Torchlighting to help all

 As I am going about town on Monday afternoon, reliving some memories from my past and the history of my family, I come across this building for World Medical Relief, which is now in Southfield. I notice a mention that it was a Torch Drive service. The Torch Drive was annually put on by the United Foundation (now the United Way) around Christmas time. Ads were placed in the paper to solicit donations, and would sometimes list which agencies would benefit from the donations. Many public and private organizations,  religious and secular groups, veterans, alumni and other groups would regularly donate to the Torch Drive to help the greater Detroit area and those in need. 

Memorialized at School

As I am going to visit various locations that are important in my family's history and journey here in metro Detroit, I stop by Southeastern High School, shown above, which a number of family members attended. As I am visiting, I notice a monument, shown below, in front of the school. Getting closer, I notice that this is a memorial to former students who served our country during World War 2. It was dedicated by the classes of January and June 1944-1948.  I was reminded of a couple of pages in a relative's yearbook about a young man who graduated from Southeastern in the early 1930s who died on December 7, 1941 in defense of his country. He received the Medal of Honor posthumously. In the yearbook. they showed the letters his parents received from his branch of service notifying them of their son's passing. I know there are memorials like this at other schools around the country, but this is the first I have seen in Detroit. 

 

Getting Schooled

 Schooling is a big part of anyone's history. A school can be a varied experience for anyone. Nestled on Glendale Avenue between Second Avenue and Third Street in Highland Park, MI, an enclave of Detroit, sits the former Highland Park High School. According to Detroit Urbex, this building opened in 1915 as a High School, , with the Community College, which was housed here until they ceased operations in 1996. A career academy was housed here, as well. This building still sits abandoned, with the auditorium destroyed within the past couple of years. Highland Park High School and Community College hold significance on my mother's side of the family, as two family members attended classes here. This picture was taken on August 11, 2023. 

Back to Blogging

I am sorry for the long delay between my last entry and this entry. It feels like I have been through a tornado and hurricane all rolled into one.. I am continuing to get back on my feet, slowly but surely, after a few personal issues with transportation and other issues knocked me down and stifled my snout-as seen on this dolphin located on Belle Isle-for a time.  I am getting back to work as well. As I was going through these challenges in my life within the past year and a half, My faith has been tried and tested, and I am feeling stronger in faith than I ever have. I feel that God brought me through this storm, and is currently guiding me, along with Christ holding my hand through it all. I have also had many ideas that I have documented in my journal that I will keep private for the time being. . Besides my day job in customer service, , I am currently back doing the gig economy. I do Lyft and DoorDash, giving people rides and delivering their breakfasts and lunches (and sometimes dinners!) around metro Detroit.  I have many stories to tell from these experiences, Hopefully, my blogging will get back to somewhat normal as I have the time to write about my adventures and historical journeys alround Metro Detroit. 

Historically speaking

A saying I subscribe to is "Family History is Local History, and Local History is Family History.." I am a huge fan of history, especially Detroit History. As I am working on my genealogy and going through the pictures and other possessions of my late parents and news articles on the internet, I come across numerous photos. news articles and memorabilia that document the city's history over the past 100 years. Mom's family has been in Detroit since 1920, and Dad and his family has been here since the late 1940s and early 1950s. To learn of Black Detroit during this time is extremely informative. Conditions may not have been ideal at work and other areas, but Black Detroit made a way through schools, church, clubs, and other activities. Through all my research, My grandmother's family lived on the southeast side of Detroit, but frequented the North End  and parts of Northwest Detroit before moving west in the 1950s to raise families and grow personally and professionally. Dad's family was here starting in the late 1940s. Dad and his parents were up here in the early 1950s. They first stayed near downtown Detroit (I ran across an old classified ad from the 50s for "Colored" apartments near the old Black Bottom section of Detroit), then moved northwest. Many of the institutions that my family have frequented in the past are no longer around, but they live on through the memories of those who lived through these experiences, various archives online and at various institutions,  and other resources, 

 

Well Documented

 Documentaries are some of my favorite types of programming to watch. I have a whole playlist of them on YouTube, which are mixed in with a few made-for TV movies. I always enjoy learning something new and refreshing my memory on things that I have learned before. One of the first I remember viewing was about the Dionne Quintuplets, produced by the Film Board of Canada in the late 1970s. It recalled the life of the five sisters in Ontario during the Great Depression, and how their lives played out until the late 1970s. Five of the documentaries that I enjoy are from the ESPN 30 for 30 series. The first one is Broke, which I mentioned previously in this blog. It is about professional athletes who go broke after retiring, and the athletes who speak on the issue describe their spending habits (cars, houses, clothes, bar/restaurant tabs, etc) and think about what they could have done to avoid going broke in the first place. The second is Benji, which is about the late Ben Wilson (1967-1984), who was one of the best basketball players in the city of Chicago, if not the state of Illinois. He was shot and killed in November 1984 while walking with his girlfriend during lunch hour at school. Another favorite is Pony Excess, which is about the football program at Southern Methodist University going through the NCAA's "Death Penalty," which took away scholarships and television coverage for the team in the mid to late 1980s. The documentary "Ghosts of Ole Miss" is a favorite of mine, as well. It talks about the 1962 University of Mississippi football team and the activities around campus surrounding James Meredith's enrollment in the school. The fifth documentary in this series I like is Without Bias, which tells the story of Len Bias, who played baskeball at the University of Maryland. He was drafted by the Boston Celtics in June 1986, and later died of a cocaine overdose. What are some of your favorite movies/documentaries? 

Helping Seniors with Smart Watches

 I have been thinking recently about the use of Smart Watches, such as the Apple Watch and Samsung Galaxy Watch, to help Senior citizens who live on their own stay safe. A coworker of mine had mentioned this past summer about how the Apple Watch has a function that can detect falls and can contact emergency services and a trusted contact (family member, close friend, neighbor, etc.) if you are injured or cannot get up for some reason. I have also seen posts about  this a few times floating around Facebook on the feeds of friends and groups/  This is great for anyone, but for especially seniors who live on their own, and their family would need to keep an eye on them to keep them safe and avoid placing them in a nursing home/assisted living facility if it is not needed.  Also, with the GPS function on all phones and watches, if a senior with special needs or memory issues tends to wander or get lost, you can easily track them with the Find My app on iPhones, the Where's My Droid/Where's my Device apps on Android phones, as well as the Life360 app and other family tracker apps.