Every once in a while we come across someone so
special we have to introduce you to them.
Our next guest is not just helping out her community,
she is actually rebuilding it, house by house.
Take a look at her.
>> They call me Mama Shu and
I'm sitting up here on this corner in this house [LAUGH] building a village.
Outline village is a place where we are restoring things that we deserve to have.
For a lot of what you see is basically grief turned into joy.
This is what grief looked like because you never really think that your kid
is gonna die.
My son Jakobi and my older son, they were crossing the street.
They were holding hands and being watched across the street, so
a car came speeding, just knocked my baby boy out of Chin's hand and
he actually died up under the streetlight.
The days were very tough at first, but day by day, it just started to feel better.
My work and building and doing and my community work, they're actually healing.
Those were the things that actually saved me.
Highland Park was a very, very desirable place to live.
The 80s is when I think things start to take a turn.
Even before Jakobi was born, I looked at this space and I was like wow,
there's a whole block that doesn't have anything on it, we can help bring it back.
I would actually see colors and
I would see action, I saw the whole thing all played out.
I was wishing to be on this block,
actually in this house where I am right now.
Six months after he got killed, it became available, I got it and
I just started placing everything, we're gonna put a homework house here,
we're gonna have a cafe down in the abandoned gas station down the street.
Every block is gonna be back beautiful again.
That's my wish and that's what we're working towards.
This right here is part of Jakobi Ra Park, we have a lot of events in this park,
school supply giveaways, a lot of married people in this park, so
it's a really, really cool community space, family space.
Jakobi gives me courage and he just keeps me going.
A lot of things that we do are around children is because of him.
The homework house is the very first, most important addition to the village.
This right here, this is the homework house.
Here is where we'll feed the kids after school, computer lab, laundry room and
a big all giant learning kitchen.
They're gonna cook for themselves when they come home from school.
I was gonna make sure that the kids had clean clothes, that they would eat and
this is a place where I wanted them to be happy and safe too.
That's what I wanna create for them.
[MUSIC]
People think that things are so big and so unreachable.
What we're showing is that you can really, really do this.
I'm not an urban planner.
I guess I just must have a good imagination, or something is going on.
[LAUGH] Somebody had to do it.
It's cool, so I did.
[LAUGH] >> [APPLAUSE]
>> From Highland Park,
Michigan, please welcome Mama Shu.
>> You are amazing.
>> Thank you.
Thank you.
>> How much land have you bought?
>> So far, we got 11 pieces of land.
We've cleaned up the whole block, landscaped it.
We've got shipping containers for women businesses and
also we're working on a homework house, working on getting it completed.
>> Right, so like you said, some people would look at this and
go it's too big to take on and
they're just living the same you're living in that neighborhood going this is a mess.
>> Yes. >> But what
gave you the courage to take this on?
One of the things where we live at, Highland Park, HP!
I had to get that out.
>> [LAUGH] >> Okay, I'm done.
[LAUGH] One of the things
is that we deserve to have a quality living environment.
>> And how did you find the money?
What did you do, what was the first thing you did to find the money?
>> Begged.
>> [LAUGH] >> Yeah?
>> Girl, I begged my friends, we sold food, I used my own check money.
My goodness, we did everything.
>> Yeah, what you're doing is amazing.
What you are doing is so incredible.
My partner, Chris Burch, and I have a prefab home company called Cocoon 9 and
the homes are delivered.
I don't know if you know what prefab homes are but they are amazing and they
are delivered fully assembled and they're onsite, they have high quality finishes.
The homes are energy efficient, they can be used for residential or
office or retail space.
I talked to Chris today and
we wanna give you a home worth about $100,000 to put up.
>> Woo-hoo!
>> [APPLAUSE] >> Look at that, look at that.
>> Woo, my God, look at that!
>> [APPLAUSE] >> Isn't that gorgeous?
>> [APPLAUSE] >> We'll be right back.
>> Yes.