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Patricia Brignac Talbot, owner of Baton Rouge Duplicating Products, finalized a deal with Ricoh Business Systems to be the sole distributor of Lanier Products after the recent merger of Lanier and Ricoh. The move allows BRDP to provide clients with cutting-edge technology as well as new equipment and applications.

Fido gets a lift

In response to the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine partnered with the American Kennel Club Companion Animal Recovery to develop a mobile response unit. The unit will be used for emergency response and will serve as an active component of an integrated system for responding to natural disasters.

AWARDS/HONORS

Connections for Life, a nonprofit agency providing opportunities for indigent women to become independent and productive members of the Baton Rouge community, won the 2008 Gulf South Summit Award for Outstanding Community Partner Contributions to Service-Learning for its work with LSU English students. The award honors a community organization whose members have demonstrated excellence in creating, providing, and sustaining opportunities for engaging university students in service-learning.

LSU faculty member Randy Raggio was honored by President Bush with the President’s Volunteer Service Award for his volunteer service with Desire Street Academy. Raggio served as an academic tutor for remedial math and the ACT college entrance exam preparation. In addition, he helped prepare a marketing plan for Desire Street Academy and has worked with its advisory committee on publicity and fundraising as the organization works to establish a foundation in its new home in Baton Rouge.

John Hightower was selected as new chairman of the Adult Literacy Advocates of Greater Baton Rouge’s board of directors. Hightower, a senior development officer with LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, has served on the ALA board for three years. As chair, Hightower will guide strategic plans for the organization and will oversee the board’s fundraising efforts.

Dr. Ralph Dauterive was appointed to the Ochsner Health System’s board of directors, which oversees Ochsner’s seven hospitals and 33 health centers throughout southeast Louisiana. Dauterive, who has been with Ochsner since 1987, previously served as the head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at Ochsner Health Center and the vice president of medical affairs for Ochsner Medical Center-Baton Rouge.

Jan Kasofsky received the Louisiana Public Service Award from the Louisiana Public Health Association. Kasofsky is the Executive Director of Capital Area Human Services District, an agency serving a seven-parish region with community-based mental health, addictive disorders and developmental disabilities services. The award is presented annually to an individual for contributions and support to foster health programs or issues in Louisiana by an appointed or elected official on the local, state or national level.

J. Gerard “Jerry” Jolly was elected to KPMG’s board of directors. Jolly, a managing partner in the Baton Rouge office, joined KPMG in 1974 and became a partner in the Tax practice in 1981. He currently serves as a board member of the Catholic High School Foundation and the Pennington Biomedical Research Foundation. He is vice chairman of the Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center and chairman of the St. Joseph’s Academy Foundation.

The Baton Rouge Area Chamber was recognized for the third year in a row by an economic development research association for its strategy for transforming LSU into a top-tier public research university. The Center for Community and Economic Research awarded BRAC the Applied Community & Economic Research Award in the category for “data collection and dissemination effort in web-based systems.”

ERA Stirling Properties received the Five Star Circle of Excellence Award by the Cartus Broker Network, recognizing brokers who have met or exceeded their individual objectives for outgoing broker-to-broker referral closings during the calendar year.

Dr. Ashley Stokes, assistant professor in the Department of Veterinary Clinical Sciences at the LSU School of Veterinary Medicine, was selected into the 2008 Baton Rouge Barton Leadership Program. The John W. Barton Sr. Community Leadership Development Program was started by Forum 35 in partnership with the Louisiana Association of Nonprofit Organizations to foster leadership initiatives and enable development of leadership skills while promoting community involvement in Baton Rouge.

Olivier Moreteau, a professor at LSU’s Paul M. Hebert Law Center, has been named a Fellow of the Louisiana Bar Foundation.

Jones, Walker, Waechter, Poitevent, Carrère & Denègre was named to Southern Business & Development magazine’s annual list of “Top 10 Law Firms that Understand Economic Development.” Jones Walker was recognized for its role in economic development in the Gulf South, including the ongoing work to restore commerce following Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Partner Fred L. Chevalier was commended for his involvement in major economic development projects, including GO Zone benefits, tax increment financing, special tax districts, tax sharing and tax credits.

Coletta Barrett, vice president of mission of Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center, was presented with the Gold Heart Award by the American Heart Association. The award is the highest honor the association gives to volunteers who have provided continued, distinguished service.

Dr. Betty Fomby-White, an associate professor at Southern University’s School of Nursing, received the Helen Johnson Creemens Excellence in Teaching Award by the Baton Rouge District Nurses Association. The award is given to a nurse educator who teaches full-time in a practical, technical, baccalaureate, master’s or doctorate nursing program in East Baton Rouge Parish.

The Public Affairs Research Council elected a new board. Included from Baton Rouge are Vice Chairman Donna M. Saurage and Secretary Gordon Pugh of Breazeale, Sachse & Wilson. In addition to officers, PAR elected new board members for three-year terms ending in 2011, including Sharon Kleinpeter, vice president, government and public affairs, Cox Communications. PAR’s board also re-elected directors to serve another three-year term ending in 2011. From Baton Rouge are Donna Carville of Dow Chemical Company, Beth Courtney of Louisiana Public Broadcasting, E. Renae Conley of Entergy Louisiana, O. Fred Loy of Committee of 100 for Economic Development and Richard O. Mohring of ExxonMobil.

Advertising students from the Manship School of Mass Communication won first place in District 7 of the National Student Advertising Competition. The victory qualifies the team to compete in the American Advertising Federation national convention in Atlanta in June. The student presenters are Tommy Hunt of Gonzales, Lindsay Newport of Baton Rouge, Hunter Hartwig of Katy, Texas, Mary Ellen Bourgeois of Plano, Texas, and Alyson Boyd of Wasilla, Alaska.

The Louisiana Community and Technical College System received a $150,000 grant from The Ford Foundation. The funds will provide support for key community college stakeholders to explore ways of integrating academic, workforce development and remedial programs in community and technical colleges. The grant will be administered over a one-year period.

Jimmy Maurin, chairman of Stirling Properties, was inducted into the LSU Alumni Association Hall of Distinction, which recognizes alumni who have distinguished themselves and LSU through their careers, their personal and civic accomplishments, their volunteer activities and their loyalty to their alma mater.

Katherine F. Hill, coordinator of the LSU College of Education Department of Kinesiology Undergraduate Programs, received the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance Honor Award at its annual convention in Fort Worth, Texas.