NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Marriott hotel is getting ready to celebrate its 50th anniversary. The 42-story hotel opened in the summer of 1972 as the tallest building in New Orleans at a moment when New Orleans was becoming a major destination for leisure and business travel.
Now, the hotel has 1,333 guest rooms and more than 85,000 square feet of meeting space — and, impressively, it also has six employees who have been there since the very beginning.
“The key to the success of this hotel starts with our associate-first culture and transcends through to our guests and the community,” said General Manager Frank Zumbo in a press release. “Even as new hotels opened in New Orleans, our tenured associates, guests and group clients have remained loyal to this property. We’re extremely proud to recognize six associates who have worked here and called the New Orleans Marriott home since day one. It’s an incredible accomplishment.”
The six “charter associates” are Carol Mitchell, Gloria Mejia, Hattie Russ, Linda Toney, Sarah Zenzo and William Currie. The hotel said each will receive a special anniversary dinner at Arnaud’s that includes surprises and an anniversary gift.
On July 20, the hotel will celebrate the milestone in several ways.
There will be a check presentation ceremony to nonprofit organization Son of a Saint to help provide back-to-school supplies for 50 young men. The hotel will serve 50th anniversary cocktails “at 1972 prices.” And there will be a special anniversary lighting display.
“The opening of the New Orleans Marriott Hotel on historic Canal Street in 1972, with its massively handsome guest tower that could be seen for miles, further solidified New Orleans’ position as a world-class destination for leisure, business and convention visitors,” said Mark Romig, chief marketing officer for New Orleans & Company. “In addition, over these past five decades, the Marriott has provided thousands of citizens with opportunities to build a career in the tourism industry, combining the unique hospitality of New Orleans with world-class Marriott service.”
For more information on the New Orleans Marriott, visit Marriott.com/MSYLA.
