At a staff meeting earlier today at my work I was asked to tell a little bit about myself. I didnt quite know what to say then, as I had dangerously low levels of caffeine at the time. But now I do know what I want to say and I feel the need to share it. Ive been an intern at KTOO on and off since high school. The home situation my last year in high school was an unhappy one. I branched off on my own at 18 years old, leaving my parents in Florida where theyd moved to. Though Id been born and raised here, I started living on my own in Juneau in 2007. There was a period of time between high school and college where I was extremely close to experiencing homelessness in Juneau. If it werent for the generosity of one of my friends, Ty and his parents, I might have wound up on the street. Then I started going to college and some of my basic needs were being met through the institutional processes of going to school. I was living in the dorms and finally had a stable living situation. In school, I eventually found myself in a documentary film class taught by Jen Vernon and Kelli Burkinshaw. I helped produce a 20 minute documentary about those who help the homeless. I felt that the final product could have been improved upon, but it nevertheless got the attention of my current boss, Tim Olson. Later, with the help of Rosemarie Alexander in the newsroom, I produced a story on homeless teens in Juneau who had to overcome personal struggles just to graduate high school. I felt that I’d achieved what was missing in the initial documentary: actual portraits of the homeless. I now work for 360 North, a local TV station that is part of the KTOO family. The station has taken on a year-long project that addresses the problem of homelessness in our community, called “A Roof.” The tagline is: Everyone deserves a roof over their head. This is an idea that is both radical and radically humanist. I am proud to be a part of an organization with such a lofty ambition as this, and one that is so close to my personal journey as well.
Posted on: Fri, 08 Aug 2014 01:31:02 +0000
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