Palm Beach County residents were asked:
Please tell us about an important moment in your life that would help someone understand what it’s like living in your neighborhood.
The stories and micro-narratives they submitted (as part of the We Are Here SenseMaker project) are listed below. Click ZOOM IN to learn more about the community member and how they interpreted their submission. NOTE: Some stories were partially transcribed by volunteers who shortened the narratives and referred to the storytellers in the third person (e.g., “her experience was” instead of “my experience was”).
It’s a beautiful community and good environment. It was alright growing up here. We would go to the movies, library and park with my kids. We have a Martin Luther King parade every year we go and watch. The kids really like it they throw candy and have fire trucks.
Growing up in palm beach was terrible my mother didn’t like it one bit ! Palm beach was all sorts of bars young teens having babies,gang bangers shooting every night , Palm beach was horrible even for the children.
School wasn’t for me so I dropped out I don’t know why I made that choice but it must’ve been because I was. Hanging out with the wrong crowd And I was to busy in the streets instead of the books
My hood was very poor with too much pride. I was determined to make it a better place. I ended up with a scholarship to college and different outlook on life. I returned to my hood a made it a better place
Growing up in my neighborhood i was the only white kid there but i tried so hard to fit in. I would just go with the flow of doing what the others did. I couldn’t play football at all and i couldn’t play basketball but that’s something everyone was great at but i was a great runner and when we raced everyone wanted to be on my team or wanted me to be on there’s and it made me feel great
My cousin got arrested for selling drugs.