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November 20, 1942 - November 13, 2024

ABBEVILLE – Funeral Services for Mr. Louis E. Cole will be held at 11:00AM on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, at Frioux-David Funeral Home of Abbeville with Reverend Ernest Williams III officiating. Interment will follow at St. Mary Congregational Church Cemetery.
Visitation will begin at 8:00AM until the time of Service on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, at Frioux-David Funeral Home of Abbeville.
A gifted artist, Louis was skilled in painting, carving, sculpture, and wood restoration, and his work often reflected his love for beauty and craftsmanship. His artistic endeavors brought joy to many, and his talent was only matched by his appreciation for the arts.
As a musician, he expressed his creativity through his trumpet and guitar, and he was a passionate lover of music—particularly R&B, soul and gospel. His voice, whether in song or conversation, was always a source of comfort to those who heard it.
In sports, he was a devoted fan, especially of baseball and football. He cheered for the LSU Tigers, the Chicago Bears, and the New Orleans Saints—always a "long-suffering Saints fan" who remained loyal through thick and thin.
A true family historian, Louis was deeply committed to learning about his ancestry and sharing those stories with others. His interest in literature, poetry, and crossword puzzles kept his mind sharp, and he often spent hours reading or immersed in a challenging puzzle, delighting in the joy of discovery.
A 1961 graduate of Herod High School, he was a veteran of the U.S. Army and attended the University of Southwestern Louisiana, as well as Gulf Area Vocational School. He served for years as a deacon at St. Mary Congregational Church and was also a member of Live Oak Lodge #193 Prince Hall Freemasonry.
He spent the majority of his career employed as a technician in the oil and gas industry, working for decades at Entex Natural Gas and then Texaco. He ultimately retired from the state’s Department of Transportation and Development. He was a man of great intellect, generosity, and humor. He had a remarkable ability to connect with others, and his warmth and wisdom will be missed by his family, friends, and all who had the privilege of knowing him. Louis leaves behind many family and friends who will carry his memory in their hearts forever. His life was a testament to the power of creativity, the importance of family, and hard work.
He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Ruby Meaux Cole; two daughters, Michelle Cole of LaPlace and Dr. Natasha “René” Cole-Leonard and her husband Dr. Joe Leonard of Washington DC; three grandchildren, Cole Leonard, Nicholas Ellis, and Riley Ellis; and two maternal aunts, Vivian Alsop of Los Angeles, CA and Shirley Briggs and her husband Leroy of Abbeville.
He is preceded in death by his parents, Ellard Leroy Cole and Alba Henderson Cole.
Serving as pallbearers will be Joe Leonard, Anthony Satcher, Spencer Nunez, Wayne Briggs, Barry Briggs, and Brandon Briggs.
Serving as honorary pallbearers will be Leroy Briggs, Joe Butcher, Sterling Johnson, and Arthur Williams III.
You may sign the guest register book and express condolences online at www.davidfuneralhome.org
Frioux-David Funeral Home of Abbeville at 2600 Charity Street (337) 893-3777 will be in charge of the arrangements.

August 19, 1935 - November 16, 2024

ERATH – Funeral services for Ruby Vice Granger, 89, will be held at 1:00 PM on Wednesday, November 20, 2024, at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church. Entombment will follow at Our Lady of Lourdes Mausoleum.
Visitation will be from 1:00 PM to 8:00 PM on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, at Frioux-David Funeral Home of Erath, with a Recitation of the Rosary at 6:00 PM. Visitation will resume Wednesday, November 20, 2024, at 8:00 AM until the time of the service.
Mrs. Ruby Granger and her late husband, Curley, were previous business owners of Granger’s Food Store. They also shared a passion for training and racing horses. Ruby was known for her love of family gatherings and card games with family and friends. A devout parishioner of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, she was also a member of the Catholic Daughters.
She is survived by two sons, Randy Granger and his wife Martine of Erath; Deryl Granger and his companion Nancy Suire of Erath; two daughters, Lydia Landry and her husband Tony of Youngsville; Melanie Rizzo and her husband Kevin of Houma; ten grandchildren; and eighteen great-grandchildren.
Mrs. Granger is preceded in death by her husband, Curley Granger, and her parents, Gustave and Lydia Romero Vice and siblings.
Pallbearers will include Joshua Granger, Gregory Granger, Jonathan Rizzo, Jude Patin, Garett Thibodeaux, and Jake Pierson.
The family would like to extend their heartfelt thanks to Woodbriar Southern Style Assisted Living and Memory Care, and Community Hospice of Lafayette, for the love and compassionate care they provided during their time of need.
You may sign the guest register book and express condolences online at www.davidfuneralhome.org
Frioux-David Funeral Home of Erath, 209 East Putnam Street, (337) 937-0405 will be handling the arrangements. 

Technology is making life easier for coaches in Vermilion Parish.
Abbeville, Vermilion Catholic, and Erath each have their own Turk Tank robot that’s currently being used to paint the numbers, lines, and even designs on the football fields at the three schools.
The robots use GPS to precisely paint surfaces for football, soccer, baseball, softball, and track. What used to take a six-to-eight-man crew four hours to complete is now done by the robot that’s controlled by a tablet with one person monitoring it. That’s what sold VC head coach Broc Prejean on the idea.
“We have a crew that shows up every Thursday to work on the field,” Prejean said. “Our dads are phenomenal. But now, rather than spending four hours painting lines, they’re doing other things to dress up the field. They can pay more attention to the grass, get signage up, and things of that nature.
“To come out here as a one-man operation and get the practice field ready for the week makes it super attractive. When people see it work for the first time or see the lines at games, it’s hard to believe that a piece of technology made something that consistent, especially on inconsistent ground.”
Abbeville Head Football Coach Jonathan Zenon got his over the summer out of necessity. Breaux Bridge, the place he coached before coming to Abbeville, has an artificial playing surface. He never had to paint a field before.
“Breaux Bridge has a turf field,” Zenon said. “When we got here and noticed it was a grass surface, none of us have ever painted a day in our lives. We did some research and found Turf Tank. It’s actually cheaper for us this way than to pay someone to paint the field.”
Erath head coach Eric LeBlanc just got his Turf Tank a couple of weeks ago. So far, they’ve used it to paint the field before their week 10 game against Abbeville and on their practice field. He’s excited about the precision and versatility of the device.
“It makes the straightest lines we’ve ever seen,” LeBlanc exclaimed. “Between football, boys’ and girls’ soccer, track, and band, we have five locations with nine different field layouts. We simply select the field we want to paint with the ability to customize anything we want. Last week, we had it paint the senior football numbers in the end zone.”
With the precision of the Turf Tank and the amount of time and manpower it saves, it must cost a fortune, right?
According to Prejean, a few years ago the answer was yes. When he initially inquired about a Turf Tank, it was priced upwards of $40,000. Since then, the price has come down and the company moved to a subscription service rather than one upfront cost. The price, depending on the model, is around $5,500.
“When I first inquired about it a couple of years ago, it was priced more for a school district,” Prejean said. “Now, it’s a subscription model where you pay a yearly price. There are three different categories. Each one comes with a certain number of services and a certain amount of paint. Price wise, it’s fairly comparable to what we spend on paint.”
For LeBlanc, the value is in the time it saves.
“The number of hours we were spending after practices and on weekends setting up fields, our programs are all coming out ahead there,” LeBlanc said. “Our coaches and directors can use their time for other duties. On top of that, we no longer have to buy thousands of dollars of aerosol paint cans every year.”
Prejean has gotten close to his Turf Tank over the last 10 weeks. So close, in fact, he’s given the robot a name.
“We refer to ours as Joe Junior. Mr. Joe Broussard has been the lead on getting our field prepped all these years, so it’s our way of honoring him.”
According to Zenon, Abbeville’s robot name is “Prime Time Cat.”
Erath hasn’t quite settled on one name just yet.
“We’re stuck between a couple of names right now,” LeBlanc said. “We’re leaning towards Paintin’ Manning.”
NFL quarterback Payton Manning actually played on Bobcat Field in 1991. He was a sophomore quarterback for Newman High School, and they played Erath in the playoffs.

Over the past few years, the Vermilion Parish public school system has been beefing up security across all its schools. They’ve implemented several safety measures, including having police officers (school safety officers) on campus, installing Ring Bell cameras at the front entrance, and metal detectors.
This month, the public school district is introducing additional safety measures at a few of its schools.
You will notice several of the schools have erected fencing and access/exit gates. Kaplan High School and Abbeville High School are installing sizeable black iron gates around their campuses.
These gates will run alongside and behind the campuses.
Assistant Superintendent Marc Turner explained the purpose of the gates and other safety features the school system is doing.
“The fences create controlled access and single point of entry,” Turner said. “They help protect students and faculty from external threats, such as unauthorized access by strangers or potential intruders. They also create a physical barrier that can deter unwanted visitors.”
There will be only one entrance for all schools. No visitor will able to access the school through side or rear entrances during school hours. All campuses have a single point of entry at the front of the school.
The plan is for all public schools in Vermilion Parish to have gates surrounding their campuses. Open campuses will be eliminated.
Turner explained that the gates have locking mechanisms that allow individuals to exit freely but prevent an unauthorized individual from entering from the outside.
The safety grant the school board received is paying for the fences and gates.
All campuses are adding a new safety feature called a “foyer.” This foyer is a small room located just inside the school’s front door. It restricts access to the campus and allows entry only to the main office.
For example,if a mother at AHS wants to check out her child, she will stand outside and use the Ring Doorbell to notify the front office someone is at the door. A staff member will respond and ask how they can assist. The mother will then explain that she is there to pick up Johnny and show her driver’s license to verify her identity as his mother. Instead of being allowed to enter the school, the mother will wait outside until Johnny arrives.
Turner explained that when a parent wants to meet with a teacher, they are allowed into the school but must wait in the foyer for an escort. The metal doors in the foyer remain locked and can only be unlocked by front office staff and administrator as needed. Turner also mentioned that, several foyers have already been constructed inside of our campuses and are awaiting the Fire Marshal approval.
“The school board has dedicated funds to create foyers at all of our schools that don’t already have them,” Turner explained. “The foyers are designed as secure vestibules that control access in our schools. Visitors will enter the foyer, check in, and pass through a secondary access point if needed. This process will reinforce control over who enters our schools.”
Another investment to secure the public school system the school board purchased is an app called Raptor Alert Management System.
Turner explained how the system works.
He said that the Raptor Alert Management System will streamline and accelerate emergency response by allowing users to initiate alerts directly to 911, share critical information, and account for all students and staff.
The system is easily accessible on employees’ mobile devices and school computers. Additionally, Raptor includes a visitor management feature that enhances school security by scanning visitors’ driver’s licenses, checking the information against a sex offender database and district ban lists, and alerting school administrators and local police if a match is identified.