An outpour of support was evident among residents and community members who came together at the Hancock County Fairgrounds on Saturday, March 20, to honor and remember the late Lt. Michael Boutte of the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department.
     Lt. Boutte was shot and killed while answering a call on February 1, 2021, in the Necaise community of Hancock County.
     During the Memorial Benefit event, music flowed and the smell of crawfish and barbeque filled the air while folks piled in to help raise money for the fallen deputy’s father and his family.
     Rachel Knight, an organizer of the event, said, “We are trying to help him and his family.  Anytime there is a loss there is grief, there’s time off work…so you have to compensate for that. And we are just trying to make things easier for them as they make the transition and grieve the loss of a loved one.”
     Volunteers were anxious to lend a helping hand wherever they could, whether it was selling T-shirts and koozies, making plates of food, or simply cleaning up the grounds. Community members stepped up to make this a memorable event for everyone involved.

“This community has responded tremendously.”

Rachel Knight, Event Organizer

    “We have had so much help and so many donations that have made this event possible,” Knight said. “Without this community and the donations that we have received, we would not have the 125 silent auction items, we wouldn’t have the 25 live auction items, we wouldn’t have the donations from the beer company, or even the donations from the musicians.
     “Every musician here, who is playing, has donated their time; along with the trustees who are coming from the county jail to help us pick up the trash…It’s overwhelming, the gratitude. Everybody, we would go to the store, people would go to the store to buy things to donate and tell them, and the owners would just donate it.”
     Visitors to the event entered raffles, a silent auction, and live auctions to donate money to help support the family. Kids and adults lined up to “Dunk a Cop” in the dunking booth, and sent Paul Taylor down into an icy plunge.
     Throughout the day, patrons reminisced on the life and legacy of Lt. Mike Boutte; what a wonderful man he was and how great he was with the children.
     “He was a veteran in law enforcement, he served in the military, he was a son, he was a husband, he was a dad, he was a granddad. This community has taken him and just wholeheartedly…he was loved. He would just go and check on people, the elderly, just to make sure they were okay. He was a good guy,” Knight reflected.
     Chris Cambre and Kara Smith also knew Mike Boutte as a great guy and always with a smile, “he had one of those personalities and was great with the kids.”
  Lt. Boutte was a U.S. Air Force veteran. He had served with the Hancock County Sheriff’s Department since 2013 and had previously served with the U.S. Marine Corps Civilian Police.
He was pronounced dead at a New Orleans, La., hospital just several hours after being shot and critically wounded at the scene of a disturbance call as he exited his patrol car.
     Knight said the community will continue to provide support for the Boutte family for as long as there is a need.

• Photo Album: Lt. Mike Boutte Memorial Benefit On the cover: Event organizers Marissa Reynolds, Channing Reynolds, Layken Reynolds, Rachel Knight, Cassie Lassabe, Cayce Seal, Taylor Furlotte, Kalle Nesom, Paul Taylor, Lindsey Lind, Amy Marquar, and Kirk LaFrance.

Cassandra Foreman

Cassandra Foreman is a U.S. Air Force veteran whose creative spirit and love for imagery has presented her with some incredible opportunities both personally and professionally. From a young age, she was always involved in the arts in some way, whether it was music, drama, drawing or taking pictures. Growing up in Washington and Alaska, there was no shortage of picturesque opportunities. And in her teenage years, she discovered her passion for photography. Today, Cassandra resides in D’Iberville, Miss., and enjoys “turning moments into memories” while capturing the beauty in the world around her. She has, in recent years, focused her photography skills and extraordinary attention to detail on helping others seize life’s precious moments. Overall, Cassandra enjoys being a part of the creative process from start to finish. She loves working with others and bringing ideas to life.