“No one should ever be left behind”

Diego Flores stands in front of his family home on the 3000 block of West Orchard Street in Milwaukee’s Burnham Park neighborhood. Flores, who has been in Milwaukee since he was a young child, says though the city has its challenges it has some bright spots, as well.

“When you grow up in such a diverse community, you always meet different types of people. They’re not necessarily always gonna be good, so you’re not necessarily gonna be always makin’ the good decisions. I definitely [had] my troubles as a teenager — I committed some crimes,” he says, adding that it wasn’t anything serious. “I love Milwaukee. There’s honestly, like—there’s no other city I would rather live in right now.”

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“I want to be an NBA player”

Terryon Mckinnie shoots a basketball on an empty court in Tiefenthaler Park in Milwaukee’s Midtown neighborhood while a group of men and boys play a hustle on the court beside him. Mckinnie says he would rather practice than join in — there are too many people and Mckinnie, who has a slight frame, doesn’t want to get hurt.

But none of that keeps him from dreaming big. “When I see Kobe Bryant and LeBron James play, I want to play,” he says. “It’s my favorite sport.”

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“I didn’t know if I’d ever be able to live in a city”

Angie Opsahl stands in the street, just off the curb, in front of her home on the 4400 block of West Medford Avenue in Grasslyn Manor, sweeping up the final remnants of fall. Grey hair and a soft-yet-stern features define the aging visage.

Indeed, the 64-year-old Opsahl has seen quite a bit but there isn’t anywhere else she’d rather be. “There’s no way I’d ever be able to move out. I absolutely love this city, I love this neighborhood – people are great,” she says.

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