COMMUNITY LEADERS

In the Spring of 1993, I was honored to sit on the inaugural board of Leadership St. Tammany. Since then, I have served as the Recruitment Committee, Chairperson of the Board and as its Program Director. Spring of 2023 marks the start of my 30th year with the program. That’s pretty cool.

Leadership St. Tammany was spawned from the St. Tammany West Chamber of Commerce, led by then Executive Director Diane Winston, Ed Dillard and JoAnne Gallinghouse. That first class consisted of 20 members. Eventually class sizes grew to 25, then 30 and now 30-plus per year. Over 700 individuals have graduated from the program.

Classes are made up of adults from various professions; business, volunteers, community activism, law enforcement, attorneys, service organizations, artists, teachers, education administration, governmental employees, non-profits and elected o�cials. Participants come from all walks of life, range in age from 25 to 75 and live throughout the Parish. Completely di�erent folks, they have one thing in common: They wish to make St. Tammany Parish a better place. They often do not even agree on what that means.

We begin in August with a two-night retreat. Then, one day per month, we learn, question and explore each of the di�erent systems that comprise our lives; social services, community activism, local, parish and state government, infrastructure (or lack thereof), economic development, quality of life, law enforcement, judiciary, culture, art and history. We visit and meet with the leaders of each of these systems. How can we make what’s good better and what’s bad good?

To learn more about the program, its graduates, the application process (deadline for Class of 2024 is April 30th), the cost and the commitment, check out leadersttammany.org. Sidenote: The number of excellent applications exceeds the number of slots each year. Selection criteria includes building a class diverse in background … which enriches the discussions. It is not unusual to apply 2 or 3 times before finding your “right” class.

We are pleased to announce the City of Mandeville is now rated as a CLASS 5 CRS (Community Rating System) Community. We are particularly excited about being the first City in Louisiana to achieve this, especially in light of rising Flood Insurance Premiums. Most properties will be eligible for a total 25% CRS discount. Residents will see this discount on qualified renewals and new flood insurance policies on or after October 1, 2023. Each property owner should contact their insurance company for their specific rate.

The City of Mandeville has many events coming up including:

• Eve Parade – Friday, February 10, 2023; 7:00 pm

• Krewe du Pooch – Saturday, February 25, 2023; 12:00 p.m. (dog parade, vendors, concert, food trucks)

• Mandeville Live! Free Friday series – Fridays beginning March 24, 2023 (Mandeville Trailhead 6:30pm – 8:30pm)

• Easter at the Market – Saturday, April 1st (Pictures with the Easter Bunny, free face painting, chocolate, petting zoo & more)

I am honored to serve as the Mayor of Mandeville and remain very truly yours.