{"id":15558,"date":"2016-05-02T07:00:40","date_gmt":"2016-05-02T07:00:40","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.challengedetroit.org\/?post_type=blogpost&p=15558"},"modified":"2016-05-02T07:00:40","modified_gmt":"2016-05-02T07:00:40","slug":"fellow-spotlight-devon-oreilly","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.challengedetroit.org\/blog\/fellow-spotlight-devon-oreilly\/","title":{"rendered":"Fellow Spotlight: Devon O’Reilly"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tell us about living in Detroit. What neighborhood do you live in and what things make it\u00a0unique and exciting?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Although I am looking to move to Detroit in the near future, I currently own a home in west\u00a0Dearborn where I reside. Although I spend the majority of my days (including weekends) in\u00a0Detroit, Dearborn is an incredibly diverse community culturally and for better or worse the city\u00a0is often in the national spotlight. I love going to the Middle Eastern bakeries along Warren\u00a0avenue for fresh baked goods and pastries in the mornings, and it’s always interesting to see\u00a0the Ford concept vehicles, covered in \u201ccamouflage wraps\u201d driving around near the proving\u00a0grounds and test facilities. I also enjoy the proximity of Dearborn to Detroit and consciously\u00a0take what I call the \u201cscenic\u201d drive to work, straight down Michigan Avenue from the heart of\u00a0Dearborn to my parking garage on Michigan and Lafayette, across the street from the famous\u00a0(and rival) coney islands.<\/p>\n

What have you learned from Challenge Detroit so far?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IMG_9010\"I admit that going in I thought I knew the city pretty well, but the depth and breadth of the\u00a0various projects and events I\u2019ve been a part of through Challenge has been both impressive and\u00a0eye opening. I realized that although I had always spent a lot of time in the city, it was mostly in\u00a0the greater downtown area and really only through my own particular lense. This fellowship\u00a0allows me to speak firsthand with residents and civic leaders who in my own personal\u00a0experiences I would never interact with. I\u2019ve also learned an incredible amount and gained an\u00a0invaluable perspective hearing about other fellow’s experience in Detroit, especially those who\u00a0are living here for the first time. It\u2019s always interesting seeing new Detroiters perspectives,\u00a0thoughts, and reactions (both good and bad) as they discover this amazingly complex city.<\/p>\n

Tell us about your host company and your role in the organization.<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IMG_8503\"The Detroit Regional Chamber is one of the largest and oldest chambers of commerce in the\u00a0country and it embodies the concept of regional collaboration as a driver of success. Covering\u00a0more than 11 counties and counting thousands of businesses as members, we work on issues\u00a0related to policy, education, advocacy, civic engagement, and business attraction, all in addition\u00a0to serving to maximize our value to members. I have a very diverse and wide ranging role in the\u00a0organization that keeps me constantly engaged in a variety of aspects of our organization.<\/p>\n

\"IMG_8880\"Chiefly, I head up all of our entrepreneurial initiatives and engagement, which ranges from\u00a0working directly with entrepreneurs to help connect them with opportunities and resources, to\u00a0the organizations and programs themselves that help to nurture and grow entrepreneurship in\u00a0the region. I spearhead our community engagement for the city of Detroit which takes me out\u00a0of just the downtown and midtown areas to meet with businesses and civic groups from nearly\u00a0all the neighborhoods in the city, working on ways to better connect them with the larger\u00a0downtown business community. In a combination of the roles mentioned, I create the agenda\u00a0and program for our yearly Detroit Policy Conference which brings together civic, business, and\u00a0government leaders from across the greater Detroit area to hear about various issues impacting\u00a0the city including transportation, education, workforce development, safety, and of course\u00a0entrepreneurship.<\/p>\n

What kind of impact do you hope to have with your host company and within the city?<\/strong><\/p>\n

\"IMG_8371\"I feel incredibly fortunate to have a position that allows me to interact and impact such a wide\u00a0array of organizations, individuals, and issues. It can be hard to focus on specific goals, but I\u00a0really hope to be able to better connect the dots and create a more welcoming and inclusive\u00a0environment for entrepreneurs in Detroit. We have an incredible amount of resources and\u00a0thought leaders in our entrepreneurial community, but unfortunately they don\u2019t always\u00a0interact and too often entrepreneurs and startup businesses coming into the city or those\u00a0without \u201cconnections\u201d feel lost or overwhelmed trying to navigate the difficult process starting\u00a0and growing a business in Detroit. If I can become a key connector and champion of\u00a0entrepreneurship in Detroit, to the point that we can successfully create real opportunities for\u00a0all would be business owners in the city as well as attract and retain our top minds and talent, I\u00a0would feel like my efforts had made a serious impact.<\/p>\n

What are your favorite summer events or experiences in the city that you are looking\u00a0forward to?<\/strong><\/p>\n

Having spent many summers in Detroit there are so many things I look forward to it\u2019s hard to\u00a0choose. Places like the beach at Campus Martius and Belle Isle are where I will be spending\u00a0most of my off-time in the summer. Bike riding on the riverwalk and exploring the new\u00a0Michigan Outdoor Adventure Center will certainly be a part of it too. Essentially anything and\u00a0everything including but not limited to; the Dequindre Cut, Eastern Market, Old Miami\u00a0backyard, Detroit\u2019s fabulous patio establishments, Tigers games, Jazz Fest, concerts at Chene\u00a0Park, kayaking the Detroit\u2019s \u201csecret\u201d canals.. Am I giving too much away? Sounds like I\u2019ve got\u00a0my June blog idea figured out. Stay tuned..<\/p>\n

To lean even more about Devon’s work and life in Detroit check out his spotlight video.
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