New keeper of the rolls

On Monday, Judge Chuck West presided over the swearing in of Chris Guillory as the new tax assessor of Evangeline Parish. Guillory’s family, friends, and well-wishers witnessed the ceremony in the police jury meeting room of the courthouse.
When speaking of his parents and siblings, he thanked them for the prayers and the continued support throughout their lives. Visibly emotional, Guillory paused before adding, “My parents weren’t always able to give us, financially, everything we needed, but they gave us everything we needed to have in life. Just teaching us how valuable Jesus Christ was to have in your life, and family and friends, putting value on that, and respecting people. There was never a boundary set on who you should respect. I think this room is a great reflection of that. It was never ‘this group’ or ‘that person.’ You’re going to respect people. There’s good and there’s bad. You’re going to respect all good people. Thank y’all for teaching us that, and I hope my children are getting the same lessons in life, and I’m putting the values in the right places.”
Guillory also thanked his wife, Jhanae, and their children, Kara, Lillian, Hallie, and Walker, as well as his son-in-law Bryceton. “Thank y’all for tolerating the chaos that comes along with running for political office. It’s really, really tough. It strains your family life, your finances. It causes problems, but we made it through, and thank y’all for your support. I love y’all.”
Guillory thanked the rest of his family and friends for all of their support by baking cookies, printing T-shirts, donations, putting up signs, and showing up with trailers. “It wouldn’t have been possible without all of y’all,” he said. Additionally, he especially thanked his in-laws who allowed him to take time from his job at Ty Energy Service so he could campaign while still having a paycheck coming in. “That was very instrumental in being successful.” He also appreciated the inspiration talks with his father-in-law.
Guillory also thanked outgoing assessor Dirk Deville and his office for allowing him to go in early to learn the job and also welcoming him. “I felt comfortable from day one, and I really appreciate that.” Guillory said he has taken all of his courses and is officially certified. He also thanked his opponent, Josh Fontenot, saying, “I thought we ran a really respectable race. There was never bad-mouthing. I got kind of tired of knocking on doors and people telling me how good of a guy he was.” Guillory said he enjoyed meeting Fontenot’s family and is looking forward to working with him, adding, “I’m really looking forward to our future together.”
Deville added, “It’s been a joy and honor to have Chris come in and accept our friendship and work towards having a better Evangeline Parish. Thank y’all for supporting him, and continue to support him. He’s going to have to do his job, and a lot of people don’t understand the tax assessor’s job is to make it fair for everybody. If he sees somebody’s property is underassessed, he’s obligated to make it fair to everybody and try to make that equitable. Give him your support.”