Celebrating the progress of Godfrey-Lee
The Godfrey Lee neighborhood of Wyoming, Michigan is stronger today because of the Godfrey Lee Listeners (GLL). GLL is the formal name of a resident-led neighborhood team that has formed to own and support the listening and connecting work in the neighborhood. Now, we are celebrating with GLL that they just received their 501(C)3 nonprofit status!
This news is just one more achievement for GLL in a long series of successes. GLL has initiated school, community and backyard gardens, increased the tree canopy of the neighborhood through a tree planting initiative, engaged their residents and small business community to support them through the COVID-19 pandemic, engaged students from Lee Public High School to volunteer on Chicago Drive projects, and more.
Leading the charge is Doris Perez, GLU's Godfrey Lee connector. Doris is a very relational person with a servant's heart. She draws out the value and dignity of everyone she meets, weaving them into the social fabric of the community, and strengthening the Godfrey Lee neighborhood in the process. People's lives are improved as a result, as Rosemary, an active resident, can attest:
"I am grateful for and proud of the Godfrey Lee Listeners. First and mainly for the community involvement and connections I have made. These connections have improved my life in many unexpected ways. For example, a crew from the Church of the Open Door donated, delivered, and installed a water heater for my husband and I during the holidays. And Lee St. CRC delivered and installed a washer and dryer. Better gifts could not have been given! I found them delightful! I want to know them more, to teach them some of the things I know, and to learn from them."
Rosemary also said that, "Besides what the GLL has done for me, I also have dreamed about what I wish to see in my neighborhood…. To turn the empty lots on Chicago Drive into working areas like a farmers market, cultural crafts/flea market, or food truck area with outdoor eating. Best of all, I have connected with other folks who also want to improve the place we love and live in."
Way to go, Doris, Rosemary, and the GLL neighborhood team!
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