The scene at the Oretha Castle Haley Elementary School when the Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame first presented its awards almost 20 years ago was a sweet, significant ceremony attended primarily by the school’s young students. Co-founded by teacher Cherice “Queen Reesie” Harrison-Nelson and principal Roslyn Smith, its purpose was to pay tribute to Harrison-Nelson’s father, the then–recently deceased Big Chief Donald Harrison Sr. and others who had contributed t...