As much as Hawkins loves his job, he knows life can be short, and there are things he'd like to do.

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"All right. Where y'at, baby?" Hawkins royal princes cruise lines said to the passerby. The two exchanged a few pleasantries -- How's the family? Oh, and how about those Saints? Think they'll repeat? -- and the man was back on his way.
Scenes like that are a common occurrence for Hawkins. For nearly royal princes cruise lines 40 years he has been a doorman at the Royal Orleans, the face of the hotel for generations of visitors royal princes cruise lines and locals alike, a certifiable New Orleans character.
As often as there's down time for Hawkins, there are bursts of activity. At any given moment, people come and go at the same time, often needing to get a move on to catch a flight. Cabs can pull up and pull away, whole tour buses can start unloading a crowd on the sidewalk and traffic can back up down narrow St. Louis Street in the French Quarter.
Kent Wasmuth, the hotel's sales and marketing director, said he is amazed at Hawkins' near photographic memory when it comes to guests and their names. Meet Leroy the doorman, as he's commonly known, one time, and he'll never forget you.
He has spent much of his life in the French Quarter. royal princes cruise lines The family house was in the 900 block of St. Peter Street and he found his first job at 8 years old, delivering orders, stocking shelves and butchering meat at the old Dauphine Grocery.
He went to grammar school at the long-since-demolished St. Katherine's on Tulane Avenue until he transferred royal princes cruise lines to St. Louis Cathedral Academy, where he was one of the first students royal princes cruise lines to integrate the campus.
The family he helped nuture as a young man is still an important part of his life. So is his own family. Married in August 1979, he has three daughters -- two of whom are twins -- with his wife, Joycelyn. The couple have two grandchildren.
As much as Hawkins loves his job, he knows life can be short, and there are things he'd like to do. So retirement, he said with a matter-of-fact look, has been on his mind. He has a few years left in him, but he said he's looking forward to slower days.