In this excerpt of the full episode, Sherrie and DéLana discuss one of two poems, and this excerpt is a poem by Marge Piercy, "To be of use" and their experiences with what it means to be an invisible / maybe essential laborer in a white work force. What does it mean to have a "responsibility" to a community, and a responsibility to self? In response to the poem, and her work in the cultural sector, specifically at an art museum, Sherrie says, "I don't want to be the one always carrying water...but I'm the only one here."
Sherrie Belton is a Fairfield County, SC native who loves asking questions, solving problems, and causing good trouble. From classrooms to museums, she has spent the last decade doing creative community work across the Midlands of South Carolina. Though typically she serves as an arts programmer and arts educator, she began exploring what it means to be a maker through an open call for proposals for Indie Grit Lab’s Rural Project. It’s where Route 3 Box 187D was born, an audio series that celebrates the everyday triumph and resiliency of Black families in rural South. Sherrie is particularly interested in Black community regeneration, cultural preservation, and creative placemaking.
