October Be the Change: Children at the Well

By Natalie Criscione

“Who ever thought I could have done this?!” said a student from the Children at the Well program after performing her story for a full audience. It was something she had neither done before, nor ever imagined herself doing. She was the quiet one in her family, the reserved student at school. Yet, here she was speaking in English in front of a large audience, sharing her story, drawing from months of instruction with this note-free improvisational style. The cadence of her voice had filled the room as she placed herself within the language of the story. She felt at one with the audience, as if they too were on this storytelling journey with her, stepping foot as she did, onto American soil for the first time.

Ever since Children at the Well, a program supported by the non-profit organization WithOurVoice, inc. was established in 2006, “we have been training diverse groups of young teenagers in the art of storytelling,” says Paula Weiss, one of the founders and current program director. With a mission “to increase capacity for intercultural understanding, build diverse community connections and grow compassionate leaders, through the art of storytelling,” Children at the Well transforms lives. It involves not only the children but their entire families through community-building events such as performances and potlucks. 

Through weekly classes, the beginners in the group are encouraged to retell stories, like folktales and fairy tales, that they’ve heard before. They learn to become more aware of how their bodies and voices communicate meaning and how to feel at ease in different spaces and situations. They learn about story structure, oral tradition, and even how to direct—for, as Weiss says, “it is the storyteller who is the director.” As they progress, they eventually decide upon a story they want to focus on. Then, they develop, learn, rehearse, and shape it into a meaningful and authentic narrative that can be conveyed to an audience (think, Moth Radio!). They learn how to provide feedback for each other—always in a positive and nurturing manner. Together, they explore and understand a specialized craft—the nuances and meanings behind the words and silences. 

It is an exercise of empowerment reflected in the program’s name, which was conceived with the idea that “it is often the young people who are sent out to gather the water… to bring back these riches to their families,” says Weiss. As the participants shape and perform their stories for each other and larger audiences that include events such as Wizard’s Wardrobe’s annual Reader’s Theater, Clearwater Festival, Saratoga Peace Week, storytelling conferences, and more, they find themselves metaphorically walking in each others’ shoes. Consequently, they come to realize an increased depth of meaning within the well of empathy that opens up before them. The students learn not only about each other but about worlds far different than their own, highlighting and honoring our community’s diversity. Furthermore, their contributions within the classroom setting contribute to their increased capacity for public speaking, leadership, and advocacy skills that transfer into their college and adult lives. 

Like so many non-profits, Children at the Well depends upon community support and donations to continue to operate and provide the program free of cost to its participants. It relies on the Seymour Fox Memorial Foundation, Giving Tuesday (after Thanksgiving), and initiatives like Be the Change to provide needed funding. 

Co-op shoppers who say yes to the question “Would you like to round up to the nearest dollar?” during the month of October are filling the well; and, as the vision statement on the website says, are conceiving of “a world where human connectedness is sought and celebrated by lifting up cultural and individual identity and voice, resulting in a deeper understanding of ourselves, others, and the world around us.”

For more information about Children at the Well, and to find out how you can further contribute to the organization, visit their website.

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