Celebrities, Athletes, VIPs Pick New Orleans to Win

MIAMI, Feb. 5 /PRNewswire/ -- It's anyone's guess who will win the game on Sunday, but among celebrities, athletes and other VIPs attending last night's GQ Pre-Bowl Bash in South Beach the choice was clear – it's the New Orleans Saints all the way!

Scores of Hollywood stars and top athletes walked the red carpet last evening to celebrate the start of the biggest weekend in sports. And as they entered the venue, the Surfcomber in Miami Beach, they were invited to debate which team they thought would deliver a "Simply Perfect" win on Sunday. For each vote cast, event sponsor Patron tequila made a donation to the St. Bernard Project, a non-profit organization in New Orleans dedicated to creating housing opportunities so that Hurricane Katrina survivors can return to their homes and communities. SBP can rebuild one house in 8-12 weeks for about $15,000. At the end of the evening, 63 percent of people chose the Saints, and 37 percent went for the Colts – and, most importantly, thousands of dollars were raised to help Louisiana families.

"Much has been celebrated that the Saints' bid for the championship is another sign that New Orleans is back on its feet," said Zack Rosenburg, who co-founded the St. Bernard Project with partner and 2008 CNN Hero of the Year Liz McCartney. "It's true, so much has been accomplished in the more than four years since the hurricanes, but it's important to realize there's still significantly more work to be done to help American families finally return to their badly devastated homes."

The St. Bernard Project (www.stbernardproject.org) is a community-based organization that began rebuilding homes in August 2006 that were damaged by floodwaters from Hurricanes Katrina and Rita in St. Bernard Parish. In the Greater New Orleans area, more than 1,000 families live in FEMA trailers and more than 9,000 live in other forms of temporary housing. To date, the St. Bernard Project has rebuilt 262 homes in New Orleans and St. Bernard Parish with help from 19,000+ volunteers. Using volunteer labor, skilled supervisors and donations for building supplies, it takes an average of 12 weeks and $15,000 worth of materials to completely rebuild a house.

"The Patron Spirits Company has been a longtime supporter of the critical work of the St. Bernard Project," said Pam Dzierzanowski, Patron's national events director.  "Along with most all of my colleagues at the company, we've spent several weeks with Zack and Liz raising funds and contributing our time to help rebuild houses. We're honored that we could use this occasion to further help their important efforts."

"It's especially exciting that my New Orleans Saints won the vote last night, let's hope that's a harbinger of Sunday's outcome!" added Rosenburg.

Simply Perfect in every way, Patron is the world's highest-quality ultra-premium tequila. From the finest, most expensive Weber Blue agave plants grown in the highlands of Jalisco, Mexico, to the centuries-old distillation process, to the signed, handcrafted glass bottles, Patron is produced with unparalleled attention to detail. For information about The Patron Spirits Company and its portfolio of ultra-premium spirits (Patron tequilas, Pyrat rum and Ultimat vodka), visit www.patronspirits.com.

SOURCE The Patron Spirits Company