dr. regina benjamin and the origin of wakefield are here to speak this afternoon. dr. benjamin had scheduling issues and she will open these remarks and we will need to move on to the next scheduling activity that has come up for her. dr. regina benjamin is the 18 surgeon general of the united states public health service for it as america's doctor, she provides the public with the best scientific information available on how to improve their health and the health of the nation. she also oversees the operational command of over 6000 uniformed officers who serve -- dr. benjamin is the founder and ceo of the [inaudible] in alabama for all health clinics and a former associate [inaudible] at the university of south alabama. she was the first physician under age 40 to be elected to the american medical association education foundation. she has served with her education research foundation as the chair. of the judicial affairs committee. she became the president of the medical association state of alabama making her the first african-american female president of a state medi

dr. regina benjamin, who mortgaged her home, of maxed out her credit cards so she could reopen her clinic to care for victims of the storm and is now our nation's surgeon general. [applause] we see resilience and hope exemplified by students at carver high school who have helped to raise more than $1 million to build a new community track and football field -- their field of dreams for the ninth ward. because of all of you, all the advocates, the organizers who are here today, folks standing behind me who have worked so hard, who never gave up hope, you are all leading the way toward a better future for this city with innovative approaches to fighting poverty, improving health care, reducing crime, and creating opportunities for young people. because of you, new orleans is coming back. [applause] i just came from the tavern. five years ago, the storm nearly destroyed that neighborhood institution. i saw the pictures. now, they are open. business is booming. that is some good eats. i had the shrimp po'boy and some of the gumbo. but i skipped the bread pudding because i thought i might fall