Harrison Ford and Robert Duvall hobnob with Columbia couple
By Warner M. Montgomery
Warner@TheColumbiaStar.com

Robert Duvall (c) and his wife, Luciana (r), pose eagerly with Nena Powell-Rice (l) and her husband, Marion Rice.

Nena Powell-Rice walks in high cotton. Usually ensconced at her desk at the SC Institute of Archaeology, this recognized explorer took a few days off last week to schmooze with Harrison Ford, Robert Duvall, and Dr. Michael Fay in New York City.

The occasion was the Inaugural Gala of the International Conservation Caucus Foundation (CCFI), the creation of Columbia's David H. Barron, brother of former Richland County Coroner Frank Barron. Pulling together liberals and conservatives, Republicans and Democrats, environmentalists and industrialists, corporations and non-profits, Barron seeks to overhaul the current US conservation system. Not with more government, he says, but with private sector solutions to the problems of wildlife management, environmental bio-diversity, and food production.

Powell-Rice and her husband, Marion Rice, attended the Gala at the invitation of Barron, an old friend and former chair of the Young Republican National Federation. She met Harrison Ford after he received The Good Steward Award for his personal commitment to conservation. Robert Duvall and his wife Luciana, who donate heavily to CCFI causes, paused to chat with Nena and Marion as they compared notes with fellow Explorer Dr. Michael Fay, known for his 1,200 mile walk across Congo and Gabon.

Harrison Ford (c) is pleased to meet Nena Powell-Rice (l) and Marion Rice (r).

For more information, visit www.iccfoundation.us