Volunteers during the Delray Neighborhood Cleanup
Tuesday morning, the forecast was sunny, with a light breeze, no humidity, nor a cloud in sight; just months ago the weather told a different story after a devastating water main break turned parts of Southwest Detroit into an icy flood zone, hundreds of volunteers gathered at the Delray Community Center with gloves, paintbrushes, and a shared mission: to help this resilient neighborhood bounce back stronger.
In partnership with the Detroit Lions, Comerica Bank spearheaded a large-scale community cleanup initiative on June 10, bringing more than 100 Comerica Cares volunteers, including corporate leadership, out into the streets, parks, and playgrounds that were once submerged in frigid floodwater.
Steve Davis, Comerica Bank’s Michigan Market President, highlighted the company’s 176-year presence in Detroit and its strong obligation to support the people who helped them achieve this milestone.
“We can only do as well as our communities do. If our communities need help, we want to help them. The better they do, the better we do,” Davis said.
“It’s the right thing to do. You help those that have helped you and if our communities are struggling, that’s bad business. It’s good business when your communities are growing and thriving.”
Detroit Lions refreshment station for the volunteers
Back in early 2025, a catastrophic water main break in the heart of winter caused widespread damage across Southwest Detroit. Streets flooded in freezing temperatures, forcing families from their homes and shutting down local recreation spaces, including the well-loved Delray Community Center. Since then, recovery efforts have slowly chipped away at the damage, but visible scars remain.
Tuesday’s initiative aimed to address that head-on as volunteers fanned out from the community center across surrounding blocks, removing trash from sidewalks and overgrown fields. The children’s playgrounds, once caked in mud, were scrubbed clean and repainted.
Walls were given fresh coats of color. Inside the Delray center, windows were washed, volunteers restored what they could and painted walls, breathing life back into the building that serves as a neighborhood hub for youth sports and afterschool programs.
“Back in February, when the floods happened and with the water main break, there were 400 homes in Detroit that were affected,” Roz, a representative from the Detroit Lions, said.
“This center, the Delray center, was a beacon of hope because this is where donations were being directed. People could come and get food, they could get diapers, they could get clothes, they could get water, whatever it was that they needed.”
Beyond cleanup, the day included assembling and distributing care packages for families still grappling with the effects of the flood. Many residents lost basic household goods and clothing during the emergency, and the packages filled with toiletries, nonperishable food, cleaning supplies, and gift cards offered a small but meaningful gesture of support.
“One of the things that’s so important to both of us, both organizations, both Lions and Comerica, is service,” she said.
“We partner every year in some kind of service oriented project. This year, we decided to pick the Delray center because of what they had done in the community and the work that also needs to be done here.”
Development Director Dalia Reyes emphasized that the Delray Community Center was a go-to facility in the neighborhood, and since then, its services have been on hold until the cleanup and restoration are complete.
“Today, we’re taking care of it [Delray Community Center] so that we can continue to facilitate services and, but the flood just doubled all our efforts here,” Reyes said.
Comerica’s commitment to community recovery isn’t new, but Davis emphasized that this project represents a deepening relationship with Detroit’s neighborhoods, especially those hit hardest by environmental infrastructure failures, including financial.
“Our goal, even during today, is always just to help make our communities a little bit stronger, a little bit safer, a little bit more prosperous,” Davis said.
“That’s why we put a lot of time and effort into financial literacy. We’ve had, approx. 17,000 people so far this year in Michigan, that we have put through financial literacy classes.”
The partnership with the Detroit Lions, whose staff and volunteers also joined the cleanup, added a jolt of excitement and local pride. Team members wore Lions gear and engaged with neighborhood youth, while team mascots and former players offered encouragement and helped paint alongside residents.
By 2 p.m., with the sun high and spirits higher, the Delray Community Center and its surrounding blocks looked transformed. More importantly, the people who call this corner of the city home felt seen.
“The families just want to actually rebuild their lives,” Reyes said.
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