crisis
Finding apartment in midst of affordable housing crisis is not easy
by (Degage Ministries)
Submitted 12-04-2018 under NONPROFITS
“Now I have a place to call home.” Finding an apartment in the midst of an affordable housing crisis is not easy. It takes a lot of dedication not only from Dégagé staff, but also from those we serve. It involves pursuing every lead and...
Open Door Women's Center provides safe haven for women each night
by (Degage Ministries)
Submitted 10-23-2018 under NONPROFITS
The Open Door Women's Center provides a safe haven for up to 40 women in crisis each night. After taking a shower and doing laundry, there are a number of ways they spend their time before turning in for the night. Some sit quietly and read...
City, health officials show up to talk Westside cancer concerns to sparse resident attendance
by (Elizabeth Roger...)
Submitted 07-20-2018 under NEWS
Regional health officials and local City employees came in numbers for two neighborhood meetings Thursday, July 19, 2018 at Servants Community Church on the west side of Grand Rapids, but very few neighbors did. “The Westside usually shows up...
Grand River Water Festival combines musical entertainment, discussion of water protection
by (dylangrosser)
Submitted 06-20-2018 under NEWS
The ninth annual Grand River Water Festival, an educational and musical event centered around the appreciation of water and its necessity to our lives, will take place this Saturday, June 23, 2018 at Riverside Park. The event will feature...
City meeting hears concerns over rental application fees, stories from Westside Cancer Crisis group
by (Elizabeth Roger...)
Submitted 06-07-2018 under NEWS
The Grand Rapids City Commission held its quarterly Night Out on Tuesday, June 5, 2018 at Harrison Park Elementary School. Public comments on agenda items began with Jolanda Howe from Grand Rapids Homes for All. Howe said that while she was...
Westside neighbors work with health department, press for answers over cancer concerns
by (Elizabeth Roger...)
Submitted 06-05-2018 under NEWS
A lot has happened since cousins Shane Smith and Jammie Danner began talking with former neighbors in southwest Grand Rapids about why so many of their loved ones were getting cancer. Since bringing their group's conversations to the public on a...
Westsiders raise concern over cancer crisis among neighbors from childhood block
by (Elizabeth Roger...)
Submitted 05-11-2018 under NEWS
On Monday, May 7, 2018 Shane Smith took his worries about the high rates of cancer among the family and neighbors he grew up with on the block of Indiana Avenue SW between Butterworth and Wealthy public. What had been a sometimes grim joke and...
Screening of 'Nor Any Drop to Drink: The Flint Water Crisis' in Grand Rapids
by (Cedric Taylor)
Submitted 04-17-2018 under NONPROFITS
The water crisis in Flint, Michigan is without question one of the most serious man-made disasters in recent memory. Most of us undoubtedly have seen news reports of brown, brackish tap water, bags of hair, skin rashes, marches and protests, crowded...
Parents react to data showing 49507 leads state in lead poisoned children
by (Talor Musil)
Submitted 11-07-2017 under PLACE-MATTERS
After a decade of decline, the number of lead-poisoned children in Kent County is rising. Recent data shows a 40 percent increase in lead-poisoned children in the 49507 zip code during the past two years. This Grand Rapids neighborhood ranks number...
Grand Rapids Public Schools’ Parent University to host screenings of American Divided
by (Natalie Hart)
Submitted 08-08-2017 under NONPROFITS
On Wednesday, June 28, over 600 people gathered at Celebration Cinema South to watch two screenings of America Divided, a film series that explores some of America’s thorniest issues—criminal justice, housing equity, education,...