The Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office is addressing misinformation circulating on social media following the incident that resulted in the death of former Sheriff William Earl Hilton.

Officials confirmed that the suspect’s bond has been set at $5.3 million, countering rumors that the individual had been released.

Authorities also stated that, due to the nature of the case and the victim’s association with the sheriff’s office, the suspect has been transferred to another facility. The move was described as standard procedure in similar cases.

The sheriff’s office expressed appreciation for the public’s support during what it called a difficult time and said additional information regarding arrangements will be released when available. Officials also asked the community to keep the Hilton family and members of the sheriff’s office in their thoughts.

The suspect that was taken into custody yesterday involved in the pursuit and alleged death of former Sheriff William Earl Hilton has been identified Ladonna Delrie, 53 of Pollock.

Delrie was booked into the Rapides Parish Detention Center on March 23, 2026 at 7:46 PM.  Delrie was booked for criminal damage to property, simple burglary, 1st degree murder and flight from an officer.

According to the initial information, Sheriff Hilton returned to his residence and observed the suspect exiting his residence.  When he attempted to contact the suspect, she ran him over causing severe life threatening injuries that he succumbed to later that day.

Sheriff’s Detectives say this is still a very active, ongoing investigation.  If anyone has any information on this investigation, please contact the RPSO Criminal Investigations Division at 318-473-6727, RPSO Main Office at 318-473-6700 or Crime Stoppers at 318-443-7867.

“ALL PERSONS ARE PRESUMED INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY IN A COURT OF LAW OR ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION.”

Arrestee:

By JIM BUTLER

Malcolm Larvadain has what could be termed a political trifecta on today’s Alexandria City Council agenda.

The District 1 councilman’s proposals include breaking bond with GAEDA, overhauling a storied baseball field and creating a juvenile crime prevention program.

Larvadain has on the consent agenda introduction of an ordinance to rescind the November 2024 one authorizing the mayor to enter intergovernmental agreement with the Greater Alexandria Economic Development Authority for “purposes of cooperative economic development,” general services and related agreement.

That ordinance came a month before the election of Larvadain and other council members seemingly shifted the council perspective on GAEDA.

Today’s proposal puts renewed focus on the status of the city-GAEDA relationship, including reimbursements to the city under an existing contract, one held in disdain by GAEDA’s counsel. 

Whether those payments are current is not known. Larvadain’s resolution doesn’t indicate whether it has been discussed with the administration.

A second proposal calls for redesign and reconstruction of Cheatham Park to include a new baseball field with locker rooms, weight rooms, dugouts, batting cage, along with a parking lot that includes tailgating lot for recreational vehicles.

(The Community Affairs, Services and Events Committee will get a Cheatham Park Pavillon update at its meeting preceding the full Council session.) The administration’s 2026-27 budget proposal to be introduced today includes $2 million for the field complex in Year 5 of the five-year capital outlay plan.

(The budget from Mayor Jacques Roy includes another call for the Council to take what he considers necessary fiscal action.)

Larvadain’s third proposal is an ordinance authorizing creation, with the School Board, of a program to address juvenile crime “that

includes but is not limited to building a community and fitness center” on board property adjacent to Alexandria Middle Magnet and Huddle Elementary schools.

Two other committee meetings are scheduled today.

The Architects & Engineers panel will hear proposals for West Alexandria Wastewater Capacity & Planning Study at 4 p.m. and the Utility Committee will review proposed extreme weather service cutoff prohibitions at 4:45.

By Rich Dupree

It wasn’t supposed to end like this. After fifty years of service in law enforcement, the life of retired Rapides Parish Sheriff William Earl Hilton would end in an apparent hit and run incident at his home in Hineston, Louisiana on Monday.

The outpouring of love, prayers and condolences for the family of Sheriff Hilton, speaks to the legacy of service the man known by many as William Earl, leaves behind not just to the citizens of Rapides Parish, but across the State of Louisiana.

When William Earl Hilton retired for the second time in 2020, he completed 50 years of service in the field of law enforcement. Hilton was first elected Sheriff in 1992. He would serve four terms before retiring the first time in 2008. However, four years later, he would answer the call to return to the most powerful position in Rapides Parish and was elected Sheriff in 2012 and 2015.

A graduate of the LSU Basic Law Enforcement Academy and LSU Law Enforcement Institute, Hilton began his service in law enforcement in Rapides after six years in the La. National Guard. Hilton was inducted into the Louisiana Justice Hall of Fame in 2006 – and in his last year as Sheriff, was inducted into the Louisiana Political Hall of Fame.

Upon announcing his second retirement in 2020 at the age of 74, Sheriff Hilton said he was retiring to spend more time with his family, especially his grandchildren.

Hilton said of all the accomplishments he achieved in law enforcement, he’d like his dedication to school safety to be the highlight of his legacy. “We were one of the first, or the first department in the State, to put an officer in every school. If I’m remembered for anything, that’s what I’d like to be remembered for,” said Hilton.

Rest in Peace Sheriff Hilton. The legacy of your tenure as Rapides Parish Sheriff will be marked by long-term service, successful resolution of complex cases, leadership in youth and community programs, and state-wide recognition that leaves a long shadow of your legacy in law enforcement. 

UPDATE

It is with such deep and profound sadness that we share the news that former Sheriff William E. Hilton was the victim in today’s hit and run in Hineston. The facts of the incident are still under investigation.  

We are also devastated in reporting Sheriff Hilton has passed away from those traumatic injuries he sustained in this horrible and senseless event. 

Sheriff Hilton’s  leadership, dedication, and service to our community have left a lasting impact, and we know this loss will be felt by many parish, state and country wide.  

Please keep his family, friends and the RPSO Family in your thoughts and prayers as we navigate this difficult time together.   

We will share additional information as it becomes available

ORIGINAL

HINESTON, La. — A hit-and-run in the Hineston area triggered a high-speed pursuit Wednesday that ended with a suspect in custody after law enforcement deployed spike strips to stop the fleeing vehicle.

Rapides Parish Sheriff’s deputies received a report shortly before 1 p.m. of a hit-and-run in which the suspect allegedly struck a victim with a vehicle and intentionally fled the scene.

Deputies arriving at the scene found the victim suffering from severe injuries. The victim was airlifted to a hospital. Condition was not immediately available.

Deputies obtained a description of the suspect vehicle — a blue Nissan — and broadcast it to area law enforcement agencies.

Deputies and Louisiana State Police troopers located the vehicle on Louisiana 28 at Leavines Road traveling eastbound at high speed. Officers attempted a traffic stop, but the suspect refused to comply, accelerated and fled, initiating a pursuit.

The suspect continued east, reaching speeds exceeding 100 mph. Officers deployed spike strips, disabling the vehicle. The suspect was taken into custody without further incident at the intersection of Louisiana 28 and Cloverleaf Boulevard.

The investigation is ongoing. Additional information will be released at a later time.

BALL — Federal agencies have joined the search for a Ball homicide suspect now more than two weeks after a woman was fatally shot at a Citgo gas station on Monroe Highway, with the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the U.S. Marshals Task Force both actively working to locate the fugitive.

Shamond Lamar Sanders, 39, is wanted in connection with the March 5 shooting death of Renina Simmons, 51. The Rapides Parish Coroner’s Office confirmed Simmons died at the scene and ruled her death a homicide. Ball Police Chief Marshall Deen described the incident as domestic-related, beginning at a gas pump before escalating.

The U.S. Marshals Task Force joined the investigation on March 7 after Ball Police reported no credible evidence that Sanders remained in the immediate area. The FBI was confirmed as an additional agency in the search during the Town of Ball’s Council Meeting on March 17.

Investigators have pursued multiple tips in the Rapides Parish area, including two searches of the Pelican Drive area in Pineville — one on March 6 and another on March 10, the second involving RPSO detectives, the crime suppression unit and SWAT. Neither search produced evidence that Sanders was present.

Sanders is described as a Black male, 5 feet 11 inches tall, weighing approximately 220 pounds, and bald. He should be considered armed and dangerous. Investigators believe he may be traveling in a dark gray Nissan Altima bearing Louisiana license plate 990JGZ.

Court records show Sanders was released from the Louisiana Department of Public Safety and Corrections on good-time parole on June 25, 2024, with a full-term release date of November 20, 2025. He had previously been sentenced in East Baton Rouge Parish to 20 years each for manslaughter and armed robbery, served concurrently, along with a consecutive two-year sentence from Allen Parish for battery on a correctional facility employee.

As of Monday, March 23, no arrest has been announced and Sanders remains at large. The Ball Police Department, Rapides Parish Sheriff’s Office, U.S. Marshals Task Force and FBI continue to pursue leads. Anyone with information is asked to contact Crime Stoppers of CenLa at 318-443-7867.

The Rapides Parish School Board is encouraging community members to sign up for its upcoming free bus driver certification class aimed at strengthening student transportation services.

The class will be held April 6–10, 2026, from 3 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the RAPPS campus, located at 2121 Mason Street in Alexandria. The training is provided at no cost to all who register.

School officials say both full-time and substitute drivers are needed to support daily operations and ensure students arrive safely and on time.

Full-time contracted operators work four hours per day at a rate of $29.35 per hour, with an annual salary of $21,132. Benefits for full-time positions include state retirement and state group health insurance.

Those interested in registering can call 318-449-3108 or email cinda.thomas@rpsb.us for more information.

Sam Goodwin died at his home last Friday night, at age 82.

On hearing the news, on came the memories, the earliest for me from 1976.  Goodwin was the head coach at Parkview High in Little Rock at the time and had just directed the team to an 11-0 season and its second No. 1 ranking in the state in three years. Pondering his future for an Alexandria Town Talk story I was working on, he wondered in a phone interview if he should coach at a higher level.

“I just don’t know what I want,” he admitted. “I used to be real ambitious and wanted to make it to the college level … but every year I seem more content with what I’m doing.”

He stayed a few more years at Parkview and remained content, leading the team to five state championships in nine seasons. But he took the bait to coach at the collegiate level, accepting an offer he couldn’t refuse – from Lou Holtz, then the head coach at Arkansas. Goodwin spent two seasons (1981, ’82) in Fayetteville under the charismatic Holtz, who later led Notre Dame to a national championship. The two are presumably reunited since Holtz died earlier this month.

Coaching was something Sam wanted to do since his junior year at Pineville High School in 1960, when he helped the Rebels win a state championship. His PHS coach, Jimmy Keeth, said, “He was the kind of boy you would want to call your own.”

I don’t know that I’ve ever known a coach who was more humble, more sincere, more resilient and or more determined. He got his apprenticeship as a college head coach at Southern Arkansas University, where he worked two seasons before accepting the head coaching position at Northwestern State.

Although he had to leave Arkansas, where he thrived not only as a coach but as a two-sport star athlete (football and track and field) at Henderson State, Goodwin and NSU were seemingly meant for each other.

He coached the Demons to 102 victories, four conference championships, and one FCS semifinal in 17 seasons – easily making him the winningest football coach in the school’s history.

Another Goodwin memory that gently came wandering through my mind was the tribute he gave to his first wife, Janet, at her funeral in July 2000. She was just 54 when she died suddenly while visiting their oldest daughter in South Carolina. It was the first funeral ever at NSU’s Prather Coliseum, and it was shortly after he retired as Northwestern’s coach to accept the job as athletics director at his alma mater, Henderson State.

The place was packed, not only in respect for Sam but because Janet was one to easily make friends, especially someone who needed a friend. She was a second mother to the members of the team and active in the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. She encouraged others to do as she had done and “Fall Madly in Love with Christ.”

At the funeral, Sam used some of his time for the eulogy to do something he had never done before in public – sing a song. He said he knew he would be remembered at NSU for his coaching career, but he wanted Janet to be remembered, too.

“I’m going to start this, and if I don’t finish, you pick it up,” he said to the crowd. Then he sang, “The Wind Beneath My Wings” (“I was the one with all the glory, you were the one who walked behind…”). He made it all the way through, but about two-thirds the way through his family huddled by him to hug him and weep as he continued singing.

“As a person,” former NSU basketball coach and athletics director Tynes Hildebrand once said, “I’d put Sam Goodwin in the top 10 percent in America.”

Hyperbole? Perhaps, but Sam Goodwin had an appropriate last name, not only for the many “good wins” he was part of on the athletic fields but on the fields of life, however rocky they sometimes were for him.

I think of his coming out of retirement to coach football at ASH at age 70, and the struggles he had with the Trojans that first year. He was their third coach in three years. The program was in the pits. But in his second and final year as coach, at age 71, he and his staff got the football juices flowing again at ASH. The Trojans went 6-4 in the regular season, made it to the playoffs and had an offense –directed by quarterback (and later LSU pitcher) Matthew Beck — that could score from anywhere on the field.

It was fitting and proper that he finish his head coaching career on a positive note – reflecting that optimism, resiliency, courage and determination that was so much of who he was throughout his lifetime.   

The Rapides Parish Police Jury Fire Districts have been recognized for their commitment to workplace safety as part of LWCC’s 2025 Safest 70 Awards, highlighting organizations across Louisiana that demonstrate excellence in protecting employees and reducing risk.

Presented annually by LWCC, the Safest 70 Awards honor policyholder members who prioritize safety through proactive measures, ongoing training, and a strong culture of risk prevention. The recognition places the Rapides Parish Police Jury Fire Districts among a select group of 70 organizations statewide that exemplify leadership in workplace safety.

Established in 2008, the Safest 70 Awards reflect LWCC’s commitment to advancing safety standards across Louisiana’s workforce. Award recipients must be in good standing with LWCC for at least five consecutive years and actively collaborate with the company’s Safety Services team to implement and maintain effective safety practices.

The Rapides Parish Police Jury Fire Districts’ inclusion underscores the critical role public safety organizations play in maintaining safe working environments, particularly in high-risk fields such as fire protection and emergency response. Their recognition highlights ongoing efforts to identify hazards, implement prevention strategies, and continuously improve safety performance for personnel.

The 2025 Safest 70 honorees represent a wide range of industries, including construction, healthcare, manufacturing, education, and public sector organizations, reinforcing the importance of workplace safety across all sectors.

LWCC provides policyholders with safety resources, training, consultation, and risk management support to help organizations strengthen their safety programs and protect employees across Louisiana.

The Rotary Club of Pineville recently welcomed local school leaders to share how community support initiatives are making a difference for students in Rapides Parish.

During the meeting, Christy Dugas, principal of Paradise Elementary, Amber Spurgeon, assistant principal of Paradise Elementary, and Christy Roberts, principal of Ball Elementary, discussed the positive impact of programs supported by the Rotary Club.

One key initiative highlighted was the school clothes closet, which provides students in need with essential items such as uniforms, shoes, jackets, and personal care products. Educators said the program helps ensure students arrive at school feeling prepared and confident.

School leaders emphasized that the effort goes beyond addressing basic needs, contributing to improved self-esteem and reinforcing that students are supported and valued within their school communities.

Rotary members noted their continued commitment to supporting local students and partnering with schools to address barriers to success.

Louisiana Christian University School of Social Work hosted a two-day interactive Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) workshop March 19-20. 

Save Cenla co-founders Angela and Andy Dixon facilitated the event. They started the organization, which is dedicated to mental health awareness and suicide prevention, following the 2014 suicide of their 17-year-old son Adam.

“We wanted to educate people so they didn’t suffer in silence,” Angela said. 

The Dixons attended two ASIST workshops themselves and have since trained more than 4700 people across Louisiana. 

“It’s so effective, people have wanted to take it back to their areas of the state,” she said. “It teaches people how to talk about it [mental health] and how to approach someone.”

The ASIST method helps people not only recognize when someone may be struggling with mental health issues and suicidal thoughts but also offers the tools to help.

“It’s the difference between forcing them to get help and them wanting to get help and knowing how,” Angela said.

The Dixons said they didn’t realize their son was struggling with suicidal thoughts. He was involved in sports and many extra-curricular activities in school, and he never got into any trouble.

“He did all these things, and he wasn’t diagnosed,” Angela said. “We just thought everybody goes through things. We know if we’d had these skills then we would have known how to talk to him.”

The LCU social work program has hosted the training for its students for several years but opened the training up to all LCU students, faculty and staff to attend this year.

“It is important training for everyone with or without a degree,” said Vanessa Graves, assistant professor of social work and MSW field director. “It is focused on training the everyday person in the community to be able to confidently respond to a suicidal individual.”

The training aligns with social work courses in crisis intervention and grief and loss, she said.

“As a helping profession, we recognize that our graduates will be working in crisis situations often, and this hands-on training gives them practical application as well as teaching an evidence-based intervention,” Graves said. 

Angela said she wants people to realize that mental health is equally important as any other kind of body ailment to be concerned about. Although there remains a stigma attached to mental health, it is decreasing. 

“Our vision is to train everyone,” she said, “and teach people it is OK to not be OK and to seek help.”

Verne Ray King, passed away peacefully at his home in Port Arthur, Texas on February 23, 2026. Verne was born in Natchitoches, Louisiana. He spent most of his youth in the Natchitoches area. Verne graduated from Natchitoches High School in 1961 and later attended Northwestern University for 2 years.

Verne moved to the Nederland Port Arthur area and completed his apprenticeship and journeyman training in the electrical, instrument technician and related fields. Verne spent over thirty years working around the country utilizing his experience, education, and training with electrical controls, instrumentation, and pneumatic control systems. Verne retired as a member of the IBEW.

Verne was an avid hobbyist with remote controlled airplanes. Not only did he fly them, but he would build them from scratch. He was also a skilled and avid amateur radio operator and an Elmer to new “Hams”. Verne would share his “Radio” knowledge with anyone who was interested in the hobby.

Verne is survived by his daughter, Melinda King Carmouche, of Groves, Texas; his brother, John W. King, Sr. and his wife Barbara of Denham Springs, Louisiana; and his sister, Kathryn Rhodes of Charleston, South Carolina; as well as a number of grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, William Verne King and Ruth Cox King; brothers Robert W. King and Lloyd Richard King.

Visitation for Verne Ray King will be held at the Gallagher Funeral Home in Ball, Louisiana on March 24, 2026 from 9:00 a.m. until 11:00 a.m. His Graveside Service will follow at the St. Maurice Cemetery in St. Maurice, Louisiana at 12:00 p.m. following visitation.

Memorial services for Mr. John Calvit Edwards will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 11, 2026, at Amiable Baptist Church, Glenmora, with Reverends Benji Rhame and Billy Edwards officiating, under the direction of Rush Funeral Home, Oakdale.

Mr. Edwards, 72, of Glenmora, entered eternal rest on Wednesday, March 18, 2026, at Natchitoches Regional Medical Center, Natchitoches.

After a dedicated forty-year career as a truck driver, he retired but never slowed down. He loved motorcycle riding, trucking, and fishing, simple pleasures that brought him lasting joy. He was a jokester who enjoyed ribbing his family and spent much of his life riding his beloved Harleys. He will be deeply missed by all who knew and loved him.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Simon and Mary Edwards; one brother, Michael Edwards; and three sisters, Josephine Burgin, Grace Fowler, and Arleen Edwards.

Those left to mourn his loss and cherish his memory include his life partner, Beverly Chevalier of Glenmora; one step-daughter, Crystal Hurt (Jimmy) of Alexandria; two step-sons, Duston Haiko of New Orleans, and Cort Haiko of Glenmora; one brother, Billy Edwards (Linda) of Dry Prong; one sister, Thelma Walters of Glenmora; one half-brother, Charles Edwards (Wanda) of Glenmora; one half-sister, Shirley Butler of Glenmora; three granddaughters, Erin, Sophie, and Mikayla; three grandsons, Jackson, Jackques, and Gabe; and numerous nieces and nephews.

By JIM BUTLER

Legislators representing parts of Rapides Parish have 115 proposed laws, resolutions and recognitions pending as the third week of their current session begins today.

Speaker Pro Tempore Mike Johnson has 18 in the hopper, including HouseBills 5, 6 and 7, dealing with Carbon Capture and private property expropriation, two heavily lobbied issues. Each is pending hearing in the Natural Resources Committee.

His HB 642, congressional redistricting, is in House & Governmental Affairs.

Other legislators and proposals:

Rep. Rhonda Butler – seven, including HB40 relative to Municipal Police Employees Retirement System, in Retirement Committee; Sen. Heather Cloud – eight, including SB110 prohibiting using child image to train Artificial Intelligence to produce child sexual abuse materials, passed Senate, pending House committee referral; Rep. Jason DeWitt – twelve, including HB66, Alexandria code adjudication, and HB894, Alexandria firefighter rules, both in committee, HB412, proposed constitutional amendment relative to property assessment and reappraisal in Ways & Means;

Rep. Ed Larvadain III – four, including HB407, initial eligibility requirements for M.J. Foster Promise Program, pending in Education Committee; Sen. Jay Luneau – nine, including SB246, establishes requirements for health insurance issuers using AI or automated decision systems, passed committee, pending Senate action; Sen. Jay Morris – twenty-two, including SB68, proposed constitutional amendment through committee and pending Senate action;

Sen. Mike Reese – sixteen, including SB46, creating crime of unlawful operation of group home, passed Senate and sent to House; Sen. Alan Seabaugh – ten, including SB49, removing BESE election from party primary system, passed committee, pending Senate action; Sen. Glen Womack – six, including SB145, relative to adult residential care providers, pending in Health & Welfare.

FOREST HILL — The Louisiana Nursery Festival celebrated its 40th anniversary this weekend, drawing visitors from across the region to the small Rapides Parish community built around the nursery industry.

The three-day festival, held March 20-22 at 4300 La. Hwy. 112, featured carnival rides, food booths, live entertainment, a Saturday parade and more than 100 vendors offering plants, trees, flowers and handmade crafts. Admission was free.

Jenna Arnold, a sophomore at Alexandria Senior High School, was crowned the 2026-27 Louisiana Nursery Festival Queen.

Forest Hill, a community of roughly 800 residents, is home to upward of 200 plant nurseries that operate largely as wholesale businesses throughout the year but open to the public each March for the festival. Mayor Elizabeth Jeter said the nurseries generate nearly $1 billion in revenue annually, making them a major economic driver for Central Louisiana.

The festival, originally organized to benefit a private school, now raises funds for the Forest Hill Volunteer Fire Department, Fire District 17.

The Louisiana Nursery Festival is held annually the third full weekend of March in Forest Hill.

ALEXANDRIA — Louisiana State University of Alexandria has set another all-time enrollment record, welcoming 7,728 students for the Spring 2026 semester — an 11.9% increase over Spring 2025 and the highest official enrollment in the university’s history.

The milestone extends LSUA’s multi-year pattern of sustained growth and places the university well above national trends. According to the National Student Clearinghouse, total U.S. postsecondary enrollment rose roughly 2% nationwide over the same period, while most four-year institutions experienced their typical enrollment declines between the fall and spring semesters. LSUA not only avoided that decline but posted spring-over-fall growth for the third consecutive year.

Online enrollment drove a significant portion of the increase. Of the 7,728 students enrolled, 4,801 are taking online classes — a 20.5% jump from a year ago. On-campus enrollment also grew by 10.4%, reflecting strong demand for both the university’s flexible degree pathways and its campus experience. Students enrolled at LSUA represent all 64 Louisiana parishes, all 50 states, and 28 countries.

Chancellor Paul Coreil said the record reflects what students and families are looking for in today’s higher education market. “An LSUA degree is affordable, relevant, and closely aligned with real workforce demand. Our graduates are leaving prepared to step directly into meaningful careers. The momentum we are seeing sends a strong signal: students are seeking education that leads to valued career opportunities important to economic and workforce development across the state.”

Vice Chancellor for Enrollment and Student Engagement Abbey Bain credited faculty and staff for the sustained growth. “Our record enrollment is the result of intentional, behind-the-scenes work by faculty and staff who are deeply committed to the entire student journey. Our teams are focused on making sure students feel supported, known, and prepared. That coordinated, student-centered approach is what sets LSUA apart and why students continue to choose us for their degree.”

LSUA is Louisiana’s most affordable four-year public university, currently offers 80 academic majors, and reports 100% job placement in many high-demand fields. More than 40% of students graduate with no debt.

Sam Goodwin, the architect of Northwestern State’s golden modern era of football who as a senior helped Pineville High win a 1960 state championship, died Friday night at his home following complications from a recent surgery.

Arrangements are pending for the school’s all-time leader in football victories and a member of the N-Club Hall of Fame, Southland Conference Hall of Honor and the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame.

“Northwestern State has lost a giant,” Director of Athletics Kevin Bostian said. “Coach Sam Goodwin’s ability to build winners on and off the field took the Demon football team to some of its greatest heights and its most memorable moments. Seeing coach Goodwin’s relationship with (current Demon head football) coach Blaine McCorkle the past couple of years gave those of us who were not here when coach was on the sidelines a look into what made him and his teams so successful. His impact on Northwestern and Natchitoches is unmistakable and everlasting.”

Goodwin, 82, won a school-record 102 games in 17 seasons at the helm of the Demon program, turning it into a perennial Southland Conference championship contender while setting the Southland Conference wins record.

A Pineville native, Goodwin led the Demons to four conference championships – the 1984 Gulf Star crown and the 1988, 1997 and 1998 Southland titles. He twice was named Southland Conference Coach of the Year.

His 1998 Demon team reached the FCS semifinals where it fell to eventual national champion UMass. That 1998 team equaled the school single-season record of 11 wins and featured four of the 22 All-Americans Goodwin coached at Northwestern.

His 1988 squad advanced to the FCS quarterfinals and is the only Northwestern team to go unbeaten in Southland play. That season, Goodwin’s “Road Warriors” picked up five straight conference or playoff wins away from Turpin Stadium, including a regular-season-ending 20-17 victory at Stephen F. Austin, which had previously been ranked No. 1 in the nation. Two weeks ahead of the win at SFA, the Demons took down another top-ranked team, North Texas, on the road.

That run included the Demons’ 22-13 victory at Boise State, which marked the first FCS playoff victory in program history and came amid wintry weather in Idaho. Northwestern’s 10 wins that season marked the program’s most victories in 49 years.

In addition to the on-field All-Americans he produced, Goodwin also coached two Academic All-Americans, a National Football Foundation Scholar-Athletes, 42 first-team All-Southland Conference selections and 38 players who reached the NFL.

Goodwin earned induction into the N-Club Hall of Fame – the highest honor the university awards to student-athletes and athletic staff members – in 1999.

Goodwin spent two seasons as an assistant on the late Lou Holtz’ coaching staff at the University of Arkansas after a stellar nine-season run at Parkview High School in Little Rock, Arkansas, where he won 72 percent of his games and led the Patriots to five state championships.

He then spent two seasons as the head coach at Southern Arkansas University before making his way to Northwestern.

At a teenager at Pineville High School, Goodwin was a two-way player (offensive guard and defensive tackle) who was named team captain his senior year. Goodwin helped lead Pineville to the Class 2A state championship his senior year after returning from a broken ankle suffered earlier in the season.

Following his prep career, he played at Henderson State, beginning his Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame career. Goodwin earned enshrinement in the Arkansas hall for both his playing career and his success at the helm of Parkview.

Goodwin later returned to his alma mater as athletic director after retiring from his coaching position at Northwestern in the summer of 2000. During his Henderson State playing career in the mid-1960s, Goodwin was a standout two-sport athlete.

An NAIA All-American selection in 1965 as a two-way player, Goodwin was the 1965 team captain for the Reddies’ football team and was a three-time conference champion in the discus, setting the Arkansas Intercollegiate Conference discus record.

In addition to being selected as the Henderson State MVP in 1966, Goodwin was part of the AIC All-Decade Team as chosen by Dave Campbell’s Arkansas Football Magazine. He was enshrined in the Arkansas Sports Hall of Fame in 2007.

Jeff Ballew of Buckeye High School is being recognized as a Classroom Hero for his commitment to student leadership and development.

A veteran with 21 years of military service and one year at Buckeye High School, Ballew works to empower students through the school’s JROTC program. He emphasizes responsibility, leadership opportunities and self-confidence, encouraging students to see heroism not as recognition, but as service, integrity and doing the right thing even in difficult situations.

Ballew said his goal is to help students believe in themselves while preparing them to lead and serve others in their communities.

He also highlighted MSG David Branton for his positive influence on students, noting his dedication to building strong relationships and mentoring cadets. Ballew credited Branton’s leadership and ability to motivate students as having a lasting impact on the program and its participants.