Love Your Block Evanston helping communities come together through revitalization projects

Transforming Evanston, one block at a time. 

That's the goal of a two-year project called Love Your Block Evanston, where neighbors are helping neighbors in their time of need. 

As every trash can and dumpster is filled, a community is coming together to help one of their own—Esther Williams.

"We're gonna get this done and it's going to be awesome!" said Bridget Johnson.

The community program Love Your Block Evanston is in Williams' backyard. Her daughter Deanna Howlett filled out an application for her mother's home to be chosen for a cleanup transformation.

"Well, my brother and dad are the ones who did most of the household things," Howlett said.

Williams' 74-year-old husband, Paul, died suddenly from a heart attack in February of 2025. Her son Christopher died from organ failure, just four weeks later. He was only 39.

"A lot of unfinished projects kind of left in their state, you know, when they passed away," Howlett said.

"The loss that she has experienced is one of the reasons why this happened and I'm so happy that it was the community that actually voted and evaluated and said that, yeah, 'Let's help her and clear this out and give her back her backyard," Johnson said.

Friday's cleanup is just one of 21 projects taking place in the community. The City of Evanston gave the community group $100,000 in grant money to make it all happen.

While things like landscaping will need to be paid for after removal, Two Men and a Junk Truck are donating their time and a dumpster for the cleanup. All of the people participating are volunteers from the community.

"I have been in the removal business for a long time and this is the first time I've ever seen something like this where a community is coming together. It is great to see and it really does give me a lot of hope in the world," said Jacob Milam with Two Men and A Junk Truck. 

And when the volunteers are finished, they'll be leaving behind more than a clean backyard.

"I'm excited to see how this can open up kind of a new future that my mom and I really haven't really ever considered," Howlett said.

She says this is a reminder of what can happen when a community decides to lift someone instead of looking away.