Meet Crystal Perkins, Director of the General Services Department for the City of Detroit. Crystal began her City career during the Great Recession after stepping away from work to care for her young children, Ruth and Gabriel. What started as a return to the workforce quickly became a calling. She discovered a deep belief in public service and saw how strong leadership can shape the daily lives of Detroiters. As a proud DPS graduate who understands the community firsthand, she felt compelled to help strengthen neighborhoods, restore trust, and create real opportunities for residents to succeed. One of Crystal’s proudest accomplishments is the Board Up Brigade, an initiative that provided nearly two hundred returning citizens with training, stability, and a path to a new beginning. The program taught essential skills, created jobs, and offered future opportunities through CDL training. Many participants secured jobs with major companies or the City, and some even launched their own b...