Advocate Staff Photo by Arthur D. Lauck - Ashli Savoy of Baton Rouge laughs as friends and family cheer for her during Southern University's Summer Commencement. Melody Scott of Bossier City is at left.

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND - Kathleen Pourciau and her daughter, Bonnie Kate Pourciau, 18, listen to AeroCare nurse Julie Callison after landing at the Baton Rouge Metro Airport Thursday. Bonnie Kate was shot in the knee in the Aurora, Colo. movie theater shooting last Friday. Acadian Ambulance paramedic Eric Chambers, right, helped Bonnie Kate into the ambulance and took her to Our Lady of the Lake hospital.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Katherine Brashier, left, and Mary Pramuk stand in front of a portion of the Louisiana Bicentennial doll display at the Enchanted Mansion. As a child, Brashier visited the museum and dreamed of some day working there. Now, she helps advertise and fundraise for the nonprofit, as well as help Pramuk, a longtime volunteer, put together museum displays.

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND - President Barack Obama and former New Orleans mayor Marc Morial, now president of the National Urban League, wave goodbye Wednesday night as Obama concludes his address to the National Urban League's 2012 Annual Conference held in the Ernest N. Morial Convention Center in New Orleans.

Advocate staff photo by Travis Spradling - Dodging raindrops - Nancy Buckle, a state Department of Revenue employee, uses her sweater to fend off raindrops Wednesday as she crosses Main Street near Third Street, heading for the LaSalle Parking Garage, at the end of the work day. The sweater, which she said she brought with to work because she gets chilly in the LaSalle Building, came in handy after a thunderstorm passed through downtown late in the day.

Advocate staff photo by ADAM LAU -- Cullen Jones, 7, left, and retired teacher and volunteer Irma Rixner, right, share a laugh while practicing spelling Wednesday during Summer Camp Boost at American Legion Post 557 in Gonzales. Camp coordinator Sonia Mulberry organized the week-long activity for second to fifth graders to refresh their reading and math skills and warm-up for the coming school year. The camp was hosted by the post's Ladies Auxillary.

Advocate staff photo by RICHARD ALAN HANNON - Boston Celtics basketball player and former Capital High School and LSU forward Brandon Bass, left, speaks to metro council members Wednesday following his recognition by councilman C. Denise Marcelle, center, and assistant chief administrative officer John Carpenter, right, for his work with the Brandon Bass Reach Back Foundation. Bass received a key to the city and was named honorary Mayor for the day by Mayor Kip Holden.

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND - Lance and Brianna Jacob, of Galvez, hold their twins, Kenzie, left, and Aubrie in their home on July 18. During the pregnancy, their doctor recognized the girls were suffering from Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome, marked by an uneven blood supply between the two, through the placenta. Brianna Jacob was rushed to Texas Children's Hospital in Houston the same day for in utero laser surgery that successfully resolved the issue, and both girls were born healthy on May 15.

Advocate staff photo by Arthur D. Lauck - Pass the ball - Boston Celtics forward and Baton Rouge native Brandon Bass, right, runs a passing drill with 3-year-old Jakori Jackson on Tuesday during the first stop of his Brandon Bass Reach Back Basketball Camp at Devall Middle School in West Baton Rouge Parish. The camp will travel to Point Coupe Civic Center on Wednesday and to Capitol High School, Bass' alma mater, on Thursday. Spots are still open for the free camp held at Capitol High School Thursday from 9 a.m. to noon. In addition to the camp, Bass will donate hundreds of backpacks filled with school supplies for area school children.

Advocate staff photo by BRYAN TUCK - Joseph Goody rides his bike along the lighted foot and bike path near Blackham Coliseum Tuesday. Goody, who works at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette's Printing Department on nearby Coliseum Drive, said he rides on the path from Johnston Street to Congress Street during his break at work.

Advocate staff photo by RICHARD ALAN HANNON - Baton Rouge resident Lori Melancon relaxes in a hammock in her large backyard, which is screened off from the adjoining property with creative partitions.

Advocate staff photo by PATRICK DENNIS - Protesters hold signs during a rally of family and friends of the late Terri Parker in front of the Pointe Coupee Parish Courthouse on Monday, protesting alleged preferrential treatment for Victoria Gosserand, convicted in Parker's death. Protesters include Christy Chaney, front left; Crystal Dailey, front center; Valeka Albert, to the right rear of Dailey; Crystal Polar, seated in a wheelchair; and Jarryn Maloid, to the right rear of Polar..

Advocate staff photo by BILL FEIG - International Planetarium Society President David Weinrich, left, welcomes attendees for the IPS opening ceremony in Baton Rouge on Monday. Watching are, second from left, Mayor Kip Holden, Lt. Gov. Jay Dardenne, Visit Baton Rouge President and CEO Paul J. Arrigo, Louisiana Arts and Science Museum President and Executive Director Carol Gikas, and LASMs Irene W. Pennington Planetarium Director Jon Elvert.

Advocate staff photo by BILL FEIG - As the United States flag flies at half-staff Monday, Terrance Patterson, of the Department of Public Works, removes other flags that have flown over Baton Rouge from the poles in the plaza between the Government Building and the Riverside Arena. (Because of the theater shooting in Colorado). Shot on Monday July 23, 2012, in Baton Rouge, La..

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND - Monica Chambless greets Danny Allen, recipient of her daughter's kidney, and Leo Faherty, left, recipient of her daughter's lungs at Our Lady of the Lake Regional Medical Center. Faherty, who is from Florida, traveled to OLOL to meet Chambless, and to be present for a collective 'thank you' to the staff from himself, Chambless and Allen.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Mia Bonet in the foreground looks on as Frank Ahumada jokes with Hector Velez in between rallies of a vollepart of 'Gay Games,' an event marking the kick-off of Pride Week.

Advocate photo by APRIL BUFFINGTON - Three-year-old Kaylyn Whetstone makes mom Alisha smile as she dances in her heirloom party dress at their home.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Helen Fairchild and Ben O'Dell, of Mobile, Ala., dance to the tunes at the Swamp Pop Music Festival Saturday afternoon in Gonzales. The two attended high school together, and reconnected after 54 years apart. 'We're having a blast,' O'Dell said.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Mary Abshire, 14, prepares her jambalaya for judging Saturday afternoon at the Swamp Pop Music Festival in Gonzales. Her brother, Matthew, 11, right, was the head cook for their pot. The siblings competed against their father, Tee Wayne Abshire, back left, who admitted he thought his children's jambalaya came out better than his.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Pam Mabile, left, of Pierre Part, dances with 5-month-old Race Landry to the music of Kenny Cornett and Killin Time Saturday at the Swamp Pop Music Festival in Gonzales. Mabile's musician husband, Karl, performed during the festival with the band, Tommy G & Stormy Weather.

Advocate staff photo by Travis Spradling - Baton Rouge's Ellie Avegno watches intently, binoculars ready, at the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries' annual Wood Stork and Wading Bird Event held Saturday at the South Farm of the Sherburne Wildlife Management Area near Ramah. She's a member of the Baton Rouge Audubon Society and related organizations.

Advocate staff photo by TRAVIS SPRADLING - A wood stork flies to a new feeding location Saturday during the annual Wood Stork and Wading Bird Event at the South Farm of Sherburne Wildlife Management Area near Ramah. Every autumn, South Farm floods wetland impoundments to provide waterfowl habitat and stimulate crawfish populations. In mid-summer, these areas are drained to enhance wetland growth, and, in the process, a portion of the crawfish population is exposed, attracting the native wood stork.

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND - Baton Rouge community leaders, area residents and out-of-state visitors join in prayer Saturday on the steps of the State Capitol during the World Link of Churches and Ministries' 12th annual 'Save Our Cities Now!' prayer initiative aimed at helping overcme problems facing the state of Louisiana and its people.

Advocate staff photo by LIBBY ISENHOWER - Getting fitted for new kicks - Angela Lang, left, helps fit her granddaughter, Le’Terrica Lang, 4, into a new pair of shoes Saturday as Jassamine Lang, 3, second from left, and La’Mira Lang, 5, watch at Payless Shoe Store on Florida Boulevard. The girls received a $25 voucher through Catholic Charities’ Kicks for Kids program, which provides new shoes to students across the Baton Rouge area. People who received aid from Catholic Charities throughout the year are eligible for the Kicks for Kids program.

Advocate file photo/MARK SALTZ - Among the more endearing photos from past International Grand Isle Tarpon Rodeo is the image of then 4-year-old Blake St. Cyr carrying a 7-pound speckled trout his grandfather Terry St. Cyr and father Blake St. Cyr caught during the 2004 rodeo, the year before Hurricane Katrina ravaged the state's eastern and central coasts. This trout stands among the top 10 specks caught in the near 90-year history of the rodeo, that beings Thursday and runs through Saturday.

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER McCLELLAND - Erin and Ken Swenson, and 10-year-old son Scott, pose in their home with photos of Ken's parents, Ouida and Wayne Swenson. Erin and Ken, who lived with Ouida and Wayne to provide health care, are part of the sandwich generation, defined by adults who provide care for aging parents and support their own children.