The Association of St. Augustine High School Alumni - DFW 

2023 Mardi Gras Ball

About the Mardi Gras Ball

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The Association of St. Augustine Alumni – DFW Chapter’s Annual Mardi Gras Ball is a premier fundraising gala and major social event focusing on raising awareness and support for our alma mater’s 69-year mission of educating and molding deserving young black men in the city of New Orleans to become leaders equipped to improve the world. This exclusive, “must-attend” event is designed to be one of DFW’s finest evenings of fun, good food, glitz and glamour that will have attendees feeling like they are in New Orleans enjoying the pageantry of Mardi Gras.

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Based on New Orleans traditions, the BALL is known for its food and music including Carnival Indians and a Brass Band. This year, we are honored to have the legendary actor, Harold Sylvester to serve as our grand Marshall. Harold Sylvester is a who has stared in TV series including “Married with Children” and “Hill Street Blues”.  He has also acted in major films including “An Officer and A Gentleman” and “Uncommon Valor”.  Harold is a proud 1968 graduate of St. Augustine High School.

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Event Details

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The annual Mardi Gras Ball is the DFW Chapter’s largest and most significant event each year. The event targets local DFW professionals, corporations, small businesses and other community-based organizations. For five (5) hours attendees will experience the flare of New Orleans hospitality, music, food and fun. When complete, everyone will have learned a little bit about the cause of helping St. Aug to continue its mission and how their support improves the lives of students and their families.

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When: January 21, 2023 - 6:00 PM – 1:00 AM

Where: Ruthe Jackson Center – Grand Prairie, TX

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George Mccullum

Sponsors of this event will gain access to a ground floor opportunity to market their brand, products or services to professionals from across the DFW area and from cities across the US. We have chosen to cap attendance to year’s event at 500 in order to ensure that we produce the right experience. Due to attendance demand, we fully expect to expand our event to 1200 guest over the next couple of years. Professionals who attend this event will come from all walks of life and are consumers of all types of goods and services. We encourage you to take a look at this unique opportunity to support our ‘party with a cause’ and grow with us over the coming years.

St. Augustine High School’s Graduating Class of 2022

100 % College acceptance

Receiving over 9 million in college tuition scholarships.

Black and white photograph of

St. Augustine High School

basketball team located in

the National Museum

of African American History and

Culture, Washington, D.C.

2023 Mardi Gras Ball - Sponsorship Packages

2023 Mardi Gras Ball - Ad Specifications
Ad Sizes Available - Width x Height in Inches

Our 2023 Grand Marshal
 
Harold Sylvester, Class of 1968

Early life and education

Sylvester was born in New Orleans, Louisiana.

He is a graduate of New Orleans' St. Augustine High School 

and Tulane University. Turning down Harvard, he attended

Tulane on a basketball scholarship and graduated in 1972

with a degree in theater and psychology. He was the first African American

to receive an athletic scholarship from Tulane.

Career

Sylvester is best known for his role on the TV series Married... with Children as

Griff, the co-worker and friend of Al Bundy at the shoe store. Harold's other

TV roles include the miniseries Wheels (1978), Sylvester was in Barnaby Jones,

episode titled “A Desperate Pursuit”(10/11/1979), the short-lived 1981 series 

Walking Tall, Today's F.B.I., Mary (1985), Shaky Ground, and "A Different World". The most recent TV show in which he starred was The Army Show. Sylvester had a recurring role on the TV series City of Angels. He has made guest appearances on shows, ranging from The Eddie Capra Mysteries to Hill Street Blues to Murder, She Wrote to NYPD Blue.

His first Hollywood role was as Nathan, a lead character in Part 2, Sounder, the sequel to Sounder. His better known film roles are in supporting roles in An Officer and a Gentleman (1982), Uncommon Valor (1983), Innerspace (1987), and Corrina, Corrina (1994). He was a contract player for Universal Studios.

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Sylvester wrote the screenplay for the 1998 TV movie Passing Glory. This screenplay was based on some of his experiences playing basketball in high school, including a groundbreaking game of St. Augustine High School's all-black team against Jesuit High School's all-white team.

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The Amistad Research Center of New Orleans, Louisiana, maintains a collection of Harold Sylvester's papers that document his correspondence, film and television scripts, and materials reflecting his involvement with the Free Southern Theater and his Blue Bayou Productions Company.

Personal life

Sylvester has been married to Kathleen since 1970. They have two children.

Our 2022 King 
 
Glenn G Johnson     Class of 1988

Glenn G Johnson was born at Touro Hospital in New Orleans, LA.  

In his grade school years, Glenn lived on Broad Street and

St Bernard Avenue in a house located across from Al Scramuzza’s

Seafood City.  Glenn attended Corpus Christy Catholic School.

 During his middle school, Glenn’s family moved to Dreux Avenue

in Gentilly Woods.

At St Augustine High School as a senior, Glenn worked with Mr. Edwin Hampton on new T-shirt designs for the St Augustine High School Marching 100 Band.  Glenn graduated from St Augustine High School as a proud member of the Class of 1988.
Glenn attended Xavier University of LA in New Orleans and obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration & Marketing. At Xavier, he pledged Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc. in the Fall of 1991. He was a part of the X.U. Fashion Show Committee and the Xavier Yearbook staff.   Also, while at Xavier University, Glenn worked with Mr. Edwin Hampton and Ray Johnson to design and screen print shirts and promotional materials for the Marching 100.  Glenn notes that by Mr. Hampton taking a chance on a 19-year-old kid allowing him to produce the shirts for the Marching 100 Band, Mr. Hamp helped to pay Glenn’s way through Xavier University. For that, Glenn is forever dedicated and devoted to supporting St Augustine High school.

 
Professional Career 

Glenn worked at Hewlett Packard as a Retail Sales Manager managing retail accounts across the gulf south region. From there he went on to work at Cox Communications LLC in New Orleans, LA as the Outside Sales Channel Manager. While at Cox Glenn hosted manger sales events like the Louisiana Home & Garden Shows, ESPN events, Movie premier events, The NFL Superbowl Experience, and many more promotional sales events. 

After Hurricane Katrina, Glenn and his family relocated to Dallas, Texas.  In Dallas, Glenn worked for DIRECTV as the Eastern Regional Sales Manager for the in-store Costco Sales Team.  He also helped to launch the DIRECTV/ AT&T joint retail sales program.   Glenn went on to work for Nestle Waters North America as the Regional Sales Manager for North Texas.

Glenn currently is the owner and CEO of JAGG_START LLC.  

Flight Simulator FSX Scenery 3rd party developer.

For over 12 years, Glenn Johnson worked as a 3rd party scenery developer for Microsoft Flight Simulator X program.  He is the owner of FSX Photo Real Sceneries, LLC.   Glenn has created high quality "photo imagery" sceneries for Microsoft Flight Simulator enthusiasts across the globe. His mission was to create photo realistic airports to make the flight simulator experience “as REAL as it gets”. Glenn Johnson’s sceneries have been featured in several magazines and websites including PC Aviator, PC PILOT Magazine, and FS MAGZIN, for the LAX and New Orleans International airport designs.

Family Life

Glenn is married to his lovely wife of 27 years, Andrea C Johnson. They have two beautiful daughters Gabrielle and Alexandria Johnson. Glenn’s parents, Joseph and Carolyn Johnson currently reside in New Orleans. Glenn has two Brothers, Ken ’82 and Johnathan Johnson ‘95 that are also graduates of St Augustine High School. His Brother-in-Law, Andrew Collier Jr. also graduated in 2008 from St Augustine High School continuing the Purple Knight family tradition.

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St Aug DFW Alumni Chapter Service

Glenn Johnson is Currently the Vice President of the St Augustine H.S. DFW Alumni Chapter and he is also the Chairmen of the Mardi Gras Ball Committee.  Glenn has previously served as the chapter's Recording Secretary for 5 years and a charter member of the St Aug DFW Alumni Chapter.