Wednesday, May 27, 2020
This is the last column for May. It is surprising, in spite of the quarantine, how fast the month has flown by. Folks are tired of staying in. We noted a lot of vehicles on the road during the three-day Memorial Day weekend. We also saw a lot of boats coming through Many on their way to Toledo Bend Lake.
The Louisiana Board of Elementary and Secondary Education last Wednesday named Converse native Cade Brumley as State Superintendent of Education.
“As a Louisiana native, I am extremely honored to be selected,” Brumley said. “Louisiana may not be the largest state in the union, but we have a big table for collaboration. I look forward to bringing people together to collectively move our state forward. We are primed for continued improvement, drawing on successes of the past and the promise of our future. I will fight for our children, families and communities each day. They deserve our best.”
Brumley has been a teacher, coach, assistant principal, principal, district leader and superintendent. He was Superintendent in DeSoto Parish from 2012-18 and in 2018 was appointed Superintendent in Jefferson Parish.
He received his Bachelor’s Degree at Northwestern in 2002, a Master’s from LSUS in 2004 and his Doctorate in Education leadership from Stephen F. Austin in 2007. He is married to the former Toni Vail, who is also a Northwestern graduate, and they have two sons. He is the son of Mr. and Mrs. Bobby Brumley of Converse.
Upon his selection, Brumley received congratulations from Gov. John Bel Edwards and Northwestern President Chris Maggio.
Sabine Parish’s first business victim of the Coronavirus is the Gulf Station Café in Many. We hate to see it lose its present owner because a group of men that I gather with met there every morning for coffee and enjoyed it very much.
Amanda R. Calkins, shown at left in the photo, took over operation of the business last June 30. She will cease her operation of the business on June 1. She hates very much to leave, but because of the COVID-19 shut down and due to the restaurant’s recent limited hours, she finds she cannot continue to operate financially.
“I wish it hadn’t come to this,” Ms. Calkins told Observations. “I will be looking for another job. I hope there are brighter days ahead. I continue to pray for other businesses who find themselves in the same situation.”
But, there is good news. Though Ms. Calkins is leaving, the business will not close down. Shown in the picture at right is Annie Britner, who will continue to work there; building owner Pete Abington and his longtime secretary Nell Britner will operate the business until a new owner can be found. They plan to be open for an early breakfast and close after lunch each day at 2 p.m.
And another victim of the Coronavirus shutdown is the Natchitoches Alligator Park. It was announced last week they will close after 23 years of serving the public. The owners said the alligators will stay and be cared for as usual. The pygmy goats will be sold and the merchandise in the gift shop will be sold in bulk. But, the whole place is for sale. For more information, email bpap@alligatorpark.net.
VOICE FROM THE CISTERN: Someone just needs to say, “We are going to have school this fall.”
We wonder how many more businesses will close before this is all over. And no one is talking about how keeping students out of school directly affects the economy. When students are not attending school, parents who regularly work traditional 9-to-5 jobs must stay home to care for school-age children or bear the added expense of childcare during their work hours.
According to the Tuesday report from David Davis, chief of Sabine Parish Homeland Security, the state shows the parish with 40 reported cases of the Coronavirus and one death. He said this is not correct; he shows 57 cases, one death and 33 recoveries.
We had the rain in this area last Wednesday, May 20. Mandy Bailey WX Radar estimated over 13 inches south of Robeline in a six-hour period. Other places in the area reported from eight to ten inches of rain. Golf ball-size hail was reported, Hwy. 6 between Robeline and Many at Mark Schoth’s place was flooded, Natchitoches Parish Fire District 7 conducted a water rescue in Marthaville, marble-size hail was reported at Toledo Bend and there was a lot of damage to parish roads.
Congratulations to our long-time friend Jerry Pierce who will reign as King of the 52nd Spring Festival Court presented by the St. Denis Art League in Natchitoches. He has been Vice-President for External Affairs at Northwestern for 35 years and is very active in area events.
He received his journalism degree from Northwestern in 1961 and went to work for the Times-Picayune in New Orleans. He became Executive Sports Editor of the newspaper at the age of 24.
It was he who was responsible for bringing the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame to Natchitoches in 1972. He was named one of the “20 Most Influential People in Sports in Louisiana” by the Times-Picayune. He played major roles at Northwestern in establishing the Long Purple Line and n Club Hall of Fame and served as co-chairman of the University’s Centennial activities in 1984 and 125th Anniversary celebration in 2009. He was also the university’s liaison with production companies for the filming of the movies “Steel Magnolias” and “Man in the Moon.”
He has been active in tons of Natchitoches events and has received too many awards to mention. He is married to the former Regina Bruce and together they have four children, seven grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Jarrad Rivers, principal of Pleasant Hill High, has been selected as a semi-finalist for Louisiana Principal after being selected Sabine Principal of the year for the 2019-20 school year. He was graduated from Zwolle High in 2000, earned his Bachelor’s degree from Northwestern in 2004 and his Master’s in 2011. He began his career at Converse where he taught Social Studies. In 2010 he transferred to Pleasant Hill where he taught Social Studies and coached baseball. In 2013 he was named Assistant Principal and in 2015, Principal. We wish him well.
Members of Boy Scout Troop 80 and Cub Scouts Pack 80 met at Many Cemetery last Wednesday to place flags on certain graves for Memorial Day. We are very proud of these fine, young people and much appreciate the work of Troop Leader Kirt Voorheis and wife Diane, who are so dedicated to these youth.
Shown left to right in the photo above are Xavier Scott, Glenn Allen Rainey, Brentley Rivers, Hunter Atkins, Walker McCullough, Maddox Lapp, Ross Voorhies, Bryton Savell, Carson Meshell, Gideon Lapp and Gavin Lewing.
We have always credited Sabineland folks with having some of the best hearts anywhere. We are never surprised to learn of amazing people here who go above and beyond.
Observations recently learned that local 4-Hers and a small group of area ladies made 872 masks for use right here in Sabine. That’s a whole lot of cutting and sewing, and our hats are off to them.
Back on March 26, 4-H Extension Agent Nan Arthur of Florien sent out the word to all area 4-Hers, “Calling all 4-Hers that sew: we need your help to make masks. If you are willing to help, please let us know. The materials are already purchased.”
The next day she posted a DIY fabric mask tutorial and the project was off and running.
A small group of 4-Hers who sew took on the project and produced almost 100 masks.
About a week later, Arthur again shared the need for masks for local healthcare workers, essential workers and nursing home residents. This time, she invited anyone who wished to take part.
Shortly after that was when Ginger Jordan of Many jumped on board. “My involvement in making masks all goes back to Nan,” Ginger shared. Jordan made 50 masks to help out initially, then another 50, and now she’s made 50 more.
Jordan was quick to credit other Sabine ladies who rose to the challenge. “It certainly wasn’t just me,” Ginger explained. “People all over the parish have been making them,” she said.
Arthur shared that Lynette Mitchell “sewed night and day” to help produce an amazing number of the final 872 and in addition to Ginger Jordan, also named Brenda Parler, Belinda Killian, Deborah Ledford, Michelle Gentry, Lindsey DuBose, Kim Eidson, Katheryn Woodruff, Terri Rutherford and Marie Laroux as others whose participation was vital to the effort’s success.
“We had to become creative!” Arthur laughed. “We went from using elastic for the ear loops to using soft, stretchy cotton loops from loom craft kits. Those were more comfortable for nursing home residents,” she explained.
The group supplied masks to all the residents of local nursing homes, each facility’s employees, the hospital and all area doctors’ offices.
“We’d like to thank all the people who gave us money to buy supplies and materials,” Arthur said. “Thanks to them we had no expense on anything. Donations flowed in from folks who were 4-Hers when they were in school! Materials and supplies were provided by the community,” she stated.
The 4-Hers who participated in the mask making were Abby Shanley, RyLeigh Morales, Josey Parler and Morgan Green. Others who helped by cutting out patterns were Tori Townson, Emily Eason and Sarah Kate Green.
Everyone’s work came together to provide a much-needed and much-appreciated help to the community.
Using skills and God-given talents to serve others is a great lesson of 4-H, and folks across Sabineland are talking about how big a success the effort was to provide much-needed masks during the Coronavirus pandemic.
“Nan saw the need and it was a great way to teach her kids to serve others. She rallied not only her students, but people across the community to fill that need,” Jordan said.
“A few extra masks are still available if any older people need them,” Arthur said. She invited older persons who do not have a mask to call (318) 256-3406 to get one.
On a related note, when the pandemic unfolded and a need for masks developed, Ninth grader Gracie Rutherford of Florien decided to learn how to make masks from her grandmother Sharon Rutherford. So, in her case, the need provided an opportunity to not only learn a new skill, but to spend some extra time with family.
After Gracie got her own sewing machine, she was able to produce a quantity of masks to sell. Her enterprising spirit has been rewarded with a big demand she is happy to supply. Up until now, we understand she has sold her masks through personal contacts, but we hear they are now for sale inside Kountry Korner (formerly Many Pawn Shop) at 867 San Antonio Ave. for only $5 each. That’s a bargain compared to handmade masks purchased online.
Good luck to Gracie on her timely endeavor.
That is all for now. I welcome your ideas and suggestions for future Observations. Send me an email at robertrgentry@gmail.com or call (318) 332-8653. To save, send or print this week’s column, click on the appropriate icon below. To see Observations of the last few years, follow the pages below. To see older ones, visit our Facebook page. Thanks for faithfully reading.
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