DENHAM SPRINGS • LIVINGSTON • WALKER • WATSON • AMITE • HAMMOND
ADVOCATE THE LIVINGSTON -TANGIPAHOA
T H E A D V O C AT E.C O M
Darlene Denstorff AROUND LIVINGSTON
Pre-K application open in Livingston Parish Livingston Parish Public Schools is accepting applications for pre-kindergarten enrollment for the 2026-2027 school year across the district. A child must be 4 years old on or before Sept. 30 to qualify. Round 1 of the online Pre-K application period opened Feb. 1, and runs through May 1. The online application can be accessed at http://applytolppsearlychild.schoolmint.com. Documents needed to complete the application include the child’s birth certificate, the child’s social security card, immunization records, the parent’s or guardian’s ID, proof of residency (which must be verified through current utility bills), and proof of income (which must be verified with two current consecutive paycheck stubs for every working adult 18 and older or proof of SNAP benefits for the child. Anyone needing assistance completing the online application can visit district staff members on Friday, April 17, at the Livingston Parish Public Schools Professional Development Center, at 17457 Wes McLin Road, Suite F, Livingston, 70754. Staff members will be available with laptops to assist from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. that day. Parents or guardians who attend this help session should bring copies of the required documents. More information about the application process is available as www.lppsearlychildhood. com or on Facebook at Livingston Parish Early Childhood.
ä See AROUND, page 2G
W e d n e s d ay, F e b r u a ry 18, 2026
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BUILDING THE FUTURE
The Denham Springs High School’s robotics team played the role of mentors to 19 students from Scotlandville Magnet High last week for a hands-on introduction to competitive robotics and the opportunity to leave the joint session with a robot they built themselves. The visit paired Scotlandville Magnet Robotics team FRC 11342, a first-year team and the only public school FIRST Robotics
Denham Springs girls basketball team on a roll heading into playoffs
ä See ROBOTICS, page 3G
ä See SALZER, page 2G
Denham Venom robotics team mentors Scotlandville team in building competition robot Competition team in East Baton Rouge Parish, with Denham Venom’s FRC 8044 team, Louisiana’s topranked team and a program in the top 2% worldwide, a news release said. The mentorship was arranged through FIRST Louisiana-Mississippi, which selected Denham Venom as a mentor team for the rookie program. “By pairing rookie teams with veteran peer advisers, FIRST fosters mentorship, strengthens collaboration, and provides students on
SPORTS ROUNDUP
both teams with authentic leadership experiences unlike any other STEM program,” said Carolyn Arthurs, regional director of FIRST Louisiana-Mississippi. Both teams are preparing to compete at the Bayou Regional on April 3-4 at the Pontchartrain Center in Kenner. Scotlandville Magnet Robotics competes under the direction of sponsors Timeisha Holland, Chaquoncio Ruffin, Jeremy
PROVIDED PHOTO
Community news report
Charles Salzer
It took almost two-thirds of the season, but the Denham Springs girls basketball team has hit its stride. The Yellow Jackets proved that point Friday when they finished off a 6-0 run through District 5-5A with a 70-52 win over Prairieville earning their second consecutive district title in the process. And that process? It was one that didn’t always seem to have a light at the end of its tunnel. “You fight through so much adversity. You’re in the dark and you feel like you’re crawling out of it,” Denham Springs coach Rudy Smith said. Smith’s team was searching for a positive sign, and it got one on Jan. 9, when it posted a 40-35 win at French Settlement, a team that is currently toprated team in the Division III nonselect power ratings. The win avenged a loss to the Lions at the Livingston parish tournament, and set the Jackets on an upward trajectory. Denham Springs finished its regular season at 20-9, but it won nine of its last 10 games after its win over French Settlement. “I feel like after we beat them, things just started going up from there,” Smith said. “Then we got into district, and we haven’t lost in a while. We’ve battled through a gauntlet, and now we’re getting the reward.” Sophomore Kynlee Journet, who scored nine points in the win over Prairieville, also said her team’s turning point came in the second meeting with French Settlement. “At the parish tournament, we came out hot, and then in the third quarter they came back on us,” Journet said. “We lost, and it was cool, but the next time we played them, we had to tell them who we really were. We had to make a name for ourselves.”
Denham Venom team member Cole Ruiz, left, works with Scotlandville Magnet students Mackaelea Thomas and Jace Noah to build a control panel that will be used to program and manage a robot.
Check out Livingston Parish library schedule Check out some of the programs planned at branches of the Livingston Parish Library. Denham Springs-Walker Branch Contact the Denham SpringsWalker Branch at (225) 6864140 or visit www.mylpl.info for more details on any event at this LPL branch. Wednesday, Feb. 18, p.m.: Hooks & Loops Crochet Club (ages 18+) Get hooked on making loops into cool things (also known as crochet) Are you a beginner? You’ll get one-on-one instructions on how to get started, plus some yarn and loaner hooks. Are you more than a novice but have yet to become an expert? Get project help and advice here. Are you a veteran crocheter? Join us to swap ideas, work on your latest creation, and share your knowledge. Whatever you are, come by and have fun crocheting! Bring your supplies and spin a yarn with like-minded crafters. Thursday, Feb. 19, 10 a.m.: Adult Writers’ Club (ages 18+). Whether you’re an aspiring novelist, a poet at heart, or just someone who loves to explore the written word, this is the place to bring your stories to life. The club is a welcoming community where you’ll get to sharpen your skills, get inspired, build confidence, and make connections. To find out how to join, contact Lee Cline at lcline@mylpl.info. Thursday, Feb. 19, 2 p.m.: Box of Chocolates Book Club (ages 18+). Are you an avid reader
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Wild emu chase? Meet the pair of birds
who were on the run in Livingston Parish BY CLAIRE GRUNEWALD Staff writer
Multiple times a day, missing dogs are posted in the Lost Pets of Livingston Parish social media group. But it’s not every day that photos of emu walking down the street in Watson make it to the page. At the beginning of last week, photos, calls and messages began circulating around to alert Kacie Sibley, who is the only owner of emus in the northern part of the parish, that her flightless birds were on the lam. Sibley, who lives in north Watson, fed her pair of 3-year-old emus Sunday evening. On the morning of Feb. 9, she received a call from a Sheriff’s Office deputy: “We believe these are your emus.” Sibley affectionately refers to her pair of male and female emus as just “emu” or as country music duo Brooks and Dunn. Brooks and Dunn’s outdoor pen in Sibley’s backyard looked like a
prints by the pen, she said. “They are literally fight or flight birds,” Sibley said. After Sibley heard from law enforcement, photos started circulating online. Using the online tips and messages, including the photo on the street in Watson, Sibley and her brothers deduced that the emus had split up: one wasn’t too far from home on Sims Road, and the other was miles away on Tyler Ballard Road. Getting the female bird who was furthest away was simple, but the male bird on Sims Road was hurt and scared. They found him in the area and chased him before losing him in the woods, Sibley said. “If you run, they run,” said PresPROVIDED PHOTO ton Marler, one of Sibley’s brothers Kacie Sibley and her two emus, who she often refers to as Brooks and Marler helped catch the emus Dunn, in her backyard north of Watson, Livingston Parish on Feb. 11. and has the battle scars to prove it. He has cuts up and down his crime scene only a predator, most where the emus jumped it trying legs and arms from the scuffle likely a coyote, could have caused. to escape, and there were blood ä See EMU, page 2G The fence was damaged from stains on the ground and large paw