Anyway, a lot has been going on. We are keeping very busy throughout the Summer. The days of Flint Citadel being a quiet place in the Summer are over. Summer Day Camp is in full swing and there are as many as 60 children in the building Monday - Friday.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Picnics in the park is going very well too. We are getting to know a lot of the kids and parents in the neighborhood as well as others who come into the neighborhood each day to use the playground and eat lunch with us. We're finding that while there probably is a huge need for lunches for children, there are not huge lines of kids. The lunches it seems, help to draw more kids to the park while providing a nutritious meal for them, and a break for the parents. Kelly Tolcher has been our number one volunteer showing up each day, subbing for us, and working close with kids. There are also a number of volunteers from the Citadel and the Monday night bible study. In an effort to add to the draw of PITP, we've come up with some special events throughout the Summer (see flyer).
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Last week we had our monthly dodge ball night (we've gone monthly during the Summer and back to weekly after Labor Day) and and had a good number of people come out. I have to say that I was not able to do much of anything requiring the use of muscles for several days afterward!
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Monday night bible study is still going strong, in fact, is growing on an almost weekly basis! We currently meet in Memorial Park at 6:30 for a picnic/cookout, some Frisbee time, and bible study. On any given week there are 10-12 young adults attending. Oddly enough, most of them work at Trillium Theatre in Grand Blanc. They are all very passionate about their faith and share it with others. The result is that we get more and more people from Trillium coming to check out the bible study and learn about Jesus. During the night, we share how our week was, and what we are up to. I actively promote the going-ons at The Sal and our vision for the city of Flint and the GTDNA, and have been able to get several of the attendees involved with various aspects of the Citadel. Last night, we took a break from the park and met at CiCi's Pizza, and then had bible study at my parents house which ended with some swimming and hot tubing.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
We're finally nailing down the Clean & Green schedule as well as some other projects in the neighborhood that need to be tackeled during these warm months. Check them out!
Saturday, July 11 - 9:00am-noon
Weeding the garden in Memorial Park where the backstop used to be and pulling out the bindweed at the Cultivating our Community garden at Ann Arbor, Fifth St and Court St. Meet at Memorial Park.
Tuesday, July 14 - 6:00pm-8:30pm
Clean & Green: Cleaning up vacant, land bank owned properties. Meet at The Salvation Army.
Saturday, July 25 - 9:00am-noon
Cleaning up abandoned lots (not land bank owned) at 312, 316, and 320 W Seventh St, 425 W Sixth St, and 1165, 1169, and 1171 Oak St. Meet at 316, 318, and 320 W Seventh St (between Church St and S Grand Traverse).
Saturday, August 1 - 9:00am-noon
Tuesday, August 4 - 6:00pm-8:30pm
Clean & Green: Cleaning up vacant, land bank owned properties. Meet at The Salvation Army.
Tuesday, August 25 - 6:00pm-8:30pm
Clean & Green: Cleaning up vacant, land bank owned properties. Meet at The Salvation Army.
Saturday, August 29 - 9:00am-noon
Spring Grove: Removing brush from the hillside, clearing paths to the Stockton Center and community garden, digging up canary reed grass, etc. Meet at Spring Grove.
Tuesday, September 15 - 6:00pm-8:30pm
Clean & Green: Cleaning up vacant, land bank owned properties. Meet at The Salvation Army.
Saturday, September 19 - 9:00am-noon
Spring Grove: Continue work from August 29. Meet at Spring Grove.
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Last, Rachel and I are purchasing a second house in Flint. We have found a tenant for our east side home, and are moving August 1st to Oak Street in downtown Flint. Our new house is a huge old house (dated to 1880) right in the middle of the neighborhood. We're very excited at the benefits of within a few blocks of the Citadel, Memorial Park, and other aspects of downtown. It's especially important for us to live in the neighborhood in which we work, and the benefits are huge. This will help us cut down in the amount fuel we consume commuting to work (I plan on biking or walking to work most of the year). Also, owning the house after five years is a definite plus! These houses are great, and in any other city would go for 500,000.00 or more.
0 comments:
Post a Comment