BISCO HOSTED MANY COMMUNITY EVENTS  AFTER THE OIL DISASTER

BISCO hostedt two dinners for the community for families affected by the oil disaster to call attention to the 6 months of the oil disaster and its affect on our citizens.

Wednesday - October 27, 2010 the dinner was held at the Grand Caillou Gymn behind the St. Joseph Church in Chauvin. The address is 215 Angel St. and the time was 6:30 PM.

Thursday - October 28, 2010 the dinner was held at the St. Joseph Community Center in Galliano located at 17980 West Main St.

BISCO wants to thank the donors for donations of food, and cash donations for the success of this community free event.

Community Educational Programs with Dr. Riki Ott (Alaska Toxicologist and Fisherwoman), Dr. John Sullivan, University of Texas Medical Branch @ Galveston TX, and Mr. Jeffrey Wickliffe, Tulane University Health Sciences Center, School of Public Health and Tropical Medicine

The two sessions recently held in South Terrebonne Parish and South Lafourche Parish were attended by approximately 200 community members. They were held on Sep 28th and Sep. 29th. Community members were also recipients of loaves of bread from Michelle Lafleur MacFadyen, Owner of Great Harvest Bread Co in Lafayette, who held a drive for the fishermen and community members. All present were thankful for information presented about Alaska reports of the oil disaster there, as well as information on future studies to be performed in our area.

Houma Listening Sessions very successful:

BISCO held two programs of Listening Sessions for our community members.  We knew there was much confusion about what is happening regarding the oil disaster and there were many concerns about the terms of disaster response and disaster recovery. We knew that this disaster is far from over and yet the officials seemed to be calling it time to plan a recovery. 

Because of this BISCO included federal and state and local officials to once again come to the table and share the latest information with us and answer questions that the public had.   During the two events we had over 300 people present.  By having so many community members to attend these meetings we sent a clear message that we needed our questions answered. We felt that we achieved many of our goals by having many of the questions answered and several people recieved the information they had been looking for.

The two programs held were as follows:

Community Listening Session

Wednesday - August 11th at 1 PM

Montegut Recreation Center

107 Recreation Dr.

Montegut, LA 70377

               and

 Community Listening Session

Wednesday - August 11th at 6 PM

Ward 7 Citizens Center

5006 highway 56

Chauvin, LA 70344

We plan to have more sessions in Terrebonne, Lafourche and on Grand Isle in the near future.

Keep checking our web site for new details.

Grand Isle Listening Session

& Community Forum 

BISCO hosted a listening session and community forum for Grand Isle residents on June 3, 2010. The session was a wonderful display of community members sharing their concerns in a respectful manner to representatives of British Petroleum, the Coast Guard, Jefferson Parish Council Chairman, NOAA officials, representatives of several state agencies, and even Congressman Charlie Melancon. Community members were also advised of the importance of completing their Census forms. BISCO Organizers were there to assist with any information needed.BISCO Listening Session” held June 3, 2010, at First Baptist Church on Grand Isle, Louisiana

BISCO would like to thank everyone who helped to make our Grand Isle “Listening Session” such a wonderful success. Since this oil drilling disaster began on April 20, 2010, BISCO has completed four listening sessions with community residents, including fishers, those in the affected industries, and their families. These sessions have allowed as many as 1,000 community members to speak out about the effects of this disaster on their lives and communities. Our listening sessions are designed to help answer questions and ease concerns, as well as search for possible solutions. We have been happy to bring in elected officials, governmental representatives from several state and federal agencies, as well as representatives from British Petroleum, to listen to the people of the bayou. BISCO plans to continue hosting these “Listening Sessions” to help our communities develop a unified voice in their search for equity.  

BISCO Listening Sessions

6:00 pm -Mondday, May 10, 2010

In Lafourche Parish, BISCO held its first Community forum at the South Lafourche High School on May 10, 2010. More than 100 community members came out and were disappointed that the Local governmental officials did not attend. Lafourche Parish Sherrif Craig Webre did send a representative and they showed appreciation for his attendance. A member of the press attended and wrote an article about the event. BISCO staff continued the session and recorded all of the comments and questions and answered those they could. Many of the community members were visibly upset and expressed their feelings of anger, depression and fear. A promise was made to the crowd that there questions would be sent on to congressional members. They were sent on and several of the comments were entered into congressional hearings. Audience members were invited to attend the Terrebonne sessions where Federal government officials had confirmed to attend.

In Terrebonne Parish, BISCO held two community forums structured to allow community residents to speak up about their concerns and ideas related to the oil drilling disaster in the Gulf of Mexico

Both meetings were held at Grand Caillou Recreation Center:106 Badou Drive, Dulac, Louisiana 70353

6:00 pm -Thursday, May 13, 2010

Over 400 community members and BISCO Leaders gathered together to address their issues of the Deepwater Horizon Oil Disaster. Officials in attendance included:

Mr. Dave Kennedy, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration

Mr. Mathey Stanislaus - Assistant Administrator for EPA's Office of Solid Waste and Emergency Preparedness

Ms. Lisa Garcia - Senior Advisor on Environmental Justice with the Environmental Protection Agency 

Mr. Michel Claudet, Terrebonne Parish President

as well as representatives of the U.S. Coast Guard, British Petroleum, Department of Homeland Security, Department of the Interior/U.S. Fish & Wildlife, and State representatives of DEQ. Please see our photos page for photos of the event.

Community members were also advised of the importance of completing their Census forms "TO BE COUNTED" if they had not done so. BISCO Organizers were there to assist with any information needed. Census materials including hats and t-shirts were provided for all in attendance.

 Friday, May 14, 2010 - BISCO held another Listening Session in Terrebonne Parish. This session included local and state officials and agencies to answer more questions concerning the Oil Disaster. Over 250 persons attended this event.

Again, Community members were advised of the importance of completing their Census forms and "TO BE COUNTED" if they had not done so. BISCO Organizers were there to assist with any information needed. Census materials including hats and t-shirts were provided for all in attendance.

Congratulations to Thibodaux Senior Mayors!!

April 6, 2010--Earl Rhodes, BISCO Leader from Moses Baptist Church, a BISCOCovenant member, served as Thibodaux's Senior Mayor for the Day. "'Mayor' Rhodes is a lifelong Thibodaux resident. He has been married to Theresa Cook Rhodes for 46 years. 'Mayor' Rhodes has six children, nine grandchildren, and one great-grandchild. He is a member of Moses Baptist Church where he enjoys volunteering doing, 'whatever they need me to do.' 'Mayor' Rhodes retired from the Post Office after working thirty-five years. He enjoys spending time with his large family and said, 'I've met a lot of people over the years and I enjoy Thibodaux so much because of the pleasant people who live here.'(Taken from the City of Thibodaux web page.)

May's Senior Mayor of the Day was another BISCO Leader, Ms. Bertha Shanklin.  Past BISCO Leaders who have served as Senior Mayors include Ms. Barbara Johnson, and Ms. Lorene Watkins.

Congratulations to you all!  We are very proud of you!

BISCO Christmas Social,