NEW ORLEANS, La. — Gayle Benson, owner of the New Orleans Saints and New Orleans Pelicans, was the featured speaker at the Jefferson Chamber’s 2025 Annual Meeting, which was held this morning at the Alario Center. One of the chamber’s largest networking and social events, the meeting also included the presentation of the chamber’s biggest awards and the passing of the gavel to the chamber’s new chair.
Speakers at the event also included Jefferson Chamber President Ruth Lawson; Beth Walker, CEO of Ochsner Health; 2024 Jefferson Chamber Chair Ryan Rodrigue, VP of Hub International; and David Payton, executive director of Goldman Sachs 10,000 Small Businesses Initiative.
Three awards were then presented. Marcel Lashover of One Stop Financial Group was named the 2024 Ambassador of the Year, Michael Flowers of @ Work Personnel took home the Emerging Leader Award, and Johnny Damiano of Adams and Reese received the Chairman’s Award.
Rodrigue then introduced Nora Vaden Holmes, owner of Nora Vaden Holmes Insurance Agency, State Farm, as the 2025 chair of the chamber.
Lawson then introduced Benson, who delivered an address that — in the wake of a disappointing season for the New Orleans Saints — fittingly focused on the concepts of success and failure.
“I define success as competing to be the very best of everything we do,” she said. “Unfortunately, that does not necessarily mean winning a championship every year. Unexpected circumstances happen that cannot always be overcome — injuries, bad calls, supply shortages, to name a few, can always impact success, and I am realistic about those challenges. Sometimes those challenges are so significant, they cannot be overcome in a specific season, quarter or year.”
Benson also indirectly addressed the firing in November of Saints head coach Dennis Allen.
“The reality is failure creates opportunities for something much better,” she said. “Sometimes that means, when we are not winning, difficult decisions need to be made, and we must make the changes that are personally heartbreaking. I have had to let go of people I greatly respect, who have worked as hard as they could to win without success, but I had to be honest with myself, however, and make these painful decisions because my ultimate responsibility is to our fans and my employees.”
Benson ended by noting some of her business accomplishments over the past year — including the purchase of several dealerships, including Porche of New Orleans in Metairie for which she said she will be building a new state-of-the-art facility, as well as several collision centers.
“We have also invested in several commercial real estate developments and are actively looking for innovative investment opportunities through Benson Capital Partners. While I cannot go into detail, I can assure you there are several other investments in Jefferson Parish on the horizon, and we are looking forward to announcing those over the course of this year.”
