Dealing with Death, Healing with Hope St. Tammany Parish Coroner’s Office
When the idea for this story was presented to us my heart turned over in my chest several times. This past year of our health and wellbeing feeling so out of our own control has compounded the fear of death we can all experience from time to time. It makes me glad to share the incredible programs Dr. Charles Preston and his team bring to the northshore. I am reminded of the Serenity Prayer by the American theologian Reinhold Niebuhr. “Father, give us courage to change what must be altered, serenity to accept what cannot be helped, and the insight to know the one from the other.” –Lori Murphy
by Karen B. Gibbs
Chris Knoblauch, Adele Bruce Smith, Ginesse Barrett R.N., Dr. Charles Preston, Tammy Switzer and Ana Welch. 32
IF YOU THINK the Coroner’s Office is only about investigating deaths and performing autopsies, you’re in for a pleasant surprise—especially if you’re from St. Tammany Parish. Here their work is also about saving and improving lives. This people-centric approach starts at the top with the coroner himself, Dr. Charles Preston. A dynamic, energetic visionary, he has expanded the coroner’s role since taking office in 2014. With inspiration from God (“He’s the one I listen to.”) and encouragement from wife Dr. Lisa Leonard (“I think she got me elected.“), Dr. Preston and his staff focus on healing those who grieve, eradicating preventable deaths, fostering mental health and pursuing truth through science—and doing it all with skill and compassion. Considering his varied experience, Dr. Preston has what it takes to lead the way. That resume includes being an ER physician, instructor at LSU
Inside Northside
School of Medicine and co-owner of Doctor’s Urgent Care in Slidell. He is surrounded by a staff as qualified and passionate as he is, and together they make outstanding contributions to our quality of life, such as those described here.
Cribs for Kids When investigator Chris Knoblauch presented the idea for Cribs for Kids to Dr. Preston, he got a resounding yes. The national safe-sleep project consists of a two-hour presentation that educates parents and caregivers on the ABCs of safe sleep: babies should be Alone, on their Back and in a Crib. Parents who participate receive a voucher for a Pack ’n Play™ crib, which is purchased from Graco with outside contributions. “There are about 3,500 sudden, unexplained infant deaths (SUIDS) per year in the country,” says
