Meet Voices of South East Project Editor: Angelica Robinson

From August-September 2021, Input Fort Wayne is launching a new weekly series of stories called Voices of South East. It is part of a national series of On the Ground programs by Issue Media Group, brought to Fort Wayne thanks to funding from the Foellinger Foundation.

Voices of South East is intended to produce accurate, authentic storytelling about an underserved part of a community, resulting in greater attention given to that community's self-defined leaders, issues, and innovations.

To get started, we'd like to introduce you to our Project Editor, Angelica Robinson.

***

Telling stories has been a passion of mine since I was a child. As the daughter of a television news photographer, I grew up in that business. My father told stories with pictures and video. I learned to love writing.

My passion for storytelling led me to Fort Wayne nearly 6 years ago. My job as a WANE-TV news reporter took me to places all over Northeast Indiana and beyond. However, South East Fort Wayne always was special to me.

Its neighborhoods are unique. Its people are beautifully diverse. And it is filled with an undeniable culture rooted in a sense of pride that its residents have. Yet, as a news reporter and resident, I've seen the potential within the South East quadrant being overlooked. The positive things happening here are often overshadowed by reports of crime.

Now, Fort Wayne is starting to see a renewed focus on development and growth in South East. As this area experiences investment, the wants, needs, thoughts, and innovations of the people who are living on the South East side should be heard.

I want to help tell those stories.

As the Project Editor for Input Fort Wayne's Voices of South East series, I will have the opportunity to do just that. I will be responsible for managing a series of eight stories, one per week from the beginning of August to the end of September, elevating the voices of South East residents, as well as highlighting a few key issues affecting these neighborhoods. 

As a continuation of Input's On the Ground South East series last year, Voices of South East is a community journalism program designed to uplift the many voices, experiences, and cultures of South East Fort Wayne, as defined by the city's 46803 and 46806 zip codes.

Through collaboration with residents, community leaders, and neighborhood organizations, our hope is that this series will make the broader Northeast Indiana community more aware of South East Fort Wayne's assets, experiences, and perspectives.

I am looking forward to this opportunity to elevate the many Voices of South East and share their stories.

If you have any story ideas throughout the duration of this series, please email them to me at angelica@inputfortwayne.com.