Opelousas woman honors her late mother by feeding hundreds in the community

ST. LANDRY PARISH — What started as a few hot meals shared in memory of a mother’s love has grown into a heartwarming Opelousas tradition.

Tuesday morning, police sirens echoed through one Opelousas neighborhood—but this time, it wasn’t an emergency. City and community leaders were out knocking on doors, handing out hundreds of meals to elderly residents and families in need.

The effort is led by Connie Shakesnider, who started the project 18 years ago to honor her late mother, who died of breast cancer.

“My mom was always feeding people in her neighborhood. She had such a good heart,” Shakesnider said. “ This is my way of keeping that part of her alive.” For many, the meals came at just the right time. With the government shutdown delaying SNAP benefits, some residents say the communit