[StBernard] Celebrate St. Bernard

[Westley Annis]

Celebrate St. Bernard Committee kick off party draws nearly 1,000

Upbeat event at Nunez Community College features leaders, bands,
cheerleaders and citizens all singing the praises of St. Bernard

 

Nearly 1,000 showed up for a massive pep rally event to celebrate St.
Bernard's Community Spirit for the kick-off of the "Celebrate St. Bernard"
campaign.

 

Neighbors and community leaders burst through a banner as the Chalmette High
School Band played and scores of cheerleaders from every school and group in
the parish cheered them through a gauntlet of pompoms inside the Nunez
Community College Auditorium. The event that was supposed to be outside by
the gazeboes was moved inside due to earlier rains, but visitors gathered
outside after the program for more dancing and entertainment as well as free
t-shirts, hot dogs and fellowship on the grounds.

 

"Celebrate St. Bernard" celebrating our accomplishments, our historic past
and promising future. Neighborhood groups, government, education, business
and industry leaders each touted in a lively, quick-paced program about what
we have accomplished and what our future is going to look like. 

 

"The recovery of St. Bernard is driven by you, the people, and we only need
to look into the eyes of our children to see how bright the future is,
Parish President Craig P. Taffaro Jr. said.

 

Polly Boudreaux, who is leading a community initiative to help galvanize
neighborhood groups, said that people make up good family-oriented
neighborhoods and that is what our parish is known for, and Sean Warner of
Gulf Coast Bank, gave a top ten list of what makes St. Bernard a good place
for small businesses. Schools Superintendent Doris Voitier talked about the
great public, parochial and private schools in the parish, and St. Bernard
Sheriff Chief Deputy James Pohlmann talked about the effective job the
sheriff's office is doing to keep the parish a safe place to live. 

 

Nunez Community College Chancellor Tommy Warner, who chaired the Celebrate
St. Bernard Committee of community and neighborhood leaders, explained that
the effort is meant to kick off a years-long celebration of the parish
leading up to the 200th anniversary of the Battle of New Orleans that will
be commemorated in January 2015.  The event was moderated by Barry Lemoine
and Will Schneider of the St. Bernard School Board and Shine Productions,
and Krystal Boothe-Gonzales, former television news personality and a
Chalmette High School teacher. 

 

Neighborhood garden flags with the Celebrate St. Bernard logo will be on
sale for $15, including the stands at future community events. The event and
ensuing marketing effort and television campaign is being underwritten by a
$60,000 grant from the St. Bernard Community Foundation. For more
information, visit www.stbernardchamber.org
<http://www.stbernardchamber.org/> , www.sbpg.net <http://www.sbpg.net/>  or
www.visitstbernard.com <http://www.visitstbernard.com/> .