Women With Heart Luncheon to be held Feb. 12

This year’s Women With Heart Luncheon will be held Friday, February 12th , at the Opelousas Civic Center from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m.
The event is open to the public and tickets are $25 each and may be purchased at the door.
The keynote speaker is International Deaf Woman of the Year Deputy Susie Cambre of the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office. She is known by most, in and out of the field of law enforcement, as simply “Deputy Susie.”
As a highly accomplished profoundly deaf policewoman, she was honored as the Quota Club’s “International Deaf Woman of the Year in 1998” in Melbourne, Australia.
She has toured and provided numerous seminars, presentations, professional training and in-service programs throughout 49 states and worldwide, appearing on many National Television Broadcasts and is the subject of a vast amount of publications. She is a columnist and feature writer for the Hammond Daily Star and has published a number of freelanced articles for several magazines.
Cambre is recognized as an expert in a number of law enforcement fields, including child protection, domestic violence, child abuse, elderly crime/ individuals with disabilities and family/professional safety. As a profoundly deaf woman, she founded the Louisiana Hearing Dog Program, training dogs for the deaf.
She holds Master Degrees in Communications, in Social Work, and in Business Administration in Training and Development. She is currently the Director of Elderly Services and Community Education for the Tangipahoa Parish Sheriff’s Office. Prior to Katrina, she taught at Nunez College in St. Bernard Parish, and was supervisor of a Total Community Action, Neighborhood-Community Center in New Orleans.
Deputy Susie appeared regularly on national children’s shows such as “Bozo,” “Mr. Rogers” and “Sesame Street,” as well as writing, producing and hosting her own children’s’ show, “Popeye and Friends” for 25 years in New Orleans.
She was honored by President Ronald Reagan twice, and has appeared on “Good Morning America,” “Hour Magazine,” “ABC’s Nightline,” “The Today Show,” and the “Phil Donahue Show.” She was a special guest of First Lady Nancy Reagan, and a keynote speaker, for the White House Conference on Drug Abuse in 1990.
“We are so honored to have Deputy Susie as our Keynote Speaker,” said Ginger LeCompte, Executive Director of St. Landry-Evangeline United Way. “She truly demonstrates the power of women through her remarkable life and career, and I’m sure she will inspire all of us.”
For information on the event or the nomination procedure, call Susan at (337) 942-7815.