St. John the Baptist Parish will join the rest of the Nation in celebrating Economic Development Week May 8–13.

This celebration was created and is coordinated by The International Economic Development Council and will be the organization’s 91st anniversary as the largest professional membership organization for economic developers.

Economic development commonly includes the creation of jobs and wealth and the improvement of quality of life. It also influences growth and restructuring of an economy to enhance the economic well-being of a community.

Through the efforts of the Economic Development Department, all of these are being addressed through business training, business outreach and workforce development.

Through a Memorandum of Understanding between the three River Parish governments, school systems, Chamber of Commerce and the LTCS, Louisiana Calling was recently launched.

This latest workforce development initiative connects Louisianans to career and financial success by creating opportunities to develop high-value skills for short- and long-term success.

This is indeed something to celebrate and we encourage residents and business owners to join us in the celebration by attending some of the events listed below:

Monday, May 8 – ED Committee Meeting, noon, St. John Community Center, LaPlace

Tuesday, May 9 – ED Panel Discussion on Technical Colleges, 11:30 a.m. – SCLA Technical College, Reserve

Wednesday, May 10 – Port of South Louisiana and ED, 8:30 a.m. – Port of South LA Executive Regional Airport

Thursday, May 11- Business Regional Networking, 6 p.m. – Acadiana Cinemas, LaPlace

Friday, May 12 – TNT Seafood Restaurant Ribbon Cutting, 3 p.m. – 405 Belle Terre Blvd., LaPlace

Saturday, May 13 – ED & Tourism Week Celebration, 10 a.m. – San Francisco Plantation, Garyville

Please call the Economic Development Department at 985-652-9569 to RSVP and help us spread the word on social media. Use #stjohned and #eddevweek, then don’t forget to tag St. John the Baptist Parish in your posts!

Natalie Robottom is St. John the Baptist Parish President. She can be reached at communications@stjohn-la.gov.