Residents near 14th and Wright played an active role in creating Gillespie Park, which city officials hope can be a blueprint for future sustainable projects.
MANDI 2015 Finalists
Benedict Center fights street prostitution with treatment, support
The Benedict Center Sisters Diversion Program, working in conjunction with police and prosecutors, offers an alternative to incarceration to stop the cycle of prostitution.
Developer recycles abandoned buildings into affordable housing
Todd Hutchison has worked for three decades to revitalize condemned, unwanted buildings, turning them into affordable housing units.
With Swing Park, city hopes to look forward, not back
Almost three years after a local group, in a “guerrilla act,” revived a once-forgotten public space under Holton Street by creating a swing park, the city has taken control of the space, but questions still remain.
Rotary Club ‘a powerful force for good in the community’
The Milwaukee Rotary Club is committed to improving residents’ lives while contributing to a healthy business environment.
Pan-African group helps refugees, immigrants adjust to U.S.
The Pan-African Community Association, an official refugee resettlement agency, offers support and a range of services to about 300 individuals and refugee families a year.
Boys & Girls Clubs leader La’Ketta Caldwell elevates voices of youth
La’Ketta Caldwell, program manager at the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Milwaukee, is equally comfortable hanging out with a group of teenagers and expressing herself through film and theater.
Public health school students trained to tackle deeply rooted social problems
Students from UWM’s Zilber School of Public Health are filtering into the community, attempting to alleviate some of Milwaukee’s most deeply rooted problems.
New VA community center combats veteran homelessness
The new VA Community Resource and Referral Center, housed in a restored historic building on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive, provides resources to veterans who are homeless or at risk of homelessness.
Riverwest, Harambee artists transform space into creative ‘ARTery’
Artist Vedale Hill is working with neighborhood youth to express their “Hoop Dreams” through art. The project is one of many taking place in a new “art park” on the Beerline Trail, between Riverwest and Harambee.