FRANKLIN — Council on Aging Director Beverly Domengeaux informed the St. Mary Parish Council Wednesday that the coronavirus pandemic has caused the agency to double the number of meals it provides to the parish senior population.

In 2021, Domengeaux said the agency provided a total of 108,566 meals, up from 47,250 in 2018.

“I have to thank God for sending these employees to me, all 27 work for minimum wage, and they do it with heart, and they didn’t miss a day,” she said.

Domengeaux appeared at Wednesday’s  Parish Council meeting, offering a thank you to the council for its help in maintaining senior citizen programs, parish wide.

Because of the pandemic however, she said most of the meals were drive-thru, as opposed to home delivery, “because we can’t put large groups into one building anymore due to COVID.”

Still, she thanked Catholic Charities for providing additional home meal delivery, as well as various non-profit, church and school groups throughout the parish.

“I’d also like thank Councilman J Ina, who as President of the 100 Black Men of St. Mary Parish, organized a big delivery of more than 250 hot meals to our home-bound seniors, on the day we honored Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.,” she said.

In 2021, the Council on Aging served 58,566 hot meals and 50,000 boxed and dry meals. They also conducted 3,768 homemaker visits, 3,334 transportation trips, and 2,417 respite and sitter visits.

In 2018, Domengeaux reported the agency delivered 38,000 home meals and provided 9,250 meals from its agency sites. Also then, they conducted 3,993 homemaker service assistance appointments, transported 4,181 seniors and provided 1,670 seniors with respite care assistance. 

Domengeaux also thanked organizations parish wide for their help in donating heaters during the winter and fans during the summer.

“Our goal as always, is to be there for our seniors who have no family here, or no family left. We educate them on what’s going on in the community,” Domengeaux said. “We allow them to age the way they want, but at the same time, let them know we love them. And when it comes to meals, we make sure they are getting good nutrition.”

In fiscal matters, the council went into executive session to hire legal representation over potential litigation regarding the construction of a pump station in Amelia that was awarded in 2019 for $2.5 million, past records show.

The Council hired Attorney Bill Bourgeois of Morgan City to represent them against Ashley Savarino Unlimited Construction of Metairie, which was awarded the contract.

In other business, an ordinance passed in a mixed vote of the council to establish a 120-day waiting period before reintroducing an ordinance that failed.

In other matters, Council Chairman Dr. Kristi Prejeant-Rink used a portion of public comment to express her commitment in making sure future discussions during council meetings adhere to the meeting agenda, so that the meetings “be about the business of the parish.”

“We’ve had a few issues with trying to censure the Parish President, and other council members. I don’t think that’s what we’re about,” she said.

“We want to stay on track, and on the agenda. We don’t want to create a lot of confrontations. And the bickering between council members needs to stop.”

Prejeant-Rink concluded her remarks with the council’s work “should not be about our opinions,” but rather about the best decisions for the parish.

Her comments came in the wake of recent past meetings where Parish President David Hanagriff was gaveled and later ordered removed from Council Chambers, accused of interrupting a speaker, as well as squabbles at other meetings: over stop signs, council at-large seats, and other side-bar issues.

Also in another matter, the Council learned that Secretary of State R. Kyle Ardoin has set the regularly scheduled election dates for 2022, as March 26, April 30, Nov. 8 and Dec. 10.