Quincy MurphyQuincy Murphy is a lifetime resident of Flint, a community activist, and leader of the Garfield-Bunche Community Service Corporation. Located in Flint's 3rd Ward, Murphy's group has been active in blight removal, block parties and summer youth programs.
Dewey Park is a focal point in the Garfield-Bunche/Dewey Park neighborhood. A $1,000 Neighborhoods Small Grant supported big improvements at the park. It all began with organizing volunteers to help with a park cleanup. The city donated a dumpster. Volunteers from West Flint Church of the Nazarene and St. John Evangelistic Church raked, cut wood, painted the basketball courts, and built benches.
A pavilion roof in need of removal was torn down. It will be replaced with a new roof with funding from the City of Flint Parks and Recreation Department. Daily maintenance was done by Mott Community College Community Venture Youth participants. Children love playing on the new swing set. And nearby, several abandoned homes have been demolished thanks to a $20 million blight elimination grant awarded to the City.
"I'm a believer in building capacity when you are doing community projects," Murphy said. "It's important to share space with others. People think of Dewey Park as a place to collaborate."
The $1,000 grant was multiplied five times over. The value of in-kind volunteer efforts and donations of gas, materials and tools totaled $5,215. Murphy is grateful for the small grant that propelled a mighty project.
"There's always a need for improvement in the park. Our next step is to replace the roof on the pavilion, build a memorial wall for African American historians, repaint the basketball court with a third coat, and replace the slide."