Author: NNS

By Alexandria Bursiek • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service In 2013 the site of the Journey House Community Garden was an abandoned house known as a magnet for drug activity in Clarke Square. After the house burned down, an anonymous donor purchased the lot and gave it to Journey House. In 2014 Journey House leaders decided to build a community garden with 22 garden beds, which has become a safe place for residents to meet and socialize. All garden beds are filled and there is a waiting list. Initially, Journey House struggled to get residents involved in the garden. During...

By Camille Paul • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service In 2006, Jill Kline was paired with the Wisconsin Humane Society through Marquette University’s Trinity Fellowship program. A decade later, she is vice president of community impact at the Humane Society, a nationwide nonprofit organization committed to treating animals with respect and kindness. Kline has helped create various programs to support minority families by offering free services for their animals. | Q&A Q: How did you become the Humane Society’s vice president of community impact programs? A: I had a variety of roles when I started. As community initiatives coordinator, I...

By Camille Paul • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service Popular Milwaukee DJ Tyrone Miller re-launched his “Scratch Sessions” program to help Milwaukee youth learn how to DJ as a method to discover alternative music careers. Dria Rushing knew since her youth that she wanted to be a DJ. At age 10 she created her performance name, DJ Drip Sweat. As she progressed through school she admired hip-hop in all of its forms and continued to be involved with music into high school. Now at the age of 20, she came to realize that the equipment associated with her dream was...

By Camille Paul • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service A photo exhibit of portraits representing all 28 of Milwaukee’s ZIP codes premiered at the Milwaukee Public Library downtown, inspiring conversations about diversity at the kick-off event. Hanging on the balsa wood frames in the Milwaukee Public Library’s Schoenleber Reading Room are photographs representing the city’s 28 ZIP codes. The photos feature children posing or playing with one another, portraits of men and women, Wisconsin landmarks such as Leon’s and the BMO Harris Bradley Center, and events such as Jazz in the Park or Chill in the Park. The photographs are...

By Jabril Faraj • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service Crime in the Amani neighborhood has decreased at greater rates than the city, a trend residents, local agencies and law enforcement attribute to resident engagement and relationships. In October 2016, James Brown, 82, a minister and 40-year resident of Amani waited for more than 12 hours to testify against All Star Foods, a corner store less than a block from his home, at a Common Council license hearing. The store, located at 27th and Burleigh streets, allegedly sold tobacco and alcohol to minors, maintained unsanitary conditions and looked the other way...

By Alexandria Bursiek • Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service New Walker’s Point arts center leader plans to highlight social issues through art. When Marcela Garcia was 9 years old she attended youth art classes at Walker’s Point Center for the Arts (WPCA). At the time Garcia wanted to grow up to be a doctor or marine biologist. Twenty-four years later, Garcia is the executive director of WPCA. Garcia, who was born in Guadalajara and raised in Milwaukee, said she was in high school when she realized that she was passionate about literature and art, and especially the stories of marginalized...