Saint Louis Story Stitchers was created to give youth an outlet to explore and discuss critical issues, like gun violence and civic pride. The artist collective reframes the narrative around the creative expression and experiences of young people through a variety of different mediums. Now a decade after it was established, the collective has worked with more than 100 artists and 800 youth. It’s ready to enter a new era, including the hiring of its first executive director. We spoke to founder and president Susan Colangelo to learn about how Saint Louis Story Stitchers is celebrating its anniversary and what the future holds for the organization.
Where did the idea for Saint Louis Story Stitchers come from?
I moved to St. Louis in 2005 when my husband took a position at Washington University. I’m an artist, and in 2012, I liked to embroider stories I found in newspapers. One day, I saw a story about two sisters who were sitting on their front porch in University City and were shot. I hadn’t realized what a big problem gun violence was in St. Louis. The two girls were shot not too far from where I live, and they were where they were supposed to be, doing what they were supposed to. I gathered a group of my artist friends, and we founded the collective that night to focus on gun violence and other important issues.
What is the collective doing to celebrate its 10th anniversary?
We’re a youth-led organization, and the kids felt very strongly that we do something meaningful for social justice artists. Our official anniversary is Dec. 24, so that wouldn’t work. Michael Brown Jr. resonates deeply with the young people we work with, so we are planning a youth empowerment summit on Aug. 9. It will feature D.J-ing, graffiti, M.C-ing, break dancing and more lead by artists like Stan Chisholm, D.J. Ntegrity, BlueBeatz, Domo and Rich Grzelka. We’ll have a moment of silence in solidarity with Chosen for Change, a nonprofit created by the Brown family. We’ll also have a panel with an actual police officer and behavioral health counselors. On Aug. 10, we’ll celebrate with a release party for our new album and a Hall of Fame awards ceremony.
How has the organization grown over the last decade?
We started with a small group of artists and just 12 kids. We were meeting in a space that the Kranzberg Arts Foundation let us use for free. The first grant we ever received was for $900 from the Regional Arts Commission. We were able to move into a storefront on North Skinker Boulevard. The Lewis Prize for Music gave us a $500,000 grant in 2021, and it was like a rocketship. We could go after more grants and be in competition for national dollars. This year, we already have 150 youth signed up. We’ve also created The Center in Grand Center, which was something we started talking about in 2018. The youth we work with wanted to create a safe place for their peers to come together and engage creatively, and they designed the space just for that. A lot of time kids don’t have mentors, friends who are anti-violence or anywhere to go, so that leads to crime. Saint Louis Story Stitchers has been invited to share a toolkit for building similar centers at a national conference. It’s amazing to see organizations from across the country reaching out to us so we can share what we do.
Can you tell me about your new executive director, Edwin R. Williams?
Edwin has been an administrator and artist in public schools for years, so he brings a much needed skillset. He has a doctorate in music education. As a musician, he is a great fit for Saint Louis Story Stitchers. Music is the artform that most compels young people to come to us in the first place. He’s very respectful of the work we’ve done over the last 10 years.
What are you looking forward to in the next 10 years?
I’m excited about what we’re working on now. We’ve always been focused on the “we.” We’re a collaborative art studio, so we make and push out work together under Saint Louis Story Stitchers as a collective. We want to add some time to focus more on the “me,” especially for at-risk youth or those who don’t have post-secondary plans. After high school, a lot of young people lose their mentors and support groups—they can even lose their homes depending on their family situation. Our plan is to start offering financial literacy training as well as instruction in technical skills for things like audio production and stage management that can then lead to apprenticeships and jobs.
How can people support Saint Louis Story Stitchers?
We invite everyone to come to events or take a tour. We can always use donations or volunteers. And tell young people about us! We work with young adults aged 16 to 25, and all sorts of people are part of the collective. We have an engineering student at Washington University who does photography, videography and jazz music. Normal high school students participate, and we also work with those youth who are having behavioral issues. It’s a very chill, supportive environment. We understand that being a young person can be stressful.
For more information, visit storystitchers.org.
Photos courtesy of Saint Louis Story Stitchers
