The Jefferson County Sub-Courthouse in Port Arthur. (Cesar Cardenas/The News)

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Justice of the Peace Precinct 2, Joseph Guillory II, is hosting a free and open lunch event for the community Friday, June 13, at the Jefferson County Sub-Courthouse with various resources and programs available for all. 

“I just want to be the connective tissue that brings people together,” said Guillory. “I want the citizens to feel comfortable asking for help.”

The event is an effort to foster stronger connections between local government and the people they serve. Similar events were held before, but this is the first time they have called Lunch with a Judge, according to Guillory. 

Guillory aims to bring together community partners-like CPS, adult protective services, apartment complex managers and workforce development corporation into the same room to create a network where they can share resources. 

“The main part is to get the community partners in the same room, so that if there’s a resource that is available and one of the community partners has it, then they now can share that information with the other people,” said Judge Guillory.

The free lunch event resembles a long tradition that Judge Guillory grew up with, Sunday dinner, a place for the community to come together and converse over a meal. 

“When families come together and break bread, it’s beautiful,” said Guillory. “We need to bring back some of those cultural things that we used to do that brought us closer together.”

At the heart of the event is the desire to believe that community problems require community-based solutions and have public officials remain accessible and accountable to the community they serve. Guillory hopes that the lunch becomes a model for future engagement between locals and the government. 

“We make it work when we make it workable,” said Guillory.

The lunch will begin at 12 p.m. at the Jefferson County Sub-Courthouse located at 525 Lakeshore Drive in Port Arthur on the second floor.