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| Affiliation | Democratic |
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| Name | Tom Watson |
| Address |
New Orleans, Louisiana , United States |
| Email | None |
| Website | [Link] |
| Born |
Unknown
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| Contributor | COSDem |
| Last Modifed | COSDem
Apr 01, 2006 04:17pm |
| Tags |
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| Info | Tom Watson has dedicated his life to public service as a community organizer, pastor, and leader in the City of New Orleans. Watson now continues his fight for working families with his campaign for Mayor of the Crescent City, offering unmatched leadership that encompasses integrity, commitment, and a heart for the people as he works to rebuild the city.
Watson announced his candidacy on February 17, 2006, and is focused on promoting equity and justice in the city’s rebirth, fostering economic growth, and ensuring that each citizen has a right to return to a healthy and environmentally safe city.
Tom Watson began his career in public service at an early age. He rose through the ranks of the U.S. Department of Army to become Second Lieutenant in 1980, and was honorably discharged at the rank of Major in 1993. Following his military service, he spent over 20 years working with youths and families as a social worker and administrator for the City of New Orleans.
His persistence and determination has become a call to action. During his eighteen years as pastor of Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries (located in Algiers, Uptown, and Central City), Watson worked with city leaders to help working families get ahead by creating programs that empower and strengthen the very fiber of our city. He also founded the Family Center of Hope and Watson Christian School, and is responsible for the Annual Citywide Men’s Conference and 1000 Man March against Drugs and Violence which address the multidimensional needs of inner-city families.
Tom Watson grew up in the Central City, where his passion for community organizing and mobilization was birthed. Watson has fought to bring fairness and integrity to residents of New Orleans, and has spearheaded citywide attention to issues of discrimination and violence. He is the founder of the Youth March-for-Jobs Initiative that promoted the employment of young people during the summer of 1994 when the murder rate skyrocketed to over 400 that year. Watson has also served as co-Chair of the New Orleans Public Schools Taskforce on Dropout Prevention and the U.S. Attorney’s Office Weed and Seed Crime Fighting Program. His life and his brave actions remind each of us of our personal responsibilities to stand up for what is right and the central truth of the American experience that our greatness as a nation derives from seemingly ordinary people doing extraordinary things.
Watson was born on September 29, 1955, in New Orleans to Aubrey and Lillie Mae Watson. Tom graduated from McDonough #35 High School in 1973, and completed his Bachelors degree at Xavier University of Louisiana in 1977. In 1979, he obtained a Masters of Social Work from Tulane University and went on to work in a variety of roles under the Barthelemy and Morial administrations as a classified city employee. He also attended New Orleans Baptist and Metropolitan Theological Seminaries.
Tom Watson is especially proud of being a pastor, husband, father and grandfather. Watson and his wife, Patricia, married in 1978 and live in Uptown New Orleans where they pastor Watson Memorial Teaching Ministries. The have reared four children – Chelsi, Simone, Thiffani, and Corey – and are now proud grandparents of three.
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