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.” Explore 50 responses below, selected at random. Which stories capture your attention? (Some responses were transcribed by youth volunteers.) To learn more about the storyteller and how they interpreted their response, click “Zoom In.”
Sports (Story #181)
Playing sports was a important moment in my life.It kept me off the streets and focused on something. Most of my friends was in the streets and now they dead or in jail .
Odds and ends
Important moment in my life is when my mom died . I was 22 and was in college I came home and stayed never went back . Since then I found a job and been around the city ever since . Can’t really say it’s bad but it has its negative and positive.
Angels Surrounding me
They were arguing about a girl. He left and I was standing there talking to one of the guys. Someone came from behind and hit my with a baseball bat. I had seizures and was foaming from the mouth. I was in a coma for 9months and 2 weeks. Then I woke up and stayed in the hospital for another month in Jackson Memorial. I couldn’t play high school football after that.
a great send off!
an important moment in my life was the time when all my neighbors and i came toghter andheld a big part for all the graduates in my neighborhood.we all brought them gifts and even put money towards his college experience.
Changebis needed
Being stopped by the police all the time because of what I look like. Police love stopping and asking questions. Not matter what the age. But it does matter what the color. That needs to change.
The story of success through hard work
Delray Beach is a comma that is evolving it wasn’t as safe as it is now back in the days also wassants clean and everyone that lived in Delray pitched together to help the comm it as much fun it is now in Delray.
Choose the right ones
Listen the way people can be brought up is by choice the way they can live life is by the way they want to most people may do more bad things after one mistake and some may be forgiven
Become the better person
It’s either life can take down the good road or the bad on you choose what road you wanna take See me my choice was that I took the bad road I’ve been in prison for 17 years got out 2015 the way I grew up was horrible mother being on crack ,sister having a baby at teen age , becoming a drug dealer I have been doing things I regret cause what situation I’m in right now is worst that’s why I want better for the Young’s kids that’s around me
Love your moms
Moving out my mom house was important to me.Things can get hard around Boynton so I had to make a way. Even though I moved out my mom still had to help me.
Different lifestyle
When I young living in my neighborhood was different from today. We couldn’t do the things that the young people do today. The white kids had more privilege then us blacks we couldn’t even go to the beach.
The Day my brother was shot
Living in my neighborhood is not all bad you just have to watch who you hang out with. My brother was shot for trying to separate two friend from fighting.But it’s not just my neighborhood young kids are getting shot and kill every day and everywhere we just have to pay attention and try our best to make a difference
Lack of support
Family fueds
Living Dreams Through Nightmares
It’ll usually be 5:30 I’m at McDonald’s with my coffee, lab top, and WiFi. It’s a lot of sunshine because I’m on the good side 7:30. Then I start walking to the dark side where you usually see red and yellow tape, blue and red lights. Shaking hands with the good fellows with a smile but also with their hand behind their back having a knife. I hang out talking about sports and life then go to football practice and see bright lights.
Work for it
Buying my first house was a important moment in my life. Everything I got I had to work for it.nobody won’t give you anything around here.
We bleed the same
Till this day we still don’t have freedom back where I was growing up I was beat for nothing accuse for nothing the police hated my kind
College
Important moment in my life was going to college.My grandpa used to always tell me the world is bigger than boynton. There’s nothing really around the city but drugs and violence so that changed me.
Agriculture
Fields
My Service Dog
I live in a pretty nice neighborhood there is not much of a story to tell I mean one time I lost my dog and I couldn’t find him for about three days I was very sad everybody knew who my dog was he was my service dog and as a group a few of my neighbors and the kids went searching for my dog and we ended up finding him and I’m just very thankful for how sweet and generous my neighbors are
Great out of the bad
graduating from the university of Florida and wining also the employee of the year and being raised up around the farming and family tight knit community.
My move to Pahokee, FL
When my husband decided that our family would move to his hometown of Pahokee, FL. I knew it would be a significant change moving from a metropolitan city, 1,000,000+ to a small city of about 6,000 people. My husbands return home was two fold. He wanted to be close to his family-mother, father, brothers and sister but also wanted to help his community by becoming the Mayor, which meant for him using all that he had learned and experienced, bringing it back home to Pahokee. He was adamant about returning home from the day we met…
Important moment interview
Live in Jefferson manor and grand parents owned store in Delray. 4th generation and moved into grandparents old home. Loss job recently but thank God was able to keep the house, worked and traveled a lot professionally.
Living in Quiet Waters
Real nice. People are pretty nice, staff are nice. High school champions (Glades Central). Pretty comfortable. Moved here 10 years ago, still about the same. One of the best places in belle glade to live. Nice people come to visit.
Great out the bad
Two positive, one positive being everyone is a whole, such as being a diversemulticultural community. Another being welcoming and feeling like a family from different races
Haiti Family
I grew up projects in belle glade the neighborhood was very nice. They will help out anytime if you need it, friends will help the best way they can. And what I love most about belle glade is they would cook food for anyone that is starving. My part of town in belle glade was very helpful its like having a family.
Pride- Devonte white
My pride was a big part if my life.It was so many times where my pride played a part in my life. It has got me in trouble and out of trouble
Preparation
Going off to college, and meeting others from other neighborhood and making connections. My community prepared me for this.
Different but normal- Kene
I help everybody. Help out the less fortunate with whatever I can. Teach kids not to smoke, would trade my life to save a child’s. When I’m rich, I’d like to give kids little puppies, teach them responsibility. No exaggeration!
poor decisions.
one important memory in my life was when i my neighborhood was having robbery all over the place and no one was spared. it took months to fi d the culprit and shortly after me and my family moved and now we live here in.
Hard work (Story #129)
Important moment was getting my first car. That opened up my world and got me more opportunities. I was able to go to a different school which was better than the one the kids went to and I found a job. I did all this before I graduated high school
Growing up in Boynton Beach (Story #417)
Growing up in Boynton Beach it was tough because segregation was hectic!
Growing up (Story #90)
Growing up in boynton beach times was hard. My family didn’t really have it but we made it happen. I played sports but all my friends was in the streets. I got in trouble when I was about 17 and that was the end of my career.
Life
Important moment in life was getting out of jail. I went to jail when I was younger doing stupid things around the neighborhood. When I look back on it I could of avoided it.
Don’t become
Growing was odd for me I was thinking that if I do this I’ll become better but me doing it didn’t make me come better it made me. A threat to the system now I can’t get the job I want all because I seen the. Grown ups doing things
The good life
Just the daily life in my neighborhood shows how it’s like. My life is peaceful. As long as I’ve lived in Boynton Beach I’ve encountered no problems. Life seems to be great.
The Betsey Ida story
In the past half a century the world has transformed, with the advent of the internet, medical advances and leaps forward in social equality.But much subtler changes which only those who lived in past decades can understand have also permeated society.
Don’t be the one
Well coming up in the city of lake worth. I wasn’t Always a girl who had friends No one liked me because of my skin or where I came from they used to pick on me. , call me names , billy me because what I wear and what I language I speak
The man stealing
Growing up I was a Haitian immigrants. in my neighborhood was very rough I was talked about you a lot because my skin tone and how I spoke. one time I was walking anyway and a man was stealing from the store. The police Soon arrived and bodyslammed the man on the ground to simply handcuff him.this wasn’t the first time I seen your officer be extremely rude and rough with someone they were always extremely late and rude in my neighborhood.
Effortless
Having no support
The Child Who Looked Different
When growing up I was mixed with African American and Chinese . I would get picked on very often especially when my Chinese mother would drop me off to school. Many kids would question me if I were to claim to be African American like my father. All the kids I grew up with would pick on me and my facial features that favored my mother. Which also made me a very guard child because I didn’t like when people would question my ethnicity even to this day.
Make something out of it
Living around here isn’t really as bad as people make it seem. Yes there’s drugs and murders and bad things going on but if you are focused on a goal u should have a good outcome. Many people make it out the hood that’s why I push my kids to be something in life.
Neighbors in need
During hurricane Irma my neighbors came together to gather water
Social culturalism – Kene
Positive; downtown cultural vibe identity. Lived down here for three years, the demographics are changing, wealthy individuals disturbing the southern flavor. Outlook isn’t as good due to impatient materialistic snow birds. They don’t follow directions. They have no shame or conscious, and it’s undoing the natural flavor of Delray, and changing it.
My community (Story #367)
42% the death of a family member or friend, 23% the illness of a family member or friend, and 17% a nonmedical event. During a comprehensive assessment, participants identified the most stressful event that they had experienced in the past 5 years and, subsequently, rated its stressfulness and perceived consequences.
Scared
I never thought me growing up was so ruff for me. My mom and dad died in a car accident. I was raised by my grandparents raised me until they past away I been living from house to house in finish house still didn’t go off to college .
We’re Doing Good
It’s nice living here, but the past… you don’t want to know. Now it’s nice. No break ins, no stealing… everyone gets along.
Nurse -Devonte white
Important moment in my life was going through nursing school. I always wanted to be a nurse and i made it into reality
My Missing Sister
Well the neighborhood I lived in was kind of small and my little sister who has special needs went missing only for a few hours. She was gone for about 3-4 hours she was 13 at the time. I went around my entire neighborhood looking for my sister with my mother. After, knocking door to door about 10 members of my community decide to help me and my mom search for my sister. One of the neighbors that was helping us search for her found here at a near by park.
Violence (Story #616)
Constant fighting
Fun days
I grew up in Spartanburg South Carolina it was nothing like it was today. When i was younger around 16 we was aloud to go out and have a good time. When i was 18 me and my cousin went to the pool and we met two guys and they asked if we wanted to go out and we agreed but there was two similar cars and they got out to go get something but i grew impatient. I was in the wrong car blowing the horn and they come out the house and caught me in the car understanding…
Katrina
Hurricane
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