Wednesday, July 29, 2020
Congratulations to 11th Judicial District Judge Stephen B. Beasley and Sabine District Attorney Don Burkett on being unopposed for office as qualifying came to an end on Friday.
“Thank you for the honor it has been to be allowed to continue to serve the people of Sabine Parish,” Judge Beasley shared in a statement. “This will be my last term, and there are at least two important challenges we need to address as a community. In the short term, we need to keep focusing on a cohesive and nonpartisan, science-based response to Covid-19 in order to make public safety a priority for all. Longer term, we must actively attempt to prevent crime and reduce recidivism by directing resources towards mental health and drug addiction in our parish,” he said.
Judge Beasley was first elected 11th Judicial District Judge in 1995.
His reasoning was recently in front of our nation’s highest court when the Supreme Court of the United States turned to a Judge Beasley ruling to help inform its decision in Ramos v. Louisiana. The judge was cited twice in the first three pages of the high court’s opinion. It is quite an honor for a judge in a small parish to find his reasoning in front of the U.S. Supreme Court.
Also unopposed is longtime Sabine Parish District Attorney Don Burkett.
“I’m very honored and happy to be elected unopposed to another six-year term. The people of Sabine Parish I serve are the very best!” said DA Burkett.
Burkett was first elected District Attorney in 1984 at the age of 31. He has been re-elected six times since and now becomes the only district attorney in Louisiana to ever be elected to seven terms.
We congratulate both gentlemen and wish them the very best in their upcoming terms.
The annual Many High School Football Four-man Golf Scramble will be held this weekend, Saturday, Aug. 1 beginning at 9 a.m. at Cypress Bend Golf Resort. Entry fee is $320 per team or $500 team fee/hold sponsor/8 mulligans. All proceeds go to the 2020 Many High football team. For more information call Coach Tyler Hassell at (318) 564-7343.
We were saddened to learn Sunday afternoon of the death of a great public servant of many years, Frankie Howard, 81. He died about 3:30 p.m. He served Vernon Parish 15 years as a deputy sheriff and was elected Sheriff in 1976. He served 24 years in that capacity, retiring in 2000.
He then ran for State Representative from District 24 in 2008 and was elected. His district covered portions of Natchitoches, Sabine and Vernon Parish. He served two terms and retired earlier this year due to term limits.
Visitation will be held Wednesday, July 29, from 5-8 p.m. at Castor Baptist Church, 2057 Slagle Rd. in Leesville. It will be held outside. Graveside services will be at the Castor Baptist Church Cemetery on Thursday, July 30, at 10 a.m.
Frankie was the epitome of a public servant. He loved what he did and it showed. He offered help to anyone he could and was available to everyone either by phone or in person. And he was always up early and on the job.
After his defeat as Sabine Parish Sheriff last fall, Howard gave up his position early as State Representative so Rodney Schamerhorn could take office early. He then endorsed Sabine Sheriff Candidate Aaron Mitchell, who beat Sheriff Ronny Richardson, and then Howard went home.
We stayed in touch. Recently he delivered some great home-grown tomatoes to Tedd Dumas and me. I called to thank him and he said he had been working on his wife’s place clearing fence rows. Then the next time I called, he said both he and wife Macel had the Coronavirus, but thought he was doing better.
Our thanks to Jim Wise, a longtime friend of Frankie’s, who kept us posted on Frankie’s condition while he was in the hospital.
We get letters:
Joey Harris: Mr. Gentry, your column is always a good read, even though I’m in Vernon. I always love reading local news. Thanks for all you do.
Larry Patrick of Converse: I enjoy your Observations articles in The Sabine Index. Newsworthy, yet personal touch and so far, not overly biased. Nothing is ever biased when we agree. Keep them up. (Note: Larry is a long-time friend and retired as Principal of Converse High School. I replied to his note and asked that if I ever got too far out of line to “call me to the Principal’s Office.”)
Ronald Byrd of South Boston, VA: Concerning last week’s Observations, he wrote
- Freddie Grappe is my hero of the day.
- Robeline dodged a well-deserved bullet.
- Sabine Parish Police Jury better watch out. Taxation without representation got the British in trouble. Raising taxes without voters’ approval might cause a problem.
- Fuzzy Hennigan story. The year I taught at Marthaville, Fuzzy got a cut on top of his head (I don’t recall how) and I had to take him to the clinic for stitches. During the procedure, the doc took one look at me and told me to sit down and put my head between my legs before I became his next patient. Poor Fuzzy had really bled. I can’t stand the sight of other folks’ blood and I was dizzy and about to faint. They sent the wrong dude with Fuzzy. I wonder if he remembers that.
- I really get into your column. As I said before, you bring me home very week.
Bussy Mims of Springfield, IL: Keep up the good work. I always read Observations every week.
Bob Risor of El Dorado, AR: Thanks for writing Observations. Many is my hometown and I always look forward to reading it.
Hancock Whitney Bank, which has offices in this area, posted a $117 million loss in the second quarter, or $1.36 per share, that reflects the bank’s decision to sell off $497 million in energy loans and increase its reserve for possible credit losses as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. In comparison, Hancock Whitney posted a profit of $88.3 million in the second quarter of 2019.
“The second quarter’s results reflect our continued focus on de-risking our balance sheet in light of today’s environment,” John M. Hairston, President and Chief Executive Officer, said.
Hancock Whitney purchased MidSouth, which purchased locally founded Peoples State Bank some years ago.
The race for Many Mayor is still a long way off – next spring, but the political pot has already been boiling for some time. It is speculated that Mayor Ken Freeman will not seek re-election. He has served with distinction for many years.
Mentioned as possible candidates are Robert Hable, Council Member James Kennedy, Monte Davis, Stephanie Milliken and former Mayor Mike Tarver.
As qualifying for the Nov. 3 election came to a close Friday afternoon, U.S. Sen. Bill Cassidy picked up 14 opponents, including Shreveport Mayor Adrian Perkins. Fourth District Congressman Mike Johnson has three opponents. Long-time District 5 Public Service Commissioner Foster Campbell is opposed by two.
In Sabine Parish races, Kowonno Green and Adrian Newton Loucious are in the race for District 4 School Board Member.
For the office of Justice of the Peace, the following were unopposed: Jean Sharp in Dist. 1, Mike Tarver in Dist. 2, Bobby Brumley in Dist. 4 and Lajuana Williams Mosley in Dist. 5. In Dist. 3, Mattie (Laroux) Sepulvado is opposed by Eula Hazel (Procell) Dyess. That should be some race.
For Constable, the following are unopposed: Doyle W. Barron, Dist. 1, Harold Stanley Cook in Dist. 2, Kurt Sepulvado in Dist. 3 and Reginald Mems in Dist. 5. No one qualified in Dist. 4.
VILLAGE OF CONVERSE: Troy H. Terrell was returned as mayor without opposition. For Chief of Police Jason (Adam) Ebarb will face David W. Gentry. Three Aldermen were to be elected and three qualified: Christina Ebarb, Rodney Rutherford and Travis Womack.
VILLAGE OF FISHER: Longtime Mayor Susan C. Slay will face Vernon L. Rivers. In the race for Chief of Police are Lamar Thomas and Joseph White. Three Aldermen are to be elected and three qualified: Amy Johnson, Johnnie Maxie and Edwina Thomas.
VILLAGE OF PLEASANT HILL: Edward G. Arnold was elected Mayor without opposition. Longtime Chief of Police Ray Williams is opposed by David Shane Graves. Five persons are in the race for the three Aldermen seats: Shane Arnold, Lisa S. Henderson, Samoa McClanahan, Terry (Lamar) Ponder Jr. and Gloria Sanders.
Because of an overabundance of news, we will again start publishing Observations on Fridays until further notice. Be sure and watch for it. And thanks for faithfully reading. We appreciate it and appreciate all the feedback you provide.
Another month gone. This year is flying. Please let me hear from you with ideas and suggestions for future articles. Call me at (318) 332-8653 or send an email to robertrgentry@gmail.com. To see Observations of recent years, follow the pages below. To see older ones, visit our Facebook page, where they are listed under Photos. To print, save or send this week’s column, click on the appropriate icon below. As always, thanks for reading.
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