"To date we have collected and shared 367 stories, photographs, videos, poems, songs, executive orders, paintings, homemade masks, and more. Some are uplifting, others depressing, some are simply factual documentation of events through the eyes of the donor," writes Alex Forist, Chief Curator at the Grand Rapids Public Museum in this detailed op-ed. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, the Museum is working to collect and publish community stories in real-time.

The City of Grand Rapids is providing up to $250,000 for rent and mortgage assistance to Grand Rapids residents meeting Grand Rapids Community Foundation’s La Lucha Fund eligibility requirements. Residents impacted by COVID-19 can apply for funds and receive up to $500 of rent or mortgage assistance for their households.

New GRPS Superintendent Dr. Leadriane Roby, Ph.D. took up her position just six weeks ago on July 1, and sat down with Rapid Growth to reflect on the challenges of leading a school district in the middle of a pandemic.

Mel Trotter Ministries is partnering with three hospital systems and two universities to offer free medical services to its clients who are experiencing homelessness. Community Partners Medical Clinic at Mel Trotter has brought together Mercy Health Saint Mary’s, Metro Health – University of Michigan Health, Spectrum Health, Michigan State University – College of Human Medicine, and Grand Valley State University’s Kirkhof College of Nursing to treat acute and chronic conditions with the goal of reducing both gaps in care and unnecessary EMS and emergency room use.

The new report from the Detroit Area Agency on Aging found that the death rate for people ages 50 to 59 in Detroit is 122% higher than those of the same age in the rest of Michigan.

Great Lakes Observing System has entered into a partnership with Grand Circus, allowing students to access live data gathered from the lakes to enrich their final projects.

"I believe that addressing the role capital plays in upholding racism, and the role it can play in dismantling it is essential to moving forward as a national and global community," says Meg Rumsey-Lasersohn, Interim Research and Communications Director with Untours Foundation, a nonprofit that partners with Grand Rapids-based Rende Progress Capital in programming aimed at creating a more just and anti-racist society.