Edmiston given leadership award

DALLAS, Texas — Kyle Edmiston, president/CEO of Visit Lake Charles, was recently honored with the Destination Organization Leadership Award at the Destinations International Annual Convention in Dallas.

The award is among the association’s most prestigious honors, recognizing those outstanding individuals who, through their exceptional work and achievements, have made a significant contribution to the destination marketing industry and a profound difference in the communities they serve.

Edmiston has established partnerships throughout the community, committed staff to the Just Imagine Resilience Plan, brought the first PGA Korn Ferry Lake Charles Championship to the area, demonstrated strong leadership throughout the challenges of 2020, hosted the first international press conference for Lake Charles at the US Travel Association’s IPW, and has fostered product development in the community by working with governmental agencies and the business community.

Most recently, he won the Marion “Butch” Fox Advocacy Award from the Louisiana Travel Association in 2022. In 2017, Kyle was honored as the National State Tourism Director of the Year by his colleagues and was named one of the Top 25 Extraordinary Minds in the United States for Marketing by Hospitality Sales and Marketing Association International (HSMAI). He was awarded the Southeast Tourism Society Rising Star Award in 2009 and earned his Certified Destination Management Executive (CDME) from Destinations International in 2008.

Currently, he serves on the executive committee of Destinations International’s board of directors, and he is the immediate past-chair of the board for the Louisiana Travel Association. He is a past chair of the Brand USA board of directors, and he is on the board of directors of U.S. Travel Association. He previously served as chair of Travel South USA’s board of directors and the Louisiana Association of CVBs.

Bourque tenure to continue

BATON ROUGE — Herschel L. Bourque of Welsh has been reappointed by Gov. John Bel Edwards to the Advisory Committee on the Regulation and Control of Water Well Drillers.

The committee makes recommendations to the Office of Conservation on the licensing, qualifications, and standards of conduct for those engaged in the business of drilling, or those abandoning, water wells and bore holes in the state.

Bourque is the owner of Maxim’s Water Well Service, Inc. He will serve as an irrigation driller and was nominated by the Louisiana Ground Water Association.

Carrier named assistant VP

VINTON — Catherine Carrier has been promoted to assistant vice president at Merchants and Farmers Bank’s new full-service location at 1401 Loree St. in Vinton.

Carrier began her career with Merchants and Farmers Bank in September 2018 as a vault teller/new accounts representative, and has since worked as an assistant cashier/assistant branch manager and assistant cashier/branch manager.

In operation since 1928, Merchants & Farmers Bank is an independent community bank headquartered in Leesville, LA with eight full-service locations in seven cities.  Among the first of Louisiana banks to establish online banking, Merchants & Farmers offers a variety of banking products and services.

Safety Council award winners

The Safety Council of Southwest Louisiana’s Annual Contractor Safety Performance Awards Banquet took place on July 13 at the West-Cal Arena and Events Center in Sulphur. The celebration recognizes the industry’s dedication to cultivating and achieving a strong safety culture among contractors and the industry they support.

The Performance Awards are hosted in collaboration with the Southwest Louisiana Construction User’s Council (SLCUC), Lake Area Industry Alliance (LAIA), and the Safety Council of Southwest Louisiana (SCSWLA).

Contractors considered for this award have challenged themselves to reach higher safety standards by instilling industry best practices. A rigorous grading method outlined by OSHA standards along with documented enforcement of safety regulations make up a point system by which the nominees are scored.

Awards are categorized by man hours worked and the type of work done. The Best-in-Class Awards are reserved for those companies that obtained the highest scores in each category, meeting minimum point requirements.

Categories and awards presented at the banquet were as follows:

Specialty — Category I (5,000 – 75,000 man-hours): 

Best in Class: S&S Sprinkler

Gold: Total Safety

Silver: Burrow Global Services

Specialty – Category II (75,001 – 500,000 man-hours): 

Best in Class: Energy Rental Solutions- CAT

Gold: Tray Tec, Inc.

Silver: Howell Industries

Silver: R&H Quality Refractory

Silver: 24 HR. Safety

Bronze: Pro Waste, LLC

Specialty – Category III (Over 500,000 man-hours): 

Best in Class: Triad Electric & Controls

Gold: Excel Modular

Silver: SWAT- Specialty Welding and Turnaround

Silver: Alliance Industrial Group, LLC

General – Category I: 

Silver: Garrison Industrial

General – Category II: 

Best in Class: Austin Industrial (LKO)

Gold: Austin Industrial (LYB108)

Bronze: Catamaran Industrial Services, Inc.

General – Category III: 

Best in Class: Brock Services

Gold: Specialized Industrial Maintenance – SIM

Gold: Universal Plant Services, Inc.

Gold: Turner Industries, LLC

Silver: Industrial Specialist, LLC

Silver: Brown & Root

Silver: Apache

Technical Contractor – Category I: 

Silver: LRC Wireless

Winner of the Excellence Award, recognizing continuous improvement with the largest improvement year over year, was Turner Industries, LLC.