Oscar Barnett has lived in Flint, Michigan his entire life, during which he has witnessed the city go from boom to bust.

"When I left high school, this city had a population of slightly over 200,000. Any graduating senior who wanted to work could walk out of the school and into the GM plant and make as much money as their parents," recalls Oscar. "And that's exactly what I did."

"Now, this city has about 108,000, our school system is in shambles, the GM jobs are gone, if you drive down almost any street in Flint there are abandoned houses.  And we have an absolute void in political leadership.  These are all very alarming."

As the chair of the social action committee at Quinn Chapel AME Church, Oscar was approached by his pastor a few years back about attending a meeting with PICO affiliate Flint Area Congregations Together (FACT).

"The meeting was about the rights and wrongs of Flint and how to get started organizing," recalls Barnett.   "As I sat there and really began to think about ‘will this allow me and the church to begin to make a difference in Flint and the lives of people in Flint?' The answer was pretty obvious - ‘Yes!'  I got hooked at this point."

What hooked Barnett was the PICO organizing model and its commitment to pragmatic action and community involvement.

"I have been involved in Flint for a long time.  The first thing that anybody will say to you when you try to talk about any issue in Flint, is that people always talk about things, but we don't do anything.  With PICO, we can offer them a process that leads to action, and says ‘you can be a part of this.'"

"I think the church has more of a responsibility that just to pay the bills and make sure that folks can come to church on Sunday," reflects Barnett.  "I see a community in a nosedive and there doesn't seem to be an end in sight unless someone does something.  And it all starts with me, with us."

"The good Lord has blessed me with an opportunity to have an impact."

For more information about Flint Area Congregations Together, visit www.flintfact.org