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, N ov e m b e r 12, 2025
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Darlene Denstorff AROUND LIVINGSTON
Free pet food pantry supports families in need Rescue Rehome Repeat of South Louisiana is launching a free pet food pantry throughout November to support pet owners in the Livingston and Baton Rouge areas who are facing financial hardship. Pet food and essential supplies will be distributed during scheduled adoption events this month. The initiative is designed to help families keep their pets healthy and at home during times of financial instability. Supplies are available while they last and offered on a firstcome, first-served basis. To ensure orderly distribution, numbered tickets will be provided at the start of each event. “Our goal is to make sure pets stay with the people who love them,” said Terri Dunlap, president of Rescue Rehome Repeat. “By assisting families experiencing a temporary setback, we can prevent animals from entering shelters and help keep pets where they belong — at home.” Full adoption event dates and pantry distribution times can be found at www.RescueRehomeRepeat.com.
Veterans’ Appreciation Day set in Denham Springs A Veterans program is set for 10 a.m. Nov. 22 at Oaks Pavilion Park on Government Street in Denham Springs. “Veterans’ Appreciation Day isn’t just a ceremony — it’s a sacred moment of remembrance, gratitude and unity,” organizers said in a news release. This year’s theme, “Thanksgiving of Praise,” is to remind residents “that freedom is never free — and gratitude is more than a feeling.” The event is dedicated to veterans who served, active military, Gold Star families and first responders. Live music by Dennis Calmes and his daughter, Jennifer, will join a guest speaker. A free meal will be served.
At the library The Denham Springs-Walker Branch of the Livingston Parish Library has a packed schedule throughout November. For more information, call (225) 686-4140 or visit www.mylpl. info. Check out these events: n Wednesday, Nov. 12,
ä See AROUND, page 2G
PHOTO BY RICHARD MEEK
Darlene Ernst lights a candle for her sister, Cynthia Brasseux, who lives in the Washington D.C. and was communicating with Ernst by phone at the Hungarian cemetery on Nov. 1. Ernst and Brasseux, along with hundreds of members of the Hungarian community, have been visiting the Hungarian cemetery with their parents to place candles on the family members for most of their lives.
Hungarian cemetery keeps Nov. 1 traditions alive
BY RICHARD MEEK Contributing writer
As dusk began to escort the fall sun into darkness, family members, with lawn chairs and decades of memories in tow, began to gather at the Hungarian cemetery in Albany where so many of their relatives are buried and a culture lives on. As nightfall settled in, the candles were lit and placed on the graves, with each flicker representing a chapter of family history. “A lot of people are here,” said Livingston Parish resident Patsy Huszar as she stood near the grave of her husband, with whom she was married for 54 years. “It’s like a family; we just get together and remember everybody.” The tradition of placing candles on the graves of family members dates to the 4th century when on “All Saints Day,” or what was then known as “Mindenszentek,” in Hungary, families would gather to honor loved ones who had passed away as well as saints and martyrs. Hundreds of years later, Hungarians settled in Albany, moving from Ohio and other northern areas, seeking jobs at the old Breckenridge Lumber Company. But those original immigrants also found the Florida Parishes soil fertile for strawberry planting, a tradition that remains today. St. Margaret Queen of Scotland Catholic Church and the Hungarian Presbyterian Church were soon established, and the cemetery celebration would follow,
“All of our relatives will come pray over our loved ones and pray for the souls of others who have gone before us,” Ernst said. “My mom was literally raised across the road.” DARLENE ERNST, who has attended the All Saints’ Day tradition at the Albany Hungarian cemetery since childhood
more than 80 years ago according to local lore. “This has been a Hungarian tradition since the church has been here,” said Darlene Ernst, who has spent every All Saints Day evening at the cemetery for more than 30 years, since she was a child. “All of our relatives will come pray over our loved ones and pray for the souls of others who have gone before us,” Ernst said. “My mom was literally raised across the road.” Even from afar, relatives remain part of the tradition. Ernst’s sister, Cynthia Brasseux, a Maryland resident, attended the event via a cellphone hookup with her sister. And Ernst even lit a virtual candle for Brasseux. “Since I was a little girl, this is what you do on All Saints’ Day,” Brasseux said, adding the event was especially meaningful to the family because of the death of their father earlier this year. “It’s a way to show respect for the people we lost, and it’s a joyful gathering of
family and reminiscing,” Brasseux said. She recalls that after placing candles on the graves of relatives her family would then place candles on graves where there were none. “It’s important for me to be here (via modern technology) tonight,” added Brasseux, who has lived in the Washington D.C. area for the past 30 years. Ernst’s and Brasseux’s grandmother, Julia Vege Ourso, said she is 82 years old and remembers coming to the cemetery for at least 70 years, if not longer. She recalled how her mother would make a wreath by coloring crepe paper, putting a rose in it and tying it all together with a wire and green tape. “The memories are so important,” Ourso said. “I’ve seen a lot of people that I have not seen in a long time. “It’s very important to the community because of the tradition and the families getting together.” She said her grandmother was the first woman to be buried in the cemetery but the tombstone reads “Mrs. Steve Vege,” using only her husband’s first name. And Vega’s husband was the first person to be buried in the cemetery. “It is really important to the Hungarian people to keep the culture alive,” Frank Vepke said, who finds encouragement in the way his nieces and great-niece are carrying on the tradition. “They come out and they know what it is all about,” he said. “It is a tight community and everybody knows everybody,
ä See CEMETERY, page 2G
Walker honors veterans
Holden girls basketball team starts season with win With football season building up to the LHSAA playoffs, which begin this week, it can be easy to forget about the start of basketball season. That wasn’t the case last week at Holden, where the Rockets girls’ basketball team opened with a strong showing against Phoenix. Last season, in a close game, Holden lost its opener at Phoenix, but the results were much more favorable this time at the Rockets’ gym. Led by Blaize Foster and Maggie Hughes, Holden took a 17-point lead into halftime and went on to defeat the Spartans 65-39. Foster and Hughes were the clear leaders, with each taking the spotlight for a half. Foster scored 15 of her 19 points in the
A veteran waves an American flag during the annual city of Walker Veterans parade Saturday.
Charles Salzer SPORTS ROUNDUP
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the parade. PAGE 4G
first half, while Hughes scored a game-high 20 points with 16 coming after halftime. Phoenix never led in the game. In the opening minutes, Foster scored twice off of inbound plays, helping Holden take an 8-0 lead. Effective inbounds passing was a theme for Holden, which got layups off of inbounds plays three
ä See SALZER, page 2G
PHOTO BY DAVID NORMAND