Sidewalk Stories

Sidewalk Stories is a new narrative podcast inspired by the stories of those in service to people experiencing homelessness in Los Angeles. Homeless service providers, such as outreach workers, clinicians, and interim housing staff, witness extraordinary moments of transformation, connection, and redemption with their clients and we at PMHP wanted to create a way to bring these inspiring stories to the public and spotlight the vital, often unseen work of homeless service providers.

Our PMHP team interviewed LA County Department of Mental Health HOME providers and each conversation was as moving as the last. From the very start, we could hear the passion for their work in their voices. Using these interviews as inspiration, writers created monologues that were then performed by talented voiceover artists and paired with thoughtful sound design.

Each episode is a new story that reflects a remarkable collaboration among homeless service providers, social workers, writers, voiceover actors, artists, and administrators, all committed to bringing these stories forward to raise awareness and reduce stigma for people experiencing homelessness and the providers who walk alongside them.

This work was supported by the UCLA Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research & Creative Activities (ORCA) Acceleration Grant.