Every photograph tells a story.

A grassroots photography exhibit showcasing the struggles of those who are often overlooked is being held at the Bracebridge Chapel Gallery from April 20 to 24.

With a background in arts, Crystal Backman, children’s services community facilitator for the District Municipality of Muskoka, took on the project as part of the Muskoka Best Start Network, a provincial strategy designed to give Ontario’s children the opportunity for healthy development and the best start in life.

“I went to a conference in Hamilton and met someone who had done this with single moms and housing projects, so he kind of coached me through this,” she said. “I targeted Muskoka Early Years to suggest and recruit families to take part in the project.”

Backman went on to say that four families ¬– three from Huntsville and one from Bracebridge – agreed to participate in the project called Photovoice.

Through funding from the Muskoka Best Start Network, Backman purchased four ‘point and shoot’ cameras and told each participating family to take as many pictures as possible to document the blessings and challenges of raising children in Muskoka. Families started shooting photographs at the beginning of February and finished up by the beginning of April.

“We asked them to show us their life and what the struggles and challenges of raising kids in Muskoka was,” said Backman. “I’m not a parent and I’m not from Muskoka. I’m new to the area, so it was good for me to see. Even parents said it helped them. It raised their empathy for other parents. And some had more time and drive than others. We have a wide variance. Everyone was different in how they attacked the project, but similarities arose. The beauty of it is that the photos match their stories. They paint a very vivid picture.”

Some of the photos taken by participating families were of a winding road and speed limits, a guardrail depicting road safety, a plastic bag in a tree that brings environmental concerns into light and another of children in a dumpster, which touches on children not being supervised.   

“Photovoice gives me an opportunity to have my voice heard because I don’t always get a choice, as a low-income parent, to share my opinion of living in a high-cost area,” said Stephanie Myshrall, a participant in the project. “It would totally be awesome if these pictures impacted decision makers to the point they thought these things needed to be changed.”

Backman indicated that the photo exhibit is meant to raise awareness of the difficulties of raising young children and helping to direct change.

“We are hoping to get suggestions as to what improvements could be made,” she said. “We’d like to know what programs are working well for families that are meeting their needs or are there any gaps when we’re planning projects. I was involved in the whole program, so it will be interesting to watch people walk in and see their reaction.”

Photovoice is the Muskoka version of a worldwide grassroots initiative, which started in 1992 when two American academics enabled rural women of the Yunnan province in China to share their life experiences through still photography to promote social change.

The Photovoice photography exhibit runs from April 20 to 24, with opening remarks taking place at 2 p.m. on April 20.