FLINT, MI – The directors of the Flint Club, Locusono and the University of Michigan-Flint’s Vehicle City Voices will launch their new collaborative project, Flint Voices, as an interactive exhibit downtown, Friday, Sept. 14, from 5:30 – 9:30 p.m.

Cathy Lancaster, President of the Flint Club Board of Directors, said that the Flint Voices project is geared toward painting a different picture of Flint, and bringing forth the positive stories of the city.

“Flint Voices is a collaboration between I Am Flint, U-M Flint professors Joe Reinsel – of Locusono – and Erica Britt – of Vehicle City Voices – and the Flint Club,” said Lancaster. “We started more than a year ago. The project grew out of frustration about negative headlines going out nationally about Flint. We wanted to show the good side of Flint and what the people of Flint are really about.”

Locusono is a mobile and desktop application which allows people to record and upload personal stories and public events while linking the stories and events to a physical location using a GPS-based program.

Vehicle City Voices records audio files of the people of Flint. The project says that it “aims to capture the linguistic diversity of Flint as well as provide a resource for Flint residents interested in preserving the oral histories of Flint.”

Lancaster said that the launch will serve as a platform to introduce the groups’ website and collaborative efforts. The website will showcase the projects each group has been compiling over the past year.

“We have six videos recorded and we have almost 20 audio recordings,” Lancaster said. “This is basically just the start. We’ll be recording stories all year and Flint club is really open to anyone. We’re looking for people who are out making positive change. Our mission is to make flint a more flourishing place to live, work and play. If it’s a block captain that’s really made a change in their neighborhood or if it’s a business owner who’s overcome odds, we want them to share their stories with us.”

Part of the funding for the project came from grants from the Ruth Mott Foundation and Greater Flint Art Foundation.

The launch will take place at 625 S. Saginaw St. during Art Walk with a special launch presentation taking place at 5:45 p.m.