NEW ORLEANS — The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau (NOCVB) announced the donation of $50,000 to the Baton Rouge Area Foundation (BRAF) Louisiana Flood Relief Fund in support of its efforts for flood victims in Louisiana. Following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the BRAF raised more than $45 million for relief in New Orleans. Those funds first contributed to immediate needs for victims of flooding, including food and supplies, followed by support to help rebuild communities across South Louisiana.
“Without hesitation, the New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau Executive Committee unanimously agreed to a $50,000 contribution that will assist storm victims through the Baton Rouge Area Foundation,” said Stephen Perry, President and CEO, New Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. “It is our turn to join together and provide the support that will help restore those communities impacted by the floodwaters, just as the people of New Orleans were helped after Katrina. We must remember the generosity that was shown to our city and reciprocate now, in a meaningful way, to enable our fellow Louisianans to rebuild.”
The NOCVB also supported flood victims by facilitating donations of food and supplies from the New Orleans tourism industry. Donations were collected and sorted at the NOCVB offices immediately following the flooding and were delivered via transportation provided by the Louisiana Restaurant Association and Second Harvest transportation to the Lamar Dixon Expo Center in Gonzales, LA.
“We will continue to assess the changing needs of those impacted and meet those needs as best we can,” Perry said. “We must remain engaged in their recovery and rebuilding in the weeks and months to come.”
The Baton Rouge Area Foundation was created in 1964, and has one simple goal: to help philanthropists pursue their causes for bettering the lives of the people of South Louisiana, Foundation reps said. The BRAF serves more than 600 fund donors, who make grants to nonprofits through their charitable accounts at the Foundation. The group undertakes projects for civic good, such as downtown revitalization, inner-city revival, urban planning and education reform as well as supports local nonprofits with strategic consulting to endure overall impact and sustainability.
The New Orleans Convention & Visitors Bureau is a nationally accredited, 1,100-member destination marketing organization and the largest and most successful private economic development corporation in Louisiana, NOCVB reps said. The NOCVB and its members influence thousands of decision-makers and millions of visitors to choose New Orleans through direct sales, marketing, public relations, branding and visitor services at our New Orleans headquarters and offices in Chicago, Louisville, KY, Washington, D.C. and six foreign countries, they said.
Consistently recognized as one of the top five CVBs in the country, the New Orleans CVB celebrates its 56th anniversary in 2016.
