Watch Now!
On August 7, 2018, Project Hope Alliance released “Invisible Girl,” a ten-minute movie that sheds light on the issue of homeless children in America’s public schools through the story of a young girl and her family. Jennifer Friend, CEO of Project Hope Alliance states, “There are 1.3 million homeless children in America’s public schools. Over 28,000 of those children are in Orange County, CA. Many can be found living in motel rooms, cars, shelters – hidden in plain sight. The wonderful part of it is that we have the ability to change this.”
“Invisible Girl” was written, directed, filmed and edited in such a way that encourages people of all ages to watch, and to become aware of the unfortunate reality of homeless children existing in communities all over the country. Even the length of the ten-minute movie was intentional. Jennifer Friend states, “We wanted to make this movie as accessible to as many people as possible. Watch it on your phone during a break at work. Watch it with your family at home. Share it with your physical community, and with your community online. Making yourself and others aware of this serious problem is the first step in making a difference in the lives of children and families.”
The “Invisible Girl” story hits close to home for Jennifer Friend. At the end of the movie, Friend states, “This story is really important, because the girl in this story was me. This is my story. Growing up in a motel was really hard. Here you are a kid, You’re ten, but yet you’re having to navigate and leverage all of these things – knowing you don’t have enough food, knowing you don’t have enough money and wondering where you’re going to sleep. And my story is just one example.”
Project Hope Alliance aims to do whatever it takes to ensure that kids experiencing homelessness today don’t experience homelessness as an adult. Jennifer Friend states, “Our mission at Project Hope Alliance is to end the cycle of homelessness one child at a time. I invite you to join us in our mission by watching and sharing ‘Invisible Girl.’ Together we can give hope for the kids.”
For more information on Project Hope Alliance, visit www.projecthopealliance.org, or Marisol Parand, 949.791.2714.
