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 The city wants to recognize the progress it has made in recovering
from the most costly storm in U.S. history. Thousands of people are
expected to turn out as the city's trademark "second line" parades
snake through the streets and New Orleans puts its famous musical
traditions on display.
But Saturday is also a time to remember more than 1,500 New
Orleanians who were killed by Katrina and its aftermath, and the
130,000 residents who were displaced.
"A celebration would not be the right gesture for those who will
never be made whole," said Kristian Sonnier, an official at the New
Orleans Convention and Visitors Bureau. "This is more taking stock
and recognizing what we have accomplished and that we have a lot
more work to do," he said.
 Saturday will cap a week of self-examination that has included panel
discussions by urban planners, elected officials, recovery experts,
architects and neighborhood leaders.
The day begins early with a wreath-laying ceremony in one of the
city's historic above-ground cemeteries, the site of the Hurricane
Katrina Memorial. The remains of 83 "forgotten" victims have rested
there since 2008, their bodies never claimed by relatives. Mayor
Mitch Landrieu will pay tribute to them during a brief service.
Other places that were hard-hit will host memorials as well. At
Shell Beach, in lower St. Bernard Parish just east of New Orleans,
public officials and residents will gather along a waterway that
burst through a levee in 2005 and killed 127 people. The ceremony
will feature a reading of the names of victims, now etched into a
monument there.
Tributes are slated in the city's Lower Ninth Ward, where surging
waters broke a floodwall on the city's Industrial Canal and
devastated the entire neighborhood. Similarly, Lakeview, Broadmoor,
Mid-City and a host of other areas are looking back on 2005 with
mixed emotions.
 "There aren't enough words to describe the loss, especially for the
people of the Lower Ninth Ward, because the breach that drowned
their neighborhood was the worst in the city," said civic activist
Sandy Rosenthal on Friday, just after she had walked in a
second-line parade through the ward.
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At the same time, she says, the progress the city has made in 10
years is undeniable.
A march and hand-holding ceremony is scheduled at the city's
Superdome, which housed thousands of displaced people after the
storm and became an emblem of the chaos and hardship that engulfed
New Orleans after the flooding.
"It's a great feeling to see that so many people have come back to
the city and are doing well, but depression sets in when you think
of those who died or those who want to come back but haven't been
able to return," said Barbara Blackwell, whose home in the Gentilly
neighborhood was a casualty of the flood.
"I know that for many people, this anniversary unearths old wounds,
but it's also a healing process," Blackwell said. "The pain never
goes away, but it helps to know that loved ones who were lost are
being remembered."
While some residents find it hard to look back, many are heartened
to see that national figures continue to show concern and admiration
for New Orleans.
President Barack Obama paid tribute to the city's recovery in a
visit to the Lower Ninth Ward on Thursday. "I am inspired by you,"
he told his audience at a local community center.
Former President George W. Bush, who critics say was slow to respond
to the unfolding crisis a decade ago, visited the city on Friday.
Former President Bill Clinton will address a gathering at a downtown
arena on Saturday that will also feature a lineup of well-known
local musicians.
(Editing by Frank McGurty and Lisa Shumaker)
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