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Clarion Herald Commentary on Café Hope by LHF President David Blitch

Feb 28, 2009 – COMMENTARY

Helping kids

As president of the Louisiana Hospitaly Foundation, it is my pleasure to be among the first to support the development of Catholic Charities' Cafe Hope on the Hope Haven Campus. The Louisiana Hospitality Foundation was formed in 2006, in the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina,specifically to improve the community by supporting programs that provide for the education, health and social welfare of our children, and to provide greater access to culinary education and arts.

The LHF has supported Cafe Reconcile through one of our early grants, and several of our founding members have served on its board. When we learned that Catholic Charities planned to bring that model to the West Bank, we were eager to lend our fmancial support to the project. Cafe Hope; like its predecessor; will provide valuable training to the youth workforce on the West Bank. As any employer knows, excelling in the workplace Is much more than just possessing the work skills to get the job done. Cafe Hope will teach youth basic life and interpersonal skills, in addition to giving them the knowledge and expertise to enjoy a career in the entertainment and hospitality industry.

Our goal, as a foundation, is to help these kids. get a good statl not only on a career path, but in life. All of the members of our foundatIon started out as busboys, waiters and kitchen staff performing the most menial of restaurant work. The industry has been good to us, allowing us to rise through the-ranks to the executive level as a result of hard work, common sense and good mentoring by those who came before us. Our commitment as corporate citizens is to give back to our community. We pledge our time arid resources to help the next generation, some in desperate need of leadership, to become successful in the hospitality industry. We know that our ground floor support for Catholic Charities and Cafe Hope will help to accomplish that.


DAVID A. BLITCH
President, Louisiana Hospitality Foundation


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