dr.Sawyersaid.“That’scalled confirmationbias,andit’ssomethingwe alldo.”

Healsopointedoutthatpeoplepushing dubiousclaimsmaynotstartoutwith theintentofdeception.“Somefolksjust believetheirownmarketing,”Dr.Sawyer noted.“Andthentheyignoreanyevidencethatcontradictsit,oftenbypassing peerreviews,researchorclinicaltrials.”

Spencerunderscoredtheemotional pullofpersonalstories:“Wearewiredto loveagoodstory.Journalistsusethemall

MollyKimball,RD,CSSD,isaregistereddietitian withOchsnerHealthandfounderofOchsner’sEatFit nonprofitinitiative.Formorewellnesscontent,tuneinto Molly’spodcast,FUELEDWellness+Nutrition,andfollow @MollykimballRDand@EatFitOchsneronsocialmedia. Emailnutrition@ochsner.orgtoconnectwithMollyor scheduleaconsultwithherteam.

SLEEP

Continuedfrom page1X

LOUISIANAHAS SECOND HIGHEST RATE OF MEDICAID COVERAGE

thetime,”shesaid.“Wefindacompelling personalexperienceandweaveinthe research.Butinfluencerscanexploitthat byfocusingonthefeel-goodangleand leavingoutthefactthatthere’snosolid evidencetobacktheirclaims. Sowheredoesthatleavetherestofus? It’simportanttostaycurious,yetcautious. Diggingdeeper

First,askquestions.Aretheperson’s credentialslegitimate?Ifheorsheclaims tobeamedicaldoctor,achiropractorora dietitian,doalittlediggingtoverifythat. Dotheydisclosepotentialconflictsof interest—likedirectprofitsfrompromoting specificproducts?

Second,considerhowurgenttheissue is.Ifyouhavealife-threateningcondition, bewaryofanyonewhoinsistsyouignore medicaladviceorabandonmainstream treatments.

Third,findprovidersyoutrust—those wholisten,respectyourinputandcan supportyouinexploringcrediblecomplementaryapproaches.

It’sokaytoexploreholisticoptions, especiallyifyou’redealingwithnon-urgentconditions.OurLifestyleNutrition dietitiansoftenworkwithphysicianswho blendlifestyle-basedapproaches—liketargetedsupplementsorspecialdiets—with moretraditionaltreatments.

Nexttimeyouscrollthroughsocial media,don’tletashinystoryorslick imagefoolyou.Ifyouneedareminderof howlowsomepeoplewillgowhenno one’swatchingclosely,justthinkofBelle Gibson.

Thereispowerintellingourpersonal stories,yes,butthere’salsopotentialharm ifthestoriesarebuiltonhalf-truthsor outrightfabrications.Stayinformed,stay engagedandaskthehardquestions—becauseyourhealthistooimportanttotrust tojustanyonewithanengagingsocial mediafeedandagoodstory.

“We’re basically under anesthesia during sleep. We remember going to sleep.We remember thetimes we wake up at night —and we think that that’s thewhole picture.”

these online sensations for better sleep or awaste of time?

During sleep, the body repairs itself. It is atime when hormonal systems adjust themselves, when thebraincleans itselfand consolidates memories, when theimmunesystem recovers and much more. Alack of sleep can put stress on allthe body’s systems.

DR. MICHAEL DARIN, director of sleep medicine at Ochsner BaptistinNew Orleans

People can do theirown experiments with their night routines(or morning andday routines) and how it affects their sleep. New tech allows people to track adifferencein sleep basedonpersonal data, without the need for wires,bright lightsand uncomfortable beds often associated with sleep studies.

Darin interprets the range of sleep as atimeto give the body the opportunity to sleep. Someone who stays up late either working or watchingtelevision, thenhaving to wake up early in the morning, should look at their routine to establish better sleeping habitsfirst.

improve their sleep,” Darinsaid. “That would be theequivalent of buying $4,000 running shoes, and hoping it’sgoing to make yourun.”

Although running shoes areimportant (ask any runner), the shoes themselves don’tmakeanathleteperform better or faster.Darin feels the same about mattresses, pillows and sheets.

“We’re basically under anesthesia during sleep,” Darin said. “Weremember going to sleep.Weremember the times we wake up at night— and we think that that’sthe whole picture.”

Medicaid is ajoint federal and state program of comprehensivehealth coverageand along-termcare program available to lower-income adults and families in the United States. In 2025, an estimated 72 million people will have Medicaid, according to Medicaid. gov.

The percentageofpeople whoreport having Medicaid is 21% nationally,but ranges from 11%inUtah to 34% in NewMexico.

In Louisiana, 31.9% have Medicaid —the second highest rate of Medicaid users in the nation,KFF data says According to data fromGeorgetown University,Louisiana Medicaid coverage rates in 2023 varied from 22.3% to

However,someone who goes to bed at nine, then lies awake for four hours before finally getting to sleep, may need to seek helptoaddress their sleep health.

47.2% for all agegroups.

East Carroll Parish had thehighest rate of Medicaid coveragewith 47.2% coveragefollowedbyMadison (46.8% coverage),Tensas (42.8% coverage), Claiborne (40.6% coverage)and Concordia(40.2% coverage).

These parishes had the least amount of coverage: Cameron (22.3% coverage) Ascension (24.6% coverage)

St.Tammany(25.1% coverage) Livingston (25.5% coverage)

St. Charles (25.6% coverage) In 2025, the monthly incomelimit for oneadultwas $1,800, althoughthe rate limits rangegreatly basedonfamily size, ageand services

Mostofthe current sleep research centersonthe dangers of getting less thansix hours of sleep consistently: anxiety,depression, heart disease, diabetes, high blood pressure, memory issues, lack of immune system and more. Keep rhythm on track

Thefirst thingtodoto help improve sleephealth is thinking about sleep as skill thatrequiressome work and some effort. It can take anywhere from 10 days to monthstoimprove sleep habits.

Although improving sleep health is possible, short-term fixes don’tusually work,and manypeople end up frustrated in theeffort.

Makingsure to focus on theright thingstoboost better sleeping habitsis critical, according to Darin. Spending moneyand time on habits and sleephacksmight just be a waste.

“I have patientswho pay $4,000 for amattress to

Proper bedding mayincrease comfort (as proven with the hotel mattress market where guests purchase beds from hotels where the sleep was simplybetter than home), they are unlikely to be the underlying problem of poor sleep health. The sleepfoundation.org, afoundation that researches sleep needsand sleep hygiene, hasresources to discover good habits for sleeping —fromthe night routine to snoring to the best bedof2024. For ideal sleep,it’simportant to check allthe following boxes— andin some instances even more thanthose listedhere:

n No caffeine late in the day

n Exercise during the day n Have anight shade to block light n Melatonin gummies or pills

n Adarkbedroom n Acoldbedroom

Thenextfrontierofsleep

Eating late at night, melatonin, sleepy girl mocktails, late-night stretches, reading abook, whitenoise andlongbaths —are all of

Wearable sleep devices, like the Oura Ring or the Ultra Human(another brand of smart rings), collect data during sleep and give positive feedback on what works andwhat doesn’t.

According to Darin, the newtech can help bridge the gap between people notbeing able to figure out what theycan change. Many sleep studiesrevolve around howtostimulate the brain to recreate thebrain waves of sleep Their main efforts are to understand whatthe brain is doing in sleep in order to find ways to get the brain back to thatstate easier

“I don’tknowifthat’s even possible,” Darin said. When Darin got an Oura Ring, he did notexpect the data to show him anything toodifferent abouthis current understandingofhis sleep health.

It turns out, Darin’shabit of eating lateratnight was affecting his heart rate variabilityand wasimpacting his sleep “I was shocked,” he said. “Having that kind of objective information from newtechnologies —Ireally think that’sagame changer.”

EmailMargaret DeLaney at

Molly Kimball RD,CSSD

festing Healthy

Springisuponus.Thatmeansit’stimetogearupfor Louisiana’sfamousfestivalseason.Herearesomefestprep tipstohelpensurenothinggetsinthewayofagoodtime.

Howtopack

Besuretotaketheseessentialswithyou whenpackingforafestival:

Agoodbag.Makesureyouhavethesmallestpossiblebag fortheitemsthatyouneed.Chooseonethat’slightweight butsupportiveforyourback.

Anemptywatercontainer. Somefestivalsdon’tallow outsidewater,buttheremaybeaplacetofillbottlesonce yougetinsidetokeepyourselfhydratedandsavealittle money.(Donotbringglasscontainers.)

Appropriateformsofpayment Somefestivalsare cashless;somearen’t.Besuretocheckthefestivalwebsite aheadoftimetofindoutwhichformofpaymentyouneed.

Festival food: Howtomake healthy choices

Musicandfoodgohand-in-handwithLouisiana festivals.Goodmusiccanfeedthesoul.Decadent festivalfood,however,canbedetrimentaltoyourdiet.

So,thequestionis:howcanweeatwellwhilestill enjoyingwhat’sonfestivalmenus?

Herearesometips:

Hydrate.Drinkingwatercanreduceappetite bytakingupspaceinthestomach.Bringyour ownwaterbottle,sipandrefillthroughout theday

Pickplants.Whenitcomestowhattoeat, think:“HowcanIeatmoreplants?’’From saladstobeanstofreshfruit,wherecanyou incorporatemoreoftheseintoyourdiet?

Packsnacks.Stockupontherightsnacks tokeepyouenergizedandsatisfied.Afew nonperishableideasincludenuts,trailmix andproteinbars.

Planinadvance.Manyfestivalsnowshare theirmenusonline,socheckoutthefood vendorsinadvancetoseewho’soffering grilledproteinsandveggies.

Sharethesplurge.Findafriend(orafew)to sharethemoreindulgentitemsyoujustcan’t resist.Usually,afewbitesareallyouneedto satisfythatcraving!

Lookforthe EatFitseal. TheEatFitsealhighlights menuitemsthat meetOchsnerEatFit nutritionalcriteria.While notallfestivalshave EatFitoptions,somedo!

Sunscreen.Applybeforeyouleaveyourhouseandbringmoreforreapplications.Lookforsunscreenwith anSPFof30orhigher.

Sunglasses.It’simportanttoprotectyoureyesfromthesun’sultravioletrays.

Hat.Protectyourheadandfacefromsunburn.

Scarf Youcanwrapitaroundyourshouldersifyougetchillyorsoakitinwaterandtieitaroundyour necktocooldownifit’shotout.

Tissuesorbabywipes. Usethemforanythingfromcleaningupafteramealtowipingofffestivaldust. Earplugs.Protectyourears;festivalamplificationsystemscanbedeafening.

Plasticbags.Ifaspringshowercomesalong,aplasticbagwillprotectyourphone,walletandanything elseyoudon’twanttogetwet

Medication Makesureyouhaveanyprescriptionmedsyoumayneedaswellasheadachemedication andsomethingforupsetstomach,justincasethefestivalfooddoesn’tagreewithyou

Portablephonecharger Justincaseyourphonedies

Menstrualproducts.Packmenstrualproductsifyouthinkthere’seventheslightestchanceyou’llneed them.Andifyoudon’t,afellowfestivalgoermight.

Adhesivebandages.Comepreparedforblisters.

Bladder tipsfor festival season

Urinaryurgencyandfestivalsdonotgowelltogether.That“gottago”feelingcanbepowerfulandhasbeen thebaneofmanyfestgoerswhofindthemselveswaitinginlonglinesforaportapotty.

Herearesometipstoeasetheurge:

Stayhydrated.Itmayseemcounterintuitive,butdecreasingyourwaterintakecanmakeurgencyworse.And lessfluidintakeproducesconcentratedurinethatcanirritatethebladder.Ontheflipside,drinkingalotat oncecandramaticallyincreasethevolumeofurineyourbodyproduces,makingurgencyworse.Drinkwater insmallsipssteadilythroughoutthedaytogiveyourbodytimetoadjustandkeepyouwellhydrated. Limitbladderirritants.Alcohol,coffee,caffeine,carbonatedbeverages,tomatoproductsandcitruscan irritatethebladder.

Maintainbladderhealth.Ifurinaryurgencyissomethingyoustrugglewithoften,makesureyou’regiving yourselfenoughtimeonthetoilettofullyemptyyourbladder.Andavoid“justincase”peeing.Usingthe restroom“justincase”beforegettinginthecarorstartingamovieisahabitthatcaninterruptthedelicate feedbacksystembetweenyourbrain,bladderandpelvicfloor.Just-in-caseurinationcanmakethebladder moresensitive,soit’sbesttowaituntilyouhavetogo.

LOUISIANA

PhyllisColemanMouton, founder of LafayettenonprofitWomen of Wisdom,addresses the CEOofVieMed, his executivestaff and WoWwomen at the WoWCorporateConnection meeting at VieMed in Lafayette on June 5.

‘POWERFULSISTERHOOD’

8decades, 12 ethnicitiesofLafayette womenmakeimpact

BY JOANNA BROWN Staffwriter

Phyllis Coleman Mouton, founder of Women of WisdomAcadiana, has been awoman of action her entire life —and she has the resume to prove it.

Mouton, aLafayette native,retired as vice president of workforce and economic development from Baton Rouge Community College in 2017. Before that, she owned an oilfield drilling supply firm, worked for Gov.Buddy Roemer,and was the first woman to be named president of the Lafayette Chamber of Commerce —amongother laurels gathered over along career spent connecting people and communities.

Herindomitable energy didnot endat retirement. These days, Mouton is giving her full attention to apassion project she startedback in 2018, after moving back home and looking for ways to make adifference in Lafayette.

The resultingnonprofit organization Women of Wisdom Acadiana, is focused on afew key areas of benefit for women, children, students andfamilies, among other issues —but the real impactcan be found in the “powerful sisterhood” that Mouton developed,according to member RuthFoote.

“WoW enabled me to step out of my comfort zone —especially the members in it,” said Foote, aLafayette journalist and former director of grants andcommunications at SMILE Community Action Agency

Foote said WoWmembersencouraged hertosubmither resumetofill aseat on the Bayou VermilionDistrict

of

Regional Libraryin Lafayette.

Board of Commissioners that Mouton hadserved in for several years.

With their encouragement, Foote went for it and was appointed to the board

“Because of that,I becamea member of the Board of Commissioners, andI really enjoy it,” said Foote, who wasappointedin2023 for afour-year term. “Justknowing thatyou can do the things thatother people see in youis onegreat aspect of WoW.”

The Women of Wisdom don’thave aparticular creed,and there are few barriers to joining, apart from awillingness to contribute your unique interests,talentsand energies. AllMouton asks is that potential members meet her for an introductory coffee chat andshe gets the ball rolling from there.

AccordingtoMouton, theloose structure is by design —but WoWwomen are resolutely strategic about where they spend their effort.

Moutonemphasizes that WoWmembers are resolutely strategic about where they spendtheir collective effort.

“We’re notanorganization that duplicates what othersdo,”she said. “Generally,wepay close attention to where we think adiversecoalition of women need to gettogetherand use our voices and useour presence.”

WoWwomen attended the March 17 Lafayette Public Library Board of Control meeting. Member Mary Lib Guerciohas been alongtime proponent

ä See SISTERHOOD, page 2Y

Ispent 17 yearsasaprofessionalevents planner. Iknow howtothrowa party.Ilong ago letmyhusband offthe hook Planning andhosting aparty is nothis thing. If Iwanta party formy birthday, Iorganize it. He goes to the nth degreetohelp, but Iamthe driving force. After 31 yearsofmarriage, we’ve settledinto ourroles —not because we have to,but because we understand each other better. We knowthateveryone is happierthatway Forexample,lastyearfor my birthday, Ithrewa bigone. I hireda band andacaller, and we had acontra dance with more than60people. This year,I decidedtotoneit down. No party.Just aday with my family In late March, both of my daughters came home formy birthdaysoour whole family could be together. Ihad to be at my officefor the afternoon, but even thatworkedout because my girls worked together while Iwas gone to prepare one of life’s loveliest pleasures —a homemade cake, just for me Iamabelieverinfully appreciating things that make life lovelier. I’ve learned the value of recognizing andsavoring the small joys life offers. Ahomemade cakeisone of them Dismissing homemade cake as pure indulgence is folly.We spend so much time in aworld thattells us to do more, eatless or hurry up. Every so often, doing the opposite is exactly whatweneed Do less. Eatmore. Slow down. In the world thatIwant to live in, ahomemade cake is not an extravagance,itisanoccasionalnecessity Whenitcomes to the kitchen, neitherofour daughters has needed my help for awhile. The sweetness of the cake went beyond the cup of sugar involved.

Fewthings bring such simple,undeniable joy as a homemade cake. My daughters could have worked for weeks on something much more complicated,but would we have gainedasmuchpure enjoyment from it? Idoubt it. To addtothe deliciousness, my husband prepared my favorite meal —homemade chile rellenoswith black beans, Mexican riceand guacamole. While he wouldn’tplanaparty, he will roastchilesand stuff rellenoswith cheese and beef. Then, he carefully coats and batters each oneand individually friesthem. Despite all of that, theyare light andunbelievably delicious.

There is something deeply good aboutfood made by the hands of those we love. Irecognize days like this are fleeting. Sitting at the table that night, eating ascrumptious meal alongside the people I love most in the world, Iwanted to bottle up that feeling. I’ve come to realize that it’s notthe big partiesorgrand gesturesthatmatter most. Instead, it’stwo sisters baking acakefor their mother’sbirthdayona Mondayafternoon. Yes, Istill love aparty,and this is nottosay thatIwon’thave anotherone sometime soon. There will be time for that. But for now, the best gift is time —time in awarm kitchen, at afull table,with the people I love most.

EmailJan Risher at jan. risher@theadvocate.com.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Members

Women of Wisdom Acadiana attended the LibraryBoard of Control meetingonMarch 17 in supportofbuilding the newNortheast

Brothers share farmland to educate, train others

It’s the center of St. Helena Parish

BY JOY HOLDEN Staff writer

Chris Muse, one of four brothers who own Muse 3 Farm in Greensburg in St. Helena Parish, retired to farm and help others in his hometown. The farm consists of over 200 acres half of which are dedicated to longleaf and loblolly pine timber The other half is pristine pasture land where cattle, sheep, goats and chickens feast on Bahia grass.

The Muses use this land to educate and train sharing their farmland with their community.

Muse is the administrator of the local farmers market, and his goal is to recruit more farmers to offer fresh produce to the parish The market provides a great opportunity to work with Greaux the Good, which offers the match program for SNAP and EBT clients

While the name of the farm is Muse 3, there are four brothers in ownership.

The name is an homage to their father, who long ago branded his cattle with a three because he was the third brother

How did the farm get started?

We founded the farm in 2015, incorporated in 2018 — me and three of my brothers. We grew up on a farm. My grandpa and my dad farmed, and all of his siblings farmed.

But being in St. Helena Parish, we didn’t see farming in our future so we took different career paths. We all graduated from college, and we all moved away After college, I moved to Atlanta, Georgia, and I spent 32 years working for IBM My brothers all moved away and made careers, too. We had to go off in order to come back home.

While we were away, we would frequently come back to our small town to visit. There is something about a small-town atmosphere — a tranquillity about it. So, we decided that we were going to retire, and we were going to move back to our hometown and the farm. As we’re doing it, we fig-

SISTERHOOD

Continued from page 1y

ured we had a chance to do something different. We wanted our farm to be a training and educational farm. We wanted the farm to also be self-sustaining, because we want our kids to eventually take over the farm

What are some ways that the Muse 3 Farm practices climate-friendly farming or sustainable farming?

We preach that everything we do on our farm begins with the soil. Soil health is very important to us We have about 150 acres dedicated to our animals We do rotational grazing. We also do multi-species grazing because we like the various animals growing together

We do not use any herbicides on our farm. Everything’s organic. We try to have a fresh water source in every paddock for other animals.

We like to do wildlife conservation. This is Louisiana, Sportsman’s Paradise. You have to save the predators as well. We planted 100 acres of pine trees because we need trees. All of that is what we need to make this world a better place.

How do you share your resources with the community?

We work with the other farmers in the area and do training and education for those guys to help make their farms more profitable.

We want farmers to be able to utilize all of the programs and services that are available, state or local. As part of those workshops, we bring in representatives from those agencies to talk about their programs, and then we would work with farmers to follow up with them to make sure that they actually go out and sign up for some of those programs.

We decided from day one, we were going to try to help others out, whether it be farmers, future farmers, kids or youth.

I hadn’t realized, even in a rural area like St. Helena, most of these kids had not seen a farm.

We do tours to bring kids in. We work with the local 4-H office. Most of the kids out here do not own cattle, so they don’t have an animal to show We have animals and a space, so we allow the 4-H students to show one of our animals.

We open up our farms to others so that they can come and see what farming is like. We just wanted to get back to that.

of expanding library access in Lafayette Parish, and the group lent their support by encouraging Board of Control members to move forward with building a new Northeast Lafayette Regional Library At the meeting, they counted it a victory when the board unanimously approved building the largest option: 20,500 square feet of books and community-use spaces.

The 164-member strong nonprofit has women ranging in age from 20 to 92, says Mouton “How rich it is to hear from a 20-year-old, sitting at a table with a 90-year-old,” she said. “That’s eight decades of women. That’s beautiful. We’re 12 different ethnicities. It’s just a wonderful array of women, and that’s so powerful in terms of how we operate very effectively as a coalition of women who are empowered to create a thriving community for everyone.” One of WoW’s signature projects is CAFÉ — Community and Family Engagement — through Lafayette-based educational foundation Love Our Schools. The program helps to bring resources to area schools by activating networks in the surrounding communities, and Women of Wisdom has taken the lead on CAFÉ initiatives at Lafayette schools like Carencro High and J.W Faulk Elementary where they focus on lessening truancy, supporting ACT prep, and stocking care closets with uniform items and toiletries.

Other WoW efforts include support for organizations like

Have you seen any expansion and success in your area with other farmers?

Yes, now there are other farmers who have implemented some of those services and do field days at their own farms.

What vegetables are y’all growing right now?

We’re transitioning over to the spring garden. We have sweet corn growing right now with purple peas, tomato, okra and cucumbers. They need about six to eight more weeks, though.

What does the land mean to you since it’s been in your family for many generations?

My grandfather moved here in 1920. People probably look at this and say “This parish, you want to live here?”

But to me, I’m not moving anymore. I’m back at home. This is my land This is my forefathers’ land. I want to be able to bring my kids and hopefully, the grandkids come back.

Innocence Project New Orleans, which holds an annual fundraiser in Lafayette. IPNO lawyers work to free innocent people serving life sentences in Louisiana, and WoW members came out in force for their recent Acadiana fundraiser held on Feb 18.

“This is really an incredible organization that Phyllis started,” said IPNO executive director Jee Park. “I attended their monthly meeting in February and we talked about constitutional amendments and had a wonderful dialogue These are women who are showing up, supporting each other and empowering one another to get out there and support the organizations and issues in their community.”

For the members themselves, they know that there’s no limit to what they can do if they work together From WoW-led speaker series, to corporate workshops and service opportunities, they are giving each other the tools to make a difference, no matter where they stand.

“When you bring powerful women together, of all backgrounds, one thing they all want no matter their political affiliation, or their race, or socio-economic background,” Foote said, “Every woman wants a better world for her family and future generations.”

Foote said the group does more than learn about issues.

They do more than talk about issues.

“We’re actually getting out and doing something and making an impact on the community,” Foote said.

Email Joanna Brown at joanna. brown@theadvocate.com.

PROVIDED PHOTO

Phyllis Coleman Mouton, founder of Women of Wisdom Acadiana, speaks to new members at the pinning ceremony held in Lafayette on Jan. 9.

Chris Muse, co-owner of Muse 3 Farm, on his land with grazing cattle in Greensburg

PROVIDED PHOTOS

The Muse brothers who own Muse 3 Farm, from left, Chris Muse, Allen Muse, Burnell Muse and Mittie Muse.

Cleanupthe stateduringLovethe Boot Week

BY JOYHOLDEN Staff writer

Louisiana is known for its natural beauty, but the litter and trash scattered on the interstates, in parking lots, swampsand waterways obscures this beauty,driving away future investorsand tourists.

Lt. Gov.Billy Nungesser andthe KeepLouisiana Beautiful team are determined to cleanupthe state through Love the Boot Week April 5through April 13, which will sweep the state clean of trash.

Love the Boot Week is Louisiana’slargest litter removal and beautification effort. All 64 parishes have events scheduled, and there are 963 events planned for theweek. So far, 14 universities andover100 schools will also have groups cleaning upacross the state.

Nungesser developed his passion for removing litter whenhe was parish presidentofPlaquemines Parish after Hurricane Katrina. He implemented garbage cans on everyroadleading to La.23to give drivers aplace to throw away trash. It was an improvement 90% of the garbage ended up in or around those cans.

“I realized early on that if you made an attemptto givepeople aplace to put it, and alittle bit of education,wemade arealdifference,” Nungesser said.

Love the Boot Week is the state’s opportunity to make adifference.

“Wehave such adivisiveclimate nowadays, but cleaningupthe state is an issue that we can truly be united behind,” saidSusan Russell, executive director of thenonprofit organization Keep Louisiana Beautiful.

Russell says that cleaning the state is amust because of the harmful effectsthat trashand blight have on our economy,tourism, health, safety,quality of life and mental well-being.

Keep LouisianaBeautiful

Keep Louisiana Beautiful was established over 20 years agowith the goal of promoting corporate and individual responsibilityfor a cleaner and more beautifulLouisiana. The organization works through litter removal, prevention, educa-

tionand enforcement.InAugust 2024, the Nungesser placed Keep Louisiana Beautiful underhis office as astate program, which stabilized the inner structure and helpedmomentum toward accomplishing the mission of cleaning up

Louisiana

“Wehave abeautiful state,” said Russell,“but we don’tdoagood job keeping it clean.”

Keep Louisiana Beautiful programsinclude education for youth and motorists, aClean Biz programtoengage businesses to have trash receptacles at transition pointsand library partnerships that provide pickup tools for litter removal.

“We’re empowering individuals in small groups so that when you see something, do something,” said Russell. “You don’thavetowait for someone else to organize alarge community cleanup, and if we all did our part right —ifschools took care of theircampuses, if residents andcitizens made sure that household trash wasbagged and tied and our garbage pan covered so that it wouldn’tblow down the street —itwould make ahuge difference. It’severybody working together to do their part, and it is 100% solvable.”

Getout andlovethe boot

According to a2023 Louisiana Litter Study conducted by Keep Louisiana Beautiful, at anygiven time, there’sabout 143 million piecesoflitter on the state roadways, andthe cost is high —$92 millionin2024.

“What we’re doing in April gives me hope, and it’sveryexciting because it is showing us that our citizens, our business ownersand ourelected officials areready for change,” Russell said.

Love the Book Week is amixture of schools, businesses, local governments, state agencies and nonprofit partners who are rolling up their sleeves andgoing out in their respective communities to clean.

The plannedevents for the week vary from picking up litter to paintingbenches to removing graffiti to plantingtrees andgardens. Love the Boot participation hasincreased 30% from 2024 to 2025.

“This started out withustry-

ing to getpeople outwalking the streets andcaring for their community,” Russell said. “It has turnedinto amovement. We had over 19,000volunteers last year whoremoved 347 tonsoflitter, planted920 trees,400 plantsand refurbished over 360 gardens.”

In 2025, Love theBoot Week is not only going to removelitter but will also be diverting waste from landfills by separating aluminum cans and plastic bottles from litter and recycling them.

Nungesser and Russellagree that walkingthe streetsand picking up litter is transformative because people who pick up litter for aday areabout 80% lesslikely to litter again.People of all ages can participate, and studentscan earn service hours for clubs and school requirements Removinglitter is the beginning of behaviorchange,and Russell says that’s Love the Book Week plantsthe seeds for change.

“I hope Love the Boot Week this year gives us the momentum going into fair and festival season

to really care about our state,” Nungesser said. “Love where you live and protect it, and that’sfrom therivers and waterways, to the parks, and to theparking lots.”

To learnmoreorsignuptoparticipate, visit lovetheboot.org. Email Joy Holdenatjoy.holden@ theadvocate.com.

Volunteers pick up trash with Lt. Governor Billy Nungesser,far right, during Love the Boot Week.

Theologianslooktoreshape spiritualfuture

Africandenominations preparefor Nicene Creed’s anniversary year

FREDRICK NZWILI

Contributing writer

As Christian denominations in Africa join the preparation for the 1,700th anniversary of the First Council of Nicaea, clerics, theologiansand laypeople areembracing the moment as a chance to reshape the continent’s spiritual and social future.

The gathering of bishopsin Nicaea (now Iznik, in Turkey) in 325 was called by Roman Emperor Constantine to settle factionalism in the early church caused by Arianism,a theologythat said Jesuswas notdivine,thatoriginated in Africa.

“Why it was held is because an African cleric like myself raised issues that needed to be addressedconcerning thedoctrine of the Holy Trinity,” saidthe Rev. StephenNjure,a CatholicChurch

historian at Moi University in western Kenya.“That is Arius. Arius came up with aheresy that necessitated thecouncil.

Theanniversary,said Njure, “has everything to do with us, since one of us prompted its being, because of our need for clarityof faith,”addingthatideas likeArianism, which the council declared aheresy,help the church by forcingittoformulate doctrine and purify its teachings.

In the late spring of 325 at Nicaea, 318 bishops deliberated on controversies on thenature of Christ, bothhuman anddivine, andagreedona standard statement of faith still known today as theNicene Creed andsaid across much of the globe each Sunday. Thecreed definesGod as one entity manifested in three persons: Father,Son andthe Holy Spirit.

The bishops meeting at Nicaea also established adatefor Easterand laid theground forearly canonlaw Protestant,Catholic andOrthodox churches around theglobe are celebrating the anniversary, with conferences lookingafresh at the counciland the lessons

it can teach on Christian unity amid divisions and atroubled globe. In November,the World Council of Churches will hold a conference in November titled “Towards Nicaea 2025: Exploring the Council’sEcumenical SignificanceToday,” and aglobal meeting of evangelical Christians is planned for October in Istanbul.

Lastyear,before he fellill, Pope Francis told Eastern Orthodox priestsvisiting the Vatican that he hoped to travel to Turkey to celebrate thecreed with the Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew I, and in January,Francis expressed hiswillingness to work on once again finding a common date for Easter.(The two branches of Christianity, separatedbythe Great Schismof 1054, followdifferent calendars, with the Eastern Orthodox keeping to the Julian calendar and marking Easteraweek after the West.)

In Egypt, the Coptic Orthodox Church will host the Sixth World Conference on NICAEA organizedbythe WorldCouncil of Churches. “(This) is more than a

gathering of church leaders; it’s achance for Africa to reshape itsspiritualand social future,” said theRev.JackieMakena, a Methodist theologian andadjunct lectureratSt. Paul’sUniversity in Limuru,near Nairobi, who stressed that forAfrica, Nicaea wasaboutreclaiming itsnarrative

“Amid centuriesofcolonial influence, the conference offers aplatform forAfricanvoices to lead conversations on decolonizingtheology,leadership and social justice, climatejustice and racial justice issues,”Makena said.

According to thetheologian, across the continent,preparations forthe conference in Egypt are in full swing.

“Delegations, including differentworld communionsand theological institutions, are hostingpublic lectures,paper presentations,and engaging in community discussions,” she said.

Makenasaid that themeeting would show Africa’srich theological heritage andcomeout with new waysofthinking about

faithunbound by colonial legacies. “Institutions and leaders are uniting to ensure thatAfrica’s perspective is not only heardbut also formsa cornerstone of the broader ecumenical dialogue,” shesaid.

The Rev.John Ngige Njoroge, an Orthodox priestwho heads theology andinterfaith relations at the Africa Conference of Churches, said Nicaea was the first ecumenical council that demonstrated howChristians could unite to find solutionsto challenges,including theological disagreements

“This is very significant for Africa, wheretoday the propagation of misleading theologies is a threat to Christian unity and humandignity,” said Njoroge. Makena, theMethodist theologian, hopes theanniversary celebration results in arevitalized, inclusive church that bridges divides, whether they be theological, racial or generational. “As Africa plays apivotal role in this conversation,the hopeis that its renewed perspective will inspire unity in diversity,” she said.

LouisianaInspiredhighlightsvolunteer opportunities across south Louisiana.Ifyourorganization has specific volunteer opportunities, pleaseemail us at lainspired @theadvocate.com with details on the volunteer opportunity,organization and the contact/registration information volunteers wouldneed

Acadiana Moncus Park, 2913 JohnstonSt., Lafayette,isasupporterfundednonprofitdedicated to developingand maintaining 100acres of green space, showcasing the cultures and talents of Acadiana, uniting communitiesthroughcelebration and creating traditions together For volunteer opportunities, visit moncuspark.org/volunteer

BatonRouge

The ALS Association Louisiana-Mississippi Chapter,14241 CourseyBlvd., Baton Rouge, has amission to discover treatments and acure forALS,and to serve,advocate forand empowerpeople affected by ALS to livetheirlives to the fullest. Forvolunteer opportunities, call (225) 343-9880orvisit als org/support/states/louisiana.

NewOrleans

LightHouse Mentors, 520 OliveSt., Shreveport, offers opportunitiesfor busy communitymembers,high school age and above,tomentor an at-risk child. Mentees rangeinage from 6to17.ALightHouse Mentor is afriend, coach, role model, adviserand resource forthe mentee. For volunteer opportunities, visit voanorthla.org/services/ children-teens-and-families/the-lighthouse/. Want to getthe word out about your volunteer opportunities? Email romiller@theadvocate.com. ONEgreat

PROVIDED PHOTO

As Christian denominations in Africajoin the preparationfor the 1,700thanniversaryofthe FirstCouncil of Nicaea,clerics,theologians and laypeople are embracing the moment as a chance to reshape

SUNDAY, April 6, 2025

CURTIS / by Ray Billingsley

SLYLOCK FOX / by Bob Weber Jr

GET FUZZY / by Darby Conley

HAGAR THE HORRIBLE / by Chris Browne

MOTHER GOOSE AND GRIMM / by Mike Peters

ZIGGY / by Tom Wilson

ZITS / by Jerry Scott and Jim Borgman

SALLY FORTH / by Francesco Marciuliano & Jim Keefe

PEARLS BEFORE SWINE /byStephan Pastis

directions: Make a 2- to 7-letter word from the letters in each row Add points of each word, using scoring directions at right. Finally, 7-letter words get 50-point bonus. “Blanks” used as any letter have no point value All the words are in the Official SCRABBLE® Players Dictionary, 5th Edition.

word game

instructions: 1. Words must be of four or more letters. 2. Words that acquire four letters by the addition of “s,” such as “bats” or “dies,” are not allowed. 3. Additional words made by adding a “d” or an “s” may not be used. 4. Proper nouns, slang words, or vulgar or sexually explicit words are not allowed.

todAY's Word — sAGAciousLY: suhGAY-shus-lee: Wisely

Average mark 45 words

Time limit 60 minutes

Can you find 61 or more words in SAGACIOUSLY?

ken ken

instructions: 1 -Each rowand each column must contain thenumbers 1through4 (easy) or 1through6 (challenging) without repeating 2 -The numbers within the heavily outlinedboxes, called cages, must combine using thegiven operation (inany order)toproduce the target numbersinthe top-left corners. 3 -Freebies: Fillinthe single-boxcages withthe numberinthe top-left corner

instructions: Sudoku is anumber-placing puzzle based on a 9x9 gridwith several given numbers. The object is to placethe numbers 1to 9in theempty squares so that each row,each column and each 3x3 boxcontains the same number only once. The difficultylevel of the Conceptis Sudoku increases from Monday to Sunday

directions: Complete thegridso that numbers 1–132 connect horizontally, vertically or diagonally

Sudoku

Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

wuzzLes

Creating an entry

North-South got to show off their fancy Key Card Blackwood methods, but it was probably just for show South, we believe, would always have bid a slam after North opened the bidding. The slam was excellent, and normal splits in both black suits would yield an easy 13 tricks. Suits often don’t split normally after a pre-empt, however

The three of hearts was an obvious singleton South won in hand with the ace and led a spade to dummy’s ace, followed by the queen and jack of spades South couldn’t know how the minor suits were splitting, but East was known to have started with 10 cards in the majors, so South could not count on a good club split South was a resourceful player and he handled the problem beautifully. He led a club to his ace and cashed the king of spades, discarding a heart from dummy while drawing East’s last trump. He cashed the king and queen of clubs, then led his low diamond to dummy’s king. He led the 10 of clubs and

elegantly discarded his ace of diamonds. West won with the jack but had to lead a diamond South won in dummy, discarding a heart, and discarded his last heart on the nine of clubs. Well done!

ARIES (March 21-April 19) Dream, strategize and turn your ideas into a reality. Be forthright regarding what you want and what you are willing to give in return. Trust your instincts and shoot for the stars.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20) Conquer your fears by embracing whatever stands in your way A fearless approach will make you impossible to defeat. Focus on your attributes and use them to reach your objective.

Tannah Hirsch welcomes readers’ responses sent in care of this newspaper or to Tribune Content Agency inc., 2225 Kenmore Ave., Suite 114, Buffalo, Ny 14207. E-mail responses may be sent to gorenbridge@ aol.com. © 2025 Tribune Content Agency

GEMINI(May21-June20)Keepawatchful eye on anyone you don’t fully trust. Be aware, open and prepared to take charge or leave any situation that can alter your life. Look out for your best interests. CANCER (June 21-July 22) Use your creative imagination, and you’ll outmaneuver anyone trying to compete with you. A financial opportunity will come from someone or something you least expect. Be quick to respond, and prosperity will be yours. LEO (July 23-Aug. 22) Explore, learn and expand your awareness. The time to venture out and discover what’s possible is now. The future looks bright if you embrace what’s new and exciting. Broaden your circle of friends.

VIRGO (Aug 23-Sept 22) Put more time, effort and thought into money matters. Look for opportunities, but don’t bet everything on one person or prospect. Cut your losses, divvy up your interests and participate in what’s most purposeful.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct 23) Engage in something that makes you think, and expand your mind, interests and friendships. Stop procrastinating and waiting for things to come to you. The future looks bright.

SCORPIO (Oct. 24-Nov. 22) Social and networking events will be valuable Someone you encounter will offer a unique perspective that will help

diversify how you use your skills and evaluate what you do.

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 23-Dec. 21) Keep a low profile, and you’ll exceed your expectations. Once you eliminate interference, you’ll have a chance to let your mind wander and find inspiration.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19) Participate, travel and be resourceful. Take interest, ask questions and try your hand at something that you can incorporate into your lifestyle or turn into a profit.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 19) Push for change, be the forerunner and show everyone how to do things properly

Taking charge will help you develop a pattern that is conducive to using your skills experience and awesomeness. PISCES (Feb. 20-March 20) Take charge, and don’t stop until you are happy with the results Whether you put yourself in a competitive situation or decide to socialize with peoplewhoshareyourinterests,you stand to come out on top.

The horoscope, an entertainment feature, is not based on scientific fact. © 2025 by NEA, inc., dist. By Andrews McMeel Syndication

Answers to puzzles

1. Honolulu, Hawaii. 2. Denver, Colorado. 3. Juneau, Alaska.4.Nashville, Tennessee

5. Richmond, Virginia. 6. Madison,Wisconsin

7. Indianapolis, Indiana.8.Lansing, Michigan

9. Providence, Rhode Island.10. Topeka,Kansas

11. Carson City,Nevada. 12. Frankfort, Kentucky.13. Springfield, Illinois.14. Bismarck, North Dakota. 15. Olympia, Washington.

SCORING: 24 to 30 points —congratulations, doctor; 18 to 23 points—honorsgraduate; 13 to 17 points —you’replenty smart, but no grind; 5to12points —you really shouldhit the booksharder;1point to 4points —enroll in remedial courses immediately; 0points who reads thequestions to you?

Saturday's Cryptoquote: Imust have flowers, always, always. —Claude Monet

jeFF mACnelly’sshoe/ by Gary Brookins &Susie MacNelly

FoXtrot/ by BillAmend

dustin /bySteve Kelley&JeffParker