Ticket Prices: 1 for $100,   2 for $150

Dressy casual attire.  For more information or to purchase tickets, please contact the JA Office at (504) 569-8658.

Reception Honoring Our Rising Stars

In conjunction with the 2008 Soiree, JA and Capital One will present Rising Star awards to five young entrepreneurs in the Greater New Orleans community.  A Rising Star is an individual, 40 and under, who has demonstrated strong entrepreneurial skills with high moral and ethical standards and who are taking full advantage of the American Free Enterprise System.

Rising Stars Honorees

.	Ashley Abbott, President & CEO, MPress      Ash Abbott, a native of New Orleans, went to Clemson University with intentions of majoring in electrical engineering but quickly changed his mind and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in graphic communications, which led him into the printing industry. After a year of freelance work in Charleston, S.C., he came back to New Orleans to work as a label maker in Elmwood. He worked another 13 years before he was able to purchase Monahan Printing & Direct Mail in 2003 – one of three printing houses that would come to make up his current company, Mpress.      Abbott moved Monahan away from its location in downtown New Orleans on account of an arrangement that presold the building – but the new location took on 18 inches of floodwater during the 2005 hurricane season. Shortly thereafter, two other printers, Franklin Southland Printing and Metairie Printing, asked him to buy them out and Mpress was born.      Now that Mpress has established itself as a full-service printing company, Abbot says “We’re getting more and more into the franchise world of on-demand printing. We’re trying to be more nationally present; to really fine-tune our niche to franchises.” Although he’s cautious about the weather in New Orleans, Abbott is looking forward to continued success with Mpress. When not at work, Abbot likes to stay active by playing softball and basketball. He also enjoys spending quality time with his two children and wife of 13 years. .
.	John Alford, CEO, NOLA 180      John Alford was born and raised in Brooklyn, N.Y. Rising through New York’s public school system, he went on to earn a Master of Business Administration degree from Harvard University. Early in his professional career, Alford managed a team of in-house consultants for General Motors. However, he soon left the automotive industry behind to join the movement for reformed public education. Alford originally worked with the Knowledge is Power Program to open new schools.      Alford now works as the leader of Langston Hughes Academy Charter School in association with NOLA 180. Langston Hughes celebrated the first groundbreaking under the Quick Start Initiative, which expedited construction and renovation of five public schools in New Orleans, the first move in the larger scope of School Facilities Master Plan. The Master Plan represents a cooperative effort between the New Orleans Parish School Board and the Recovery School District, a statewide organization founded by the Louisiana Department of Education for the sake of reforming schools with poor performance records.      “I chose Langston Hughes because it was in an under-served part of the city,” says Alford. “I expect that every student in every zip code in the city of New Orleans will be able to attend a public school that prepares them for college.” .
	Robby Moss, President, Hartwig Moss Insurance Agency      Robby Moss was born and raised in New Orleans, leaving home only to attend Boston College. He studied medicine as an undergraduate and worked for a while at Touro Infirmary. However, he had a change of heart and decided to enter business.      Moss represents the fifth generation of his family to lead Hartwig Moss, the company started by his great-great-grandfather in 1871. “Our focus has always been to cultivate and expand relationships with individuals and business owners,” he says. “Since I joined Hartwig Moss Insurance Agency in 1995, we have expanded into the Employee Benefits arena.”      As more of a consulting firm than a direct sales agency for insurance, Hartwig Moss has shouldered the burden of educating many of its customers about purchasing insurance, both before and after hurricanes. “Many people had never filed a claim until Katrina,” says Moss. “Now our clients are more informed and engaged in the process.”      Moss is an avid Saints and Hornets fan and an amateur poker player, as well as a dedicated husband and father.
	Kenneth Purcell, Founder & CEO, iSeatz.com      Kenneth Purcell had to clean kitchens and wait tables to earn a little extra cash during college. After graduating, he managed a joint venture based on his own concept for a concierge service/restaurant booking engine, between the technology company that employed him and Where. He then managed the sale of the intellectual property to iSeatz.      Since 1999, iSeatz has grown to a travel and hospitality booking service available to individual consumers. Purcell has ridden the ups and downs of running iSeatz. “We lost a few key employees during the weeks following [hurricanes] Katrina and Rita,” says Purcell.      After briefly running the company from an office in New York, Purcell decided to reconsolidate the New Orleans office, which reopened in 2006 and is going strong. “2008 is our year for international expansion,” says Purcell. “Our business is really growing.”      When he isn’t swimming with the proverbial sharks of the workplace, Purcell enjoys fishing for large marine sharks. He also likes to travel with his new wife, with whom he shares three bulldogs that keep them very busy.
	Matthew Wisdom, CEO, Turbo Squid      Matthew Wisdom was born to work in digital imaging. After graduating from Brown University, Wisdom worked for several years for Chimera Digital Imaging before co-founding Turbo Squid in 2000. The idea behind Turbo Squid was to create a place where 3D artists and software developers could buy and sell 3D models.      Eight years later, Turbo Squid is the largest online clearinghouse in the world to feature 3D models, boasting a library of 200,000 unique 3D models, which actually adds up to over 900,000 actual items, from geometric shapes and digital textures to cars and characters.      Turbo Squid has also expanded to include a new division, GameFlood, which is designed more for artists and developers concerned with creating or enhancing third-party video game content.      Turbo Squid jumped from brainchild to business model after the SIGGRAPH conference in 2000, and has since grown into a dynamic marketplace for consumers of digital products.      Wisdom also sits on the Board of Directors of the New Orleans Video Access Center, a non-profit organization dedicated to creating films and educating people about film and video

View past Rising Stars

Please click here to nominate an individual for consideration in 2009

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