DENHAM SPRINGS • LIVINGSTON • WALKER • WATSON • AMITE • HAMMOND
ADVOCATE THE LIVINGSTON-TANGIPAHOA
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
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W e d n e s d ay, J u ly 31, 2024
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9th Livingston Parish Book Festival set Darlene Denstorff AROUND LIVINGSTON
It’s back-toschool time
Community news report Plans are underway for the Livingston Parish Library’s Book Festival, the parish’s largest celebration of books and literacy, The Ninth Annual Livingston Parish Book Festival will be held from 11 a.m. — 4 p.m. Nov. 9 at the Main Branch in Livingston, at 20390 Iowa St. This family-friendly event is
free to attend and open to all ages. All other branches of the Livingston Parish Library will be closed on Nov. 9. “Last year’s Book Festival was the biggest one we’ve ever had, and our goal is to top that this year,” said Livingston Parish Library Director Michelle Parrish. “We have been planning this year’s Book Festival for several months, and we can’t wait for the communi-
ty to see what we’ve got in store.” First held in 2013, the Livingston Parish Book Festival is the Library’s biggest single-day event, drawing visitors from Livingston Parish and beyond. The Book Festival features author discussions, book signings, live music, face painting, games, food trucks, and other library activities. Last year’s Book Festival drew more than 2,200 visitors, a record
for the system. The Library will announce its headlining authors and special guests in the coming weeks. Those wishing to secure a spot on Authors Row or Community Row can submit an online application by visiting www.mylpl.info/ BookFestival. Applying does not guarantee acceptance; applicants will be contacted to confirm participation.
It’s time to open the classrooms and fire up the computers as Livingston Parish Students return Aug. 8. Tangipahoa public schools start on Aug. 9. That means buses are rolling and traffic will be heavy around campuses. Slow down when driving near schools and watch out for those children who walk or ride bicycles to campus. The first holiday of the new school year is Sept. 2 when we celebrate Labor Day.
Breast imaging available Woman’s Hospital brings breast imaging to Livingston Parish with its mobile mammography coach. The coach makes mammograms more accessible than ever offering advanced 3D mammogram technology at convenient times and locations across Louisiana. Physician’s orders are required and appointments are strongly encouraged. The mammography coach is stopping in Walker Aug. 7 at Sage Specialty Hospital, 8375 Florida Blvd., Walker. Call (225) 396-5367 to schedule. A stop is planned for Aug. 15 at RKM Primary Care, 27124 Highway 42, Springfield. Call (225) 395-8022 to schedule. The coach will stop: n Aug. 19, Mandy’s Primary Health, 35701 La. 16, Denham Springs. Call (225) 791-2400 to schedule
ä See AROUND, page 3G
Charles Salzer SPORTS ROUNDUP
Walker golfer turns in strong outing at LGA tournament With students taking their annual academic break, summer is always a slow time for local athletics, but that doesn’t mean the athletes are taking time off. Junior golfer Evelynn Artieta, a sophomore-to-be at Walker High, is a good example of that. Two weeks ago, Artieta turned in a strong outing at the Louisiana Golf Association’s 59th Girls Junior Amateur tournament. Competing at Mallard Golf Club in Lake Charles, she had a chance at a wireto-wire win after opening the three-round tournament with a 2-under-par 70. That opener was followed by rounds of 75 and 72, but Artieta ultimately came up short in a playoff and finished second. Jade Neves of New Orleans trailed by three shots going to the final round, and carded a 69 to tie Artieta’s three-round total of 1-over 217. In the ensuing sudden-death playoff, both golfers made par at Hole No. 1 before Neves won the title with a par at Hole 2. Still, there was no denying the improvement for Artieta, who finished fifth in the 2023 junior tournament. That one was
ä See SALZER, page 4G
STAFF PHOTO BY MICHAEL JOHNSON
Seven year-old Lathan Williams, the internet sensation known as Lathan the Umpire, works first base in the second inning of the Baton Rouge Rougarou home game against the Brazos Valley Bombers on July 15 at Pete Goldsby Field in Baton Rouge.
CALLING THE GAME From Savannah Bananas to his own bobblehead, a 9-year-old Louisiana baseball umpire is a hit
BY SERENA PUANG
Staff writer
Many 5-year-old boys want to be athletes or superheroes for Halloween. When Lathan Williams was 5, he went as a referee. The following Christmas, he asked Santa for umpire gear. “Once he got his umpire gear,” his father Josh Williams said, “He would just go to the baseball fields and stand behind the fence and mimic the umpire.” After a while, the umpires invited him onto the field. Now Lathan, 9, is umpiring baseball
“He (Lathan Williams) makes all the calls correct. Mechanically, he’s pretty awesome. I guarantee he makes more mistakes playing baseball than he does umpiring.” WAYNE GRENFELL, president/director of baseball operations for Ascension Parish
games. He umpired his first official game for Ascension Parish Little League when he was 7. Lathan has also been playing baseball since he was 5. He’s currently excited to play travel ball, but between playing and umpiring, he doesn’t hesitate to pick a favorite. ”They’re both fun,” he said. “But I’d rather umpire.”
In recent years, Lathan, from Hammond, has become an online personality and umpired games for Savannah Bananas, the Baton Rouge Rougarou, and a laundry list of travel tournaments. On Wednesday, the National Bobblehead Hall of Fame and Museum in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, unveiled a new
bobblehead made in Lathan’s image to celebrate his work on the field. According to Wayne Grenfell, president/director of baseball operations for Ascension Parish, good umpires are in short supply these days, and Lathan’s work was so good it “kind of embarrasses” the adults that umpire in the league. “He makes all the calls correct. Mechanically, he’s pretty awesome,” said Grenfell. “I guarantee he makes more mistakes playing baseball than he
ä See CALLING, page 4G
Magician brings laughter to Tangipahoa libraries BY VIC COUVILLION
Contributing writer
The Tangipahoa Parish Library System’s Summer Reading Program has featured live performances attracting large crowds of children accompanied by their parents and other family members. One of the latest entertainers to fill a bill at the system’s branches, Jo Jo the Magician, continued the trend of bringing in many laughing, clapping children to the library branches. At his performance at the Hammond Branch of the system, Jo Jo kept his audience entertained with his stock magic tricks, some clowning and his peppy presentation. Jo Jo, who calls New Orleans home, has been bringing his show
to groups of all sizes for 40 years and his ability to command the attention of his audience was evident, once again, during his Hammond performance. Jo Jo opened his act by instructing his young charges to concentrate on the center of a spinning disc containing graphics that tended to briefly distort vision. When the disc stopped spinning, the children were asked to quickly look at his head which appeared, briefly, to be much larger than normal. He continued the presentation with a demonstration of his juggling ability as he sent hoops, balls and small bowling pins spinning in the air. After his demonstration of how one juggles, he quickly moved to his first magician’s trick, pulling
PHOTO BY VIC COUVILLION
Jo Jo the Magician invites children to join him as he performed tricks during a presentation at the Hammond Branch of the Tangipahoa Parish Library System. Here he had two girls help him as he performed the rope ä See MAGICIAN, page 2G cutting and magic wand bending tricks.