BIG LAUNCH DECEMBER 9, 2024
Discover how Story Stitchers is leveraging a $121,798 Think Big for Kids grant to create Story Circles, podcasts, and PSAs aimed at changing the stigma surrounding mental health among youth.
Through a $121,798, two-year, Think Big for Kids grant from YouthBridge Community Foundation, Story Stitchers is creating Story Circles, podcasts, and public service announcements (PSAs) to help change the stigma around mental health.
More on the Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Mental Health Project:
Read the YouthBridge newsletter article HERE to learn more about Think Big for Kids
Project Timeframe: June 2023-May 2025
Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Mental Health will reduce stigma of mental health care among Black youth in St. Louis City and County through the creation and dissemination of a public service announcement (PSA) campaign. The 24-month project will be led by 10 Black youth (ages 16-24) and 10 adult artist-mentors of color working in collaboration with health experts; community residents; and marketing, media, and communication professionals.
Since October 2023, ten young artists, (ages 16-24) and six adult mentors have been working on the project to conduct research, develop music, and writing to be utilized in the production of the final public service announcement products with SPOT Content Studio, noted Anna Schmidt leading the SPOT team.
The resulting fact-based, peer-to-peer messaging will reach a wide audience through billboards and public transportation ads in North St. Louis City and County and social media and radio ads through the greater region. Youth are viewed as trusted messengers, driving regional change in knowledge and attitudes on mental illness and accessing mental health care. The campaign is scheduled to be most active through the winter holidays.
Campaign: Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Mental health
Project Leaders, Story Stitchers staff members:
Branden Lewis, Emeara Burns, Chris Pendleton
Call to Action: Start talking. Start healing. Mental Health Matters
Homepage: https://storystitchers.org
Project page: https://storystitchers.org/perception-isnt-always-reality-mental-health/
Youth program: Teens and young adults ages 16-25 and living in the St. Louis region are encouraged to apply to join the Stitchers Youth Council!
Youth Application: https://storystitchers.wufoo.com/forms/zeinv521f4w9ez/
Campaign Dates and Locations:
November 18, 2024 – January 12, 2025
Campaign Partners: Story Stitchers is thankful for the following organizations who are joining the effort by pushing the campaign through sharing and their own platforms:
Office of Mayor Tishaura O. Jones, City of St. Louis
City of St. Louis Department of Health
City of St. Louis Office of Violence Prevention
St. Louis Mental Health Board
Saint Louis Public School District
Provident Behavioral Health
Affinia Healthcare
Youth in Need
Covenant House
Delmar DivINe
Located at:
- North County Transit Center
Metrolink stations at
- Grand Blvd
- North Hanley UMSL
- Civic Center
- Emerson Park IL
December 9, 2024 – January 12, 2025
Radio:
Hot 104.1 WHHL
30 sec Radio Ad Script
Anxiety, fear, and shame—don’t let these emotions control your life. Start talking and begin your healing journey.
With guidance from Perception, learn to embrace love, relief, and freedom. Your mental health matters and a local community is here to help.
To learn more about mental health resources, visit storystitchers.org.
Social Media: @storystitchers
Video ads @storystitchers
TikTok, facebook, Linkedin, instagram, Youtube
Video ads @votp_news on Instagram (Voice of the People News)
Sample Video: (8 total available released on YouTube and partner social media platforms one per day Dec 9-16)
Mental Health PSA – Friends (unlisted link)
Premieres on Dec 9 at 11:00 am
Mental Health PSA – Victor Statements (unlisted link)
Premieres on Dec 14 at 11:00 am
Mental Health PSA – Parent and Teen (unlisted link)
Premieres on Dec 10 at 11:00 am https://youtu.be/iYFgWGJPeD4
- I-70 @ N 11th Street & Dock Street in Old North St. Louis
- Kingshighway & St Louis Ave in Kingshighway West
- Grand Ave & Klocke in Dutchtown
Podcast
StitchCast Studio Special Edition: Perception Isn’t Always Reality:
Mental Health III
Publishing Date: Dec 16th & 17th (2 parts)
Saint Louis Story Stitchers youth artists created a Story Circle to share stories of the mental health crisis and solutions. Their guest was Dr. Julie J. Gary, PhD, MPH, Bureau Chief of Behavioral Health for the City of St. Louis Health Department.
Recording Date: June 28, 2024
Location: Turkish pavilion, Tower Grove Park
StitchCast Studio Special Edition: Perception Isn’t Always Reality:
Mental Health IV
Publishing Date: Dec 18th & 19th (2 parts)
Saint Louis Story Stitchers youth artists created a Story Circle to share stories of the mental health crisis and solutions. Their guest was Dr. Matifadza (Mati) Hlatshwayo Davis, MD, MPH, FIDSA, Director of Health for the City of St. Louis.
Recording Date: June 17, 2024
Location: The Center
Location: All major podcast platforms
These Special Edition episodes of StitchCast Studio are the result of a partnership with Youthbridge Community Foundation through its Think Big For Kids grant. Story Stitchers project, Perception Isn’t Always Reality, will create a public service announcement campaign as trusted messengers about mental health stigmas.
Story Stitchers creative youth development programs are supported in part by The Lewis Prize for Music’s 2021 Accelerator Award. The mission of The Lewis Prize is to partner with leaders who create positive change by investing in young people through music.
Additional support for StitchCast Studio and Story Stitchers programs is provided by the Regional Arts Commission, the City of St. Louis Office of Violence Prevention in partnership with the St. Louis Board of Aldermen through the 2024-2025 Programs to Reduce Crime Among At-Risk Youth, and Tegna Foundation.
Saint Louis Story Stitchers’ studio, The Center, is supported in part by Kranzberg Arts Foundation, where Story Stitchers is a proud resident organization.
Music:
August 9, 2024 releases of the campaign include two new songs calledCan You Tell? and and Victor Not Victim, on the Story Stitchers’ 10 Year Anniversary Album, Keep On Marching On, available on all major music platforms.
Victor Not Victim music video, shot on location in Tower Grove Park, premiered on Youtube August 9, 2024.
Socioeconomic status and mental health are intrinsically connected; improvement in one enables improvement in the other. This innovative PSA project can be easily replicated to tackle stigma, misinformation, and distrust contributing to many other problems facing youth.
Collaborative partner Matthew W. Kreuter, PhD, MPH, Kahn Family Professor of Public Health and Director, Health Communication Research Laboratory at the Institute of Public Health at Washington University in St. Louis wrote, “Story Stitchers works with and within the communities they serve using a collaborative approach between professional and youth artists. These collaborations produce works of extraordinary insight and vulnerability as artists reflect their own experiences and those of their peers and neighbors. Their work centers voices within the community using innovative approaches to storytelling. Story Stitchers has an extensive history of successful programming and collaborative impact that has positively engaged communities in St. Louis City and County.”
We envision a world where young voices lift to affect change in their cities. Our body of work focuses on gun violence prevention and topics related to public health issues including stigmas around mental health, boosting Covid-19 vaccine confidence, and reducing unintentional shootings involving children. Youth and artists of color work collaboratively to collect stories from St. Louisans living in communities plagued by these public health crises, reframing and retelling through an artistic lens.
“Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Mental Health” will reduce stigmas related to accessing mental health care and people in need of mental and behavioral health care. Our strategy focuses on creative youth development, youth leadership, and youth mentoring through a collaborative arts model. The program provides a unique path for Black youth to combine their knowledge and vision in collaboration with healthcare and marketing professionals to positively impact their own communities.
Story Stitchers previous work with Public Service Announcements includes Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Boosting Covid Vaccine Confidence for the CDC Foundation in 2022. Artifacts from the campaign are currently on view in the Trusted Messengers exhibition at the David J. Sencer CDC Museum, 1600 Clifton Road, NE, Atlanta GA 30329. The exhibition is on view November 25, 2022 – August 2023.
SAFE! Team which addresses safe firearm storage and teaches children to take #3stepsback if the come across a gun. SAFE! Team was created for the St.Louis Area Violence Prevention Commission and the Office of Violence Prevention in the City of St. Louis Department of Public Safety in 2022 and is currently being pushed out to the public. Story Stitchers will present #3stepsback as a live performance on July 11th, 2023 in O’Fallon Park at the Office of Violence Prevention Kickback Party, 2:00-6:00.
About Saint Louis Story Stitchers Artists Collective
Saint Louis Story Stitchers is a nationally recognized Artists Collective known for high quality art and innovative youth violence prevention programs.
Story Stitchers is committed to placing youth at the center of the work both in identifying topics for exploration as well as the methods for engagement. This approach builds a community of youth and professional artists who respect one another. Gun violence continues to be a pressing public health crisis that consumes the attention of the engaged youth, and artistic expression helps youth work through the pain and loss they have experienced.
Stitchers collect stories, reframe and retell them through art, writing and performance to promote understanding, civic pride, intergenerational relationships and literacy. Projects create a platform for community engagement through an artistic lens and with it the Saint Louis Story Stitchers work to shift perceptions and realities and bring hope to the Saint Louis community. Our goal is to promote a better educated, more peaceful and caring region through storytelling.
Victor Not Victim/You Tube
In 2023, Saint Louis Story Stitchers opened The Center for creative youth development in keeping with the vision of Stitchers Youth Council for creating a healthier and happier region through storytelling and the arts. Youth ages 16-25 may join for free by filling out a form: https://storystitchers.wufoo.com/forms/zeinv521f4w9ez/
Additional support for Saint Louis Story Stitchers’ creative youth development programs is provided by The Lewis Prize for Music’s 2021 Accelerator Award and Kranzberg Arts Foundation, where Saint Louis Story Stitchers is a proud resident organization. Story Stitchers youth programs are supported in part by a partnership with the City of St. Louis Department of Public Safety and the Office of Violence Prevention.
Contact: Edwin Williams, D.M.E., Executive Director
Edwin@storystitchers.org / 617-388-9436 Mobile / storystitchers.org
youth mental health, Story Stitchers, Think Big for Kids grant, stigma reduction, community programs, podcasts for mental health, public service announcements, storytelling for change
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