NEW ORLEANS – The Committee for a Better New Orleans (CBNO) will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the founding of its predecessor organization, the Metropolitan Area Committee, from which it merged in 2001, at a gala anniversary party on Friday, August 19, 2016, at the downtown Hyatt.
CBNO, and the MAC before it, have spent half a century working to build community, support public education, foster civic engagement, and advocate for open, effective, accountable government, CBNO reps said. Its signature program, the Bryan Bell Metropolitan Leadership Forum, has been training emerging community leaders since 1968. Among other major accomplishments, CBNO is the lead founder of the Greater New Orleans Water Collaborative, the originator of the City Planning Commission Neighborhood Participation Plan, and the innovator behind the Big Easy Budget Game.
The program for the Friday, August 19, gala will feature a keynote address by CBS News correspondent Michelle Miller, signature cocktails, and after-dinner music and dancing with Robin Barnes and her Jazz Orchestra. There will be a patron party preceding the dinner.
At the gala, CBNO will present its annual Diana Lewis Citizen Participation Awards. The honorees this year are Bill Hines, the Broadmoor Improvement Association, and the Pontilly Neighborhood Association.
As part of its anniversary year, CBNO is encouraging Leadership Forum graduates to reconnect with the organization. Graduates can email info@cbno.org to get plugged into alumni events and programs.
