Christmas is not a date. It is a state of mind.–Mary Ellen Chase

KAREN WINK
AMERICAN PRESS
December 13, 2010

On the sidewalk in front of Southgate Shopping Center, Leroy Williams prepares his stage for his sixth holiday season of performances.

After stretching his cheeks and fingers, Williams starts to pipe out a Christmas soundtrack for the shoppers hurrying between stores.

Shoppers pass by Williams as he plays a medley of popular Christmas songs on his saxophone. Some just walk by, while others stop to drop money in Williams’’ Gratitude Bucket.

Williams first started playing on sidewalks as a way to raise tuition for his culinary and dietary education at Sowela Technical and Community College. He continues now during the holiday season mostly because he loves Christmas and loves creating a festive ambiance for passers-by.

“It’s the weather. It’s fall time. It’s Christmas. As a kid, everyone hears ‘Santa Claus (is Coming to Town),’ ‘Frosty (the Snowman)’ and ‘Rudolph (the Red-nosed Reindeer).’ It just brings back memories to hear those songs. We need something more in this city. We need more sidewalk musicians,” said Williams.

Williams said his love for Christmas comes from his mother. He is sentimental about Christmas music, with “Please Come Home for Christmas” being his favorite holiday tune.

“You can’t mess up ‘Silent Night’ and simple Christmas songs. I’m always trying to improve,” said Williams.

Quick to smile, Williams often breaks up his performances to talk with shoppers. He recounts several instances of encouraging words that motivate him to keep playing.

“Little kind words just make your day,” said Williams.

Williams’ personal finances get an assist by his sidewalk concerts. He works as a cook at a casino, but he lost one of his two jobs. Williams says playing his saxophone helps pay the rent and provide money for Christmas presents.

“I’m going to continue this because I love being on center stage. I get to talk to lots of people. I’m a talkative person,” he said.

…

“Until one has loved an animal, a part of one’s soul remains unawakened.” -Anatole France

Most of the stories I have written so far have been about the arts. Recently I was given the opportunity write a news feature. The story was a tough one but I have a great editor that helped me through the uncharted waters. It was very invigorating to cover all aspects of a news story: photo, video, and the written words. The bottom-line, I loved every minute of the process even the gut-wrenching parts. This is why I came back to journalism.

The color photos are from the spay/neuter facility. The black & white from the euthanasia room at the local shelter. The story is at the end of the post. It ran on the front page (my first story ever on A-1).

Here is a link to the first draft of the video. I have decided on some changes to make after self-critiquing and some advice from a friend. Those changes will be posted later. Also, I welcome all advice since my goal is to do the best job possible.

Nonprofit, parish try to reduce euthanasia (4/11)

On a Monday morning in March, a puppy was dropped off at the Animal Angels Spay-Neuter Alliance Project facility.
The anonymous woman who brought in the small mixed-breed could not care for it. Although the facility is not a shelter, the woman was referred there because she did not want the animal to be “put down.”

This puppy is one of the lucky ones. He will find a new home and not become one of the 92,000 animals that are euthanized every year in Louisiana.

Sad numbers
The Calcasieu Parish Animal Services and Adoption Center euthanized 6,534 dogs and cats in 2009. Rita Cavenaugh, director of CPAS, said about 80 percent of the animals euthanized are healthy and their fates are sealed only because the shelter has no room to house additional animals.

Animals taken in at the CPAS come as a result of complaints from the public and from owners who surrender them. Total intakes for 2009 were 11,728. Of those, 768 were returned to owners.

Through concerted efforts of the CPAS and its work with area nonprofit pet adoption agencies, the CPAS was able to place 1,101 pets in new homes.

The Humane Society of the United States puts the national number of pets euthanized annually at 4 million cats and dogs.

Pet overpopulation is the prime factor leading to that number, according to Tiger O’Quain, the executive director of Animal Angels S.N.A.P. Many of the animals euthanized are the offspring of family pets.

“The only real answer to overpopulation is spay/neuter. They reproduce too quickly, and we already have too many now without homes,” O’Quain said. “In just Louisiana, there are 130,000 homeless animals; 92,000 are put down every year. Every little bit helps reduce these numbers.”

At the SNAP
Founded in 1999, Animal Angels’ main focus has always been to address the overpopulation of pets through spaying and neutering. In February of this year, the group opened its low-cost spay and neuter facility in Lake Charles with the help of the Humane Alliance, donations and grants. The largest grant, $150,000, came from the PetSmart Charities, with additional support from the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, the International Fund for Animal Welfare, United Animal Nations and the Humane Society of the United States.

The nonprofit SNAP facility is set up exclusively to offer spay/neuter services.

Veterinarian Lori W. Chang and other SNAP staff attended training at the Humane Alliance facility in Asheville, N.C., in 2009. This training taught them the best practices in running a spay/neuter facility to help provide quality care and keep costs down for the pet owners.

SNAP follows the principles of the Humane Alliance, which believes animal population is best controlled through surgery instead of euthanasia.

The staff runs like a well-practiced team. Animals are dropped off at 7:30 a.m., weighed, and separated. Assistants Kizzi Fontenot and Traci Thibodeaux prep and sedate the animals for surgery. Chang does one surgery after the other in a room equipped with two operating tables. According to Chang, the focus on just spay/neuter surgery makes the staff more efficient.

This efficiency keeps costs down for pet owners. Cost is a major factor that prevents many pet owners from having their animal altered.

“There are people that call us with 10 cats in their back yard. They can’t afford to get all the cats fixed. Our goal is to never say no to that person,” O’Quain said.

Advantages of altering
Theresa Kaske and Mandy Jinks, a mother and daughter from Gillis, dropped off two cats and a dog at the Animal Angels SNAP facility. They shared the story of how their cats were found as kittens in a bumper of a car at the DeQuincy Police Station.

Kaske added that many dogs are just dropped off on her rural road and left to fend for themselves. The pair do what they can to help find homes for those animals. Kaske sees the opening of the SNAP facility as their only means to afford the surgery for their pets.

Pet owner Quinn Brown, a single person, said, “I wanted my dog protected, but my vet was too expensive (for the surgery). After calling through the phone book I was referred here, and now I am getting my dog fixed.”

Chang stressed that the benefits of altering your pet extend beyond slowing pet overpopulation. An altered pet is less likely to contract some types of cancer and diseases. Altered pets are also less likely to roam.

The CPAS also offers assistance to pet owners wishing to spay or neuter their pets. Anyone on public assistance can apply for a voucher to take to a participating veterinarian.

Cavenaugh stressed that the CPAS’s goal is to become a no-kill shelter, but the overpopulation of animals has to be controlled for that goal to be realized. The altering of family pets is a major method by which that goal can be achieved and is stressed by Cavenaugh, O’Quain and Chang.

“I believe if the general public actually saw the numbers we have to euthanize here, there would be a public outcry and more support for spay/neuter,” Cavenaugh said.

Dr. Michael Woodward, president of the Calcasieu Veterinary Medical Association, advocates more owner responsibility and education for pet owners.

“Just having low-cost spay/neuter clinics won’t address the issue of overpopulation. You can put as many clinics you want to, but people will still drop off animals. We’ve got to work together to educate people to solve this issue,” Woodward said.
•
Animal Angels Spay Neuter Alliance Project facility at 622 E. College St., can be reached at 477-7290. The Calcasieu Parish Animal Services and Adoption Center is at 5500 Swift Plant Road and can be reached at 721-3730.

* Here’s the tear-sheet as it ran April 11th

A technically perfect photograph can be the world’s most boring picture. - Andreas Feininger

The end of 2009 marks my first full year in Lake Charles.

My employment with the American Press began in June of 2008. My first six months were swamped by Ike and Gustav. Hurricane coverage buffed the newbie shine off my forehead.

January 2009 creeped in and life in Lake Charles without storms became a daily reality. Looking back over the year, southwest Louisiana has revealed itself to be a well kept secret in Louisiana.

Growing up in the far northern reaches of the state, Baton Rouge and New Orleans were always discussed as the center of Louisiana. Prior to 2009, no proof was ever offered to the contrary. Today I know different. Southwest Louisiana’s culture is an interesting mix of Cajun, cowboy, and much more. The food here is some of the best in the state. Seriously, I have eaten some of the best poboys, hamburgers, and gumbo.

The slideshow contains some of my favorite images for 2009. This is a mix of sports, news and feature shots. Hope you enjoy it.

Here are a few of my favorite tears sheets from 2009.

Personally I hate picking out photos to place in my portfolio. However, it is something that is necessary. Any photographer, artist, writer, and the like needs to have a current binder of work at all times. Plus, if you look at fotokew.com it is still slanted towards commercial work.  The last three months have solidified my love of journalism and editorial work. So I am off…and sitting here working on the changes. It may take some time but here are first two draft pages:

• sports
• news

I still have more photos to go through but feel free to offer advice or comments on my first drafts.