Every hurricane season, we in South Louisiana go on high alert, stock up on supplies and hope and pray that we are spared from nature’s wrath. In the event of a hurricane or flood, we gather our families and struggle to recover, clean up, regroup and carry on. But what about the people we count on for service and help? Local priests and other religious leaders would be affected by the same hazards we face, especially power outages and difficulty getting to the areas hit hardest. Hopefully this situation will be mitigated in the very near future.

In September 2019, the Daily Iberian moved from their home since 1979 on the southeast corner of Main and Lewis Street to 124 East Main. A few years before then, the newspaper also stopped printing the paper locally, and had no use for the generator used for the press, a 100-kilowatt Generac. 

Preston Guillotte, the new owner of the former Daily Iberian property, and member of the St. Peter’s Church congregation had an idea about the further use of the generator. “I thought, why not donate it to the parish? It would be such a relief and could help many people,” Guillotte said.

In inclement weather, hurricanes or flooding situations, priests from the outlying areas such as Lydia, Cypremort Point and Louisa would come to St. Peter’s Rectory to ride out the storm. If the power went out, they were stranded, since the rectory had no back-up generator. Guillotte called the pastor of St. Peter’s and suggested that the generator could be made available for the rectory. 

The pastor, the Rev. William C. Blanda said, “Because of the size and number of bedrooms in the rectory, in the case of a severe storm that affects our area, we can have several priests live here. During the days after the storm, our priests can be out in the community serving people and doing their charitable work.

“If they can stay here, they can regroup in the evening and get a good night’s sleep. It would make all the difference in their ability to function.”

In the meantime, Francis Wick of Wick Communications, owner of The Daily Iberian, was trying to either put the generator to use at the new offices, or sell it. He was unsuccessful in either case, and Wick and Guillotte put their heads together along with Tim Hoffpauir, Wick’s real estate representative, to work out the details of the donation. Hoffpauir also served as a liaison with Deacon Patrick Burke of St. Peter’s to process necessary paperwork for the donation.

This week, the deal was struck, and The Daily Iberian officially donated their Generac to the parish. “100 kilowatts should be more than adequate to provide electricity for the rectory,” said Guillotte. The generator will soon be transferred to a site on the parish campus, where it will be installed and ready to go in case of a disaster.

“We hope we never have to use it,” Blanda said. “But it is good to know it will be here if we need it. As we say, hope for the best, prepare for the worst.

“We are grateful for this donation. It is a tremendous gift to the parish. The fact is, with so many areas of maintenance and repair to address throughout the complex, a generator has not been on the top of our priority list financially. This solves some of the challenges we face, and we can’t thank you enough.”