Detroit Free Press

ARLINGTON, Texas - I know. I know.Your best offense isn't supposed to be the other team's quarterback. Your wake-up call is not supposed to be "Twenty-four points down! Let's rock!" Your star player isn't supposed to sit on the sideline for 35 minutes, long enough to watch a sitcom, which is what the Lions' offense had been to that point.

We were sitting in a famous New York deli once. It was 2 a.m., place was empty, someone ordered a big sandwich, and several of us had a bite. When the bill came, we were charged $17 apiece for sharing."Why?" we asked."Customers wait for tables," the waitress said. "We can't have one eater and others taking up space.""But there's no one else here," we protested."Listen," she griped, a hand on her hip, "this is New York. It's the big leagues."

I'm looking for a few good men.Or women. Or companies. Or churches. Or trusts.I'm looking for partners - 11 partners, to be precise - to help people like Sherell Garrison, who, at 17, is a jewel of our city, an honor roll student bursting with potential, who, until now, was facing a limited future.Sherell began drawing as a child on Detroit's west side. She drew with crayons. She drew with colored pencils. She drew on any available paper and sometimes on the walls of her grandmother's house.