Cowgirl Hall of Fame restaurant at Hudson and W. 10th Sts. pitched in to help the recovery effort in New Orleans and the Gulf Coast by donating $10,000 to Habitat for Humanity that they collected in a two-week fundraising drive. Above from left, Devra Dedeaux, special event coordinator, and Joel Gordin, president and general manager of Cowgirl Hall of Fame, presented Chris Heig, Habitat for Humanity International major gift director, with the check. Dedeaux has family in New Orleans and on the Mississippi coast. Her parents lost their home in Pass Christian, Miss., and the homes of her brother and sister in New Orleans were severely damaged. Gordin’s brother, a businessman in New Orleans’ French Quarter, suffered extensive property damage and financial loss from disruption of tourism. “Change Is Gonna Come” food and drink specials were created to honor the people and cuisine of the Gulf Coast and raise funds. Maker’s Mark whiskey and Sauza tequila committed to match monies raised by the restaurant. Habitat for Humanity, the Christian affordable-housing-building organization, was chosen as recipient of the funds, because as the drive’s motto put it: “You cannot start the healing process of recovery without a sense of place and most importantly a home.”
