Bastrop Mayor Betty-Alford Olive was sworn into office Friday afternoon on the north steps of the Morehouse Parish Courthouse.
Fourth District Court Judge Danny Ellender administered the oath of office following opening remarks by Monroe Mayor Jamie Mayo.
In her inaugural address, Alford-Olive invoked the memories of U.S. presidents John F. Kennedy, Ronald Reagan and Barack Obama.
“Ask not what Bastrop can do for you, but ask what you can do for Bastrop,” Alford-Olive paraphrased Kennedy’s 1960 inaugural remarks.
“I feel so blessed and honored by your presence at this precise and historic moment,” she told the audience. “I stand before you ready to serve as mayor.”
Alford-Olive recounted how, as a child, she missed the school bus and had to walk two miles to her elementary school in her Sunday shoes.
“I can still feel the sand in my shoes. As we experience the discomfort of these economic times, have faith that better times are ahead.”
The swearing-in ceremony included performances of “America the Beautiful” by Dr. Delene Rawls, “Hero” by Bozie Brown and “I Believe I Can Fly” by Dennis Wilson. The Reverends Henry Richardson and Jim Ingram gave the invocation and benediction, respectively.
