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The first bishop of New Orleans’ St. Louis Cathedral was Cuban. When City of Havana historian Dr. Eusebio Leal saw the portrait of Bishop Penalver in New Orleans, he asked if he could get a copy.
Recently, Gulf Coast Bank CEO Guy Williams traveled to Havana and presented Dr. Leal with an exact duplicate of the original painting.
The seven-foot painting of Bishop Penalver will hang in the Havana art museum. Williams said it was an honor to help Dr. Leal, who rescued hundreds of landmark buildings in Old Havana, the colonial section of the city, founded in 1519.
– Guy Williams, President and CEO, Gulf Coast Bank & Trust Company