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“Ireland: Land of Saints and Scholars”

This past March 3 marked the 44th anniversary of the St. James High School fire. The three-level school built in the 1930’s was destroyed by fire on March 3, 1980. I had been involved in newspaper work for three years and was putting the weekly paper together on Monday when I received a call from a friend from Thibodaux who noticed the smoke when she passed by. She went back to Blue’s Grocery to use their phone to call and let me know. I grabbed my camera and left immediately. I arrived at about the same time as the fire department. I took many pictures and stood there in disbelief as people came from throughout the area to watch their school burn. That was years before the first cell phones, so I used the phone at the home of Jude and Ruth Reulet on the school campus. I notified the Baton Rouge Morning Advocate and called WCKW radio to alert them to breaking news. I was the person on the scene for them and did a report for them while connected to the landline in the Reulet home. We don’t often think of how these events affect others but there was a St. James High Class that went to school for four years in portable buildings spread out on the school’s front lawn.

The Highway Baptist Church and Dr. Charles Oatis, Sr., Pastor is hosting a Christian Educational Workshop entitled “Sharpening the Focus of the Church” that will equip the Saints of God for par excellence ministry in 2025. The workshop will be held at Highway Baptist Church 1185 Magnolia Heights, Vacherie, LA 70090 on Saturday, March 15, 2025 beginning with continental breakfast, registration at 7:30 a.m.