Block by Block spoke with the Michigan State Housing Development Authority, Housing North, and Communities First about how individual communities are working together to tackle the specific housing needs of their residents. For the first time ever, the state of Michigan released a statewide coordinated, comprehensive housing plan, working with stakeholders across the housing sector  

The GRIT wheelchair can go across all terrains standard wheelchairs can’t, and a West Michigan family who knows the constraints of conventional wheelchair use has created a program to allow the public borrow two of them.

Together, Keegan Russell and Keenan Miller keep the beat as the band K-Rock. The musicians were nominated by Autism Support of Kent County because “they show others what is possible when individuals are given a chance to shine.”

The U.S economy loses an estimated $122 billion a year through lost earnings, productivity, and tax revenue because of the challenge parents have in finding early child care.

Changes to federal standards for lead levels means more children than ever will be considered to have lead poisoning. Several organizations in Kent County are working to detect lead in homes and help children who are found to have ingested lead.

Telehealth, which ramped up during the COVID-19 pandemic, is here to stay and many agencies and providers are finding new ways to implement it.

New partnerships, expanding programs with schools and law enforcement, and the designation of 17 community mental health organizations (CMHs) as Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinic demonstration sites are a few of the highlights Michiganders

Thrash’s childhood dream of becoming a mogul with an umbrella of businesses and becoming a creative director for Essence Magazine went away as her focus turned to living and working through her struggles of college and becoming an adult. Eventually, though, with supportive people she met in the Grand Rapids area, she began to return her focus to her photography business while working full-time.

In Michigan, 8,206 people were experiencing houselessness and an estimated 11% of them were unsheltered. Knowing the prevalence of people being unhoused in Michigan, many people and organizations are stepping up to help. 

Over 23,000 Michigan women and their families per year are affected by perinatal mood and anxiety disorders, but several innovative initiatives are working to change that.