Brett Favre returned to his hometown in southern Mississippi on Thursday and joined First Lady Laura Bush in dedicating a playground to replace the one where he played as a boy.

The Green Bay Packers quarterback thanked the volunteers for building the playground at Hancock North Central Elementary School in the small town of about 2,000 people located 10 miles north of the Gulf of Mexico. His mother, two brothers and sister still live in the area.

"This place was devasted by Hurricane Katrina, and I know a lot of the volunteers who they normally would get from the local communities are busy doing their own thing," Favre said. "This is a tough time for the people of this community. ... Everyone is kind of searching for a direction to go in. You're obviously helping out, making things a little bit brighter."

Construction on the new playground was planned before Katrina struck on Aug. 29.

Favre didn't say whether he would return to the Packers for a 16th season. He left before the event ended, and as a hush fell over the crowd before the First Lady appeared, a man yelled, "Play one more year, Brett."