For the love of the game: Former state champion still playing – thousands of miles away
December 13, 2017
Breakaway Barge
December 13, 2017
Tuesday, Nov. 28, started out as fairly routine for Julio Escobar, who was still coping with recently learning that his beloved German shepherd, Harley, was diagnosed with heartworm.
That may be, the Terrebonne Parish deputy acknowledges, one of the reasons why he was so quickly moved to provide extraordinary help to a couple in need, whom he encountered while on patrol that evening. The soulful eyes of their yellow Labrador retriever, Escobar says, melted his heart.
Escobar has a reputation in law enforcement circles as a go-getter, tough on crime and criminals, who has hopes of one day working with his department’s narcotics division.
But his softer side won out the night he met James Beall and Lindy Berg, who got a respite for the night from Escobar. He put them up in a hotel along with their dog, at his own expense, allowing them to make plans for a return to West Monroe in warmth and comfort.
“You could tell these were the type of people who didn’t want a handout,” said Escobar, who was particularly moved by their dog. “I guess you could say I have a soft spot for animals.”
Escobar’s boss, Sheriff Jerry Larpenter, was impressed by the deputy’s good deed, although he doesn’t see it becoming a trend.
“We help people whenever we can,” Larpenter said. “But we don’t pay for hotel rooms. We’ll supply water and food for people, but hotel rooms are not generally done.”
In a Dec. 8 letter, Larpenter nonetheless commended his deputy.
“This is an outstanding thing you have done as a deputy sheriff,” Larpenter’s letter states.
It all started when Escobar’s supervisor, Lt. Troy Boquet, questioned the couple near the old Twin Peaks restaurant on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The restaurant’s property has become a haven for homeless people.
When he heard that his lieutenant had made a pedestrian stop, Escobar traveled to the restaurant to make sure his boss was safe and backed up.
“There was the female and the male and they had the dog,” Escobar said. “We asked if they had food and water, and the man said he was not really in need but he had spent the last of their money on some dog food.”
They had come to Terrebonne for work, they said, and had paperwork to prove it. The job didn’t work out and they were trying to find a way back home, Escobar said, noting that they couldn’t take a bus even if they had the money because dogs are not allowed.
Escobar volunteered that he would get the couple some food, but they refused, and were sent on their way.
About an hour later Escobar passed by Twin Peaks, checking the abandoned building as a precaution. The couple was still there. Escobar was determined that they — and their dog — would not be relegated to the cold.
A call to the Fairfield Inn revealed a schedule that was pricey but affordable, especially since Escobar had put money aside for his own dog’s care. But the hotel manager told him dogs are not allowed.
He then checked with the Economy Inn on Hollywood Road, where dogs are permitted, and he ended up driving them there. Lt. Boquet helped because the couple, the dog and their possessions would not all fit in Escobar’s patrol car.
The next day Escobar returned to the hotel, but the couple had already checked out. There were no additional expenses. He entered the room they had occupied and found a note “Thank you Deputy Escobar.”
He acknowledges that the money came out of Harley’s heartworm fund, but is confident he can rebuild it soon. A GoFundMe page for Harley was set up, and people have been responsive.
In any event, he has no regrets about giving the couple assistance.
“It is the kind of thing that could happen to anybody,” Escobar said. “Anyone could find themselves stuck out of town with no way to get back home. I’m just glad I was able to help them when I did.”
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