Detroit to receive The Michigan State Housing Development Authority's (MSHDA) Downtowns of Promise grant, which is helping them improve commercial businesses on Joy Road through facade improvements.

Gasaway coordinates an extensive volunteer program which provides neighborhood residents with free home repairs. Part of Joy-Southfield's efficacy derives from its volunteer coordination. The clinic works so well because it attracts medical professionals from around the region to donate their time and services.

Rodney Gasaway is a driving force behind this. He serves as a board member of Community Development Advocates of Detroit's Caucus 7, a position he pursued as a way to connect with other community development leaders throughout the city. He also leverages volunteer hours from the Methodist community in Southeast Michigan, in which he is a confirmed candidate for ordination.

"Mycalling is social justice," says Gasaway, who grew up in a small river town in southern Indiana with a population of 400. "I didn't meet a person of color until I was 16. Then I joined the Navy and served in Desert Storm. I saw the world, the worst and the best of it, and felt the calling to help change it."

Matthew Lewis is project editor for this series, which runs until the General Election in November.