Discover Lafayette

Remember the days when you could turn on the radio or television and all you expected was to be treated to great music or entertaining shows? It seems like a million years ago when Walter Cronkite and his peers just reported the facts without adding their take on what you should think of the news or calling people derogatory names.

Our guests on this episode of Discover Lafayette are Jaci Russo and Craig Wall who were invited to discuss the merits of civil discourse in political conversations. Both guests were trained in the techniques of debate in high school and believe that the skills students learn in debate class prepares them for the rigors of life and the civic challenges that may be thrown their way!

Jaci Russo is co-founder of Brand Russo in Lafayette, which she started in 2001. A brand strategist with more than 25 years of experience, Jaci began her career at Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in Los Angeles and has worked with top names in the entertainment industry. She has published several books on branding and provides media management for local, regional and national clients.

Craig Wall is a history teacher and Speech and Debate coach at Teurlings Catholic High School. He has also been a radio DJ for the past 26 years and is currently a radio announcer at Mustang 107.1 and host of the Saturday morning “Country Roots” program. Craig has been named Teacher of the Year several times, first at Northside High, then Lafayette Parish High School Teacher of the Year, then Region IV High School Teacher of the Year, and a finalist for State High School Teacher of the Year. In 2017, Craig was named the Teurlings Catholic Teacher of the Year. 

Jaci and Craig were each inspired by teachers they had in high school. In Jaci's case, it was Judy Hadley at Lafayette High School, who is an icon in speech and debate circles and inducted in the Louisiana High School Speech League Hall of Fame in Advanced Policy Debate. Jaci jokingly recounted how Ms. Hadley was renowned for throwing shoes at students ("soft espadrilles, nothing hard") when they didn't follow directions. Jaci continued in debate in college and came in #7 in a national debate competition her freshman year.

"I luckily had one of the greatest debate coaches of all time, Judy Hadley at Lafayette High School. She's retired now and lives in Florida. But her skills and knowledge and shoe throwing, she had a lot of encouraging shoe-throwing out.....Well, that's the real deal."

Similarly, Craig was a shy student whose parents were shocked when he first took Speech as a student at Comeaux High. With the tools he learned in debate, he was able to step outside of himself and get over his fear of public speaking, learning how to analyze facts, prepare and present persuasive arguments for each side of an issue. He credits his acclaimed debate coach, Sandra Broussard, for all that he learned in high school that led him to experience great opportunities in life.

"Working in speech and debate in high school allowed me to open up and to take a risk that Craig Wall wouldn't take. But the character I played could. From the interview, the actor's side, I switched over to forensics, public speaking, learning to write a good, persuasive speech and a researched debate case as well. Everything I've done is as a result of getting involved with debate."

In today's political realm, public discourse has gotten totally divisive at the national level and this influence has unfortunately invaded local politics in ways never before experienced. With the popularity of talk radio dating back thirty years ago when Rush Limbaugh totally changed the way radio worked, and more recently, social media which is in everyone's back pocket and accessible 24/7,

Frank Beaullieu Randol is passionate about seafood, especially about sustaining our Gulf Seafood industry and keeping our Cajun culture alive for generations to come.

In this Discover Lafayette podcast, you'll have the pleasure of hearing Frank discuss what it has taken to keep his restaurant, Randol's, going for almost five decades, how he worked to introduce authentic Cajun music and dancing to states across the U. S. in the 1980s, and how migrant workers are an indispensable component of the seafood processing business as well as many other labor-intensive industries in America.

Frank Randol is just as passionate about sharing his love of Cajun food and culture as he was thirty years ago when he took his "Cajun Fest" on the road across the U. S. The World's Fair held in New Orleans in 1984 ignited an interest in all things Cajun and Frank Randol ensured that accurate information on its heritage was shared. Frank was glowingly written up by the Chicago Tribune on October 25, 1989, where he joked he had earned his "masters in crabology"

An iconic figure in Lafayette, Frank Randol is celebrating his 49th year in the restaurant and seafood processing business. Randol's Cajun Dance Hall is internationally famous for its authentic old-time dance hall feel and is a destination for tourists. Approximately 60% of visitors are from out of town with many being European and French-speaking. The floor has taken a beating over the years with untold numbers of dancers stomping away; Frank notes with pride that they're now on their fourth dance floor with the first having been constructed from pine and the past three out of oak. "Crowbar parties" were used to replace each of the floors, with dancers using crowbars to remove the planks over three nights while they kept on dancing," according to Frank. As they say, "Laissez les bons temps rouler" or let the good times roll!

Randol's traditional Cajun dance hall (salle de danse) remains a popular place for locals and tourists. Frank Randol is proud to report that at times there will be four generations of a family on the dance floor passing a good time to the Cajun music performed by such bands as Terry Huval and the Jambalaya Cajun Band. There is no cover charge for enjoying the music and dancing at Randol's.

Randol’s has been open at its Kaliste Saloom location for 40 years, and Frank had a facility for 9 years before that in Henderson, LA.  Many people may not realize that Frank’s restaurant sits on property formerly owned by his ancestors, the Billeaud family, known as the Long Plantation, one of the area's largest working plantations which encompassed 600 acres in the Kaliste Saloom and Ambassador Caffery corridor in Lafayette. His restaurant and seafood processing plant take up about 5 acres, and he also has property near Our Lady of Lourdes which was also carved out of the 200 acre tract inherited by Della Marie Billeaud Beaullieu, his grandmother. (Comeaux High School was built on 30 acres donated by the Billeaud heirs and River Ranch also sits on this land.)

Photos of former Long Plantation developed by the Martial Billeaud family, ancestors of Frank Beaullieu Randol, which originally encompassed 600 acres and was one of the largest working plantations in the area.

When Frank chose the Kaliste Saloom site for his restaurant 40 years ago, people thought he might be a bit crazy as it was on an isolated two-lane road with very little commercial activity. Yet through the years, the wisdom of his decision has become apparent as Lafayette's growth has headed south and his restaurant is on one of the busiest streets in Lafayette. His reputation among his peers is exceptional, as affirmed by George Graham, below:

"There’s only one place in Acadiana that I’ll eat boiled...

Matt Delcambre serves as Director of the Center for Business & Information Technologies at UL – Lafayette. He is also Innovation Managing Director for the National Science Foundation-sponsored Center for Visual and Decision Informatics. With over 30 years of leadership experience in the IT Sector, Matt previously spent 30 years at Oracle Corporation and Sun Microsystems before joining UL. He joins Jan Swift, Host of Discover Lafayette, to discuss his love of his community and university, and the enjoyment he receives from being able to serve others through scouting and coastal conservation efforts.

A graduate of USL (now UL - Lafayette) with a BS & MS in Computer Science, Matt follows in the footsteps of his late father, Richard C. Delcambre, who served as Business Manager of USL under Dr. Clyde L. Rougeou and Dr. Joel Fletcher and who supported the expansion of the Computer Science program. In fact, it was in 1962 that USL added a master's program in Computer Science, the first university in the nation to do so, under the leadership of Dr. James Oliver and with the support of USL's administration.

Matt continues to be enamored by technology trends and using IT to solve complex business challenges. He wears many hats in his work with UL - Lafayette, and in addition to the two already mentioned above, he serves as Technical Lead for the City of Lafayette’s participation in the US Ignite-sponsored Smart Gigabit Cities initiative. This initiative endeavors to bring together people, businesses, universities, and governments to "improve civic outcomes through greater connectivity and data-driven decision making." As Matt explained, it can be improved quality of life initiatives such as public wi-fi, smart parking, 5G testing, or LED street lights. Lafayette is focused on Resilience and Recovery and ways Lafayette can use technology capabilities and data to bounce back quicker after natural disasters and give our citizens needed information in real time. For more information on this US Ignite program of work, visit https://www.us-ignite.org/community/lafayette-la/.

Former Lafayette Mayor Joel Robideaux was very interested in having Lafayette designated as an Innovation District. "Innovation Districts" are growing in prominence nationally as cities compete to attract startup businesses by offering incentives that will allow the new companies to take up residence and provide the means for them to flourish and succeed. Matt explained that Lafayette is a natural fit to create an innovation corridor given our gigabit capabilities as well as desire to continue to diversity the local economy. Much work in this arena is already being conducted by LEDA, LCG, and the Opportunity Machine in partnership with UL - Lafayette.

US Ignite's Smart Gigabit Communities Launch in Lafayette focused on Resilience and Recovery and the many ways technology can be utilized to improve disaster responses. Matt Delcambre serves as Technical Lead for the City of Lafayette in this initiative and happily recounted that Lafayette is a "poster child" in national conferences as other cities cite their desire for the quality of internet connectivity that we enjoy here.

UL - Lafayette has experienced tremendous growth in obtaining research dollars, and last year closed out approximately $125 Million in projects. The university ranks in the top 25% of the research institutions in the U. S. and has set a goal to become classified as a Carnegie R1 Institution, which is an indication of those engaged in the highest levels of research activity, and they are confident they will reach this esteemed classification in the next round of certifications.

UL - Lafayette is committed to "Research for a Reason" and in this interview, Matt Delcambre shared how applied research can be used to so...

The Acadiana Center for the Arts ("AcA") is a cultural gem in downtown Lafayette, Louisiana. A community-supported nonprofit organization with a mission to bring equitable access to the arts and to provide fair compensation to artists, the AcA supports the creation of new works of art, exhibits, festivals, performances, and public art across an eight-parish region that includes Acadia, Evangeline, Iberia, Lafayette, St. Landry, St. Martin, St. Mary, and Vermilion Parishes. Its Executive Director, Sam Oliver, is our guest on this episode of Discover Lafayette.

Sam Oliver is a Lafayette native, a graduate of Lafayette High School, LSU, and Queen Margaret University in Edinburgh, Scotland. He was previously assistant director for the Contemporary Arts Center in New Orleans. 

The AcA offers a 300 seat, intimate setting for performances ranging from the upcoming Allman Betts Band performance in May 2020 (which is already sold out) to "Live from the Met" which is broadcast monthly. Ticket prices are affordable, ranging from $10 to the most expensive at $70 for nationally known acts. Even if you purchase a seat in the back row farthest from the stage, you will be seated only about 100 feet from the performance and enjoy an exceptional experience. As Sam says, the AcA strives to offer a "boutique experience" for all patrons. While tickets may be purchased online at https://acadianacenterforthearts.org, most loyal patrons call up the staff and are helped personally, ensuring that their planned night out goes off without a hitch.

Clayton Shelvin, another Lafayette area native, is the Curator of Performing Arts, who actively researches the artists selected for each season's event schedule. No act is booked unless the AcA's staff has previewed the act in person to ensure that the performance will meet the audience's expectations for quality and relevance for our community. The AcA endeavors to select diverse selections that speak to people from all walks of life to experience art, music, dance and other artistic endeavors.

On February 18, 2020, the AcA will host Judy Collins at the Heymann Performing Arts Center. The most expensive seat in the house is $60 and tickets are still available for purchase here. 

Live performances from the Metropolitan Opera may be enjoyed once a month. For more information, visit the AcA here.

The Acadiana Center for the Arts offers exhibits featuring visual arts. At no charge, the public may view outstanding works of art and request guided tours of the facility. Currently, the work of Jeremiah Ariaz is on display which focuses on the unique African-American trail-riding clubs which are popular in South Louisiana. Ariaz first discovered these trail riders while riding his motorcycle through Louisiana and was so intrigued he spent four years getting to know the participants and documenting their experiences through his outstanding photography. For more on Ariaz and his thoughts on this project, visit http://www.jeremiahariaz.com/louisiana-trail-riders.

“Louisiana Trail Riders” by Jeremiah Ariaz is the first major exhibition of black and white photographs documenting the Creole trail-riding clubs of Southern Louisiana.This exhibit may be viewed at no charge at the AcA Monday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 5 pm. until March 14, 2020.

The AcA partners with all 43 schools in the Lafayette Parish Public School System, as well as Vermilion and St. Landry public school districts, to ensure that students have access to the arts. With funding for arts in our public schools being scarce, this partnership builds a valuable connection between working art professionals and students of all ages. Art lessons are incorporated into the teaching of science,

To sleep or not to sleep? While many of us may think, or even brag, that we do exceptionally well with only four to six hours of sleep per night, the health statistics relating to this inadequate sleep pattern are alarming and prove otherwise. In this episode of Discover Lafayette, HPHI's Tyler Lafleur discusses the importance of adequate sleep (eight hours per night) and why sleep is the #1 prescription for his clients who want to achieve optimal health. After listening to this interview, you'll never knowingly choose to skimp on your sleep again.

Twenty years ago, scientists believed that the main reason people slept was to "cure sleepiness" as it wasn't understood how lack of sleep triggers a myriad of changes in the physiological, emotional and mental states of the body. Today, it is well understood that sleep is one of the four main biological drivers that keep humans alive, along with food, water, and sex (for procreation). Sleep is so important that The Guinness Book of World Records has done away with the category of "going without sleep" because of the health dangers of severe sleep loss.

Historically, as humans have evolved, we have always needed the same amount of sleep. However, modern inventions such as the blue light emanating from our electronic devices and Daylight Savings Time have affected our natural circadian rhythms and ability of our bodies to produce melatonin while reducing cortisol levels so as to induce a healthy sleep state. Adding in stressors that our ancestors never experienced (demanding jobs, traffic woes, incessant pings from smartphones and computers) and the increasing societal pressure to get more productivity out of each and every day, has resulted in sleep being pushed to the bottom of the priority list of things that have to get done. Until recently, no one even understood that sleep was a critical factor in health and wellness.

Matthew Walker PhD's Why We Sleep: Unlocking the Power of Sleep and Dreams (2017). New York, NY: Simon & Schuster, Inc., is a powerful tome full of the author's groundbreaking research on the benefits of sleep and the accompanying health issues generated from lack of restorative sleep. Tyler cited anecdotal evidence witnessed in executives he has coached that mirror the health issues discussed in Walker's book. Sleep issues are at the core of all health issues his clients present, whether it be obesity, cardiovascular, thyroid, cancer or autoimmune diseases.

"Scientists have discovered a revolutionary new treatment that makes you live longer. It enhances your memory and makes you more creative. It makes you look more attractive. It keeps you slim and lowers food cravings. It protects you from cancer and dementia. It wards off colds and the flu. It lowers your risk of heart attacks and stroke, not to mention diabetes. You'll even feel happier, less depressed, and less anxious." (The proven benefits of a full night of sleep.") Walker, Matthew (2017). Why We Sleep (1st Ed.) New York, NY. Simon & Schuster, Inc.

Healthy hormone levels are key to our health and sleep patterns, and cortisol and melatonin are at the forefront. Melatonin levels should increase gradually after it becomes dark outside to enable the body to wind down and enter a sleep state. As the night ends and the sun is about to rise, the cortisol hormone begins to rise between 4 and 6 a.m. to prepare the body to awaken. These natural rhythms are known as the circadian rhythm. Yet our modern lifestyle of watching tv, playing on the computer, answering emails and being exposed to incandescent lights till all hours delays production of melatonin and thus delaying the ability to sleep without artificial sleep aids such as Ambien, Xanex or alcohol. These artificial substances alter the body's natural ability to engage in each stage of sleep: light NREM s...

Kody Chamberlain, writer, cartoonist, and graphic artist, has chosen to remain in Lafayette LA since graduating from USL (now UL - Lafayette) in 1997 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree. A successful player in the creative arts industry, most of his peers live in New York City or Los Angeles, or even Portland or Austin, because they're drawn to "the scene," a community of other like-minded professionals with whom they can network and bounce ideas off each other. Kody is just fine here in Lafayette and acknowledges that the internet, dropbox, and other tools make this an easier task than when he started out twenty years ago.

Kody is well-known for his ability to pull together original and creative projects using all mediums and in diverse endeavors such as comic book art, board game design, creation of the 2019 Festival International Poster, or writing crime novels. These fetes are amazing given the fact that Kody didn't grow up thinking he was creative and didn't start drawing until he was 18 when he took his first beginner art class as a Freshman. Most artists start when they are small children so Kody had a bit of catching up to do.

Having never gotten better than a "C" for any art class he took in college, as he looks back, Kody doesn't feel he got to be good at drawing until he had worked at it for fifteen years or so! Yet he's worked on his craft with a loving touch as he always enjoyed it. "Natural ability without joy won't lead to success." He counsels people who come to him for advice to think about what they do in their spare time; if they're not doodling or drawing on a sketch pad, art may not be their forte.

Kody Chamberlain loves what he does and always has a sketch pad out, he's always doodling. "I think the reason I eventually got good at this is because I enjoyed it. Natural ability without joy won't lead to success."

He was first drawn to Lafayette when he visited friends at USL while attending Nichols State University in Thibodaux, and he particularly liked the vibe of Festival International. Midway through his college career, he transferred to USL because it offered a better Arts program and he liked Lafayette. He graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts with an emphasis in advertising design under the direction of Professor Richard "Dutch" Keppler, where he learned to think creatively, write headlines and copy, and understand that quality results can be achieved using any medium.  Keppler had no interest in software at that time and Kody feels fortunate that he learned how to express ideas by utilizing any creative technique that could get a quality job done.

While he started out working with advertising agencies using his graphic design background, he wanted to write and tell stories and gradually transitioned into comic book writing and drawing while he free-lanced with local agencies so he could pay the bills. He was first paid for his art in 2008, eleven years after graduating and plugging away at his craft.

In 2011, Kody wrote, drew and published an original crime novel set in New Orleans post-Hurricane Katrina; Sweets: A New Orleans Crime Story A murder-mystery dealing with a cop who had to solve a crime before the hurricane hits and crucial evidence is washed away. He also published a five-part accompanying comic book series through Image Comics, which garnered the Spinetingler Award. Kody turned to Kickstarter to obtain community support to fund the printing and promotional efforts like posters, flyers, tradeshow displays, trade show travel expenses, shipping, print and web advertising, and preview books (ashcans) that are sent out to the media for review. It is rare for a comic book writer to develop all aspects of a series from the original concept, art, lettering, and promotion yet Kody's efforts were a huge success.

Matthew "Matt" Gordy Stuller has forged his own success in life, entering the jewelry business as a high school student in his beloved hometown of Lafayette LA. Against the advice of his parents, Dr. Gilbert and Alma Stuller, as well as industry titans he met at the age of 18 when he traveled to New York to share his innovative ideas on the more timely delivery of orders, Matt has always followed his own intuition when it comes to building his business. Over the years, his parents were able to see him achieve monumental success. As Matt shares, "There is nothing better than being able to make your parents proud."

In this episode of Discover Lafayette, you will have the opportunity to hear the heart and soul-felt message delivered by the man who built Stuller and employs approximately 1250 talented professionals in Lafayette. Matt Stuller still focuses each day on delivering outstanding service to customers worldwide who order beautiful jewelry which may be handed down from generation to generation. He attributes his success to the talent of his staff. "They are truly the ones that drive the business. Our people make it happen."

Matt Stuller, along with Ray Weiland, at the groundbreaking of his headquarters at 302 Rue Louis XIV, Lafayette, LA. The facility currently houses about 1250 local employees, many of whom have been with the company for decades. He made the decision to build his business in Lafayette against the sage advice of jewelry industry titans in the early 1970's and has never looked back.

Stuller is now the largest jewelry manufacturing and distributing firm in the United States and will celebrate its 50th anniversary on November 12, 2020. From Matt's early days of delivering his wares to small mom and pop jewelers from the back of his Datsun 240Z and creating designs in his dad's orthodontic dental lab, to his current operation which delivers hundreds of thousands of orders worldwide each and every day, Matt delights in the fun adventure of creating "gifts of God's greatest creations of gold, platinum, and silver with the most beautiful gemstones harvested from the inner earth.

We get to be the artists in building jewelry that allow people to celebrate life's most meaningful events." Always mechanically inclined, Matt fell in love with the business when he worked with a craftsman in the back of a local jeweler's store when he was still in high school. He learned sizing, stone setting, and polishing, and in the process, he fell in love with the business. As he sold jewelry and componentry to small, independent store owners throughout Louisiana in his early days in business, his passion for service was cemented and he looks back fondly on all the kind people who helped him by purchasing his wares as he was starting out.

Stuller is now the largest jewelry manufacturing and distributing firm in the United States and will celebrate its 50th anniversary on November 12, 2020. Some of Matt Stuller's employees have been with him 20, 30 and 40 years.

Over the years, Stuller has had to adapt to changing business conditions. "You have to change to stay up to date with the market place." Yet he's also awed by the number of employees who are daughters, sons and grandchildren of some of his original employees. Each quarter Stuller celebrates work anniversaries of employees, some of whom have been with him for 20, 30 and 40 years.

"I think we're the best in the jewelry business worldwide. I certainly know we're the best in service and reputation worldwide. That's been my goal. It's not ok to just be ok.

Matt Stuller also believes in giving back to others. He started The Stuller Family Foundation 26 years ago when he realized that part of the responsibility of his Chri...

Fay Harris has always been an active community volunteer and a respected professional in the hotel, radio, tv, and sports industries. She joins Jan Swift on this episode of Discover Lafayette to discuss how her faith in God and belief in the power of prayer are the essential components in her recovery from a life-threatening accident.

On the morning of September 25, 2018, at 7:30 a.m. as she drove down I-10 West on the Atchalafaya Bridge on the way to her job at The Blake in Lafayette, Fay remembers looking at the beautiful sunrise, one of her favorite sights. Then, she experienced the inexplicable: a large crane spontaneously fell on the hood of her vehicle, shoving the dashboard and steering wheel forward, pinning her in, crushing her legs and causing internal injuries. But, she survived. It was a miracle. Luckily, she has no memory of the incident.

A construction crane fell on the hood of Fay Harris's vehicle on September 25, 2018, as she drove to work on I-10. It's a miracle that she survived and she attributes her faith in God and the 76 healthcare professionals and emergency responders for her recovery. Photo by La. State Police.

The vehicles traveling behind Fay's car were able to stop before rear-ending her. A woman a few cars behind her called 911 to report the accident; when the operator asked her if she knew how many people were in the crushed car, she walked over to the scene and realized it was her neighbor and friend, Fay Harris. This bit of serendipity enabled Fay's husband, Locke, to be notified quickly and he was able to join Fay at Lafayette General where she was airlifted, once the St. Martin Parish Fire Department cut her out of her car.

Over the next seventeen days, Fay endured five surgeries and she spoke highly of her orthopedic trauma surgeon, Dr. Blaine Walton of Lafayette General Health, as well as her entire healthcare team. The major injuries sustained were to her legs, particularly her left leg which had to be rebuilt to repair the compound fractures to her femur and tibia using rods and plates.

One of the most difficult moments in her hospital stay was when Dr. Walton told Fay that it would be four to six months before she would be able to stand and walk. Being an active runner and exercise lover, this was her worst nightmare. But by mid-December 2018, Fay stood up in Dr. Walton's office. She was walking with the aid of a walker by mid-January 2019 and soon thereafter with the aid of a cane which she still uses due to the extensive damage to her left leg.

Through the ordeal, Fay remained calm and optimistic. She credits the outstanding work of all the 76 healthcare professionals and emergency rescue responders for her recovery, and during the interview, Fay tearfully recounted how she hopes telling her story will encourage healthcare providers to continue their service in the medical industry. It can be difficult working with trauma patients and many times the outcome is not good. She tells them, "Just keep doing it. You save lives." Megan Wyatt of The Advocate shared Fay's touching story of her admiration for all her healthcare providers which may be read here.

Fay also has a secret weapon she has relied upon in her recovery: her faith in God. She believes that we all go through things for a reason and her message is simple and profound: "Be positive and open to being used by Him for His purposes."

"I couldn't have gotten through this without God. The fact that I was in good shape facilitated my healing, but I could never have gotten through this without my faith.

I also now understand that life is short. I now try to live each day as if it's my last. I still have things on my bucket list and I'm going to do them,

Advocate To Host Acadiana Economic Outlook Summit on January 15, 2020

Adam Daigle, Business Editor of the Acadiana Advocate, joined the newspaper in August 2018 as the organization ramped up its daily business coverage online and in print. Its daily email business newsletter has consistently continued to add online subscribers as it feeds the need for local, up-to-date business news.

On this Discover Lafayette podcast, Adam Daigle joined Jan Swift to discuss 2019 business news, the Advocate's upcoming January 15, 2020, Economic Outlook Summit to be held at the Acadiana Center for the Arts, and his love for Louisiana and why he moved back when the opportunity to work with The Advocate allowed him to be closer to family.

The Advocate is Louisiana's largest newspaper and has experienced tremendous growth as it recently acquired the Times-Picayune in New Orleans and brought on extensive talent from other local newspapers. Adam shared that he feels The Advocate has "assembled an all-star team" that delivers the "best of the best" in news coverage.

A 1995 graduate of Southeastern Louisiana University in Journalism and a native of Gonzales, Adam previously worked for the Tulsa World in Oklahoma for 12 years before returning to his home state of Louisiana. Adam served as a sports editor and later executive editor of The Lion's Roar, Southeastern's student newspaper. He and his wife, Shelly, have four children and are members of Asbury United Methodist Church in Lafayette.

2019 was a time of economic resurgence in Lafayette Parish, as retail sales continued to climb at a pace that may equal the all-time high previously reached in 2014 experienced prior to the oil and gas downturn which severely dampened the local economy. The Lafayette Regional Airport has counted a record number of travelers, also rivaling 2014 prior to the downturn. Real estate sales overall in Acadiana are breaking records, with St. Landry and Iberia Parishes doing exceptionally well. Job growth is steady, with a 4.3% unemployment rate, a sign that Lafayette's economy has recovered and stabilized.

The biggest news of 2019 has no doubt been that of Chris Meaux's startup restaurant delivery service, Waitr, which has experienced extreme highs and lows since it went public early in its development, then acquired Bite Squad out of Minneapolis which brought on extreme debt and a consequent dramatic fall in its stock price.

2019's biggest business news story involved Waitr's dramatic fall in value as it acquired Bite Squad, had massive layoffs, and changed fee structures imposed upon its restaurant partners.

Other compelling 2019 business news came late in the year and involved mergers of two solid companies based in Lafayette: (1) Lafayette General Health's merger with Oschner Health System; and (2) IBERIABANK's planned merger with First Horizon out of Memphis, TN which will enable more investment in advanced technologies and innovate practices. Both deals involve mergers of equals, which are anticipated to allow strong business growth locally in the Lafayette market and beyond.

Lafayette General Health System set to merge with Oschner Health System. Photo by Leslie Westbrook.IBERIABANK's planned merger with First Horizon of Memphis. Photo by Scott Clause.

Health and Information Technology job markets are hot in Acadiana, especially in Lafayette Parish, and attract young, educated workers needed to combat the out-migration of Louisiana's talent. While Adam Daigle recently wrote a series of articles on the out-migration of our under 34-year old educated populace, the majority of Louisiana towns that are losing talent are situated in North Louisiana and rural areas of the state.

In this episode of Discover Lafayette, Jan Swift meets with the Cyber Security Team at RADER: Chief Security Officer Tim Fournet, Sarah Bryson, Head of Security Operations Team, and Tyler Robertson, Cyber Security Analyst, who discuss the importance of planning ahead to avoid hacks that can bring down a business.

Since 2002, RADER has helped clients focus on their business while their team takes care of the technology and keeping data secure.

The "World Wide Web," or the internet as we call it today, was invented in 1989 by Sir Tim Berners-Lee as a convenient way to share data on open platforms in a non-discriminatory way; it was not set up to secure the data, and in those days, people freely shared their Social Security Numbers and other personal data without fear of being robbed blind or having their business systems stolen and held up in exchange for a ransom.

It's a different day in 2019. Savvy criminals now run organized businesses on the dark web where they buy and sell everything that's available to be exploited. Using untraceable cryptocurrencies, unsavory characters can purchase your email password for a couple of bucks or spend time on other people's computers (for $10 to 15 bucks). Personal identities are harvested by criminal actors and sold for profit. Government computer systems are shut down by ransomware; department stores such as Target report that millions of users' debit card accounts have been compromised.

Tim Fournet has been with RADER for fourteen years and has witnessed the evolution of computer problems people experience. The early days involved buying, maintaining and fixing hardware for small businesses; today, RADER typically manages entire computer and telephone systems to prevent problems for businesses ranging in size from 10 to 1000 employees. As technology has advanced quickly over the past decade, Tim has seen the benefits of utilizing cloud computing become countered with the risks of bad guys having access to all of your data.

With the increase of criminal activity over the internet, most of which is untraceable, RADER is now focused on teaching their clients to understand the risks that are out there and how to better protect themselves with security measures.

Two of the most common phishing scams: financial transaction scams and stealing people's credentials. 94% of malware is delivered through email.

The importance of educating all employees on how to prevents cyber hacks can not be overstated. No matter how sophisticated a computer system nor how many security measures have been implemented, the end-user is where the system is most vulnerable. One click of a link that shouldn't have been clicked can transfer funds that will never be retrieved, leak trade secrets and intellectual property, release personal information on your clients, and cause other untold damage that can permanently ruin a business.

"Spear Phishing" or "Whaling" is a phishing attack that targets a specific high profile employee with the intent to steal information or cause a transfer of large sums of money. More nefarious than a generalized attack on a system, the "big phish" victim is targeted online by the criminal actor who requests specific information or wire transfer of money from what seems like a trusted source using personal information about the target.

RADER recommends that multi-factor identification be used to help protect your personal accounts. Using something other than just a user name and password to confirm your identity, such as receiving a text on a separate device from the one you're using to access your online account is desirable. Use different passwords for different accounts. Once you're hacked,