Greenway Members, please mark your calendars for our Annual Membership Meeting on Wednesday, January 26th, 5:30-6:45 PM. This meeting will be held on Zoom due to COVID-19 safety precautions.

A Zoom meeting registration link will be emailed out to all Greenway members. For assistance registering, please email [email protected].

At this meeting, we will elect new members to our Board of Directors, review accomplishments from 2021, and set the stage for 2022. There will be an opportunity to ask questions of the Greenway team.

join or renew your membership

Please join or renew your membership to vote in our board elections.

All current members that attend the Annual Membership Meeting are eligible to vote.

agenda

5:30 – 5:35    Welcome & Introductions

Kevin Centanni, Board Chair

5:35 – 5:50    2021 Highlights & 2022 Priorities: Annual Report

Sophie Harris Vorhoff, Executive Director & Camly Tram, Development & Communications Manager

5:50 – 6:00    New Orleans Recreation Development Commission Remarks

6:00 – 6:05    Recognition of Members Completing Board Service

Kevin Centanni, Andy Dale, Misty Frye, Nolan Marshall III, Demetric Mercadel, Leonetta Terrell

6:05 – 6:20    2022-2025 Board of Directors Elections

6:20 – 6:30    Q & A

Please submit questions via the chat function.

6:30    Adjourn Membership Meeting

2022 Board of Directors Nominees

3-Year Term: January 2022 - January 2025

Recruitment Process:  Friends of Lafitte Greenway’s Board Recruitment Committee posted an open Call for applications to the Board of Directors on November 16, 2021. The committee reviewed and interviewed applicants. 

The Board Recruitment Committee recommends the below slate of 9 candidates for the 9 available seats on Friends of Lafitte Greenway’s Board of Directors. 

RE-ELECTION: SECOND TERM NOMINEES (3)

Current Greenway Board Members seeking re-election for a second 3-year term.

1. Susan Guidry - Susan is a native of New Orleans and is recently retired from the New Orleans City Council, where she served for eight years as the District “A” representative. Her professional career also includes working as a teacher and a civil litigation attorney. Susan earned a B.A. in Secondary English Education from the University of Southwestern Louisiana and a Juris Doctorate, cum laude, from Loyola Law School. On the Council, Susan served as Chair of the Criminal Justice Committee and on the Utility Committee, where her agenda focused on growing our green industry and energy efficiency. Susan and her husband Hervin have been members of Friends of Lafitte Greenway for many years.  Upon inauguration to the City Council, Susan announced the Greenway as her top priority capital project. Susan also serves on the board of the LA/SPCA.

2. Monty Lunn - Monty Lunn is the current Vice Chairman of Friends of Lafitte Greenway as well as leading the Fund Development Committee. He is a licensed Commercial Realtor with NAI Latter & Blum. Monty has an extensive background in management and legal consulting while in career positions with Deloitte & Touche, Thomson Reuters and Huron Consulting. He and his wife Kathleen are native New Orleanians and have lived, worked and travelled extensively. A passion for the City of New Orleans(Kathleen currently serves on the City Planning Commisssion) brought them home and both are deeply engaged in public and private sector initiatives and community service. Monty holds a B.A. in Philosophy from Mount St. Mary’s in Los Angeles.

3. Philip Stelly - Philip Stelly has extensive experience in journalism and corporate communications. He is currently the public information officer at the Orleans Parish Sheriff’s Office where he is responsible for media relations and community engagement.  Previously, Stelly served as a senior communications advisor at Florida Power & Light Company. Prior to that, he was a staff writer for several trade and general interest publications in New Orleans and Miami. Stelly has served on the board of directors for Ride New Orleans as well as Susan G. Komen for the Cure-Florida Chapter, including one year as chapter president. He is an occasional yoga practitioner, a frequent user of Blue Bikes, and an avid wine buff.

FIRST TERM NOMINEES (6)

1. Alonzo Knox

Alonzo Knox is an entrepreneur and co-owner of Backatown Coffee Parlour. He has had a rewarding career highlighted by managing programs for distinguished national educational nonprofit organizations, consulting on disaster recovery for a leading housing consultant firm, working for three elected officials; as well as, fighting in Operation Desert Storm during his 14-year enlistment in the United States Marine Corps. With his diverse background, Alonzo was appointed by two mayors to serve as Commissioner of the New Orleans Historic District Landmark Commission. He is an active board member of the Historic Faubourg Tremé Association (HFTA), and has been engaged with the development of the Greenway since its early years. He was educated at Southern University – Baton Rouge (Political Science and Law Enforcement) and at Trinity University – Washington, DC (MBA with emphasis in organizational development). He has been married for 18 years to Jessica Knox.

2. Greg Lawson - Greg Lawson is the Senior Vice President for Strategic Neighborhood Development at the New Orleans Business Alliance. He is a social change leader, with a focus on advocacy, community building, and engagement. Over the years, he has consulted with national nonprofit, government agencies, and social enterprises on equitable community development strategies, program, and public participation policies. With nearly a decade of experience, Greg has extensive knowledge in community development, nonprofit management and implementation of community-based initiatives that addressed social/racial justice issues in the Greater New Orleans area. Greg has worked both in the nonprofit and government sectors, where he oversaw the capacity building and advocacy programs designed to enhance the community development infrastructure across the gulf coast region through training, skills development, and coordination of grants assistance for grassroots leaders and organizations; raising over $5 million to implement community-based programming such as Civic Leadership Academy and more recently the Resilient Corridor Initiative (RCI). He has proven experience in working alongside communities securing representative community involvement and participation in government decision-making. He holds a B.S. in Management/Business Administration from Xavier University of Louisiana and is a Master of Public Administration from the University of Phoenix. He is currently studying to become a Certified Economic Developer (CEcD) with the International Economic Development Council. 

3. Justin Morgan - Justin Morgan is a lifelong resident of Louisiana who hold a BS in Mechanical Engineering from LSU as well as an MBA from Southeastern Louisiana University. During his eighteen years in the recycling business he has held a variety of roles involving metal procurement, transportation, import/export, and marine demolition. He currently serves as the Regional Manager for the New Orleans area and oversees two operating facilities. When not working, he enjoys spending time in nature with his wife and son.

4. Christina Ruffins - Christina is a native of the Treme neighborhood, currently residing in the French Quarter and working in Human Resources at ESPN for The Walt Disney Company. Her goal is to align her passions for arts with culture preservation through selfless acts of service, driving her interest in the Friends of Lafitte Greenway. She is also a 400-hr certified yoga instructor (via scholarship at Swan River Yoga) and founder of Ruffins & Co. LLC which offers accessible, affordable, and convenient yoga resources to the BIPOC community. Ruffins’ connections with communities along the Lafitte Greenway run deeply through familial ties - a daughter of Kermit Ruffins and a great-granddaughter of the late Andrew Robertson Sr. who founded the Little People’s Place in the Treme. She is an alumna of Spelman College, McDonogh 35 Senior High School, and St. Peter Claver Elementary School.

5. Anna Wilson Schnitzler - Anna Wilson Schnitzler is an artist, graphic designer and founder of her small stationery business Sassy Banana Design Co. In 2020, Anna founded a nonprofit called Bayou Yacht Club (BYC) where she is currently the Executive Director. BYC provides opportunities to artists and musicians, while giving back to the community through collaborative projects and special events. Anna received a BFA in Illustration from Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) in Savannah, Georgia in 2012. After SCAD, Anna worked for four years as a marketing designer and art director at several agencies in St. Petersburg, FL before accepting a design role at a tech startup, which brought her back home in NOLA in 2016. These experiences helped build skills that would later help her serve in the nonprofit sector toward causes close to heart and home. When she’s not working, Anna enjoys spending time with her husband Ian, dog RZA, and large cat Vince. She also loves yoga, kayaking, and long walks on Bayou St. John.

6. Julia Zuckerman - Julia lives along the Lafitte Greenway with her husband and daughter. Julia’s passions include stormwater management, crafting, and, most recently, finding toddler friendly playgrounds. In her professional life, Julia is an associate at Ciolino & Onstott. Prior to joining Ciolino & Onstott, Julia worked as an attorney for Southeast Louisiana Legal Services and as the Director of Land Use for former New Orleans City Councilmember Jared Brossett. At Southeast Louisiana Legal Services, Julia helped victims of the 2016 flood in Baton Rouge access federal and state recovery benefits through title clearing and successions. In addition to her skills as an attorney, Julia has helped many residents, real estate developers, and other entrepreneurs navigate the complex processes of zoning and permitting. This included working with several entrepreneurs through the conditional use permitting process as well as resolving issues with the applications of permits with the City’s Department of Safety and Permits. Julia is excited to apply her professional skills and experiences towards the continued success of the Greenway.