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Rebuilding Without Erecting New Barriers

Like so many others, Greg Smith, a 41-year-old father of three, was displaced by Hurricane Katrina. His family lost everything to the storm, including the state-of-the-art red wheelchair he used to live an active life in the face of muscular dystrophy.

But Smith, author of a book called On a Roll: Reflections from America's Wheelchair Dude with the Winning Attitude, sees an opportunity as his hometown of Ocean Springs, Miss., and so many other Gulf Coast communities confront rebuilding. As he puts it:

"Since everybody is starting from scratch anyway, wouldn't this be a great opportunity to build a community that is accommodating to everyone?"

Copyright 2022 NPR. To see more, visit https://www.npr.org.

This story was compiled from reports by NPR News staff.