An Awareness of Child Hunger | Utah

The basis of this project has been to provide an avenue for our community to connect to the issue of child hunger and respond through action. Child hunger is an issue that can and should be addressed within our own community in Utah. This project utilizes digital stories as a platform to create an awareness of this issue in Utah. Four families in Salt Lake City participated in the process of capturing their stories and experiences with hunger. Their stories create an image of hunger that goes beyond the statistics. Digital stories provide a meaningful product to aid people in understanding and connecting with this issue. Through the viewing of digital stories, authored by the families struggling, community members have an opportunity to actively listen and create a richer dialogue around the issue of child hunger that is affecting families right in our own backyards. This project provides an insight into shared human experience along with a tangible understanding of the root causes to hunger.

AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH by Heather M. LeVan A project submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Master of Arts in Community Leadership Westminster College Salt Lake City, Utah May 2014 APPROVAL of a thesis project submitted by Name of Author: Heather M. LeVan School/Department: School of Education / Master of Arts in Community Leadership Title of Thesis Project: AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH The above named master's thesis project has been read by each member of the supervisory committee and has been found to be satisfactory regarding content, English usage, format, citations, bibliographic style, and consistency, and is ready for submission to the Westminster College Library. ______________________ ________________________________________________ Date Professor, Thesis Advisor Approved for the School of Education ______________________ ________________________________________________ Date Dean, School Abstract The basis of this project has been to provide an avenue for our community to connect to the issue of child hunger and respond through action. Child hunger is an issue that can and should be addressed within our own community in Utah. This project utilizes digital stories as a platform to create an awareness of this issue in Utah. Four families in Salt Lake City participated in the process of capturing their stories and experiences with hunger. Their stories create an image of hunger that goes beyond the statistics. Digital stories provide a meaningful product to aid people in understanding and connecting with this issue. Through the viewing of digital stories, authored by the families struggling, community members have an opportunity to actively listen and create a richer dialogue around the issue of child hunger that is affecting families right in our own backyards. This project provides an insight into shared human experience along with a tangible understanding of the root causes to hunger. THIS IS DEDICATED TO MY HUSBAND ROB, AND OUR CHILDREN, JACK AND AIMEE. Acknowledgements First and foremost, I would like to acknowledge the constant love and support of my husband and children. My husband has provided me a constant stream of encouragement and reassurance. He knows me better than anyone else in this world and he recognized the moments when I needed a little extra motivation or reminder of why I began this graduate school journey. My children have also been incredibly understanding and patient; they have provided me with the strength to pursue a project that hopefully will benefit children even though that has meant times of missed baseball games or school activities. I love you all so very much! I would like to thank the families who participated in this project. It was such an honor to work with them and I am filled with gratitude for their willingness to let me into their lives and trust me with their stories. The resilience and love that I witnessed with each family was invigorating. Maria, Gilberto, Heather, and Tonya, thank you for making an impact on this project and on me. The process of identifying families to participate in this project was one that took a team of willing people who believed in this endeavor and helped to open doors and provide an introduction. I would not have been successful without the following ladies: Audrey, Robyn, Ann, Sylvia, Annie, Maria, Sandra, Lavinia, Keri, Elizabeth, and Victoria. I would like to thank the Utah Food Bank, specifically Ginette Bott, for seeing the value in this project and providing constant guidance and support. I am in awe of the work that this one organization does in our community and I am honored to have made a contribution that will hopefully add to its endeavors and success. I am so grateful for the opportunity to have attended Westminster College; I have thoroughly enjoyed the Master of Arts in Community Leadership program. Thank you to all of my professors, most especially Peggy Cain, Ph.D. and Jamie Joanou, Ph.D., for challenging me and helping me to grow as a student, a professional, and a member of a community. Thank you to all of my friends, family, and colleagues who encouraged me in so many ways, even if that meant just asking, "How is school going?" Tammy, Cyndy, and Andy, thank you for your feedback, insight, and willingness to read through pages and pages of my written work. Thank you to Dayna Shoell, for being the most thorough of editors! Thank you to the Center for Digital Storytelling, for teaching me the art of digital stories and for creating a space that allowed me to make a personal connection to an issue that I care about deeply. STATEMENT OF PERMISSION TO DUPLICATE THESIS & DEPOSIT/DISPLAY IN THE INSTITUTIONAL REPOSITORY Name of Author: Heather M. LeVan School/Department: School of Education / Master of Arts in Community Leadership Title of Thesis Project: AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH With permission from the author, on the basis of an occasional and individual request, the staff of the Giovale Library of Westminster College has the right to make a copy of the above named thesis. The Giovale Library staff also has the right to mail or otherwise disseminate a copy to the requesting party and to be reimbursed by the requesting party for the cost of duplicating and mailing the thesis. I hereby give my permission to the staff of the Giovale Library of Westminster College to duplicate as described the above named thesis. Signature of Author Date With permission from the author, the staff of the Giovale Library of Westminster College has the right to deposit and display an electronic copy of the above named thesis in its Institutional Repository for educational purposes only. I hereby give my permission to the staff of the Giovale Library of Westminster College to deposit and display as described the above named thesis. I retain ownership rights to my work, including the right to use it in future works such as articles or a book. Signature of Author Date The above duplication and deposit rights may be terminated by the author at any time by notifying the Director of the Giovale Library in writing that permission is withdrawn. Table of Contents Chapter 1: Topic and Purpose…………………………………………….... 1 Importance of Topic………………………………………………...… 2 Project Purpose……………………………………………………….. 3 Research Question and Root Causes…………………………………. 4 Significance and Importance…………………………………………. 6 Community Organization…………………………………………….. 9 Objectives…………………………………………………………….. 9 Chapter 2: Review of the Literature………………………………………. 11 Scope and Impacts of Hunger………………………………………… 11 Root Causes of Hunger……………………………………………….. 14 Gaining Perspective…………………………………………………... 16 Literature Omissions and Gaps……………………………………….. 20 Project Justification…………………………………………………… 22 Chapter 3: The Project……………………………………………………… 25 Digital Storytelling……………………………………………………. 25 Project and Participants……………………………………………….. 27 Gaining Access……………………………………………………….. 28 Learning the Process………………………………………………….. 29 Project Relevance…………………………………………………….. 30 Problems and Ethical Concerns………………………………………. 32 Chapter 4: The Product……………………………………………………... 35 Learning Digital Storytelling…………………………………………. 35 Maria's Digital Story…………………………………………………. 38 Maria's Script………………………………………………………… 40 Gilberto's Digital Story………………………………………………. 43 Gilberto's Script……………………………………………………… 44 Heather's Digital Story………………………………………………… 45 Heather's Script………………………………………………………... 47 Tonya's Digital Story………………………………………………….. 48 Tonya's Script…………………………………………………………. 49 Personal Meaning……………………………………………………… 50 Chapter 5: Discussion………………………………………………………… 51 Meaning and Contribution……………………………………………... 51 Recommendations……………………………………………………… 53 Implications…………………………………………………………….. 55 Limitations and Future Research………………………………………. 56 Career and Learning Goals…………………………………………….. 58 References……………………………………………………………… 61 Appendices……………………………………………………………... 70 A: IRB Approval Notification Form……………………………. 70 B: Interview Protocol…………………………………………… 71 C: Copyright Permission Email………………………………… 72 D: Form B - Consent Form for Adults…………………………. 73 E: Form D - Parent/Guardian Permission Form Research Involving Minors (under age 18)……………………………. 74 F: Assent Form for Minors……………………………………… 76 G: Media Release Form…………………………………………. 77 H: Research Request Approval………………………………….. 78 List of Figures Figure 1. Child Nutrition Programs - Total enrollments for Salt Lake City School District and neighboring districts…… 8 Figure 2. Photo of Maria……………………………………………… 38 Figure 3. Photo of Gilberto……………………………………………. 43 Figure 4. Photo of Heather…………………………………………….. 45 Figure 5. Photo of Tonya………………………………………………. 48 Running head: AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 1 Chapter 1: Topic and Purpose The United States is a country in an acute crisis, one that tests our sense of decency and civility, and indeed our very character. We are a country that professes to value the safety and well-being of our children above all else. We live in a society that champions family values as a banner of our high morals. Yet, in the wealthiest country in the world, one quarter of children suffer from hunger and the anxiety that comes from not knowing when or if they will have the food they need (No Kid Hungry, Hunger-Facts, 2013). Utah is a state known for a large family population; data from the 2010 Census shows Utah as having the highest percentage of households with individuals under the age of 18 years (Lofquist, Lugaila & Feliz, 2012). The census data accounts for 43 percent of the households (Lofquist, Lugaila & Feliz, 2012). Yet despite the implied family oriented nature of the census data, we are faced with the dark reality of our inability to prioritize what is first and foremost the responsibility of any human community: to feed its children. The title for this project is An Awareness of Child Hunger | Utah. I have utilized research regarding hunger data for the entire state of Utah. I have also used national and international references. The reality of a child hungry is unacceptable and affects many other issues that contribute to systemic challenges that threaten the very fiber of our community and broader society. Pressure has been placed on our schools with federal education initiatives such as No Child Left Behind and Common Core State Education Standards, but these initiatives overlook the basic effect on children's ability to learn if they are hungry, anxious, or unwell from lack of proper nourishment (Hunger in America, 2010). This issue can and should be addressed within our own community. The AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 2 first step is creating the awareness necessary for people to understand the severity and actuality of what is occurring so that individuals and the larger community are compelled to respond through action. Importance of Topic Children's issues in general interest me as a mother, as well as a professional in a foundation focused on meeting the basic and systemic needs of children so they can be prepared to learn and thrive. I have worked for Salt Lake City School District since 2008, specifically with Salt Lake Education Foundation, which is the 501(c)(3) arm of the district. I have frequent interactions with children in our Title I schools who depend on their school for all of their food nourishment and often social nourishment. Most, if not all, of these children are students living in families whose economic situation qualifies them for free or reduced lunch (Salt Lake City School District, Assessment & Evaluation Department, personal communication, October 2012). Many of these children are dropped off early to school to receive a free breakfast. Those who attend a school with after-school activities feel lucky because they may be given a snack or small meal that will take the place of the dinner meal likely to be absent in their homes. While some children benefit from community resources that provide backpacks with food for the weekends, these programs and resources are limited. Some families may also access the mobile food pantry distributions that occur three to four times a month at our Title I schools. I assert that our society cannot tackle the deeper societal issues until the issue of hunger is solved. The impacts of child hunger are not simply on the child or the struggling family. The impact of hunger is far-reaching across the whole of our society. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 3 In their study "Child Food Insecurity: The Economic Impact on Our Nation," Cook and Jeng (2009) assert that hungry children have more health and educational problems, and they grow up to be adults who are not prepared to contribute fully to the workforce. James D. Weill (2012) agrees that this struggle with hunger harms Americans' health, education, and productivity, and it diminishes our ability to thrive as an interconnected society. Project Purpose This project addresses the need for increased awareness to the issue of child hunger in Utah. Through my research, I have realized the need for people to see the problem and understand what it means for children in our city. Child hunger is not as obvious in the United States as in developing countries. We are fortunate that starvation is rare, as are the images of distended bellies that we see in pictures of famine in other parts of the world (Weill, 2012). People need to see the issue, feel it, and "taste" it, in order to generate change. Digital stories were created in order to portray the narrative and visual side of this issue with families in Salt Lake City. I had the opportunity to work with four families to capture their stories and experiences with hunger, in an attempt to create an image of these families that goes beyond the statistics. Their stories were recorded along with photos of their families and children and combined into a digital format. My goal was to capture the emotion of the families and their stories. Digital stories provide a meaningful product to aid people in understanding and connecting with this issue. Digital stories have the power to create a platform for the community to actively listen and for authentic dialogue to occur (Higgins, 2011). AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 4 A key objective for this project has been to present the issue in a format that encourages involvement towards action and change. This project has provided a platform for families and children struggling with hunger. The purpose of creating digital stories is to present this issue in a format that helps people connect with the issue on a deeper and emotional level. The success of this project will have occurred when individuals and families who are not experiencing hunger firsthand view the digital stories, experience an emotional response, and create a dialogue about the experience in their community. The awareness needs to be tangible, and the effects long term; that will be the ultimate success. The digital stories will be utilized primarily by the Utah Food Bank, the stories will be available on its website as well as shown to its board of directors, donors, and potential donors. The stories will also be made available to local schools and church congregations interested in creating a dialogue on this topic within their own communities. Research Question and Root Causes The following question has guided this research and project: How do we provide an avenue for our community to connect to the issue of child hunger and respond through action? The Utah Food Bank says that one in six Utahns, and one in five Utah children are unsure where their next meal will come from (Hunger-Facts, 2013). Additionally, 40 percent of Utah students qualify for free or reduced lunch. Within the Salt Lake City School District Title I schools specifically, the average percentage of the students who qualify for free or reduced lunch is 80 percent (Salt Lake City School District, Assessment & Evaluation Department, personal communication, October 2012). To AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 5 explain the depth of this issue and the indicated statistics, this project has identified several of the recognized contributors to hunger, such as lack of employment or underemployment, lack of support systems, lack of access to food or healthy food choices, and lack of access to assistance programs. Child hunger is not unique to Utah. This is a national and international issue. At times the world has made significant progress in addressing food security, yet data from the United Nations suggest that a higher proportion of the Earth's people are hungry now than just a decade ago, the reverse of a long and otherwise positive trend (Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010). Additionally, according to Feeding America, in 2012 49 million Americans lived in food-insecure households, 33.1 million adults and 15.9 million children (Hunger-Facts, 2013). The issue of child hunger is predominately termed as hunger, food insecurity, or food insufficiency. For simplicity and consistency in this project, the term "hunger" will be used as the general reference name. Hunger is defined as the "uneasy or painful sensation caused by lack of food;" food insecurity exists "whenever the availability of nutritionally adequate, safe foods, or the ability to acquire personally acceptable foods in socially acceptable ways is limited or uncertain;" and food insufficiency is defined as "an inadequate amount of food intake due to lack of resources" (Alaimo, Briefel, Frongill & Olson, 1998). An interesting rhetorical perspective regarding the variety of terms used highlights how the media actively substitutes the term food insecurity for hunger; according to Patricia Allen (2007), this has been viewed as a political maneuver to deflect attention from the persistence of hunger in the face of plenty. Hunger is a very politically AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 6 sensitive word, whereas food insecurity tends to sound less urgent, less important, less shameful, and less embarrassing (Allen, 2007). Significance and Importance The impacts of child hunger are not simply on the child or family struggling; the impacts are on society as a whole. In a report titled Child Food Insecurity: The Economic Impact on Our Nation (Cook & Jeng, 2009), the effects of child hunger were represented in depth. The authors posit that it is extremely difficult for people who have grown up hungry to reach their full potential as effective workers and members of society because food insecurity and hunger damage the architecture of children's brains (Cook & Jeng, 2009). I have identified the most salient points of the report and summarized them below:  Health problems o greater frequency of illness o impaired growth o limited physical, intellectual and emotional development  Education problems o hindered cognitive development o lower academic achievement o more behavioral and social problems  Workforce and job readiness problems o lower performance physically, mentally, socially, and emotionally o lower levels of educational and technical skills o constrained human capital Utah's communities need greater awareness about the occurrence of child hunger right here at home. Utahns need to understand that hunger happens next door, in our neighborhoods, to the children with whom our own children go to school, to our AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 7 coworkers, or even our own extended families. People struggling with hunger are in our lives right now, and often they are right in front of us. According to the book A Place at the Table, published by the Three Square Food Bank of Las Vegas, Nevada: Not since the Great Depression have so many American families struggled with decisions like whether to pay bills or put food on the table. We're not talking solely about the homeless here, but primarily families with at least one adult member having a job-yet they don't make quite enough to adequately feed the members of their households. (Hilton, Koch, & Murray, 2011, p. 3) Awareness and education can be significant in helping to address this issue and bring people to the point where they choose to respond and act (Glanz, Rimer, & Viswanath, 2008). In October 2012, the Utah State Office of Education issued the free and reduced price lunch final report for our state. In order to qualify, families must document their income. If families' incomes are below 130 percent of the annual income poverty level, students are entitled to free lunches. If incomes are below 185 percent of the annual income poverty level, students are entitled to a reduced priced lunch (Child Nutrition Programs, 2013). Guidelines are established by the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Of particular interest for this project are the total enrollments for free/reduced lunch for Salt Lake City School District and neighboring districts: AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 8 School District Free/Reduced Lunch - TOTAL ENROLLED Alpine 26.58% Davis 25.82% Granite 50.74% Jordan 24.24% Salt Lake 63.14% Ogden 75.09% Provo 49.26% Murray 32.64% Canyons 28.46% (Child Nutrition Programs, 2013) How often does the average American take the basic need of food for granted? How many people make the assumption that the people in their lives are not among the millions of Americans who are uncertain where their next meal will come from? Hunger in the United States remains largely invisible to the majority of Americans who are much more comfortable thinking of hunger as a third-world issue (No Kid Hungry, Policy-Makers, 2013). Many people have the misperception that hunger is only a problem for pockets of society, but in reality we all know and are in contact with people who are affected by hunger. Additionally, the idea of children going to bed hungry is a difficult subject for many people to think or talk about. The issue of hunger in Utah is certainly one that can be seen statewide, it is an issue in urban as well as rural areas. This project focused primarily in Salt Lake City for the purpose of collecting and creating the digital stories in the allotted time frame. Additionally, because I have personally witnessed and continue to witness the growing problem with hunger in Salt Lake City, my desire has been to contribute to the city where I have spent my entire life. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 9 Community Organization The community organization intended to benefit most from this project is the Utah Food Bank. For more than 100 years, the Utah Food Bank has stayed true to its mission of serving those in need throughout the state. It works extensively with community partners and volunteers to continue to make an impact. Its mission statement is "Utah Food Bank Fights Hunger Statewide" (Utah Food Bank, 2013). The Utah Food Bank is enthusiastic about having digital stories available. Increased community awareness and education is an identified need, and not one that can be fulfilled internally due to a very limited marketing budget. The Utah Food Bank focuses on awareness and education as being the key areas related to this issue. My point of contact has been Ginette Bott, the Chief Development Officer for the Utah Food Bank. Ms. Bott graciously provided Utah-specific data that the Utah Food Bank has accumulated. The Utah Food Bank participated in the 2012 Hunger Study, research compiled and released by Feeding America. The study provides a rich supply of pertinent information for all involved in the fight against hunger. An example of the level of data available and what it shows for Utah is currently on the Feeding America website. According to the website, the nationwide child food insecurity rate is 22.4 percent. In Utah, the child food insecurity rate is 21.4 percent (Feeding America, Map-the-Meal, 2013). We are not immune or isolated from this issue in Utah. Objectives A key objective for this project was to learn how to present issues in a format that drives action and change. Digital storytelling is not a new format-the roots of digital storytelling reach back to the 1980s (Clark & Rossiter, 2010). The essence of this AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 10 multimedia approach to narrative is that it is a powerful means to give underrepresented populations an avenue to have their voices heard. For those pursuing a career in the nonprofit profession, the ability to create a platform to disseminate information about the mission in order to garner support is a fundamental skill. Digital stories offer such a platform, especially for nonprofit organizations needing to strengthen their marketing, education, and outreach efforts. I have worked in the nonprofit profession since 2001. My career goal is to benefit children and families. My current responsibilities with the Salt Lake Education Foundation are especially rewarding. The foundation was created specifically to benefit the children of Salt Lake City School District. This project has enabled me to network with partner organizations as well as develop new networking connections that will enhance my ability to help children. Nonprofits often struggle to find the angle to get their mission heard and to create a message that resonates with donors. Learning about digital storytelling has been rewarding because I can put it into practice in my current position as well as with worthy causes in the future. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 11 Chapter 2: Review of the Literature The amount of research regarding hunger in the United States and internationally is vast. A multitude of explanations have been offered as to why hunger is a problem and many theories exist about the root causes (Edin & Kissane, 2010; Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010). Hundreds of studies in the United States have contributed possible solutions and have lead to the introduction of policies and legislation that seek to address some of the issues (Eisinger, 1996). Yet hunger, some would argue, is still the most persistent challenge for human communities worldwide as well as here in the United States and other Western civilizations (The Starvelings, 2008). The reality for far too many children is that adequate nutrition stops when the school day/year ends and they no longer have access to reduced-price and free lunches (Knott & Maehr, 2012). Scope and Impacts of Hunger The issue of hunger, anthropologists suggest, has challenged human societies since the earliest civilizations. Entire populations, like the Anasazis of southwest North America, seem to have disappeared (Marston, 1994). Some evidence suggests it was from a change in conditions that lead to loss of their food supply. Hunger and the many challenges of sustaining a food supply are topics that have been studied by scholars and debated by politicians and leaders for centuries (Hurley, 1969; Klebaner, 1976). The debate over ways to address the inequalities in access to food and other resources is a constant amongst advocates for the poor, social reformers, and policymakers (No Kid Hungry, Policy-Makers, 2013). Historical reference to this issue dates back to the English Poor Laws of the 1500s, laws based on public and private assistance policies that were explicitly designed to provide minimal support - that is, just AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 12 enough to prevent overt starvation but not so much as to encourage dependency (Nestle, 1999). The discussions of today are centered on the identified root causes of hunger being - welfare reform, wage and tax reforms, underemployment and unemployment, family structure, and support systems. A consistent thread, both nationally and internationally, is the link between poverty and hunger. According to the 2000 U.N. Millennium Summit, the most serious problem confronting the world is persistent poverty and its connection to hunger (Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010). The world has more than one billion hungry people, with data from the United Nations suggesting a higher proportion of hungry people today than just a decade ago (Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010). Millions of people in the United States can only dream of consistently having enough food, of not having to choose daily between food or medicine or heat or even shelter, of not choosing who in the family has enough to eat that day, of being able to buy food while keeping rent payments current (Weill, 2012). Even moderate hunger harms those who suffer from it. For example, maternal under-nutrition contributes to low birth weight and increases the risk of certain birth defects. Specifically in young children, hunger can cause stunted growth, iron-deficiency anemia, and cognitive development delays (Biesalski, 2013). It can also harm a child's physical growth, immune systems, and resistance to infection. Throughout their educational years children struggling with hunger consistently fall behind their peers due to learning deficits (Weill, 2012). Few American children are on the verge of starvation, yet many are unable to reach their full potential because of the effects of marginal nutrition and transient hunger (Evers, 1999). Furthermore, essentially all behavioral, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 13 emotional and academic problems are seen more prevalently in hungry children than in children who receive adequate food and nutrition (Evers, 1999). For adults, the struggle with hunger results in lower productivity, poorer health, and more frequent hospitalizations (The Hunger Site, 2013). Adult hunger also harms children: Often parents or grandparents feed the children first to protect them, though the meals may not be balanced or healthy. The result is a home environment frequently filled with stress and depression, which harms not only the adults but also the children's physical health, mental health, and schooling (Weill, 2012). The harmful effects of hunger continue to contribute to the cycle of poverty in both measurable ways and subtle social and psychological ways. A disheartening fact emphasizes how poverty is disproportionately evident amongst minorities, women, and children (Ross, 2011). In 2008, 13.2 percent of the American population and nearly one in five children were officially poor-rates that surpass those of most Western industrialized countries. Blacks and Hispanics were more vulnerable to poverty (with rates of 24.7 percent and 23.2 percent, respectively) than non-Hispanic Whites (8.6 percent) (Edin & Kissane, 2010). Poverty rates for female-headed households, noncitizens, and rural and central-city dwellers were also disproportionately high (Edin & Kissane, 2010). National data is available from the years of 2009, 2010, and 2011, that document higher rates of food insecurity in households with incomes near or below the federal poverty line, households with children headed by single parents, and Black and Hispanic households (Andrews, Carlson, Coleman-Jensen & Nord, 2012; Andrews, Carlson, Coleman-Jensen & Nord, 2011; Andrews, Carlson, Coleman-Jensen, & Nord & 2010; Pinard, Rutten, Story, & Yaroch, 2013). AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 14 Unfortunately, far too many families miss out on the help they need and are eligible to receive with billions of dollars in potential supports going unused or unclaimed (Boots, 2010), such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP, formerly the Food Stamp Program). An analysis from McKinsey and Company (2007), estimates that at least $65 billion in government services and support remain unclaimed. Explanations have been attributed primarily to lack of awareness, perceived ineligibility, complicated enrollment processes, and the stigma commonly associated with participation (Knott & Maehr, 2012). The result is varying levels of food insufficiency in struggling families, along with a variety of coping mechanisms that include skipping meals, reducing mealtime quantities, visiting soup kitchens, and scavenging, to name a few (Eisinger, 1996). Root Causes of Hunger Reported common characteristics associated with hunger are low average wages, high rental housing costs, and residential instability (Bartfeld & Dunifon, 2006). A study by Carter, Dubois, Tremblay and Taljaard (2012) found that addressing the immediate social environment in which people live would be beneficial, and that certain interventions could lead to improved food security and health-related outcomes. A current initiative of Feeding America involves public service announcements (PSAs) that speak to these points. Bob Aiken, CEO of Feeding America, summarizes an approach that has great possibilities in creating awareness and action: Child hunger is a serious issue in this country. Of the 37 million people Feeding America serves, nearly 14 million are children. We don't need superheroes to solve this problem-we need everyday heroes. We hope AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 15 the PSAs will raise awareness of the magnitude of our problem and motivate others to take action. Together, we can solve hunger and ensure children have the fuel they need to grow healthy and strong. (Feeding America, Aiken, 2013) Furthermore, root causes of hunger internationally have many similarities to the situation in the United States. Contributing factors to poverty are consistent with focus on: stark income inequality; lack of education; increased price and availability of food; poor or nonexistent infrastructure, meaning no electricity or running water (Loewenberg, 2009). Ultimately, research shows that good nutrition early in life can help counteract the destructive effects of poverty on intellectual development (Brown & Pollitt, 1996), with this summarization being applicable worldwide. The issue of hunger has been a reality for centuries, and it cannot be solved overnight. For any anti-hunger policy to be successful it must first address the reasons people are poor, essentially solving the problems related to the lack of employment, other sources of income, housing, education, health care, transportation, child care, access to food, and family support systems, and when needed, mental health and substance abuse care (Duchon et al., 1998). Marion Nestle (1999) presents a theory, which recognizes that to meet any one of these needs represents a major financial and social challenge. Several researchers argue about the importance of interrupting the cycle of poverty, essentially saying that without the interruption, the problem will not stop; each generation born into poverty will be at a disadvantage (Edin & Kissane, 2010; Chen & Corak, 2008; Misra, Moller, & Budig, 2007; Sawhill, 2003). Research has shown that children growing up in poor families are not only at greater risk of behavioral and AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 16 educational problems, but also that maternal stress and parenting styles may mediate and contribute to deleterious effects (Edin & Kissane, 2010). A step towards gaining an understanding of the extent of families struggling in the United States was facilitated by the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES III). This survey was one component of an ongoing federal and nonfederal effort to document the extent of hunger-related problems in the United States and to determine the consequences of such problems for individuals and families (Alaimo, Briefel, Frongill, & Olson, 1998). The data from the NHANES III study suggests that food insufficiency is a considerable problem in the United States and is not limited to very low-income persons, specific racial or ethnic groups, certain family types, or the unemployed (1998). It is, however, disproportionately prevalent among children and younger adults, families headed by a single female, and Mexican-American families. The study emphasizes the importance of understanding the characteristics and magnitude of this problem so that essential planning and evaluation of programs and interventions that affect the food security in our communities can take place. Gaining Perspective Several promising studies have occurred around the issue of hunger and the need for greater awareness in our country, with each study taking a slightly different approach. However, I was able to locate a limited number of studies narrowly focused on the specific issue of awareness. Additionally, even though these studies dealt with hunger in the United States, I was unable to locate a study focused exclusively on the need for greater awareness of child hunger. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 17 One of the few relevant examples was a project started in 2008, the Witness to Hunger program. This program utilized photovoice with 42 single mothers in Philadelphia. The photovoice technique was used to engage the mothers by taking photos and recording their stories about poverty and hunger with the intent to inform social welfare policy in the United States (Chilton, Rabinowich, Council, & Breaux, 2009). The use of photovoice was intentional, as many of the assessments regarding food insecurity are carried out by academics and scientific experts but fail to engage with a single person who has experienced hunger or food insecurity firsthand (Chilton et al., 2009). The essence of the Witness to Hunger is a valuable step in the right direction. Not only did it work towards increasing civic participation of low-income women, it was a strategic campaign to create much-needed public awareness. Engaging the people experiencing this issue firsthand has been a critical component to my project. They merit the opportunity to participate in the dialogue and take part in creating action in our community. As an update to the Witness to Hunger program, currently more than eighty people are participating in various cities on the East Coast. Participants are still predominantly mothers and caregivers of young children who use their personal experiences to advocate for change at the local, state, and federal levels. An article from The Nation on November 19, 2013 (Kaufmann), highlights the importance of politicians having pictures to go with the numbers and statistics that usually dominate budget discussions, with the hope that the pictures would help broaden some minds about what federal assistance programs mean to people. One participant by the name of Adesina said, "Give them a face with that number, and make it feel real" (Kaufmann, 2013, p. 1). AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 18 An interview-based study done in Oregon examined the experiences with and perceptions of food insecurity among rural and urban residents (DeMarco, Thorburn & Kue, 2009). It helped spotlight contributors to food insecurity along with coping mechanisms. The study interviewed 25 low-income and food-insecure Oregonians in order to explore their experiences with food insecurity, the role of social support, and whether these experiences differed based on rural or urban residence (DeMarco, Thorburn & Kue, 2009). This study's merits lie in the relevant narratives captured with community members struggling with food insecurity. It is imperative for those perspectives to be gathered and understood by people who are not struggling, the value being the focus on the humanness of this issue. Interestingly, numerous study participants dealt with food insecurity by drawing upon social support from friends, family, and faith communities. They also accessed public and private assistance. A relevant connection for Utah was made to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), due to several interviewees mentioning how they access the "Bishops' Storehouse" to help offset their food supply. The Bishops' storehouses distribute commodities to the poor and needy as requested by bishops, and are primarily only accessible to members of the LDS faith (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, 2013). This is especially relevant when studying the issue of hunger in Utah, as the use of the Bishops' Storehouse remains a consistent resource for people of the LDS faith who are in need. An interesting angle was taken with a study conducted by Edlefsen and Olson in upstate New York in 2002; this study was essentially an effort to gain an insight into perspectives of volunteers regarding emergency feeding programs (EFPs). Seventeen AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 19 volunteers were recruited and interviewed from three EFPs. The objective of the study was to understand the social beliefs of volunteers regarding hunger and whether volunteer experiences broadened understanding of hunger (Edlefsen & Olson, 2002). The study also helped to inform the researchers regarding hunger in general and its causes and possible solutions. Worth highlighting are the topic areas of the interview questions from this study, as there is a component of awareness in each area: (a) volunteers' feelings about what they had learned from their EFP experience; (b) their perceptions of possible solutions to hunger in the United States; (c) their knowledge and perception of current government programs to assist the poor and hungry; and (d) their view of the purpose and role of EFPs in their communities (Edlefsen & Olson, 2002). The study showed the value of volunteering; a common theme among the interviewees was that their EFP experience exposed them to the issues of hunger and poverty in ways not normally available to them in their everyday lives. It also demonstrated that volunteering contributed to a clearer understanding of hunger and poverty at a political and social level. The following is a quote from one of the interviews. Although the idea is quite simple, the point is salient: I've learned that people are hungry. You really don't think about that when you're just in your little busy world of your own. There are a lot of people out there hungry, there are a lot of people out of work. A lot of people need medical help-everything. There's a lot of need out there. (Edlefsen & Olson, 2002, p. 95) An important consideration in raising awareness is the engagement of multiple facets of society. I was able to locate information on a project that is a role-playing AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 20 dramatization called "The Hunger Banquet." This project is exclusively focused on engaging college students and educating them about the scope and severity of the problem of hunger and to help them understand the factors that cause hunger and food insecurity (Krain & Shadle, 2006). The banquet provides a platform for students to gain a new perspective of the food relationship for different classes in our society. The banquet activities consist of randomly assigning the participants to the lower, middle, or upper classes. The food they then receive and the manner in which it is served is reflective of their assigned class distinction. The actual banquet was started forty years ago, and communities can hold their own banquet experience. It is called the Oxfam America Hunger Banquet, and the website contains extensive information, including a planning guide (Oxfam America Hunger Banquet, 2013). This particular study humanized the plight of the previously "faceless" hungry masses, and it helped the students better understand the interconnections between inequality, poverty, and hunger (Krain & Shadle, 2006). Understanding and awareness once again were valuable outcomes for the participants, these are also identified gaps here in Utah's communities that need to be addressed. Literature Omissions and Gaps As stated previously, the research available on hunger is vast. Primarily, research is focused on the root causes of poverty, and thereby the causes of hunger. I was able to locate very limited information that spoke to the need of changing the misperceptions and raising awareness regarding hunger amongst the general public. I found that to be the most perplexing realization during the gathering of available literature. Specific data is available in regard to the number of children that struggle with food insecurity. Large AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 21 majorities of Americans have classified hunger as a very important social issue, and this perspective appears to be on the rise (Penn, Schoen & Berland, 2007). Studies have also found that the public acknowledges that society has an obligation to provide assistance to those in need, and that public support for helping the less fortunate appears to rest on a strongly held belief that the problem of hunger, especially among children, affects us all (Gerstein/Agne, 2010; Riordan, 2007). This research suggests that true awareness goes beyond consciousness of the statistics to include the experiences and narratives of the individuals and families struggling. I assert that it is only with this awareness that people can truly gain an understanding of this issue and be motivated to respond through action. Hunger in the United States remains largely invisible to the majority of Americans who are much more comfortable thinking of hunger as a third-world issue (No Kid Hungry, Policy-Makers, 2013). When Americans do acknowledge the presence of hunger, the prevalent misperception is that hunger only affects certain pockets of society (Feeding America, Hunger and Poverty, 2013). The public does not seem to have a firm understanding of who is being affected by hunger, particularly if denial creates a sense of comfort for the majority. We are fortunate in the United States that starvation is rare; the images of distended bellies as a result of famine are only seen in developing countries, with these images used as stereotypes by the media. But even though hunger looks different in our country, it is a widespread phenomenon. Yet there are significant gaps between the total population of the United States and the number of people who are paying attention to this issue and responding through action. Hunger has become more of a private experience, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 22 and one often felt to be shameful (Weill, 2012). The communities in Utah need to see the families who are struggling, to understand the families beyond just statistics, and to view the children as our own. As David Shipler wrote in The Working Poor (2004), what poverty looks like in the United States may not be absolute deprivation by historical standards or the standards in the developing world, "but that does not mean that the poor are not poor, or that those on the edge of poverty are not truly on the edge of a cliff" (p. 8). The most significant gap in the literature is mechanisms to help people become aware of the issue of hunger and respond appropriately. Prior to David Shipler, by 42 years, was Michael Harrington. Mr. Harrington wrote The Other America (1963), in which he talks about the "familiar America" (p. 2) of new suburbs and two-car garages. Even in this "familiar America," the poor were still with us, but they were a hidden poor, "a great mass of people, yet it takes an effort of the intellect and will even to see them" (Harrington, 1963, p. 2). So considering Mr. Harrington's book was published in 1963, he too was speaking of awareness, just using different terms. Still, in 2014, lack of awareness is a significant impediment to solving the issue of hunger in the United States. Today, as in 1963, "the poor are increasingly slipping out of the very experience and consciousness of the nation" (Harrington, 1963, p. 11). Project Justification Abundant research states what the root causes of hunger are (Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010; Cook, 2009; Edin & Kissane, 2010; Seipel, 2009). Ample research explains what hunger, food insecurity, and food insufficiency mean, and the differences between the terms (Alaimo, Briefel, Frongill & Olson, 1998). Utah policy information is AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 23 also fairly readily available, along with extensive pro and con arguments, surrounding poverty specifically (Utahns Against Hunger, Public Policy & Hunger, 2014). Yet more needs to be done to help struggling families. John D. Carl (2012) asserts that the first step toward addressing any problem, particularly one of significant challenge, is to build awareness and a shared understanding of the current reality. Awareness is the ability of a person or group to bring a problem into public recognition. Awareness can lead people to start social movements-activities that support social change (Carl, 2012). When meeting with the Utah Food Bank to discuss its involvement with this thesis project, the representative stated that one can spend a great deal of time focusing on the root causes of hunger. But for anything to change, the focus needs to be on awareness and education. The food bank model is evolving, and food banks are becoming gateways to other services. In addition to helping people secure and store food, food banks educate the public about hunger in the community, advocate on behalf of the people they serve, and develop community programs that support their clients' wellness and their efforts toward becoming self-sufficient (Knott & Maehr, 2012). The Utah Food Bank is a highly efficient organization, yet the work that is needed to address this issue has to be collaborative and involve the community as a whole. Creating digital stories with families in Salt Lake City who are struggling with hunger has provided me with an opportunity to couple authentic voice and experience (Hesterman, 2012) in order to educate the community in Utah about the issue of hunger. Voices and experiences of the hungry must be included in any program that intends to make a difference, especially in making changes that affect programs, measurements, and methods (Allen, 2007). Billy Shore (2012), Founder and CEO of Share Our Strength, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 24 points out the keys to making a change regarding child hunger are access, awareness, and education. The digital stories created in this project serve as a medium for the Utah Food Bank to help create greater awareness in Utah communities. I am not alone in my desire to mobilize Utahns and all Americans to make a difference in their communities, to encourage dialogue, and to call for action in speaking out to make ending child hunger a national priority (Shore, 2012). It is too easy to think about hunger and starvation as something that happens in an anonymous third-world country, where a five-dollar contribution will feed a child for a month. It is time to tell the true story of the issues in our own backyard-a harsh reality that will not be solved with a five-dollar contribution made with a benevolent but misguided understanding of the challenge. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 25 Chapter 3: The Project This project utilized digital stories as a medium to create awareness around the issue of child hunger in Utah. Digital storytelling is a method of telling personal stories using low-cost digital media tools (Higgins, 2011). The digital stories provided a platform for families and children struggling with hunger, with the ultimate intent being greater awareness about this issue in Utah. Additionally, this project provided the opportunity for those who face the challenges that lead to hunger, to articulate their own story and struggle. Digital Storytelling Storytelling has existed throughout human history. It began as an oral tradition, then evolved to the printed word, and now it has a place in the digital world (Fredricks, 2009). Digital stories are utilized in this project with the intended outcome being a greater capacity for the community to feel and connect to the narrative of families struggling with hunger at an emotional level, and at the same time providing the families an opportunity to be seen as more than a statistic. Four digital stories were created, combining the audio and visual images of families and children. I also created a digital story of my own that helps explain my perspective and why I care about the issue of child hunger. What is intriguing about digital stories is their personal nature. In order to create a level of awareness that compels action, an emotional response needs to be generated within an audience toward what is seen and heard. My contention is that a traditional marketing piece, such as a video or commercial, would not have the same power to elicit the desired response. Additionally, a highly refined piece created by a marketing firm is AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 26 going to be seen as simply another marketing campaign positioning people, particularly children, as victims while neglecting to illustrate the resilience and tenacity so often present in children and families who continue to survive in spite of circumstances out of their control. Creating a digital story in partnership with a family experiencing hunger has a personal significance and provides a different perspective for the viewer. The focus of digital stories is on the raw content of the story being told. The statistics of poverty and hunger can rarely be reflected in the same context when excessive emphasis is placed on the technical polish of the finished product (Higgins, 2011). The final story products are two- to four-minute digital movies with each family, providing an avenue for viewers to gain an insight into shared human experience (Higgins, 2011). Digital storytelling is a process that serves as a mechanism to successfully bring people to a point where they trust that the stories they do tell are vital, emotionally powerful, and unique (Lambert, 2010). The Utah Food Bank will utilize the videos through its website, as well as show the videos to donors, potential donors, and the food bank's board of directors. I also envision community screenings at local elementary schools, first to parents and staff, and then to students. I hope to create awareness that prompts an interfamily dialogue and builds connections and relationships among individuals and families, which results in ongoing action and dialogue. A screening event would be a great way to kick off annual food drive initiatives at several local schools, such as my children's school, Redeemer Lutheran School in Salt Lake City. My hope is to create a greater awareness that might AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 27 build an increased capacity and commitment on an ongoing basis, such as monthly food drives rather than annual food drives. Project and Participants As an employee of the Salt Lake City School District, and directly through the daily activities of Salt Lake Education Foundation, I obtained access to families struggling with hunger. Through connections with colleagues at Title I schools, specifically through the district Early Childhood department and the Glendale Community Learning Center, I identified a diverse set of families willing to share their stories. Four families were guided through the process of sharing their stories through informal discussions in order to capture the narrative of their experiences. After extensive input from each family in their home, workplace, or at the Glendale Community Learning Center, I used my computer, disposable cameras, and audio equipment to assemble the final digital stories (see Appendix B: Interview Protocol for session specifics). The initial session with each family consisted of simply getting to know each other. It was important during this session for the family to fully understand why I was doing this project and how important their involvement was to the overall objective. Each session thereafter was dependent on the family members' comfort level with each element of the digital story. The format of the sessions with each family ended up being very different from each other. The diversity was wonderful, and I am hopeful that comes through with each unique digital story. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 28 Gaining Access Within the Early Childhood department of Salt Lake City School District is a program called Parents as Teachers (PAT). Through this program, educators work with families with very young children (0-5 years old) helping them to build new skills and recognize already held skills so they can be their child's first teachers. An important element of this program is home visits. The relationships built between the district employees who oversee this program and the families are very close and trusting. My fellow colleagues in the Early Childhood department helped identify two interested families through the PAT program and invited me to accompany them on visits. The visits were essential for me to build a rapport with the families. Both families struggle with the issues of hunger and benefited from telling their stories-by being listened to deeply and witnessed. My colleagues at the Glendale Community Learning Center also assisted by identifying two families for participation. The Community Learning Center is an integral part of the Glendale community, and the relationships that have developed inside the center are very strong and built on shared experiences. The two families identified through the center actually requested their meetings with me to be held at the center, which for many is a home away from home. My intent was for all participants to be as comfortable and at ease as possible. I wanted this to be a healing process for them if feasible. I wanted to provide them the opportunity to tell their stories in a manner that gave them dignity and reflected their resilience and strengths, not just their challenges. Statistics too often frame people, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 29 particularly children, predominately as victims. Children and families should not lose their dignity because they are hungry. While factoring in the reality that we have a considerable number of languages and dialects spoken throughout the Salt Lake City School District, I initially intended to work with families who spoke English. I made this language distinction not to discriminate, but simply because I speak only English. I also had limited time to facilitate and finalize the digital stories and no funding for translation services. I unexpectedly had the opportunity to facilitate a digital story with a family that spoke only Spanish. I was very fortunate to have a delightful volunteer serve as our translator. This was an unexpected family participant, but one that left a lasting impression with me, and one whose story needed to be told. Considering this project was focused specifically on child hunger, the families all needed to have a child or children under the age of 18. Other family dynamics, such as whether the adults participating were single, married, divorced, or separated, were not a factor for participation. I set out to locate a diverse set of families, and I welcomed diverse family dynamics. The participants also did not need to be documented citizens. Learning the Process I learned the process of creating digital stories through a three-day workshop (December 11-13, 2013) at the Center for Digital Storytelling (storycenter.org), in Berkeley, California. The workshop covered the topics of finding the meaning of the story, effective and concise methods of organizing and telling the story, recording the personal narrative, selecting visual material (primarily photographs), using image editing and video editing software (Final Cut Express), and exporting the final movie file AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 30 (Lambert, 2010). Joe Lambert, Executive Director of the Center for Digital Storytelling, said something that stayed with me during the workshop: "Stories are the large and small instruments of meaning and explanation that we store in our memories." This workshop gave me a way to use these instruments to create something impactful with the families that participated in this project. The digital story I created brought in my perspective on the issue of child hunger and why this is an issue I care deeply about. Creating the story gave me an opportunity to view the issue through a very personal lens; reflecting on my own childhood, what my mother experienced in providing for my brother and me as a single mother, and my experiences with my own two children. I went into the workshop with the desire to create a generic story to have something to show to families to be able to articulate what I would be creating with them. I left the workshop with a very different story and an enlightened view of what I was going to be asking of families. The workshop was an emotional experience as well as the most valuable professional development opportunity I had ever participated in. Project Relevance Digital stories featuring families in our community and shown to families in our community create a meaningful opportunity to spark a passion and foster action. The digital storytelling process emphasizes the power in the telling of the stories of everyday people and their communities, as well as empowerment in hearing the stories (Higgins, 2011). I experienced this process through traditional storytelling methods during a travel seminar in Guatemala with a Master of Arts in Community Leadership cohort. While traveling through the highlands of Guatemala, the cohort met with a variety of AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 31 community groups and indigenous people. The opportunity to simply listen to their stories, though many of the stories were difficult to hear on an emotional level, and the opportunity for the people to tell their stories, created a connection that is hard to put into words. I gained such a valuable perspective from hearing their personal stories, struggles, hopes, and dreams, and I believe they benefited from my deep listening and witnessing of their struggle. Human beings are the only linguistic species (Kelley, 2012), and humans often animate social connections with others through the telling of stories, including stories of struggle and challenge as well as stories of triumph. Based on my own past experiences when I have had a change of perspective or a new awareness, it has often been through personal stories shared that have left a life changing impact on me. These past experiences inspired my intentions to capture the digital stories of others. I hope for the digital stories to have life changing impact on others who will ultimately choose to do what they can to change the reality of hunger for children in Utah. After studying the issue of child hunger for the past three years, I have gained a wide array of knowledge on the issue. The issue could be approached from a variety of angles, depending on the specific cause upon which a researcher might choose to focus. Considering the time frame for this thesis project and the resources I had available to me, I chose to focus on awareness. I believe digital stories are a product that can aid in building greater awareness, which I hope will lead to inspiring passion and action in those who will see the stories. My intention is to have a significant influence on those individuals who have both formal and informal roles in the policy debate regarding issues like welfare reform, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 32 unemployment, and family support systems, particularly as they relate to child hunger. Much of this influence will take place beyond the timeframe of this project because this is an issue that I want to continue to champion beyond my degree program. Awareness is an area that I feel like I can and will continue to make a significant contribution to, and storytelling is a medium that comes naturally to me. I also believe in its power, and I love making personal connections and giving people power and hope through their own voices and narratives in a way that honors and respects them. Problems and Ethical Concerns The most significant potential problem was the process of gaining access to families interested in participating with this project. I was dependent upon colleagues that had direct relationships with our district families. I had confidence in the connections with colleagues that had expressed interest in helping with this project, so I subsequently felt confident that connections with families would also be successful. Nonetheless, the potential for difficulties existed, so additional families beyond the core three were identified as potential substitutes. I also fully acknowledged that the topic I was discussing with these families was difficult and sensitive, and I was very committed to facilitating the entire process in a manner that was respectful and empowering for the families. I involved colleagues when available to help create a space that was comfortable for the families and children while they shared their stories, and I strived to ensure the families did not feel "used" in any way and that any editing of their stories was done with the intention of ensuring their integrity and dignity. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 33 Additionally, as families shared their stories and background information, I was able to outline a variety of resources available for them to access. Two significant examples currently available to families within the Salt Lake City School District are Valley Mental Health workers as well as a Department of Workforce Services employee who helps navigate the Medicaid, CHIP, and food stamp application processes. These resources are free and are just a small sample of available resources to help families meet their basic needs. An important element of the digital stories was the collection of photographs. I needed to ascertain that all people photographed had provided their consent to having their photo displayed in the digital stories. All people photographed were provided with a full disclosure of how their photograph would be used. This was especially important for participants to understand particularly since photographs of children are used. All participants were asked to sign a media release form. Participants either provided their own photographs, or I provided them with a disposable camera. The digital stories also include background music. I chose to use the same song in all of the digital stories, in order to create a cohesive feel for the project as a whole. I worked directly with Universal Music in order to gain permission to use the song Common Threads by Bobby McFerrin Jr. Mr. McFerrin's song is properly cited at the conclusion of all the digital stories. Mr. McFerrin requested a copy of the digital stories, a DVD was sent at the conclusion of this project. Participants were also fully informed of how and where the digital stories will be viewed. They all signed consent forms that stated the digital stories will be displayed through the Utah Food Bank website. Additionally, I communicated to all participants AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 34 that the stories might also be used for additional community screenings, and I communicated the purpose for such screenings. I fully explained to the participants the potential of a large audience viewing the stories; I articulated the significance of their stories' contribution to the community. Upon completion of creating the digital stories, a $50 gift card for groceries was provided to all families. This was communicated to the families at the beginning of the project via the consent form. The gift card was given to the families simply to show appreciation for participation, not as payment for service. If at any time a family had chosen to withdraw from the project, they still would have received a $50 gift card for groceries. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 35 Chapter 4: The Product Included with this thesis is a disc containing the completed digital stories. To supplement each digital story I have described the process with each family as well as my experience learning and creating my own digital story. I have gained valuable insight into the creative process behind digital storytelling, and it was humbling to facilitate the process with families to create their own stories. The purpose of this chapter is to provide background information for each family as well as a first-hand perspective of the experience. I will also explain the process I used with each family and how the process was adapted based on the individual families. Learning Digital Storytelling My own digital storytelling experience took place in Berkeley, California. I was fortunate to be able to attend a workshop at The Center for Digital Storytelling (CDS), with my employer covering the costs as a professional development expense. I attended a three-day workshop at the CDS headquarters, December 11 - 13, 2013. I felt it imperative to attend a workshop, as I had no prior experience with digital storytelling, and in order to do this project justice I needed to have the proper training. I also wanted to experience the process myself so I could gain an understanding of what I was really asking my families to create. The workshop experience was so influential on my project; I cannot imagine doing this project without having gone to the workshop. I have never participated in a better professional development experience. The workshop began prior to even landing in Berkeley. The confirmation email I received from CDS included pre-workshop homework and the Digital Storytelling Cookbook (Lambert, 2010), which we were asked to read prior to the workshop. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 36 Additional components of the homework included gathering photos, writing a draft script, and deciding on a song for the soundtrack. I had an easy time picking the photos and finding an appropriate song, though writing a draft script proved to be more difficult. Reading through the cookbook was very helpful, as it laid out the steps we would be following to create our stories as well as the importance of sharing stories. The first day of the workshop was primarily focused on introductions of the people in the workshop, a presentation about digital storytelling, example stories, and then a story circle process. There were twelve participants in the workshop, and we were fortunate to have our workshop facilitated by Joe Lambert, Founder and Executive Director of CDS, along with Robert Kershaw who has been with CDS since 2007. Joe and Robert created a space that was open, creative, and supportive. The story circle experience helped to open up ideas and angles for my story that I had not thought of. My digital story took on a personal tone that I had not expected, but a tone I knew was necessary. It was difficult at first to personalize my story into something that was authentic, while being honest about the fact that I have not personally struggled with hunger nor do my children struggle with hunger. The story circle time provided an opportunity for each person to read their script or talk through their ideas for a script. It also created a space for people to ask questions or provide suggestions to one another. This time for me was especially impactful; it pushed me into a deeper thought process and really shaped my story. The outcome of the story circle was a script that was around 350 words, which equated to a digital story about three minutes in length. This process was difficult. My AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 37 original script ended up sounding more like a public service announcement or a nonprofit solicitation, which is not the direction I wanted to go. The key points that I took from this process are that the story starts from the inside of the person writing it, and that the most deeply personal stories are universal. Also, a good script creates a moment, then a meaning, followed by an emotion, and ultimately creates a deeper awareness. Joe Lambert also talked about the four C's: Connect, Context, Come Back, and Continuation. At the close of the first day all of the participants had received feedback on their scripts, and we were all instructed to finalize our scripts before the next day. The first evening I finalized my script and spent a couple of hours rehearsing so I could be more comfortable recording the audio the next day. I wanted to make sure that my tone and expression came across in the way I had envisioned and that my story had an emotional impact with people. This process really made me look inside myself and evaluate why I care so deeply about child hunger. I had to reflect upon my own childhood and upbringing and some of my experiences that have shaped me as an adult. This was far more emotional than I ever expected, largely due to the process of reflecting on my own mother and my brother and only sibling, who both passed away many years ago. I also reflected on my own children and some of the key values I hold as a mother. The second day of the workshop consisted of recording our scripts and choosing images for our stories. We then transitioned into the technical side of the workshop, that of learning Final Cut Express. Final Cut Express is an intuitive program and makes it very exciting to put all of the pieces together in a digital format. Also during this time I began corresponding with representatives of Bobby McFerrin Jr., in order to gain permission to use a song he wrote, "Common Threads." CDS provided us with several AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 38 royalty-free music websites to explore, but when I heard Mr. McFerrin's song I was determined to utilize it as a soundtrack for all of my digital stories to create a cohesive feel to the project as a whole. I did receive permission to utilize the song from Universal Music - Careers on behalf of Probnoblem Music on January 13, 2014. The final day of the workshop was predominately a time for all the participants to wrap up their digital stories and receive one-on-one consultation with the facilitators. The day concluded with all of the participants showing their stories. I am still amazed at all that was accomplished in a three-day workshop. The workshop was an intense and rewarding learning experience that pushed all of us outside our personal comfort zones. The insight I gained by participating in the CDS workshop helped prepare me to facilitate the process with the families I worked with for my project. I was able to connect better with them and fully explain the process from a personal experience. As anticipated, I used my own digital story as a platform to begin a dialogue with families and better articulate the project. The following descriptions are an overview of the process and final stories created with four families and their experiences with child hunger. Maria's Digital Story Maria was the first participant I met with, and the first visit did not exactly go as planned. I was able to connect with Maria through two of my colleagues in the Early Childhood department, as Maria is a parent of three children in the Salt Lake City School District. It was my understanding that Maria was bilingual, so for the first visit in her home I brought everything in English and felt very prepared. I quickly learned that Maria spoke only Spanish, and I, unfortunately, speak only English. To say this realization intimidated AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 39 me greatly would be an understatement. But fortunately, one of my colleagues and friend of Maria's, Sylvia, had agreed to accompany me on all of our visits with Maria and happily served as our translator. Our first visit with Maria was predominantly spent getting to know each other and her family. She described some of their difficulties in maintaining a consistent food supply for the family. She also proudly explained some of their activities as a family and how they work and spend time together. I was immediately impressed with Maria and how resourceful she is. I was also struck by her raw emotions when she expressed her concerns about finding enough food for her children. She is the main provider for her family, as her husband is unemployed following a workplace injury. She also let us know that the family had been receiving food stamps but they had stopped and she did not know why. The language barrier for Maria filters into many areas of her life and only adds to the difficulties her family is experiencing. At the conclusion of our first visit we talked over some of the story idea questions to help Maria start thinking about what she would like to tell with her story. I also left a disposable camera for her to start taking pictures to accompany her story. We made arrangements to meet again and finalize her story. At our second meeting we spent quite a bit of time just talking about some of Maria's experiences, and I asked her questions to start formulating a potential script. The language barrier required us to get a little creative in order to capture Maria's script. In the end Maria talked, Sylvia translated, I typed. What was accomplished that day made Maria smile as well as cry, and then she gave me a high-five. The feeling of accomplishment for all of us was well earned. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 40 At the third visit I was excited to show Maria the photos she had taken. She was happy with the photos and decided what order she would like to put them in. We also recorded the audio for her story after getting her script translated. It took two attempts to record the audio. This was not easy for Maria, and though we could have recorded it again, she was not comfortable doing that. Our fourth and final visit consisted of showing Maria her digital story and making sure she approved of what we had created. Maria had a difficult time watching the story; at one point she had to leave the room to compose herself after starting to cry. In the end she was very happy with what we had created together. She stated that she felt privileged that we had chosen her to participate, as she knows she is just one of many families that are struggling. She was also able to report that because of this project, she saw that there are people who do indeed care about families like hers; she had decided to give it one last attempt to try to get food stamps. She qualified not only for food stamps but also for emergency assistance. It was such an honor to get to know Maria and her family and to gain a first-hand understanding of their struggles. Maria's Script English Version My children had a happy day. The last day of school in December, before the Christmas break, the kids got out of school around noon. I was working when the kids came home; they were happy and excited, waiting for me to get home because they each received a gift at school. Octavio Junior received a pair of socks, a backpack, and a lunch bag. Katie received a hat, a pair of gloves, and a scarf. Arianna received a princess doll. It was good to see how happy the kids were that day. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 41 Octavio Junior loves pancakes. Every time we go to the store he asks if I have enough money to buy the flour to make pancakes. I have to tell him we do not. Arianna loves oranges, when we are at the store I have to tell her that we don't have enough for oranges. Katie helps me sell the bread we make together; the extra money helps our family buy food. When I go to the food bank and come home, my children look first for cookies or granola bars. When we get those things my children are as happy as the day they came home with the gifts from school. Each school day my children get breakfast at school. We get up early, brush our teeth, get dressed, and hurry to school. When my children get breakfast at school it saves the milk at home for other meals. When my children don't finish all the breakfast food they try to save it. The children ask me to save the food and take it home. I know I'm not supposed to, but if I do then they have something to eat when they get home from school. This makes me realize they understand our struggles. Arianna is only four and she is the most concerned about the leftovers. She tells me, "Mama please take it home, I don't want to throw it away, take it home so I can have milk and juice at home." This surprises me because she is the youngest and she is the most concerned with saving the leftovers. My children are learning. They see how hard their Papa and I work to provide for the family. It is important for my children to know what is going on. We try to solve the situation together as a family. We work together to save money and food. Sometimes our fridge is almost empty, we look at it together as a family, and we ask the children what we can prepare with what we do have, so we have something to eat. Today the fridge is empty. Today the children and I decided to eat just rice; they really wanted enchiladas. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 42 Spanish Version Mis niños tuvieron un buen día. El último día de escuela en diciembre, antes del vacaciones de Navidad, los niños salieron escuela al mediodía. Yo estaba trabajando cuándo los niños llegaron a la casa; estaban felices y emocionados, esperando que yo llegue a casa porque recibieron un regalo a escuela. Octavio Junior recibió calcetines, un mochila, y una bolsa de almuerzo. Katie recibió un gorro, juantes, y una bufanda. Arianna recibió una mueñeca princesa. Me dió mucho gusto ver los niños tan felices ese día. Octavio Junior le encantan mucho los panqueques. Cada vez que vamos al mercado me pregunta sí tengo sufciente dinero comprar la harina para hacer los panqueques. Tengo que decirle que no. Ariana le encantan narnajas. Cuándo estamos al mercado tengo que decirle que no hay suficiente dinero para las naranjas. Katie me ayuda vender el pan que hacemos; este dinero extra ayuda a nuestra familia comprar comida. Cuando voy al food bank and regreso a la casa, mis niños buscan las galletas primero. Cuando recibimos las galletas mis niños estan muy felices como el día que llegaron a la casa con regalos de la escuela. Cada día de escuela mis niños reciben desayuno a la escuela. Nos levantamos temprano, lavar los dientes, vestirnos, y irnos a la escuela rapido. Cuándo mis niños reciben desayuno a la escuela podemos usar la leche para otras comidas. Cuándo mis niños no pueden comer todo la comida quieren guarder el resto. Mis niños quieren que yo llevo la comida a la casa. Yo sé que no debo, pero sí llevo la comida tienen algo de comer después de escuela. Esto me da cuenta que entienden nuestras luchas. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 43 Arianna tiene solamente cuatro años y ella es la más preocupada por las sobras. Me dice, "Mama, por favor, llévatelo a casa, no quiero tirarlo, llévatelo a casa para que pueda tener leche y jugo en casa." Este me asusta porque ella es la más joven y ella es la más preocupada por las sobras. Mis niños están aprendiendo. Ven cómo su papa y yo trabajamos tan duro para asegurar a la familia. Es muy importante que mis niños sepan lo que esta pasando. Tratamos resolver la situación juntos como una familia. Cooperamos juntos para ahorrar dinero y comida. A veces la nevera esta casi vacía; la vemos juntos como una familia y preguntamos a los niños que podemos preparar con la comida que tenemos para tener algo de comer. Hoy la nevera esta vacía. Hoy los niños y yo decidimos a comer solo arroz, pero realamente qusieron enchiladas. Gilberto's Digital Story I had a very different experience with Gilberto; he approached this project as a community advocate and a person with an amazing story to articulate as he described his work and passion in helping his community. Our first meeting ended up being a two-hour session where I simply listened to his life story, how he came to America, why he came to America, and how he survives in America. The first meeting also consisted of my reassuring Gilberto of the how and why of this project, and that by participating in this project he or his family need not be fearful of any negative repercussions. As I sat listening to Gilberto tell of his work in the community, he shared times when his family did go without their basic needs being met. He told of his feeling of not caring what happened to him, as long as he was able to make a better life for his wife, AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 44 children, and grandchildren. He said he had to be honest with the fact that currently he has enough food for himself and his family, but that has not always been the case. He also described the many children in his community who receive food from the food bank but don't always eat the food, either because they are not familiar with it, or because they know people who became sick after eating canned food in refugee camps. I am grateful for the new perspective Gilberto provided me, as I left our first meeting with a sense of awe about this one man. We accomplished a lot in our second meeting. Not only was Gilberto's script finished and ready to go, he was prepared to record his audio, and select all of the photos he wanted to use in his video and put them in order. Additionally, we started some of the work in Final Cut Express and were well on our way to compiling Gilberto's story. Our third and final meeting simply consisted of fine tuning some of the timing of his story and showing Gilberto a finished piece. Gilberto was very touched to see his story in a new light and said he was a happy man for being involved with this project. I am amazed at how quickly Gilberto's story came together. Gilberto is a man who was poised to tell his story and will continue to make a difference in his community. Gilberto's Script My name is Gilberto. I am a husband, a father, a grandfather, a member of a community. I am not hungry, today. But I know hunger. I know how a parent feels when they are scared and worried about how they are going to feed their children. I know how it feels to not care what happens to yourself, because all you can care about is what happens to your children. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 45 I have four children, but I am also surrounded by a community of children. I see how these children worry about coming home and not finding their parents. How they worry about coming home to a place where there is nothing to eat. Or coming home to food that is not familiar, or food they are scared to eat. I am not allowed to work in this country. But I can volunteer in my community. I can help those around me connect to resources that will provide them some food, even if it means a backpack full of food or the location of a food pantry. I can provide opportunities for children to know education, achievement, and safety. I can help show people outside my community what makes my community so amazing. I am here in this country for many reasons. The most important reason is my family. I look at my family and I see how our struggles have shaped us. We have not always had an easy path to travel. But through our travels we have created a love and a strength that no one can take. I work to create that same strength and love in my community. I want the children in my community to grow into adults that create a better path and become productive citizens. These children cannot do that if they are hungry. My name is Gilberto. I am one man. Heather's Digital Story I was connected with Heather through the Glendale Community Learning Center. My two colleagues who made the initial introduction were not able to tell me much about Heather, other than they knew she had a story and had not had an easy life. Heather and I were able to connect quickly, and she started sharing with me some of her background. Heather is a native of Salt Lake City, Utah. Her story was especially difficult to hear and process for AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 46 me, considering Heather and I were born and raised in the same city, yet she has traveled a very different road with many obstacles from an early age. Heather and I spent our first meeting simply getting to know each other. She told me that, as children, she and her siblings had to go days without food because her parents were using what little money they had to purchase drugs. She also shared that she became a mother at 13 and again at 18, and that she hasn't always been the mother that her kids deserve. She is now working on becoming a better mother and learning new parenting skills. She is also accessing community resources to maintain a stable food supply in her home as well as participating in family therapy, which is a very positive experience for her and her children. In Heather there is an incredible strength and a desire to make a better life for her children, a life very different than her own upbringing. The road she has traveled has not been easy since becoming a parent and dropping out of school in the seventh grade. It was an emotional experience for Heather to reflect on her upbringing and capture her own story. I was pleasantly surprised at our third visit when Heather brought not only photos for her story but also a narrative that she had spent two hours writing. When she shared her narrative I could hear the pride in her voice. She also told me that she had read it to her children and they were proud of her. At the third visit we also recorded her audio. It only took two times, as Heather had practiced at home. Working with Heather was a very touching experience for me. She genuinely wanted to share her story and said she had never really sat down and talked through her experiences with anyone. Her story came together quite well and she was proud to be involved with the project. At our fourth visit we went through her story in Final Cut AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 47 Express. We changed around some of the pictures and completed the story. She became emotional watching it and said that she was grateful to be at a different place in her life and with her kids. So many of the root causes of hunger were evident in Heather's story and life experiences. She was born into a cycle of poverty but is determined to break out of the cycle. I believe she will. Heather's Script My name is Heather. I am 26 years old. I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah, with my brother and sister. Growing up we always struggled to keep food in our house. We had to go days with out food or create meals with what little we had in our cupboards. We had to learn at a very young age that food was a necessity, and that children all over Utah were struggling just like us. I had my first child when I was just 13 years old. It has also been a struggle for me as a single mother. I was not old enough to receive food stamps and too young to get a job. As a teen mother I realized I needed to teach my children the important things in life. My son Andre is now 12 and he understands how hard I've worked to raise him, and to give him a better life. He is such a big help with teaching his little sister everything we struggle with in life. My daughter is eight years old and she loves to help around the house, she loves to help me bargain shop, and cook dinner. But mostly I love spending that time together as a family. I am so proud of my children when they can work together to find meals and work as a team. It is important for me to give my kids a better life than I had as a child. If I could tell my children one thing I would want them to know how grateful I am for them. That even though I am supporting them as their mother, they support me the most. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 48 Tonya's Digital Story I had a very different experience working with Tonya. I was able to connect with Tonya through a colleague who has relatives living across the street from Tonya and her family. Tonya lives in Salt Lake City, and her children have been educated at schools in the Salt Lake City School District. All of the meetings with Tonya took place in her home. The process of working with Tonya took a total of three visits. Tonya is a very matter-of-fact kind of lady and did not hesitate to tell me where she stands on a variety of issues. For this reason her story came together very quickly at our first visit. She also just wanted to use photographs that she had around the house instead of creating new images. At our second visit we recorded the audio. Her recording could have used a couple more attempts to sound less like she was reading the script, but Tonya was not interested in doing it again, and I did not want to upset her. I knew I needed to balance my desire for a polished product with my understanding that Tonya and the other participants were giving me their time and sharing personal experiences with hunger that may have been uncomfortable for them. An interesting dialogue happened during our first conversation when I was describing the digital story process and the need to have a diverse family representation. Tonya made a point of clarifying for me that she is a Black woman, which is different from being an African American woman. She explained that her family has been in America for generations and generations. They are not from Africa and that is where the difference starts. She did not want me to confuse the labels and speak of her incorrectly. I appreciated the clarification and the new perspective she provided. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 49 I am pleased with how Tonya's story came together. It is not an emotional story, but it does represent Tonya's personality and forthright way of communicating. It was important for Tonya to convey that even though they have food, it is a constant struggle to provide nutritious food. Much of what she receives through various community resources is often times processed food, and even though she is grateful to receive what she does, she feels especially fortunate when she receives fresh fruits and vegetables for her family. Tonya is very resourceful, and even though her family has struggles, she is a lady who will most certainly persevere. Tonya's Script My name is Tonya. I am 47. I have three children, but I have raised eight children when my sister took ill. It was difficult feeding eight children. I have had to use outside resources to supplement my children's nutritional needs. The ages of my children ranged from one year to eighteen years old. I have never had problem with providing something to eat, but sometimes it has been a struggle to provide enough for everybody in the house. I don't like sending my kids to bed without full stomachs. But even though we have food sometimes it is a challenge to provide nutritional food. Processed food just costs less. It is a balance to provide a balanced meal. One of my children is also diabetic. That is a challenge to address his special dietary needs. I had to make sure his needs were met at times before I could make sure the other children got what they wanted. I had to make sure that the bigger kids who are athletes had what they need, so that means they need extra food and protein. They burn through food a whole lot faster. I have had three football players, but I know my youngest is going to the NFL if it kills me. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 50 He needs a balanced diet to stay strong and grow healthy. My girls want to be healthy, they ask for fruits and vegetables. It is a tough balance to feed your kids a healthy diet, it just isn't realistic at times because it costs so much. I have often received food from the Utah Food Bank. It made a difference because it meant that I could use the extra money to supplement my family's diet. It made the money go just a little bit further. Finding community resources is a great asset to my family. But the thing is it can be humiliating to have to go to the food bank. There are times when you feel really bad, but you just have to do what you have to do and get the food for your children. There are a lot of hungry children in Utah and in my neighborhood. The face of hunger has changed; it affects so many people of all colors. I have a college education but I can't get a good job. I just want a job where I can make enough to pay the mortgage and feed my children. People need to help the families in their own backyards before we can help other communities. People don't need a hand out but a hand up. Personal Meaning I felt honored to work with these four families. Each family made an impact on me, and though the work at times was emotionally draining, the resilience and love that I saw in each family was invigorating. I have great respect for the families who participated in this project, and a gratitude for their willingness to let me into their world and trust me with their stories. Facilitating this process provided an opportunity for me to see the literature come alive and to see the reality of child hunger in Utah with a new lens. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 51 Chapter 5: Discussion The discussion of this project is divided into four areas: Meaning and Contribution, Career and Learning Goals, Recommendations, and Implications. I conclude with a review of the limitations of this project and future steps. Facilitating the creation of digital stories has been a truly remarkable experience. It has provided me with the opportunity to study the research and literature on child hunger and to see the associated root causes come alive. I weave that experience into each of the discussion areas. Meaning and Contribution The outcome of this project is a set of digital stories, five in all, created for use by the Utah Food Bank. The question that has guided this research and project is: How do we provide an avenue for our community to connect to the issue of child hunger and respond through action? Each digital story offers a unique angle that reflects each participating family. Through viewing the digital stories, the audience sees into the world of each family, to glimpse their struggles, and to put a face on the issue of hunger. I am hopeful the stories help to counteract the problem that Michael Harrington discussed when he wrote, "The poor are increasingly slipping out of the very experience and consciousness of the nation" (1963, p. 11). The people in Utah who view the digital stories will gain insight into shared human experience (Higgins, 2011), considering that, at the end of the day, all of the families are just families. These are families doing their best to provide for their children in the circumstances that make up their reality. The contribution of the digital stories is that they shed light on the complex issues contributing to child hunger. Maria's story illuminates a family that is incredibly AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 52 resourceful, but due to a language barrier, struggles to access community resources. Gilberto's story tells of a community advocate who knows hunger and works to build a sustainable and stronger community. Heather's story illustrates the struggles of a teen mother who is working to build a better relationship with her children and to provide a better childhood. Tonya's story makes people aware of the struggles that come from caring for extra children and how it is difficult to provide enough nutrition for growing children. In my story I provide an overview of child hunger and why it is an issue I care about deeply and how it affects the community. As I identified families to participate in this project, it was critical to have a diverse representation. I did not want audiences to dismiss the project as a problem for "those" people, as this is an issue that crosses all lines. It is not limited to very low-income persons, specific racial or ethnic groups, certain family types, or the unemployed (Alaimo, Briefel, Frongill, & Olson, 1998). The Congressional Hunger Center's perspective should also be considered, as it states hunger is worsened by racism, gender discrimination, trade and economic policies and unequal access to resources and power (The Challenge, 2014). The Utah Food Bank will have the option to show the stories to a wide variety of audiences depending on various projects and initiatives. I am hopeful the format of the digital stories will serve as a platform for people to connect with the issue on a deeper and emotional level, from volunteers and donors to members of the board of directors. Additionally, as the Utah Food Bank uses the stories, my intent is the development of a richer dialogue as the audience processes the varying experiences with an understanding that the families are right here in their own backyards. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 53 Also apparent in the stories is the variety of reasons for the struggle with hunger. Early on in my research I recognized the root causes to hunger were lack of employment or underemployment, lack of support systems, lack of access to food or healthy food choices, and lack of access to assistance programs (Scanlan, Jenkins & Peterson, 2010; Edin & Kissane, 2010; Cook, 2009). All of these issues could apply to any family in Utah. For many Utahns, the challenge of hunger is as close as an unexpected medical expense, a workplace injury, or the loss of a job. All of the research identified in chapter two came alive while I worked with the families involved in this project. I witnessed firsthand the root causes of hunger, with all of the families having more than one cause contributing to their struggles. The associated causes for each family based on my observations are: Maria - lack of access to assistance programs and underemployment (Bartfeld & Dunifon, 2006; Duchon et al., 1998); Gilberto - lack of employment and access to assistance programs (Weill, 2012); Heather - lack of employment, support systems, access to food, and access to assistance programs (Loewenberg, 2009; Evers, 1999); Tonya - lack of employment and access to healthy food choices (Evers, 1999; Bartfeld & Dunifon, 2006). Recommendations The most significant recommendation for this project is to have the digital stories seen by as many people as possible in Utah. I believe that to build greater awareness and generate change people need to see the issue, feel it, and "taste" it. Many skeptics tell me that they just don't understand how people could be hungry in Utah. Many people I interact with simply don't have an opportunity to see the struggling families, making the issue of child hunger essentially not part of their consciousness (Harrington, 1963). I AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 54 wish I could have taken these skeptics with me on the home visits; I believe that if they had experienced what I experienced, it would change them as it did me. As the digital stories were completed they were shown to family, friends, and colleagues. These people were excited about the stories and offered recommendations for where to hold community screenings so that more people could gain a better understanding of the problem. I have been invited to show the digital stories at a variety of schools within the Salt Lake City School District. Additionally, I was invited to show the stories at a professional development training for the Early Childhood department; the stories were well received. I have also been invited back to a youth group gathering within the Lutheran churches in Utah to show the stories and continue a dialogue with the youth that I started two years ago. I am also continuing to look for other community groups that might be interested in viewing the stories. These screenings can provide an opportunity to put a face to the issue of hunger and provide a first-hand perspective on a local problem. Along with the Utah Food Bank showcasing the stories through its website, it plans to show the stories to its donors, potential donors, and its board of directors. I also made the recommendation that the Food Bank show the stories to prospective volunteers, current volunteers and employees. The stories would be a great addition to any volunteer or new employee orientation, giving people a deep understanding of how their work benefits the community. The digital stories from this project put a face to hunger, and this is something that the Utah Food Bank has struggled with. I am pleased to have this project contribute to this important effort. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 55 The strength of this project is the time spent to deeply understand the families struggling and the connection made to the broader community in Utah and nationally. This deep understanding and personal connection is a critical element that I would recommend be integrated in any future project focused on child hunger. In order to create any change the first step is awareness (Glanz, Rimer, & Viswanath, 2008). Existing research is a great place to start in order to identify the various perspectives and positions. But it is critical to be able to take it a step further and have a localized understanding of the problem and connect it to the various sources of information. This was explained with the Witness to Hunger program referenced in chapter two, where researchers engaged the people experiencing this issue firsthand and included them in the dialogue and the action towards addressing the problem (Chilton, Rabinowich, Council, & Breaux, 2009). Implications One of the ideas that started to take shape as I worked with families is that many of them are on the verge of being self-sufficient; they just are not familiar with the resources available to take that next step. This was most evident with both Maria and Heather. Maria is very resourceful and hard working. She is also dedicated to making sure her children receive a quality education, and she is fully engaged in their education. The barrier that Maria faces is language; learning English would create a significant impact for Maria and her family. One of the resources I was able to bring to Maria was information about the English Skills Learning Center (www.eslcenter.org) and the free classes they offer for adults in the community. Heather is also at a critical place in her life where she is actively making different and better decisions for herself and her children. She, too, is very hard-working and wants a better life. The difficulty Heather faces is that AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 56 she dropped out of school after the seventh grade. After Heather's story was done we had a lengthy conversation about her own education and getting to a place in her life where she could complete high school and possibly go to college. She is very anxious and interested in improving herself so she can attain employment. I mentioned a couple of places she could go that customize their programs for adult learners as well as the many scholarships available to single mothers. I wish I had more time to work with the families that created digital stories. They all became very special to me and I would love to stay engaged with them and help. They are all poised to make changes in their own lives and in their communities. There seems to be a disconnect in our community: Several organizations provide resources for people in need, but what appears to be lacking is an organization that focuses on helping people be self-sufficient and creating sustainable families. Such an organization could provide a path or resources for people who are at the stage in their lives to break the cycle of poverty and create a different future for themselves and their families. Limitations and Future Research The greatest limitations of this project were time and access to families. Time was limited from the beginning, as the work with families could not begin until the IRB approval process was complete, which occurred in late November. During the December holiday break the schools were closed for two weeks, which meant not getting started until January. The other time factor was just coordinating meetings with the families while factoring in my schedule and respecting the time commitment with the families. I made every attempt to make myself available and, luckily, my workplace was very flexible. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 57 The other limitation was access to families. The critical component of identifying families was having someone to make an introduction, a person who the family knew and trusted and who could bring me into the home and begin a conversation. Without that outside person I do not feel the families would have shared with me their struggles in such a limited time. There is also the difficulty that can arise when a family chooses not to continue participating after starting the process. Three families decided to not continue their digital stories. This was really difficult, not only because I had to find new families, but also because time was very limited. It was also disappointing because these families had begun to share stories that would have added meaningful layers to the project and further increased awareness of child hunger in the community. For any future researcher interested in this topic, the time needed to identify families would have to be considered in the timeline. Much of the family work is out of the control of the researcher, so it is necessary to be flexible and have back up families in mind to work with. I was fortunate to have several options in identifying families through my work at Salt Lake City School District. Without this connection I am not sure how easy it would have been to identify the number of families I needed. Additionally, for any researcher wanting to use digital storytelling, I highly recommend attending a workshop to learn some of the key points to creating a digital story. I found this to be immensely helpful, and I do not feel that I would have been able to adapt the process with each family as well if not for the workshop experience. It was also very enlightening to create my own digital story first so I knew firsthand what I was asking of my participating families. It helped to fully understand the story-writing process and how to get my thoughts and emotions down on paper in a limited amount of AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 58 space. Having my own story to show the families at our first visit also helped introduce me to the family and helped explain why I care about child hunger. Career and Learning Goals As a nonprofit professional I was eager to learn a new method to create a message that resonates with a given audience and a message that has the ability to drive action and change. Yet I went into this project with intense apprehension, fearing that I would be unable to effectively facilitate the process of working with families to capture their stories. The process of going into a family's home and talking through their struggles was daunting and pushed me outside my comfort zone. A healthy dose of nervousness accompanied me to every visit with every family. I was a stranger to them, and yet I was asking them to share personal details about their family regarding a struggle that is often viewed as shameful and embarrassing (Allen, 2007). I was fortunate to be able to attend the workshop at the Center for Digital Storytelling. I was given a wide variety of tools to know how to create a digital story. I am so grateful for the learning I experienced at the workshop, as I needed to use all of the tools with each family. Each family process was unique, and I needed to be flexible and adaptable in each step of the story creation. The active listening that I learned was critical, as I was able to use a dialogue process to capture the stories in a way that was authentic for the families and appropriate to their comfort level. I am proud of the personalities that came out with each story and the emotion that each family was willing to share. The final stories comprise a product that will give people an opportunity to gain an insight into shared human experience (Higgins, 2011). AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 59 Digital storytelling is a valuable approach for the nonprofit profession. It is an inexpensive tool that can be personalized for the message needing to be shared. It is a tool that I will continue to use in my career to strengthen marketing, education, and outreach efforts. Digital stories allow participants to use their own voices and photographs, which validates their experiences (Lambert, 2010). Additionally, the ability to fully research a topic and then use the information to strengthen an argument has been empowering and impactful for me. It was invigorating to see the research come alive and see first-hand the causes of hunger. This project consisted of an intense review of the literature on child hunger. At times during my research, the information and evidence I read seemed so distant from what I planned to do with families. Yet, as I entered their homes and listened to their stories, I witnessed the cycle of poverty and how it manifests itself and the disadvantages it creates (Edin & Kissane, 2010; Chen & Corak, 2008). This project challenged me on many levels, both academically and personally. Now that I am on the other side of creating the digital stories, I am grateful for the experience and being forced beyond my comfort level. I had to utilize my leadership and management skills in order to complete all of the stories. I had to be fully prepared when I met with the families because they had limited time and I wanted to respect our time together and accomplish as much as possible. I also had to be flexible and adapt to the needs of the family. A great example of this is how each of the story scripts came together. Two of the families preferred to work on their scripts independently, whereas the other two families preferred to work on their scripts together and brainstorm how the story components came together. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 60 Reflecting on the process with each family and then the process as a whole has been very beneficial. I had to be honest with myself when I recognized things that I could have done differently or better. I also had to recognize and evaluate my personal biases or incorrect assumptions as I worked with families. Furthermore, I had to allow myself to rely on others to help me identify families. This collaboration was significant; without incorporating the help from others into this project I would not have been successful. When three of the families that I met with decided not to participate, I had to accept that even though it was disappointing, it was what was best for the families. I could not be exclusively concerned with my own interests. I had to accept the loss of their participation and move on to complete the project. Each family left a lasting impression with me, and learning of their stories has shaped me as a community leader and a nonprofit professional. Many community issues are so interconnected and having that understanding and taking the time to truly listen to people can have a considerable impact with community action. I feel that every step of this project has helped me to grow and gain a greater capacity to make positive improvements for children and families in a broader community. I certainly will never forget the moment when I realized that all of the literature was coming alive right before my eyes. AN AWARENESS OF CHILD HUNGER | UTAH 61 References Aiken, B., Feeding America (2013). Retrieved November 12, 2013, from http://osocio.org/message/feeding_america/psa1 Alaimo, K., Briefel, R. R., Frongill, Jr, E. A., & Olson, C. M. (1998). 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