TO MASK OR NOT TO MASK -- THAT IS THE QUESTION

Volunteers help create, donate masks      To wear a face mask or not?      Last Friday, the president recommended that Americans wear basic cloth or fabric masks when in public to reduce the transmission of the COVID-19.

SETTLE TALK: SHREVEPORT CITY COUNCIL SET TO MEET ON APRIL 14

OK, nap time is over.It's  time for Rip Van Winkle — that being the Shreveport City Council — to wake up from its COVID-19 snooze and get back to work.The regularly scheduled work session and meeting for the week of March 23 were canceled because of the COVID-19 public health emergency.

SHREVEPORT AND BOSSIER CHAMBERS FURLOUGH STAFF

Both the Greater Shreveport Chamber of Commerce and the Bossier Chamber of Commerce have furloughed employees. The Shreveport chamber furloughed all of its regular employees with the exception of president Tim Magner and the chief financial officer.

CADDO COMMISSION TO MEET ON THURSDAY

The Caddo Commission will meet via video conference on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. This will be the first video conference governmental body meeting in northwest Louisiana. It is authorized by Gov. John Bel Edward's emergency order. Two topics are on the agenda.

FOCUS ON FARMING by JACK DILLARD

Last Monday about noon, a real change came over our little part of the Ark-La-Tex, when the Texas Louisiana Line was closed to traveling from Louisiana into Texas. The “virus” caused the action, and as far as I know it was the proper thing to do.

THE FEDERAL CARES ACT MAKES AVAILABLE TWO NEW FORMS OF AID FOR SMALL BUSINESSES

The Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) allows businesses to borrow up to 2.5 times monthly payroll expenses up (to a max of $10 million) and is forgivable in proportion to how much staff are kept on payroll.

DEAR GABBY: I’M LOSING MY PATIENCE WITH SOCIAL DISTANCING; ANY SUGGESTION?

 Dear Gabby,I’m a 79-year-old widowed male, and lately I’ve noticed I haven’t the patience for all this social distancing. I’m not a grumpy old man, but what is a person to do with all this time of solitude?

AEP FOUNDATION AWARDS EMERGENCY FUNDS TO CADDO COUNCIL ON AGING

The American Electric Power Foundation has announced $42,000 in emergency funding for a Shreveport nonprofit impacted by COVID-19 in Southwestern Electric Power Co’s (SWEPCO) service area.

SHREVE.BIZ HELPS OUT LOCAL SMALL BUSINESSES

The coronavirus pandemic has radically altered the way business is conducted, and some small businesses are finding themselves in dire straits. But help is being offered to these businesses through a new website, Shreve.biz.Shreve.

A GRAND-SCALE ACT OF KINDNESS

Good deed? Good Samaritan? An angel in disguise? A close encounter of the third kind? However you choose to look at it, I witnessed, first hand, a truly unforgettable act of kindness while shopping at my local food store.

TYPE AB IS VITAL PART OF BLOOD DONATION

Nothing like the recent COVID-19 pandemic gets us thinking more about the vital importance of blood donations. According to LifeShare Blood Centers, one in three people will need blood in their lifetime.

TO CURFEW OR NOT TO CURFEW; THAT IS THE QUESTION?

BY:  BILLY ROY WAYNEFor some individuals, it is not enough to appeal to them to adhere to health guidelines and safety requests. Though I have not noticed a serious amount of social gatherings, I have noticed some.Such was the case in my community on March 28.

LSU HEALTH SHREVEPORT ESTABLISHES COVID-19 TESTING LABORATORY

With the support of Gov. John Bel Edwards and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid (CMS), scientists at LSU Health Shreveport have established the Emerging Viral Threat (EVT) Laboratory to address the need for faster detection and processing of COVID-19 tests.

IN THE FOG ...

BY: REV. BETSY EAVESI arise hoping for sunshine, but the sun does not shine. Instead the world is shrouded in fog. A cool mist hangs in the air, and visibility is so low I can barely see the trees down the street. We are in a fog right now with the COVID-19 virus.

VOLUNTEER OPPORTUNITIES IN SHREVEPORT-BOSSIER DURING COVID-19 PANDEMIC

Many citizens have more time on their hands than they want.Others realize that during the COVID-19 virus pandemic they should do more for others.And some have lost their volunteer jobs temporarily due to the shut down of churches, arts organizations and festivals.