Widening The Audience!
Ready to take this story to the masses
Thank you to all of you who are reading the stories from my series, The DNA Journey, and who have signed up to receive my occasional messages directly.
As you’ve gathered from my essays, the discoveries and connections have been truly extraordinary. I have toyed around with the idea of writing a book, but keep coming back to the idea that a printed collection would be a bit like preaching to the choir. My mission — in addition to learning my own truth — has been to awaken a passion for genealogy and history in those who aren’t the least bit interested…yet. And these days, that means getting directly in people’s faces. So I’m expanding this venture to the small screen.
I am hoping to partner with an African American genealogy group here in Philly to apply for a grant that will help underwrite this next step. There are, of course, lots of rules and conditions that would accompany those funds. And, as has been the case with countless indie filmmakers before me, it is better to apply a Both/And mindset than to put all of my eggs in just one basket. So, with the encouragement of a few of my cousins who offered to support, I have created a GoFundMe to help cover some of the basic production costs for this first round of filming.
I already own a bunch of cameras, editing software, and Apple products that can serve multiple functions. The funds I’m seeking are for other basic expenses like certified copies of documents, travel (gas/tolls and occasional hotel stays), graphic elements/design, and love offerings for the folks who are going to assist me in getting this done. I also think it wise to pay to boost some SM posts promoting the series, as episodes are ready to launch.
And while the conversation will be rooted in various aspects of my family history, the real story is about how my family is one part of the multifacted precious gem that is the Black Experience. The struggles and tragedies that some have thought too devastating to pass forward, and the everyday beauty and amazing triumphs that we don’t celebrate enough.
The GoFundMe link includes a video of me sharing more about the plans and process. You can find the standalone video here. If you don’t know much about me and my long-standing creative journey, you can learn much more on my site. I also have a neglected Patreon page that will begin to be populated more regularly as this process continues. If you decide that you’d like to be an annual or monthly subscriber to support my various creative endeavors instead of just this one project, you can set a custom amount and sign up here.
I hope that you all reading this message will join me as I move further down the path to truth and its retelling. Invest in me, as I prepare to pour into the cultural record with my unique approach and shout it out to the world. What lives on in the collective memory is never truly gone.
