COVINGTON • FOLSOM • LACOMBE • MADISONVILLE • MANDEVILLE • SLIDELL
ST. TAMMANY ä Sample ballot for Election Day. PAGE 3A
N O L A.C O M
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W e d n e s d ay, O c t O b e r 30, 2024
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LIFE OF SONGS AND STORIES
PHOTO BY GRANT THERKILDSEN
Gavin Beckham plays pickle ball at the new courts that officially opened Oct. 23 in Slidell.
Slidell opens more pickleball courts
BY DARREN COOPER
Contributing writer
Slidell pickleball players, the courts are ready. The City of Slidell recently opened 12 new outdoor pickleball courts at John Slidell Park, and the games are already underway. “It’s amazing how fast the sport has grown and how people have taken to it, both young and old,” Slidell Mayor Greg Cromer said during a ceremonial opening of the project costing just over $1 million and paid for by budget surpluses. Kyle & Associates handled the design, while Cobalt Construction handled the work. And the project couldn’t come a minute too soon. The indoor courts at Fritchie Park have been bursting with Slidell players eager to play. “We’re thrilled, everyone is thrilled,” said Dale Galloway, an avid pickleball player, who’s also director of facilities for the Slidell Pickleball Association. “It’s going to be great for the community and great for new pickleball players and super for us to have them a place to play. Now we have a whole new
ä See COURTS, page 2A
PHOTO BY GRANT THERKILDSEN
John Oates, and his audience, sported smiles Oct. 25 when the music superstar performed an acoustic set titled ‘An Evening of Songs and Stories’ aat Covington’s Fuhrmann Auditorium.
Veteran rocker plays eclectic set for Ozone Songwriter Festival crowd BY ANDREW CANULETTE
Oates is best known for his half-century music partnership with Daryl Hall, with the two charting an astonishing 29 U.S. Top 40 John Oates was the featured performer at hits in their time performing together. Both this year’s Ozone Songwriters Festival held are members of the Songwriters Hall of Oct. 25-27 in Covington. Oates was part of Fame and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. These days, Oates is collaborating with the festival-opening showcase at Fuhrmann Auditorium, where the veteran rocker numerous artists, both established stars played songs from his solo catalogue and and up-and-coming talents. He punctuated of musicians who influenced his illustrious his performance in Covington with stories from throughout his career and VIP guests career.
Staff writer
enjoyed a short performance before the full concert. The final two days of the festival featured dozens of other songwriters from around the U.S., giving them a chance to share their work on various stages at and around the Covington Trailhead. The festival is organized annually by the nonprofit Ozone Music Education Foundation. For more information, go online to ozonemusic.org.
Lacombe residents care by tending graves BY KADEE KRIEGER Contributing writer
Lacombe resident Raymond Batiste has spent the past several weeks preparing for All Saints Day, tending to the family cemetery where his parents, sister and two brothers are buried. It’s a practice that has been in his family for generations and one he continues, even though he said he knows he could hire a service to do it for him. “When you do it yourself, you really feel the purpose,” he said. For Batiste and other Lacombe residents, the religious and cultural custom on All Saints Day of remembering loved ones who have died and
bestowing a blessing upon cemeteries is a cherished practice worth passing on to future generations. “It’s a way to honor the memory of our family and is an extension of the care and love showed to them during their lives,” said Batiste, 79, a Lacombe native. “We certainly hope that our children will pick it up and carry it on.” The Roman Catholic Feast of All Saints Day on Nov. 1 dates to early Christianity and commemorates the multitude of saints — believed by the church to be all who live eternally in heaven, especially those who are without a feast day of their own. The
PHOTO BY GRANT THERKILDSEN
David Guzman and Raymond Batiste on Oct. 24 stand up a cross that had fallen off a grave. The two and other community members ä See GRAVES, page 2A clean graves in preparation for All Saints Day.
Louisiana Music Hall of Fame inducts Slidell band Witness BY STEPHANIE LOMAN Contributing writer
PHOTO BY STEPHANIE LOMAN
Members of the band Witness were presented a certificate on Oct. 19 declaring the group new inductees to the Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. The ceremony took place before the band’s usual gig at the Slidell Food and Fun Fest. Pictured are band members, from left, Raymond Ybos, Joey Spinosa, Missi Spinosa, and Sir Donovan Barnes. Mike Shepherd and Jason Broussard, both with The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame, are at right.
Opening night at this year’s Slidell Food and Fun Fest was not the first time Witness performed at the annual fair. In fact, it was more like their 20th appearance. But this year’s show was their most memorable, as it included a ceremony inducting the group into The Louisiana Music Hall of Fame. Witness began its journey in 1991 as a side project for Slidell
residents Joey Spinosa and his wife, Missi. The drummer and his songbird wife joined forces with fellow Slidell musician, Raymond Ybos, a guitarist and former high school mate of Missi’s, after a serendipitous meetup in Christy’s Music. Shortly after, they hired a couple of bass players, began rehearsing, and Witness was born. The band played its first paid performance at the opening of Southside Café and have since
ä See WITNESS, page 6A
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