Alfred Bird “A.B.” Freeman came to New Orleans in 1906 to join the struggling Louisiana Coca-Cola Bottling Company as its secretary-treasurer and would later become its chairman in 1947. Freeman is credited with saving the company and helping it become one of the largest bottling plants in the world. He was also a renowned civic leader and philanthropist, instilling this love of humanity in his family. Through their family foundations, the Freemans and their children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren have invested hundreds of millions of dollars in the New Orleans community over the past nine decades.    

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH) has been one of the many beneficiaries of the family’s philanthropy for nearly three decades. Freeman and his wife, Ella West Freeman, had three children – Richard West Freeman, Sr., Mary Ella Freeman Wisdom, and Rosa Freeman Keller. They established one of the early family foundations in the U.S., the RosaMary Foundation in 1939. Today, members from all three branches of the family sit on the foundation board.  

Their daughter Rosa and her husband, Charles Keller, Jr., established the Keller Family Foundation in 1949. Rosa and Charles Keller were trailblazers and civic activists, and, among many other social justice causes, they championed the integration of New Orleans Public Libraries. It is fitting that their foundation’s favorite LEH program, Prime Time, started in public libraries.  

The foundations not only look for organizations doing good work but focus on the people who run them. Luis Zervigon, president of the Keller Family Foundation, said, “We continued to be impressed by Miranda Restovic’s leadership of LEH. As a board member from 2009–2013, I saw her commitment to excellence and equity as she grew the Prime Time family literacy program and then stepped into her current role as President and Executive Director. Our foundation’s support of LEH reflects both our dedication to lifting up New Orleans families and our belief in the LEH team.” 

LEH Board Chair, Linda Holyfield, presented Zervigon with the Chair’s Award for Institutional Support at this year’s Bright Lights Awards. “LEH is grateful to the RosaMary Foundation and Keller Family Foundation for their unwavering support of our programs in New Orleans.” 

Jenni Daniel is the Vice President of Institutional Advancement at the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities.