Thibodaux Rotary Club
November 25, 2014 – JW Toups
J. W. Toups was founded in 1976 by John Toups.
The business has grown not only in the sheer number of clients, but also its reputation for excellence. In 1983, the Louisiana Department of Commerce named Mr. Toups Small Business Person of the Year from Region III. In 1986, the Governor appointment Mr. Toups as one of five Louisiana businessmen to serve in the state’s Small Business Development Corporation. In 1987, J. W. Toups received the SAAI Silver Pyramid of Excellence for outstanding work in the field of accident reduction. Mr. Toups was named the Specialty Advertising Association International Ambassador for his region in 1990. In June of 1993, J. W. Toups Inc. formed a new division called Bottom Line Improvements specializing in performance consulting. In 2001, Mr. Toups partnered with Dr. E. Scott Geller to build an e-learning company, the Safety Performance Coach. Its’ focus is to teach management principles and strategies of human dynamics applied to performance and accident reduction. In 2003, J. W. Toups was awarded the Construction Industry Cost Effectiveness and Chemical Industry Innovation Awards by the Greater New Orleans Business Roundtable. That same year, Mr. Toups assisted Boh Bros. in achieving the status of “Safest Construction Company in the Nation” awarded by Association of Building Contractors.
Trees – November 18
On Tuesday, November 18, 2014, the members of the Rotary Club of Thibodaux had the privilege of meeting, once again, Scott Courtright, who spoke to us on trees.
Mr. Courtright is well-versed in trees as he has earned a B.S. in Forest Management. He is also a licensed arborist and is a member of the Louisiana Urban Forestry Council and the American Society of Consulting Arborists.
Trees have three parts. The crown is the top of the tree and the condition of the crown allows arborists to make evaluations on the health of the tree. The second part is the stem or trunk. It is the most abused part of the tree. The third and final part is the root system. There are anchoring roots as well as fibrous hair roots.
There are many things to consider when one desires to plant a tree. Each tree fits a certain space. One must look at the amount of space allowed to plant the tree as well as factors such as the PH level of the soil, saturation level and the overall expected growth of the tree. An interesting fact that Courtright taught us is that we can determine how far the root system of a tree will extend out in a particular area by multiplying the height of the tree one and a half times.
Trees can be separated into two categories. Trees are native or non-native. Native trees are naturally occurring trees in a particular area. A few examples in South Louisiana are the southern magnolia and the live oak. Non-native trees are not naturally occurring in a particular area. A tallow tree is an example of such. Natives are much easier to obtain and have a higher success rate when planted.
Another important factor to be considered when one desires to plant a tree is to know the planting season. In Louisiana the planting season is from November to March. Thus, now would be the time for all Rotarians to plant their favorite native tree.
November 4 – Board Updates and Nicholls State Football
Rotary President Sandy Holloway provided an update of club activities at our last meeting, and here is a brief recap of items addressed:
• Amy Flores and Laynie Barrilleaux are in charge of the second grade Child Literacy and Nutrition Project proposed by District Governor Proctor. Thibodaux Regional has sponsored the project and will provide the funds necessary to purchase 4 books for each second grade student in all Lafourche public, parochial and charter schools.
• Kathy Benoit is still accepting names for volunteer positions for the organizational chart. We ask that each member consider volunteering one hour of their time for one project which Rotary assists in during the year.
• Dino Benoit and Kathy Benoit have club volunteer shirts to purchase for any members interested. Please see Dino for the order form.
• Janice Tregre is in charge of the food bank drive this year. We ask members to bring any contributions to our meetings on November 11th and November 18th.
• Bryce Ledet and Sandy Holloway also recognized Lenny Waguespack and Patrice Oncale for sponsoring new members who have recently joined our club. Also recognized for sponsoring new members were Laynie Barrilleaux, David Waitz and Preston Lejeune whom were unable to attend.
Skipper Holloway is asking for members interested in becoming Paul Harris Fellows to participate in “Groups of 5.” This is a process where five rotary members make commitments to donate $200 / year for five years. Each year, one member of the group is chosen as a Paul Harris Fellow until all five members have become Paul Harris Fellows.
Steve Axman spoke briefly at our past meeting and is serving as the interim head football coach at Nicholls State University. Coach Axman has coached quarterbacks for the majority of his 41 year career, and spent eight years as the head coach of the Northern Arizona Lumberjacks. One notable student of Coach Axman while he was quarterbacks coach at UCLA was Troy Aikman, who enjoyed a 12 year career in the NFL with the Dallas Cowboys.
Coach Axman has filled in since Coach Charlie Stubbs’ resignation due to health issues, early in the season. Unfortunately for the NSU football program, injuries to key players have depleted the depth on the team, and wins have been hard to find.
For the future of the program, Coach Axman stressed the importance of hiring a head coach that can build solid relationships with the high school coaches along the I-10 corridor from Houston to Biloxi. His opinion is that a great recruiter must be hired as the next head coach to build a program the can be competitive in the Southland Conference.
Rotary District Foundation Chair – November 11, 2014
The Rotary Club of Thibodaux was honored to have Greg Landry speak to us about the Rotary Foundation. Greg is a member of the Lafayette-North Rotary Club and has served as club president, assistant governor and governor.
The Rotary Foundation was established by Rotary International to give away money and grants for various activities. One-Hundred percent of the money donated is held for three years and then given away. There are many ways for a Rotarian to donate, but the easiest way is online. The goal of our district Rotary organization is to have each member donate $100 per year to the foundation. A donation of $100 makes the donor a sustaining member. A cumulative donation of $1,000 makes the donor a Paul Harris fellow.
The following Thibodaux Rotarians were awarded their first Paul Harris pins:
Sheard Ber
Ron Bourgeois
Jay Griffin
Claudio Guillermo
Larry Howell
In addition, Lainey Barrilleaux was awarded a Paul Harris +1 stone and Jennifer Ledet was awarded a Paul Harris +3 stone.
Sandy and Skipper Holloway were acknowledged as Major Donors. Greg Landry informed us that the Thibodaux club had donated $153,000 since the inception of the foundation. If every member in our district was a sustaining member, the district would be donating $243,000 to the foundation, of which, half is returned to the district in the form of grants.
The Rotary Foundation has three main areas of focused. The first one is Polio Plus which is an effort that was start in the nineteen eighties to eradicate polio. There are now only three countries in the world that have polio and the fight continues. The second area of focus is establishing Peace Centers around the world to train individuals in peace and conflict resolution. There are six peace centers around the world. The final area of focus is global and district grants.
Greg Landry encouraged all Rotarians to donate to the Rotary Foundation where the money is put to good use.
St. Francis Vegetable Garden – October 28
Kimber Ratcliff and G
ermaine Jackson – October 28, 2014
Kimber Ratcliff was the guest speaker on Tuesday, October 28, 2014. She represented the St. Francis Vegetable Garden. She is originally from Texas but has been living in Thibodaux with her family. She is a master gardener who has worked with the LSU-Ag center. Along with Chris Ledet, she helped found the St. Francis Vegetable Garden. The garden aims to provide fresh vegetables to local people in need and also to provide a place for children to learn the importance of growing and consuming fresh food.
The garden was made possible by the willing support of many people. Kimber said the Mayor was very responsive to the idea, and the City of Thibodaux provided the property and the water for the garden. Numerous families, non-profit groups, high school and college organization, and corporations donated financial support and hard work to help with planting, maintenance, and harvesting.
Last season the garden produced 2600 pounds of fresh food that was donated to the local Good Samaritan Food Bank. The volunteers grew many things including squash, zucchini, cucumber, pumpkin, corn, watermelon, and other vegetables. The garden is now in it’s second growing season and the support for the garden continues to grow. More information on the garden can be found on their Facebook page.
Germaine Jackson is a Thibodaux native who works as the Director for Social Services for Catholic Charities in the Houma/Thibodaux area. She spoke about the important mission of the Good Samaritan Food Bank. She expressed excitement for the fresh produce that the garden was now producing and reported that all the produce was given to families in the area. She also noted that Lafourche is the only parish in the state with a community garden whose produce goes directly to a food bank.
October 7 – Marcel Dupre
October 7, 2014
Thibodaux Rotary Youth Exchange
Marcel Dupre, Loyola and Southern Miss graduate, has had careers in private practice law and financial services. Currently, he is an independent contractor for a 401(k) consulting service. Mr. Dupre is a member of the Baton Rouge Sunrise Rotary Club and serves as the Rotary District 6200 Youth Exchange Chair.
The first documented youth exchange dates back to 1927, with the first official Rotary exchange occurring in 1972. Today, 80 countries and 7000 students participate in the Rotary Youth Exchange. The most common exchange is between the United States and Europe.
The goals of the program include providing young people with the opportunity to experience other cultures, giving them broader views of the world while developing a deeper understanding of themselves, developing youth leadership skills, and promoting world understanding and peace.
The Rotary Youth Exchange program is seeking out interested students from our area who are between the ages of 15-19. The application process is very thorough and involves adequate screening and training. Host families willing to accept an exchange student in their home are also needed. The host family does not have to be Rotary member. Any interested parties should be proposed at the local Rotary level, and then in turn recommended to the District Level.
Mr. Craig Stanga provided a personal testimony to his positive experiences with a fellow classmate that was a participant in the Rotary Youth Exchange Program.
Grand Isle Sinking – Steven Estopinal – September 30
On Tuesday, September 30, 2014, the members of the Rotary Club of Thibodaux had the privilege of meeting Stephen V. Estopinal, who spoke to the us on the unfortunate plight of Grand Isle and the entire fading coastal area of Louisiana.
Mr. Estopinal is well-versed in coastal erosion as he is currently the division manager of surveying for the SJB Group, L.L.C. in Baton Rouge. He is also the President of the Southeast Louisiana Flood Protection Authority East and has authored two books on the topic of surveying.
Estopinal showed us areas in St. Bernard Parish–where land once held railroad tracks for busy commerce—which are now immersed in three feet of water. He explained that in New Orleans new highways are being built because the old highways are submerged.
Estopinal addressed the fading coast in our beloved Grand Isle. NOAA, the federal agency that monitors sea level, says that Grand Isle has lost 1.32 inches of elevation to the Gulf of Mexico in the past five years, a rate of subsidence about 4 times faster than any other coastline. It is projected that in the year 2060 most of the land will be gone due to subsidence. As Estopinal explained, Grand Isle is sinking at a rate of 9.2 millimeters a year, a rate equivalent to produce a change of 3.03 feet in 100 years.
There are many reasons that the land areas experience subsidence. One reason is the plate theory wherein the plates of the Earth are getting thinner and lower. Also, during the Ice Age, waters from melting ice brought many materials that stacked upon the soil and caused compression. New material over time has also compounded upon the compression of the soil. Further, minerals underneath the land and fault lines that move under the land also cause subsidence. In our coastal areas, clay fault lines are often moving and slipping.
What are the solutions for subsidence? As of right now, there are none. Mr. Estopinal stressed that Thibodaux and the surrounding areas need to consider and address the issues associated with subsidence before it is too late.
Loralei Gillian – Bayou Lafourche Area Convention and Visitors Bureau – September 23
The Rotary Club of Thibodaux was honored to have Loralei Gillian speak to us about tourism in Lafourche Parish. Loralei is the Executive Director of the Bayou Lafourche Area Convention and Visitors Bureau. Loralei has recently been named the Executive Director and wants everyone in the area to appreciate what tourism brings to our region.
Many visitors come to our region where we have so much to offer. Visitors have come to our area from as far as Asia. We have swamp tours, fishing, music and even whiskey. Her office does many things to promote tourism such advertising in print media, on television, radio, the internet and social media. Some of the magazines in which The Bureau has advertised are Audubon, Texas Monthly, Southern Life and even a French magazine.
Loralei encouraged all of us to be tourist in our own area. There are so many things to enjoy that many locals have never experienced.
She spoke about the importance of funding the efforts of the visitors; bureau citing what is called the “Colorado Effect.” In 1993, the state of Colorado eliminated the twelve million dollar budget of the visitors’ bureau. Over the next seven years, the state of Colorado lost an estimated two billion tourism dollars. The budget was reinstated in 2000, and in 2007, twenty-eight million people visited the state. The promotion and advertising that the visitors’ bureau does is extremely important.
The importance of tourism cannot be overstated. Tourism effects jobs, culture, business development and revenue. One major push by Gillian is in the film industry. So, the visitor’s bureau is trying to reach out more to the film industry. Louisiana has now passed the state of California in the number of film production companies. Louisiana is now known as the “Hollywood of the South.”
October is a big month in Lafourche because of the number of festivals that are held. Loralei asked that we all support and promote tourism in this area. We are Real Cajun, Real Close.
Christy Naquin – BCCM – September 16
Christy Naquin – Executive Director of Bayou Country Children’s Museum
By: Vera Holloway
Christy Naquin came to Rotary Club of Thibodaux to give an update on the Bayou Country Children’s Museum. On Sept. 28, 2014 the Museum celebrates its one year anniversary. She reported that they had a great first year. Before opening the board set a goal of 45,000 visitors to the Children’s Museum for the first year. As of this month they have had 43,890 visitors to date and they are expecting to meet the goal of 45,000 before the end of September.
Since the opening they have hosted 216 birthday parties and 72 field trips. St. Mary’s Parish residents has shown the greatest amount of support to the Children’s Museum over this last year.
The Museum has partnered with various organizations over the last year and will continue to expand partnerships in the future. They have recently partnered with CASA of Lafourche. This partnership will allow children who are in state custody and in the CASA program to be able to access the Museum at no charge. This will give children who otherwise would not have had access to the Museum an opportunity to experience it at no charge. The Museum has also began working with St. Joseph Manor residents and recently hosted a craft day at the Museum for the residents. In the future, Museum employees will begin visiting St. Joseph Manor and interact with the residents by engaging in crafts and activities with them. The Museum will also give the residents the opportunity to volunteer at the museum.
Over the Museum’s first year they have partnered with Lafourche Parish Sheriff’s Office to create Safety-Ville. Safety-Ville is a guided tour led by a uniformed deputy. The tour includes a severe weather simulation, fire stimulation, and other exhibits, simulations and demonstrations on safety in the home, biking, and cars. The Museum has also done Sensory Days for children with Sensory related problems and once every other month they open the museum early for these children and their families on Sundays. They have Mom and Me Programs and also have once a month they have Half Day school programs for children who are school aged. These Half Day programs are hosted on days that the children in Lafourche parish are out of school early.
Some upcoming events at the Museum is the 1 year Anniversary Celebration and the 6th Annual night at the Boo-seum. The 1 year anniversary Celebration – Coco’s Birthday will be held on Sunday, Sept. 28th 10am – 12noon for members only. General admission is from 12 noon – 4pm. This year the 6th Annual night at the Boo-seum will be held at the Thibodaux Fireman’s Fair Grounds on October 24th at 5:30pm – 8:30pm. Tickets are $6 per person in advance and can be purchased at the museum and $8 per person at the gate. The Thibodaux Rotary Club is going to partner with the museum for the Night at the Boo-seum by selling and collecting tickets at the event. More information will be coming forth, so stay tuned.
The Thibodaux Rotary Club also gave a check of $2,000 to the Bayou Country Children’s Museum to fulfill its commitment of support over the last few years.
Tim Robichaux – September 9, 2014
Tim Robichaux was the guest speaker on Tuesday, September 9, 2014. Tim is the current president of E. D. White Catholic High School. He is a former graduate of the school and a graduate of Nicholls State University. He lives in Thibodaux with his wife Michelle and has three children and one grandchild.
Tim spoke of the importance of faith and a positive attitude in our goal for success. He recalled his own journey from a “job” as an insurance adjuster to his “calling” and “true purpose”. A desire for a career change and a series of unforeseen events led him to become the band director at E.D. White. He returned to his college alma mater for an additional two years of school to get a second degree in Music.
He stressed again being open to change as he accepted the position of president in March 2014 – a job he previously had little interest in. He started the position in July and has been busy with many new things at the school.
In his update on the school, he reported the school has 789 students. The school has seen improvements with new faculty, new academic and athletic facilities, and new curriculum offerings. Next year will surely be a busy one for Tim as E. D. White celebrates its’ 50th Anniversary.
