Dear Detroit,

I feel like you’ve been cheated for a while now. You have gained an unfair reputation for the actions of a select few. Growing up with a 40-minute proximity from you, I experienced you on occasion, and had a predisposition of who you truly are. It wasn’t until spending everyday with you this past summer that I was introduced to your true self.

You’ve been the home for immigrants since the 18^th century. Many have come and gone, and you’ve created a family for those old and new, despite all setbacks along the way.

Detroit, you’re one of the countrie's largest metropolitan economies, and aside from your recent bankruptcy, you’re still the home of 17 fortune 500 companies and have a family of 5.3 million that continue to root for you after every fall.

I have nothing but respect and admiration for those that have the resources and passion for you, that continue creating incredible change. Without the Dan Gilberts of our time to nurse you back to health, your well being would continue to be at risk, but instead you’re on the brink of thriving and returning to the city your family has always known and loved.

You’re art, music, and resilient history makes your beauty one of a kind. You’re a city filled with hardship and poverty, but incredible wealth in heart and sole.

I’ve always planned on setting out for a big city after college like Chicago, Los Angeles, or Seattle. This summer, however, you’ve managed to enthrall with your charm, which has made ever leaving you incomprehensible.

Thank you, Detroit, for introducing me to your true self and ridding me of the bias I previously had.

Love,

A proud member of the Detroit family