In This Issue
KUDOS FOR CAROL GOSS & THE SKILLMAN FOUNDATION
WCCCD SPONSORS ARISE DETROIT! RADIO SHOW
WAYNE STATE UNIVERSITY STUDENTS IN THE COMMUNITY
HONORING RANDY MCNEIL
REMEMBERING: Rosalind Caldwell-Jones, Colin Hubbell & Gerald K. Smith
CITYYEAR DETROIT MARKS 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
ACES SEEKS A NEW HOME
Thank
you, Sponsors!
ARISE Detroit!
Steering Committee
Officers
Chairman: John X.
Miller, CEO, THAW
Fund
1st Vice Chair: Penny
Bailer, Executive
Director, CityYear Detroit
2nd Vice Chai:,Paul
Riser, Jr., past president,
Legacy Associates
Foundation
Secretary: Mandy
Mullins, Office Manager,
Art of Leadership
Treasurer: Alyssa
Martina, Publisher &
President, Metro Parent
Publishing Group
ARISE
Detroit! Staff
LUTHER KEITH,
Executive Director
GENEVIEVE CLARK,
Operations Manager
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Quick Links...
Visit our web site
for more
www.arisedetroit.org
Center for Community Collaboration
Phn: 313-921-1955
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Let's heal and ARISE Detroit!
On June 11, 1805, the entire City of Detroit, except for one building, was destroyed
by a fire. Now, 203 years later, the city is trying to recover from another fire,
the text message saga that rocked City Hall for months, and plummeted the national
and international image of Detroit to a new low.
Many people breathed a sign of relief with the resignation of Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick,
who pleaded guilty to obstruction of justice charges, but that hardly ends all of
the problems facing Detroit. We still have underperforming schools, too much crime,
widespread illiteracy and litany of other social challenges.
our new mayor and former City Council president, Kenneth Cockrel Jr., set the right
tone in emphasizing the need for a fresh start for the city at his swearing-in ceremony.
Now, there is much talk about "healing," and how to move the city forward.
What does Detroit need now? Healing, yes, but much more than that. Take a look at
the flag of the City Detroit, designed in 1907 by David E. Heineman,
who added a Latin motto in recognition of the 1805 fire that swept through Detroit.
According to the book Detroit's Coming of Age: 1873-1973
by Don Lochbiler, the translation of the motto reads: "We hope for better
things, we will arise from our ashes."
Much like 1805, and again after the 1967 city disturbances, it is time for Detroit
to "arise" from its ashes.
ARISE Detroit! While that is the name of our growing organization
and movement that promotes volunteerism, personal responsibility and community activism,
it is also an ideal call to action for our entire community.
ARISE Detroit! How do we do this? By making a personal commitment
to be part of the solution to make our city better. Yes, we still must demand integrity,
honesty and accountability from our public officials, but each of us can do more
than sit on the sidelines and complain about what is wrong.
ARISE Detroit! A coalition of more than 300 block clubs, community
groups, churches, businesses and other organizations, ARISE Detroit! connects people
to hundred of opportunities to mentor, tutor, clean up neighborhoods and to get
involved in positive programs to help our children and families.
We need to do a better job of loving and directing our children and taking care
of our senior citizens. It's worth noting that both presidential nominees, Democrat
Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, have national community service programs
as part of their agendas. And the Sept. 22 issue of Time Magazine has both candidates
on the cover with the headline "21 Ways to Fix Up America," focused on community
activism to improve our nation's communities.
Many organizations are doing great things in Detroit but they need much more help
- they need you. Pick one and get involved. As you become involved, you will be
inspired and be an inspiration to others.
This is how we do it, Detroit. We need healing, but we must heal ourselves.
ARISE Detroit!
Do you have an idea or a program that Detroiters can use to help make
the city better? E-mail
lkeith@arisedetroit.org and we will share them with the community on the ARISE Detroit
blog at www.arisedetroit.org
A SHINING LIGHT FOR CAROL GOSS
As president and CEO of
The Skillman Foundation,
Carol Goss is not
your typical stuffy chair executive. The chief engineer behind two major community
efforts - Skillman's
Good Schools and Good Neighborhoods initiatives
-- Goss is as at home at a community meeting in the "hood," as she is lobbying a
corporate CEO in an ivory tower. She is a true believer that Detroit can, will and
is changing every day.
Soft spoken and low key, she never seeks the limelight. Nevertheless, it is great
and only fitting to see her tireless work recognized. Goss has been selected to
receive the
Eleanor Josaitis Award as part of the Shining Light Awards,
presented by The Detroit Free Press
and the Metropolitan Affairs Coalition.
Also being honored are
Kerry Doman, founder of the
After 5 Detroit
website for young professionals, who will receive the
Dave Bing Future Leader Award
and David
DiChiera, general director of the Michigan Opera
Theatre, who will be honored with the Neal Shine Award
of Exemplary Regional Leadership.
The Shining Light Awards Ceremony will
be held at a 7:30 a.m. breakfast on Oct. 9 at the Westin
hotel in Southfield. Tickets are
$35
and can be obtained by phoning,
248-336-8399.
MORE SKILLMAN HONORS
Congratulations are in order as well for Skillman vice president of programs
Tonya Allen and program officer
Charnitta Johnson, who were also recently honored.
Allen received the
Michigan Neighborhood Champions Award, given by the
Michigan Neighborhood Partnership to individuals for contributions to neighborhood
revitalization. Johnson was given the 2008 Marygrove College Distinguished Alumni and Distinguished
Alumni of Tomorrow awards for her work with the Skillman
Good Neighborhoods Initiative.
WCCCD, SPONSORING ARISE Detroit! NETWORK RADIO SHOW
Wayne County Community College District is the new sponsor of the ARISE Detroit!
Network Radio Show. The program focuses on volunteerism, community activism and
spotlights people and organizations making a difference in the community. Tune in
every Sunday
evening from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m
on WCHB 1200 AM.
Community block clubs, volunteers and nonprofit organizations are encouraged to
call in during the show. It is hosted by yours truly, Luther Keith, and the call-in
number is 313-298-1200.
To learn more about WCCCD and its many community-based programs
and classes go to their website, www.wcccd.edu We publicly thank
Dr. Curtis Ivery,
WCCCD chancellor, for his support of ARISE Detroit! Also, thanks to
Dr. Debraha K. Watson,
provost of the new Northwest campus in Detroit on West Outer Drive at Southfield
Road, who was our guest on the Sept. 21 show.
WAYNE STATE STUDENTS LEND HELPING HANDS
With the support of ARISE Detroit!,
Wayne State University held the first Warrior Service
Day, Saturday, August 30, 2008, as part of the three-day
iStart: New Student
Days program.
Michelle Hunt Bruner, interim director of Academic Success Center at Wayne State,
was pleased with the result. "To
introduce new students to the community and a culture of responsibility, Warrior
Service Day provided over 600 new students with the opportunity to complete community
service work in various capacities and with many local service agencies,"
she stated.
"Collectively, over 250 of these students worked with agencies
connected with the University through ARISE Detroit!. Projects included local park
clean-ups, meal packaging for senior citizens, literature distribution to support
non-profits, clean-up efforts to create safer school routes for youth, and back-to-school
programs to celebrate education and give supplies to young students.
Bruner was inspired by what she saw.
"I'm seeing small groups
of people do amazing things to help the community," she
said
CELEBRATING RANDY MCNEIL AND YOUTH DEVELOPMENT COMMISSION
Randy McNeil, the founder of the Youth Development Commission
and a board member with ARISE Detroit!, will be honored
Nov. 6 at
a YDC Gala at the Roostertail. McNeil is retiring
after working more than 30 years in programs and efforts to help young people and
families in Detroit. The Champion for Youth Celebration will be held from 5:30 p.m
to 8: p.m. at the Roosterail, 100 Marquette, Detroit.
There will be a
silent auction and entertainment featuring jazz artist Tim Bowman and gospel singer
Vickie Winans. Corporate tables are $1,000 and community organization tables are
$500. For more information, phone 313-963-8916 or go to the website,
www.ydcdetroit.org
Randy,
we wish you the best!
WE WILL MISS THEM
In the past few months, Detroit has lost three people who passionately cared about
Detroit and tried to make it a better place for all of us.
The least well know of these--to the general public--was
Rosalind
Caldwell-Jones, a longtime
DTE
employee, who "mothered" countless children, constantly scouting for scholarships,
academic enrichment programs and other opportunities to help students.
Caldwell-Jones, who died in May, also was active behind the scenes, lending
her voice to a number of community organizations.
In August, longtime Detroit developer,
Colin Hubbell
died. Hubbell made his living as a developer of commercial
and residential projects in the city. He also was a fierce advocate for city life
and supported the enhancement of the urban community. I sat on a number panels with
Hubbell for the Detroit Orientation Institute.
He always had something to say that was meaningful, and sometimes controversial
- but always with the focus of making a better Detroit.
On Aug. 30, Detroit's children lost a tireless champion for them with the passing
of Gerald K. Smith,
President and CEO of YouthVille Detroit. Smith devoted his life to improving the community and to
"youth development," which he saw as the key to producing, confident young achievers
that would make confident contributors to society as adults. He was a much loved
man. Over 1,000 people attended his funeral at
Hartford Memorial
Baptist Church. He was also
a strong supporter of ARISE Detroit!
and I will miss him personally and professionally
CITYYEAR DETROIT MARKS 10 YEARS OF SERVICE
Congratulations to CityYear Detroit, which marked 10 years of offering
young adults the opportunity to mentor and tutor in area schools in exchange for
a small stipend and tuition to attend college. More than 500 dedicated young
people have been part of the City Year experience of weekend community service projects
and working with students in the schools.
CityYear Detroit is led by executive director Penny Bailer, ARISE
Detroit! first vice president, and recently signed on 53 new corps members for the
new school year. You can always recognize them in their red bomber jackets.
During a recent ceremony at Compuware Headquarters, CityYear honored outgoing chairman
Gail Warden, who has been with the organization from
the beginning and welcomed incoming chairman Daniel Little,
chancellor of the University of Michgan-Dearborn.
I also had the opportunity to meet
Tara Whipkey, a new CityYear corps member from the Grand
Rapids area. "Why are
you doing CityYear, instead of going to college?" I asked
her. "I just like helping
people. I want to make a difference," she answered, reflecting
the CityYear motto: "Give
a Year. Change the World."
No doubt, she and her corps colleagues will help change Detroit. Learn more at www.cityyear.org.
ACES NEEDS A NEW HOME
Jeron Campbell has used a former Detroit Public School building,
the old Burton International School, to run his Aces academic program which offers
classes to prepare high school students to perform well on their
ACT and
SAT college entrance exams.
Campbell, a young engineer at Ford Motor Co., uses volunteer instructors and has
helped boost the achievement scores of thousands of students since he started his
program seven years ago. For the past four years, he has run the program out of
the school building.
Now Campbell says the Detroit Public School district is selling the building and
he needs to find a new facility by Dec. 31. He needs a building that houses up to
18 classrooms, or about 250 students at one time. Anyone with a building or a good
idea should call Jeron at 313-506-3677. We all talk about the importance of education. Let's
prove it be helping him find a solution.
ARISE DETROIT! Be Part of The Change
Our Mission:
To inspire a community of active engagement, personal responsibility and hope by
connecting people to opportunities and resources to transform the quality of life
for all Detroiters.
Our Vision:
Detroit
will be a city where children are loved and mentored, families are healthy and strong,
and everyone is instilled with a spirit of hope and engaged in community service.
Yours for a better Detroit!
Luther Keith
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