Support for Louisiana.

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Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana.

And the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting and viewers like you.

Thank you.

And.

You know.

Me.

And.

You.

Hello, everyone.

I'm Karen LeBlanc, and I'm Dorothea Wilson.

On our first episode of Summer SWI, we're highlighting the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame celebration in Natchitoches.

We are going to show you this year's inductees and dig into our archives to show everything going on around the city.

This weekend, LPB sports correspondent Victor Howell is here now.

And Victor, you've hosted the purple carpet Donna, for several years.

A lot of fun.

Had a great time with Karen one year ago when we welcome everybody in to the Sports Hall of Fame, and we are getting ready to load up and head to Natchitoches for our live broadcast of this year's Hall of Fame ceremony.

And what a class it is for the class of 2025.

Some of this year's inductees include two men pivotal in LSU's 2003 national Championship for football head coach Nick Saban and now Super Bowl champ Andrew Whitworth.

Other inductees include pro basketball All-Stars Danny Granger and Vickie Johnson, along with the winningest all time college baseball coach and Joe Sherman, and one of the nation's most successful high school basketball coaches.

That's Saint Thomas More's Danny Broussard in Lafayette, also included in this year's class.

LSU gymnastics great April Burkholder, Catholic High School head football coach Dale Weiner and 1956 NCAA boxing champ Bobby Swallow, along with several sports broadcasters and journalists.

Like I mentioned, it is a tremendous class.

And it all starts with the purple carpet ceremony.

And we will be live in Natchitoches.

It is always a fun time and we are looking forward to getting there and celebrating this outstanding class.

Right.

I look forward to hosting the purple carpet again with you, a star studded weekend, and you're going to be joining us this year.

I am, and I'm so excited about that.

But you guys, earlier this year there was a bit of a scare.

Now a fire broke out at the Sports Hall of Fame.

Museum officials say an electrical problem sparked the fire, but fortunately the sprinkler system kicked in.

That's right.

And the fire caused minor damage to a room just off the entrance that houses the museum's Wall of Honor, featuring the name of inductees.

Now, most of the damage has been repaired and the museum is back open.

That Sports Hall of Fame and Northwest Louisiana History Museum in downtown Natchitoches attracts both sports fans and history buffs.

It's not only an architectural jewel, but also serves as a chronicle of Louisiana's legendary athletes and celebrates the region's history and culture.

Check it out.

Along the banks of the cane River Lake in downtown historic Natchitoches, you'll encounter an eye catching structure that looks out of sorts with all of these historic buildings.

It's a museum, and inside, you'll discover that Louisiana's rich culture and history shares the spotlight with the state's world class athletes.

The.

It's been ten years since the museum opened.

And, look, it was a labor of love not only for the residents of Natchitoches and local officials, but also for the Louisiana Sports Writers Association.

The real reason this is here was that for the first 14 years of the Hall of Fame's existence, from 1958 forward, it was nomadic in nature.

It was there were inductions done halftime for LSU basketball games, at sports banquets all around the state.

There was a small collection of artwork that went on display in certain places, but it didn't have a home.

And in 1972, Northwestern State University offered a home and built a permanent display case that expanded to two, that expanded to three.

And so Natchitoches is truly a very hospitable town and always has been.

So all of that blends together to make the Hall of Fame home in Natchitoches just as natural fit as you can get.

The architecture of the museum serves as its own attraction.

You can see that the structure kind of curves around.

It's made of bent steel and clad in cap stone, fitted together much like a jigsaw puzzle.

It's decidedly futuristic, and there's a story behind it, some symbolism.

Words.

When it was built in 2003, we won the top architectural award in the world by Wausau Magazine.

And it's all individual, about 1030 pieces of individual cast stone, all different sizes.

And if you look down this hallway, a lot of people guess, oh, it's a tunnel for the sports was actually supposed to be the cut of a river, as we have cane River Lake right outside.

The smoothness of the stones, the natural light that comes in, even the pebbles up in the light fixtures.

Even outside we have the copper and they have the louvered look of the copper, which is supposed to be the louvered look of, plantation shutters.

So that's really sort of the the inspiration for the design of the building.

Two museums and one the ground floor showcases sports memorabilia, including a rotating exhibit featuring personal items from the annual inductees and the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, an event held in Natchitoches in July.

Upstairs, the sports exhibits continue with Louisiana's notable athletes and memorable sports moments, including recent updates in honor of the museum's 10th anniversary.

So as part of the updates, we try to do a little bit for each, case.

And here in our LSU case, we got to add two of Nick Saban's championship rings when he was at LSU.

And then we actually after Kim Mulkey won the 2023 championship with that boy, wouldn't it be wonderful to have something from her.

And she graciously lent us one of her outfits from that championship season.

And that sash was she.

She was the commencement speaker at the LSU vet school, and she says what they gave her when she was the commencement speaker.

We have several other pieces of LSU memorabilia from that championship season, so we're really proud of this.

Another side of the museum chronicles 3000 years of the region's history and Louisiana's way of life, from hunting and fishing to the timber industry and the arts.

We stand here in Louisiana's oldest city, in fact the oldest city in the Louisiana Purchase, all of the New Orleans founded in 1714.

So this is certainly the cradle of history in our state and really west of the Mississippi River.

So we're in the midst of the cane River National Heritage Area, and the museum sort of can serve as a primary guest to help people understand it.

It really does.

Consider a lot of the sites that we talk about are also sites that are open to the public.

And you can tour.

So, I mean, like I said, we're a great sort of beginning and then you can pick and choose where you want to go to see the rest of the sites in the area.

One of the most celebrated artists here in the region is Clementine Hunter.

She is a folk artist and she painted Plantation life in the region.

She worked at Melrose Plantation.

Now the museum has a substantial collection of Clementine hunter works early.

This is the realization of a dream, and it's much bigger and greater than we ever dreamed it could be.

And that credit goes to, governors, lieutenant governors, legislators who understood this is not a Natchitoches thing.

This is a Louisiana museum, and it celebrates Louisiana greatness.

And it's from Lake Providence to Lake Charles.

It's from out of the Grand Isle.

And anybody who walks in here can quickly find something or somebody that speaks to their home in Louisiana.

Each year, the museum brings in new artifacts and memorabilia paying tribute to the new inductees.

It also features rotating exhibits and interactive media detailing that state's sports history.

The 2025 inductees to the Sports Hall of Fame range from gymnasts to transformational coaches and champion boxers.

Right.

So how are the classes picked?

And who selects the winners?

Here's a look at how the Louisiana Sportswriters Association decides who makes the cut.

The vision of the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame began in the 1950s, when a group of sportswriters knew that covering Louisiana athletics was more than just box scores and bylines, but also preserving the state's rich sports heritage.

A glance along the museum's wall of honor you'll find the likes of Barmore, Brando and Beard.

To be able to come back home, being around good people that you know, or at the very beginning of this journey with me is something pretty special.

Williams, Woodruff and Washington.

You know, there's a vision, and that's what it's all about.

And when you're talking about being inducted into anything, it has to be a vision.

Icons like Scott.

So Bill Simmons from cowboys to rifles and pistols each year at the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame Committee selection meeting, an ever expanding list of names is discussed, dissected, and analyzed.

Each year, we study a ballot nearly 30 pages long, and we narrow it down to roughly a third of that to go into a meeting room somewhere and vote like you used to see voting in a political convention round by round.

It's a very challenging process, even up to the day of the selection.

This discussion not only includes the state's great athletes, but also colleagues, leaders and trendsetters.

Scooter.

Mad dog.

The professor and grits.

Much like the selection process, the annual celebration to honor the newest class of inductees has also evolved through the years.

On the move, the country club, the scene of the 1990 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame induction.

Who can forget Vida mulkey, Rags Conway, Landry and Shaquille, all part of an elite fraternity?

A time capsule into Louisiana's sports history, curated by a group of writers who share a passion for excellence.

There are some astounding people who have not yet been elected because of the depth of great, not good, but great elite sports figures.

The Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame host numerous events throughout the weekend.

Many of the events are open to the public, giving them a chance to hang out with some of the new inductees.

Now, I've never been before this year, but this sounds like this is going to be packed.

It is a packed weekend.

They make sure the inductees have fun fans and family and friends have fun as well, and things kick off with a welcome reception that will start off at the Hall of Fame Museum.

Then fans get the chance to roll strikes with the stars at the Celebrity Bowling Bash.

One of the events the inductees like the entire weekend, they get really competitive.

They do, and they have a lot of fun.

Well, I love that.

And the new inductees, they get to take part along with other famous faces, including previous Hall of Famers.

The teams of four can be paired with one of the celebrities.

It's always tons of fun with live music, food and drinks and of course, all of that is followed by a free concert at the rockin River Fest that's on Front Street in Natchitoches.

For performance include the Lauren Lee band, followed by the Chase Tyler Band, the class of 2025 will be introduced and there are tons of events for kids, followed by a fireworks extravaganza.

And if you're not already exhausted from all of that, wait, there's more!

There's the exclusive VIP taste of tailgating at Mama's Oyster House.

Attendees will be able to chat with the 2025 inductees and enjoy a great meal.

As you would expect and this is a favorite with the kiddos.

There is a junior training camp for kids ages seven through 16.

Kids can hang out with their favorite athlete from this year's class and get tips from officials for the Saints and the Pelicans, along with coaches from Northwestern State.

That's right.

And they'll run drills just like players in the NFL and NBA and the events coming.

Eight will the induction, reception and ceremony at the Natchitoches Event Center.

You can see a lineup of everything they'll be taking place at this year's induction ceremony.

Learn more about the sports Hall of Fame at LA Sports hall.com.

I am ready to go.

It's going to be a live broadcast, but if you can get there in person, they've even added more seats.

So come join us in Natchitoches.

Oh yeah.

Y'all finished?

I'm ready to go.

That's what I love about it too is it is a community event.

Community is invited to be a part of this with the Rock and River Fest and all the the things that go on, and it's family friendly.

So it's a great weekend for the athletes and the inductees and the biggest and the biggest thing you say about community, it's not just the Natchitoches community.

It's open to the entire state, but the people in Natchitoches are so wonderful this weekend.

That's why everybody enjoys it year after year.

Great event.

All good.

Well, each year, new inductees into the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame are immortalized on canvas.

The artist who creates these iconic images is a former professional athlete who shares a common theme with his subjects.

It's one of resilience in the face of challenges.

Here's his story.

Artist Chris Brown is colorblind.

Although you'd never guess it from the looks of his brightly colored portraits of the 2024 Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame inductees.

I've adapted.

You know, it's just like anybody that would lose a leg.

They would adapt to life.

So I've adapted in that way.

I know what I see.

I have no clue what you see.

Since 2009, Chris has been painting portraits of Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame inductees with Prisma colored wax pencils.

He developed his own technique of identifying colors.

If you were to, you know, my Prismacolor pencils, if you were to open up my case and I have like 500 in there, every single one you picked up, you would notice that the name of the color is always on the opposite end of the sharpened, you know.

So I do know, I know my colors really, really well as far as what goes what what what do I use to make certain things?

Because I might mix some things that that you wouldn't think to mix.

You know, I think it's all a little science experiment.

Every single time I use grays, a lot of grays are very neutral.

So I use cool grays and warm grays to manipulate colors to get them to what I'm seeing on the photograph onto onto here.

So, you know, the only bummer is I'm never going to be able to see it the way you see it, because I have no clue how you see it.

The athlete turned artist played for the Chicago Cubs as a minor league pitcher before turning his full time attention to art.

Each inductee portrait is a collaboration that speaks to the person's career and personality.

Each portrait of the athlete is almost like a visual bios, sort of a story of their their achievements and who they are.

That's a good way to put it.

Yeah, yeah, it's just like I said, I really want people to know when they come in, what they did, what they accomplished, why they're here, you know, and then once they see the portrait, then they can pull it up on the screen and find out the kind of person that they were to.

They're always great people, you know, and and maybe that's what goes into them becoming such great athletes is, is the kind of people that they are.

So, in the end, once you read their bio and everything on, on the touch screen and they're really you really start to understand what it takes to be in the Hall of Famer.

Each inductee name is etched into the museum's illuminated Sports Hall of Fame.

Wall names date back to 1959, with the first class of sport's greats after, you know, 16 years of work and, 10 or 12 portraits a year.

It's starting to fill up with all these names that I that I know and I love, and I'm, I'm invested in and, you know, I consider them all friends.

Each year, the museum showcases a memorabilia exhibit of inductees, mementos on loan.

Some of the items appear in Chris's portraits.

So you can, you can see it's a very.

It's a very, diverse class.

Anyway, as far as MMA for the first time, you know, so that's exciting.

And you want to talk about, fun for an artist.

The belt.

So you got the real belt right here, you know, and you can kind of see the kind of detail that goes into that.

So as an artist who's doing the market, that's the first thing that pops in your head.

You're like, oh, not, I have to do a belt.

I get to do a belt.

You know, I get to do the UFC belt.

During the Sports Hall of Fame induction weekend, Chris presents each inductee with an official portrait print, which is the culmination of months of work in his studio.

What do you think?

Well, I think that's great.

You made me look a lot younger, made me look taller.

Is it just no cellulite showing that show?

I think that's that's a that's a big deal.

I said, you know, he actually looks like I lost weight, which is.

That's not true.

It's just I built, like a meatball.

I'm excited about being here.

I'm excited about all the places that we've coached.

And more importantly, the experiences that we had every, every stop along the way, whether there's Tulane or high school, that's what makes it all worthwhile.

I mean, to see their reaction, them going on the stage is the biggest, biggest thing that, you know, this is something that's going to be permanent.

It is absolutely mind blowing that despite the fact Chris Brown is colorblind, his his paintings and his his artwork is so vivid with color and saturated color, it's just phenomenal.

I love that I wouldn't even be able to do it.

And I'm not colorblind, so I see I even do it with the paint, but not okay.

So I say, what talent?

Well, the city of Natchitoches is not only home to the Sports Hall of Fame, it is also the oldest city in Louisiana.

Yes it is.

And from touring one of the region's oldest cemeteries to the city's world class Christmas celebration, there's always something to see or do.

Here's a look at some of the highlights.

The city of Natchitoches was founded in 1714, and its roots run deep along the cane River lake.

Strolling the streets of downtown Natchitoches is a walk through time, perhaps even in the footsteps of the founders of Louisiana's oldest permanent settlement.

Today, locally owned boutiques, quaint cafes and restaurants all reside in 18th and 19th century buildings that populate the area.

Designated as a national Historic Landmark District along the main street, you can shop at Louisiana's oldest general store.

Café Friedrich has been in business since 1863, selling a mix of modern day and vintage products with nostalgic nods to the retailers of yesteryear.

A few blocks down to one of the few French Creole residents still in existence.

It was built in the 1790s by a free man of color.

Oh, Karen.

Welcome to the Kelly Rocket House.

Come in.

Well.

Thank you.

So, Ben, nice to meet you.

Nice to meet you.

So the first question is, who is Mr. Kelly?

Mr. ally was a slave born in 1736, here in Natchitoches Parish.

Stayed in pairs.

Was a slave for 68 years.

He convinced his owner to sell him his freedom.

So I say of 1798.

He bought his freedom for $100, and he immediately started building his house.

Eve McCalla built the rock house in 1803, 22 miles down the cane River Lake, on unserved land between two plantations.

It sat there for 170 years before moving to the river banks and downtown Natchitoches.

The modest three room house has a central living room, a single bedroom for the entire family, and a guest quarters.

The Rock House resides along the banks of cane River Lake.

It's an oxbow lake formed by a former channel of the Red River.

A riverboat ride reveals how the lake has shaped the region's history, culture, and daily life.

The American Cemetery in town is the oldest graveyard in the Louisiana Purchase.

Today, it serves as a memory keeper of the state's origins, and welcomes the public for tours and a walk back in time.

The American cemetery sits on the former site of a French colonial fort in Natchitoches.

Today, a wrought iron arch greets visitors from its Second Street entrance, where people of all creeds, colors and social statuses share common ground in death.

How old is the American cemetery?

Well, the oldest grave that we have marked is 1797.

So.

But we think there's gravestones that are that would have been or burials that would have been well before that.

So they say this is the oldest cemetery in the Louisiana park.

It is the oldest European cemetery.

Yeah.

So it's this where the French, the initial French residents and so forth were buried in these grounds.

The cemetery has people buried here that were in every war, from the Revolutionary War, through the Civil War, through the Korean War, through Vietnam, all the way up until just recently.

Around town.

Movie buffs can check out scenes from the 1989 movie Steel Magnolias, filmed in Natchitoches.

The bed and Breakfast the steel Magnolia House pays homage to its famous guest, who starred in the movie, with rooms named after the main characters and photos and memorabilia.

For each December, the world famous Natchitoches Christmas Festival takes place.

Turning the town into a holiday wonderland.

Yes, the sun sets the waterway lights up with over a hundred lighted displays, 300,000 lights.

It's a beloved tradition that attracts visitors from all over.

Light displays glow along the cane River lake, beckoning people to stroll along the river banks or take a boat ride to appreciate the holiday spectacle.

Downtown streets are alive with music, performances and community events during the six week long Christmas Festival that begins on the Saturday before Thanksgiving and concludes on January 6th.

The epiphany.

In Natchitoches resides in the cane River region, shaped by its Creole culture and descendants of agricultural workers, both enslaved and tenants and land owners.

Cane River Creole National Historic Park tells their stories on the grounds of Oakland and Magnolia Estates.

Former Creole cotton plantations.

Cane River Creole National Historic Park is about 12 miles from downtown Natchitoches.

Before you go, be sure and stop by the visitor's Center at the Texas and Pacific Railroad Depot, completed in 1927.

The building stands as one of the last remaining segregated structures in the state of Louisiana.

From meat pies to movie sets, main streets to museums, Natchitoches has many claims to fame that attract visitors worldwide.

This city of living history weaves the past and the present in a fascinating and unique cultural tapestry.

That's our show for this week.

Remember you can watch anything LPB anytime wherever you are with our LPB app.

That's right.

And you can catch LPB news and public affairs shows, as well as other Louisiana programs you've come to enjoy over the years.

And please like us on Facebook and Instagram.

And Victor, thanks again for joining us in studio.

We look forward to seeing you.

Look forward to seeing you, Weezy at a Sports Hall of Fame celebration.

See you both in Natchitoches.

I'll see you on the purple carpet where the broadcast streaming only starts at 6 p.m..

I'll see you at the ceremony when it starts.

Live here on LPB at 7:00.

And of course, you can check on LPB dawg for rebroadcast times and all the information.

Looking forward to it.

We'll see you all in that car.

That's right.

All right, let's do it for everyone at Louisiana Public Broadcasting.

I'm Karen Lichtblau, and I'm Dorothea Wilson.

Until next time.

That's the state we're in.

Hey, Lisa.

No, I can't hold a party, but we have a meeting at Support for Louisiana.

The state we're in is provided by Entergy.

Louisiana is strengthening our power grid throughout the state.

We're reinforcing infrastructure to prepare for stronger storms, reduce outages, and respond quicker when you do need us.

Because together we power life.

Additional support provided by the Fred B and Ruth B Zigler Foundation and the Zigler Art Museum, located in Jennings City Hall.

The museum focuses on emerging Louisiana artists and is a historical and cultural center for Southwest Louisiana and by Mary Bird Perkins Cancer Center.

Visit Baton Rouge and the Foundation for Excellence in Louisiana Public Broadcasting and viewers like you.

Thank you.