Black History Month Celebrates Linda Smith: Working Within The Community To Build Community

DETROIT (WWJ) - When Linda Smith of United Street Networking And Planning: Building A Community (U SNAP BAC) is at the table she's either helping to build new homes, secure loans for home improvement or helping residents avoid home foreclosure.

"We have built 100 homes in neighborhoods. We work with families on programs or products that secure them in their homes. We're helping with property taxes and we're a certified MSHDA credit counseling agency" said Smith.

She adds that someone has to have the patience, the time, the knowledge because people are told, "no" so often.

"We just took an area that had about seven homes," she said. That was years ago, now they have about 40 homes.

U SNAP BAC is celebrating 30 years in operation based on the city's east side, but they help residents across the city. Smith says the impact is real, especially on Wayburn Street in the MorningSide community, in Detroit.