Jeanerette Matters cleans up the town

Published 8:00 am Monday, May 20, 2019

JEANERETTE — Many areas in Iberia Parish have had their share of challenges in recent years. But after damage from hurricanes and floods, political turmoil and a devastated economy, the town of Jeanerette has not only had to fight to survive, it’s had to work twice as hard to regain its pride and standing.

Saturday’s Jeanerette Matters cleanup drive may have been a very visible first step. More than 50 residents turned out to scour the town’s streets, picking up trash and identifying areas that need help to restore pride in the community.

“In any other town, if there is a cleanup campaign, it isn’t news,” said Julaine Schexnayder, a Jeanerette Matters volunteer. ”But this group came together magically to shine a light on a problem and then did something about it. Young and old, Girl Scouts, Jeanerette Senior High football players and their coach. No one wants to go out and face the litter that was found and picked up, but they attacked the task with enthusiasm and smiles.”

Incoming Mayor Carol “Bro” Bourgeois was enthusiastic over the results of the first phase of the clean up.

“We had a very good turn out,” Bourgeois said. “This community effort falls in line with our goal of revitalization. A clean city, a beautiful city is important. But it also helps our economic development efforts. I cannot thank the citizens enough.”

One of the organizers of the effort, Erica J. Banks, moved to Jeanerette less than four years ago.

“My husband brought me here,” she said. “It was love, and his family is from here. So I sold my home in Dallas and moved here.”

It took years for the culture shock of Banks’ transition to wear off, but when it did it did so with a vengeance. Inside two months, she had organized the first cleanup, and is now looking forward to the next one.

“So after Saturday, we can kinda get an idea of what we need to do,” she said. “Our volunteers were making a list, marking up our map of what they saw out on the streets. We’ll analyze that, then figure out what we have left to do.”

From a practical perspective, Bourgeois said he appreciates the effort from the community, but he also realizes it is an ongoing war, not just a battle, to reinvigorate Jeanerette.

“We still have some people who have been involved most of their lives here,” he said. “It’s going to have to be an ongoing effort. We are already stressed in city services, having the manpower to address the needs we have.”

One benefit coming soon will be the twice-monthly bulk waste collection, which the town’s board of aldermen passed Tuesday night.

“It’s a small increase to garbage collection fees,” he said. “But the contract has been amended to include twice a month bulk services.”

For Banks, getting the effort underway is itself a major accomplishment.

“Yes there are changes that still have to be made, but I think in the long run we will get there,” she said. “For now, at least we don’t have bicycles in the ditch.”

She also said that this part, at least, is easy.

“This is just regular stuff,” Banks said. “We don’t need to get approval to pick up trash and make it look nice.”