Читать книгу Annie's Neighborhood - Roz Denny Fox - Страница 3

Annie opened a small leather notebook.

“I surveyed a few residents,” she began. “I believe their spirits can be improved by something as simple as home face-lifts, like the one I’ve started. Fresh paint. Maybe new drapes. Possibly some rosebushes and weeded yards. Those things take sweat equity.”

“And money. Paint isn’t free. Cosmetic changes won’t break the stranglehold gangs have on local teens. If you want to do something meaningful, get me the names of the gang leaders.”

Annie and Sky faced off across the table. “Maybe the gang leaders will give up and move on if we create the kind of community where families want to live. Restore hope.”

“Perhaps that’s true in prosperous neighborhoods. Did any of the residents you talked to tell you how many hours a day they spend riding buses back and forth into Louisville to work at minimum-wage jobs that barely put food on their tables? Those privileged few who actually found new jobs?”

“I haven’t totally gained their trust yet,” Annie admitted. “But I plan to. I thought I’d distribute flyers inviting residents to a meeting where I can lay out my ideas in greater detail.”

“Good luck.”

“I had hoped I could enlist your support.”

He clattered down the steps and strode down the walkway without so much as a backward glance.