“My biggest concern… is the rising cost of health care…” – Roland

Posted on March 6, 2013 at 3:20 pm

We met Roland Doucette on a sunny New Orleans morning at his sister’s cafe in the heart of the French Market. She was out of town, so he had volunteered to man the counter for a few days. We overheard him chatting with some other guys about some programs he’d been involved with for troubled youth. After a few minutes of fascinating eavesdropping, we asked him to tell us more about his background. Wow. What he shared over the next hour, and during our subsequent formal interview, were some of the most tragic, heartwarming, and ultimately inspiring tales I’d ever heard. Roland is a bright, shining example of the best that we as a society have to offer. That is not an overstatement. His commitment to civil service and community outreach sets the bar to which we should all aspire.

Roland spent his career as a New Orleans police officer, implementing innovative programs to minimize violence and increase education programs in troubled neighborhoods.  Since then, he has continued to work with inner city youth and help incentivize their educational performance through reward programs based on grades and activities. His programs actively engage students, faculty and parents in a way that creates a solid social infrastructure for kids whose lives have often been plagued by drugs, violence, and broken homes.

These days, Roland leads a comfortable, but not extravagant, retired life. He is grateful that he is not forced to work, though he is concerned that the rapidly escalating cost of his health care may eventually derail his plans.

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