Sweat retires, Dugas promoted

DERIDDER — Beauregard Electric Cooperative, Inc. (BECi) has announced that Shirley Sweat, Moss Bluff branch manager, will retire after 25 years of service to the electric cooperative and its Moss Bluff members.

Sweat began her tenure at BECi in 1997 as a customer service trainee before transitioning to a customer service representative in August 2000. Sweat then became branch manager for the Moss Bluff office in March 2007. Throughout her career, she has helped numerous BECi members through many of the curveballs Mother Nature has thrown at Southwest Louisiana, namely Hurricanes Rita, Laura and Delta, numerous ice storms, snow, tornadoes and flooding.

BECi also announced Tammy Dugas has been promoted from customer service representative to Moss Bluff branch manager after Sweat’s retirement. Dugas will be responsible for managing BECi’s office in Moss Bluff and will work to provide members with prompt, efficient and courteous consumer account and collecting services. She will also provide leadership and direction for those responsible for providing consumer services in the area office. Prior to her promotion, Dugas served the cooperative as a customer service representative and meter reader since 2001.

BECi is the distribution cooperative that serves the electric needs of more than 43,000 residential, commercial and industrial members in a seven-parish area of Southwest and central Louisiana.

Visit Lake Charles hires Roland

Visit Lake Charles recently expanded its marketing team to include Shalisa Roland, director of public relations, who is a seasoned communications professional with nearly nine years of experience in strategic communications.

Roland earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations, advertising, and applied communication from LSU Shreveport. Most recently, Roland was the public relations/digital content manager for the Shreveport-Bossier Convention & Tourist Bureau for nearly five years with previous experience as the digital content manager for the Shreveport-Bossier Sports Commission.

She also worked as the digital media coordinator Eldorado Resorts for about two years after having worked as the corporate development analyst for Girl Scouts of Louisiana, and as a relationship banker with Bossier Federal Credit Union.

Roland has also been involved in a variety of organizations such as the Public Relations Association of Louisiana – State Chapter, serving as the 2022 vice president of communications; Public Relations Association of Louisiana – Northwest Chapter, serving as the president-elect; American Advertising Federation of Shreveport-Bossier, serving as the programs co-chair; the Holiday Trail of Lights, public relations committee member; the Louisiana Office of Tourism, Team Louisiana committee member; and the Young Professionals Initiative, communications co-chair.

Terrell qualifies for The Court

Barry Terrell of The Firm in Lake Charles has qualified for Court of the Table, a coveted milestone achievement for their membership in the MDRT organization.

Terrell’s membership equips them with tools and resources to better serve their local community. This is Terrell’s 25th year of being an MDRT member.

Court of the Table is an internationally recognized mark of excellence reserved for the most successful in the financial services industry. This places Terrell among the top professionals in the intensely competitive global life insurance and financial services industries.

Since 1927, MDRT has been committed to providing its members with a unique mix of networking and resources to help them gain new and unique insights to better serve clients’ individual needs. Working with an MDRT member connects clients not only to a highly credible and leading financial advisor but also to an unmatched global network spanning 70 nations and territories around the world.

LC Memorial recognized

Lake Charles Memorial Health System has been recognized as No. 1 in the Market for Patient Safety in Heart Attack Treatment and Heart Failure Treatment.

The 2022 quality awards are from CareChex and are based on their quality scoring system that compares inpatient quality performance across general, acute and non-federal U.S. hospitals.

Lake Charles Memorial Health System’s Heart and Vascular Center is led by a team of experts, including Cardiac, Vascular and Thoracic Surgeon J. Gregory Lugo, MD and Interventional Cardiologists Edward Bergen, DO, Hari Bogabathina, MD, Christopher S. Thompson, MD, and J. King White, MD, and Cardiologist Clay Hammett, MD.

Fox to chair Chamber board

Last year was another year of challenges for the region, said Chamber SWLA president and CEO George Swift.

Swift said the Chamber and the Alliance Foundation was kept on task due to the steady leadership from last year’s chair, Jim Giffin. Giffin is a financial advisor with Edward Jones. He has been a long-term member of the Chamber SWLA and active board member serving two full terms on the board before his chairmanship.

The 2022 chair is Kay Fox, vice president of marketing and member Services for Beauregard Electric Cooperative (BECi) in DeRidder.

LaBorde role  expanded to CSO

PINEVILLE — The boards of managers for Cleco Corporate Holdings have expanded the role and responsibilities of Robbie LaBorde to include the company’s enhanced environmental, social and governance goals.

LaBorde’s new title, chief operations and sustainability officer, went into effect Feb. 5. He previously served as Cleco’s chief operations officer.

The new role and responsibilities are part of Cleco’s sustainability efforts to protect the environment, manage social relationships, govern responsibly and remain accountable.

A veteran of the energy industry, LaBorde has been with Cleco since 1991, holding numerous positions of leadership with increasing responsibilities, including general manager of environmental services; vice president of strategic planning, development and environmental policy; vice president of generation operations and vice president of generation operations and environmental services.

Bank announces promotions

JD Bank is pleased to announce the promotions of Lisa Johnson to SVP/director of mortgage lending and Lesley Schexnayder to SVP/assistant manager of mortgage lending.

Johnson joined JD Bank in 2017 as the VP/mortgage loan department manager with 31 years of experience in banking and mortgage lending. In her position, Johnson oversees the bank’s secondary mortgage origination and interim residential construction programs, including cultivating new customers and building relationships in the communities served by JD Bank.

Active in the community, she is a member of the SWLA Home Builders Association and the Southwest Louisiana Association of Realtors. She is a graduate of the Management & Leadership Program at Louisiana State University.

Schexnayder has been in banking for 22 years and joined JD Bank in 2014 as a mortgage loan originator. In her role as assistant manager, she will be responsible for assisting the director in overseeing the mortgage department in the origination and servicing of all mortgage loans.

Schexnayder is a member of the Acadiana Home Builders Association and the Real Estate Association of Acadiana.