Part of the national storytelling show This Is My Brave, Mecklenburg County Public Health’s Office of Violence Prevention and ReCAST II recruited local partners, sponsors and volunteers who worked hundreds of hours to bring these mental health focused productions to Charlotte. Through Sunshine Media Network, I served as the live event and video production lead in 2024 for three shows and in 2026 for one show. The 2024 show videos have reached more than 1,200 people through the YouTube page I built and continues to have impact. As a project manager, I handled crewing AV, video, and still photos; venue site survey, communications, and production needs; social media support and graphic design; storyteller communications, audition calls, and headshots; website updates and sponsor recognition; ticket link set up and execution; vendor payments and insurance; technical dress rehearsal and storyteller coaching; videography, editing, and uploads.
As Founder and Executive Director of She Dreams In Color Foundation, I volunteered my time from July until show day for weekly meetings and to help with every aspect of the show from ordering trophies, to capturing social media at auditions, to doing storyteller headshots. She Dreams In Color Foundation is a program partner of this production, through the mission to destigmatize mental health needs and seeking care, and audience surveys conducted by She Dreams In Color Foundation in 2026 showed this in-person, Brave performance:

• increased the likelihood of respondents to seek therapy

• increased how connected respondents felt to their community

• raised awareness of how much more stigma does affect respondents’ own perceptions of mental health

• and increased respondents belief in their own resilience

In 2024, a She Dreams In Color Foundation Board Member and Postcard to Future Self commissioned artist shared their Brave stories in the show with three leaders in attendance for the performance. In 2026, eight leaders of the She Dreams In Color Foundation were in attendance. My collaboration and volunteerism helped This Is My Brave CharMeck donate $5,254 in 2024 and $12, 352 in 2026 to the She Dreams In Color Foundation.

Storytelling Saves Lives.