Blight to Bright
South City, ST. LOUIS
The Blight to Bright program provides basic job skills, financial education, and the opportunity to serve and beautify area communities. Remediation tasks include the clearing of debris, overgrowth, and litter
from identified lots.
Background
Overgrown, empty lots and vacant buildings are a common sight in the city of St. Louis. Such lots often become magnets for trash and unwanted items. Lutheran Development Group (LDG) recognized the negative effects of blight on the community as well as the need for youth job opportunities. Seeking to address both issues, LDG created a youth employment program focused on cleaning up vacant lots within St. Louis. LDG partnered with St. Louis' Land Reutilization Authority (LRA), the Lutheran Foundation, Extreme Faith, Holy Cross, Lutheran Young Adult Corps, and St. Louis Youth Jobs to pilot the Blight to Bright program in Gravois Park.
LDG's Blight to Bright Youth Employment program began on June 27, 2017, and focused its efforts on Gravois Park and the vacant lots owned by LRA within this area. LDG has received continued support from the community as the program impacts the city each summer. Neighbors and businesses have provided encouragement, use of facilities, and even watermelon as they showed their appreciation.
While youth may have joined LDG's Blight to Bright program simply looking for a summer job, they have left with a greater awareness of their community. Not only do they gain a deeper understanding of the challenges facing Gravois Park, but now they are equipped to make a difference in helping to alleviate blight problems. Throughout the course of this summer program, the youth participants are presented with tangible evidence of their impact on Gravois Park. After observing the appreciation and comments made by the community, the youth will be less likely to contribute to trash and litter in their own neighborhoods. It is our hope that these youth will be encouraged to take the first step as young leaders in their own neighborhoods and communities to continue efforts to remove blight and improve the conditions of the area around them.
In 2018, Blight to Bright added a financial education component by partnering with Prosperity Connection to teach youth about banking, credit, and financial resources. LDG is grateful for its community partners, youth participants, and all who have supported Blight to Bright from its beginning days, today, and into the future.
