recognition

Life of civic activist Mary Zervigon to be celebrated Saturday

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Uptown resident and long-time philanthropist Mary Keller Zervigon, who died Aug. 27 at 83, will be memorialized and celebrated Saturday (Sept. 10). Throughout her lifetime in New Orleans, Zervigon was dedicated to serving her community. When Zervigon was inducted into the Tocqueville Society in 2018, Danae Columbus interviewed the Carrollton area resident for Uptown Messenger.

recognition

Former Mayor Moon Landrieu, a Carrollton native, dies at 92

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Former Mayor Maurice “Moon” Landrieu died in his home Monday (Sept. 5) at 92. A life-long public servant at the city, state and federal levels, Landrieu was first elected to the state House of Representatives in 1960 before joining the City Council. After two terms as mayor, he served as secretary of Housing and Urban Development in the Carter administration and as a judge on the Louisiana 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. Landrieu, who grew up in the Carrollton area, is best known for integrating City Hall while leading the city from 1970 to 1978.

Advertiser specials

Propeller announces 2022 Impact Accelerator Ventures (sponsored)

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Propeller announces the 19 participants selected for its nationally recognized 2022 Impact Accelerator. This program catalyzes transformative social impact by supporting startup and growth entrepreneurs working to narrow disparities in community economic development, education, food, health and water. Our entrepreneurial community has endured disasters and challenges over the past several years. Forty percent of businesses do not reopen after disasters, another 25% fail in the year following a disaster, and 90% of small businesses fail within two years of disaster. At the onset of the pandemic, Black business ownership rates dropped 41% between February and April 2020.

good works

Uptown VFW breaking ground to help support veterans in need

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New Orleans’ sole remaining Veterans of Foreign Wars post is breaking the mold. In a city where every neighborhood once had a VFW hall, VFW 8973 on Lyons and Annunciation streets is New Orleans’ last. However, it may end up being a role-model for the organization’s national headquarters. Once nearly abandoned, the Uptown post, Nola VFW, has been revived by post-9/11 membership. Now it is growing so quickly it may require a second branch.

opinion

Viewpoint: Clerk Chelsey Richard Napoleon believes she was called to serve

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After a Covid-related delay, Chelsey Richard Napoleon will take the oath of office for her second term as Clerk of Civil District Court and ex-officio recorder on Saturday, (May 14) at Southern University at New Orleans. The investiture ceremony will be followed by a free crawfish boil  at SUNO’s Quad. Surrounded by family and friends, Napoleon will be honored Sunday (May 15) at a special Mass at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church, where she is an active member of the church’s pastoral council. The following day, Napoleon will also host a golf tournament at the Audubon Golf Course, 6500 Magazine St. 

“At the end of the day, we are all in this together,” Napoleon said when asked why she created a weekend of activities to thank the community for their ongoing support.

Viewpoint: Don’t let the latest Covid variant ruin your Jazz Fest

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The thousands of tourists and locals who will attend the long-awaited New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Festival will surely cause an increase in cases of Covid-19 and it newest sub-variant, BA.2. A friend coming in for the festival wants to wear his mask at the Fair Grounds. While a good idea, that’s probably not very practical considering the heat and the ongoing consumption of libations at Jazz Fest and the evening events. Ensuring each attendee takes the personal responsibility to avoid infection at this mostly outdoors event is a better solution. The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, or CDC, reported Tuesday that the coronavirus has infected nearly 60% of people in the U.S. at least once, including about 75% of children.

Join us in exploring Historic Women Educators in New Orleans, hosted by Chelsey Richard Napoleon, Clerk of Civil District Court (sponsored)

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Join us for exhibits from the Notarial Archives Research Center! These showcases and blogs are available by visiting our website. 

This month we highlight historic women educators in New Orleans. ABOUT THE CLERK OF CIVIL DISTRICT COURT’S OFFICE FOR THE PARISH OF ORLEANS:
The Clerk’s Office consists of two divisions – Land Records and Civil. Our Civil Division is where civil cases — such as personal injury, accidents, successions and foreclosures — are filed. Domestic matters, such as divorce and child support, are also handled in the Civil Division.

recognition

Touro Infirmary celebrates a century of being ‘where babies come from’

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It has been a hundred years since the Touro Infirmary established its maternity services in 1922. “Before then,” said Jessica Muntz, the director of marketing and communications for Touro, “of course there was the occasional baby born in the hospital. But the maternity service was established as a formal department in 1922. At first, the doctors and nurses went to the birthing mother’s home for the delivery.”

Over time, it transitioned into births in the hospital, but the home services continued into the 1940s. Now the Family Birthing Center at Tourooccupies much of the second floor.

recognition

New Orleans says goodbye to WWII veteran Lawrence Brooks

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Lawrence Brooks, who died Jan. 5 as the nation’s oldest World War II veteran, was laid to rest Saturday (Jan. 15), amid pomp, gratitude, gospel, admiration and jazz. After the the eulogies, the gospel songs, the Victory Belles’ tribute and the solemnity of his funeral service, the men of Brooks’ former Army battalion carried his flag-draped casket outside of the National World War II Museum. The measured cadence of the honor guards’ heels pierced the silence as they slid Pfc.

events

City will hold wreath-laying ceremony on Martin Luther King Jr. Day

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The Mayor’s Office will mark the Martin Luther King Jr. holiday Monday (Jan. 17) with a ceremony at the monument to the slain civil rights leader at South Claiborne Avenue and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard. The memorial wreath-laying ceremony will be held in front of the Martin Luther King Jr. monument at 11 a.m.
The city has traditionally honored King on the national holiday with a march through Central City, beginning at A.L. Davis Park, pausing at the statue on MLK and Oretha Castle Haley boulevards, and culminating with the wreath-laying ceremony. The parades traditionally featured high school bands, dance troupes, and city officials, church leaders and civil rights activists linking arms.

The march will not be held this year, Mayor’s Office spokesperson Sharmaine Russ said in an email. In 2021, the city’s official MLK Day events were cancelled because of the Covid-19 pandemic.