Community

If you don’t go to church, you won’t understand this column.

Jennings High School FFA performed well at the 98th National FFA Convention held recently in Indianapolis, Ind. The Agronomy team took home the title of National Champions, while the Conduct of Chapter was national runners up and JHS FFA member Corbin Webre placed sixth overall individual in Milk Quality. Additionally, former JHS FFA members Tyler Demary and Nicholas Rasberry received their American FFA degrees.

Fiddlers for the Ninth Annual Battle of the Bows Cajun Fiddle Competition came together recently to earn top honors while competing for $3,400 in prize money.

ELTON — At Elton High School in Southwest Louisiana, the heart of our FFA chapter beats through one person, Lana Myers. She is more than just an agriculture teacher and FFA advisor; she is a mentor, a motivator and a role model who shaped the lives of countless students. Every day, she enters the classroom with the same goal she’s had for over two decades — to help her students discover their potential and push beyond their limits.

ELTON — A memorial dedication for local veteran Albert “Billy” Sonnier of Elton will honor his service sixty years after he sacrificed his life during the Vietnam War. Sonnier was killed in action during the Battle of Ia Drang Valley at LZ X-Ray in Vietnam on Nov. 15, 1965. A dedication service with a black granite headstone upgrade will take place at 10 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, at Saint Paul’s Cemetery, located at 1100 St. Mary St. in Elton.

Residents of all ages, and their little dogs too, competed in Founder’s Park in downtown Jennings on Halloween night to see who had this year’s best costumes around. Hosted by Jennings Festival Association, winners received prizes for their efforts in the costume contest.

Teams from across the area recently gathered at Jerry Simmons Stadium for the Jennings Recreation Football Super Bowl. Youth ranging in various ages from Jennings, Welsh, Lake Arthur, Iota, Iowa, Bell City and Grand Lake competed for the honor to play in the season finale.

Residents gathered at the Southwest Louisiana Veterans Cemetery recently to pray over the graves of the brave men and women who served in the Nation’s Armed Forces. Blessing of the Graves is a religious tradition, often observed in Catholicism, that generally involves prayers and blessings to honor the departed. The act serves to remember loved ones who have passed away.