Join Saint Louis Story Stitchers and special guest Dr. Julie J. Gary in a Story Circle to share stories and discuss solutions for changing the stigma around mental health.
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.
Join Saint Louis Story Stitchers youth artists in a Story Circle to share stories of the mental health crisis and solutions. Dr. Julie J. Gary, Bureau Chief of Behavioral Health for the City of St. Louis Health Department will join us to discuss mental health and to answer your questions.
Date: June 28, 2024
Time: 10:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Location: Turkish pavilion, Tower Grove Park
Guest: Julie J. Gary, PhD, MPH (She/Her/Hers)
Bureau Chief, Behavioral Health
City of St. Louis Health Department
More on the Perception Isn’t Always Reality: Mental Health Project:
Landing Page: https://storystitchers.org/perception-isnt-always-reality-mental-health/
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.
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 will be launched during November to December 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.
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
Contact: Susan Colangelo, President & CEO
susanc@storystitchers.org / 706-255-5835 Mobile / storystitchers.org
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