It’s more important to understand someone than to judge them. We think the first step to understanding someone is asking them the fundamental questions about who they are and how they became the person they are today. Understanding and empathy are essential building blocks for a better, more compassionate world. We’re incredibly fortunate to be able to ask these questions each week through our interview series. Below you’ll find inspiring interviews from in and around Austin.
Matt Kundo
My first real marketing job was at Lucky Robot, the sushi place on South Congress. I was still at UT then, studying international relations, and I figured I’d end up in trade or policy or international law somewhere. Instead I was working for a restaurateur who now co-owns Nomade over on South 1st, and that’s the part that stuck. Read more>>
james mako
Really just happened to realize after losing my job I in a position to chase my dreams and become a business owner or somehow just make a living doing what I love. I struggled for a while trying to soul search and one day I went to a drift event and got a drift ride. Read more>>
Shelley Smith
Our farm story: In 1991 my parents bought this property untouched in Southwest Austin, carved out overgrown cedars, and built everything that stands here now. They loved it for the beauty, ancient trees, spring fed creeks, and sense of peace. Read more>>
Angelica Melendez
Hi, I’m Angelica Melendez. I’m a Newborn Care Specialist and Postpartum Doula originally from Venezuela, now based in Austin, Texas. Helping new families navigate those first weeks with their baby isn’t just my career, it’s something I genuinely love. Looking back, my journey started long before I even knew this profession existed. Read more>>
Manda Barnes
I’ve loved art for as long as I can remember — drawing, photography, all of it. But glass blowing wasn’t even on my radar until I got to the College for Creative Studies in Detroit back in 2008. I actually started out studying Graphic Design. Then I took this extracurricular glass blowing class, almost on a whim, and it completely changed everything for me. Read more>>
Freddy Zamora
I was born and raised in Austin, Texas, and a lot of who I am today comes from the experiences I’ve had right here in this community. My journey hasn’t always followed a traditional path, but I’ve always believed that hard work, perseverance, and how you treat people can take you a long way. Read more>>
Neil Trammell
I reckon my musical journey started around 15 or 16 years old. I had accidentally tuned into a show dedicated to Texas artists. I definitely found music that spoke to me. Mike Crow was the DJ, and he focused on songwriters and honkytonk heroes. Read more>>
Riley Hamilton
I was born and raised in Austin, TX and have spent most of my life in south Austin. I’m a proud product of Austin public schools. After some time away in the DFW area and Arizona, I’m settled back in Austin with my wife, Hanna. Read more>>
Angel Suarez Moreno
My story begins in Carolina, Puerto Rico. After college, I moved to the U.S. mainland to support my Mother’s business. When I arrived, I had no English skills, but I taught myself language through Spanish TV (I used to work as a valet). I was determined, and in a not too distant future I was a hotel manager. Read more>>
Dennis Welch
I have always been a word guy. I could read and spell before I started elementary school and they wanted to start me in the third grade instead of the first. My mother declined that offer, and so the school principal, Ms. McRee came up with a life changing idea. Read more>>
Mark Cass
My entrepreneurial story really started in 2007 with a pickup truck, a load of scrap metal, and about thirty dollars left over for dinner. At the time, I was running heavy equipment for a land developer in Southwest Florida. When the recession hit, I was laid off. I spent the next few weeks filling out applications and looking for work, but nothing was happening. Read more>>
Mo Parks
I went from working in ministry to being a stay at home mom to being one of the highest female christian earners that I knew. I was able to make in a month what I wasn’t able to make in a year prior to that and it was fantastic at first. Read more>>
Travis Young
My career has always been centered around bringing people together. I found my way into the events and hospitality industry somewhat organically, but once I was in it, I knew I had found the kind of work I was meant to do. I loved the combination of creativity, logistics, problem-solving and, most importantly, people. Read more>>
Shelby Justice
My path into business ownership actually started long before tattooing. I began running my father’s business when I was young, learning operations and management from the ground up, long before I had a name for any of it. Everything shifted when I met David. Read more>>
April Dalrymple
I have been a working esthetician for over 23 years helping people with their skin care needs extractions never get old for me. I specialize with acne and helping people with their skin care needs. Lots of derma plane and hydra facials Read more>>
Becks Nichols
I had just gotten divorced, was working in real estate and feeling uninspired, I needed something creative. A friend and colleague came to me and showed me permanent jewelry- and immediately it peaked my interest. We began brainstorming and ultimately came up with a model we both liked. We did many pop-ups that were successful and some not so much. Read more>>
Hope Christie
My Names Hope Christie, Artist Name Hope Noel. I was Born in Spokane Washington and moved to Austin Texas when I was 11. Ive been singing my entire life and found the most piece in joy in singing my heart out to my favorite songs. Read more>>
Taylor Juarez
I have been working in creative jobs for my entire career. I actually started my career as a wedding videographer, which was super fun. I began working for a company as a videographer, then gradually worked my way up on the business side. Over time, I became the full-time Studio Manager for that company. Read more>>
Donnelle McKaskle
My involvement with Celtic culture really started with an interest in my own family history. My family has roots in both Ireland and Scotland, and as I began learning more about where my family came from, I became increasingly interested in the music, history, traditions, and culture connected to that heritage. Read more>>
Sevastian Jimenez
My creative journey started when I was around 19. I enrolled in my local community college and took as many art and digital courses as I could. While attending, I made lifelong friends along the way. I focused on marketing my skills and making new connections as well. I would travel from Longview to Austin frequently during the weekends. Read more>>
Jay Lerner
Pickleball started as something I enjoyed doing with my family. We were living in downtown Austin, and the public courts at Austin High School were getting too crowded, so we needed somewhere convenient to play. We started by duct-taping pickleball lines on the rooftop of our building’s parking garage. Read more>>
J Muzacz
I started The Mosaic Workshop back in 2018 as an extension of my teaching and mural painting experience. I had been working with different communities through public art and education, and I saw how naturally mosaics brought people together. You don’t need to be an experienced artist to participate. Read more>>
Daeun ‘Onjay’ Cho
I’m originally from Seoul, South Korea, and I moved to New York City in 2019 to pursue dance more seriously. I came to New York with a lot of curiosity and ambition, but I don’t think I could have imagined the life and career I would eventually build here. W*acking/Punking has been at the center of that journey. Read more>>
Ashley Lazarz
People always ask me, “How long have you been doing this?” and honestly, I don’t have a definitive answer. I’ve always loved art. Growing up, I looked forward to art classes, and I was constantly doodling in the margins of my notebooks during boring math classes. Creating was always something I naturally gravitated toward. Read more>>
Kristine Lilly
I grew up in what I like to call a gingerbread household. When I was a child, my mother made gingerbread houses and sent them to our classrooms each December. I vividly remember all of us staring at the gingerbread house throughout the month, waiting for the final class party when we could finally break it apart and eat the candy. Read more>>
Nathan Nordstrom
My name is Nathan Nordstrom. I am an artist from Austin, Texas. I have been creating art since childhood. In 1990 I started painting Graffiti Art and I haven’t stopped since. In 2005 I transitioned into being a full time professional artist. For the last 18 years I have been traveling the world painting, curating, and teaching Graffiti Art, Murals, and Art Shows. Read more>>
Alexandria Jones
Truthfully, I never thought I’d end up doing this. I was never happy with the results of my nails after leaving the nail salon. They weren’t able to do the designs I wanted or the shape, and always got talked into something simpler that wasn’t me. I started doing my own nails as a hobby and it became my creative outlet. Read more>>
Kate Stykes
Having grown up on Long Island, I felt the West calling me before I’d ever left home. I answered that call after a breakup in 2019 by moving to Texas, the land my mother’s mother was born and raised on. I cried the moment my plane touched down and I knew I’d never move back home. That was over seven years ago. Read more>>
Hope Hickman
I have always been into art. As a young kid I was always drawing, painting, sculpting, creating. Every margin in my school book and open space on our church bulletin was a mini canvas. As I got older and was introduced to the art form of Tattoos I knew that was a medium I wanted to learn. Read more>>
Jess Ross
My website will give you the full breakdown of how I got here but if I’m being honest, I’ve always been a misfit and music as always been my savior. None of my family are creatives, I came out of nowhere writing poems and songs at 8 years old. Read more>>
Mirjam Tekla Frydman
I had to think for a long time about how I started, Teklas Bitchcraft was lingering on me for quite some time. I think this story began in 2020 when my close friend gave me a book of witchcraft and shamanism by a witch, Jolanda. Little did I know I was soon about to enter a dark night of the soul. Read more>>
Diana Anzaldúa
I became a mother very young, and in many ways, that shaped the way I came to understand survival, responsibility, and care long before I had the language for trauma or healing. My early life was marked by instability, family violence, financial hardship, and experiences that forced me to grow up quickly. Read more>>
Julian Mireles
My journey into hairstyling wasn’t exactly planned. After attending community college, I realized the path I was on wasn’t the right fit for me, so I decided somewhat randomly that beauty school sounds interesting. I booked a tour at Paul Mitchell The School Austin, and from the minute I walked in I knew I was right where I was supposed to be. Read more>>
Terrell Cortez
My music journey began in San Antonio at just 16. Performing under the name Capital Gold. I later honed in on my craft while attending college. Though i enrolled to make my family proud, I quickly realized my heart was in music. Read more>>
Tylee Personett
My path to Kisma has been anything but linear, although looking back, I can see how every chapter has prepared me for the work I’m doing now. I’m so grateful to be here. I returned to yoga years ago, during a pretty heavy season, when I was looking for something that could help me feel more connected to myself again. Read more>>
Jules Shelby
I grew up in Cuernavaca, placing me in Westlake at a time when it was (and might still be) less than 1% black. In a community that rewarded assimilation, towards an image I could never fully achieve, I became quite contrarian. Read more>>
Wendy Rodriguez
Ever since I can remember, I’ve felt a calling toward something bigger than myself. I was born and raised in Austin, Texas, and have always had a deep curiosity about the world. I’m also a proud Latina, an older sister, and the daughter of immigrant parents who immersed me in our vibrant Mexican culture and made sure I never forgot my roots. Read more>>
Beami
I have spent most of my life overcoming intense hardship and a couple of years ago recognized that my natural strengths and lived experiences could be best utilized in full as an actor. Acting has saved my life, been the best therapy ever and allowed me to take part in projects, passions and creations much bigger than myself. Read more>>
Philip Roy
I was a curious kid in high school with a good friend, Nathan Richardson, who loved making films with his VHS camera. I was the cameraman and immediately fell in love with filmmaking. At the time, I had no idea you could actually make a living doing it. I graduated from SFA film school in 2006. Read more>>
John Truitt
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been an animal lover. That love grew into a longing for a dog of my own — and when I finally got one, everything changed. From that first companionship, the bonds only deepened over time. Looking back, I can’t recall a single stretch of my childhood without a dog somewhere in the family. Read more>>
Tom Spano
After college, I spent roughly 10 years as a school teacher and was invited to North Carolina to join a business in the Furniture industry in the sales and marketing department and worked for an import export company all the way up until the housing crisis in 2007 which promptly put Furniture industry in major distress. Read more>>
Jacqueline May
I am from a small town – Aledo, Texas – and from a very early age was attracted to the arts. I took many years of piano and also painting lessons, did creative writing and UIL competitions in ready writing in high school, and majored in Fine Art at North Texas. Read more>>
