DETROIT – Today, Angela “Angie” Reyes as the Detroit Lions 2025 Inspire Change Changemaker – an annual recognition celebrating leaders who are who are driving significant, measurable change in their communities across the NFL’s Inspire Change initiative’s four pillars of education, economic advancement, police-community relations or criminal justice reform.
Reyes’ approach to social justice is rooted in the belief that healing and transformation must come from within the community itself. She treats youth not as “at-risk” but as at-promise, deserving of opportunity and respect. This philosophy has shaped the culture of the Detroit Hispanic Development Corporation (DHDC), which she founded in 1997 to save lives and rebuild communities. Several current DHDC staff and leaders today are former program participants or individuals whose lives Reyes directly influenced.
From her earliest days mediating conflicts between rival street crews in the 1990s to creating job pathways for returning citizens, she showed up in the streets, in living rooms, and in schools — anywhere her people needed her. She has comforted grieving parents, celebrated graduations, and attended countless funerals, embodying a level of solidarity that transformed community service into a family bond. Through DHDC, she has offered adult education classes, mental health resources, housing counseling, financial literacy courses, advocacy groups, entrepreneurship support, youth development programs, parenting resources and community violence intervention, among many other programs year over year.
Her impact reaches far beyond any single initiative or organization — it lives in the generations of young people who found direction through her guidance, in the families who found hope through her advocacy, and in the systems that began to shift because she refused to accept the status quo.
Reyes will be recognized at the Detroit Lions Inspire Change game on Sunday, December 21, 2025, for her exceptional work in pursuit of social justice and the advancement of Southwest Detroit’s Latino neighborhoods. She will also receive a $10,000 donation from the NFL Foundation, paid directly to a non-profit organization of her choice.
“Angie Reyes’ relationship with her community is one of deep love, trust, and lifelong commitment,” said Detroit Lions Vice President of Detroit Lions Foundation & Community Relations Roxanne Caine. “For more than five decades, she has been both a daughter and matriarch of Southwest Detroit’s Latino neighborhoods — someone who never stood above the people she served, but always within them. Her connection to the community runs far deeper than the traditional role of a nonprofit founder; she is regarded as a protector, healer, and voice for those too often unheard.”
“The Changemakers selected this year have demonstrated what’s possible when leaders commit to creating real change in their communities,” said Anna Isaacson, Senior Vice President of Social Responsibility. “Their work is a powerful example for others and proof that sustained dedication can drive meaningful progress. The NFL family is proud to recognize their impact.”
For more information, visit the link here.