Manning endorses New Orleans tourism

INDIANAPOLIS – Super Bowl MVP Peyton Manning added a new pitch to his plethora of commercials Wednesday – one that came from the heart.\nManning gave an impromptu endorsement for New Orleans’ tourism industry for the second anniversary of Hurrican Katrina. He encouraged those who have not visited the city recently to do so. \n“People around the country need to know they can still use their help and support,” Manning said. “Prayers and money are good, but there has been progress in certain areas, and people can visit those areas. They need the tourists to come back.”\nFor Manning, New Orleans has always been a special place.\nHis father, Archie, was a longtime quarterback for the Saints and then served as a color analyst for Saints games on the radio. And the league’s two-time MVP actually honed his football skills in New Orleans, first in his parents’ backyard and later at Isidore Newman High School.\nManning’s parents and older brother, Cooper, still live in New Orleans. After the hurricane struck in August 2005, Manning was one of the league’s biggest names to lend support to the recovery effort. Peyton and his younger brother, Eli, even shipped a planeload of supplies back home to New Orleans.\nAnd next Thursday, Manning will open his 10th NFL season against the Saints.\nWhile Manning acknowledges that the recovery effort is still going strong, he believes there is a side of New Orleans others also need to see.\n“Certainly there’s been some progress, and there certainly needs to be more,” he said. “It’s taken two years to get to this point, and I think two years from now there’s still going to be more work that needs to be done. I will say in my visits down there, that spirits are high. ... But what they really need is people to come back to New Orleans.”\nManning commended Saints players, many of whom live in the city, for their assistance. He specifically cited the contributions of running back Reggie Bush and coach Sean Payton.\nPayton has helped with Habitat for Humanity projects, while Bush directed donations to worthy causes, including replacing the turf for a high school football field and keeping a private school open for special needs children. He also bought Hummers for a suburban police department.\nManning believes the success of the local sports teams, such as the Saints and the LSU football team, has helped create excitement among fans in and out of New Orleans.\n“Most of the people who are back there now, I think, are there for the long haul,” Manning said. “In places like Lakeview and Metairie, where there was high flooding, they’re committed to rebuilding. There is progress in certain areas, but there needs to be more in others.”