Two weeks ago, officials of St. John the Baptist Parish celebrated the grand opening of the $2.4 million Regala Park gym which was made possible by the passage of a multi-million dollar bond issue under the Hubbard administration.  

Ronnie Smith, councilman of District 6 at the time and always a tireless worker for recreation, was the main person behind directing a portion of the bond money to see the project became a reality.  

Ronnie was a public servant before ever being elected to public office. He devoted most of his spare time coaching different St. John Parish youth teams. Basketball was one of his favorite sports. He coached local AAU teams prior to and after being elected to public office. His passion to unselfishly serve the youth in our community was never in question.

Over the years, the biggest problem for Ronnie was getting permission to use one of the public or private gyms for practice and games. His drive to see the youth of our parish have a first-class facility was the main reason the Regala gym was built.  

Ronnie served eight years on the council, and term limits ended his tenure. As a council member, he was always conscientious about his responsibility to the public. If ever a person was color blind on every issue, it was Ronnie.

After an unsuccessful bid for parish president last year, his political career seems to be over, but I’m convinced that if health permits, we haven’t heard the last of Ronnie Smith when it comes to recreation for our youth.

Thanks, Ronnie, for a job well done!

If you have any questions or comments, please write to Get High on Life, P.O. Drawer U, Reserve, LA 70084, call 985-652-8477, or email hkeller@comcast.net.