The Resilience of a Union County Changemaker Featured in Final 21 Film Series Segment from NJ PBS

December 1, 2023 - NEWARK, NJ - NJ PBS announced that Kashinda Marche of Union County is the 21^st and final profile subject of its 21 Film Series, now streaming at MyNJPBS.org/21.

Produced by NJ PBS's NJ Spotlight News team, The21 Film Series investigates life in New Jersey and whether where you live affects how you live through the stories of change-making residents in each Garden State county. The short documentaries, 6 to 10 minutes, are accompanied online by snapshots providing statistics, resources and other essential information about each of New Jersey's 21 counties.

The 21:Union County film features the life story and work of Rahway resident Kashinda Marche. In 1995, as a 19-year-old new mom, Marche faced a life-altering HIV diagnosis followed by years of medical and mental health struggles. Soul-searching and the love of her daughter, who was born HIV-negative, would eventually turn her life around and fuel a mission to combat stigma, lead community outreach and author books of inspiration. In 2017, she brainstormed Kreative on Purpose, an organization that provides mental wellness tools to women and girls to help them overcome whatever adversity they face in their lives.

"We specifically work at building up your confidence, your self-esteem, your belief in yourself. We are here to listen to any challenges that you may be having," she says in the film. "(Kreative) was built on resilience. It was built through challenges. It was built from a person that knows what it's like to not love themselves but want to love themselves".

The philosophy of self-love and positive affirmations that are at the heart of Kreative's programs and her books remain steadfast in Marche's own life. She has overcome the challenges of chronic illness, undergone multiple brain surgeries, and in 2019, experienced a loss of her full capacity to walk.

"I am strength. I am light. I am love," she says in the film. "Those are the things that define me, not mentally ill. Not HIV positive, not disabled. Those things play a part. They are part of me, but I choose not to let them define me."

To gain more insight into Marche's experience, watch her interview on NJ Spotlight News with Briana Vannozzi thisFriday at 6:30 p.m., 7:30 p.m. and 11 p.m. on NJ PBS (check local listings).

Each of The 21 Film Series' previous county profiles are available online, with some appearing at local film festivals:

Atlantic, Bergen, Burlington, Camden, Cape May, Cumberland, Essex, Hunterdon, Hudson, Mercer, Middlesex, Morris, Monmouth, Ocean, Passaic, Salem, Somerset, Sussex and Warren.

Major support for The 21 Film Series is provided in part by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Additional funding is provided by the PSEG Foundation. The views expressed in the films do not directly reflect the views of either foundation.

Photos
[Link]	Kashinda Marche of Union County is the 21st and final profile subject of the 21 Film Series from NJ PBS.

Public link

Please use the above public link if you want to share this noodl on another website.