News

A Weyerhaeuser grant awarded to the Friends of the Toledo Bend/Zwolle Museum group, will help with necessary repairs and bring the historic KCS depot closer to its completion goals. The award of $6880.00 will be used to replace damaged wood on the exterior porches and handicapped entrance ramp, and to paint the area. The work is already underway.

A portion of the museum will tell the story of the history of logging in the area from the period when trams were used to transport logs from the woods to the Sabine River to float to southern sawmills. It will continue through the period of early family local mills to the history of the Weyerhaeuser plant and its enormous economic value to the regional economy.

The Willie Stewart Family and Friends Christmas Show on Dec. 11 has become an annual tradition at the Many Community Center.

There’s one big change to this year’s show. It will start an hour earlier – at 6 P.M, instead of 7. Willie thought it was a good idea to move the time up by an hour, “since it gets dark so early, and folks like to get home by 9 o’clock”.

Even though some posters and fliers had already been distributed that show the starting time at 7, Willie wants to get the word out that the show will now begin at 6 p.m. on Dec. 11.

The Stewart Family features Willie, his wife Debbie, his son Bo, his grandson Kelly, and his granddaughter-in-law Clancey. Their friends, the talented father and son team, Steve and Mark Birdwell from Marthaville, and the Stewarts’ talented friend Laurie Gentry will also entertain and join the Stewarts in putting on a Christmas show that will long be remembered.

“Can you get me the bone lady?”

Since the 1980s, law enforcement officials from across Louisiana have called LSU for help in identifying human remains and finding missing people. This earned Mary Manhein the reputation as “the bone lady.”

Given that interest, Manhein formed the Forensic Anthropology and Computer Enhancement Services Lab at LSU in 1990 to help law enforcement and coroner’s offices identify missing persons and human remains.

With cases ranging from mummies to murder victims, the FACES Lab provides invaluable services across the state using bones, DNA and other forensic methods to identify missing persons.

FACES was in the news again this October when Sabine Parish officials, building on the lab’s earlier work in identifying a dead man in a well, were able to recover more of the body and make an arrest for a murder that they believe occurred in 1984.

PRANCER, one of Santa’s favorite reindeer, is flying into the Many Community Center on Saturday night, Dec. 4, at 7 p.m. He plans to get everyone in the Christmas spirit. ADMISSION IS FREE AS ALWAYS.

A farm girl nurses a wounded reindeer she believes is one of Santa’s, hoping to bring it back to health in time for Christmas. Her holiday spirit inspires those around her, something her disheartened father is having trouble understanding. In fact, he is planning to send his daughter away.

The Shrine tournament at Zwolle High School provided an extra $1,000 for the Shriners Hospital for Children. The Shriners of Sabine and the numerous children they help all thank them. The Shriners also honored John Burns, who was a long-time Shriner who passed away last year.

(The Center Square) – Fiscal watchdog Truth in Accounting has knocked Louisiana’s annual financial report with several low-transparency findings.

State governments release comprehensive annual financial reports every year that are audited by certified public accountants and serve as bedrock public information regarding each state’s financial condition.

The open-government nonprofit said these “important-but-obscure” documents often fail best practices found in the private sector. Its latest analysis, Financial Transparency Score 2021, explores fiscal year 2020 state data to “encourage the publication of transparent and accurate government financial information.”

Louisiana’s annual report, the group said, falls short with respect to accessibility, navigation, external auditors and pension data timing. In each area researchers assigned a score of 1 or 2 out of 10 possible points.

Pat Procell, well known to many around Sabineland, has been chosen as the grand marshal of this year’s Zwolle Christmas Parade and Festival.

Pat wishes to thank mayor G.J. “Pie” Martinez, Town Secretary Ashley Garcie, and the town council for selecting him to represent the town of Zwolle as grand marshal for this year’s Christmas parade.

He was born June 18, 1953 to Ernest and Merrlie Procell. He attended school at St. Joseph’s Catholic School and moved to Zwolle High School in seventh grade. He graduated in 1971 and has recently celebrating his 50 year class reunion.

Pat entered the workforce at age 15 when he went to work for his grandfather, Ludry Martinez, and uncle, J.V. Martinez, in their store on Grady Hill. After graduation, he went to work for the Wright brothers after the buyout of Piggly Wiggly. He spent over 25 years between both companies in grocery retail.

On November 15, 2021, at approximately 3:45 p.m., Louisiana State Police Troop E responded to a three-vehicle crash on Louisiana Highway 191 at Louisiana Highway 481. This crash claimed the life of 66-year-old Charles R. Moran of Converse.

The initial investigation revealed a 2015 Ford 150, driven by Moran, was stopped at the intersection of Louisiana Highway 191 and Louisiana Highway 481. For reasons still under investigation, Moran turned left onto Louisiana Highway 191, but failed to yield to a northbound 2016 Peterbilt commercial vehicle. As a result, Moran’s vehicle was struck by the Peterbilt. Also, a 2011 Chevrolet Cruz was struck by debris from the initial crash.

Moran, who was restrained, sustained fatal injuries and was pronounced dead at the scene. The drivers of the Peterbilt and the Cruz, who were restrained, were not injured in the crash. Toxicology samples were obtained and submitted for analysis.

Georgia Craven, newly selected Executive Director of Sabine Parish Tourist & Recreation Commission, comes to SPTRC with 23 years of experience in the energy industry. Georgia served as Contracts Manager for Shell Polymers where she led the startup of the supply chain organization and established global supply chain for a new polyethylene plant. An accomplished leader, she has a reputation for creating positive alliances, innovative problem solving, and delivering results.

Georgia earned her Bachelor of Business Administration in Accounting from Loyola University in New Orleans, La. She is also a Certified Public Accountant.

Already active in the community, Georgia sits on the Economic Development Council and serves as the Digital Navigator leading the Parish’s effort to increase broadband access, affordability, and digital literacy by 2029.

Toledo Pharmacy recently held a well-attended ribbon cutting ceremony to officially open the new business, which will brings yet another convenience to the ever-expanding Toledo Town community and residents of the lake as a whole.

Their spacious new facility was packed to capacity for the ribbon cutting, with many eager to catch up after long times apart due to the COVID-19 situation.

Executive Director of the Chamber of Commerce Shanna Dees Gaspard has extremely kind words for the new business, and the Rev. Wilton Anthony of Siloam Baptist Church offered a blessing toward the new lifesavers and their longevity.

Owners Vince and Donna Bartley have tapped Tanya Turner, who herself has over 35 years of experience as a pharmacist and is a longtime Sabine Parish resident, having lived here since 2002 when she married Stevie Turner of Florien.