“I hate to see it like this,” Chiniaw Lee says on a recent Friday morning as he looks at his former mother-in-law’s home on Fairport Street in the Von Steuben area on the northeast side. The white bungalow is missing the front door and stairs, and many of the windows are broken. Grass and weeds are overgrown in front of the house. 

Lee has lots of great memories here, including his wedding celebration. Originally from Laos, he has a lot of fond memories of his former neighborhood, where he moved to from Pennsylvania in 1980.

In this episode of “Spokes People,” we head over to the 48205 ZIP code for a look at Matrix Human Services Center’s midnight boxing program, which enlists kids on the east side to take boxing lessons and compete statewide.

“We saw this need where kids needed something to do after hours,” Ken Brown, director of the Matrix Center, says. “We needed to have a safe place for them.”

At The Neighborhoods, we’re interested in hearing from everybody in Detroit about what matters most to you.

Do you have a story to tell about what your community group is doing in the neighborhood? Tell us.

Do you have a story to tell about a home that needs to come down in your neighborhood? Tell us.