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Boaz & Ruth's community revitalization initiatives are fueled by the social entrepreneurial business ventures that have emerged from our used furniture store on Meadowbridge Road. Eight such ventures are now a vital part of the job training program.  These businesses (also called “life/labs) make a significant contribution to a renewed spirit of commercial enterprise in Highland Park, provide work training experience for program participants, and provide valuable earned revenue for B&R's operating budget. Before Boaz & Ruth opened in December 2002, over half of the buildings in the four-block Meadowbridge Road commercial corridor were empty, creating urban blight and fostering crime. Beginning with the purchase and reclamation of a run-down, non-productive property in the heart of Highland Park, B&R now anchors an entire block with renovated buildings including the main retail and training facility, two actively used outbuildings, a café, three neighboring houses and Fire House 15 ~ Restaurant & Shops. Significantly, this positive commercial presence has encouraged four other entrepreneurs to open businesses in the area, including a dollar store, nail salon, auto repair shop and cell phone store.  Revitalization is also dependent on the partnership of the community. Boaz & Ruth helped to found the Highland Park Retail Merchants Association at Six Points which provides opportunities for business owners to work together in revitalizing the commercial corridor. Building on this collaboration, in 2006-07 Boaz & Ruth renovated an historic fire station for use as a retail/business incubator. The renovation provided an opportunity for Boaz & Ruth to train and employ 30 formerly incarcerated men. Now open, Fire House 15~Shops & Restaurant is home to several shops owned and operated by neighborhood vendors.
To encourage and support the economic progress of individuals in the community, B&R shares its facilities and training opportunities with North District residents. GED classes, computer training and computer lab use developed for B&R clients are available to the community, and the planned expansion of job placement services will also be offered to residents to help provide “a way out” of poverty and hopelessness. As one resident sees it, we are “a beautiful flower planted in the midst of crime and ugliness.” For our trainees and struggling neighbors, the reclamation of neglected properties is a powerful metaphor for the restoration of broken lives and depressed communities.
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Boaz and Ruth
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