A Dubach man was arrested last Friday after a Lincoln Parish deputy found he had no driver’s license and was wanted for failure to appear in court on a previous traffic charge.
Pedro Celestino Tomas Velasquez, 41, was arrested August 2 after he was stopped for an equipment violation on U.S. 167 in Vienna. A record check showed Velasquez had not been issued a driver’s license and was wanted for failure to appear in Ruston City Court on a speeding charge.
Velasquez was booked at the Lincoln Parish Detention Center for improper lights, no driver’s license and the warrant. Bail was set at $3,000.
This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
My morning habit involves watching the local TV news. I want to see what happened while I slept. This station offers a color the weather segment. The children draw weather events and send their artwork to the station. The station during a weather segment will show the artwork. These children are budding artists for sure.
Along with the meteorological depictions there are the usual childlike renditions of houses, cars, children playing and other things you used to draw as a child. I started noticing a commonality in the drawings. In most drawings there is a pig. The pig is usually pink.
I never sent artwork to a television station. I do remember drawing stuff in that ancient time of my childhood. I don’t remember drawing lots of animals. I think most of what I drew were houses and cars. And being a child of the 1960’s there were lots of rockets and space capsules. I know for sure; I drew no pig.
What is this sudden childhood fascination with pigs?
I asked Google.
I was introduced to Peppa Pig, which is a British preschool animated television series. The series began in 2004 and is still in production. So that would explain the sudden appearance of a pig in the children’s artwork.
I was thinking about it because this morning’s artwork showed a tornado with trees and the pig flying off into the sky. The pig is sometimes on the ground, sometime airborne depending on the weather being illustrated. Of course, you know that the phrase “when pigs fly” is an adynaton, a figure of speech so hyperbolic that it describes an impossibility.
Peppa Pig must be a thing with the children today. I long for the good ole days of the Coyote trying to do in the Road Runner, which is another article though.
American kids are binge-watching so much of Peppa Pig that they are developing English accents and even using words like “telly” and “ready, steady, go.” The children have learned to imitate Peppa Pig.
If imitation is the highest form of flattery, then as Jesus followers who are we imitating? The Apostle Paul was so brash he told the Corinthians to “imitate me.” What would someone learn about Jesus by imitating you?
Doug de Graffenried is Pastor of Trinity Methodist Church in Ruston, Louisiana.
In a conversation with Ruston High Head Coach Jerrod Baugh earlier this week, the challenge was made to his team to shed any complacency and really dig in to get ready to start the 2024 season.
In talking with Baugh after Thursday’s practice, his team is clearly moving in the right direction as his team wraps up its last week without full gear and into a three-day break.
“I thought today’s practice may have been the best practice that we’ve had in helmets, which was good to see,” Baugh said. “I’ve been pleased with everything we’ve gotten done. We all just had a little better feeling overall today.”
Baugh lauded the collective attitude of the team and for the energy they brought to end the week.
“It’s like I told the kids — they had a great attitude and came out to try to get things done,” Baugh said. “It started with some of the guys we needed to see some leadership from that did a good job of being positive and having the right attitude to go to work today, and they were vocal about it. I think a lot of the other guys fed off of that. It was really good to see and hear.”
With the season less than one calendar month away, the team now moves from morning practices and will start afternoons next week — and they’ll finally be adding the full contact portion, as well, in full gear by the end of the week.
“We’ll start incorporating a lot of situational things, particularly on downs and distances,” Baugh said. “We’ll have all sorts of situations for them to work through. We want them to be fully aware of what the other side of the ball is doing and know how they relate in whatever the situation may be. Is it second and long or second and short? Third and long or short? Then there’s fourth down situations. We’ve done a little bit of that with our two-minute situation, but we’ll be able to incorporate more of those things once the pads are put on.”
When asked about how he’ll just the success of his team next week, Baugh concluded by saying that it’s about working hard and keeping a great attitude.
“I want to keep seeing what I saw today,” Baugh said. “There are things that we’re identifying as a coaching staff that we want to make sure we’re working on, and then we want to make sure we’re getting better at those specific things.”
Ruston High will have a two more full weeks of practice before traveling over to C.E. Byrd High School on Friday, Aug. 23, in Shreveport for their annual summer scrimmage with the Yellowjackets. The Bearcats will then play Saturday, Aug. 31, at the 2024 BayouJamb at Malone Stadium against Neville.
The 2024 regular season will open on Friday, Sept. 6, at home against Acadiana.
Each Monday and Friday, the Lincoln Parish Journal will post a list of non-for-profit upcoming events happening in the parish. If you would like to add your event to this list or advertise your for-profit events, please email us at lpjnewsla@gmail.com.
Saturday, August 10 8:30-11:30 a.m.: Hazardous Waste Material Collection and Recycling (2609 Farmerville St.) 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.: Ruston Farmers Market
Marquis Crosby was one of 89 college football student-athletes from 67 different schools to be named to the 2024 Comeback Player of the Year Award Watch List, as announced by the College Sports Communicators in association with The Associated Press and the Fiesta Bowl Organization.
This news comes one day after Crosby was also named to the 2024 Doak Walker Award Watch List, which was announced by the PwC SMU Athletic Forum.
Crosby, a running back from Hattiesburg, Mississippi, missed almost the entire 2023 season due to injury with his lone action coming at UTEP.
The redshirt junior looks to get back to his 2022 form, a season that saw him make 10 starts in the backfield while rushing for a team-high 918 yards to go along with nine rushing touchdowns (three games of multiple TDs).
He tallied four 100+ rushing games that season, highlighted by a 197-yard rushing performance during the Bulldogs 52-17 win over Stephen F. Austin.
Since 2018, the award has recognized college football student-athletes for overcoming injury, illness, or other circumstances. At the conclusion of each season, in a vote by a panel of college football writers, editors, and sports information directors, three college football student-athletes are honored as Comeback Player of the Year Award winners at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl.
SUPPORT LA TECH ATHLETICS Championships require championship resources. Fans can make a direct impact on the success of LA Tech Athletics through LTAC, Aillet Society, T-Club, and Young Alumni program as well as the Bulldog Community Outreach which is the NIL collective that supports Bulldog and Lady Techster student-athletes. Visit BuildTheLegacy.com today.
BARK LOUDER Our mission is to engage, develop, and advance the Louisiana Tech Athletics brand. You can do that by spending time consuming our content and by investing your talents. By barking louder with your time and talent, you can affect progress and brand advancement in a meaningful way. Visit LATechSports.com/BarkLouder today. You bark. We bark. Louder together.
Louisiana Tech forward Kyra Taylor was named to the CUSA Preseason All-Conference team, the league announced on Thursday.
Taylor, 2023 CUSA Freshman of the Year, wrapped her first season for Tech with nine goals, in which she tied the single-season record for goals scored by a freshman, and had three games where she scored multiple goals. The Texas native earned a spot on CUSA First-Team All-Conference and CUSA All-Freshman Team in 2023. The sophomore forward led LA Tech in goals and points while being second on the team in shots and shots on goal.
LA Tech ranked sixth in the 2024 CUSA Preseason poll. The Bulldogs finished sixth in CUSA in 2023 with a conference record of 2-4-3 and earned a bid in the CUSA Conference Tournament. Tech secured their first victory as a host team for the CUSA Conference Tournament against Western Kentucky following a score of 1-0 in the quarterfinals but fell to Liberty 4-0 in the semifinals.
Preseason Poll (first-place votes)
Liberty (8)
NM State (2)
WKU
FIU
Sam Houston
LA Tech
MTSU
Jax State
UTEP
Kennesaw State
LA Tech will kickoff the 2024 season against Nicholls on August 15 in Thibodax, LA.
SUPPORT LA TECH ATHLETICS Championships require championship resources. Fans can make a direct impact on the success of LA Tech Athletics through LTAC, Aillet Society, T-Club, and Young Alumni program as well as the Bulldog Community Outreach which is the NIL collective that supports Bulldog and Lady Techster student-athletes. Visit BuildTheLegacy.com today.
BARK LOUDER Our mission is to engage, develop, and advance the Louisiana Tech Athletics brand. You can do that by spending time-consuming our content and by investing your talents. By barking louder with your time and talent, you can affect progress and brand advancement in a meaningful way. Visit LATechSports.com/BarkLouder today. You bark. We bark. Louder together.
Claude E. Harris, Sr. Saturday 08/24/1935 — Thursday 08/01/2024 Viewing: Friday 08/09/2024 3:00pm to 6:00pm at King’s Funeral Home Celebration of Life: Saturday 08/10/2024 11:00am, Mt. Calm Baptist Church, 566 Mount Calm Road. Simsboro Burial: Saturday 08/10/2024, Jim & Maurine Gipson Harris Memorial Garden, 751 Mount Calm Road, Simsboro
Betty Marie “Kit” Gilbert January 22, 1943 – July 30, 2024 Service: Gilbert Art Center, Saturday, August 10, 2024, 10:30 am
June Kilpatrick April 14, 1958 – July 31, 2024 Memorial Service: Saturday, August 10, 2024, 10:00 AM, Bienville Methodist Church, 511 Spruce St, Bienville
Band-aids have been put on the Tech Exit bridge over I-20 for the last decade plus, but Mayor Ronny Walker believes a brand new bridge is coming in the near future.
by Malcolm Butler
Plenty of infrastructure dollars have been spent on roads in Ruston, especially the downtown area recently, during Mayor Ronny Walker’s tenure in office.
It’s been a priority along with new sidewalks and bike trails.
However, one glaring area that remains in desperate need of not only repairs — but a complete overhaul — are the bridges over Interstate 20.
The good news is the Louisiana Tech exit bridge should see a brand new look and traffic pattern in the near future, according to Walker. It’s been something he has been working on since he took office.
“The state had $30 million budgeted for it, but it’s going to cost $48 million,” said Walker. “So (State representatives) Chris Turner and Jack McFarland, and (state senators) Jay Luneau and Jay Morris went in and got us $18 million more.
“We had $30 million in this year’s budget, and they got $18 million more to get the full $48 million. So now it is scheduled to be bid in 2026, but there is a big push by those same guys to get it moved up to 2025.”
Just a few weekends ago, Walker said the city had to call the state Department of Transportation and Development (DOTD) when a part of the bridge became alarmingly exposed.
“We had a large piece (of the bridge) where the iron rods … the concrete had totally come away from it,” said Walker. “It was on the right tire if you were going north on the bridge. Your right tire would have hit that part. They came in and asphalted it. That’s great but it doesn’t completely solve the problem as a whole.
“We think it will be in 2025 that they are going to bid it. The money is there, and there is no reason they shouldn’t.”
Walker said once the bid process begins it will be at least a year process.
Once the actual construction process begins, Walker said the bridge won’t be just fixed. It will actually be rebuilt in a slightly separate footprint.
“It will be built about 150 feet to the west (of the current one),” said Walker. “That’s what the plans were. It would basically be built on the east boundary of the parking lot in front of Hobby Lobby. They will be able to build this one while people are still able to utilize the existing bridge so it won’t totally interrupt traffic flow.”
Walker also said the plans call for three roundabouts to be build with the new bridge, two on the north and one on the south. He also said the new bridge wouldn’t be perfectly parallel to the existing one.
“On the north side you will have one roundabout for the exit and one for the service road,” said Walker. “I don’t know exactly how they will position them. That’s what is planned now. Now we know that is always subject to change.”
Walker said that the traffic studies needed for all of this have already been done.
“Nine years ago during my first quarter of my first term as mayor, I went to Baton Rouge and I said, ‘What do I have to do to get the (Tech Exit) bridge replaced?’ said Walker. “They said the had to do (A, B and C). And I said, ‘Well how long are we talking?”
“They told me it would be eight years, and here we are nine years later. So they just have certain things that take time and you can’t speed it up. It’s part of the process.”
Walker admitted the Highway 167 bridge needs to be replaced as well, but is unsure of any type of timeline on it. He also mentioned the addition of a fifth bridge.
“We are planning a fifth exit on Rough Edge Road that will take you to the airport,” said Walker. “It will provide direct access to a lot more land to the east of us that can still be developed. We got a $4.5 million earmark from Senator Bill Cassidy’s office to do that.”
Walker said he isn’t 100 percent sure of timeline.
“I would love to say six to eight years, but it could be 10 to 12,” said Walker. “That’s the long-range plans we have.”
Bigger question. Are you ready to win $200 in cash … with the potential to make it $400 if you are perfect on the week (including predicting the No. 1 tiebreaker exactly right).
Starting in late August, the Lincoln Parish Journal will hold the Karl Malone Toyota College Football Pick’em Contest presented by Northern Louisiana Medical Center and Johnson Physical Therapy.
If you live in the deep south, you know College Football is King!
Anyone is eligible to participate and each week one lucky winner will go home with a $200 cash prize (maybe $400). Each week the winner will be the participant with the best record out of 15 selected college football games (ties will be broken by two separate tiebreakers consisting of guessing the total points scored in two of our weekly contests).
The Karl Malone Toyota College Football Pick’em Contest presented by Northern Louisiana Medical Center and Johnson Physical Therapy will be conducted for 14 regular season weeks of the college season starting with Week 1 games (August 31).
There is no entry fee, just like there is no cost to SUBSCRIBE to the Lincoln Parish Journal where it will come to your inbox every weekday morning at 6:55 a.m. It takes 20-30 seconds to sign up and not much longer than that to make your picks.
All contest decisions by LPJ management are final. Weekly winners will be notified Monday and will be requested to take a photo that will run in the following week’s LPJ.
Every participant will receive a FREE subscription to the Journal, if you’re not already signed up for the easily-navigated, convenient 6:55 a.m. daily e-mail. Enjoy it all, for FREE, and enter each week’s contest. You could collect $200 each week!
Pictured is Lincoln Parish Schools Transportation Director David “Doc” Hoeffler speaking before the School Board Monday night. (Photo by T. Scott Boatright)
By T. Scott Boatright
The Lincoln Parish School Board wants students to be cool in school.
On the way to school and back home, too.
That is the reason air conditioning was a big subject as the LPSB held its August meeting Monday night at the Central Schools Office.
During that meeting, Lincoln Parish Schools Transportation Director David “Doc” Hoeffler successfully requested permission to surplus two older school buses.
“These buses are no longer of use to us,” Hoeffler said. “We had some engine issues and after getting them checked out, it would be at a greater cost for these two buses to be fixed, so we are requesting to declare these buses surplus and grant permission to dispose of them.”
Hoeffler also successfully requested permission to purchase nine new buses (six for Ruston, three for parish wide schools), and that is when the talk of air conditioning came up.
“With the demand of our extracurricular activities for everybody in our district along with field trips, we like to buy buses on a yearly basis trying to meet those needs and to also help out with our route buses — putting better buses on line,” Hoeffler said. “We also need a special needs bus in our fleet.
“As our fleet ages, we’re replacing older buses and buying newer ones. We’re trying to put air conditioning on our buses for our students.”
Hoeffler said a special needs bus will cost around $147,000 and activity buses will cost around $67,000 with funding from the Ruston District Bond and also the 1993 ad valorem.
Hoeffler said all buses bought in the last two rounds have come with air conditioning.
“We bought five last year and three the year before that, and those all had air conditioning,” Hoeffler said. “We have also used ESSER (Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief) money to retrofit 35 buses with air conditioning. That still leaves some, (some unairconditioned buses), but I have been talking with (Lincoln Schools Superintendent Ricky Durrett) about how we can retrofit those,”
Hoeffler said the total bus fleet number was 100 including spares with between 65-70 running routes daily and that around 50% are air conditioned.
“It costs about $20,000 to retrofit them,” Hoeffler said. “But I would not recommend doing all of the ones that don’t have air conditioning because some of them are too old. We need about 10 or 15 more done and I think we will be right on track to have all of our buses air conditioned within about two years if we can get that 10-15 more done.”
After the Board approved purchasing the new buses, Lincoln Parish Schools Auxiliary Supervisor Ricky Edmiston requested permission to advertise for bids to replace HVAC units at Simsboro Elementary, Choudrant Elementary, Ruston Elementary, Glen View Elementary and I.A. Lewis Middle School.
“They need to be upgraded,” Edmiston said. “The current HVAC systems in those classrooms are anywhere from 15 to 20 years old. It is difficult to find parts when these units go down and these units also use R22 freon, which is no longer available. We do have 404A freon and have some R-22 on hand that we use when we need it.
“We are asking to replace 28 units at Simsboro, 21 at Choudrant Elementary, 18 units at Ruston Elementary, 21 units at Glen View and 15 units at I.A. Lewis. The funds to pay for these new HVAC units are going to come from ESSER.”
Edmiston said the school systems have just put 17 units in — nine at Hillcrest Elementary and eight at Cypress Springs Elementary.
“We budgeted $190,000 for those units and the bid came in at $90,000. So, we still have an extra $100,000 from ESSER funds to use here. We can use school-based funds, and we can also use some of our District 5 mill funds, which is in really good shape right now.”
A Ruston man has been arrested for kidnapping after he allegedly beat his ex-girlfriend and forced her into his truck and drove away.
Shedrick Green, 39, of Ruston, was arrested after the incident early Sunday morning.
About 1:45 a.m. Sunday morning, Ruston Police responded to a Reed Street residence on Reed Street regarding a report of a woman screaming. The caller told police a black truck drove away after the screams.
Authorities determined Green had a black truck and had been arrested before for domestic abuse on the same victim.
A description of Green’s truck was broadcast to local law enforcement agencies. Ruston Police “pinged” the victim’s phone in an attempt to locate her.
Deputies with the Ouachita Parish Sheriff’s Office stopped Green in West Monroe about 4 a.m. Sunday and took him into custody and recovered the victim. She was transported to St. Francis Medical Center because of injuries allegedly caused by Green.
The woman told police Green had forced her into his truck after beating on her outside the Ruston residence.
The victim said she was not currently in a relationship with Green.
This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Ruston High School fans are invited to join the Friday Night Lights Community Kickoff Tailgate Friday, Aug. 16, at the Ruston Civic Center at 6 p.m.
Tickets will be $20 and available to anyone 21 years and older. They can be purchased digitally only by clicking this link.
From the Bearcat Football Club: “Friday Night Lights will be a great community opportunity for all Bearcat Fans to come together to celebrate the beginning of the best time of the year! We will have great local food vendors serving tailgate style food and lots of great auction/fundraising opportunities for all levels of giving. Please encourage your friends, grandparents, etc., to join us as we kick off another great season of Ruston Bearcat football!”
The event will raise funds for the Ruston High Bearcat football program and will feature silent auctions, live auctions and “Raise your Paddle” events through the night all through the Bearcat Football Club, Inc.
Food will be provided as well as a cash bar.
Auction items will include but not limited to:
Hunting and Fishing Trips
Cruise and Disney vacations
Airfare Packages
Beach Condo Package
Sporting events packages (Saints, PGA, NCAA Football, and more)
Sports Memorabilia
Ruston All Sport Passes and Premium Parking Passes
Gameday Experiences for Future Bearcats (Junior Captains, Coach for a Day, Cheerleader for the Day, etc)
Original Artwork
Party Bus to Midland Lee game in Arlington
And much, much more!
Friday Night Lights Community Kickoff Tailgate would like to thank the following sponsors:
Gibsland Bank & Trust (Title Sponsor)
Tommy’s Express Car Wash (Live auction sponsor)
Lincoln Builders, Inc. (Raise the Paddle sponsor)
Southern States Equipment (Refreshments sponsor)
Ruston Maintenance Services (Food sponsor)
Squire Creek (Silent Auction)
Bojangles, Grown and Grazed, Hot Rod’s BBQ, State Representative Chris Turner, Log Cabin (Food vendors)
Louisiana Tech University’s Dr. Julie Rutledge, director of the Education and Research in Children’s Health (ENRICH) Center, and Dr. Taren Massey-Swindle, research collaborator from the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, have received a $3 million National Institutes of Health (NIH) grant.
This 5-year grant is funded through the National Institute of Diabetes, Digestive, and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK) and is titled Deimplementation of Inappropriate Feeding Practices in Early Care and Education Settings.
The project focuses on working closely with early care and education (ECE) teachers to decrease the use of unsupportive feeding practices and increase evidence-based methods in the classroom. Teachers will learn to set goals in phasing out inappropriate practices and adopt supportive ones. The program will provide training, goal-specific resources, and a peer learning collaborative to assist teachers in this transition.
Children consume more than 500 meals and snacks every year at school, and more than 70% of preschool-age children are in non-parental care each week, so the project’s potential impact is vast.
“Supporting one early care and education teacher in using evidence-based feeding practices can positively influence up to 20 children each year,” Rutledge said. “ECE teachers are vital to young children’s ability to develop a healthy relationship with food, exposures in a positive way with fruits and vegetables, and their understanding of their own dietary self-regulation.”
The initiative focuses on several common unsupportive practices including negative comments about food, pressuring children to eat beyond their fullness, comparing children’s eating habits, rushing mealtimes, and discouraging food manipulation. By addressing these issues, the project aims to foster a healthier relationship between children and their food.
Massey-Swindle emphasized the importance of their achievement and highlighted how the grant will allow them to explore key improvements through their research.
“This award reflects the culmination of several years of collaboration between myself, Dr. Rutledge, and our community partners,” Massey-Swindle said. “We are thrilled to have the opportunity to ask compelling scientific questions about deimplementation of inappropriate feeding practices in the early care and education setting and if removal of such practices can be sustained over time.”
The long-term goal of their work is to increase the use of evidence-based feeding practices in ECE settings supporting healthy weight trajectories and diets for young children and decreasing the risk of serious diseases like heart disease, diabetes, and obesity-related cancers.
“Through our pilot work, we now know which practices to target, and through this grant, we expect to show what strategies best support ECE teachers in decreasing these unsupportive practices,” Rutledge added. “We expect these results to have a positive impact on the weight and dietary behaviors of young children in early care and education. Future work will build on this by focusing on scale-up to include more sites and sustainment of the decrease of unsupportive practices.”
The project’s partnership spans across Louisiana and Arkansas, including Louisiana Tech undergraduate students from programs such as marketing, pre-med, and human development and family science, along with graduate students and research staff. Rutledge and Massey-Swindle also collaborated with Head Start administrators and teachers for development and pilot testing as they began their research.
“These programs would not be possible without our dedicated and passionate research team,” Rutledge said. “The School of Human Ecology and our Director, Dr. Amy Yates, have been incredibly supportive of my research, and I would not be able to continue this work without their continued support. This project is very special to us both, and I am excited to continue our shared vision of supporting early care and education and positive health outcomes for young children.”
This innovative research represents a significant step forward in promoting healthier feeding practices in ECE, fostering healthier eating habits and brighter futures.
Louisiana Attorney General Liz Murrill’s Cyber Crime Unit arrested a Ruston man Tuesday.
Damian Joel Parnell, 35, of East Georgia Avenue in Ruston, was arrested for three counts of possession of child pornography under the age of 13.
Louisiana Department of Justice agents initially received a tip from the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
The arrest was a result of a joint investigation with Cyber Crime Unit and the Lincoln Parish Sheriff’s Office.
Parnell was booked at the Lincoln Parish Detention Center without incident. Bail was set at $175,000.
The investigation is ongoing.
This information has been provided by a law enforcement agency as public information. Persons named or shown in photographs or video as suspects in a criminal investigation, or arrested and charged with a crime, have not been convicted of any criminal offense and are presumed innocent until proven guilty in a court of law.
Ruston High Assistant Football Coach CJ Gatlin, right
Ruston High School alum CJ Gatlin has returned to the Ruston High School sidelines, this time as an assistant coach. The 2013 graduate sat down to discuss his family’s decision to come back to Lincoln Parish.
This conversation has been lightly edited for continuity.
Lincoln Parish Journal: After you time as the starting quarterback for Ruston High, what have you been doing since?
CJ Gatlin: A lot of coaching (laughs). I’ve had stints at Union Parish, Carwell Parish, Tioga, back to Caldwell, and then back to Union from 2021-23. I won a state championship with Union last season, and now I’m back here at Ruston High.
LPJ: What brought you back to Ruston?
CJ: Honestly, my wife. We both went to school here — we met here. So we wanted our kids here to come to Ruston.
LPJ: From your perspective, you understand Ruston High football after starting here, and this team won its first title in 33 years last season. You come now into a championship program. What has that been like for you?
CJ: It’s exciting. After winning one with Union, I’m excited to get to come here and do it for my alma mater. That’s the most exciting thing for me.
LPJ: What is your specific role on the staff this year?
CJ: I’ll coach receivers and help with the rest of the offense here.
LPJ: Outside of athletics, what are you looking forward to most about being part of Ruston High School?
CJ: It’s about being back where I graduated from. The school environment is amazing, and we’re one of the top schools in the state of Louisiana. And like I said, my wife and I really want our kids to be here.
LPJ: CJ, best of luck and thank you for your time.
Now that we are in August, football predictions and prognostications are ramping up. Whether you are a professional, college, or high school football fan, there is plenty of hope and excitement building around your favorite team. Teams are all practicing and getting ready for the season regardless of what others are saying about their upcoming season.
While most fans are primarily focused on how many games their team will win or how far they can go in the playoffs, I look for some different aspects of a program. Professional football is purely transactional in that players and coaches are all paid high salaries to deliver wins. College football is heading in that direction in many places; however, I still think there is a place for transformational as opposed to purely transactional.
Transformational is where coaching staffs support one another rather than compete internally, players are committed to one another as opposed to seeking self-interest, and coaches are committed to a purpose beyond winning games. Transformational programs impact lives, change communities, and establish a foundation for their respective universities to build on.
Transformational programs compete in the same market for players but differentiate themselves in that team culture still means a great deal. While money will always be a factor to a degree, it’s not what defines transformational programs. These programs are defined by their impact, their retention of athletes and coaches, and their consistency over time. Transformational programs have a firm purpose that doesn’t change over time but are willing to adapt to changing times to alter their approach to fulfilling that purpose.
As others are evaluating returning starters, incoming transfers, and what coaches are talking about in pre-season interviews, I will be watching interactions on the side-lines, listening to how coaches talk about their players, and observing coaches and players interact with others. What most would ignore, I find intriguing.
I’m still one that believes team building is not only the right thing to do but is also a competitive advantage. I am as competitive as anyone and like winning too, but am not satisfied with wins without purpose, championships without character, or achievements without impact.
I developed that same approach in business. It was not enough to meet financial objectives. We had to create “difference making” workplaces for people. We had to impact lives beyond just impacting the bottom line! I found that impactful workplaces attracted, retained, and engaged people to deliver sustainable results.
I am holding out hope that others find that approach desirable in both business and in college athletics.
As you watch your favorite team this fall, I’ll be watching for more than what shows on the scoreboard. I may be outdated in my thinking or just “old school” that needs to catch up with the times. Maybe I am just overly optimistic, but I do hope that more will choose transformational over transactional as they look to have impact beyond the scoreboard. One thing we know for sure is that half the teams will win, and half will lose on any given weekend.
A West Monroe woman died in a three-vehicle crash on Interstate 20 Tuesday morning.
Carla Wollerson, 62, of West Monroe, was killed when her vehicle was struck about 10 a.m.
The West Monroe Police Department and Fire Department responded to the crash in the eastbound lane of I-20 at Thomas Road. The investigation revealed a 2016 Toyota Camry driven by David Neighbors, 59, of West Monroe was traveling south on Thomas Road. For unknown reasons, his vehicle left the roadway and traveled down an embankment to I-20. The vehicle crossed over the westbound traffic lanes and into the eastbound lane, crashing into Wollerson’s 300 Chrysler 300.
Following the impact, the Camry crashed into a shoulder median barrier where it was then struck by an 18-wheeler traveling eastbound driven by Gary Guin, 51, of Keithville.
Neighbors was transported to St. Francis Medical Center for injuries sustained in the crash and for medical evaluation related to leaving the roadway. Guin was not injured. Wollerson was pronounced deceased at the scene. All drivers were properly restrained. Family notifications have been made.
Alcohol and drug impairment are not suspected. Toxicology samples were collected from all drivers. The crash remains under investigation.
On August 3, Captain John Rut sat down and wrote “in haste” a letter to the King of England in which he described the condition of his crew. “Pleasing your honourable Grace to hear of your servant John Rut, with all his company here in good health, thanks be to God and your Grace’s ship the Mary Gilford.”
A few months earlier, Robert Thorne, a Bristol merchant, convinced the king to finance an expedition to find a northwest passage to the Orient around or through the North American continent. Finding a new and quicker route to China, Thorne reasoned, would increase the king’s wealth as well as his own. The king agreed and put John Rut in command of two well-armed ships.
On June 10, the Mary Guildford, captained by John Rut, and the Samson, captained by a man known only as “Master Grube,” left Plymouth Harbor and sailed west across the Atlantic Ocean. For three weeks, the two ships sailed in calm seas and stayed within sight of each other. Then, on the night of July 1, a severe summer storm materialized. The crews of both ships fought the high, pounding waves through heavy rain to keep their ships afloat. Bolts of lightning lit up the skies for split seconds at a time, but the crews were too busy trying to survive to keep each other’s ship in their sights. Finally, the waves began to die down. The storm was letting up. John Rut and the crew of the Mary Guildford looked in all directions through their spyglasses, but they could not locate the Samson. John Rut wrote, “I trust in almighty Jesu to hear good news of her. And please your Grace, we were considering and a’writing of all our order, how we would wash us and what course we would draw, [and] so departed southward to seek our fellow.”
In the letter, John Rut explained that they changed course again. “[We] ran in our course to the northward … and there we found many great islands of ice and deep water; we found no sounding, and then we durst not go further to the northward for fear of more ice.” On August 3, the Mary Guildford entered into St. John’s harbor, Newfoundland. In the harbor, which John Rut referred to as “a good haven,” they encountered “eleven sail of Normans, and one Brittaine, and two Portugall barks, and all a’fishing, and so we are ready to depart toward Cape de Bas [as] shortly as we have fished, and so along the coast till we may meet with our fellow (the Samson), and [with] all the diligence that lies in me [as] we were commanded at our departing.”
Unfortunately, the crew of the Mary Guildford never located their fellow ship, the Samson. The Samson and its crew disappeared. Most people at the time, and modern historians agree, that they were probably victims of the brutal storm mentioned in the letter. John Rut ended the letter, “And thus, Jesu save and keep your honorable Grace, and all your honorable Rever(ences), in the Haven of Saint John, the third day of August. By your servant John Rut to his uttermost of his power.” Once John Rut completed the letter, he exchanged it with another ship’s captain, possibly one of the 14 fishing ships in St. John’s “haven.” At the time, captains on outbound voyages exchanged letters with captains of ships who were heading back toward the outbound ship’s port. Letters often passed between several ships before reaching their intended recipients. John Rut’s letter eventually made its way across the Atlantic Ocean to King Henry VIII and into its place in history. John Rut’s letter, portions of it which you have just read, was the first known letter mailed from the new world, the first letter sent from North America. John Rut wrote and mailed the letter on August 3, 1527.
BATON ROUGE, La. – Since the program’s launch in spring 2023, Keep Louisiana Beautiful’s (KLB) Clean Biz Partnership has grown to over 640 participating businesses in 48 parishes and 38 chambers of commerce in 30 parishes. Businesses that are part of the Clean Biz Partnership are committed to keeping their properties well-maintained and litter-free.
“Litter is bad for business, and it hurts our state’s economy,” said Lieutenant Governor Billy Nungesser. “Our 2023 Louisiana Litter Study found the state spends $91.4 million on litter abatement each year. If people didn’t litter, we could use this taxpayer money for other important causes. I challenge every business in Louisiana to join the Clean Biz Partnership and help lead the way to a cleaner Louisiana.”
“Addressing the litter problem in Louisiana is a responsibility we all must share, including our state’s businesses,” said Susan Russell, KLB Executive Director. “Our 2023 study shows 92% of Louisiana citizens believe litter is a problem, so it’s time we do something about it. We must take pride and keep the places where we live and work clean and beautiful. In doing so, we will experience an improved environment and quality of life.”
Businesses of all sizes can join the Clean Biz Partnership for free. By joining, businesses commit to adopting daily best practices for reducing and preventing litter such as cleaning parking bays, placing trash receptacles at storefronts, and maintaining a clean dumpster area.
KLB offers Clean Biz Partners educational opportunities such as workshops and webinars. Partners also receive marketing benefits, including signage, social media graphics, and window clings. Awards are given to outstanding businesses at KLB’s annual Everyday Hero Awards on Thursday, October 24, 2024.
The parishes with the greatest number of Clean Biz Partners are Ouachita Parish, East Baton Rouge Parish, and St. Landry Parish. A complete list of businesses and chambers by parish can be found on the Clean Biz Partnership webpage. Businesses and chambers can learn more about the program and join for free on this webpage.
The PwC SMU Athletic forum announced Tuesday the preseason candidates for the 2024 Doak Walker Award, a list that includes Louisiana Tech’s Marquis Crosby. The Forum annually presents the award to the nation’s most outstanding college running back.
Due to an injury suffered in the offseason, Crosby saw limited action in just one game this past season. The Hattiesburg, Mississippi native looks to return to form when he had a breakout season in 2022 for the Bulldogs, rushing for 918 total yards with nine touchdowns.
The College Football News honorable mention Freshman All-America eclipsed the century mark in rushing in four games, highlighted by a 197-yard rushing performance against Stephen F. Austin.
The PwC SMU Athletic Forum Board of Directors will name ten semifinalists in November, and three finalists, as voted on by the Doak Walker Award National Selection Committee, will be announced in November. The committee will cast a second vote in December to determine the recipient. The National Selection Committee consists of past recipients, former NFL All-Pro and college All-America running backs, media members, and selected special representatives.
The 2024 Doak Walker Award recipient will be announced live on The Home Depot College Football Awards.
The award is named for SMU’s three-time All-America running back, Doak Walker. Each Tuesday of the season, the PwC SMU Athletic Forum will once again announce a Doak Walker national running back of the week.
Grambling State University’s Aria Whitney was named the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Soccer Preseason Midfielder of the Year, announced by the conference on Monday morning.
In total, six Tigers earned SWAC preseason all-conference honors. Along with being named preseason Midfielder of the Year, Whitney landed first team recognition alongside teammates Adrianna Pratt and Kaylen Jankans.
Forwards Sophia Lezizdis and Kayla Reed, along with goalkeeper Madison Covey-Taylor, earned spots on the second team.
Whitney was one of the leaders of the GSU soccer team, making numerous plays on the offensive and defensive sides of the field. She played in 24 games, scoring four goals and dishing out five assists, the second most in the SWAC. Defensively, she was a force, helping the Tigers hold 11 opponents scoreless and rank second in goals allowed.
Pratt was once again one of the elite defenders in the conference. Her speed and intensity paced a stingy GSU defense that was among the best in the SWAC.
Jankans was strong on defense for GSU during her freshman season, thwarting multiple scoring chances for opposing teams and helping lead the defense alongside Pratt. The Orange County, Calif. native was also an important piece of the offense, registering two assists.
Lezizidis, a sophomore from London, Ontario had a fantastic freshman season for the Tigers, scoring seven goals with three assists. She was the catalyst during GSU’s run in the SWAC tournament, scoring four goals to securing the SWAC Tournament MVP award.
Reed was a key contributor to Grambling State’s success last year. Reed racked up four goals, five assists and scored 13 points for the Tigers. She started 21-of-24 games played for GSU. One of her biggest goals of the season was a game-winner in a 2-1 victory over Louisiana Tech.
Covey-Taylor wrapped up her sophomore season as one of the best goalkeepers in the SWAC, finishing with a 14-3-2 record as the starter in route to a SWAC Title. She made 67 saves and allowed 0.94 goals per contest.
Betty Marie “Kit” Gilbert January 22, 1943 – July 30, 2024 Service: Gilbert Art Center, Saturday, August 10, 2024, 10:30 am
June Kilpatrick April 14, 1958 – July 31, 2024 Memorial Service: Saturday, August 10, 2024, 10:00 AM, Bienville Methodist Church, 511 Spruce St, Bienville
