Terrebonne Council votes on rec district ordinance
October 26, 2017
Don Babin
October 26, 2017
Tate Billiot was having a great time at Ellender Memorial High’s homecoming – as good a time as anyone could be having during the dance, which occurred this weekend.
Then a great time turned into a dream the sophomore never dared to have, coming true.
Newly crowned Homecoming King Terrence Gray gestured for Tate, whose cerebral palsy requires a wheelchair for mobility, to be picked up and carried onto the stage. The king then placed the crown on Tate’s head.
“My heart just told me to change my mind and give it to him as a blessing, to let him be a part of all of it,” said Terrence, who will be heading to Southern University to study electrical engineering after graduation. “He’s king now, I let it be him, all of it.”
Officially, the two will both be listed as kings.
“Tate doesn’t talk too much, but we could tell he was really happy about it,” said the sophomore’s mother, Nancy Foret. “I am totally amazed about it, what Terrence did was so heartfelt, giving his crown to Tate.”
Ellender’s principal, Blaise Pellegrin, said he had no idea the switch was to be.
“I was going to crown Terrence, and I was reaching up because he is way taller than me, and he said ‘I have to do something,'” the principal recalled. “And then he called on Tate and his mom to come to the stage, and the football players lifted him up in his wheelchair.'”
And the rest is now Ellender Memorial High history. Literally.
“It truly shows how diverse and accepting our school community is,” Pellegrin said.
“This is a school where everybody respects each other and sees each others’ value, and they lift each other up.”
Ellender won its homecoming football game against Morgan City, by a score of 34-21.
The Patriots used an efficient running game to get themselves to the victory – their second win of the high school football season.
Morgan City led the game 14-7, but Ellender rallied back with a series of touchdowns to get past the rival Tigers.
J’Amire Mott and Reginald Williams had big days for the Patriots.
For more high school football results, check the Prep Page in
Ellender’s homecoming royalty has a third person this year, as King Terrance Gray opted to share his crown with classmate Tate Billiot, a student with cerebral palsy.
