Friday, August 6, 2021
Remembering the Late Gov. Edwin W. Edwards in Sabine Parish
PART III
1984-1990
It was early in 1986 when Gov. Edwards summoned me to his office at the State Capitol. He was in the middle of his third term as Governor. After some casual conversation, the topic turned to the Louisiana Sabine River Authority (SRA), of which I was a member. We were looking for a new Director for the Authority. The Governor said, “Have you thought about Mutt Fowler? I believe he would make a good one.” H. M. “Mutt” Fowler had been Mayor of Coushatta and was currently serving as State Representative from the District, which included Sabine Parish.
I caught on quickly to what was up and replied, “Man, that’s a great idea. I will see what I can do about it.” I knew where the original thought had come from, and it wasn’t the Governor. I came back to Many and the next day called SRA President L.B. Skinner and discussed the matter with him. By the end of our meeting, Mr. Skinner was quite proud of himself for coming up with the wonderful idea that Mutt should be appointed.
A couple of days later, Mr. Skinner and I went out to see Mutt at his office in the Chamber Building in Many. Mr. Skinner presented his proposition to Mutt, while I sat there smiling. Mutt acted taken aback at first, physically reacting as if the idea were totally unexpected, then he said, “Mr. Skinner, that’s a great idea. I had not thought of that, but I really am interested.” The matter had come full circle. Mr. Skinner and I did our work, and the SRA voted to hire him. On April 1, 1986, Mutt resigned as State Representative and took the job as SRA Director.
August 9, 1986 found the Governor on his first trip to Pleasant Hill. The village was founded in the early 1800s and a Governor had never visited. The high school gym was packed. He came to present Mayor George Shannon the certification re-classifying Pleasant Hill from a Village to a Town. And Mayor Shannon presented the Governor a plaque making him an Honorary Citizen of the Town.
“I love this part of the state,” Edwards said. “I love your similarities. I love you for your understanding and your willingness to work and to accept things that cannot be changed and to change things that need to be changed. I hope the only thing you do not change is your pleasant attitude and the pleasant surroundings in which you live and the pleasant way you have in getting along with one another and living in America in peace and comfort, helping your neighbors, sending your children to school and being beautiful, law-abiding citizens and contributing.”
He continued, “I noticed in the elections I’ve run, Sabine Parish has always been kind to me and I’ve never forgotten it. I love the people of this area.” He said that the visit was his 20th time to be in Sabine Parish. Platform guests included DA Don Burkett, Sen. Bryan Poston and Coroner Dr. Gene Poemboeuf.
On Dec. 2, 1986, Gov. Edwards came to Leesville to officially rename the Leesville Vocational-Technical School the Lamar Salter Vocational-Technical School. Mr. Salter had long been associated with vo-tech education in the state having served as Director of both the Many and Leesville schools and Director of Shreveport Region 7 for Vo-Tech. He was sadly killed in an auto accident on Oct. 7, 1983. He was a brother to popular public figure Joe R. Salter.
“There will be hundreds of people for many years to come who will be better off in their stations in life because of Lamar Salter,” Edwards said. “Here was an educator who took time to teach, to show and to demonstrate.” He was glad to dedicate an education facility to an educator, adding, “…one we knew in life as an educator and one we remember in death as an educator.”
Gov. Edwards brought his campaign for re-election to an EWE EXPO at the Shreveport Convention Hall on Oct. 13, 1987. It was the big rally for North Louisiana and featured entertainment and food, in addition to the Governor speaking. He even had a couple of Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders there. He was in a tight race at the time with Congressman Buddy Roemer. Tedd Dumas and I attended the rally.
Somewhere along the way, Tedd and I had a problem with Gov. Edwards and decided to support Roemer for Governor. Roemer won and forgot the help Tedd and I gave him very quickly. So, Tedd and I did the honorable thing, we tucked our tails between our legs and went back to Edwards.
The Governor came back to town on Jan. 24, 1987 for a fundraiser for Many Mayor Mike Tarver. About 150 attended and Tedd Dumas and I were the Masters of Ceremonies. Among the speakers was popular Natchitoches Mayor Joe Sampité, who slapped “I Love Natchitoches” stickers on everyone who would let him. Tarver was so happy that he qualified to run for a third term the next day.
Gov. Edwards said he was not at the gathering to dabble in Many politics. Said he, “I came as a favor to an old friend, [meaning Tarver].” The Index wrote, “The Governor at 59 looked in great shape and was warmly received by the people from Sabine and Natchitoches Parish.”
The election for Governor in the fall of 1987 pitted Edwards against Buddy Roemer, who led in the first primary. Edwards decided not to enter the run-off against Roemer and withdrew. Edwards predicted that before the end of Roemer’s fours year, “People will be marching in the streets wanting me back.”
Sometime in early 1990, our morning men’s coffee group was down at Hardee’s [present-day El Patio]. We regularly discussed politics and the matter came to Edwin Edwards. Tedd Dumas, always a great “idea man,” said, “You know, Edwards said before the end of Roemer’s term that people would be marching in the streets wanting him back as Governor. Why don’t we have a march in Many?” By that time, Tedd and I had been on the outs with Roemer for quite awhile. I liked Tedd’s idea, and we came back to his office and I called the Governor.
When Edwards had withdrawn before the election run-off, Roemer had referred to Edwards as the “dragon” and himself as the “dragon slayer.”
I presented the plan to Edwards and told him Tedd had suggested we have a parade in Many and call it “Return of the Dragon.” Edwards really liked the concept, but suggested it be “Return of the Friendly Dragon.”
Tedd and I put together a group called “The Minutemen” to work on the march. In the group were Attorney Ken Simmons, Attorney James Lynn Davis and insurance agent Gailor Phares.
We held the event on June 22, 1990. We had 70 units in the parade, including floats, bands, vintage cars, animals, beauty queens, mule-drawn wagons and marching units. The Sullivan Family of St. Stephens, AL even came over and played Bluegrass Gospel music.
Some of the parade floats highlighted Roemer’s misfortunes and downfalls. One float had a silhouette of the state capitol on one end and an old outhouse on the other with a guy sitting on the hole wearing a Roemer mask. The sign read, “From The White House to The Outhouse.” Roemer had pledged to “scrub the budget.” So, another float featured a group of people with mops and buckets and the sign on the float read, “Roemer Failed to Scrub the Budget.” Roemer had spent $7,000 in taxpayer monies to build a fence at the Governor’s Mansion to enclose his son’s pet billy goat. We had a couple of guys wearing Roemer masks leading a billy goat down the street. One was leading it and the other was walking behind and would pop the goat in the rear with a broom each time it stopped along the parade route. Another float proclaimed, “The Roemer Revolution is Dead.” Yet another float carried a big air tank reading, “Buddy Roemer’s Supply of Hot Air.”
The most impressive part of the parade was the arrival of the former Governor. First came a pickup truck with a big sign reading, “The Return of the Friendly Dragon, Gov. Edwin W. Edwards.” In the back of the truck was a person who shot firecrackers in a barrel the entire length of the parade route. Next, a truck displayed two large “Edwards Now” signs, local leftovers from his 1983 campaign.
After that were percussionists playing a drum, a cymbal and a gong. This was followed by a giant friendly dragon, skillfully and beautifully crafted by Teresa Rivers of Zwolle. Her creation was reminiscent of Asian parade pieces with a large multi-section, shiny green, iridescent dragon design. Each section was controlled by someone walking underneath. Because of her clever design, the colorful dragon swirled, weaved, and snaked its way down San Antonio Ave. A teen-age trumpeter led the Edwards entourage, sounding the six-note “charge” tune.
The 62-year-old Edwards presented a stunning and relaxed figure as he walked the parade route. “He still has that magic and charisma,” more than one person along the parade route said. He wore a white long-sleeved shirt on which Phyllis Simmons pinned a bright red rose.
One person along the parade route told him, “You still look like a governor and act like a governor, which is more than I can say for Roemer.” Along the route, Edwards spied former Many Mayor Virginia Godfrey and went over to give her a hug and visit.
Walking along with the Governor were Minutemen Tedd Dumas, Gailor Phares, James Lynn Davis and me, as well as Edwards’ two sons, Stephen and David.
The crowd enjoyed catching the many parade throws that day, including 100 Eisenhower dollars, 3,000 Edwin Edwards doubloons, 2,500 Mardi Gras beads, a truck load of beachballs, 3,000 souvenir cups and $450 worth of candy.
Louisiana political legend Bill Dodd was Grand Marshal and rode the parade route in a horse-drawn buggy provided by Jerome Hammons.
“I want to remember this as where 1991 [campaign for Governor] started on a hot summer’s day in June in Many, LA,” the Governor told the press. A large group of TV cameramen, journalists and news reporters from all over the state came to Many to cover the event. It was a big deal. An estimated 2,500 lined the parade route. After the parade, Edwards and Dodd spoke to another 300 at a rally in front of Brookshire’s.
Edwards said he was surprised by the size of the crowd. “I didn’t know what to expect,” he said. “It is early to be campaigning and then the weather is hot. What I found when I got to Many was an unbelievably positive attitude. I found the depth and size of the crowd beyond my wildest imagination.”
Dodd told the crowd, “This is the first time we’ve ever had a juvenile, a midget, as governor. Don’t be fooled by Roemer again.”
We will have the fourth installment of Gov. Edwin Edwards in Sabine Parish next Friday, so if you are interested, be sure to continue reading. At the beginning, I thought I could cover Gov. Edwards’ association with Sabine Parish in one column, but as my research began, I found there is much to share. So, this series will continue for several more Fridays. Thanks for reading.
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