Community Conversations

With a video recorder, a pile of release forms and a bunch of 211 brochures, I ventured out yesterday, along with several of my colleagues, to various spots in Detroit – Capitol Park and Campus Martius Park – for the sole purpose of capturing community voices. Why would we do that? Didn’t United Way for Southeastern Michigan just collect substantial information through its community action survey, focus groups and one-on-one interviews? Well, yes. But we still wanted to hear from individuals – mothers, fathers, grandparents, single parents and others about their hopes for their children and what the community could do to support them. Just to capture conversations, pure and simple.

Needless to say, we were amateurs at this! The three of us knew very little about optimally operating a video camera and had no training on interviewing techniques. But we pushed through our comfort zone and engaged in conversations. It was a powerful experience for me. I learned so much about my fellow community members. One woman was a single mom with 10 children, ages 4 through 27 (and she herself looked to be 35 years old)! Seven of her children went or are in college, quite an accomplishment for a parent who didn’t go to college herself. She was so proud to talk about her children, and she should be. I was honored to have heard her story.

Another single mom we met had two teenage daughters who are doing extremely well in school, despite the fact that they have limited transportation options and must walk 16 blocks to school. Like the other woman we spoke with, she was also proud of her daughters and also that she has been sober for 6 years now.

Finally, we talked with another woman who also left me with pride and hope for our community. She was spending the afternoon with her 5-year-old daughter while her other 12-year-old daughter was in a summer music program at the Detroit Opera House. She lives in Southfield and said she loves to come down to the city and take advantage of all the activities that Detroit has to offer. (Visit Model D for other great Detroit spots.)

Members of this region have so many positive, hopeful things to share. I thank those of you who took the time to talk with us on a lovely summer morning in Detroit. It’s motivated us to continue to capture these voices and stories – so be on the look out for United Way folks with a video camera at Belle Isle, the Detroit Zoo and your local malls!