Names in the News: People shaping the future of Lake Area business

Morgan joins King’s Funeral Home

Marian E. Morgan, one of the newest members of the King’s Funeral Home family, is a licensed funeral director as well as an embalmer’s apprentice. She is a 2024 graduate of Dallas Institute of Funeral Service and also has a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Sam Houston State University.

Morgan has completed a dual internship with the Louisiana State Board of Funeral Directors and Embalmers. She is helping the funeral home embrace the new digital age by interacting with our community online. She has worked in the funeral industry for four years and is a licensed insurance agent.

Morgan was born in Lake Charles and raised in South Central Louisiana and West Tennessee. Her family is from the unincorporated town formerly known as Mossville and she attends her childhood church there, New Beginnings Church.

Bush elected board secretary

LAFAYETTE — Timothy Bush, chief marketing officer of Visit Lake Charles, was proudly installed as secretary of the Louisiana Travel Association Board of Directors. This marks a vibrant new chapter of leadership following the association’s Annual Meeting at City Club in River Ranch.

Each year, the Chairman of the Board selects a nominating committee composed of members who are not up for re-election and are not seeking office. This committee presents a slate to the association members that reflects all regions of the state and segments of the tourism industry.

WCCH earns reaccreditation

West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital has earned reaccreditation from The Joint Commission for the hospital, ambulatory care, home health and laboratory services programs, reaffirming its commitment to delivering safe, high-quality care across Southwest Louisiana.

The Joint Commission is an independent, evidence-based organization that sets the benchmark for excellence in health care accreditation nationwide. Reaccreditation recognizes WCCH’s continued compliance with rigorous performance standards focused on patient safety, quality improvement and clinical excellence.

WCCH underwent a comprehensive, unannounced onsite survey during which a team of Joint Commission surveyors evaluated compliance across key areas, including quality control, infection prevention, patient safety, specimen collection and handling, care coordination, leadership and performance improvement. Surveyors conducted on-site observations, document reviews and staff interviews to assess operational effectiveness and identify opportunities for continued growth.

Ieyoub to receive alumni award

BATON ROUGE — LSU Law is proud to announce the esteemed group of alumni and colleagues who will be honored for their contributions to the LSU Paul M. Hebert Law Center and legal profession at the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Awards celebration on April 9, in the South Stadium Club at Tiger Stadium.

Selected by the LSU Law Alumni Board of Trustees via a nomination, review, and ranking process, the 2026 Distinguished Alumni Awards honorees include Richard Ieyoub, who will receive the Outstanding Public Service Award — which recognizes a graduate for exceptional service in any branch of the U.S. military, as an elected or appointed public official, or in other public service roles.

Ieyoub was an LSU Law Class of 1972 alumnus who served Louisiana across three decades as the district attorney of Calcasieu Parish and Louisiana Attorney General. He served as Calcasieu Parish D.A. from 1984 until 1992, when he began serving as Louisiana Attorney General, a position he would hold through 2004.

As attorney general, he initiated and advanced major civil and consumer-protection litigation, most notably joining other state attorney generals in the tobacco litigation that provided $4.6 billion for Louisiana. He was appointed Louisiana Commissioner of Conservation by Gov. John Bel Edwards in 2016, and he served in the role until his death in 2023 at the age of 78.

Becnel joins local hospital

SULPHUR — Louise M. Becnel, MD, an internal medicine physician, has joined the medical staff of West Calcasieu Cameron Hospital. Becnel provides care for adults ages 18 and older, with a focus on the prevention, diagnosis and management of acute and chronic conditions.

Becnel earned her medical degree from Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center in New Orleans. She completed her internship and residency training at LSU Charity Hospital, where she gained extensive experience in comprehensive internal medicine care.

She is board certified in internal medicine by the American Board of Internal Medicine and brings over 35 years of clinical experience, along with a strong commitment to improving the health and well-being of the Southwest Louisiana community.

Blanchard to lead university

LONG BEACH, Calif. — The California State University Board of Trustees has appointed Lake Charles native Loren J. Blanchard as president of California State University, Long Beach). Blanchard currently serves as president of the University of Houston-Downtown.

Blanchard’s distinguished career in higher education spans 35 years. As the president of the University of Houston-Downtown for the past five years, he has led the university through a comprehensive strategic plan implementation and tracking process; increased institutional funding through grants, foundation gifts, and legislative appropriations at both state and federal levels, improving the university’s operational portfolio; secured support for expansion of the campus; strengthened community relations; built strategic alliances and optimized student success through integrated initiatives.

He previously served six years as the CSU’s executive vice chancellor for Academic and Student Affairs. Blanchard’s other past leadership positions include provost and senior vice president of Academic Affairs at Xavier University of Louisiana, associate vice chancellor for Academic and Multicultural Affairs at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center and two roles within the University of Louisiana system: provost and senior vice president for Academic Affairs and associate vice president for Accreditation, Leadership & Accountability.

A first-generation college graduate, Blanchard holds a bachelor’s degree in speech pathology education from Xavier University of Louisiana, a master’s degree in education from McNeese State University, and a Ph.D. in educational psychology from the University of Georgia.

He will assume the presidency May 1.