More Than a Movie: CANI Uses “Michael” to Spark Conversations on Stress & Healing

To commemorate the premiere of Michael Jackson’s long anticipated biopic, Community Advocates of Northern Indiana (CANI) welcomed community members to join their CANI Movie Club event at Emagine Theater in Portage. As a part of CANI movie club, CANI ties health and wellness initiatives in with the film. CANI CEO Tracy Lewis set the tone for an evening connected to the themes of the Michael movie: struggle, healing, discipline, and resilience with a presentation on healthier lifestyles and stress management. 

The film “Michael” supported the presentation displaying Michael Jackson’s rise to fame while also explaining the emotional and physiological challenges he endured behind the scenes to get to the top.

CANI provided behavioral health screenings & stress and physical wellness handouts to promote healthier decision making and mitigate the possible unnoticed problems in the community.

Floretta Taylor, a retired supervisor for USPS spoke highly of her experience with the movie club and how it hit home for her. 

“I suffer from a lot of the things that were discussed in the presentation so I felt like the presenter was speaking directly to me,” Taylor said. She added how she learned valuable information and could apply it in her own life.

Shalanda Dockery Moses, another attendee and a licensed social worker, described the presentation as “amazing” and “knowledgeable”. 

“Many people suffer from stress, and anxiety every day. So to see something like this in the community to help others, and let them know who they can contact or help this was very knowledgeable for them and I like this,” Moses explained. 

In Michael’s journey he faced pressure, stress, anxiety, and emotional challenges that can often go unnoticed. He was not alone. CANI aims to bring awareness to the struggles that community members face on a daily basis.