Screen Shot 2016-04-27 at 2.11.07 PM What is your creative mission?

I am the founder and CEO of Silver Kite Community Arts, LLC. We develop intergenerational arts programs that change lives.

What do you love about what you do?

I love seeing people make connections with each other through the telling of personal stories and making art together.

What have you learned from your successes/ failures?

Allow yourself to celebrate a success, but don’t ride on that success for too long. Failures can be wonderful if you can see them, acknowledge them, and let them go. If something doesn’t work, let it go and try opening another on your path. Your failure isn’t a failure if you have learned something.

How do you keep pushing ahead after a difficult challenge?

Ice cream… and taking time to reflect on what I’ve learned from the challenge. By acknowledging the challenge, finding the learning embedded in it, and eatins some ice cream, it’s then easier to move forward.

Have you ever encountered resistance from family, friends, or the world in general? How did you overcome those kinds of blocks?

YES. Constantly. I believe in what I do, I’ve seen its power, and that’s what keeps me going. If I can get someone to come to experience a Silver Kite workshop or program, I have found they often change their minds.

How has your art and creativity healed you?

At age 11 I developed some health problems which took many years to diagnose. Short story – my auto-immune system went nuts and I wasn’t able to digest food and I lost all of my hair. This all happened just as I was starting middle school. As you can imagine – that SUCKED. I was severely bullied for about 6 years. But somehow, I made it through.

After I went away to college I realized that the thing that kept me going during that time was participating in theatre classes. It was then that I decided to dedicate my life to exploring the healing powers of the arts which, eventually, lead me to create Silver Kite Community Arts.

What are your NFA Bullet points? What steps would you recommend for anyone who wants to kick some ass and get their creative dreams off the ground?

Take a deep breath and move.

Stick with your conviction and passion.

Get a day job if you need to but don’t let it take away your energy and time.

Surround yourself with people who believe in you.

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Find Jen

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