It was October 22, the day when New Hope would introduce itself to Azalea Park by having a picnic in the park; fun jumps, flag football, Christian Hip Hop artists, jambalaya, popcorn, sack races … the works.When I arrived at Debaillon Park at 8 AM, there were already four SWAT police cruisers parked near the pavilion. I knew there were going to be at least two equestrian police officers and the police surveillance “armadillo.” I thought to myself, “What have I gotten myself into?” I had talked to the Police Captain about having the equestrian police officers there. He suggested it because, he said, “The kids love the horses.” He never mentioned anything about additional squad cars.

A Big Thank You!

New Hope would like to thank everyone that helped us put on the “Community Celebration.” We could not have done it ourselves. Thank you Asbury Methodist for providing the food, Acadiana Bottling for providing the Pepsi Cola products, Calvary Baptist, Trinity Bible Church and the Bridge for providing us with volunteers. We also send thanks to Captain Gallien for providing the Equestrian police officers (plus a few others), the city of Lafayette for providing us with footballs and basketballs, and special thanks to Danny Dardeau Surge Productions for hooking us up with the two Christian Hip Hop artists.