REPORTING FROM NEW ORLEANS — During the International Association of Venue Manager’s annual VenueConnect Conference, July 26-30, over 150 volunteers participated in the first-ever Legacy Project community outreach program. Armed with paint brushes, shovels, brooms and hammers, the volunteers spent four hours touching up the Pontchartrain Park neighborhood, which had been devastated nearly a decade ago by Hurricane Katrina and still showed signs of damage. Venues Today was on the scene and covered the efforts of the volunteers who came together to assist with the project. Below are a few of their stories.
Get Inspired
Kim Bedier, Tacoma (Wash.) Dome
As the second vice chair to this year’s conference, it was one of Bedier’s main responsibilities to organize the volunteer effort, sponsored by architect firm Populous.
“Our keynote speaker Wendell Pierce grew up in the Pontchartrain Park neighborhood and established a foundation to help the area after Hurricane Katrina struck in 2005,” Bedier said. Pierce is an actor who appeared on popular shows like Treme and The Wire and his neighborhood was particularly hard hit after Katrina because of its bowl-like shape and proximity to Lake Pontchartrain. The neighborhood was drowned in 10 feet of standing water for weeks.
“Some people had to start from scratch, and many didn’t return, leaving huge empty lots in their neighborhood,” she said.
Bedier’s job was to organize the volunteer effort and then “assist with coordination, field phone calls to make sure people were in the right spot” and liaison with the neighborhood association. “Everyone had a job to do and everyone chipped in in a small way. We wanted to create an inspirational theme to run throughout the conference and this was a great way to set that tone,” she said.
Get Organized
Jason Brock with YES Leisure, Sport & Entertainment
With years of experience getting work crews organized for major events like the Olympic Games, Brock was Bedier’s natural choice as a logistical coordinator for the Legacy Project.
“Kim asked me about a month prior to step in and organize the volunteers into teams, put together the documentation needed and coordinate everyone once they got on site,” he said.
It was a difficult task to do from afar and, while he did his best with spreadsheets and Google Maps, “it wasn’t until we arrived a couple days prior and first met with the neighborhood association’s President Gretchen Bradford that we really got an idea of what could be done to help as many people as possible in the time frame we faced.”
Brock said his team ended up adding an additional five houses to their list of projects and accomplished all the goals identified during planning.
“And Bradford and the residents in the neighborhood were so genuinely appreciative,” he said. “They were phenomenal and it was amazing how everyone seemed to know everyone else and some even came out to thank us. One woman returned with the entire volunteer team, and was crying and hugging everyone before they got back on the bus. We were just blown away.”
Get To Work
Kathryn Carlson, SpiritBank Event Center in Tulsa, Okla.
After hours of gardening, painting and landscaping, several volunteers at one of the houses under repair noticed a huge metal screen door in the living room. The woman who lived in the house said she had owned the door for nearly five years, but couldn’t afford to have it installed.
“Two people from our team borrowed some tools from a neighbor and put the door on for her. She told us the metal screen door really provided her with a renewed sense of security,” Carlson said. “Other folks on our team repaired a corner of the house that had been badly damaged by water and insects, and then painted the area so that it matched the rest of the house. We even installed some solar accent lights.”
Carlson said the Legacy Project was “an extremely rewarding experience” and added that “being able to go somewhere that was devastated was emotionally gratifying and a nice way to say thanks. It’s not just about having a good time in New Orleans, but a chance for IAVM to show that we care about the local community.”
Get in Focus
Adina Erwin, Fox Theatre, Atlanta
“Our first assignment was to go to one of the residents of Pontchartrain Park and help her remove the mold from her siding. It was hard work and the owner wasn’t able to be there, but I think we were able to do a good job with what we had.”
The mold project took less time than Erwin expected, so her team headed to the main park at the entrance of the neighborhood and repainted several benches and picnic tables, helping give the neighborhood a visually appealing entrance
“It’s the first year that IAVM did a Legacy project and we did expect some hiccups, but the important part is that we continue on,” Erwin said. “What it does is contextualizes our visit to the communities where we meet. We may go to dinner but we don’t get a feel for what the community is like. This is an authentic experience. We all work in venues that rely on community support and this is a chance for us as an industry to positively participate in a community.”
Get Connected
John Bolton, BOK Center, Tulsa, Okla.
“I thought it was fantastic,” said Bolton, who worked with a team of Clemson students to clear overgrown grass and weeds from several abandoned lots.
“I loved hearing the stories of what people had been through. The neighborhood was totally destroyed by Katrina and it sat in 10 feet of water for weeks,” he said. “I remember taking a devastation tour right after it hit and you could just feel the mold in the air.”
Bolton called the event “an awesome opportunity to bond with some people I had never met,” including a group of Clemson students who would soon be submitting their resumes for future jobs in the industry. And besides the hard work, there was one other force uniting the volunteers, albeit through discomfort. It was the weather — hot, muggy and incredibly humid.
“Luckily it had been overcast or else people would be passing out, especially if you’re not used to it, which most people aren’t. It can take your breath away,” Bolton said.
Interviewed for this story: Kim Bedier, (253) 573-2554; Jason Brock, (407) 504-4400; Kathryn Carlson, (918) 369-9360; Adina Erwin, (404) 881-2116; John Bolton, (918) 894-4210