44th Annual Andouille Festival To Donate Poster Proceeds To Breast Cancer Research
LAPLACE, LA – The 44th annual Andouille Festival presented by Marathon Petroleum Company, LP kick-off and poster reveal commenced Thursday, Sept. 21, in the St. John Community Center Atrium, and parish officials and Andouille festival organizers announced that a portion of poster sale proceeds will be donated to breast cancer research and awareness.
The event was catered by Zora Christina and The Frying Station. The event ended with a performance from the Harold Warren and the Innervision Band.
The festival is set to take place Oct. 13 – 15, at the Thomas F. Daley Memorial Park, 2900 Highway 51, in LaPlace.
"Andouille has a rich history in Louisiana overall and specifically St. John Parish," Parish president Natalie Robottom said. "Annually, Andouille Festival gives us the opportunity to showcase not only the festival namesake, but the accomplishments and work of the parish as well."
Robottom gave opening remarks and introduced the 44th annual Andouille Festival. Tracy Case, Marathon Petroleum, LP division manager, gave remarks and built excitement around the company's involvement with the festival for the third straight year. Aspen Murphy from Marathon Petroleum Company, LP presented a check for $30,000 to parish officials. St. John the Baptist parish director of economic development, Jerry W. Jones Jr. introduced Dana Bardell Wallace, the festival's poster artist for the second year in a row. Wallace offered remarks regarding her inspiration for this year's festival poster.
"It was such a blessing to be able to do this poster for the festival for the second year," Wallace said. "I knew I'd have to craft something just as unique as last year. I thought about all the people fighting breast cancer daily and I realize it's not just about my art. The best part of the work is the community and mission around it."
Following the remarks, Wallace and Robottom unveiled the poster. Pre-order posters are currently available for sale at the St. John Parish Economic Development Department and online. Starting in October, posters can be ordered at Matherne's Supermarket in LaPlace, Don's Supermarket and Greg's Supermarket in Reserve. One-hundred signed and numbered festival prints are being sold for $40.00 each and signature only are $30.00 each. Posters will also be sold in the General Store the weekend of the Andouille Festival. A portion of poster sales will be donated to breast cancer research.
For years, the Andouille Festival has been a St. John the Baptist Parish tradition. The festival features music, food, festivities and good times, reps said. Thousands of people attend the weekend festival and participate in the many events the festival has to offer. The festival is owned and produced by the parish and profits from the festival benefit St. John the Baptist Parish Schools.
The Andouille Festival presented by Marathon Petroleum Company, LP is sponsored by EuroChem, Entergy, Buddy's Home Furnishings, Denka Performance Elastomer, Noranda Aluminum, Inc., Pink Oak Terminal, LLC, Reserve Telecommunications (RTC,) Cumulus, Cox Media, Where Y'at Magazine and OffBeat Media.
