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Just minutes before the deadline for the NPR Student Podcast Challenge, former WHYY intern Trinity Hunt eagerly double-clicked the send button. The University of Delaware junior competed against her more than 500 entries from across the country and had no idea her own entry, “Dear Little Sister,” would take home the winning spot. .
“Dear Little Sister'' is a collection of letters and phone calls between Trinity and her sister Jewel, who left home for basic training after joining the U.S. Army. With limited editing and audio experience, Hunt embarked on her podcast journey without any special tools or equipment, just her iPhone and a vision.
She started recording conversations with her sister, but didn't decide to get serious about creating the podcast until hours before the deadline. She wanted a glimpse of their relationship while she was living apart. The two had grown close over the years, but the breakup was difficult for Hunt.
“She's my best friend,” Hunt said. “When she talked about joining the military, I thought, 'No way, I'm not going to do that.' But I knew this was what she wanted to do.”
At first, Hunt had a hard time supporting her sister's decision.
“No one else in my family was in the military, so it was very refreshing,” Hunt said. “I experienced this firsthand, especially as an older sister. It was like this sense of protection that you feel.”
The eight-minute podcast balances authenticity and vulnerability while protecting her sister's personal life. There were some things Hunt chose to leave out when sharing her story, such as her sister's mental and physical health during her training.
“I didn't want to expose her business to the public,” Hunt said. “I wanted to be as vulnerable as possible. I feel like that would have been more interesting to people. If I hadn't shared the vulnerable side of the letter or phone call and just talked about it, it wouldn't have been as interesting.” I guess.”
