When Kristine Jaros recently moved her office from downtown Grand Rapids to more modest digs near Franklin Street and Eastern Avenue SE, she wanted to grab the attention of the neighborhood that her organization was committed to its mission of crime prevention and community development.
Someone apparently wasn't interested in extending a warm welcome.
On Monday, Jaros found six holes in her front window she suspects were made by a BB gun. The vandalism appears to have occurred over the weekend, no more than a few days after the Grand Rapids Weed & Seed's new logo was emblazoned on the glass of the formerly vacant storefront.
To Jaros, the incident is proof she's in the right place.
"I'm not surprised," says Jaros, 39. "I kind of anticipated that something may happen. I'm glad this was the extent of it.
"To me, it shows a need."
Making the right move
Jaros is executive director of Grand Rapids Weed & Seed, which used to have its offices at the downtown campus of Grand Valley State University. She works with law enforcement agencies, social service groups, businesses and other organizations to get results in innovative ways.
For example, thanks to a partnership with a local florist, low-income youths were able to give their mothers carnations on that special day in May. That sort of bright idea bears beautiful fruit, but griping about blight and other problems yields nothing, Jaros says.
"Weed & Seed is the table to come talk about the issues in the community and figure out how to solve them," she says. "It's not the table to come and just complain. I'm not interested."
With $875,000 in federal grant money at its disposal since 2004, the program has funded additional police presence in the neighborhood and continues to support grassroots efforts that aim to educate and empower area residents.
The organization's M.O. is straightforward enough. First, weed out crime, drugs, violence and other undesirable activity. Then, follow up with a tactical approach to neighborhood enhancement.
Weed & Seed's future is uncertain now that cash is drying up over the next few months. Part of the problem may be that its name isn't splashed all over flyers, t-shirts or banners at community gatherings. It specializes in providing the behind-the-scenes muscle.
But backers of this Grand Rapids task force refuse to let their dreams of a better neighborhood wilt. They aim to forge new and stronger bonds with prospective donors and passionate do-gooders who share their vision of revitalizing a blighted district.
"If you're interested in truly impacting and solving the problem, then this is the place to be," Jaros says.
From strong roots
Grand Rapids Police Department officers say reduced crime in the Eastown and East Hills areas is in no small part due to folks without badges banding together and talking solutions. Crimes considered the most violent -- murders, armed robberies, rape, arson -- have decreased 23 percent within Grand Rapids Weed & Seed's borders since the local program's inception.
Weed & Seed members are on a mission to show how their efforts are vital to the urban locale's future. They moved from GVSU to Franklin and Eastern to be right in the middle of the action.
"We really focused on Franklin and Eastern being the hub," Jaros says. "This intersection is the optimum place for us to be."
The group faces more challenges than simply finding a place to stay. Available grant monies continue to slip away for Weed & Seed programs across the country, and many have fizzled out. The U.S. Department of Justice initiative founded in 1991 boasted 255 nationally funded efforts during its peak in 2002. That number since has fallen to 184. Some have been assimilated into other community enterprises, including similar initiatives near Garfield Park and on the West Side. Others have fallen off the map entirely.
Joshua Hansen, a community organizer with Wedgwood Christian Services, says losing Weed & Seed would be a "devastating and unnecessary" blow to the community. He partnered with the group as part of the Kent County Prevention Coalition's work to curtail youth substance abuse.
"If you want to see a continued growth in this area, continued improvement in health, better opportunities for residents and families, we need to support Weed & Seed," Hansen says. "If we don't, this area will lose that capacity piece, and then you'll have to start over with a new organization and have to rebuild that."
One of the efforts Weed & Seed funded is Lies that Bind, which aims to dispel notions that its OK to be physically abused or to make self-destructive choices. Its events have featured Aneeshia Freeman telling her life story to those battling addiction and other hardships.
A prettier project enabled urban kids who attend school within Weed & Seed boundaries to give carnations to their moms for Mother's Day this year. Contacts with local businessman Bing Goei, owner of Eastern Floral and Gift Shop, allowed that relationship to blossom.
"How powerful to send home a flower," said Stacy Stout, a 31-year-old Southeast Side resident and Weed & Seed volunteer. "These kids can actually give something to their moms.
"It might seem minor, but it was huge."
In another case, Weed & Seed helped organize and fund a way for a "bunch of guys doing no good" who loitered near Neland Avenue Christian Reformed Church to build Adirondack chairs. "It's building those connections, and saying, 'You have this need. I think I can plug you in over here,'" Jaros says.
Staying planted
Grand Rapids Weed & Seed's road will be a tough one to hoe. Volunteers and supporters plan to work with GVSU Masters of Business Administration students on a marketing campaign to bolster interest among big-money donors: banks, hospitals, community foundations and more. Jaros recruited two Aquinas College interns to work on grant writing.
More officers have hit the streets because of Weed & Seed funding, says GRPD Capt. Eric Payne. However, that's not to say their presence will vanish when funding is exhausted.
"It allows us to direct more officers to the problem," Payne says. "Our homicide rate was much higher within this area." He encourages police to maintain ties with Weed & Seed though it might cease being a funding source for the department. Ideally, they will visit the new office to use the bathroom, eat their lunch and write reports.
"I would like to see officers in here 24 hours a day," he said. "We're going to be here. There's going to be police in this area. But what it has allowed us to do over the last five years is put more officers out."
Police have improved their visibility through increased foot and bicycle rounds, becoming more embedded in the area and connected with its residents.
"We're not the boogeyman in the car anymore," says Payne. "We're actually engaging in the community."
Raymond Tromp, Weed & Seed's secretary, hopes the same will be said of the greater group's efforts.
"People knew about us, but they figured we weren't really a part," says Tromp, 67. "Now they can look out their window and see what's going on."
Aaron Ogg talks to politicians, party store owners, himself, kids, leaders of big corporations and the unemployed and writes about them. His byline most often appears in The Grand Rapids Press.
Photos:
Kristine Jaros(3)
Grand Rapids Weed & Seed's new offices(2)
Photographs by Brian Kelly -All Rights Reserved