Renton Woman Highlights Social Issues Through Public Access TV

If one picture is worth a thousand words, is a film worth a million? 

Brenda Asterino, of Renton, might say so.  She produces documentary-type short films for public access TV here in Seattle, and she does it as a volunteer!

Asterino grew up in Ohio where she earned a Biology degree from Findlay University, going on to teach high school science.  When she married and had her daughter, she tutored blind students at the university.

“When my students studied the solar system,” says Asterino, “I created a model out of foil so they could use their fingers to feel it.”

The family moved to Tennessee where Asterino became a substitute teacher.  Once her daughter started school, however, she had trouble finding a full-time position teaching science, so accepted a position teaching special education students instead.

“Those students taught me a lot,” she admits.  “They gave me the gift of seeing life from their perspective.”

These students impressed her so much that Asterino volunteered to help run their summer programs, writing grants and helping the teens learn how to craft resumes for work placement.  Asterino would go on to earn a Master’s Degree in Theory and Practice of Education from Ohio State University and become a special education supervisor.

But as it often does, life had other plans for Asterino.  In 1981 she was divorced.  In 1991, a devastating car accident forced her to give up her job and spend years in painful rehabilitation.  In 2000, her mother had a stroke.  For over six years, Asterino cared for her mother even though her own physical health had been compromised by the accident.  Eventually, she was forced to place her mother in a nursing home, a decision she would later regret.

“I had mom in four different homes in sixteen months,” she laments. 

Asterino’s mother suffered isolation, poor quality food, even verbal and physical abuse at the hands of her caregivers.  Asterino tried in vain to raise awareness about the poor conditions once her mother died, but was ignored.  When she saw an ad for volunteers to help with a movie about stroke victims, she jumped at the chance, feeling like she could give voice to people like her mom. 

“We really need to open our eyes about how we treat our elderly,” she says with passion.

Asterino took her film production skills and moved to Renton to be closer to her daughter and grandchildren.  It wasn’t long before she was volunteering with SCAN (Seattle Community Access Network) as a way to speak to society.  She has produced several segments for both SCAN and Puget Sound Public Access TV on topics such as homelessness, healing and meditation.  Currently, she’s working on a series entitled “Shared Human Experiences,” which looks at different aspects of how a community functions. It's scheduled to air this summer. One segment will profile community volunteering, while another will profile giving back to the community through the and The Next Curve.    

Asterino’s film work seems to have increased her desire to volunteer.  She has become an advocate for the homeless, collecting food, clothing, batteries and flashlights for Nickelsville tent city and Aurora Commons.  If that isn’t enough, Asterino does Reike energy work and has volunteered her services to residential AIDS victims.  Soon, she will devote energy work to her homeless friends living at Aurora Commons.

“We may not all see the world the same way,” Asterino said, “but we all live together.”

Through film, Asterino is giving voice to those without a voice — hopefully raising their whispers to a shout.  All we have to do is listen.