By KEVIN CHIRI

Editor and Publisher

LAPLACE – Tom Smith, regional president for Omni Bank, was just one of the speakers at the Southeast Louisiana Veterans Home on Thursday, who acknowledged the importance of a new safety program there for the residents.

But unlike some of the others, Smith was a man who had an extra special place in his heart for what was happening.

Omni Bank announced funding on Thursday for the Senior Crimestoppers Program, which will provide lock boxes for all residents there to keep their valuables in a safe place, as well as a tip line to report any illegal activity at the recently opened retirement home for veterans.

Smith, while spending his days now heading up Omni Bank here in LaPlace, was a former U.S. Army veteran who served in Germany for two years with the U.S. Armored Division. He even started in the Junior ROTC program at Mississippi State and achieved a level of first lieutenant.

So when he heard that his bank was looking into backing the Senior Crimestoppers Program at the local Veterans Home, he was all for it.

“I feel very proud that our bank is associated with this program. What better thing for us to do than to support our veterans, after the way they have supported us so well,” he said. “This program is so special to me since it involves our veterans.”

Omni Bank has purchased a $500,000 investment, with a portion of the interest going to finance this program for five years at the very least.

“Hopefully this will go long after that point,” Smith added.

Sharon Kell, Omni senior vice-president, reiterated those thoughts, adding “Omni is very committed to the community we serve. Our veterans served to give us security and peace of mind, and this is a way we can give back to them.”

Besides the personal lock boxes for all residents, another component of the program is a totally anonymous, around-the-clock tips line call center which serves as an information center for facility management. Anyone can provide information, completely anonymously, to report any problem that exists. If the information provided helps a facility solve or prevent an incident, the tipster qualifies for a “no questions asked” cash reward of up to $1,000.

Key local officials on hand for the event were St. John Parish President-Elect Bill Hubbard, St. John Sheriff Wayne Jones, and Council members Cheryl Millet, Allen St. Pierre and Steve Lee.