Parish president candidate: St. Mary needs to create jobs

MORGAN CITY — Amelia native and Morgan City resident Gary Duhon will be one of the two candidates vying for St. Mary Parish President Saturday.

Duhon, 69, served for two terms on the St. Mary Parish Council District 11, an at-large district, and 13 years on the Morgan City Port Commission.

Duhon graduated from Morgan City High School in 1964 and had a brief tenure at Louisiana State University where he studied agriculture. Duhon worked as a rice farmer shortly afterward.

Some of Duhon’s accomplishments include the formation of the St. Mary Parish Levee District during his tenure on the council. Duhon also said bringing InterMoor Inc. into Morgan City was one of his proudest moments on the council.

“I think it brought in 100 jobs,” Duhon said.

Duhon cited economic development as one of the most crucial issues he would work on if elected into the parish president’s seat.

“If you can create jobs, everything else falls into place,” Duhon said.

Creating incentives for people working in St. Mary Parish to live in the area is another issue Duhon said is important.

“Right now, about 40 percent of the people who work here live somewhere else,” Duhon said.

Duhon served for 25 years at the Amelia Fire Department and was past president of the parish Firemen’s Association. He works as manager at JAG Construction Contractor.

Duhon is married to Carolyn Beauregard, 68, and has five children: Cherie Garrett, 49, Melissa Deshotel, 47, Gary Jr., 45, Jimmy, 41 and Christina Harrison, 36.