On Tuesday, October 20, 2009, some 150 members of the community were treated to a Turkish dinner and an evening of entertainment and intercultural dialog at Boudreaux’s, sponsored by the Atlas Foundation.  The guests, who represented a wide range of people from different socio-economic cultures and religious traditions within the Baton Rouge area, were provided the opportunity to meet, talk and exchange ideas.

Dr. Cynthia Bryant, representing Southern University, and Dianne Hanley, from Social Ministries of the Catholic Charities of the Diocese of BR, served as co-moderators of the program.  The affirmation that “There is more that unites us (as people) than divides us” was the theme carried out in the talks given by Sharon Weston Broome, President Pro Tempore of the Louisiana State Senate; Melvin L. “Kip” Holden, Mayor-President of the City of Baton Rouge and the Parish of East Baton Rouge; Robert Mann, LSU Professor and author and Sue Webb, Atlas Community Liaison.

Mayor-President Holden, who recently made a trip to Turkey to establish a sister city with Malayta, presented a proclamation to the Atlas Foundation in commemoration of the evening’s event.