Veterans Day Speaker, Lt. General (Ret) Russel Honoré,
Katrina's "John Wayne"
 Impressed with Sears Holdings Crisis Center

Lt. General (Ret) Russel Honoré, the man who New Orleans Mayor Ray Nagin dubbed "one John Wayne Dude," received a briefing from the Sears Holdings Crisis Operations Team (COT)  November 8th before speaking to over 200 headquarters associates on the topics of leadership, helping save a city Post Hurricane Katrina and honoring our American veterans. General Honoré was impressed with the procedures and technology used by the COT in preparing and supporting field units during man-made or natural disasters.

He shared with Bill Titus, VP of Loss Prevention, "one way we can show 21st Century leadership is by taking care of our people, especially the most vulnerable among us. America is a great country when we not only look out for Wall Street and Main Street, but also 'Railroad Street' – the poor, disabled, and elderly who are often the first to get left behind when crisis – economic or otherwise – strikes." He lauded Sears Holdings for its focus on opening stores quickly during both Hurricanes Isaac and Sandy, allowing our local communities and customers to return to a state of normalcy in short order.

Honoré emphasized a topic of national importance today is creating a "culture of preparedness in an era where disasters and catastrophes can take place, anytime, anywhere..." "Wherever I go", he stated, "I always ask my audiences, 'Are you ready?'"