'All hands on deck': Thousands of volunteers battle blight on Detroit's west side

DETROIT (FOX 2) - Thousands of volunteers are rolling up their sleeves this week to battle blight in a Detroit neighborhood.

Volunteers were hard at work Tuesday helping clear out and clean up the area around Durfee Innovation Society and Central High School on Detroit's west side.

"We are going to remove blight from every single blighted alleyway within four square miles," said Chris Lambert.

Lambert is the CEO of Life Remodeled, and he's got thousands of dollars in donations and 10,000 people volunteering throughout the week, including workers from 160 companies, community groups, and church groups. They're all using the time to give back and build relationships.

"We trim trees, we cut grass, hedges, all sorts of things, and we just spend the day with our coworkers and really enjoy each other and get to know each other on a more personal basis," said Mary Avesian.

That's what this is all about -- not just cleaning up.

"Our country is extremely divided right now with race, religion, class, education and this week, what we're experiencing is what life can be like 365 days a yeah when we come together and work together," Lambert said.

Because together, it's amazing what can be accomplished.

"We chopped down a whole tree. We got people in the back chopping down trees," said Stanley Love.

"We know what the end results are and how good it is for the community," Cody Bartlett said.

"It's really all hands on deck and that's what it takes for Detroit to be the city it's meant to be - all of us working together," Lambert said.

Volunteers will be there through Aug. 10.