When Isaiah Met Nola

Isaiah Funds president Jeffery Dekro applauds as he receive a $225,000 check from the Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation. This follows a half-million check from Isaiah Funds to Gulf Coast Housing Partners.

About a year ago I had the opportunity to meet representatives of an unusual group, a consortium of interfaith-based groups devoted to helping meet the needs of the ongoing recovery effort in New Orleans's Central City area. Isaiah Funds is composed of disparate philanthropic groups like Jews for Justice, CHRISTUS Health and MMA (an investing arm of the Mennonite Church). The Isaiah Funds managers are determined to provide millions of dollars in loans to needy areas such as Central City. The rebuilding effort in Central City began at least a decade ago. Yes, this was prior to the Hurricane Katrina tragedy. If it might be said that any one area benefited from the fallout of the flooding, Central City could well be considered. No amount of flooding could have washed away the sins of the city fathers who had allowed it to dilapidate into such a crime-riddled, depressed area before 2005. If anything, the loss of property in the area to the flooding helped clear the way for a new possibility in the area. To be sure, it is still a high crime area, but with the loss of the C. J. Peete and St. Thomas Housing Projects, many of the denizens of violent crime have been relocated. Some never returned from evacuated cities like Houston. According to the city's master plan, these areas in Central City are due to become multiple mixed housing units, some owner-owned, which should bring about pride and stability in a large city region that has had little of each. Monday brought about the first anniversary of the launch of the Isaiah Funds and as many as 60 strategic partners whose faith-based missions have become allies met in New Orleans at Loyola University to tour the city and see real measured progress. They toured several areas in transition, many of which are still devastated from the effects of the post-Katrina flooding. Then, they toured the area of Central City bordering on the former Dryades Street, now renamed Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard. Dryades Street was known decades ago as "the second Canal Street," a retail area that was largely composed of Jewish merchants, many of whom served a significant area there that was largely Jewish. After World War II, the area began to fall on hard times and by the 1970's was largely in need of urban renewal. Many African-Americans did their shopping for bargains on Dryades Street in an era that was devoid of Wal-Marts and K-Marts. Many African-American merchants began their careers on what is now Oretha Castle Haley Boulevard, but so many of the storefronts still remain vacant. An exception is the Ashé Cultural Center, constructed on the site of the former Venus Gardens grocery store. Participants gathered there before breaking up into two groups and embarking on a close-up tour of the area. They then reconvened at Cafe Reconcilé, a training ground for chefs and wait staff for the service industry. The delegates dined on broiled chicken, sweet potatoes, collard greens, and famous New Orleans red beans and rice (side order of sausage were also available. Following desert of their James Beard Award winning Bananas Foster bread pudding, everyone applauded as a check for $500,000 was presented to Gulf Coast Housing Partners, one of the major developers in Central City, by the Isaiah Funds executives there, chief among them Jeffery Dekro, who also serves as the executive vice-president of Jewish Funds for Justice. The Louisiana Disaster Recovery Foundation came up with their own check to Isaiah Funds in the amount of $225,000. These funds will certainly fuel the economic recovery machine that is just now gearing up into full steam with several projects that will completed by year's end like phase one of The Muses, a mixed income housing complex. Progress is slow, but it is coming.

New Hurricane Season and the loss of Angus

Today marks the opening day of the 2009 Hurricane Season. Just four years ago I was sitting here in New Orleans preparing for a summer that was full of adventure with little thought that a Category 4 or 5 storm might ravage the city and lead to the catastrophic failure of the levee system that protects the city from various drainage canals. I had my own misguided sense of safety, foolishly thinking that nothing could lead to the city of my birth being flooded by as much as 80% with waters as high as 15 feet or more. Hurricane Katrina changed all of that, even though I was already out of town when it chose to bear down on New Orleans, a fact that still makes me reel in disbelief. Had I been here, I probably would have saved more of my "stuff," but I would probably have lost my car. I'm sure I would never have been able to rebound so well and gain a position at the Cleveland Jewish News while taking refuge in that city. My being there already garnered me a first place position in line for assistance and, given that so few people came up to Cleveland to seek assistance, I made out very well. Nevertheless, I became a productive member of the city, paying local and state taxes while working over a year and a half there. It took almost two years for me to return, but I have now been back in New Orleans longer than my entire stay in Cleveland which lasted over two winters there. So, every June 1 brings a wake-up call to me and my fellow citizens. It's time to get prepared to meet any challenges head on and remember the not-so-distant past. Any day during hurricane season without a storm is a good day.

Meanwhile, my favorite Times-Picayune columnist, Angus Lind, has retired. Ever since I began my journalism career, I have written humor columns. In high school it was "With Pen in Hand and Foot in Mouth." I wrote "Quotations from Chairman Smason" during my stint at the Tulane Hullabaloo. This blog is intended to be a variant of a humor column, although not as many articles have been as funny as I would have liked. Nevertheless, it was with sadness that I learned yesterday that Angus, who had been writing since the 1970's, was calling it quits and penned his last column yesterday, a reflective look back at his 6,000 columns written over four decades. Angus always had my dream job in journalism: writing a humor column three or four times a week. I will admit that I could have deluded myself into believing I was in his category of writer. I can tell you I am not. His was a gift that was born from hard work and dedication and I will truly miss his wonderful and wacky way of relating everything from the crazy and kooky characters of N'Awlins (Allen "Black Cat" Lacombe and Ruthy the Duck Girl) to dealing with local sports legends (Buddy D. and others). His job is gone and will not be replaced, due to the current state of the newspaper industry, which is making fewer do more with less. Nevertheless, Angus wrote from the heart and his heart was mighty big. It still is. His plans call for him to continue writing, so perhaps I will follow a new blog or other similar endeavor soon enough. This is still a daring time for the newspaper industry with so many challenges that a number of people are opting out of work and grabbing attractive retirement packages while the getting is good. It may soon be that newspapers may fire employees and offer no exit packages. So, all of my best to Angus and his family. I trust he will do well. So sad that my dream job has now become a nightmare. Anybody out there looking, let me know. Should I hold up a sign: "WILL WORK FOR 401.K"?

The Ten Very Strong Suggestions?

Well, for those who are members of the Jewish faith, the holiday of Shavuot (respectively pronounced as Shu-VOO-oht or Shu-VOO-ohs, in the Sephardic and Ashkenazi tongues) was held on Friday and today. In Israel, like many holidays held in the Holy Land, only one day is used to recall the date. The holiday commemorates the giving of the Law or what most scholars think of the Ten Commandments at Mount Sinai. This is the day that Jewish scholars state the Jewish people was formed as a nation. It's interesting because already they had been an enslaved people in Egypt and had fled during the period of the Exodus. Torah is used to describe all of the learning in the Jewish universe, but is most often used to describe the Chumash (Chuh-MISH), the Torah scroll that contains the Five Books of Moses. The cornerstone of the Hebrew Bible began with the Ten Commandments, but it would seem that many of those who view them would prefer they not be nearly so strict. My title to today's blog may seem silly, but it is true that many of us are guilty of ignoring or not complying fully with the letter and spirit of these laws. Okay, so not many of us are guilty of murdering on a daily basis, but many of our brave soldiers in the field must do so in order to stay alive. We may not be committing adultery by looking at magazines or viewing so-called adult sites, but it is a very fine line between lusting for an attractive sexual partner and actually committing the act. Most men see viewing porn as harmless. Most women don't agree, noting that much of what is out there is demeaning to women. Women draw the line especially when it comes to chat rooms where boyfriends and husbands have been known to openly lie to those they meet online. Men are a more visually attractable species than women. They need visual cues in order to be stimulated. Women are more complex and respond to other stimuli. But the differences are enough that even Bill Clinton could claim that sexual intercourse could only be defined by one specific act of coitus and definitely not one involving a cigar! Of course, the Ten Commandments prohibit adultery, which specifically prohibits sexual contact outside of a marriage, not procreation. On another front, how many of us are guilty of stealing? When you downloaded that picture from the Internet the other day, weren't you guilty of stealing someone else's proprietary work? The fact is most of us steal with computers without knowing it. The very basic way that browsers like Internet Explorer or Firefox work is to keep temporary Internet files in folders that periodically need to be deleted. So without intending to steal images, your computer is doing so every day. Bearing false witness is a specific crime that needs to be witnessed, but many of us are guilty of the sin of Loshon Hora or gossip mongering about adversaries or even about friends and family. Shouldn't we be considerate of those whose reputation we besmirch without any hesitation? Many of us try to honor our parents, but do we do everything we should and maintain the kind of reverence we should in light of their diminishing years? Probably not. As to Sabbath worship, how many of us skip services of whatever religious background, opting to make the day of rest a day of watching football or baseball? I know I'm guilty of many of these and I hope that I may get myself straightened out in time before the Judgment Day, whenever that may be. I take little solace in knowing that I am hardly alone.

The Internet disappears

It took nearly 12 hours for AT&T to restore my Internet today, a fact which boggles my mind. Yet, even more frightening than the time that it took to reconnect me to the outside world, is the notion made abundantly clear to me that the Internet has become more essential to me than even air conditioning. Anyone who has endured a hot humid summer day in New Orleans knows full well the breadth and import of my previous statement. Air conditioning is not something we throw away lightly here. It is practically a required part of living well in the Big Easy and coping without it is seen as something people do begrudgingly as in the case of the indigent or those forced to live on a fixed income. I am neither, yet I now recognize the essential nature of the Internet and its impact on my life and business. I can no longer perform work without e-mails or access to the Information Superhighway. I cannot blog, cannot Twitter, cannot see Facebook, cannot update my websites or find out anything of substance without my connection to the world wide web. And let us not be mistaken: I need to access the Internet with all due speed via fast access, unimpeded in my progress as I seek out current updated information. I would sooner schvitz (sweat) and feel the oppressive heat and humidity rather than give up my multiple wireless and wired connections. Trust me. I am hooked. I don't believe there is a 12-step program for this particular addiction, but perhaps admitting the problem is the first step in the process. All I know is that I need a plan B. I now recognize I can't go without Internet access any longer than a few hours or I risk very real consequences in my life. Hey buddy, can you spare me a line?

A short life well spent

Today was an especially hard day. Today we said goodbye to one of my troop's Boy Scouts, a 13-year-old boy who will never become an Eagle Scout, but who got so much out of the program and who so loved Scouting that he might well have been thought of achieving that hallowed rank. Zachary Malik Tyler was an amazing kid, a boy whose teachers, doctor and classmates all marveled at his kindness and cheerfulness despite years of courageously battling an insidious disease known as Langherhans Cell Histocytocis (or LCH). Zachary's parents permitted him to take part in Scouting activities like camping that might have scared others away and increased chances of infection. But there was no holding Zack back. In the end he succumbed to the ravages of a disease that shut down his organs, but kept his mind alert and focused. The outpouring of love for Zachary was evident at the memorial service held in his honor at Lakelawn Funeral Home. There was no body. This was not a funeral, but a celebration of his life. There were only pictures and videos of a really sweet kid enjoying life as best he could while dealing with the harshness and reality of his disease. The Lusher School Strings provided musical accompaniment in addition to choral singers and a guitarist. Special readings both religious and spiritual in nature including a poem written by Zachary were read aloud. Most of the memories recalled were humorous, revealing a playful side to Zack that everyone will recall many years hence. It was a hard day, but it was also one that bound everyone together in the celebration of this young man's life. I will be forever grateful and proud I was a part of it and sorry that I won't be able to share any more of my life with Zachary as a part of our troop. He may not have made Eagle Scout, but he was one of those rare Boy Scouts who truly understood the program and reveled in it. God speed, Zachary.

To blog or not to blog....

This may go down in the record books as one of the worst periods of blogging I have ever had. I offer my sincerest apologies to all of those who regularly read what has recently been a less-than-daily blog. Part of it has been due to an overabundance of work, while the other part has been that I've been out of town. It is usually my practice to recap a vacation after the fact rather than comment on it as it unfolds. Nevertheless, the period leading up to the National Annual Meeting of the Boy Scouts of America was especially busy and my ability to write was severely compromised. Even after I had left for Orlando, several clients, friends and family had expected I would be available for them with computing help, but I was forced to advise them of my departure and that I did not expect to return until late yesterday. Many of them know of my commitment to Scouting. I have been quite involved since my son was in lower school. My work has led me to work with dens and later Cub Scout packs. After that I became involved with Boy Scouts and Venturing. My dedication has led me to work on a district and council level and in some cases on a regional and national basis. I volunteer for two national committees at present and have become a dedicated member of the youth-led Order of the Arrow, the BSA's honor society of Scouts and Scouters. My eleven-hour drive to Orlando enabled me to learn more about the 100th anniversary of the BSA, with the crowning achievement expected to be the final Jamboree that will be held at Fort A.P. Hill in Virginia, just outside of Washington, D.C. in late July and August. Several factors are figuring in what I will cautiously announce as the greatest gathering of Boy Scouts in this country since its founding. Aside from the fact that it is the centennial year of Scouting in America, there are huge numbers of attendees and support personnel who are even now formulating plans to make this event a safe and meaningful experience for Scouts and Scouters alike with bigger and better displays and venues. There will be an Internet and multimedia presence at the Jamboree that will blow all other previous events out of the water. The Jamboree will be gigantic. But the good news for all of Scouting is that change has come to the BSA, like it or not. That was the theme of this year's meeting "Building the Brand." The "new BSA" is leaner and more consolidated, allowing councils to be supported in a better fashion than in the past. Chief Scout Executive Robert Mazzuca has restructured the administration and, with newly installed National Commissioner Tico Perez and President John Gottshalk lending logistical support, they are on the brink of bringing about much-needed dynamic changes for the organization founded by William Boyce and others in 1910. They are all working to make social networking like Twitter and Facebook a part of the Scouting family. In the coming months a new national BSA website will be unveiled and other interactive uses of the world wide web will follow. So, in a word, I am jazzed. I can't wait to contribute to this tremendous effort to revitalize and reinvigorate a movement that has lost momentum in trying times. But these are the times that demand young leaders, the type of leaders that Scouting will mint in the future. It is time to trumpet the praises of what Scouting means to kids across the nation who depend on it. It's time for everyone to stop pointing accusing fingers and lend a hand to raise up the youth who need what Scouting offers. I am ready to get the ball rolling as we advance towards the centennial year. In the meantime I will take an oath to be more regular in my blogging and try to continue to post items of interest in a more timely fashion. So, I'll do my best and hope that you will be prepared for them.

Memorial Day

It's been a while since I last contributed to this blog. Suffice it to say that I have been very busy, much of it to with preparing to leave for the National Annual Meeting of the Boy Scouts of America held this past week in Orlando.  I will be reporting shortly on much of what went on at the meeting, but in the meantime, I hope that everyone will take a moment to consider those brave men and women who have given the greatest measure of sacrifice in service to our nation.