SENIORS DELIGHT IN GARDEN TEA PARTY
Volunteers and guests enjoyed the Garden Tea Party hels April 13th at the Sai Convention Center. More than 350 attended the annual event.


COUNCIL RECEIVES WORKPLACE SAFETY AWARD

Rapides Council On Aging received a check for $2.429 from Louisiana Workers compensation Corporation (LWCC) awarded to selected policyholders based on their financial performance and safety record.  This is the eighth consecutive year the council has received the award.

”The current dividend is a monetary reflection of your loyalty and dedication to LWCC’s commitment to workplace safety,” said Kristin w. Wall, LWCC President.
LWCC has paid dividends in the amount of more than $159 million over the past eight years.  They also lowered the overall rates to 4.1% and reduced rates by more than 55% since the company began in 1992.

 

A NEW LEGAL ASSISTANCE FOR SENIORS

Any senior looking for legal guidance, their legal rights and explanations on other legal issues can get it with a free telephone call to Louisiana Senior Legal Aid (SLA) a free service through Louisiana Civil Justice Center. 
    
Senior can call 800-310-7029 and get help with family law, housing issues, disaster related problems and financial matters such as bankruptcy an social security.  SIA cannot assist with criminal problems, but they can answer questions about identify teft.  Trained intake specialists will answer the call and gather information on the problem.  An attorney will evaluate the information and then call the senior to assist with their problem.
    
SIA can be reached Monday through Friday from 10am to 5 pm at 504-355-0970.  They will also provide brochures and additional information on request.

 

CHANGES IN RAPIDES PARISH POPULATION
By Jamie L. Floyd, Vice President
 Rapides Parish Police Jury

Would you like to know how the population of Rapides Parish has grown in the last 20 years?  The answer is not by much.  Only 77 people for a grand total of 131,633.  In 1990 131,556 people were living in our parish and in the early 90s we lost 5,219 residents due to the base closure. The 2000 census records reflected we had 126,337 citizens.

What you may find surprising is that the north side of Red River is growing at a faster pace than the south side. By law each district has to be within a 5% variance of each other. The average for each district will be around 14,626 people.  Because of these population shift one and maybe two south side districts will take in parts of the north side of the river for the first time in parish history.

The north side population is 47,299, a gain of 3,092 in the last 10 years.  The south side population is 84,334, a gain of 2,204.  The north side has outpaced the south side by 888 residents in the last 10 years.

We are working on redistricting our parish and getting the  numbers within a 5% variance.  Our goal is to have the plan completed and approved by the U. S. Justice Department by the October 22nd Primary Election.  If you have any questions or concerns, we would like to hear from you.  You can reach any Police Juror at 473-6660

District Breakdown:
District A – loss of 134 – 14,648
District B – gain of 402 – 15,064
District C – Gain of 2,824 – 17,587
District D – Gain of 75 – 12,239
District E – Gain of 720 – 16,428
District F – Gain of 1,448 – 13,371
District G – Loss of 453 – 14,794
District H – Loss of 1,727 – 14,138
District I – Gain of 2,141 – 13,364