Louisiana Inspired

Volunteer opportunities for Acadiana, Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport/Bossier

11 hrs ago

Louisiana Inspired highlights volunteer opportunities across south Louisiana and the Shreveport/Bossier City area. If your organization has specific volunteer opportunities, email us at lainsp…

Be a beginner: Long Story Short by Jan Risher

BY JAN RISHER | Staff writer
12 hrs ago

I grew up in a small, rural town in Mississippi that didn't offer a lot of fancy lessons or organizations for kids.

U.S. Latinas embrace spiritual practices outside traditional religion

BY ALEJA HERTZLER-MCCAIN | Contributing writer
12 hrs ago

(RNS) — Alicia Contreras has held sound healing sessions in the Arizona desert, in green and grassy parks, amid the stained glass of a church sanctuary and in a coffee shop. Everywhere she hol…

How one New Orleans art program is building up, inspiring city's incarcerated youths

By JONI HESS | Staff writer
Updated Sep 21, 2024

The news of a 17-year-old girl shot dead in broad daylight fueled the inspiration behind a Juvenile Justice Intervention Center mural.

Watch live: Join the Louisiana Inspired Book Club discussion with author and panelists

BY JOY HOLDEN | Staff writer
Sep 18, 2024

The Louisiana Inspired Book Club virtual discussion of "I Never Thought of It That Way" with the author Mónica Guzmán and selected Louisiana panelists is set for 12:15 p.m. Sept. 18. The book …

In Baton Rouge, neighborly home visits prevent homelessness and change lives

BY JOY HOLDEN | Staff writer
Sep 17, 2024

In a practical and personal effort to prevent homelessness, Society of St. Vincent de Paul volunteers in Baton Rouge provide direct assistance to those in critical need through home visits.

Louisiana's 6 Collegiate Recovery Programs reach out to students seeking way out of addiction

BY JUDY BERGERON | Staff writer
Updated Sep 16, 2024

Their T-shirts read "Green, Gold and Sober."

Building bridges across the divide: Louisiana Inspired Book Club discussion

BY JOY HOLDEN | Staff writer
Sep 16, 2024

The Louisiana Inspired Book Club’s virtual statewide discussion is approaching quickly. Mónica Guzmán will be discussing her book, "I Never Thought of it That Way: How to Have Fearlessly Curio…

Resist the hollow allure of busy: Jan Risher's Long Story Short

BY JAN RISHER | Staff writer
Sep 15, 2024

When friends said they were traveling out of town and needed someone to come by and "check on their pool" occasionally, I was quick to volunteer. I love being in the water. I love to swim. I h…

Volunteer opportunities for Acadiana, Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport/Bossier

Sep 15, 2024

Louisiana Inspired highlights volunteer opportunities across south Louisiana and the Shreveport/Bossier City area. If your organization has specific volunteer opportunities, email us at lainsp…

The Camino, a Catholic pilgrimage, increasingly draws the spiritual but not religious

BY ELLIE DAVIS | Contributing writer
Sep 15, 2024

In her early 30s, Rachael Sanborn found herself in a bad relationship and dreaming of an escape to the Camino de Santiago in Spain, a pilgrimage her father had undertaken that had profoundly c…

Two Louisiana state parks will soon have new special needs playgrounds. More could be on the way.

BY BOB WARREN | Staff writer
Updated Sep 13, 2024

Two state parks on the north shore of Lake Pontchartrain will soon have new playgrounds that will open a range of play activities for children with disabilities.

Author Monica Guzmán sees hope in easing polarization and changing the world

BY JAN RISHER | Staff writer
Updated Sep 20, 2024

The third quarter's Louisiana Inspired Book Club’s selection, "I Never Thought of It That Way" by Monica Guzmán, bridges the divide between polarized groups through curious questioning and lis…

211 assists Louisianans in times of crisis. See what services they provide, where.

By MARGARET DELANEY | Staff writer
Sep 10, 2024

232-HELP is a Louisiana-based crisis and disaster hotline for Louisianans. It now serves as part of the 211 crisis network. People anywhere in Louisiana can dial 211 and be connected to resources.

Ode to the dial tone: An old Louisiana rotary phone prompts a trip down memory lane

BY JAN RISHER | Staff writer
Updated Sep 8, 2024

Almost accidentally, we have a new addition to our living room décor that has prompted much conversation among our friends.

What the dead teach us about life: A view from Islam’s last rites

BY ZEYNEB SAYILGAN | Contributing writer
Sep 8, 2024

(RNS) — I wash dead bodies in my free time. With 70 other Muslim women, I volunteer to perform the last Islamic rites, a collective obligation. Someone must fulfill this duty, otherwise, we wi…

Louisiana company using AI to improve employees' lives. It's changing international shipping.

BY SERENA PUANG | Staff writer
Sep 8, 2024

Residents of Louisiana are used to seeing ships on the Mississippi River. What they might not know is where the ships are going, what they’re doing, or the logistics behind how they will get t…

From football to cemetery maintenance, Gerrin Narcisse gets the volunteers moving in Lacombe

BY BOB WARREN | Staff writer
Sep 8, 2024

Gerrin Narcisse has a simple way of looking at service to his community.

Volunteer opportunities in Baton Rouge, Acadiana, New Orleans and Shreveport/Bossier

Sep 1, 2024

Louisiana Inspired highlights volunteer opportunities across south Louisiana and the Shreveport/Bossier City area. If your organization has specific volunteer opportunities, email us at lainsp…

Upcoming Alzheimer's Services Walk to Remember

Staff report
Sep 1, 2024

Alzheimer's Services is hosting its 30th annual fundraising event, Walk to Remember.

DoorDash delivers 100 million charity meals, partnering with religious, other nonprofits

BY ADELLE M. BANKS | Contributing writer
Sep 1, 2024

DoorDash is known for its food deliveries to homes across America.

A New Orleans teen starts food service for local Vietnamese elders to say 'thank you'

BY DESIREE STENNETT | Staff writer
Aug 30, 2024

The past two summers, Hoi Tran, of Algiers, has looked forward to receiving the noodles, oyster sauce and other Vietnamese pantry staples from the service that brings them to his door.

4 pieces of advice that this Louisiana high school coach wishes every parent knew

BY CHRISTOPHER KOVATCH | Contributing writer
Updated Aug 30, 2024

During Christopher Kovatch's career in education, he has served as a head coach or assistant coach in football, basketball, track, cross-country and baseball. He is the head cross-country coac…

Double-word score: Scrabble event promises fun, fundraising for Baton Rouge literacy group

BY DOUG GRAHAM | Staff writer
Aug 28, 2024

Editor's note: Due to Hurricane Francine, this event has been rescheduled for Thursday, Oct. 17, from 6:30 to 9 p.m.

Putting the community first: One librarian dedicates her career to helping others

BY SOPHIA BAILLY | Staff writer
Aug 26, 2024

Mary Stein has served East Baton Rouge Parish libraries for 40 years. As the assistant library director driven by her curious nature and her love for the community, Stein has dedicated her car…

Children learn life lessons through music at First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge

BY ROBIN MILLER | Staff writer
Aug 25, 2024

Children's choirs are about more than just music at First United Methodist Church in Baton Rouge.

Volunteer opportunities for Acadiana, Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport/Bossier

Aug 25, 2024

Louisiana Inspired highlights volunteer opportunities across south Louisiana. If your organization has specific volunteer opportunities, email us at lainspired@theadvocate.com with details on …

With world’s highest rates of religiously unaffiliated, East Asia remains spiritually vibrant

BY CHLOË-ARIZONA FODOR | Contributing writer
Aug 25, 2024

(RNS) — In East Asia, people are leaving their religion at rates that are among the highest in the world, according to a survey released in June by Pew Research Center. But while many East Asi…