Motor City Blight Busters is a charitable organization located in Detroit, Michigan. Dedicated to the revitalization of the Detroit community, the group is responsible for cleaning up dump sites, tearing down blighted houses, painting existing homes and many other activities. Over the course of 23 years, the organization has used over 21,000 gallons of paint, 15,500 pounds of nails and 15,470 sheets of plywood.
Mission
Motor City Blight Busters mission is to stabilize, revitalize and repopulate the city of Detroit with homeowners.
History
Established since 1988, the organization is committed to ridding the blight from the Motor City. Blight Busters started with Angels' Night patrol where citizens patrolled the night before Halloween to protect neighborhoods from arson and vandalism. John J. George is the founder and leader of the Motor City Blight Busters. Besides Angel's Night, John George's first action in forming Blight Busters was buying plywood and boarding up a house that was being used as an operations base by drug dealers around the corner from his house. After it was boarded up, he found that this worked because the drug dealers did not return to that location. When they first started, John George only had a Lincoln Town Car, but now has made a smart investment, and bought a full-size pickup truck. Blight Busters did not just appear; plenty of work was spent in creating this organization. It started off in John George's basement with a couple of volunteers. Once it grew too big for his basement, they purchased a building on Lahser Road for one dollar. They put 1.4 million dollars into turning the place around, and making it the headquarters for the Blight Busters.
Notable staff
The Founder, John George is a person who is not afraid to get his hands dirty. Working with the crews and volunteers, he demolishes and renovates buildings. The activist was a former insurance salesman. He has a great sense of humor, but is serious about turning Detroit around. He transformed the three-story former Masonic temple on Lahser near Grand River between McNichols and Seven Mile roads into Blight Busters headquarters.
Funding
Blight Busters is a registered 501 Non-Profit Organization. It is funded by volunteers that donate their time, real estate, tools and money. Vehicles can be donated through a company called Living Wheels.
Volunteers
Individuals, small groups, and companies can all get involved. 10,000 volunteers a year show up to help with projects.
Events
Events in the community
Blight Busters sponsors corporate team building events. They continue with the events that started Motor City blight busters: Angel's Night patrol and Motor City Clean-up. Demolishing 300 abandoned homes, renovating 425 homes, and building more than 300 brand new homes.
Events in Artist Village Detroit
Artist village contains a gallery, showroom, and workshop. Ingredients for the Java house are grown in Artist Village. Events include live jazz performances, chess club, ballroom dancing lessons, art camp and gardening program.
Events at Motor City Java House & Café
The mission of Java House is to bring people together and improve the community. The community discuss art, books and poetry. This is a green initiate with local produce used and the coffee grounds used to help fertilize the gardens. The coffee is purchased from local vendors. The general manager Alicia Marion gives firsthand experience how the Blight Busters helped her start her dream. This type of source is helpful because it shows the beauty of the café and the fresh ingredients are grown in Artist Village.
Awards and honors
John J. George was given an award by President Clinton the "Points of Light Institute". It is only awarded to people who have done outstanding volunteer work. Oprah honored Motor City Blight Busters founder with 2012 VW Beetle. In 1995, John George received the "Michiganian of the Year" honor from The Detroit News.
