Interview with Cheyenne Hardy.

 My Interview with Cheyenne Hardy

By Kendall Worth!

 

 

Cheyenne and Kendall - photo by Rowena

Over the last 4 years I have got to know Cheyenne Hardy primarily through social media exchanges. I have known for a while that I wanted to meet and interview her, and the opportunity presented itself. Cheyenne and I are both advocates for people living in poverty, although in different capacities, and we have a lot in common.

Growing up, poverty was no stranger to Cheyenne. She grew up in Dartmouth North and during the interview told me about the poverty, of friends and acquaintances, in that area of the city. Now that she is a student, she experiences the life of a  student, attending Mount Saint Vincent University, without a lot of money. So she was able to tell me her story from two different perspectives.

The following are the questions I e-mailed her for the interview. It turned out instead of answering each question, she sent me an essay style e-mail that answered the questions. The questions I sent:

#1 – Has “people living in poverty” been an issue that has interested you, since you were a kid; or is this an interest that developed over time? If yes, what inspired you to develop having this interest? If no, what happened that created the turning point that made you interested in poverty?

#2 – I know you lived/grew up in the Community of Dartmouth North. Dartmouth North has a reputation of being a community of people living in poverty. Does your experience growing up there have any connection to what got you interested in the subject of “poverty”? If yes how would you best describe what the connection is?

#3 - Also from what I saw on Social Media you are currently a student attending Mount Saint Vincent University and at times won Awards/Scholarships for your success.

3A: Could you talk A-bit about those Awards/Scholarships in General and the story behind how you won them?

3B: Also I have noticed (following on social media) that you volunteer at a soup kitchen right on your university campus. To me the fact that a university student has to resort to a soup kitchen for eating is sad, and seeing this has brought tears to my eyes. Would you say that there are a large number of students living in poverty right on your campus? Why would university students have to use a Soup Kitchen?

#4 - One of things that I touch on in a strong way throughout my Journalism in the Stigma that  many people believe about people living in Poverty. People living with invisible disabilities and mental health issues/mental illness experience this stigma toward them a lot. What are your views on all this stigma toward people living in poverty? How can we resolve this stigma?

#5 - If you were rich, and had millions of dollars, perhaps from winning the lottery, would you see yourself doing anything different in terms of helping the poor?

She emailed me back an essay-like response to these questions, which follows:

I think the best way of going about this is to just let you know how everything started for me, and hopefully this way I will have answered a few of your questions by the time I am finished.

You see I was bullied quite a lot growing up. I was made to feel like I was stupid and not worthy of friendship. I was not only tortured mentally but pushed around physically, and one day I ended up with bruised ribs.

 My mom at the time was dealing with mental health issues of her own. She was suffering through bouts of depression, PTSD and had severe anxiety disorder. But when I came home one day with bruised ribs caused by my bully, something in her shifted. She had been noticing that I had become terribly shy and withdrawn and whenever anyone spoke to me I would kind of hide behind my mothers back. I had become quite scared of people and nervous that they were going to bully me in some manner. So, my parents decided to put me organizations like Girl Guides and Air Cadets, and my mom decided she and I should start going out in the community to volunteer. She felt it might help herself with some of her mental health issues, but more importantly to her, it would help show me that not all people in this world are bad. In fact, when we did go out volunteering I quickly discovered that in our community there are a lot of kind and caring individuals that just want to help others in need.

One of the first places we volunteered with was the Stairs Memorial Foodbank. We volunteered there for many years, and during that time not only did we help feed those that were struggling with food insecurity, but we also got to hear their stories. These stories have always stuck with me in my mind and I've always carried them in my heart.

At a very young age I learned that many people who are facing homelessness, or find themselves living in poverty, and facing food insecurity, can have many reasons for why they are in these positions. It's not just due to those struggling with substance abuse like many people think. And it's not even always due to poor mental health (although i think this is a huge factor), but also it can be a result of a woman who spent 30 plus years married, never working because she chose to stay home to raise the kids, but then all of a sudden her spouse dies leaving her with no skills, no money and no way to pay bills. All of a sudden she finds herself thrown into a situation where she is struggling.

I have also talked to people who have come to this country seeking a better life, or seeking a better education, only to find themselves discriminated against when it comes to being given a job. They too find themselves struggling to make ends meet, while trying to better themselves through getting an education.

There are so many things that mould and shape a persons life, and sometimes unfortunately the result does not end up well. The result is living in poverty. Sometimes it is a cycle that just keeps repeating generation after generation.

Growing up in Dartmouth North there has always been a stigma attached. When people would ask me where I was from, whenever I said Dartmouth North there was always a look of pity given towards me. It really bothered me and I have spent a lot of my teen years trying to change that perception. People in Dartmouth are no different than anyone else, we love our families, and parents want the best for their kids. Sometimes there may not be a lot of money floating around, but we are overflowing in an abundance of kindness, and a great sense of community. And that is one of the gifts I have received and taken from my community.

Now that I am in university, I noticed that a lot of students will go all day without eating anything. When talking with them, I discovered that paying the price of tuition is just about all they could afford and there was no money left over for lunch.

Mount Saint Vincent has had a food bank on the premises for years and that's wonderful, but a few of us got together and decided it would be awesome to have a soup kitchen on campus as well, so a student could come and have a hot meal during the day. It took us about a year and a half to set up, but that dream has now become a reality! It's still in its early stages and we still have some tweaking to do, but we serve soup and sandwiches and sometimes treats to the students and their families that may be struggling.

 These last few years have been especially difficult,  so I am thankful that the Mount does have a foodbank, and now a soup kitchen as well. I feel the university is at least beginning to address the problem of students struggling to eat while trying to get an education.

As co manager of both the soup kitchen and the foodbank I am proud of the work that has been done to address student food insecurity, but I also realize there is so much more that needs to be addressed and solutions to be found.

As for the awards, I think with the addition of the Soup kitchen and because I was there from the ground up, plus being on student council and on the University's Senate, I guess some people noticed and decided they wanted to give me some recognition for it.

For me, I'm honoured to receive the awards, but to be honest, I could think of any number of people at the University that are equally deserving.

 But at the end of the day, if me getting a commendation brings attention to the food bank and soup kitchen, and if it gets noticed by awesome journalists like yourself, I am all for it. I am all for anything that allows us to keep the conversation about poverty and food insecurity going.

Its important to keeping talking because the more we talk the more public support may come forward to help.

The more we talk the more questions may be asked, like why in a society like ours do we have so many people that still can't meet their food needs? And why is housing so expensive? Why can some people work two jobs and still not have enough for proper housing?

The more talking there is, the more hopeful I am that communities will continue to rally against poverty. At the same time I dream of the day the root of why there is still food insecurity will be addressed, solutions found and poverty eliminated forever. Will it happen my lifetime? I don't know, but I certainly hope so.

Oh.. i almost forgot the question about winning the lottery...lol

Of course I would start off by giving money to already well established organizations that are out there raging war against poverty! And also helping my community in any way I can. 

I would like to start some kind of fund that will help more people get an education because an education is knowledge, and knowledge could lead to a power to change things.

I would also invest in building some sort of businesses here that pays a decent wage, that is inclusive to everyone, including people with invisible disabilities as well as visible ones.

Wow, it seems like the more I think about it Kendall, the more I worry that there is no amount of money that i will ever have that could fix the issues. I feel at the very least it would take billions! 

So i guess if i win millions i should invest wisely to turn those millions into billions! Maybe then i could host some kind of summit here and bring in all of the top minds and government officials, and have them meet some people from my community and all from all over the country who are struggling to stay above the poverty line. Maybe we could all come together to fix this mess and eradicate poverty permanently! Wouldn't that be amazing?

Makes you wonder why the billionaires in the world haven't done this already doesn't it?

As we can see, Cheyenne deserves credit for all she has done as a young women growing up in the midst of (if not personally experiencing) poverty,  and in maintaining an interest in poverty solutions.

As someone who used to live in Dartmouth North myself, Cheyenne’s remarks about stigma did not surprise me. When Cheyenne and I met in person, part of my conversation with her included the experience I had in my days of living in Dartmouth North. Let’s just say the reason why this report of stigma did not surprise me is because of my own days living in Dartmouth North. I use to wake up every morning to the issues people in Dartmouth North experience. Cheyenne told me she loves her community of Dartmouth North,  but a lot of folks in that could use an inprovement in curcumstances,  - esp housing and food insecurity!!

Also, I have had the opportunity to meet Cheyenne’s Mom and I had learned that Cheyenne comes from a family that has always been supportive of her goals in life.

I just want to say I wish Cheyenne all the best in her life ahead.