Charlet Funeral Home

Family members of more than 100 students, as well civic leaders and organizations from throughout East Feliciana Parish, gathered at Jackson Elementary School on Aug. 24 for the school’s annual Community and Family Open House.The event provided families with an opportunity to access a wide range of community resources, discuss their children’s progress with their teachers and learn more about the school’s plan for improving teaching and learning, which was developed in late summer through a series of conversations with parents and family members.After a year of unprecedented success that saw first-grade students at Jackson Elementary School exceed the national average in reading comprehension as measured by the STAR Reading assessment and students at several grade levels receive local and regional recognition for their civic involvement, Jackson Elementary School will be emphasizing writing across all areas of the curriculum during the 2017-18 school year, a news release said.Teachers will participate in weekly professional development meetings where they will analyze students’ specific academic needs and learn instructional strategies to meet those needs.“At Jackson Elementary School, we are proud to be a public school for all the children of our community,” said Principal Megan Phillips. “We are honored to partner with families and community leaders to ensure that our students receive the very best education possible and grow as leaders in their school and their community.”Community partners who helped support the event included Jackson Lions Club, Keep East Feliciana Beautiful, Helping In His Name Food Bank, East Feliciana Drug and Alcohol Awareness Council, Town of Jackson, East Feliciana Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness, South Louisiana Coalition for Education, East Feliciana 4-H, Charlet Funeral Home, Chef’s To-Go, Hughes Catering, McManus Volunteer Fire Department, Medical Health Mart, Mercy Funeral Home, Clerk of Court David Dart, Police Juror Ed Brooks, Joseph Williams, Distric... (The Advocate)

ZEBBIE CHANEYZebbie (Zeb) Dunbar Chaney, 102, passed away on August 23, 2017, in El Dorado. Known as Zeb to friends and Dunbar to family, he was born July 15, 1915, in Zachary, Louisiana, to Zebulon C. Chaney and Mary Lula Whitehead Chaney.During high school he played American Legion baseball as a pitcher and held the strike out record for thirty five years. After graduating from Zachary High School in 1933, he entered Southeastern University in Hammond, Louisiana on an athletic scholarship where he played and lettered in football, basketball, and baseball. Upon graduating from college, he joined the Navy as a Chief Specialist. Toward the end of WWII, he was sent to the University of California at Berkley as a physical training instructor. After Navy, he was asked to remain at UC Berkeley as an assistant football and basketball coach. During his career as assistant coach, the California Bears made three consecutive Rose Bowl appearances in 1949, 1950, and 1951. In basketball, the Bears were in the NCAA 1946 Final Four. He also scouted for UC and for the Philadelphia Eagles and the San Francisco 49ers during that time. Upon leaving coaching, he went to work for Prescolite Mfg. Co. of San Leandro, California, and moved to El Dorado in 1958 to establish the new plant in the southern United States. He retired from Prescolite in 1980. After retirement, he spent many years fishing at his camp on Lake D’Arbonne and could often be seen working in his yard. Zeb lived a full life with many experiences across many decades of historical significance.Preceding him in death were his parents, his wife, Ann Easley Chaney, and siblings, Doris Chaney Colomb, Walker Chaney, Marjorie Chaney and John Chaney. He is survived by his son, Bill Chaney (June) of Zachary, Louisiana; daughter, Patricia Yarbrough (Ron) of El Dorado; grandchildren, Eric Bearden of Salzburg, Austria; Laura Yarbrough of Shanghai, China; Jennifer Yarbrough of Phoenix, Arizona; Lance Siebert (Bridgette) and Ramona Jacobs (Robby) of Zachary, Louisiana, five gr... (El Dorado News-Times)