“We Are Here” Stories (List View)

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”).


Mar 9, 2019

Hope and Vote to Change

Growing up in Pahokee, a small city in Western Palm Beach County, with nearly eight thousand residents. The people was proud and full of life. While people with jobs did not earn salaries like middle class earners today, more people had jobs and there own place to live. Today, our communities are faced with homelessness, a lack of jobs, substance abuse and violence without cause. I had a wonderful childhood. I recall having lots of friends and everyone in the community getting along without the drama of guns and gang violence. Parents could leave the kids home alone for a while with the knowledge that elders in the community would keep them in line. However, all is not lost. We can return to better days by voting smarter and holding those responsible for social services and benefits accountable. While the community had issues
Nov 6, 2018

The right track-laroderick rickstdson

I grew up in the trenches I was selling dope and getting bad grades in school and the someone wanted to put me on the path to success and I was not selling dope and I was getting good grades
Oct 5, 2018

What glitters isn’t gold

I am well known in my neighborhood. I have lived many places because of the hype others speak about but I always end up back here where it all started. Many places had nice homes, scenery and a lot of people but those places were missing Soul and Character. Here I have my family and my church and at this age that’s all I need
Sep 10, 2018

Wake up

Important moment is when me and my friends got older . When we was young we didn’t know what was going on. But we was aware of the things once we was teenagers. All the drug dealers and murders opened our eyes
Mar 4, 2019

How I became me

Going to College Changed my life.
Aug 30, 2018

Don’t be one

Well boynton wasn’t the same in 1967 there were street gangs street violence drug lords and kids dying