[Normally, Journalism is not the province of Art Taco, but in this case, I'm making an exception. The Journeys in Journalism Program summer camp in Midtown is doing something extraordinary.]
Midtown is a 5 and-a-half square-mile area. Forgotten by the city for years, it languished with minimal services of the kind that other St. Petersburg neighborhoods fully enjoyed. Mayor Baker decided to bring change and there has been some and development in the area in the last five years. There were many snags, such as when the USPS refused to locate a Post Office in MidTown. They relented a year and a half later. New businesses and developments are now part of the scene in Midtown.
The Journeys in Journalism Program summer camp in Midtown brought together 44 students from three schools, Melrose Elementary, John Hopkins Middle School, and Lakewood High Schools. The camp runs for about three weeks at each school. The students learn photography, writing, and basic journalistic skills, and it's not just theory, but hands-on practice, and lots of it. The result is the professional-caliber Midtown Magazine, a traveling exhibit of over 100 photographs, and poetry the Journalists have written.
Journalism does much more than that which it does best: report life. It is also current local history, being laid down, a record of a time, place, and people. In this case, by those living it, telling their story as no one else can. Congratulations to Journeys in Journalism, for the excellent training, alighting on imaginations and hearts, with positive consequences reaching far into the future.
At the first Kahwah Cafe, 204 2nd Ave. South. St Petersburg from the 2nd week of December. No one at the cafe seems to know the closing date (!) .
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