News

The Pioneers of Central Christian Academy in Grand Cane will be hosting various western themed events at the Circle T. Ranch, located at 11654 Hwy 5 in Keachi with the first one beginning on August 9 at 6:00 p.m. You can come participate or watch the action at 6:00 p. m. with Barrel Slots first on the program from 6:00 p.m. until 8:15 p. m., followed by the Poles event from 8:30 p. m. until 9:00 p. m. Tickets for slots available start at 5:15 p. m. with prices set at one ticket for $5.00 or three for $12.00. They will accept cash, PayPal, or Venmo for payment. There will be no concessions but they will have drinks. For more information, call or text Jenny at 318–602–5392.

Cpl. Kelby Pearah (left in black/green) was in Carthage, Texas last week assisting Sheriff Cutter Clinton (center) of the Panola County Sheriff’s Office and their K-9 Division. Cpl. Pearah, K-9 Karen, and others with DPSO have been working with surrounding agencies in teaching a “Decide and Deploy” course that involves knowing your K-9 and making swift decisions in different scenarios.

DeSoto Parish Schools were incredibly proud to celebrate the following educators at the 19th Annual Cecil J. Picard Educator Excellence Awards Gala, hosted by the Louisiana Department of Education and Dream Teachers.

Ms. Anesha Ross — 2026 Louisiana Principal of the Year Finalist Ms. Anna Jackson — 2026 Louisiana New Teacher of the Year Finalist Ms. Charday Wilson — 2024–2025 Milken Educator Award Winner These remarkable educators embody the core values that drive our mission in DeSoto Parish Schools — fostering a sense of community, promoting excellence, and providing innovative educational experiences. Their unwavering commitment of The DeSoto Difference reflects DPSO’s dedication to making a meaningful difference in the lives of students every single day.

Six members of the Joaquin Volunteer Fire Department recently attended a week of training at the 96th Annual Texas Fire Training School presented by the Texas Engineering Extension Service, a division of the Texas A&M University System. The school is held at the Brayton Fire Training Field, the largest training facility of its kind in the world.

Firefighter Brock Pugh, Firefighter Julie Bates, and Assistant Fire Chief Michael Bates completed HAZMAT Awareness and Operations. Firefighter Michael Parker took Common Passenger Vehicle Extrication, and Assistant Fire Chief Stephen Ewing served as a Guest Instructor in ASP-701 Fundamentals of Fire Attack. Over 800 students and 300 instructors participated in the school this year. The school offers courses in all disciplines of fire/ rescue, from basic firefighter skills to all types of technical rescue, to officer development and leadership training.

The Mansfield State Historic Site, located at 15149 Hwy 175, just outside of Mansfield will host the Terry’s Texas Rangers on Saturday, August 2 and Sunday, August 3. This is an opportunity to experience what happened during the Red River Campaign through the eyes of the Texas Rangers that participated in the Battle of Mansfield.

The Saturday demonstration will be held all day, and on until noon on Sunday. For additional information you can find them on Facebook, or you can call 318–872–1474.

Mayor Marvin Frazier stated that each year, the town has applied for funding for a new water well and has been denied funding. The Town contacted Representative Larry Bagley to stress the need for funding. After speaking to Rep. Bagley, the Town of Zwolle has been awarded $750,000 in state financing.

With the additional $300,000 allocated from Weyerhaeuser for the water well project, the town will have 1 million dollars of funding to drill an alternate well. Mayor Frazier stressed that the town has had two water wells down, and that there was an extreme need for the well.

On July 2, the DeSoto Parish Chamber of Commerce hosted a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony for Healing Hearts Counseling Center in Stonewall. The new business specializes in therapy for children, teens, and families navigating life’s challenges with compassion and support.

Group therapy sessions started in June. They included Self Worth for Girls, Navigating for Adolescent Boys, How to Better Communicate with Your Teen. For more information about these groups, they are formed by appointment only, with limited space per session.

Healing Hearts is located at 5258 Stonewall-Frierson Road, located next to the Stonewall Branch of Progressive National Bank. Their phone number is 318– 431–8596.

With yesterday’s announcement of the retirement of Holly Kennedy-Jones, there were indeed some big shoes to fill here at the DeSoto Parish Sheriff’s Office. The Sheriff and Chief’s personal Executive Assistant fields many calls, organizes many projects and calendars, and a whole host of other important projects. The search for the perfect replacement was simply a no-brainer, as Sheriff Richardson didn’t have to look far: We ask you to join us in welcoming Mrs. Captolia “Cap” Triplett!

Sheriff Jayson Richardson has announced that his and Chief Monica Cason’s Executive Assistant and right hand lady has finally cashed in on the pension and traded in her badge for a…trading post. Yes, Holly is the owner of the new Grand Cane Trading Post, which recently held their ribbon cutting ceremony. If you’ve ever tried to reach Sheriff Richardson, Chief Cason, and even Sheriff Rodney Arbuckle, you’ve probably spoken with Mrs. Holly Kennedy-Jones. She was the vibrant and sweet glue that coordinated all of the chaos behind the scenes.

Holly officially retired on Monday, July 14 and you can now find her at her new business The Grand Cane Trading Post. Her shop is slapped full of treasures you just didn’t know you needed.

DeSotoParish’samazing educators, Ms. Lori Sebren, Ms. Carla White, Ms. Petriello, and Ms. Wilson, participated in the Building Thinking Classrooms conference in Seattle, where they immersed themselves in strategies to foster deeper student thinking.

Inspired by Peter Liljedahl’s research, they learned how to spark engagement with “Thinking Tasks,” use “Visibly Random Groupings” for collaboration, and leverage “Vertical Non-Permanent Surfaces” to make thinking visible.

We’re incredibly excited for them to bring these transformative practices back to our classrooms and elevate learning across DeSoto Parish.