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.”
Choose the right friends
Well growing up in the city of lake worth was bad for me I did drugs at the age of 16 cause my friend put me. On it my story is going to teach you about. How to choose the right friends
Love- Rickia
I am so lonely since my Walter died. We loved our neighborhood and we loved each other. I think everyone should have a love and a relationship that help you get through the worst times and also help create the best moments. Walter was that and more. He was a great Father, grandfather and he served the country until the day he died.
My community (Story #317)
Living in my neighborhood is repeated racism and violence all over again .When you’re old and worthless you can’t control the people you want to control, kids are dying slowly because skin color and many hate themselves because of people treating them like they deserve to be treated like that .my community is nothing perfect when it comes from living in the ghetto.
Don’t do nothing
Growing up in boynton wasn’t always the best we didn’t have the school we wanted we was in and out of Trouble my brother and I Was Trouble makers
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 .
More for us
The family orientated community , everyone works together in order to promote a better community. But the city might be on a economically.
Go get it (Story #219)
Important moment is when my friends started going to jail or getting killed. Around here it’s not that many options. You just have to find a way to go get what you want whether it’s good or bad.
Humble Servant
Bring able to come back and give back to the community. Doing stuff for those who gave to me as a kid.
Rose out of concrete
Living around violence-but finding the good out of every situation. Great support system.
Change for the better (Story #478)
2 shootings has happened that I know about his year in my community. That hurts me. Why is what I ask myself. Is this what the world is coming to?
The New house !
When my dad told us that we were buying house . It was a great moment for us , because we wanted a bigger room for each of us . We had been sharing the same room between 3 kids. We were super excited when we found out we wouldn’t be sharing rooms anymore. We were happy to see that we had a big yard . But we were sad to leave our old house and neighborhood we lived in. We were excited though to move.
Much Better
Better to live here from where I lived. Better opportunities in the community.
Things get better
I was born in a housing project.That’s where I lived with my family until I was 9.But life didn’t get better when we moved.In fact, we moved to a worse public housing project.I stayed there until I was 18, which is when I left for college. Since then, I’ve only been back three times and none in the last decade.
Preparation
Going off to college, and meeting others from other neighborhood and making connections. My community prepared me for this.
Break in-Rickia
I remember one night returning home and my mom looked puzzled when I looked out the window I seen this someone was breaking into my dad’s truck my dad immediately got out of the car and begin to taste the person about the person got away and the police took
Giving back to the community- Kene
In my community right now in boynton, I’m a deacon at church of God in boynton, we try to help the community in any way we can, bring people closer to Christ. We have street services around the community to try to strengthen their connection with God. I try to be as helpful as I can cause not everyone is as fortunate.
Gangs-Rickia
I grew up in a time that gangs became our family and they saved my life. When family couldn’t do for me they did. My mom was on drugs when i was in my early 20s i had a son so i had to get out of it we Destruction peace in my neighborhood
Dead Delray (Story #0)
The world is just corrupted. This is crazy the direction we’re going right now, I can’t say nothing good. They want to fight, they want to hurt each other. Not Delray, Boca, Boynton, no good is left around anymore. People don’t help each other anymore, everyone is like crabs.
My important moment
Delray Beach isn’t my neighborhood. Moved here in 1990 as an consultant. Recently moved not long ago. In an important moment was when I moved here after working here for so long in the county.
A helping him- laroderick richardson
My dad was working on my car in the front he was under the car when the car jacked slipped and the car slammed down on him he called out for him he calls out for help but I did Not hear him luckily our across the street neighbors herd him and rushed over to get the car off of him
Growing up in Boynton Beach (Story #326)
Growing up in Boynton Beach in 1963 it was very tough for a young black person and racism was very strong in Boynton Beach
Helpful community
Hurricane erma was an important hurricane and it was coming closer and cooler the community had to evaluate fast which was crazy. Everyone was worried and couldn’t focus. Everyone was in panic mood. But when we came back the comity was destructed but the community people from different homes help each other with food, water, gas and more and that’s what I loved about my community
The officer
One time I had an altercation with a racist police officer. He pulled me over and was talking to me very aggressively and rude. He pulled me out the car although I was already complying and stepping out the car. He acted like this because he believed my car didn’t belong to me he assumed it was stolen.
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
Education (Story #613)
Going to school here
Stay in school (Story #59)
Well In the city of lake worth I wasn’t always a good kid I used to be in and out of jail when I was young . I played with guns and went back and forth with young gang member The world that we live in today may not be as bad as it was growing up
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.
Bullied- Rickia
I was about 13 years old. I began to be bullied by the kids in my neighbor hood because my mom white and my father was black. What I didn’t know the was the my family was also being bullied too. I can still hear my father say to me “Son they talked about Jesus, the greatest man that walked the earth what makes you think they will not talk about you
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.
My community (Story #389)
In December 2017, the United Nations special rapporteur on extreme poverty and human rights, Philip Alston, undertook a two-week investigation on the effects of systemic poverty in the United States, and sharply condemned private wealth and public squalor
There is no better place to live than Belle Glade
I have been here since 1991 and I like living in the glades because everything is so close and I know where to go if I have a problem and my neighbors i can interact with. My brother and I were sick and all the people in the glades were always there to care for me, to take me to the hospital, and to take care of us. If it weren’t for the people of glades we wouldn’t be alive. Belle glade is a perfect place for me to live because without an education I can work in the fields…
Neighbors in need
During hurricane Irma my neighbors came together to gather water
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.
1st place
It’s hard to just think about one moment. Everyday life will show you what it’s like. The good and the bad. Boynton is a community, a team, a family. We work hard together to win together.
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…
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.
Doing better
Wildcat games are always the best games. One game they had was just so much fun. Sitting there peacefully watching the boys play brings so much joy. It shows that they are not wasting there time and are actually long something with their lives.
Stay safe (Story #188)
Growing up in lake worth was some what good people treated others. Nicely until it got bad people started killing beach other. And other dangerous things my story is going to teach you how to Stay safe my community is not the same
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.
Snitches get stitches
In my neighborhood there has been many killings, fights all of that. My son was recently killed at a house party. The saddest thing about it was no one seen anything which I don’t believe this community needs to let go of the whole idea “snitches get stitches”
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…
The right thing
When I was 16 I saw someone get killed. After that I knew the neighborhood wasn’t safe. I told myself that when I get older I’m going to do the right thing.
Learn to love
“People may say hurtful things “ growing up a different color doesn’t mean you don’t have different blood
Getty-Rickia
I can remember when I was about 12 my grandma had made food and invited everyone in our neighborhood to get some not only did they come get food they also brought more food that they had prepared at their house and it turned into a little Getty
Good. Luck comes sometimes
I’m Boynton Beach I didn’t have work I had to pick up things people threw out that they didn’t want any more So I used to take it to the Junk yard to get paid because I couldn’t get a real job because the people I was gonna work with didn’t like the colored folks .
Teacher’s Choice
When she was a dance teacher and she had to help her dancers understand all the good things that come from this small town and how it builds character.
Always listen
Many people may say. Things they don’t mean ! The community I growing up in was a community of violence if you have ever been told to stop doing things please stop when you are told always listen !
Neighbors helping neighbors out – Trevon.P
The important moment that happened in my neighborhood is when i lost for two members of my family within two months they got together and help me and my grandson out
Never stop searching for answers
I don’t know if this has anything to do with my neighborhood but when I was young I had a lot of questions and not enough answers. I wanted to know why this group of people got so much, when I had so little. Why they could go to college and I couldn’t. I didn’t except what people told me and I searched for answers myself. I ended up with a scholarship to college and different outlook on life
The Trump Effect
I live in boca raton a seemingly quiet city with a diverse community. Upon the election back in 2016, everything changed. People started to act rude, disrespectful, obnoxious and violent to anyone who didn’t look like them. The celebration was openly vicious and humiliating. A simple thing like crossing the street or walking in the mall make you feel uncomfortable and that you did not belong. Politics has taken over even the young children have changed their behaviors toward anyone who does not agree with their parents thought process on this election. It has been two years and I silently…
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