Preparing for This Hurricane Season

Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019

Message from the Parish President. . .

Hurricane Season runs June 1 through November Volume 40 30 every year. It is im- Number 3 portant to make a plan June 2019 even if there is no risk of a hurricane and make sure you and your family are prepared.

Have Needed Supplies Ready Michael Yenni Stock up on emergen- Parish President cy supplies for your home and car including: batter- cables, and flares. Write ies, candles, lamps with down emergency phone fuel, flashlights, a battery- numbers and program them powered radio, first aid into your cell phones. Find kit, prescription medi- the nearest shelters and fa- cines, one gallon of water miliarize yourself with var- per day for each person ious routes to get there. and pet, and at least a Preparation can mean three- to five-day supply the difference between be- of non-perishable food. ing a hurricane victim and a hurricane survivor. Now Be Prepared to Evacuate is the time for us to be pre- If a hurricane or severe pared. flooding is coming, you may hear an order to Do You Have a Hurricane evacuate your home. Plan? NEVER IGNORE AN Write down and go over ORDER TO EVACUATE! your hurricane plan, know Even sturdy, well-built where you will ride out a houses may not hold up against an extreme storm. storm and get your supplies. Be sure everyone in Have An Emergency Kit your home knows what to When evacuating, be do and where to go in the sure to fill your car’s gas event of a hurricane or tank and make sure you flooding event. Let us all include a roadside emer- be prepared and safe this gency kit, maps, jumper hurricane season!

Page 1 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019

JeffTalk Editor’s Editor…………..….Peggy O. Barton Managing Editor…...Greg Alexander Notes Departmental Reporters

Alario Center Deirdre Cummings Surprise Medical Bills Capital Projects Gary Lehman Coastal Management You may have heard of peo- Seamus Riley ple locally and across the nation Community Development being taken by surprise by unex- Peggy O. Barton, Editor Stephanie Brumfield pected medical bills. People have gone to hospitals or seen It is probably a good idea to Drainage Sheena Quinn doctors that are in their provider EIS Buddy Burkhamer speak to your doctor’s billing network, yet they have received department or read over their Emergency Management some out-of-network bills. There Ava Bougere billing policies before receiving are basically two situations that additional treatment at the doc- Engineering Helen McGee can lead to such unhappy sur- tor’s office to avoid any unex- Environmental Affairs prises, and I would like to tell pected charges. Kathy Russo you a bit about them. Finance Authority Valerie Brolin Out-of-Network Providers. Fleet Management Provider-Based Billing. Another important issue to Amy Truesdell Provider-based billing is the keep in mind is that even Floodplain Management practice of charging for physi- though a hospital is in your Maggie Olivier cian services separately from network, some of the doctors facility charges. With Provider or treatment providers that General Services Tessa St. Pierre -Based Billing, hospitals can HR Management Glenn Schiro they use may not be. Patients charge patients a fee for use of can go to a hospital that is in Inspection & Code Enforcement the building at which a patient Mary Ann Benitez their network and get an unex- is seen. The charge is separate pected bill because someone JeffCAP Yvonne Dumas from the fee for the physician's who treated them was out of Juvenile Services Vicki Borja professional services. Hospitals network. Many of these unex- Library Irene Lunkin can charge patients a facility pected, out-of-network charges LSU Ag Center Karen Jones fee if they see physicians who are for services by anesthesiol- Parks & Recreation work in an office that is owned ogists, pathologists, or radiolo- Antoinette Holmes & by the hospital. gists. William Cangemi Parkways Karen Jackson If you have an office visit Some of our employees with a hospital-based provider who recently visited East Jef- Planning Nedra McKinney and any additional treatment is PMZ Kimberly Bates ferson’s ER received some provided during that office vis- “surprise bills,” of this sort. Purchasing Mark Buttery it, the additional treatment is Security A’delle Joseph The good news is that we have subject to additional bill- resolved that problem. All ser- Sewerage Venice Cooper ing. What this means is that if vices provided in EJ’s ER Streets Kenya Johnson the patient is having an office should now be in-network. Traffic Engineering visit with the doctor and the Brandy & David Stout patient receives additional If you have any questions Transit Patricia Lyons treatment, such as an injection, about unexpected billing, you Water Alecia Washington breathing treatment, mole re- can ask your department’s Workforce Connection moval, etc., then that treatment Benefits Coordinator. You can can be billed as an outpatient Carolyn Haynes also e-mail our Benefits Ad- service and a facility charge ministrator Jessica Palermo: can be billed to the insurance ([email protected]). company.

Page 2 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Fleet Management thrown into the fire: Three supportive. Without their help, By months after he started, Hurri- the job would have been impos- Amy Truesdell cane Katrina hit. He said it sible. was a harrowing experience, Nick has several plans in the Nick D Retires but it gave him the under- works for the rest of the year. standing that during an emer- He intends to take a cruise Stop the presses! Fleet Man- gency, all the other depart- along the East Coast during the agement has this breaking ments in Jefferson Parish de- fall, visit friends that are scat- news: Director Nicholas Diger- pend on Fleet Management. tered across the country, play olamo has announce his re- Once the situation was stable, golf, and spend more time with tirement, which will take effect Nick bought a lot of equip- his grandchildren. Mr. Nick May 30, 2019. “Mr. Nick” has ment to update the facility for has been a true leader to those served as the Director for Fleet the Central Garage. Purchas- of us in Fleet Management, and Management since March 3, ing fuel trucks was his main we are sure we will be calling 2005. Nick stated it was a very focus. He also updated con- him from time to time for his hard decision for him to make; tracts for emergency purposes words of wisdom. Fleet Management has been a to better serve the Citizens of very big part of his life, but he the Parish. When asked what advice he feels it is time for him to enjoy wants to give to the new Direc- being with his family and Nick states he is grateful tor, Nick responded that the friends. for the opportunity to work best advice he can give is “Try with a number of administra- to stay ahead of the game, don’t Nick says he began with the tions, but he especially en- prolong anything, especially department with the intention of joyed the past two years with during hurricane season; don’t staying seven years, but seven Mike Yenni. He says the Di- wait until the last minute and be turned into fourteen because he rectors and CAA Royce caught off guard. The number enjoyed working for Jefferson Blanchard have been wonder- one priority for Fleet Manage- Parish so much. Nick started his ful to work with, and he wants ment is to be there for the other first year with Fleet by being to thank his staff for being so departments during an emergency to provide equipment and fuel.

Introducing New Director Fleet Management is proud to introduce our new Director, Randy Belanger. Randy is a native of Kenner and attended Crescent City Baptist High School. From a young age, Randy worked in his family business, B & C Auto Wreck- ers. When Randy announced he wanted a car, his father told him to build one, so from age 14 to 16 Randy spent his after-school hours building a 1987 Buick Grand National.

Randy spent his early adult years as the owner of Orleans Specialties Marble, LLC. Over the past eight years, Randy has been a Jefferson Parish Police- New Fleet Management Director Randy Belanger man and has served in several is welcomed by retiring Director Nick DiGerolamo different aspects of the job starting as a Correctional Depu-

Page 3 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 ty and moving into the positons Human Resources Benefits Specialist Gretchen of Patrol Officer; SWAT Opera- By Tilton has been busy completing tor; and Executive Protector. Glenn Schiro the following webinars: In addition to having a pas- The Dos and Don’ts of HIPPA sion for cars, Randy is a sports Congratulations, Nicole and ERISA Compliance, Artificial fan and keeps very busy being a We congratulate our Assis- Intelligence and the future of Ben- dad to his six-year-old son, Eli. tant Director Nicole Thomp- efits, New U.S. Paid-Leave Legis- When asked how he feels about son upon her selection as lation and Trends for 2019, Tips filling some mighty big shoes, Human Resources’ Employee to Help Your Employees Raise Randy replied, “Nick D. has set of the Year. Nicole has been their Health Care IQ, and Behav- higher standards as the Director of with the Parish for 20+ years. ioral Healthcare: What Employ- Fleet Management. He has done In 2006, she transferred from ees and Job Seekers Expect Em- an outstanding job increasing the Public Works to Human Re- ployers to Provide. level of efficiency with which the sources, where she has used department operates. With a great many talents and experience to Training Specialist III Greg staff in place, I am eager to use become our Assistant Direc- Alexander viewed the SHRM my diverse work experience to tor. webcast How To Create an At- continue to improve the ever- One of those talents is her tractive and Lasting Culture changing Fleet Management De- ability to effectively listen, partment of Jefferson Parish.” which enables her to assist the Safety many employees from various On May 6, Safety offered a Employee of the Year departments that she interacts Safety Supervisor Training pro- In other news, Accountant III with day in and day out. gram. This collaborative effort Tommy Austin has been Thanks, Nicole, for a being featured presentations by the fol- named the Employee of the a key player in HR’s commit- lowing departments: Year for Fleet Management. ment to providing professional Safety Program Manager Tommy has been with our de- and helpful service to our em- Wayne Jones addressed Brief partment since 2002 and is an ployees and to the Parish. Accident Review and Work Zone integral part of our team. Safety Continuing Education Debbie Hebert, representing Tommy stays on top of the Director Peggy Barton the Department of of Risk Man- accounts for Fleet, manages completed Continuing Legal agement covered Risk Manage- spending, and oversees the fuel Education classes Dealing ment forms that is distributed throughout with Crazy in the Conference Security’s Gary Hargroder and the Parish. Without Tommy Room: Handling Family Mem- Revy Antoine from General Ser- “Mr. Fleet” Austin, our depart- bers in a Professional Manner vices focused on Security and Se- ment would not run as smoothly on April 10th and Lawyers and efficiently as it does. Con- Ethics in the Danger Zone on gratulations, Tommy! April 16.

HR Manager Nancy Rodri- guez completed two webinars, SHRM’s (Society for Human Resource Management) Training for Compliance and HR Certifi- cation Institute’s Changing De- mands: HR’s Critical Role in the Organization of the Future.

Peggy, Nicole, Nancy, and HR Manager Fran Robichaux attended the May 15 NOLA – SHRM luncheon which included HR’s Employee of the Year, Assistant a presentation: Workplace Vio- Director Nicole Thompson, is congratulat- Fleet Management’s Employee of the lence: Active Shooter Prevention ed by President Mike Yenni Year Tommy Austin by Oliver Zakrzewski.

Page 4 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 curity forms Purchasing The Water Department’s Jesse By Rosenfeld spoke about the Geo- Mark Buttery tab system. Sami Khalil of Environmen- On May 6, the Purchasing tal Quality talked about Storm Department started moving back Water Drainage. into Suite 4400. It has been a Jolie Orgeron and Veronica challenging four and a half Cheshire of Animal Shelter dis- months, but we made it work. cussed animal attacks and animal After a week of moving and un- bites packing, we have started settling United Health Care’s Jenna back into our own space. We had Keating addressed the many to work out some minor glitches, programs and services offered but we are getting back on track. through Jeff Fitness. The Purchasing Department would like to give a HUGE Working together, representa- Thank You to Director Joe Va- Sidney Duffy with Purchasing Director tives from many different depart- liente and all of the employees Renny Simno ments shared their expertise and at the EOC building for allowing insights with our supervisors. us to take up residency in the son Parish 16 years ago in the Pur- Safety will continue this coordi- Command Center. We must also chasing Department. She is a true nated effort to assist supervisors in recognize the fantastic efforts of asset to the Parish. Congratula- acquiring and using this important Jamie Gaudet and Michael tions to all of the employees who information they need to do their Cooley, who got us connected earned this recognition. jobs well. in record time and kept us running at both locations. Great job, Safety Office Peggy Branan guys! Thank you. attended a May 16 meeting of the And now, we would like to Delta Safety Society. During the congratulate our own Buyer II meeting, Meteorologist Shelby Sidney Duffy for being the Latino from WVUE addressed the Purchasing Department’s Em- Hurricane Forecast for the 2019 ployee of the year for 2018- Season. 2019. Sidney started with Jeffer-

Shanna Folse We would also like to congratulate our newest Buyer II Shanna Folse. Shanna accepted this promotion the week we moved back to our offices. Shanna was a Typ- ist III for General Services when she accepted the promotion to Buyer I in September 2015. She started with the Parish in 2001. She will make a great Buyer II.

NEW HIRE! Everyone give a big welcome to our new Buyer I The staff of Human Resource Management gathers around Assistant Director Brenda Bellows. Brenda started Nicole Thompson (seated center) to celebrate her Employee of the Year award her training May 14, 2019. Wel- come aboard!

Page 5 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Workforce Connection Condolences Code Enforcement By JWC extends our deepest By Carolyn G. Haynes sympathy to East Bank Super- Mary Benitez visor, Ms. Mary McMiller, on JWC is proud to announce our the passing of her mother, Ms. Special Recognition: Employee of the Year, Operations Felice McMiller, at the age of Congratulations to Typist Clerk III Billie Bates, Inspection Manager Eurydice Bush- 102. You have our heartfelt sympathy, Ms. Mary, and we and Code Enforcement’s employ- Harrison. Ms. Bush-Harrison’s celebrate your mother’s life ee of the year. Billie works in the Workforce Development experi- with you and your family! Plumbing Section on the West ence with transitioning service Bank and is a tremendous asset to members and formerly incarcer- Welcome New Employee the department. ated individuals has been an asset Jefferson Workforce Con- to our department. She was re- nection wishes a warm wel- cently interviewed on WWL-TV, come to Ms. Nhi Bui, Ac- Channel 4, “Great Day Louisiana” countant II, West Bank Office. Ms. Bui has over two years of about our Summer Youth Em- experience as an Accountant ployment Program. with Jefferson Parish, and her Ms. Bush-Harrison is instru- accounting work experience is mental in our day-to-day opera- a great asset to us at Work- tion and is always willing to help force Connection. both clients and staff. Ms. Bush- Code’s Employee of the Year Billie Harrison embraces the JWC com- Service Pin Recipient Bates with President Yenni Our congratulations to Ms. mitment to serve and assist Welcome: Lisa Harrington-Cochrane, jobseekers and businesses in Code Enforcement would like Accountant III, for receiving to welcome the following new building a strong, skilled work- her five-year Service Pin on employees: force in Jefferson Parish. Congrat- May 3, 2019. Permit Tech, Raymond Allen – ulations, Eurydice! East Bank Office Account Clerk II, Dedria Bailey – East Bank Office Building Inspector, Perry Man- ning – West Bank Office

Promotions: Congratulations to Mindy Punch for her promotion to Typist Clerk III and transfer to the East Bank Plumbing Section.

Employment Exploration students from President Yenni congratulates Workforce Connection’s Employee of the Riverdale present Carmelite Flugence with a Certificate of Appreciation for Year Eurydice Bush-Harrison her supervision and guidance

Page 6 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Transit Congratulations, thanks, and By best wishes, Carnell Collier. Car- Patricia Lyons nell has been promoted to Inspec- tor III in the Water Department. New Buses! JeT received eleven new Gillig Sending Special Congratula- buses recently to replace some tions to Matthew Zeringue and his very old buses in the fleet. Direc- wife Alison, on the birth of their tor Sharon Leader, Contract Moni- daughter, Kate Elizabeth, born tor Ben Francois, along with the April 8, 2019. Congratulations! general manager and maintenance director for JeT went to the Gillig Congratulations to Engineer- plant in Livermore, CA. Over ing’s Employee of the year 2019 7,000 parts were used to build Don Barrilleaux. Way to Go each bus, and the 600,000 sq. ft. Don! facility with almost 1000 workers Transit Director Sharon Leader was quite impressive. These new addresses the clergy lunch as Stay Cool out there! buses will be nicer for our riders President Yenni listens as well as much less problematic to maintain. Engineering By Director Sharon Leader was Helen Sharpe McGee asked to speak at a clergy luncheon on April 30 to update them on Hello, Summer! Hot! Hot! Hot! the outcome of the transit strategic plan. Engineering would like to welcome aboard New Employ- JeT was pleased to present ees Frank Fontana, Ware- Secretary Patricia Lyons as our house, and Vincent Acosta, employee of the year. She was Engineering Inspector, West- bank. presented with her plaque at the Engineering’s Employee of the Year Parish Council meeting on May 8. Engineering also welcomes Don Barrilleaux (center) Congratulations, Patricia! Patricia back Derek Francis. And wel- with Director Mark Drewes and is retiring later this year after 13 come to Engineering Devin SCADA System Manager Garrick Huhner years with the Jefferson Parish Merz by way of Drainage; he Department of Transit. will be working in SCADA.

Baby Kate Zeringue Patricia Lyons is congratulated by President Yenni

Page 7 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Drainage By Sheena Quinn

Welcome & Congratulations! As summer begins, the Drain- age continues to expand with the addition of new employees: Jas- mine Brown, Laborer-Unskilled; Jamie Byars, Typist Clerk III; and Parker Enright, College In- tern, are our newest faces joining the Department of Drainage.

Also, we are very pleased to announce several promotions: Anthony Nuccio has been pro- Drainage Employee of the Year Kerry Allen moted from Laborer-Unskilled to with Superintendent Dominick Ditcharo Laborer Semi-Skilled with East Bank Pump Stations. Fond Farewells Water Albert Palestina III has been While new faces were being By promoted from Pump Station Op- introduced to our Drainage fami- Alicia Washington erator I to Pump Station Operator ly, we said good-bye to one of II with EB Pump Stations. our own after 15 years: Leonie Team Water would like to wel- Sterling Champagne Jr. from Mosley, Typist Clerk III for come new employees, Gary Kelly Pump Station Operator I to Pump our Pump Station office. We (Pump Equipment Mechanic), Station Operator II with EB Pump appreciate everything that she Mindy Hotard ( Utility Billing Stations. has done for the Department and Clerk I ), Ona Reed ( Service Inspec- Mark Tibo II from College In- wish her all the best at the begin- tor I), Kenneth Elliot (Laborer), Sy- tern to Engineer-in-Training with ning of her retirement! erra Foster (Service Inspector I), Drainage Administration. and Octavis Kimble (Service Inspec- Casandra Bridgewater from La- As Hurricane Season approach- tor II ). borer-Unskilled to Laborer Semi- es, be sure to pay special atten- Congratulations to LaShawn Skilled with EB Drainage. tion to your catch basins and Camese, new Project Coordinator, Glen Clay, Nikiya Fleming, and make sure they are clear of any and Arnell Alexander on her promo- Minh Dang were promoted debris. The smallest things will tion to Service Inspector III. Wel- from Laborer-Unskilled to Semi- make the biggest impact! come Carnell Collier from Engineer- Skilled with WB Drainage. ing, new Engineering Inspector III.

Congratulations, everyone!

Great Accomplishments During the Council meeting on May 8, the Employee of the Year was recognized for the Depart- ment of Drainage. We would like to announce that this high honor was presented to Kerry Lee Allen, a West Bank Drainage employee since 2017. Kerry, a Truck Driver II, has shown exemplary dedication to all that he does. He goes above and beyond the call of duty, and we’re so lucky to have him Water Employee of the Year Samuel Lewis III with General Superintendent part of our team. Congrats, Kerry! Tyrell Chatman Sr., Maintenance Superintendent II Mario Kennedy Sr., and Director Thomas West.

Page 8 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019

Parks & Recreation outlets for an array of food ser- By vice equipment with a window Antoinette Holmes facing the softball field. The project includes ADA accessible LaSalle Improvements men’s and women’s restrooms LaSalle Park had a grand re- with baby-changing stations. opening once the field turf project The second floor is the Press was complete. The LaSalle Park Box with windows facing the Turf project included improve- field. ments to four baseball/softball fields. An artificial turf with a Service Pins fiber that is more resistant to wear Our congratulations to Recre- was installed in the infield of each ation Center Supervisor Assis- of the ball fields. The fields now tant Philip Dickey Jr, move excess water quickly and Groundskeeper Steven Federico efficiently from the field of play. and Recreation Center Supervi- Additional improvements to the sor Assistant Anthony Perrilliat complex included new foul ball on 15 years of service. poles, trash cans with lids, baby changing stations, fencing up- Congratulations to Recreation grades, and parking lot restriping. Special Program Supervisor Da- The Press Box also received up- vid Abadie Jr, Recreation Ar- The new Mike Miley grades, which included new floor- ea Coordinator Desiree Acosta, ing, counter tops, windows, and Recreation Special Program Su- concession/pressbox furniture pervisor Dawn Lauland, Admin- istrative Management Specialist Area Coordinator Cassie L Cal- Miley Upgrade Chris Villarrubia, Recreation lais, Recreation Center Supervi- The Mike Miley girls’ softball Center Supervisor Jeb Klink and sor Assistant Brad Guidroz Jr, field has a new Concession Stand Park Ranger Billy Brassette on Recreation Center Supervisor As- and Pressbox. The Mike Miley 10 years of service. sistant Judge Huhner, Recreation Concession/Pressbox project - a Center Supervisor Assistant Ste- new two-story building consisting Congratulations To Equip- phen Keller , Recreation Center of Concession Stand, Restrooms ment Operator III Kevin Walker, Supervisor Assistant Jerry Winn and Press Box for the Girls’ soft- Recreation Special Program Su- and Recreation Center Supervisor ball field at Mike Miley Play- pervisor Timothy Juhas, Recrea- Assistant Carl Johnson on 5 years ground. The first floor is the con- tion Special Program Supervisor of service. cession area with counters and Rebecca Bourgeois, Recreation

The new LaSalle infield turf project

Page 9 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Library Kudos to Librarian II John By Gallagher on his position as Irene Lunkin Branch Manager of the Lafitte Library. Acknowledgments New to the JPL Stacks Congratulations to Library The Library welcomed new Building Maintenance Supervisor employees: IT Training Special- Kenneth Jamison, who was se- ist II Nordette Adams, WBR lected as the 2019 Library Em- Reference Librarian II Charles ployee of the Year. Kenneth came Gaudin, and Library Associates to work with the Library Depart- Meghan Methe and Emma ment in 2014. The Library Direc- Watson. tor noted he has assisted greatly Charles Gaudin with the many renovations that the Library has been involved in. Thomas Barbier with 16 years, Harahan Library Associate Mary Kenneth’s expertise in roofing Ellen Kenyon with six years, has helped the Library Depart- and Lakeshore Library Associate ment notify the contractor of what Elizabeth Schwartz with twelve needed to be changed before a years. Trailing behind that group change order occurred which is River Ridge Librarian I/Sr. As- would cost the library additional sociate Charlene Heikamp. funding. Additionally, it is not on- Charlene will be retiring from ly that he is the go-to person with the Library on June 10 with 20 his staff on Saturdays, but it is his years of service. All of my inter- willingness to make the library actions with Charlene regarding facilities better and his support to patron concerns and questions about the branch have always others in that endeavor. Kenneth Nordette Adams is a positive person, always dedi- been great. Congratulations, Char- cated to assist the staff in their Retirements lene, and I wish you a happy re- needs. Congratulations to you, Recent retirees include Build- tirement! Kenneth! ing Maintenance Supervisor

Emma Watson Support from our Friends Group

Last month President Diane Building Maintenance Supervisor Kenneth Jamison receiving the Library Schleifstein of the Friends of Jef- Employee of the Year Award from President Yenni ferson Public Library presented the Library with an $100,000 do-

Page 10 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 nation. Library Director Marylyn es! From June 1 - July 31, all Sewerage Haddican thanked the Friends ages are invited to Read 5 and By for the Donation which will be Win a Prize by participating in Venice Cooper used for equipment and/or materi- the SRP. Children (ages birth - als to enhance the Library’s quali- 5th Grade) will earn a Universe EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR ty of service to the public. of Stories sports bag, a free meal Congratulations to Yvette Rus- from Raising Cane’s, a free pass so, Department of Sewerage for the Spray Park at Lafreniere 2019 Employee of the Year. Park, a bumper sticker, and entry Yvette is an Administrative Assis- into a grand prize raffle for a tant in our Administration Office. $100 Amazon Gift Card. She has been employed with the Parish since June 2008, 11 years. Teens (grades 6-12) will earn a Universe of Stories t-shirt, a bumper sticker, entry into a weekly prize raffle, and entry into a grand prize raffle for a $100 Amazon Gift Card. Adults will earn a ticket for a FREE BOOK at the Friends of the Li- brary Book Sale (redeemable in the fall of 2019 or spring 2020) and a bumper sticker.

Children and Teens will also have the opportunity to earn ad- New WBR Library Associate Sewerage Employee of the Year ditional prizes and raffle chances Yvette Russo with Director Brett Todd Meghan Methe by completing virtual activity badges within the program. PROMOTIONS This Summer at JPL Throughout the summer, there Congratulations to the following will be fun and free programs employees on their recent promo- The Jefferson Parish Library’s and performances to attend at all tions: 2019 Summer Reading Program, library branches. For more in- Kendell A. Adams – Trades “A Universe of Stories,” will be formation, please go to Helper, Marrero Plant full of fun for people of all ag- srp.jplibrary.net. Jacobey Cook – Operator, Marre- ro Plant Christopher Fernandez – Profes- sional Engineer III, Administra- tion Van Hughes – Shop Carpenter, Westbank Lift Stations Quincy Monette – Foreman, Eastbank Lines Baldwin Thompson – Laborer Semi-Skilled, Eastbank Lines

SERVICE PIN AWARDS Congratulations to the following employees who recently received their Service Pin Awards: 10 YEARS: Harold Williams, Thomas Griffin 5 YEARS: Charles Clark, Library Director Marylyn Haddican (right) accepts $100,000 donation from the Christopher Mitchell, Devence President of the Friends of the Jefferson Public Library Diane Schleifstein Hampton, Eugene Hill, and Mi- chael McBride

Page 11 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Emergency Management By Ava Bougere

As we all know, hurricane season begins on June 1, 2019 and ends on November 30, 2019. The 2019 hurricane names are as fol- lows: Andrea, Barry, Chantal, Dorian, Erin, Fernand, Gabrielle, Humberto, Imelda, Jerry, Karen, Lorenzo, Melissa, Nestor, Olga, Pablo, Rebekah, Sebastien, Tanya, Van and Wendy.

Congratulations to Executive Assistant Precious Nelson, our Brett Todd congratulates Harold Williams and Thomas Griffin 2018-2019 employee of the year award. Precious always goes above and beyond the call of duty; RETIREMENTS WELCOME she is well deserving to be Congratulations to the following Welcome to the following newly acknowledged for her dedication. employees on their recent retire- hired employees: ments: Keenan Ivan Bolden – Inspec- Wayne Breaux retired from tor, Westbank Lift Stations Westbank Lift Stations on January Christopher Craig – Laborer, 11 with over 10 years of service. Eastbank Lines Tony Guidry – Operator, Mar- Bruce Tuckson retired from rero Plant Eastbank Lift Stations on June 7 Tony Henderson – Laborer, with over 10 years of service. Westbank Lines Ronald Williams retired from Charles Howard – Trades Eastbank Lines in February with Helper, Eastbank Lift Stations over 34 years of service. Clarence Smith – Laborer, Eastbank Lines Precious Nelson with Emergency Management Director Joe Valiente

Emergency Management staff participated in the National Hurri- cane Conference held in New Or- leans. Kevin Woods attended a week-long Emergency Manage- ment Standard Training in Balti- more in April.

The Emergency Management Department held its annual public assisted evacuation exercise at Delgado’s Metairie campus on May 22, 2019. This exercise helps Emergency Management become better prepared for a real life scenario if ever a mandatory evacuation is needed for Jefferson Sewerage Director Todd with retiree Ronald Williams Parish.

Page 12 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Floodplain Management of Floodplain Management and By Hazard Mitigation encourages Maggie Olivier Talley you to be Storm Ready! June 1 marks the start of hurricane sea- Jefferson Parish recently be- son. Be smart and be prepared came the first community in the from the start! Don’t wait until State of Louisiana to earn a Class a storm is forming in the 5 rating through the CRS Gulf. Make a plan with your (Community Rating System) pro- family. Compile emergency gram. This means that flood insur- supplies you may need in the ance policy holders that are in event of an evacuation, store flood zone AE will now see a 25% documents in a water tight con- discount on their flood insurance tainer, refresh yourself with as of May 1, 2019. We were also evacuation routes, and be sure to awarded Outstanding Community sign up for JP News alerts to for 2019 from the Louisiana receive the latest information Floodplain Management Associa- from Parish officials. Also, be tion. (award photo here). sure to check in with senior

neighbors to make sure they are Floodplain Management Director With Hurricane Season right prepared and have an emergen- around the corner, the Department Maggie Talley with the Outstanding cy action plan. Community Award

Page 13 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Streets By Kenya Johnson

Summer is here, and it re- minds us that we all should take a much needed vacation where we can unwind, relax, and have a good time.

Welcome

All of us at the Streets De- partment extend a big welcome to our new employees, who are Semi-Skilled Laborers for the Streets Department: Jessie Brown and Terrell Boyd. We hope you both enjoy working with the Streets Department and will be with us for many years to come. Streets employees with satisfied customers

Employee of the Year their work and attitude. Their Condolences Our sincere congratulations patience and smiles on their Our condolences and deepest to the Streets Department Su- faces made her day even bet- sympathy goes to the family and perintendent I James Crockett ter. Great job you guys. Keep friends of Gregory Williams, who for becoming our Employee of up the good work. was an employee for 31 years at the Year. James showed tre- Jefferson Parish Streets Depart- mendous dedication, hard work, Promotions ment as a Road Maintenance and is truly deserving of this Foreman. He was laid to rest on award. Congratulations to Kimber- April 16, 2019. He will be missed ly Johnson, who was pro- dearly. We’re very sorry for your Employee of the Month moted from a Title Clerk II to loss and our prayers and thoughts The Westbank Streets the Title Clerk III position are with his family. Maintenance department would with PMZ. We would like to like to recognize two employees wish her good luck in her new for their outstanding work. For position. the month of April, congratulations go out to Johnathan Wash- Service Pins ington; and for the month of May, congratulations to Milton Congratulations to the fol- Kelley. owing employees who have received service pins for their The Streets Department years of service with the Par- would also like to recognize ish. The following dedicated two other employees who were employees received service just doing their job. Westbank pins for 5 years: Freddie D. Street Maintenance Operator IV Gloston; 10 year s: Ryan Michael McGowan and La- Flach, Keon K. Robinson, borer Norman Adams. Let’s just and Brock B. Nieto. We would say these two guys did a won- like to thank you for your hard derful job at a location and the work and dedication to the RIP Gregory Williams, resident was very pleased with Streets Department. a Streets employee for 31 years

Page 14 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Coastal Management By Seamus Riley

On May 7, Lauren Averill and Seamus Riley hosted a legisla- tive lunch at the state capitol to discuss the status of Jefferson’s coastal region and restoration ini- tiatives with state legislators, including Senator Conrad Appel, Senator Gary Smith, Representa- tive Robert Billiot, Representative Chris Leopold, and Representative Jayd Hill demonstrates Joseph Marino. The Southeast the importance of coastal wetlands Louisiana Flood Protection Au- Misty Camardelle prepares a public thority East and West Executive education demonstration Directors, Derek Boese - east, and General Services John Monzon - west, provided ment session providing public By status updates on projects and pro- education demonstrations and Tessa St. Pierre grams currently underway. informational material to volunteers and visitors at the new ca- Employee of the Year Storm Sweep nal lighthouse on Lakeshore General Services would like On May 11, Lauren Averill, Drive. to congratulate Langdon Mickens Misty Camardelle, and Jayd for becoming Employee of the Hill participated in the 2019 Jason Smith’s hard work Year. Langdon is a great example Lake Pontchartrain Basin Founda- growing approximately 1,400 what a hard worker should be, in tion Storm Sweep. This annual Cypress trees is paying off. In under 5 years he has become in- event removes harmful trash and November, volunteers will help strumental to the department be- debris so that our catch basins can plant these trees in Lafitte to re- tween fixing the lights in any adequately collect runoff and fun- duce erosion and restore habitat. building at any time or making nel water out of our neighbor- Photo 1 – Cypress trees: A por- the time to mentor other employ- hoods. Coastal Management ta- tion of the Cypress trees that will ees. We would will all like to bled at the post-cleanup refresh- be planted by volunteers in No- thank you for your dedication. vember.

Langdon Mickens (right) with Michael Tilquit, whom Langdon has mentored Promotions We are happy to announce recent promotions of Eric Folse and Larry Webb. They have both been promoted to Stationary En- Coastal Management Director Lauren Averill gineer II. General Services is briefs legislators on coastal restoration projects proud of their hard work.

Page 15 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Planning By Nedra McKinney

EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR Congratulations to Mr. Shakeeb Shariff, who is the Planning Department’s Employee of the Year! Shakeeb is a Planner II in our Eastbank Current Plan- ning Division and is always willing to help out when called upon. Great job, Shakeeb, on a well- deserved honor!!! Planning’s Employee of the Year Shakeeb Shariff with Planner III Jay Hebert and Director Terri Wilkinson

University of New Orleans In- tern working on her Master’s Degree in Urban and Regional Planning. Amanda received her Master’s in December 2017 and is now a Planner II in our Long Range Division. Great to have you back Amanda!!! Amanda Ponti Katina transferred to the WELCOME Planning Department in May The Planning Department wel- 2019 from JeffCAP as a Typist Katina Webb comes Amanda Ponti and Katina Clerk II. She is a part of our cler- Webb. Amanda originally start- ical team as a Typist Clerk III We are glad to have you as part of ed with us in August of 2017 as a for our Long Range Division. our team, Katina!!!

Praise for Traffic Engineering

Councilwoman Jennifer Van Vrancken and President Yenni thank Traffic Engineering for their hard work during Mardi Gras 2019

Page 16 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Juvenile Services By Vicki Borja

EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR: Please join me in congratulat- ing Patrick Brammell, Mental Health Professional II, who was recently selected as the DJS Em- ployee of The Year!

NEW EMPLOYEES: We would like to welcome the following employees to our department, as well as Tammy Eur- JS welcomes back Probation Officer II Tammy Eursin sin, Probation Officer II, who returned in May. James Mitchell, Detention Of- Juvenile Detention Officer II tion Home Supervisor Assistant ficer Probation: Luis Bustamante, on his retirement. Lavoise Magee, Detention Of- Probation Officer II ficer Brishawna Silby, Detention PROMOTIONS: Home Supervisor, Assistant We offer our congratula- Darrnika Lewis, Probation Of- tions to Eric Grimes on his ficer promotion to Juvenile Deten- Amber Aragon, Administrative tion Officer II, and also to Management Specialist III Brittney Jackson for her promotion to Probation Of- ficer II. Thanks to all of you on a job well done! Darrnika Lewis DEPARTURES: Best of luck to Freeman BLOOD DRIVE: Wright, Detention Home Su- Juvenile Services took back the pervisor Assistant. Bloodhound Award, beating our goal of 20. We had 39 attempts RETIREMENT: and 29 successful donations. We would like to send our best Thanks to all who participated. wishes to Terence Dixon, Deten-

Brishawna Silby

EMPLOYEES OF THE MONTH: Juvenile Services would also like to congratulate the following employees for being Employees of the Month: April 2019 Detention: Brett Jackson, Juve- nile Detention Officer II Probation: Don Spells, Mainte- nance May 2019 James Mitchell and Lavoise Magee Detention: John Beauregard,

Page 17 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Environmental were presented to first, second, to the storm drainage system. The By and third place winners in the training explained how Best Man- Kathy Russo poster and essay categories; and agement Practices (BMPs) can be certificates of honorable mention implemented to achieve compli- Employee of the Year! were also awarded in each cate- ance with these regulations. Congratulations to Barbara gory at the awards banquet for Kollin, Secretary, on being cho- the winning students, their par- The Department of Environ- sen as Departmental Employee of ents, and their school’s teachers/ mental Affairs held an educational the Year. It has been a really busy principals. workshop on May 1, 2019, for year for the Secretary. Keep up area high school teachers about the good work. Winning posters/Essays are the wastewater treatment process. currently displayed at the East The program uses a scientific ap- Bank Regional Library, 4747 proach in an effort to increase West Napoleon Ave., Metairie awareness about water pollution and, on June 10, 2019, will move and its impact on the environment. to the Jefferson Parish West Teachers who attended the semi- Bank Regional Library, located nar reviewed the program to pro- at 2751 Manhattan Blvd., Har- vide a hands-on demonstration vey, where they will be on dis- with the Sewer Science equip- play through August 2, 2019. ment. Our Stormwater division was present to assist the teachers Concrete Training with planning and scheduling of On April 24, the Jefferson the Sewer Science program for Parish Stormwater Management their respective schools. This Team partnered with the Sewer- workshop was followed with a age and Water Board and the visit to our East Bank Treatment city of New Orleans to conduct a Plant. concrete training for the concrete and construction companies in Assisting Safety Training both parishes. They provided On May 6, Sami Khalil, Storm- Environmental Affairs’ information about federal, state, water Program Supervisor, partici- Employee of the Year Barbara Kollin and local regulations which pro- pated in the Supervisor Safety with Director Mike Lockwood hibit the discharge of pollutants Training in the workplace. Sami focused on how Good Housekeep- Welcome! Please welcome Environmental Affairs Solid Waste Division in- tern Rachel Denny, from the Tulane University School of Pub- lic Health. Rachel is working on her master’s degree, and under this internship she is learning hands-on about waste diversion and the other programs that Envi- ronmental Affairs manages and offers to the public.

Contest Winners The winners of the “Non-point Source Storm Water Pollution and Solutions” poster and essay contest were announced at the 19th Annual Storm Water Poster and Essay Awards Ceremony on April 5, 2019, at the Lafreniere Park Environmental Affairs staff at Poster/Essay Contest banquet Foundation Center. Trophies

Page 18 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 tition between Metairie, Baton Rouge, and the City of Lafayette. Federation Cleanest City Chair- man Jean Gilstrap presented the award to Councilwoman VanVrancken on May 17. The Cleanest City Contest is a litter prevention program sponsored by the Louisiana Garden Club Feder- ation, Inc. The judges focused on parts of Metairie Road, Veterans Memorial Blvd., Bonnabel Blvd., and the Bonnabel Boat Launch when considering Metairie for the honor. Areas of evaluation included approaches to the Parish limits; public and/or municipal buildings; parks, recreation facilities; business establishments; residential Urban Waters workshop attendees including Councilwoman Lee-Sheng. areas; and community involve- ment.

Urban Waters Workshop ing and Pollution Prevention aides storm drain markers, and picking Jefferson Parish, in partnership in creating a safe working envi- up 15 trash bags in the commu- with The Greater New Orleans ronment for our employees. nity surrounding the school in Foundation, presented the Urban Marrero. Water Series, Technical Master Metairie Storm Sweep Classes consisting of a series of Our Stormwater Division, Residents were very happy lectures and workshops which aim along with Floodplain Manage- for the activity in their neighbor- to deepen the technical knowledge ment, participated in the first Lake hood. Functions like this help of private and public sector pro- Pontchartrain Basin Foundation’s involve the public in keeping our fessionals and improve their abil- Storm Sweep in Metairie on Sat- streets and storm drainage sys- ity to design, install, and maintain urday May 11, 2019. Our em- tem clean, keeping trash and oth- green infrastructure. The whole- ployees worked alongside other er pollutants from negatively day workshop on April 22nd enti- volunteers picking up trash around impacting our water quality es- tled “Plants + Water: Strategies the lake and marking storm drains pecially this time of the year. for Improving Water Quality” dis- with our bilingual educational cussed how plants are widely used markers. Our staff also participat- in green infrastructure projects in ed in the Hurricane Readiness Cleanest City Contest! New Orleans. Fair, where we displayed an edu- The Department of Environ- cational booth along with other mental Affairs was recently noti- The understanding of how to governmental and nongovernmen- fied that the Metairie area came use plants to improve water quali- tal entities to help our community in first in Category J of this ty in these systems is developing learn how to be better prepared for year's Louisiana Garden Club at a fast pace nationwide. Guest the upcoming hurricane season. Federation (LGCF) State Clean- speakers from Maryland, with tre- est City Contest. Category J rep- mendous experience in the Chesa- Marrero Community Outreach resents communities with a pop- peake Bay area, discussed their On May 14, Our Stormwater ulation of over 100,000 people. lessons learned with Wes staff, as part of their educational This award was made possible, Michaels, a landscape architect and community outreach program, in part, by the collaborative ef- practicing in New Orleans, who participated with approximately a forts of the Departments of Envi- translated these lessons to the lo- hundred Marrero Middle School ronmental Affairs, Streets, Park- cal landscape. The discussion fo- students, along with our Flood- ways, and Council District 5. cused on the best techniques for plain Management staff, in plac- using plants to achieve water qual- ing ~ 100 bilingual educational This was a very close compe- ity goals, and how these tech-

Page 19 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 niques can be adapted to our local parades, resulting in the collec- terials. The story of the event can climate and culture. This master tion of 10,267 lbs or 5.13 only be told visually, as four 18- class is intended for landscape, tons. Overall, Jefferson Parish wheeler tractor trailers filled with planning, design professionals, collected 18,603 lbs or 9.3 tons household hazardous materials architects, and parish and city of beads! We hope to continue were used to haul waste from the staff. this effort next year, and thank event. The event was sponsored the Library, Lafreniere Park, and by Keep Jefferson Parish Beauti- Mardi Gras Bead Recycling General Services for facilitating ful as part of the Parish’s partici- During February-April of this and participating. pation in the Great American year, the Department of Environ- Clean-Up, a nationwide event re- mental Affairs Solid Waste Divi- Hazardous Waste Collection quired of all Keep America Beau- sion offered a Mardi Gras bead A record number of cars tiful Affiliates. recycling program in partnership pulled through the parking lot of with ArcNola. Collection sites the Joseph S. Yenni Building, Other partners include the Jef- were offered at Lafreniere Park, site of our Annual Spring House- ferson Parish Sheriff’s Office; the East Bank Regional Library, West hold Hazardous Waste Collec- Capital Area Corporate Recycling Bank Regional Library, Yenni tion event on Saturday, May 18. Council (CACRC); American Re- Building, and GGB. This resulted From 2018 to 2019, we experi- covery, LLC; Oil Mop, LLC; the in the collection of 8,336 lbs or enced at 93% increase (263 cars Jefferson Parish Sewerage Depart- 4.17 tons of beads and carnival in 2018 and 508 cars in 2019) of ment; and the Department of Gen- throws diverted from our landfill, Jefferson Parish residents who eral Services. We want to make storm drains, and ultimately, our utilized this event. This event is sure that our residents are given receiving waters. important to the Parish because the opportunity to get common it diverts waste from our landfill, household hazardous products out Additionally, this collection storm drains, and ultimately our of their garages and dispose of played in concert with Council- receiving waters. them appropriately. Some of the woman Jennifer VanVrancken’s materials collected will be recy- sponsored ordinance, which al- Materials collected included cled, the rest will be shipped to lowed ArcNola to drive a “throw- paint, pesticides, solvents, mer- special disposal facilities for pro- back” float in our Jefferson Parish cury, electronics, and other ma- cessing.

A small fraction of the waste collected at Household Hazardous Materials Day

Page 20 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019

Tech News The Year of 10 Tip Of The Day

With -Buddy B ======...Windows 10 that is. Kronos tip from An Vu (This one is for Payroll clerks and Time is on your side…. Windows 10 is here, and many of anyone approving time off) us are already experiencing the new Welcome to this layout of this operating system. Did you know that you can check edition of the EIS News page! for outstanding Time Off Requests Here, I’ll let you know about (TOR) that are in Requested status? EIS, GIS, and IT happenings, From your Genie screen, take plus info in the JP Tech F6=My Views>Time Off Manager, world. and look at the value in column TOR Needs Action. What’s happening? Congratulations to An Vu! The name of the primary TOR Your IT team has been hard at approver is also displayed. This is An is this year’s EIS Em- especially useful when closing out a ployee of the Year! work making the transition as smooth as possible for you. pay period.

Thank you, An, for making To aid you in learning the new it easier for the Payroll operating system, we have added a Department to ensure that all couple of quick start guides to the 3,439 of us get an accurate Intranet to help you adjust to your paycheck every two weeks new or upgraded PC. Time is on your side…. and for getting us all up and Around 1977 Kronos started with a running on Kronos! From the Intranet home page go simple idea from Mark S. Ain: there to “Departmental Pages” and click had to be an easier way to record on “MIS”. There you find employee time transactions. An transitioned 2,465 of us to the Kronos system. Our “Windows 10 Guides” and below that are two links; “Desktop Quick With a team of engineers and a Payroll Systems Administra- hunger for success, his idea came to tor is a very impressive one- Start” and “Surface Pro Quick Start”. life with the first patented micro- woman show. processor-based time clock. The We hope you find these PDF files time clock automatically recorded, helpful. totaled, and reported employee Our Human Resource hours, transforming an industry Management Department also has that had not seen innovation in training available via the Intranet. many years. From the home page “Departmental Pages” below So, many moons later, here we are “Human Resource Management” not having to manually fill out time click on “Training”. There you’ll sheets, leave request forms, or try find the available classes listed. to remember when we worked. Additional resources to upgrade your computer skills are available at Time, at least, Kronos time, is now your nearest Jefferson Parish library on your side; making time-keeping branch. much easier. Jeb, An, and Maria

Page 21 Jefferson Parish Employee Newsletter June 2019 Retirements

Terence Dixon Nancy Sanders Daniel Barrilleaux Juvenile Services Code Enforcement Water 32 years 31 years 29 years

Dennis Tucker Betty Harris Jill Relick Code Enforcement JeffCAP General Services 22 years 22 years 19 years

Thomas Barbier Nick DiGerolamo Dorothy Millet Library Fleet Management Accounting 16 years 14 years 11 years

Employees Of The Year

Departmental Employees of the Year gather in the East Bank Council Chambers, May 8, 2019.

Page 22