Welcome to Stories of Our Lives!

We believe that community & kinship, particularly community organizing and intergenerational connectedness is the bedrock of storytelling and community stewardship. It emphasizes the importance of bridging generations—honoring history, the experiences of elders, and uplifting the voices of youth—to build a foundation of shared knowledge, cultural continuity, and mutual support. 

We use community and kinship to strengthen relationships, preserve wisdom, and foster collective resilience. This makes it easier for us to cultivate a sense of belonging and ownership, ensuring that historical lessons, lived experiences, and future aspirations inform decision-making.  

 We are committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and systemic change as a strategy and measurable outcome of our work. We ensure that all individuals—regardless of race, background, other identities, and circumstance (especially those from historically underserved communities)—have access to opportunities, resources, and representation; live, thrive, and prosper; including in the structure and process of our work.  

We believe in deepening our understanding of determinant variables and barriers to equity and justice, leading to strategic steps that actively address disparities, challenge inequities, and create environments where diverse voices are heard and empowered. By embedding equity and justice into our culture and practice, we foster trust, drive meaningful progress, and contribute to a more inclusive and just society. 

 We are committed to telling true stories that inspire confidence, build momentum, and turn vision into reality through decisive steps and meaningful actions. 

Taking action reflects our culture of accountability, sense of urgency, and responsiveness - where communities can use community power to implement their ideas with purpose, ensuring that goals and values translate into tangible outcomes. 

In addition to including the voices of our team members and communities in decision-making, we believe in prioritizing the voices, needs, and lived realities of the individuals at the heart of our stories, ensuring that each project reflects authentic human narratives, meaningful engagement, drives equitable outcomes, and creates social actions that resonate deeply with communities and mobilize them to take action. 

Collaboration is vital to our work because it gives us an intersectional lens, builds alignment, fosters innovation, strengthens our communities, and drives shared ownership of change efforts. 

We thrive on trust, open communication, and mutual respect, allowing us and the individuals and organizations we work with to combine our unique perspectives and skills to achieve shared goals. 

In an interconnected world such as ours, we believe that collaboration is not just beneficial—it is essential for developing and deepening relationships, advancing social justice, and ultimately shaping a more inclusive and sustainable future.

 Authenticity is a cornerstone of Stories of Our Lives and the work that we do. It is our commitment to honesty, transparency, and staying true to our core values, ensuring that actions align with words. 

We believe that we have a responsibility to ensure/foster a culture of integrity, where employees, leaders, and stakeholders feel empowered to express themselves genuinely and build meaningful connections. 

By embracing authenticity, we seek to cultivate trust with our work, teams, collaborators and stakeholders, and create a lasting impact. 

In a world where sincerity is often overshadowed by industrial complexes and systemic facades, authenticity sets us apart - it is one of our strategic pillars for long-term success. 

We believe that we have a responsibility to function as stewards for the art of storytelling and developing the next generation of storytellers. By fostering meaningful connections across generations, we create inclusive spaces for bi-directional mentorship, collaboration, and continuity.

For us, safety isn’t just about rules, regulations, and checklists—it’s about people.  It means caring for every individual, ensuring they feel protected, heard, and empowered.  We believe that when safety is human-centered, it transforms from an organizational initiative into a shared responsibility—a way of thinking that strengthens connection, builds confidence, and makes people feel like they truly belong.

• Leaders lead with empathy, prioritizing safety not just because it’s required, but because they genuinely care about their teams.
• Employees look out for one another, speaking up when they see something unsafe, not out of obligation but because they know it could impact a colleague’s well-being.
• Mistakes aren’t punished but learned from, fostering a culture where people feel safe to share experiences and improve together.
• Safety is woven into daily conversations, not as a policy mandate but as a shared commitment.
• Trust flourishes, because people know their concerns matter and that they’re working in an environment where they’re valued.