What is PhotoVoices?

“Photovoice is a process by which people can identify, represent, and enhance their community through a specific photographic technique. As a practice based in the production of knowledge, photovoice has three main goals: (1) to enable people to record and reflect their community’s strengths and concerns, (2) to promote critical dialogue and knowledge about important issues through large and small group discussion of photographs, and (3) to reach policymakers.”

Our PhotoVoice Project

Our PhotoVoice project takes place in our 5th ward. 5th ward has been shown in our community to be a hotspot for 911 calls

Why Am I Participating?

While I haven’t and don’t currently live in 5th ward, I have ties to the community. I spent a lot of time in 5th ward as a kid at my friend’s house. As kids, we often played games with other kids in the community.

Today, we only live a couple miles from 5th ward and often drive across the bridge that is the primary access route for 5th ward, namely Spring street bridge. As we’ve driven along Spring street, the old Race St. lumber yard has caught my eye as it peaks over the trees. I’ve been told Race St. lumber has been vacant for almost 20 years. Its beautiful masonry and large lot make it appealing for another community project that I’m working on, namely the Meadville Skatepark renovation/relocation.

For the skatepark project, I’m interested to find a location that is more accessible for kids who might not have parents willing to drive them across town to the existing location. Additionally, the existing location has no cover from the elements, which makes it unusable during the day in the summer due to the lack of shade and from October to April due to rain and snow. Finally, dedicated skateparks are the only location in our town that is legal to skate.

Earlier this year, it was announced that the Crawford County Historical Society was being offered the property and its buildings as a potential donation. And that if the donation moves forward and is accepted by the society, the property potentially could become a museum complex for larger displays of the society’s collections and tourism center.

In my conversations with the mayor where I’ve discussed an Artistic center for kids to express themselve through skating and graffiti, she said that Josh Sherretts seemed potentially interested in some of the space at Race Street to be allocated to this artistic center/skatepark.

PhotoVoices

As part of the PhotoVoice project, we are focused on things that could affect our health (positively and negatively), very generally speaking. Anything from mental and emotional health to physical health.