Big Night for New Orleans

Tonight was a huge night for Tulane University and New Orleans. The stars came out to McAlister Auditorium on Tulane's campus to attend an extremely important event. Tulane President Scott Cowen played host to some of the biggest names in Louisiana. Governor Kathleen Blanco made an impassioned appeal to the youth of America to commit to serving and rebuilding Louisiana. The governor announced a new program called "The Summer of Service" with the hope that America's best and brightest will donate their time and energies this summer in a community service program of a massive scale. I was moved by her genuineness and sincerity as well as by her speaking ability. I had the privilege of speaking with the governor after the performance and she certainly did not seem like a politician. She was interested in my ideas and pledged to visit the site. Governor Blanco was followed by Lt. Governor Mitch Landrieu who also delivered an excellent speech.

However, the night belonged to one of New Orleans' favorite sons, Wynton Marsalis. The renowned jazz musician and director of Jazz at Lincoln Center delivered a stirring and thought provoking speech to a packed house at McAlister. His charisma and clarion call for the college students in attendance to rise to the challenge posed by the hurricanes resonated very deeply with me. Marsalis spoke with the eloquence and conviction of John F. Kennedy and Martin Luther King Jr., and his message was similar; "don't settle, succeed!" Oh, and the music was good too!

Overall, it was a very exhilarating and promising night for New Orleans.