ST. MARTIN PARISH — Black History Month may be ending, but in the Village of Parks, a historic milestone has been part of daily leadership for nearly a decade. Kevin Kately has served as the first Black mayor of Parks since 2015, a role he stepped into after years of public service in law enforcement and on the town council.
“I know Parks started in 1900, but I didn’t know I’d be the first black mayor because I never ran on race, I ran on Kevin Joseph Kately, running to be the best person for the job,” Kately said.
Kately began his career in law enforcement in 1992 as a community policing officer, a position that required him to work closely with residents. He later joined the Parks City Council before running for mayor. He said voters chose him based on trust and performance, not politics or identity.
“They elected me not because of my race or political feelings, they elected me because they felt that I could do the job,” he said.
Growing up in St. Martinville, Kately said he drew inspiration from leaders who served before him, including Rodney Poche, Lawrence Narcisse and Gwen Glover, Black council members in Parks who helped shape his perspective on public service. He said leadership must be rooted in results.
“As far as my saying goes, progress never power…if you have no progress, what's the point of being in that seat or being the first black mayor that did anything?” he said.
Since taking office, Kately has overseen several projects aimed at improving quality of life in the village, including constructing a new City Hall and upgrading the local park. Plans are also moving forward for a new water well, with groundbreaking expected in the coming weeks to improve water quality and extend service lines. He said he remains hands-on in the role and does not see any task as beneath him.
“I don't have a problem cutting the grass, I don't have a problem jumping in a hole and fixing a leak, I don’t have a problem getting in a hole and filing a leak, I don't have a problem turning people water on at 3 o'clock in the morning, or if they have a busted line, turning it off,” Kately said.
He also credits his family for shaping his approach to leadership. Inside his office, he keeps reminders of them close by. “Right in the back of me I always have my brother and my dad’s obituary in the back so I always feel like they got my back, that’s why they behind me right there,” he said.
Kately said his father taught him the value of teamwork and unity, lessons he now carries into public office.“He really instilled a lot on me, you know so, and I just hope that I can bring that to the public and they see that it's not about one side, it's a team,” he said.
As Parks reflects on its history, Kately said he wants the focus to remain on continued progress and collective effort.
“Putting me in these shoes is a great accomplishment of being the first black Mayor, but I want people to understand, we need to celebrate everyday, every month as always and making sure that we continue moving parks forward as a team, and if the still want Kevin Kately here, I gladly wanna be here,” he said.
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