A new documentary about Kent County poverty debuted at Kent County Library to standing room only on Saturday, January 13.
The production, “H.O.Y.A.S. Empath: Rethinking Poverty,” was created by Bayside H.O.Y.A.S. (Helping Our Youth Achieve Success) President John Queen and Father Henry Sabetti, Rector of Shrewsbury Parish.
The partnership is named H.O.Y.A.S. EMPATH (Economic Mobility Pathways).
Image provided by Bayside H.O.Y.A.S.
Queen says the program is designed to help people become self-sufficient and to address affordable housing, job insecurities, public transportation, food insecurities, and other poverty-related issues in Kent County. “We hope this 20-minute documentary will bring awareness to poverty in Kent County and inspire other organizations, nonprofits, and resources to help us in any of the areas of improvement.”
Father Sabetti describes Kent County as “a tale of two counties.”
“… It’s tale of the haves and the have nots. We have a tremendous community, a wonderful place to come and specially inviting of retirees. But what I’ve noticed in my work as a priest, and as, as formerly as a social worker, is that there are a number of people who are living in what we would call extreme poverty. It’s rural poverty. It is an epidemic that we have come into contact with,” Father Sabetti says in the introduction to the video.
If you want to partner with H.O.Y.A.S. EMPATH, help, or to schedule a private program presentation, contact the Bayside H.O.Y.A.S. via their website here.
To view the documentary, go here.
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