The Storyboard Project, founded by Mira Zimet in 2014, is a short documentary web series created to lift up stories of youth who have experienced foster care. For the second year in a row, The Storyboard Project, founded by Mira Zimet in 2014, is “On The Road” meeting with youth across the nation.
The Imprint will be featuring these videos throughout the month of July. Today, we will feature the story of Aponi from Hawaii.
“Ohana is family [in Hawaiian]. It’s like, seriously, when aging out and then being an adult, it’s like having that family or having that person you can go to who will be that support, no matter what. I feel like every foster youth should have permanency, have somebody that they can go to in any circumstances.”
There aren’t a lot of options for young people in foster care in Hawaii. Entering the system at four months, Aponi bounced between several foster homes, finally landing with her grandparents when she was two. That placement lasted most of her childhood, but when her grandmother died, they decided that normal trauma-based pre-teen behavior marked her as a “harm to society and a harm to her grandfather” and put her in a facility.
What saved her, she shared, was being involved with an organization called, “HI H.O.P.E.S. – Epic ’Ohana.” Here, she was taught how to protect and advocate for herself. Watch Aponi’s story about her foster care journey.
“On the Road” is sponsored by Journey to Success. Please visit The Storyboard Project to watch more videos and learn more about our mission.
