Sunday, April 19, 2009

What it takes to have a good City: Good Citizens who make having a good neighborhood an obligation.

Who are these people? They are your next door neighbors and residents who live on your block. They are the neighbors who keep their property up by cutting the grass, planting gardens, and watching out for each other’s property. Your neighbor may be of a different political party, religion, age group, and gender. Each of them have their own world they live in but as a collective group they were concerned about each others general health and welfare. These neighbors formed a block of concerned citizens who brought up issues of city services, property taxes, fire and police protection to proper government officials.

Another service these groups perform is making sure that the children are in school if they were of school age. One of the obligations to a good city is to make sure the residents get quality education. These community groups were also members of the school PTA who helped with student issues and the management of the educational system. When you are a part of a neighborhood adopting an attitude of “I can be an Island by themselves” is counterproductive.

And in honor of good citizenship, I am starting my Cush's Hats Off Award program for groups or individuals who conspire to perform acts of mass kindness and goodwill towards their fellow neighbors.


The first Hats off Award goes to: Blackstone Community Organization

This group is responsible for the Schafer & 7 mile area in Northwest Detroit. They have a 30 year history of goodwill toward neighbors. They work to make sure that the residents get information on Government Services at the Federal, State, County, and Local level. This group serves as a model prototype for Associations of Block Clubs.


If you have a block club or organization that you feel deserves the Cush's Hats Off award, please contact us via our website or by email at georgecushingberry@house.mi.gov

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