Within seconds, the Entergy Louisiana lineman helped a state trooper subdue and handcuff a suspect who had been struggling with the officer on the side of a Houma road.

“Once I put my 285 pounds on him, he wasn’t going anywhere,” the 6-foot-2-inch Oliver said. “I put my knee on his back and grabbed his arm, and the trooper was able to put the handcuffs on him.”

It all began as Oliver and fellow linemen Carl Prejean and Dustin Ledet were driving back from a job. 

Prejean saw the flashing lights of Trooper Justin Leonard’s vehicle. Prejean did the safe thing – changing lanes to put distance between the Entergy truck and Leonard, who had pulled a car over on the side of the road.

That’s when the three men saw Leonard struggling with a man as he tried to handcuff him.

“I said ‘The trooper is fighting with that guy. We need to help that trooper,’” Prejean said.  

That’s all Oliver needed to hear. Once Prejean pulled the truck over, Oliver bolted out of the door and helped the trooper restrain and handcuff the suspect.

The action was over in seconds, ending just as other troopers and deputies arrived in response to Leonard’s call for backup. So Oliver, Prejean and Ledet quietly got back in their truck and continued on their way.

But their actions drew high praise from Leonard and his commander, Capt. Frank Besson.

“Quite often troopers work by themselves on these roadways, and it’s a great feeling to know we can depend on people like your guys with Entergy who are going to stop and be willing to put themselves out there to help us out,” Besson said.

“Especially with what’s going on in the world today, it’s not often you see people who are willing to help out law enforcement,” he added.

Leonard said, “They went out of their way when they didn’t have to. You don’t see that too much nowadays, so I just thought they needed a little bit of recognition.”

Besson said, “You never know how things are going to turn out, so we are very appreciative of your employees stopping and assisting the trooper with this guy.”

A combination of family ties and doing the right thing motivated the Entergy crew that day.

Prejean has relatives, including a nephew, who are troopers at Troop C in Gray, just outside of Houma.

“When I saw the trooper struggling, I saw he was a young guy, and my first thought was it was my nephew,” Prejean said.

“I just knew the trooper needed help,” said Oliver, whose mother worked for the Assumption Parish Sheriff’s Office. “I just ran out there and took over as if I’d done it before.”

As low as reasonably achievable
All U.S. nuclear power facilities carefully monitor radiation all day, every day. Each facility has a radiation protection program that is responsible for not only protecting the health and safety of the public, but for minimizing employees’ exposure when working in radiological controlled areas. This is called ALARA – it means as low as reasonably achievable exposure to radiation. Our focus is to constantly find better and safer ways to operate and maintain the plant.��

His proudest moment at Entergy
I am most proud of having been given the entrustment to aid in the planning of three Grand Gulf Nuclear Station refueling outages. At the time, I was an ALARA technician. I worked with the outage team to choreograph work activities in radiological controlled areas to ensure workers received as low dose as possible. ��

How he balances work and family��
I always try to be available for my family because they deserve all I can give them, but I struggled with this at times because I am a perfectionist. My faith helped me realize my journey for perfection was not attainable and my family deserves more of my time.��

The best work-related advice he received
“Give them what they want before they ask.”

I’ve used this advice for decades, even when I was a dishwasher and cook. I constantly anticipate what my leaders want and need, and then complete the task before they have a chance to ask.��

His mother, his hero
My mother is my hero because she raised three boys and a girl as a single parent for most of the time. She took her responsibility seriously, and it made me who I am today.

��

Steve graduated from Mississippi State in 1969 with all intentions to teach history; he received a degree in the Teaching of Secondary School Social Studies. However, he never had a chance to do so. Right after college, he enlisted in the military, and after returning to the states from Vietnam, he started his career. Steve eventually retired from Entergy at the end of 2013, with 27 years of service.

Retirement allowed Steve to finally put his love of history to use. In early 2014, he contacted The Mississippi Department of Archives and History for volunteer opportunities, and they suggested that he should be a tour guide at the State Capitol, one of the most historic buildings in downtown Jackson and one of the most beautiful in the nation. “I didn’t even know they did tours at the State Capitol,” said Steve. “The volunteer coordinator said that I’d be good at it.”

The coordinator was right; Steve was a natural. “I carried notes with me while giving my first tour, but it was too much trouble. So I decided just to wing it,” he said. “After you get the first two out of the way, you feel pretty comfortable.”

Steve loved volunteering so much that he soon began giving tours at the Governor’s Mansion (the second oldest continuously occupied governor’s residence in the United States) and the Eudora Welty House (the actual home of the Pulitzer Prize-winning writer). He now volunteers about eight hours a week.

Steve doesn’t have a favorite site. “The locations all have different appeals to me,” he said. “The State Capitol is a magnificent building with lots of good architecture. The Mansion has beautiful furniture and a great history. The Eudora Welty House is very intimate, and I can make more of a connection with the people on tour. The house is displayed so that it feels like Eudora was there yesterday. The gardens are also beautiful and were restored to its 1940s peak.”

Interested in volunteering for MDAH? Email Elizabeth Coleman at ecoleman@mdah.state.ms.us or call 601-576-6985.

PHOTOS BELOW: Steve Kelly gives of a tour of the Governor’s Mansion to Patrick and Monica Fox from Chicago.

“I was chosen out of more than 6,000 parents that make up the school district. My son will be in second grade this upcoming school year. Since he was in kindergarten, I’ve always used my flex day to volunteer in his classroom. Normally, I would assist his peers that needed additional help in an area of deficiency. When I became PSTA President at his school, my theme for the year was ‘Parent Power.’ I believe it to be the power all parents have to make a difference in their child’s education as well as other children with a parenting deficiency. Since Entergy’s motto is ‘We Power Life,’ as an employee I am supplying ‘Parent Power’ at my son’s school to improve the communities we serve through education. Also, I am grateful to Entergy for supporting and powering my efforts through our community connectors program.” ~ Rock Ingram, senior analyst

How Little Diamond’s Got Its Name

“Diamond Jim” Brady was a successful New York City multimillionaire in the late 19^th century, whose love of precious jewels earned him his apt nickname. The legend of his lavish behavior put his name into the American vocabulary and still infuses culture today with mentions in books, songs and movies.

Jim Luttrell was a storekeeper at South Street in Jackson when he received the popular nickname. “One of the lineman started calling Eric’s dad ‘Diamond Jim,’ and it stuck; everyone started calling him Diamond Jim,” said Bruce Hulitt, operations coordinator.

The nickname birthright continued for Jim’s son, Eric, who continues his father’s legacy by working as a storekeeper in the Rankin office. “As a young adult, I was given opportunity to go to the South Street storeroom during the summer(s) to sweep, stock and just help out in any way needed. Bruce first nicknamed me ‘Little Diamond,’” said Luttrell.

“So, the name of my catering business is a tribute to my dad,” he said. “That’s also why the street sign reads ‘St. Jimmy Charles Avenue.’ My dad’s middle name is Charles.”

What Makes Little Diamond’s Special

Eric Luttrell is a musician—he’s been in metro bands including NOx and Dixieattle. He is also a vinyl enthusiast. His catering business directly ties into his love of music and records, as so far he has only sold his food at vinyl sales.

“It started as a way to fill a need at 4 the Record, a record swap in Midtown Jackson,” said Luttrell. Scheduled caterers never showed at the event, so both customers and vendors were unable to eat. Luttrell began cooking crawfish chowder, gumbo, and red beans and rice to bring to the record swap, and his efforts were a big hit. “Several of the vendors gave my chowder the nickname ‘Crack’fish Chowder, because it’s so addictive,” he said.

His success at the record swap built confidence in his side venture. “I’ve upgraded all of my cooking equipment and have decided to take the steps to go legit and turn this into an ongoing business,” said Luttrell.

His last catering event was in December at a record convention at Duling Hall in Fondren. He sold out of the chowder within an hour and the other food hours before the end of the event. The next time there is a big event involving vinyl, Eric and Little Diamond’s will probably be there, feeding the attendees’ bodies while the music feeds their souls.