Jake May, The Flint Journal

Alaysia Carr, 9, of Flint spins around as she dances under a fountain-like spray of water coming from a busted open fire hydrant as dozens of neighborhood children and families flock to cool off as the temperature rose to 88 degrees Farenheit on Friday, May 27, 2016 at the intersection of E. Holbrook and Martin Luther King Avenues on Flint's north side. "I've been waiting for this for two years now. But it sure felt good to play in the water. It was so cold," she said. "I still don't drink the water. We can't because of the lead that might be in it. It's dirty. I really hope they fix this soon."

Rev. Andre L. Williams Sr. prays over the top of Betty Gail Harris, mother, alongside her sister Karen Dixon and son Cameron Watkins on the porch of her home as about 70 people gather in the yard for a vigil commemorating Chester Ward III on Tuesday, May 10, 2016 on Flint's west side. Ward, a 20-year-old Flint man who was stabbed to death in the home on Sunday, May 7. "He was a happy-go-lucky son. He loved his mother, loved me." she said. "He loved his siblings. He loved his family. He would keep you just smiling. … If you met him, you'd fall in love with him."

A Flint Flint firefighter walks the edge of the scene as he calls for a fire hose to contain and extinguish a fully-engulfed commercial structure fire in the 1000 block of Hubbard Avenue on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016 in Flint. The same building, located behind Church's Chicken on Corunna Road, was a total loss from a fire on March 14, 2014.

U.S. Rep. Dan Kildee, D-Flint Township, wipes away tears from his eyes as he keeps his vision glued to his television as President Barack Obama speaks about U.S. Marine and Flint Central High School graduate Amir Hekmati in regard to the release of American prisoners from Iran on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016 while watching the nationally-televised address at his office in downtown Flint. Hekmati was taken prisoner August 2011. Kildee will travel to Germany today with members of Hekmati's family to see him for the first time in more than four years. "I’ll have a chance tomorrow, for the first time, to actually meet Amir Hekmati, somebody that I have been working on freeing and a person I feel I have come to know ever since I came to Congress even though I’ve never spoken to him on the phone, I never had a chance to meet him," Kildee said. "That changes tomorrow."

Flint Northwestern graduate Antwoin Nelson, 18, embraces both of his twin aunts — Andrea Pringle, left, and Angela Pringle, both 20 — in celebration of graduating alongside his brother Antonio Nelson amongst about 266 graduates from Flint Community Schools during a commencement ceremony on Tuesday, June 7, 2016 at The Whiting Auditorium near downtown Flint. "It means a lot to graduate. I've overcome a lot of things that people said I wouldn't be. It's a big thing coming from Flint," Nelson said. "I've got a cap on my head and a gold medal around my neck. We've got God with us and we're doing it big."

Flint Southwestern players Jakari Hardnett, Marquavis Coleman and Emanuel Howell listen to coaches yelling passionately to get their heads in the game during a halftime speech down 21-0 against Lake Fenton on Friday, Aug. 26, 2016 during the season-opening game at Lake Fenton High School. Lake Fenton defeated Flint Southwestern 41-7.

Detroit resident Jaiden Ellis, 8, looks at stacks of free bottled water to be given to the congregation while Rev. Jesse Jackson, a known civil rights leader, discusses the ongoing Flint water crisis on Sunday, Jan. 17, 2016 at Heavenly Host Full Gospel Baptist Church on Flint's north side.

A good father Dei'on Wright was diagnosed with Wilms Tumor, a form of kidney cancer, at five months old. Doctors completed an emergency three-hour surgery to remove the tumor and his left kidney to catch the cancer before it killed him. His father Maurice "Moe" Wright has solely raised him after his mother left early amidst his disease. Moe stopped pedaling drugs, and sold his car even, living cheap to be able to provide everything for Dei'on, and give him a future. Dei'on has taken to basketball, putting most of his effort into the sport. So much so, that he has found a spot on a summer league with the area's number one team in the city for his age group. So, for Dei'on basketball is life, and for Moe, life is Dei'on.

Maurice Wright, 43, holds his 8-year-old son Dei'on in his arms, cradled like a baby before tickling him non-stop on Thursday, June 16, 2016 while watching Game 6 of the NBA Finals in the living room of his house on Flint's north side. Dei'on was diagnosed with Wilms Tumor, a form of kidney cancer, at five months old. Doctors completed an emergency three-hour surgery to remove the tumor and his left kidney to catch the cancer before it killed him. “It was really hard at first because he was such a tiny thing but he had that willpower to live,” said Justina Wright, Dei'on's grandmother and Maurice's mother.

Lifelong friend Terrance Fisher, right, rolls up in the driveway to pick up Maurice Wright and his 8-year-old son Dei'on Wright as they head to Maurice's mother's house on Wednesday, June 15, 2016 in Flint. “When it gets hard he might want to go back to that but I’ll tell him ‘You can’t do that because you’ve got a son and who will he have?’” Fisher said. “This has made him way more humble to get up catching the bus to all his programs and to work, getting Dei’on to school. … It’s just amazing to me to see him go from the other life to this life but I guess you’ve got to because you’ve got this shorty that you’re responsible for.”

“We miss (the bus) a lot of times,” said Maurice Wright, 43, seen walking with his 8-year-old son Dei'on in a failed attempt to catch the bus on Thursday, June 16, 2016 from the Flint's west side to its south side for basketball practice. “Some days you’ve think you’ve got it planned out because it’ll come for two weeks at this time then they might have a different driver that comes five minutes early. I don’t care about what nobody thinks about what I’m doing because I’ve had cars and lived that life so if it takes for me to get on the bus to provide for my son I’ll do it a thousand times.”

Dei'on Wright, 8, looks at his trophy case on Thursday, June 16, 2016 at his home on Flint's north side.

Maurice Wright pulls his son Dei'on Wright, 8, aside from a shooting drill to teach him lessons about focus during Flint Affiliation AAU basketball practice on Thursday, June 16, 2016 at Freeman Elementary School on Flint's south side.

Maurice Wright, 43, holds his 8-year-old son Dei'on in his arms to calm him down, using his own shirt to wipe the tears away after he bumped his head on Thursday, June 16, 2016 while the duo watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals in the living room of his house on Flint's north side.

Dei'on Wright, 8, shoots layups in his driveway as he prepares to play one-on-one with his father Maurice Wright, both of Flint, as the two spend the first full day of summer together on Wednesday, June 15, 2016 at their home on Flint's north side.

Dei'on Wright, 8, leaps toward his father Maurice Wright to give him a kiss goodnight before going to bed after midnight while staying up to watch Game 6 of the NBA Finals with his dad on Friday, June 17, 2016 at their home on Flint's north side. Dei'on was diagnosed with Wilms Tumor, a form of kidney cancer, at five months old. Doctors completed an emergency three-hour surgery to remove the tumor and his left kidney to catch the cancer before it killed him. “It was really hard at first because he was such a tiny thing but he had that willpower to live,” said Justina Wright, Dei'on's grandmother and Maurice's mother.

Still Standing The story of the Flint water crisis is not just about the politics — it's about the people. Residents continue to use case after case of bottled water every day for general hygiene, cooking and drinking. These are the faces of the people of the man-made disaster that lead to more than 10,000 children being exposed to lead-tainted drinking water and a spike in elevated blood lead levels. These are real people. Neighbors. Sons. Mothers. Friends. Fathers. Daughters. Each is a human being who wants a basic human right, who want clean water running through our taps.

“When my water was coming out brown, I used to just let it run and run (until it wasn’t brown anymore) because we weren’t given any notice that the water was bad,” said, Flint resident Milly Arbor, 74. But then, she started getting uncomfortable rashes – itchy red spots – all over her body because of lead leaching off of her pipes and through her home faucets into the drinking water supply because of the Flint water crisis.

JaCorey Ridley, 10, sweats as he runs around Berston Field House on Flint's north side while training to be a boxer. The 10-year-old says his family uses their personal car to get water as they have to pick up fresh, usable water from the National Guard at the fire stations.

"We stopped drinking the water. I had made some Macaroni and Cheese and it tasted metallic," said Samantha Boatwright, 29, alongside her husband James Duckworth, 39. "As it went on, we found out it wasn't safe to bath in the water or wash our clothes or dishes in the water. So now, literally, it barely feels like we live at home. The kids get dirty, so you have to give them a bath at my mom's house. (Flint is) strong. I mean, no matter what — GM leaving, the water and everything we've been through, we keep going. Nobody gives up."

Abel Delgado, 18, feels the Flint water crisis has affected his mental health. He still bathes in Flint water, but only takes quick showers. He continues to protest daily, and seeks a city council seat next year to take he and his neighbors' voices into a political seat. "It's not over. It doesn't matter how long it is going to take, we're gonna keep fighting," he said. "It doesn't matter what more adversity we face, because we know we will face more adversity, we will still keep fighting."

Vernon Miller Jr., top right, has no vehicle, so he relies on his father to pick him up to take him to the distribution sites. When he can’t get a ride, he walks to a nearby church. He is pictured with his wife Patrice Bell, 45, and children Jerry, 4, and Omar, 5. “Sometimes I walk to the church on Foss Avenue and I have a baby stroller and I’ll go pick up water for me and my family,” Miller said. “It’s frustrating when you are getting low on bottled water and you can’t drink or bathe in the water.”

"I'm not used to boiling water, unscrewing bottles and wash my food off with before I cook. I get mixed up sometimes and my son gets mad with me. … I forgot, I am so used to being able to use the water out of my tap. "It's my home. This is where I was born and raised at. … That's all I know is Flint," said Janet E. Webb, 65. "(The government) needs to put their big boy pants on and stand up to what they done did. Instead of blame somebody else, go on and do what's right and get us back to where we're supposed to be. I'll be glad when the get it back to where it's supposed to be."

Angel McLilly, 19, stands silently alongside her boyfriend Quentin Howell, 20. She is sick of Flint water. She’s sick of her skin peeling. She’s sick of all the work it takes just to get clean. “We have to heat up bottles of water to take a bath,” she said.

Deborah Clark, 48, has a grandson who was born six weeks premature. Now, Jackson Ellington is a 3-year-old, but still having problems, which Clark said could be because of Flint’s contaminated water. “Every tooth in his head is rotted out,” she said.

Eugene McMillian, 66, is a homeowner who has a home water filter for drinking, but still bathes in his tap water. He said he is paying $375 for his water.

“There was lead in him,” said Eric Wilson, 25, of his son not breathing when he was born. The tiny baby was born three months premature and was resuscitated by a breathing machine. Taylor Matthias Williams, now 5 months old, stayed in the hospital for the first three months before being discharged on that machine. The baby boy is home now, but still needs a heart monitor. Wilson, 25, and the baby’s mother, 38-year-old Tiantha Williams, blame their baby’s health woes on Flint’s contaminated water, which Williams bathed in throughout her pregnancy.

Joyce Wilson, 60, thought she was going to die. Wilson had struggled with health issues in the past but it wasn’t the same. The 60-year-old Flint woman was finding it hard to breathe as she struggled through respiratory issues and bouts of pneumonia. “I thought I was going to die,” Wilson said. “I had been sick but it had never been like it was in the last year or so. A lot die from things like pneumonia and respiratory infections.”

Flint, a city poisoned Flint, Michigan. The entire city faces an overhaul on its infrastructure because of lead-tainted drinking water through mismanaged political oversight, leading to a spike in elevated blood lead levels in thousands of children. The people are hurting, still today. Rashes and hair loss. Bathing with bottled water. Hell, drinking and cooking with it too. Case after case. The people want answers. The people want a solution. They feel the cannot trust the government as much as they cannot drink their own tap water.

Flint resident Andrea Watson, back right, drops to the floor in tears as Flint Police stand guard at the city council chamber doors, not allowing city residents to listen to Gov. Rick Snyder speak publicly for the first time in Flint, six days after he declared a state of emergency in the city because of health and safety issues caused by lead in the city's drinking water during a press conference on Monday, Jan. 11, 2016 at City Hall in downtown Flint. The entire city, with a population of nearly 100,000 people, faces an overhaul on its infrastructure because of lead-tainted drinking water through mismanaged political oversight, ultimately leading to a spike in elevated blood lead levels in thousands of children.

Flint residents Tammy Loren and her husband Ken McCloud inspect abrasions that appeared on the arms, neck and back of their son Jeremiah Loren, 12, on Jan. 28, 2016 at their home on Flint's west side, after bathing in unfiltered Flint water in their bathtub months prior before an announcement that the corrosive Flint River water caused lead from aging pipes to leach into the water supply, causing extremely elevated levels of lead.

Flint resident Tim Monahan refuses a piggyback ride from his niece Chadie Adler, 9, before she goes to bed as he wouldn't be strong enough to lift her on Wednesday, Jan. 20, 2016 in Flint. Chadie has lived with her uncles Tim and Bill Griffin, his partner, for five years since her mother died after more than one year battling Ewing's Sarcoma, a form of cancer. Tim Monahan was diagnosed with Legionella pneumonia in July 2014, one of 45 cases reported in Genesee County during a 10-month period from June 2014 to March 2015 -- including 27 cases in Flint -- that included seven deaths, according to a report from the state. Three other deaths from the disease, as part of 42 additional cases in Genesee County, took place between May 2015 to November 2015. "I'm not alone in this. There's a whole bunch of us that are like could we go somewhere if we could, would we do something different? I don't know. I like the city of Flint and I love the people that live here," he said. "There are so many great people that are standing up and working on making this a better city, there really are. We're excited in that, but at the same time, you can't drink the water."

“I can’t trust them because to me they knew what was going on,” said Gerry Woodberry, 50, of losing his trust in government after the Flint water crisis. “A little shortcut to save them money, while you’re destroying people’s lives… I can’t regain my trust. I really can’t. I feel like this situation with me trying to get help, they don’t really care, they just don’t care. It’s not them that’s affected, so why should they care. That’s how I feel.” Woodberry who deals with the effects of lichen planus, a disease that causes the body to mistakenly attack its own skin cells, said his condition has been made worse by the water situation to the point where his skin aches at times.

“Before this water changed, when I would take my showers, it would soothe my skin,” said Flint resident Gerry Woodberry, whose skin condition lichen planus worsened because of the water crisis. “When I get out now, it’s the total opposite. It’s like I’m very irritated, like I’m very dry. It’s constantly hurting. Some days I can’t even put my socks on or my shoes.”

After pouring two pots of boiling water mixed with five bottles of water, Flint resident Na'Keyja Cade, 24, uses a hand cloth to bath her 5-year-old daughter Zayionna Callon-Cade as she stands in ankle high water in the bathtub on Thursday, Feb. 1, 2016 at their home in Flint. "My kids can't take baths and play in the water like most kids. Those are memories that will never happen. It's ruining their childhood," Cade said. "We are making due because we have to, but we can't live like this forever."

Stern and inquisitive looks mask the faces of Flint residents in a crowd of more than 500 people seeking answers, who pack an elementary school gymnasium at Holmes STEM Academy during a town hall meeting by MSNBC's Rachel Maddow on Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016 on Flint's north side.

Gov. Rick Snyder takes his seat before a hearing about the Flint water crisis in front of the U.S. House Committee on Government Oversight and Reform at the Rayburn House Office Building on Thursday, March 17, 2016 in Washington D.C. "Let me be blunt. This was a failure of government at all levels," Snyder said during the hearing.

Plumbers Rob Johnson, left, and Kevin Kinasz assist Flint resident Lawanda Asa, 70, at right, with donated faucet installation on Saturday, Jan. 30, 2016 at her home in Flint. About 300 members of Plumbing Manufacturers International took the donated faucets and supplies, as well as Brita water filters provided by the state before beginning work in houses and apartment buildings throughout Flint. "People from all over the country, Canada, Cher, tons of organizations are sending trucks loads of waters and filters to us. I've even lost count on how many people are sending us water," she said. "It just goes to show how giving American people are. People that don't even know us, have never heard of Flint before are at our side. We're so very blessed that the American people have such big hearts."

Flint resident Sarah Truesdail holds her daughter Gabriella Venegas, 5, as she screams out with tears rolling down her face while a health official pricks her finger with a needle for a free lead test on Monday, Feb. 8, 2016 at Carriage Town Ministries in Flint. Molina Healthcare provided children up to six years of age with free lead testing, as well as water filters for families to take home and install. "She take baths in the water, and my daughter takes a lot of baths. Just recently she's been having stomachaches. I took her to the emergency room but they said she was OK. She missed school today. There's something wrong with her," Truesdail said. "We don't drink it. Bathing in it is supposed to be safe. But if it's safe, why do you have to limit the time? And you're breathing the steam when it's hot and the vapors enter your body through the air? We just don't know how it's affecting us. I'm a little worried for the lead test. I'm thinking she doesn't have lead poisoning, but it's just worrying me. Parents need to get their kids lead tested — better safe than sorry."

Rhonda Chatman, who lives on Ridgeway Avenue on Flint's north side, holds closely her grandchildren Nevia Beverly, 4, left, and Naseir Evans, 7, on Monday, Aug. 1, 2016, more than two years into the city's water crisis. Chatman said it is inconceivable. "We've had to deal with the water crisis. My grandchildren can't take a bath like any normal child. We have to brush our teeth with bottled water. Cook with it. Clean with it. We can't live life like this," Rhonda Chatman said.

St. Clair Shores resident Terra Castro removes her glasses as she wipes away tears as she takes a moment to reflect on the state of emergency in Flint while dropping off more than 500 cases of bottled water with about 20 Detroit-based volunteers on Saturday, Jan. 16, 2016 at Mission of Hope on Flint's north side. "It's overwhelming. The magnitude of the issue and the magnitude of love and compassion people hold for others is so apparent here. Our cities (Flint and Detroit) are very bold, helpful and caring. People who cannot afford to give water are doing it, even though they have issues of their own unresolved," Castro said. "We're a pretty rad state. It's truly unfortunate that we're surrounded by water with the Great Lakes and we have to worry about water in Flint."

Salwan Georges, Detroit Free Press

Iraqi refugees outside Rafha Islamic Center after a Ramadan dinner on Friday, July 1, 2016, on the border of Detroit and Dearborn, MI.

Cassie Bass, center, the niece of Janet Wilson, 31, who was shot and killed last week by Dearborn's police, hugs family member during a statement made by the family's lawyer to the media on Wednesday, February 3, 2016, in front of Dearborn Police headquarters in Dearborn, MI. The family was joined by supporters and activists.

Republican presidential candidates Donald Trump defends the size of his hands during the Fox News GOP debate on Thursday, March 3, 2016, at the Fox Theater in Detroit, MI. “Look at those hands, are they small hands?” said Trump. “And he referred to my hands…if they’re small, something else must be small. I guarantee you there’s no problem,” he added.

Security guards explore one of the storage space inside the tunnels beneath Northland Center mall on Wednesday, February 17, 2016, in Southfield, MI. The tunnels were created for truck-in deliveries for the stores and were also used for storage and a nuclear bomb shelter.

Students react to being pepper sprayed by security guards during fight at Central High School on Tuesday, March 15, 2016, in Detroit, MI.

Angelo Fracassa, 86, of Detroit, is overcome with emotion as he greets his friends and family as they get on the bus on his last day of work on Friday, February 19, 2016, in Detroit, MI. After 60 years working at the IRS and rids the bus to work everyday, Fracassa family surprised him by ridding the bus with him to a retirement party.

Member of the Iraqi Shia gang photographed at a back ally of local coffee shop in Detroit, Michigan on Saturday, May 7, 2016.

Evelyn Richardson "Miss Pee Wee" of Detroit, photographed in her office at home on Tuesday, March 29, 2016 in Detroit, MI. Richardson is the leader of the Children’s Crusade, a group she founded after the 1967 riot. Its headquarters is her pink and white house, an old duplex whose walls are covered in awards, letters from politicians and newspaper accounts of her half century of work. She’s very religious and tells people she gets her instructions from Jesus Christ, who she says speaks to her regularly. “I hear him talk all the time,” she said. “He was talking to me last night real heavy.”

The seven members of the Yacoub family came to America as refugees of the civil war in Sudan, where they lived Stone Age lives with no running water, no electricity, no schooling. The only adult among them, the mother, was handicapped and unable to work. Suddenly they were whisked into the 21st Century, deposited in a battered but sturdy three-bedroom home in some place they’d never heard of called Detroit. They spoke no English. They had no friends or family in America. And the personal belongings they brought with them fit into two shopping bags. Their father had vanished after stabbing their mother and most of the kids are too young to work. For them, it was like going to another planet. And adapting to their new life was a struggle.

Nassour Yacoub (17) puts on his "Jalabiya" traditional long loose robe, before praying in his room on Wednesday, May 18, in Detroit, MI. "We were happy in our village of Tukultukul. We had a farm and a garden, and we planted our own food," said Yacoub. "Other tribes started brining their cattle to eat our plants. If you try to stop them, they will cut your head," he added. After his father tried to kill his children’s mother and fled into the wilderness of Africa, Nassour has taken on the role of the man of the house in the family’s new country, even though he’s barely a man himself at 17.

Guisma Yacoub (12) braids her sister Safia Yacoub (19) hair at home on Friday, September 9, 2016, in Detroit, MI. Safia Yacoub recently gave birth to a baby boy she named “Muntather.” It’s a word from the Arabic language that means “waiting,” because the 19-year-old and her newborn are still waiting for the arrival of the boy’s father, who is stuck in Sudan, hamstrung by red tape, unable to immigrate to America.

Guisma Yacoub (12) plays with a rabbit, the family's new pet, on Tuesday, June 8, 2016, at home in Detroit, MI. The rabbit was given to the family as a gift by the family's neighbor Dheyaa Alzamli, who is a refugee himself from Iraq few years with his family.

Mariam Hassan, 37, the mother of the children, cuts okra at home to prepare dinner on Wednesday, June 1, 2016, in Detroit, MI.

Tahir Yacoub (15) prays with his older brother Nassour Yacoub (17) at their home on Wednesday, May 18, 2016, in Detroit, MI. Tahir, has struggled the most to adapt to his new life. He’s not doing well in school, has trouble overcoming the language barrier and spends most of his days aimlessly riding his bike around his strange new neighborhood, taking in the bewilderingly different culture.

Nassour Yacoub (17) posed for a portrait with his younger brothers Seid Yacoub, left, (9) and Khatir Yacoub (11) on Sunday, May 22, 2016, near their home in Detroit, MI. "There was no one to help us. As the older son, I had to help raise my siblings and take care of my mom. Life was hard," said Nassour. The two youngest sons, Khatir the 11-year-old and Seid the 9-year-old, show the most promise since their arrival. They’re young enough to adapt to the new world in which they find themselves, and are slowly becoming accustomed to their new home in inner-city Detroit.

Safia Yacoub (19) and her younger sister Guisma Yacoub (12) sit on the porch of their home on Sunday, May 22, 2016, in Detroit, MI. Safia recently gave birth to a baby boy she named “Muntather.” It’s a word from the Arabic language that means “waiting,” because the 19-year-old and her newborn are still waiting for the arrival of the boy’s father, who is stuck in Sudan, hamstrung by red tape, unable to immigrate to America. Guisma when she first arrived in Detroit, spent several long stints in a hospital because of infections that had gone untreated.

From left, Nassour Yacoub (17) Seid Yacoub (9) Khatir Yacoub (11) and Tahir Yacoub )15) sit in their home garage eating potato chips and drinking soda on Wednesday, May 25, 2016, in Detroit, MI. "People ask us where we are from, we tell them Sudan. They ask when we got here, we tell them April. They ask us if we know English, we say no. They say little by little, you will learn English," said Nassour.

Guisma Yacoub (12) looks out the window of her school bus on her way home from school with her siblings on Friday, November 11, 2016, in Dearborn, MI. Detroit Public School made a special bus to pick up the Yacoub children because the school that is near their home didn't have ESL classes with a translator.

Tahir Yacoub (15) and his brother Nassaur Yacoub (17) eat lunch with their classmates at Priest Elementary-Middle School on Friday, November 11, 2016, in Detroit, MI.

Nassaur Yacoub (17) and his brother Tahir Yacoub (15) play soccer with their classmates during lunch break at Priest Elementary-Middle School on Friday, November 11, 2016, in Detroit, MI.

After the Marines in September documented abuse of recruits at the base at Parris Island, S.C. – abuse investigators said led to the presumed suicide of Taylor, Michigan recruit Raheel Sidiqqui in March of 2016. What surfaced was a problem the Marines are well aware of: the difficult balance between giving drill instructors – who are expected to turn raw recruits into battle ready Marines in 13 weeks – broad authority and autonomy while maintaining enough oversight to keep them from stepping over the line.

A drill instructor leads new recruits before daylight during their Initial Strength tests on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC.

A new male recruit work on two complete "dead-hang" pull ups during his Initial Strength Tests (ISTs) on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. In order to begin boot camp in earnests, new recruits must be able to do two complete "dead-hang" pull ups, 44 crunches in two minutes and a one mile and half run in 13 minutes and 30 seconds.

A recruit work with his team over, under and around obstacles toward an objective during The Crucible on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. Before graduating as new Marines, recruits break into teams and undergo a 54-hour training exercise (The Crucible), with only limited food and sleep.

Recruits lined up before entering the Chow Hall for lunch on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC.

A recruit work with his team over, under and around obstacles toward an objective during The Crucible on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. Before graduating as new Marines, recruits break into teams and undergo a 54-hour training exercise (The Crucible), with only limited food and sleep.

A team of four recruits work over, under and around obstacles covered in barbed wire toward an objective during The Crucible on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. Before graduating as new Marines, recruits break into teams and undergo a 54-hour training exercise (The Crucible), with only limited food and sleep.

A recruit helps with the cleaning after recruits get their haircuts on Wednesday October 19, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. Recruits get their hair cut when they show up and then regularly throughout boot camp.

Candidates to being drill instructors study the Recruit Training Order at Parris Islan's drill instructor school on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. The order has strict rules about when and under what conditions are drill instructor or DI can lay his or her hands on a recruit.

A drill instructor watches as new male recruits do two complete "dead-hang" pull ups during their Initial Strength Tests (ISTs) on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. In order to begin boot camp in earnests, new recruits must be able to do two complete "dead-hang" pull ups, 44 crunches in two minutes and a one mile and half run in 13 minutes and 30 seconds.

Families lined up to watch officers, instructors and new Marines run a 3-mile "motivational run" the day before graduation on Wednesday October 19, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC. A short time after the run, families got to see the sons and daughters for the first time in three months.

New Marines embrace with their families after graduation ceremony on Thursday October 20, 2016 at the Marine Corps Recruit Depot in Parris Island, SC.

Rachel Woolf, The Flint Journal

POY - From left, cousins Jada Weatherspoon, 5, and Destiny Rawls, 11, both of Flint, laugh while cooling off in a pool on Thursday, July 21, 2016 in Flint.

POY - Nneka Lawrence, a firearm instructor, displays ammunition during a Concealed Pistol License or "CCW/CPL" class for women on Sunday, Dec. 11, 2016 at the Action Impact Firearms & Training Center in Eastpointe.

POY - A Grand Blanc High School student rides the escalator during her prom. About 620 students attended the 2016 prom for Grand Blanc High School with a "bright lights big city" theme on Saturday, May 21, 2016 at Ford Field in Detroit.

POY - Burke Cueny, of Rochester, watches as volunteers and city officials participate in a recount after a federal judge ordered the statewide recount at the Oakland Schools Conference Center on December 5, 2016 in Waterford Township, Michigan. The recount is a request from Green Party presidential candidate Jill Stein, after the close margin of Michigan's election results.

POY - Jenarvius Parnell, 4, of Flint, swings with a lollypop on Friday, April 15, 2016 at his great grandmother's house in Flint.

POY - Ulunda Green, of Flint, walks with a cart full of food and water to her home after the first Food Bank food distribution on Wednesday, Feb. 24, 2016 in Flint. The Food Bank of Eastern Michigan of Flint is partnering with the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services to provide 12 truckloads of food in February and March. The food is intended to mitigate lead exposure.

FEA - Tyler Vaas, 16, JROTC member at Mumford High School, stands at the ready before Detroit's Veteran's Day parade on Sunday, Nov. 6, 2016 at Martin Luther King High School in Detroit.

POY - Frances Jockwig, of Gladwin, cries as she visits her deceased husband's, U.S. Army Veteran James Wayne Jockwig's, gravestone on Sunday, May 29, 2016 the morning before a Memorial Day Ceremony honoring deceased veterans at Great Lakes National Cemetery in Holly.

POY - Flint Southwestern student Miyona Johnson, 17, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in her room in Flint. "Prom means everything,” Johnson said. She was also crowned Prom Queen at her prom. The walls in her room have her painted handprints and various magazine page cutouts.

POY - Mott Middle College High School student Clyde Childress, 17, poses with his dog Thor on Friday, May 13, 2016 in his room in Flint. "Prom ... really brings family together," Childress said. The notes above his trophies and certificates are poems from his mother, one reading: “my sunshine, my beautiful boy. You make me laugh, you bring me joy. Together we’ve grown and seen so much, some good some bad, even the tough. We’ve stuck it out and made it through. You’re super awesome and mama loves you.”

PP - Flint Southwestern student Marcus Washington, 17, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in his room in Flint. "It’s a (once) in a lifetime thing, so it means a lot to me,” Washington said regarding prom.

POY - Flint Southwestern student Tevin Taylor, 18, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in his room in Flint. Taylor decorates his room with Michigan State memorabilia, as it was his dream school when he was younger. Taylor was also crowned Prom King at his prom.

POY - Beecher High School student TeAisha Randolph, 18, poses on Friday, May 20, 2016 in her room in Beecher. “I really don’t dress up often, so it’s like new for people to see me like this,” Randolph said. She does not decorate her room very much, but has a tattoo displaying her Astrological sign, Capricorn.

POY - Mott Middle College High School student Amiaya Harris, 18, poses on Friday, May 13, 2016 in her room in Flint. It took Harris about a month to get her dress, “I just wanted to look cute,” Harris said. The teddy bear was a gift from her prom date, Mott Middle College High School student Charles Allen Jr., given to her two months prior.

POY - Swartz Creek High School student Armani Alexander, 16, poses on Saturday, May 14, 2016 in his room in Flint Township. Alexander asked his prom date before class with a poster and marker for her to check yes or no. "I was nervous, everyone was looking at me," Alexander said. His mother decorated his room, which he has lived in for about three years. Alexander plays football and used to box when he was 10, but stopped because his mother was concerned about him getting injured.

POY - Flint Southwestern student LaShawn Mance, 17, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in her room in Flint. "This night means to me, it's like a one in lifetime chance. Basically, it's a precious moment. It really is. I always tell my mom like I have to experience this because I've been wanting to experience this since I was a little girl, and it's like a first wedding to me," Mance said. She was diagnosed with cancer when she was 14 but is now cancer-free. Mance recently moved and has been in her room for three months.

POY - Mott Middle College High School student Charles Allen Jr., 18, poses on Friday, May 13, 2016 in his room in Flint. “It’s an achievement, ‘cause I know a lot of people that didn’t have the opportunity to go to prom,” Allen Jr. said. Allen Jr. has lived in his room for about five or six years and has a "goal wall" with one goal reading "be the best person you can be."

POY - Beecher High School student DeAndra Holloway, 18, poses on Friday, May 20, 2016 in the room she frequently stays in at her grandmother's house in Flint.

POY - Flint Southwestern student Cara Connor, 18, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in her room in Flint. "I feel pretty happy because it all turned out and I’m not nervous like my mom, but I’m pretty chill as far as my attitude," Connor said.

POY - Flint Southwestern student D'Andre Mitchell, 18, poses on Saturday, May 7, 2016 in his room in Flint. "It’s the only prom I went to, so I gotta do it big,” Mitchell said. Mitchell displays photos of his deceased grandmother and father, as well as sports trophies, in his room.

POY - From left, Yana Hudson, 17, looks at her sister Janaye Richardson, 8, while her daughter Addysen Hudson, 2, sleeps on her lap, as their sister Janiyah Richardson, 7, looks at herself in the mirror on Tuesday, March 29, 2016 at their home in Flint. Yana has little space to herself at home between her two sisters and twin children. Yana Hudson is a senior at Mott Middle College High School. She plays basketball for Beecher High School, has 2-year-old twins and dreams of making it to the Women's National Basketball Association.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, watches her children play with one another during their 2nd birthday party on Monday Oct. 17, 2016 at her grandparent's house in Flint. As the children misbehaved and Yana began to disagree with her mother, she sat back on the couch and watched her twins interact.

POY - From left, Addysen Hudson, 2, and Ayden Hudson, 2, sleep as their mother, Yana Hudson, 17, looks for her homework in her backpack on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016 at her home in Flint. “You stay overwhelmed and you’re exhausted most of the time,” Hudson said. “It’s just hard having two at the same time.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, center, jokes around with her friends as they buy food during the Beecher boys basketball game on Friday, February 19, 2016 at Beecher High School's Moses Lacy Field House in Mt. Morris Township. Yana plays basketball for Beecher High School but attends the Mott Middle College High School, where she is also earning college credits.

POY - From left, Imani Thompson laughs with others as Yana Hudson, 17 looks away while they wait for their team to be called to the center of the gym for "senior night" where players are honored in front of an audience on Friday, February 19, 2016 at Beecher High School's Moses Lacy Field House in Mt. Morris Township.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, center, talks to her friend Anastasia Perez, 16, during Composition class on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 at Mott Middle College High School in Flint.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, rubs oil on her son, Ayden Hudson, 2, after she gave him a bath on Monday, April 11, 2016 at her home in Flint. "Just feeling the love from your own kids is different from your mom and dad, you actually have to be there and protect something that’s yours,” she said. “It’s fun.”

POY - From left, Diana Wiley, Yana Hudson's mother, prepares dinner while Yana Hudson, 17, and her sister Janaye Richardson, 8, sit on the couch watching television on Tuesday, March 29, 2016 at their home in Flint. Diana adopted Yana at eight months and dealt with behavioral issues through her early teenage years.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, secures a photo of her daughter Addysen Hudson, 2, to her bedroom wall on Sunday, Feb. 28, 2016 at her home in Flint.

POY - Yana Hudson, 17, works on math homework for an online class she took during the summer on Tuesday, June 21, 2016 at her home in Flint. Yana finds time for homework late at night or when other family members are able to take care of her children.

POY - From left, Yana Hudson, 17, looks up at her sister Janaye Richardson, 8, while she takes a bath before doing homework on Tuesday, Feb. 16, 2016 at their home in Flint. “I don’t really do too much,” Hudson said regarding her life outside of school, basketball and family.

POY - From left, Yana Hudson, 17, opens one eye as she wakes up around 6 AM next to her daughter, Addysen Hudson, 2, to prepare to go to daycare and school on Tuesday, May 24, 2016 at her home in Flint. “I’ve got a strong mind,” Hudson said. “I’ve basically been through everything growing up so I’ve finally got myself together. Don’t nothing bother me because at the end of the day it’s about me, Addysen and Ayden."