Illustration by Jessica Turner.
Journalist Robert Wilonsky will interview East Dallas native Lawrence Wright at an upcoming Downtown Dallas, Inc. event.
Wright, a Woodrow Wilson High School alumnus, will be the keynote speaker at the nonprofit’s 65th annual meeting and luncheon on Feb. 24.
During the conversation, Wilonsky — a former columnist for The Dallas Morning News — and Wright will talk about the history and future of Dallas, specifically Downtown.
Lawrence Wright. Photography by Kenny Braun.
He is a Pulitzer Prize-winning author and staff writer for The New Yorker. His books include God Save Texas: A Journey into the Soul of the Lone Star State and The Looming Tower: Al Qaeda and the Road to 9/11, a 2006 book that spent eight weeks on The New York Times bestseller list and received the Pulitzer Prize for general nonfiction.
Wright grew up in Lakewood, and as much as our neighborhood shaped him, he and his family played a part in the area’s development. As he told the Advocate years ago, his father was a president of Lakewood Bank, and he gave loans to young couples looking to buy homes in our neighborhood. He also was an advocate for Lakewood Shopping Center, encouraging tenants to help keep the area clean and plant trees.
Downtown Dallas, Inc. is the main advocate, champion and steward of the downtown area of our city. The nonprofit works to create strategies, set goals and identify resources that improve infrastructure, enhance the economy, foster cultural inclusivity, develop innovation and technology and make Downtown a global destination.
Last year, East Dallas resident Jennifer Scripps was named president and CEO of the nonprofit. She was previously the director of the city’s Office of Arts and Culture.
