Mar. Theatre
March 5, 2007Harry Smith
March 7, 2007“What can be done to better Thibodaux?”
That’s one of the questions civic leaders will ask today at an invitation-only forum hosted by the Thibodaux Women’s Club.
Celebrating 85 years of service to the community, the Thibodaux Women’s Club will seek input from other civic groups to speak to the subject at a forum on Nicholls State University’s campus.
“We decided that this might be a good project. It has been one of our goals for this year. We will celebrate our 85th anniversary in April. This is a good way to go back to the original mission of our club founders,” said Kathleen Gros, the organization’s president. “It’s our goal to gather the presidents of organizations n or their designee n in a social or educational atmosphere for the purpose of sharing information about our group and the projects we sponsor. It is our hope that by coming together, we would be able to learn more about each other as well as open communication about projects, both current and future, that will enhance our community.”
Seventy-plus civic groups have responded to the invite. Gros said they all had to fill out a survey giving the details on what they feel will enhance Thibodaux. She said the information will be presented at the gathering.
Thibodaux Mayor Charles Caillouet agrees that this forum will be beneficial to the civic leaders and the residents, and said he welcomes the input.
“It is very important for the citizens of Thibodaux because these groups are made up of citizens from the area. We look forward to getting more and more information from them. We can take that input to see what we can do to make our lives better,” he said.
The mayor said typically most civic groups focus on issues like the quality of life and infrastructure. This forum is a great way to brainstorm different ideas.
“We might get some ideas that people haven’t thought of or haven’t pursued before,” Caillouet said.
Julie Barrilleaux, of the Bayou Parishes Region of the American Red Cross, said the lack of housing and transportation is an issue she will raise at the forum.
“We have so many people who have moved here from other places and they are used to having the public transit system. Thibodaux doesn’t have that and it’s been a real problem for us to help relocate storm victims because of that issue,” she said.
As for housing, Barrilleaux said, “We are fortunate to have the university, but they take up a lot of housing. I think we could have some more middle- and low-income housing and that’s what I am going to the forum for. I want to see if anyone has any ideas to help further that pursuit in our community.”
The mayor said the greatest advantage of today’s forum is it provides organizations the opportunity to combine efforts to realize change.
“If you have a small groups trying to one thing and a large group trying to do the same. They could combine and made it better with more people involved,” he said. “This makes it a great group of diverse people.”
Agreeing with Caillouet, Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce CEO and President Kathy Benoit said, “We do have many non-profit organizations in this small area. And sometimes there is a duplication of work. And I think that with this forum, we can accomplish and, perhaps, join forces rather than each of us trying to do the same work separately.”
