'We just saw the common need:' 3 strangers in DeKalb come together to clean up after businesses damaged by looters

A trio of DeKalb residents felt a need to do something and took initiative Monday morning in DeKalb.

Tamara M., who said she works in the medical profession locally, was disappointed to see looting in DeKalb Sunday from videos online and made her mind up Sunday evening to do something Monday. She found herself cleaning glass in the Thirsty’s parking lot, as well as the strip mall storefronts along Hillcrest with two other men who joined her after she started alone.

“I was going to go see if there was still police presence and ask them if I can just clean up,” she said. “I’ve been out here. I got up at about 6:30, I came out here, and these lovely two gentlemen saw me. They both just stopped and .. we don’t know each other and we just saw the common need to clean up and just try and take care of our community. It’s unfortunate what happened and it’s hard on everybody. There’s still people out here doing good stuff and sometimes this stuff doesn’t make the news.”

Tamara, broom in hand, was cleaning up when she was approached by Aaron Brown, a 22-year resident of DeKalb, and Jim, who identified himself as a lifelong DeKalb resident who works for the DeKalb 428 School District, but did not wish to be further identified.

Brown, sporting a masonry trowel and orange and black work gloves, found himself collecting and scooping broken glass,

“I got a text from a guy, we do the jail ministry and this gospel was speaking from over there … and he spoke to me really thought from the way he took the picture it looked like they were tearing all this up, so I got up this morning and I said hey, grabbed my dog and said let’s assess the damage,” he said.

A self-described community activist, Brown said he works to aid those in the county jail with substance abuse while trying to share Christian principles.

“I used to hear all the people from Chicago and I’m like, no we’re not like that and letting them know that not everybody from Chicago is what gives people from Chicago a bad name,” he said.

Source: The Daily Chronicle