Project Front Yard gets boo$t from WoodmenLife

At the March 1 Parish Council meeting, the parish was presented with a donation of $4,150 from WoodmenLife to support efforts of Project Front Yard in parish schools. That amount will be used to finance the distribution of the project’s activity books to school students throughout the parish.
Also, the council approved a resolution proclaiming March “American Red Cross Month.” Cormier related his experience visiting the area of tornado damage in the town of Convent in St. James Parish, which, he said, reminded him once again of the value of the Red Cross in times of disaster. He said that the Red Cross shows up at the scene of every structure fire in the parish to provide help and information and is very deserving of this show of support.
Finally, District 2 council member Lisa Nelson said that the Fire Department banquet held Feb. 27 was a successful and enjoyable event again this year. Cormier said that there were so many donated door prizes that every volunteer firefighter in attendance took home at least one item and most received more than one.
He commended St. Martin Parish Fire District Coordinator Brian Castille for his volunteer recruiting efforts, which are now focusing on area high school students. Next year will mark the 50th year since the parish became the first in Louisiana to pass a tax to fund a parish-wide fire district.
Cormier said that the parish would soon begin long range planning to insure that fire department staffing and equipment levels will keep up with growth for the foreseeable future.