RSS Feed

MAURICE — Local governments throughout the country are working on plans on how to spend federal funds aimed at easing some of the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The village of Maurice is in line to receive $595,092.46 through the American Rescue Plan Act, passed by Congress earlier this year. Of the $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, $350 billion is earmarked for state and local governments.
“There are certain stipulations on what it can be used for,” Maurice Mayor Wayne Theriot said. “One of them is infrastructure, water and sewer. Another is broadband, but we don’t have broadband. It does say other governmental services, so there are some questions.”
Maurice is scheduled to receive 50% of the funds this year, with the remainder coming exactly 365 days later.
Tom Carroll of Sellers & Associates said during the Board of Aldermen meeting on July 21 that water and sewer may be an area of focus.
“You may have sewer extensions that you want to incorporate,” Carroll said. “You may have some looping water lines that you want to incorporate. There are several things that could be eligible for the $595,000.
“You really have to look at your system to see what you want to do.”
Theriot said there is a preliminary list of projects.
“We have discussed some things,” Theriot said. “On our water going south, we made an extension into Picard Farms. It’s not a looped line. We are looking at taking this water, past Etienne (Road), where we extended, and go down Beau Road to loop the line. That is one thing it can be used for.”
Theriot said that option is near the top on the list of projects.
“That way we would have a total looped system,” Theriot said. “We would have that for services and fire protection. It would prevent what happened a few months ago, when the line at Etienne broke. It would prevent us from having to shut down the water. We could come around from the other side, and isolate that area. That would help out with the pressure and everything.”
Sewer is another option.
“We have certain areas where we do not provide sewer,” Theriot said. “That’s mainly around (La. Hwy.) 92. I have them looking at going to provide Lois Private Lane and Coyote Trail. There are about a dozen residents that we could service in that area.”
Roads would take precedence, should there be a way to include roadwork as part of the federal funds.
“If we get an approval to do roads,” Theriot said, “that would disregard those (previously mentioned) projects. We have a utility fund that we could eventually use to do those projects. We don’t have anything for roads. If they would approve us for roads, we could overlay all of the roads in town.”
Carroll said there is another water fund available that will require a match.
“They will be looking for a 25% match,” Carroll said. “We have been told that you can take some of the previous money, the $595,000, and use that for your 25% match.
“There are a lot of working parts, to see what you can and can’t do.”
Theriot said there are also discussions on constructing another water tower on the south side of Maurice. He said that could be located near the new sewer plant on Beau Road.
“That would be able to stabilize the pressure in that particular area,” Theriot said, “that way you are not relying on it coming from the north portion. That is something that could be looked at, especially with the matching fund. We would have to loop the line to get it here, and we would have to look at the cost of putting up an aerial tower.
“Looping the line and putting up an aerial tower would probably be most advantageous for us, using the $595,000 and the matching fund.”
Alderman Warren Rost said the plan for a water tower makes sense.
“Once that starts developing behind NuNu’s,” Rost said of the area along U.S. Hwy. 167, “you are looking at another 300 or 400 homes.”
Funds through the American Rescue Plan Act are eligible to cover losses in revenue that occurred due to the pandemic. Theriot said Maurice doesn’t qualify in that regard.
“We did not lose any revenue,” Theriot said. “We actually had a revenue increase. Our revenue increased 80 to 90% of what it was before.”

There are plenty of old customs that have vanished over the years. Years ago, it was commonplace for a man to remove his hat before entering a home or building. Hats were not worn indoors. That custom no longer exist today. Long ago before telephones were commonplace and when la vieille Azema, a mid-wife, delivered a baby, the proud papa would take down his shotgun from the rack above the door and fire it to announce the arrival. Bang! Bang! Un bal pour une fille; deux bals pour un garçon. Bang! Bang! (One round for a girl, two rounds for a boy.)
There was a type of square dance that the Cajuns danced named “lancier Acadien”, which was different than regular square dances. It was also known as quadrille, a country dance that dates back to the 18th century and consisted of four couples. This dance was performed in Dallas at the 1936 folk life festival by a group of young Acadians from New Iberia. The group was led by Fred Decuir. They danced all five parts of the dance to the music of Wade Broussard of St. Martinville.
There was another form of square dance called les variétés. And there was also another dance called the Jilliling, a two-step, reportedly named for a Swedish opera singer named Jenny Lind. She was one of the most highly regarded singers in the 1800s and often referred to as the Swedish Nightingale.
Not that long ago on the Cajun prairies were other customs that have vanished over time, e.g., coup de main, a lending hand, especially when it required lots of hands during à couvrage (re-shingling bee), écosserie (hulling bee) ou à piocherie (hoeing bee). This was customary, especially after the death of the head of household or the person traditionally doing the work on the farmstead. There was also à boucherie de campagne (a country slaughter of a hog or cow), which was more common especially during the winter months.
Also long ago, most Cajuns were married in fall or winter months when they had money from the harvest. The married couple were oftentimes invited and paid to have their bal de noce or wedding dance at certain dance halls. These dances usually brought in a large crowd including friends and family members of the bride and groom. The tradition of pinning money (bills) has been around forever and was usually pinned on the bride’s veil or wedding dress. This is also a custom with other nationalities or countries.
A charivari is another custom that has fallen by the wayside, except on special occasions. This was the making of loud noise by banging pots and pans usually done on the wedding night of a widow, widower, ou à vieux garçon (old bachelor). The noise continued until the revelers were invited in for a meal.
Long ago when a girl rejected a suitor, she would send the unfortunate ex-boyfriend “a tiny coat, small enough to fit into an envelope and delivered by mail or by an acquaintance.” Back during that era, there was a popular Cajun French song that pertains to the above with the lyrics: “Ce n’est pas la bague j’ai regretté; c’était le capot que ma belle m’a donné.” You must admit the lyrics does have a lilt or lyrical sound to it which translates to: “It’s not the ring that I regretted; it is the coat my sweetheart gave me.” The above words, phrases, and customs were from “Cajun Sketches, from the Prairies of Southwest Louisiana” published in 1962 by Lauren C. Post, a native of Rayne.
Another long-lost custom that also pertains to Cajun music and bands is the custom when someone requested music to be played, the request was for a “round” of dances, which meant the musicians played the following dances in the following order: “a waltz, une valse a deux temps [two-step], a mazurka, [a lively Polish dance in triple time], and a polka” [originally a Czech dance that was said to be popular in all of Europe and the Americas.] After making the request, the couple were obligated to dance all four dances together. The above custom is from: “Tears, Love and Laughter: The Story of the Cajuns and Their Music” published in 1972 by Pierre V. Daigle of Pointe Noir.

Vermilion Parish School Superintendent Tommy Byler made it official; a mask will have to be worn by everyone when school starts on Aug. 11.
For weeks, Byler hinted that masks were coming because of the rise of COVID-19 cases due to the Delta variant.
The Vermilion Parish School administration put on its website a 15-page “Re-opening Plan.” The plan outlines what is required from students, parents and employees dealing with COVID-19 guidelines.
Earlier in the week, Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards issued a mask mandate for everyone, including youths five years old and older.
Byler, on social media, announced the new mask mandate. He said because the state runs public schools, everyone has to follow the governor’s order.
“I am only the messenger,” Byler said. “You may disagree with it, but our hands are tied. This is where we are today.”
• Masks will be required by students as young as kindergarten. Last school year, the mask mandate was for third graders through 12th graders, plus employees.
• Masks will have to be worn inside the school. However, if a student takes PE or eats outside, masks will not be required.
• Anyone who rides on a school bus will have to wear a mask, according to the mandate. The mandate also includes athletes and band members for after school events.
• The bus windows will be opened, allowing for air flow.
• When outside during football practice or a game, masks will not be required. Entering the school building to undress, a mask is needed.
• Because volleyball matches are inside, masks will be required.
• All masks have to be solid in color. The only words on the masks can only be the school district or the school name.
Change for contact tracing.
• If someone contracts the coronavirus, and those around the person were less than three feet from the person and were not wearing a mask, they have to quarantine for 10 days.
• However, what has changed about being quarantined is that if someone is diagnosed with COVID and a person comes in contact with the COVID person and was wearing a mask and three feet away from the COVID person, they do not have to be quarantined for 10 days, Byler explained.
• Also, if a person is vaccinated and comes in contact with a person diagnosed with COVID and was three feet away from that person and is showing no signs of having COVID, that person does not have to be quarantined.
• Another change is that after six days of being quarantined due to contact tracing, a person showing no signs of COVID can get tested for the virus. If the test result is negative, they can return to school.
Byler said the only way to get out of wearing a mask is to have a medical excuse. Because of a person’s political or religious belief is not a reason not to wear a mask, based on the state and CDC’s guidelines.
“There are 1,600 employees and 9,500 students,” said Byler. “No matter what decision we make, all 11,000 will not agree with the decisions.”

June 14, 1978 - July 27, 2021

“Gone way too young, my Cajun friend”—a quote by Danny Brinkley Sr of American Legion Post in 343 Redfield , Arkansas where Corey relocated in the fall of 2019 to open a Spring Market-part of the Brookshires Grocery Chain. Just like in Abbeville as manager of Super 1, and Iowa and Lake Arthur as store director of their Spring Markets he connected with the community through acts of service.
Wherever he went people just couldn’t help but fall in love with him.
He deeply and genuinely loved people and lived to help any way he could. A 1996 graduate of Abbeville High School he attended Louisiana College in Pineville, Louisiana then returned home to marry the love of his life that he now leaves behind, Jessie Gooch with their five children - Whitney, Christian, Caleb, Ruth, and Alice. In 1992 they met at church in the youth group and have had 29 years of being best friends. Jesus, family, and a job well done were priorities for him. The children were his pride and joy. He coached them when they played softball, became a scout leader, played airsoft, paintball, board games, x-box, whatever they were into, so was Corey—maybe just a yoyo but there were moves to be conquered!! He encouraged good hearted competition teaching them to win or lose with dignity. And most of all, he taught them by example that The Word Of God is truth. Taking God at His word and trusting what He has said gives us confidence of Corey’s citizenship now in Heaven.
Corey’s intrinsic love of family perhaps comes from being the baby in a large Cajun family (Choate) from Abbeville and the only son of Al Baker from Pineville in Louisiana. He is preceded in death by his parents Al and Glenda (Choate Redwing) Baker sister Shannon Redwing,
Cousin Ryan Davidson. Maternal grandparents James and Jeanny (Leblanc) Choate, paternal grandparents
Alton Wiley Baker, Sr. And Julia Maureen (Houston) Baker, aunt Rose Baker, uncle Austin Baker. And in-law Donald Gooch.
Surviving relatives include two brothers Shane Redwing (Sarah) and Clint Redwing; four aunts Darlene (Choate) Gachassin of Broussard , La; Gaynelle (Choate) Sherman of Sulphur, Marilyn (Choate) Davidson (Terry)of Abbeville; Ann (Baker) Webster(Tom) of Pineville, Two uncles Jim Choate (Bonnie) Abbeville, Donni Choate (Jodi)of Abbeville. His in laws Jack and Terry (Gooch) Gullick of Erath, Jenn Gooch of Pittsburg, Pa, Jonathan Gooch(Victoria) of Youngsville.
Cousins abound in Cen-La and Acadiana and every one was special to Corey and So many people in his life were considered family even if not kin. Whether or not you knew it Corey was probably praying for you.
Thank you all who were praying for his recovery. We grieve together.