Go Back, Give Back.

Five years ago, New Orleans native and Dallas resident Lynette Norris Wilkinson promised to make a difference in the lives of Hurricane Katrina survivors in the Lower 9th Ward community where she grew up. Now, on the eve of the 10th anniversary of Hurricane Katrina, Wilkinson kept that promise. Today she returned to the Lower 9th Ward to donate items on the wish lists of several community organizations. Recipients included the grocery store of Burnell Cotlon, a former veteran who invested his life savings to open the first full-service grocery store in the Lower 9 since Katrina and received a commercial refrigerator, and a Head Start center that promotes school readiness for 3- and 4-year olds. She also donated items to an organization helping residents rebuild. Grocery store owner Cotlon told Ms. Wilkinson, "you just don't know how many people you are helping." Wilkinson named the event the "Go Back--Give Back" Blessings Tour. She also presented her 6th grade teacher Elaine Henry with a plaque for encouraging her to write.