Our idea is to create a quarterly newspaper written entirely by kids in Lafayette, for kids in Lafayette, ages 7–12. This newspaper will provide a fun and creative platform where children can share their voices, showcase their talents, and contribute to their community. Each issue will feature sections like Kid of the Quarter, puzzles and games, jokes, trivia, local sports and arts highlights, local history, an art gallery, and a community calendar of kid-friendly activities. By putting kids in charge of the content, the newspaper will reflect the true creativity, interests, and ideas of Lafayette’s youth.

This is a good idea because kids in our community do not currently have a regular outlet where they can publish their work or highlight the achievements of their peers. Most local media is geared toward adults, leaving children without a place to be recognized or to connect with each other through writing, art, and shared experiences. Our newspaper fills this gap by giving young people a chance to take ownership, practice teamwork, and learn valuable skills in writing, art, communication, and leadership. It also builds pride and confidence by showing kids that their voices matter.

This project benefits the Lafayette community by creating something meaningful for kids and families to enjoy together. It provides children with opportunities to be seen, heard, and celebrated, while also helping them connect with their city in new ways. Parents and families will get to see the world from their children’s perspective, and local schools and organizations will have a new tool to highlight and encourage student achievements. In short, the kids’ newspaper will strengthen community pride, inspire creativity, and bring families closer together—all through the voices of Lafayette’s youngest citizens.

Feeding Others: Outreach and Distribution (F.O.O.D.) is an organization of volunteers passionate about preventing food waste and improving equitable access to food in our local communities. F.O.O.D. focuses on community engagement, education, and empowerment in developing and sustaining mutual aid food pantries and fridges throughout Acadiana. Once pantries and fridges are established and added to the network, F.O.O.D. volunteers rescue and distribute surplus food to locations throughout the network.

Since implementation two years ago F.O.O.D., in partnership with Lafayette Community Fridge, has grown to have relationships with a variety of restaurants, local stores, community organizations, and events (such as Festival International) for surplus food rescue. The organization is now facing the amazing opportunity to expand our reach. In recent months, donations have exceeded fridge and pantry capacity, leading to the need to add more distribution locations to our network.

Food waste is a significant problem both nationwide and locally. Across the country, approximately 40% of food produced is wasted. Much of the estimated 125 to 160 billion pounds of food wasted every year is edible and nutritious, and is only wasted due to issues such as overproduction, processing issues, and overbuying. While billions of pounds of usable food is wasted, approximately 12% of Americans are experiencing food insecurity. This rate is higher (18%) in Louisiana, meaning that more than 800,000 Louisiana residents don’t have access to sufficient food to feed themselves and their families. Adding community fridge/pantry locations on the north side of Lafayette will increase food access for the families in those communities, while also reducing local food waste.

While providing for the immediate need of food for families is an important endeavor, the project will have a broader and more sustainable impact. By engaging the community in establishing and maintaining the fridges/pantries, the project will help to promote community-centric neighborhood networks, increase opportunities for mutual aid, and empower residents to care for each other and their communities.

This program focuses on establishing pantries in low-income areas to provide essential household goods and hygiene products to the community. Each month, residents receive a voucher that allows them to shop at the pantry, ensuring they have access to necessary items like cleaning supplies, toiletries, and other basic household essentials. The goal is to reduce financial strain, promote hygiene, and support the overall well-being of families in these communities while fostering a sense of dignity and empowerment through a structured, voucher-based system. 

We run this program because we understand that many families struggle to obtain even the most basic necessities, which can lead to challenges both at home and in their daily lives. These small but vital items—like household goods and hygiene products—can make a big difference in maintaining stability and dignity. I started this program because I’ve been in this position myself, and I know how hard it can be when help isn’t available. My goal is to meet the needs of others in the way I once needed support, ensuring families have access to the essentials they deserve.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness recently reported that 1 in 6 children between the ages of 6-17 experience a mental health disorder each year in the United States. The American Psychological Association reports that in the 10 years leading up to the COVID-19 pandemic, there was a 40% increase in depressive symptoms, feelings of hopelessness, and suicidal behaviors among American youth.
The first step in ensuring children have the tools they need to seek assistance for their mental health is setting a standard of open and transparent communication about mental health.

Team Reel Connections is pitching an innovative approach to modeling and facilitating mental health conversations and improving community access to resources with our (e)motion picture family movie event. With this project, we will use a popular family film to engage participants in a dialogue about emotions and provide them the tools needed to replicate these conversations at home. We will treat all our attendees to the red carpet experience to create an atmosphere of fun and excitement.

We will follow the movie screening with brief, facilitated discussion groups led by mental health professionals to model discussion techniques for families to continue sharing and communicating about mental health topics at home. At the conclusion of the event all attendees will get their “VIP swag bag” of local mental health resources and materials designed to help foster healthy communication patterns for families. We believe engaging experiences like (e)motion picture events can serve Acadiana as a vital resource in battling the mental health crisis currently impacting all communities in the US and can improve social determinants of health in our region.

We look forward to collaborating with community partners, qualified mental health professionals and the families in Acadiana to shine a spotlight on mental health.

Project “Doula Right Thing” focuses on addressing the rising maternal and infant mortality and morbidity in the Lafayette region. As a professional doula with over 15 years of experience, Jenny and her team recognize the essential role that doulas play in providing physical, informational, and emotional support to birthing families. Doulas have been proven to improve birth outcomes for mothers and babies, especially for vulnerable populations, such as Black women, who are at a higher risk for adverse outcomes during childbirth.

One of the primary challenges facing families is the cost of accessing doula services, which often makes this support inaccessible to many in need. The project seeks to address this barrier by training 24 doulas within the region. By offering free training to doulas, the initiative aims to create teams of certified doulas who will provide birth services at no cost to mothers in need. This not only improves birth outcomes for these mothers but also empowers doulas to start their own businesses, creating a self-sustaining solution to the maternal health crisis.

The project’s goal is to train 24 doulas, which, when organized into teams of three and supporting minimum two births each year, could provide services to ~50 mothers annually, potentially serving up to ~150 mothers or more over time. Achieving this scale of support would significantly impact maternal health outcomes in the community, ensuring that more women have access to the care they need during childbirth.

In terms of impact, doulas help decrease maternal and infant mortality and morbidity rates, particularly for Black women, by reducing the occurrence of low birth weight and complications. Additionally, doulas reduce the rate of c-sections from 25% to 13%, and when mothers are induced, they help lower the chance of a c-section from 59% to 13%. They also play a crucial role in increasing breastfeeding initiation, which improves bonding and helps regulate the baby’s heart rate, breathing rate, and blood sugar. Overall, the project aims to create a healthier, more supportive birth environment for mothers and their babies, while empowering doulas to make a lasting difference in their communities.