Last weekend was hot as hell, but a lot of fun:  Satchmo SummerFest all weekend, the Club Strut on Frenchmen on Friday evening, White Linen Night, and the highlight of my weekend: the awards from the Mardi Gras Indian Council.

Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame "Scribe" Award for Mojo Mouth by Cherice-Harrison Nelson

I was  so honored and thrilled to receive the “Scribe” award from the Mardi Gras Indian Hall of Fame. You know, I’ve received quite a few awards, but this one means a whole lot to me, as it confirms that the work we do at OffBeat is helping to preserve the indigenous, unique and fascinating culture that our magazine is committed to.

Cherice-Harrison Nelson, daughter of Big Chief of the Guardian of the Flames (now deceased) Donald Harrison, Sr. and sister of Big Chief, musician and educator Donald Harrison, Jr., is the person behind the Mardi Gras Indian organization. She and others have worked for years to let people know about the Indians, and what they represent to the city, and to connect them to other people around the world. Cherice sews—like the other Indians—and I’ve admired her work many times. This award is my “Mojo Mouth” patch, and it’s not only beautiful and significant; it was made for me by Cherice’s own hands.  So I am humbled to receive it, and will treasure it forever, and thank you all for freely sharing your love and devotion to time-honored New Orleans traditions that exist nowhere else in the world.

Satchmo Summerfest faced a really hot event this year, but came through with flying colors by providing tents and fans for patrons at the Mint (they should have done this years ago!), holding its seminars at the Maison on Frenchmen Street, enhancing food and beverage offerings, and a great music lineup. The Jazz Mass, and second-line from St. Augustine Church to the Mint is always packed, and this year was no exception.

I worked at the information booth on Saturday (disclosure: I am a member of the French Quarter Festival, Inc. board, which produces Satchmo

Satchmo Summerfest Jazz Mass at St. Augustine Church (Photo: Kim Welsh)

SummerFest), and heard nothing but wonderful comments from people who stopped by the booth. A local gentleman told me he likes SSF because of the great seminars, which is “something none of the other festivals do.” I met a lot of people from all over the country, who said they found out about the festival only after they were in town. I’ve said it before, but I believe Satchmo SummerFest has the potential to bring New Orleans’

Second-Lining from St. Augustine bacj to Satchmo Summerfest (Photo: Kim Welsh)

out of the summer doldrums, visitor-wise. The key to that is to market this festival heavily overseas in Europe, Japan, China and India.

I spoke with a representative of a major horn manufacturer, who told me that the Pacific Rim constitutes almost 19 percent of their total market share. Perhaps the tourism marketing people need to focus their efforts on these areas as well as on Europe alone. And the FQFI people need to step up their marketing efforts to include more direct emails. The potential is obvious.