Southeastern Channel airs new north shore travel show, 'Northshore Gems'
Contact: Christina Chapple
7/7/08
Click on thumbnail for high resolution photo
Caption ...
NORTHSHORE GEMS -- Harvey Kliebert, left, owner of Kliebert's Alligator and Turtle Farm in Ponchatoula, shows host Corey Broman-Fulks the nature of young alligator scales and jaw strength in the debut episode of the Southeastern Channel’s “Northshore Gems,” a new travel show airing Mondays and Wednesdays at 8 p.m. on Southeastern Louisiana University’s educational cable access channel on Charter Cable Channel 18.
HAMMOND – Northshore Gems, a new show about tourist attractions and interesting places on the north shore, is airing at 8 p.m. Mondays and Wednesdays on the Southeastern Channel, Southeastern Louisiana University’s educational cable access channel on Charter Cable Channel 18.
The first episode of highlights Kliebert’s Alligator and Turtle Farm in Ponchatoula and the Global Wildlife Center near Folsom, including a behind-the-scenes tour revealing the attractions’ history and wildlife.
“Northshore Gems is basically a travel show about the north shore for local viewers,” said channel General Manager Rick Settoon, the show’s executive producer. “There are a number of unique and interesting places to visit in this area, including some hidden gems. We believe this show will increase awareness of these treasures so that community viewers can take advantage of such recreational opportunities.”
“With so many summer vacation trips being curtailed because of gas prices, these attractions are great for one-day family outings,” he added.
Settoon said new episodes of Northshore Gems will air quarterly. The show is hosted and produced by Southeastern Channel news anchor and reporter Corey Broman-Fulks
“Northshore Gems is educational,” Broman-Fulks said. “For instance, it teaches the traits and characteristics of alligators at the Kliebert farm and the same for all of the different animals at Global Wildlife. We hope the program is exciting to watch as well as enlightening.”
In the first episode, Broman-Fulks’ visits the gator ponds at Kliebert’s where he finds alligators from three-to-17 feet long, some 50 years old.
Owner Harvey Kliebert discusses how his family started growing alligators in the 1950s while the alligator was on the endangered species list. Within a year the Klieberts were harvesting 3,000 alligator eggs per year. According to Kliebert, his family business helped save alligator species in Louisiana.
Kliebert also demonstrates how his farm has met international market demands for alligator hides, meat and novelty items.
Tour guide Kris Schilling leads Broman-Fulks through the various alligator ponds, discussing alligator eating habits and growth patterns. He points out that the highlight for tour groups from as far away as China and France is the 50-year-old pond where the oldest and largest alligators reside.
At the Global Wildlife Center, Education Director Christina Cooper takes Broman-Fulks on a private tour featuring up-close looks at the diverse array of wildlife on the 900-acre range. Global Wildlife is home to more than 4,000 animals from African, Asian and Australian continents, including zebras, antelope, kangaroos and llamas.
“It’s the first time anyone has tried to put this many species together in a free-roaming environment,” says Cooper. She also takes Broman-Fulks to points popular with tourists, such as stations where they can hand-feed giraffes, camels and ostriches.
The Southeastern Channel can be seen on Charter Cable Channel 18 in Tangipahoa, St. Tammany and Livingston parishes and on Channel 17 in Washington Parish and on the Internet at www.selu.edu/tv.
More News...
