Rotary Club Meeting – 2-20-24 Rotarian Peter Strawitz invited Martha Aubert and James Douget from the Louisiana Orphan Train Museum to present the program at the Rotary meeting on Tuesday. The Louisiana Orphan Train Museum will be celebrating 15 years in October. This museum is 100% volunteer run, and there are approximately 2000 visitors per year. They do a lot of community outreach as well. In the mid-1800s, there was a huge influx of people to New York, and due to shortages, there were thousands of street children, possibly as many as 30,000. Sister Irene Fitzgibbons founded the New York Foundling Hospital. She got the Catholic Church involved, and they were able to send children, as many as 350,000, all over the country. Most of them taken in as indentured servants, but they became a part of the families and part of the local communities. The Church sent people to check on the welfare of the children. Many people in this area can trace their roots back to the Orphan Trains. For a long time, their stories were kept quiet due to the stigma attached. However, the stories are being brought to the forefront now. The museum tells the stories of the orphans who came by train to Opelousas. The beautiful pictures on the walls were restored and brought back to life by Bobby Dardeau. There are 434 orphans whose stories are shared in the museum now, but they know there are more. For more information, please reach out to the Louisiana Orphan Train Museum. Other Rotary News: • The speaker for the next meeting on February 27th will be presented by Phillipe Vidrine. • St. Peter's Catholic Church in Grand Prairie is having their Fish Fry on Friday from 5:00 – 7:00

Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Department Investigates 4 Wheeler Theft February 20, 2024 Last Monday February 12, Detectives of the Criminal Investigation Division with the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office was contacted and advised that a St. Landry Parish Sheriff's Office Detective contacted the Patrol Sergeant with the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office and advised him that a confidential informant had told him that a four-wheeler stolen in St. Landry Parish was in Evangeline Parish and at a residence on the Chatagnier road and he would like Deputies to go and try to find it. Detectives went and met with the Patrol units responding to a residence located at the 5900 Blk. of Chataignier Road. Upon arrival, Deputies met with a subject residing there. That subject allowed Deputies to go into two storage containers on the property which possibly contained a stolen four-wheeler but none were found. Deputies later learned there was an address on St. Julien Road and that the stolen four-wheeler might be there. Upon arrival at the 1000 Blk. St. Julien Road, Deputies received consent to search from the homeowners. The homeowners allowed Deputies to search the residence and even helped Deputies look for VIN numbers. During the search, Deputies found a red Honda TRX90 four-wheeler stolen from the Eunice area along with several other four-wheelers that are still awaiting confirmation as being stolen. After interviewing the home owner (Tim Stelly age 41 of Ville Platte) took full responsibility for having the stolen four-wheeler .He was then placed under arrest for Possession of Stolen Things and is currently being heled in the Evangeline Parish Jail with a $35,000.00 bond. Lacey Miller was also placed under arrest for an unrelated St. Landry Parish warrant. She also resides at the above-mentioned address. This investigation is still ongoing and other arrests are possible. As always, Sheriff Charles R. Guillory and the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office is seeking information on criminal activity and urges the public to contact their Investigation Department via phone at 337-363-2161 or through the agency's website at www.evangelineparishsheriff.org. Any person reporting information will remain anonymous. All suspects are considered innocent until proven guilty.

On February 5,2024 the Evangeline Parish Sheriff's Office was given a donation of $1,500.00 from Boardwalk/Texas Gas Pipeline Company towards the purchase of new 700 mhz portable radios. The donation was presented on February 8, 2024 by representative Brian Johnson to the Sheriff. The Sheriff would like to thank Boardwalk/Texas Gas Pipeline Company for the generous donation that was very much appreciated.

Ville Platte City Council - Meeting, Tuesday, February 6, 2024 The Ville Platte City Council met Tuesday night, and Council members asked about specific drainage ditches and sewer lines, and requested signs for churches and schools as well as cross walks. The City Council also voted to set Utility Deposit Rates for Residential Customers at $75.00 and Commercial Customers at $150.00. Charles Tate and Sarahi Sawtelle presented their request for a Cooperative Endeavor Agreement with the City. Freedom Family Church is planning to build two outdoor courts behind the Hundredfold Coffee building as well as an indoor facility for inclement weather in order to provide supervised activities for children in the Parish. Under the CEA, they requested $6,000 to go towards the expense of completing the courts and buying the necessary supplies. The Council approved the Resolution. The City Engineer, Ronnie Landreneau, updated the Council on various projects. The Phase 4 Water Improvement Project has been funded. The plan is to refurbish all the lift stations. The estimated time to start is 45-60 days, with an estimated completion time of 6-9 months. Mr. Landreneau recommended a Subsurface Evaluation of Utilities. The State has approved the plans for the Heritage Garden. A few changes are needed to meet federal guidelines, and they are about 2 weeks from getting approval to get bids. The preliminary plans are finished for the big parks. The design and construction is approved for half of the project, and they are working with our Representative and Senator for the second half. Fire Chief Chris Soileau reported from the Fire Department. The water leaks under discussion also affect fire prevention and ratings, and he indicated that they may need to change out some fire hydrants. There were 31 incidents handled by the Fire Department in January. In the City, there were three structural fires, one electrical wiring, one carbon monoxide related, one cooking fire and one travel trailer. If you have a generator, you should have a carbon monoxide detector. The Fire Department is working to replenish their staffing. They are recruiting volunteers for the junior program, advertising and taking applications. Chief Soileau introduced and obtained Council approval to hire Dennis Scott as a Full Time Probationer Firefighter/Operator and Christopher White as a Full Time Provisional Firefighter/Operator. The Police Chief, Al Perry Thomas, reported to the Mayor that there were 633 calls in January – down 151 from December. The police made a total of 30 arrests and three of those were felony arrests. There were 20 accidents, four with injuries. The Mayor reported the following: 1. He appointed Eric Fontenot to Cabot's Economic Development Board. 2. The City street and drainage crews are staying on the Canal project. The sewer issue is an obstruction. The City invested in a pipeline inspection camera. It showed that 125' from the man hole, there was a tree root growing through the main line. Two Sewer Pipe Jetter Machines were purchased to clear the pipes. 3. There have been numerous calls to add or repair street lights. The Mayor is looking into some new long term solutions. Please report street lights that are out so they can be addressed. 4. The City is going to participate in the Clearance Program created to address and eliminate slum and blight. The Council approved a Resolution for the City's application for the 2023-2024 LGAP. This is the Local Government Assistance Program - $50,000 for the removal of blighted and abandoned properties. The next meeting will be Tuesday, March

Police searching for subjects wanted in two shootings February 2, 2024 Ville Platte Police Chief Al Perry Thomas reported to KVPI News that on Wednesday January 31 at 1:37pm, detectives responded to an apparent shooting. The location was at the intersection of Young Street and Martin Luther King Street where a male victim was injured from a single gunshot wound to his lower leg. The victim was identified as Andrew Thomas age 28 of Ville Platte He was transported to a hospital in Rapides Parish by Acadian Air Med where he was listed in stable condition. Chief Thomas said his department was notified at 1;39pm the same day on Wednesday of a second shooting incident, this time near the 600 block of East Washington Street in Ville Platte. The male victim was identified as Artrell Denton of Ville Platte. He was transported to a hospital in Lafayette where was listed to be in stable condition. Anyone who has information on these two shootings is asked to contact the Ville Platte Police Department. All callers will remain anonymous.