community outreach

This Labor Day weekend saw the groundbreaking for the long-awaited Eastern Washtenaw Community and Recreational Center. WEMU’s Ana Longoria has more.

You may not have noticed, but the Ann Arbor Climate Corps has been quietly working this year to combat the affects of climate change and help the city achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by 2030. The program is designed to increase the Ann Arbor Office of Sustainability’s outreach capacity and help residents take action toward that end. WEMU's David Fair talked it over with Ann Arbor Climate Corps program manager, Maggie Halpern.

Chidester Place Apartments in Ypsilanti houses numerous senior citizens and people with disabilities. A number of those residents are unable to leave the facility, which can make their lives lonely and difficult. Chidester resident and community activist Emy Deshotel is working on programming for Chidester Place that creates a more welcoming and enjoyable community. She talks about her efforts and the organizations that have been helping her with Concentrate reporter Sarah Rigg.

Some inspired volunteers will soon go “Over the Edge” on the Eastern Michigan University campus. On August 17th, you’ll see some folks rappelling down the side of Hill Hall. They’re raising money for the Ypsilanti-based non-profit, Friends In Deed, which works to reduce poverty and help people that fall through the cracks. Organization executive director Tania James and volunteer rappeler and event co-chair Ken Fischer joined WEMU's David Fair for a conversation on pushing the organization's supporters “Over the Edge.”

Tuesday is Primary Election Day in Michigan. Early voting comes to an end on Sunday. Locally, perhaps the most closely watched race is for Washtenaw County Sheriff. It’s been a heated campaign featuring three candidates seeking to replace outgoing sheriff, Jerry Clayton. WEMU’s Kevin Meerschaert provides an extended report.

While completing his doctoral studies at Eastern Michigan University, Dr. Rod Wallace had a vision to give back to his community through music. From there, he partnered with Ypsilanti-based Grove Studios and Ann Arbor-based Leon Speakers to create The Amplify Project, which is now in its fourth season. Dr. Wallace joins Rylee Barnsdale to talk about the work they are doing to lift the voices of African American musicians in Washtenaw County.

The City of Ypsilanti has approved giving FedUp Ministries $50,000 to help serve the less fortunate, but it took a little while to get there. WEMU’s Kevin Meerschaert reports.

Right now, the waiting list for a space at the Shelter Association of Washtenaw County’s women’s shelter goes about 50-deep. The wait time for those women averages about seven months. That’s why the Shelter Association is undertaking a women’s shelter expansion initiative. WEMU's David Fair spoke with the association’s development director, Sarah Paspal-Jasinski, about the effort to expand capacity by 50%.

The Rodeo is coming to Eastern Michigan University—the annual Bike Rodeo, that is! EMU will host its 7th annual Bike Rodeo on Saturday, June 15th. The event aims to promote bike safety for youngsters and create community engagement between kids and police officers. In addition to riding and learning from EMU’s bicycle officers, the free, family-friendly event provides free bicycle safety checks, helmets and bicycle locks. EMU Police Sgt. Joseph Torres joins WEMU's David Fair to discuss what’s in it for area kids and families and what the officers get out of the interactions.

Racism exists, and it is called a lot of things. One of the more under-represented ways it is characterized is as a public health crisis. All of the evidence shows that is right on target. WEMU's David Fair is joined by the Washtenaw County Health Department's health equity manager, Charyln VanDeventer. She tells us how and where racism shows up as a public health crisis and what's being done about it in our community.