Cleveland International Hall of Fame 2010 Induction - Albert Ratner Keynote
Albert B. Ratner is Co-Chairman of the Board of Forest City Enterprises, Inc.
He graduated from Michigan State University in 1951 with a B.S. from School of Forestry. He is the recipient of Honorary Doctor of Laws (1990) Long Island University, Brooklyn, N.Y. and Honorary Doctor of Engineering (1992) Polytechnic University, Brooklyn, N.Y. In 2007, he was appointed Adjunct Visiting Professor at the Land Policy Institute of Michigan State University.
Among the many awards that he has received, is the 2005 Urban Land Institute J.C. Nichols Prize for Visionaries in Urban Development.
Mr Ratner delivered the keynote address at the 2010 Cleveland International Hall of Fame Induction on Wednesday May 12, 2010 in Cleveland.
Mr Ratner begins his keynote address
Lessons learned from his family
What happened to Cleveland and how do we grow again
4 things that Cleveland needs to do to grow again
Albert Ratner talks about the Cleveland Welcome Center
In Mr Ratner's conclusion, he read a poem called Your Town.
If you'd like to live in the kind of Town
Like the kind of Town you'd like.
You needn't slip your clothes in a grip
And start on a long, long hike.
For you'll only find what you've left behind
There's nothing that's really new
Your knocking yourself, when you knock your Town
It isn't your Town, - - it's you!
Real Towns are not made of people afraid
When somebody else gets ahead.
When everyone works and nobody shirks
You can raise a Town from the dead.
So if, while you make your personal stake,
Your neighbor can make his too,
You can make a town what you want it to be
It isn't the Town, -- it's you!
Author unknown
ClevelandPeople.Com thanks Mr. Ratner for being the keynote speaker for the inaugural class of the Cleveland International Hall of Fame.
To learn more about opportunities for the 2011 Cleveland International Hall of Fame induction please contact Debbie Hanson directly at deb@ClevelandPeople.Com or 216-381-8310.