His message was positive and relevant, and he connected with many of our students as was indicated in the many complex and fascinating questions they asked him about his experiences. We were invited to present the organ at BP's summer gala in June of 2008, and the guest speaker, astronaut Dr. Jim Reilly, spoke with our students after their performance and told them that their project is "stunning." The organ was featured in several newspaper articles during the summer, and it was presented at St. Martin's Cathedral after John Potter's magnificent senior recital in August of 2008.
On December 17th, 2008, Toyota sent a representative, Mr. Frank Bianchi, to John Potter's organ concert at Memorial High School. That week, we were featured in several newspaper articles, and in Deborah Wrigley's news broadcast live from our auditorium. Many of our students who participated in the project were interviewed for the broadcast. As a result of the positive response to our concert, we were invited by Toyota Tapestry's program and the National Science Teachers Association to bring the organ to their national New Orleans conference during our spring break in March to present to the nation's science teachers and educational professionals, as well as to the supporting technology companies and related industry representatives who will be in attendance. We are proud to be attending the event to represent our district while showing of the achievements of our students. The amazing John Potter will be attending the event as our performing organist to dazzle the attendees, and we will be taking a team of students to present the project to them.