“I’m a mother, a gardener and a Texas transplant originally from the northeast.  I love helping my kids learn about the environment and spending time outside. I am an amateur crafter and enjoy knitting, repurposing, cooking and sewing.” Jen works with the Shift Leads to oversee center operations, as well as managing volunteer and events coordination. 

Kat’s love for art and conservation began at an early age when she spent summers crafting, exploring, and gardening at her grandma’s house – a log cabin in the woods! A former disaster relief professional, Kat left her career behind in order to have more time for creative endeavors. She enjoys experimenting with mediums she has never tried before, either on her own or by taking classes and workshops. Kat spends her free time dancing, caring for her many plants, snuggling with her two pups, and going on adventures with her partner of 6 years.

” Hi ! I am a mother a teacher and an artist. I taught art k-12 in public schools for 10 years and currently have my own after school program in Round Rock. I am the co-founder of Marmalade skies , an art studio in Austin TX, and helped to start the children’s museums in New Braunfels and San Antonio. I was born in NYC raised in NEW Jersey and moved to Austin  20 years ago. My artwork is eclectic and is mostly large scale multi media; paintings. Many of my large paintings are done on old used doors.”

“I moved to the Austin area from Sweden when I was 4. I’ve long had a passion for various types of art, craft, and music, and Austin was a fantastic city to grow up around. Environmental science, the outdoors, and conservation have been a big part of my life for a long time. I’m an amateur crafter, and I’m trying to learn and improve various skills, like leather working and sewing, which I often use to make post-apocalyptic costumes and props.”

I’m a west Texas native and lived in Austin for over ten years. When I was young, I drew and painted on almost anything I could get my hands on and then it evolved into a variety of all creative things such as woodworking, photography, and sewing. Growing up with my family and a small lot of farm animals lead me to a love for nature and all things living. With that, it gave me passion to want to live a sustainable life and be a part of any action that can reduce negative environmental impact.

After moving to Austin from Brownsville, TX in 2012, Blessing found this city an ideal space to grow their creative skills and meet fantastic people along the way. Outside of ACR, they can be found making jewelry, modifying clothes, thrifting, hunting for fossils, and standing RIGHT BEHIND YOU.

I am a lover of the arts and sciences, and hope to one day live in a beautiful forest cottage tending to chickens, identifying beautiful spiders, and creating my days away surrounded by friends. I have worked professionally as an artist and fabricator for the UT Hyperloop which went on to SpaceX, as well as in collaboration with companies like Vogue, Cosmopolitain, and HYPEBAE. I have a passion for fashion and sew and model a lot of my own clothes. First pick of fabric is one of my favorite perks of working at ACR, along with the fact that working for a non-profit and sustainable company feels so very good! I have worked as a commercial actress and model, gardener, stained glass artist, and telescope operator for the UT Astronomy Association. As well as my fair share of restaurant, fast food, and retail jobs. I have my BFA, which is an expensive piece of paper, and I’m a published short story author, and now I run an ever growing book club stream online! Will I ever stop??? Hopefully.

Lori (crafting alias: Haunted Farmgirl) greatly enjoys the art of making, cats, books, and baked goods. Some of her functional frivolities include catnip toys made of felt, decorated lighters, matchbox sewing kits, collaged note cards, and fanciful terrariums. It was through resourcing more affordable and unique materials for her crafts that she came to know and love ACR. There’s not a day that goes by that she doesn’t swoon over some wonderful little ribbon or paper scrap that catches her eye. For many years she has also worked in vintage sales, local bakeries, and as a craft fair organizer. She lives in Austin with her artist husband, and 3 cool cats.

Kaysie, a recent UT graduate, is beginning her career in the nonprofit sector with a BA in Art History, a minor in Arts Management and Administration, and a certificate in Social Entrepreneurship and Nonprofits. A colorful tree-hugger from a young age, Kaysie focuses her life around art and conservation, and works to inspire those around her to live a creative and sustainable lifestyle. In her free time, Kaysie enjoys trail running in the greenbelt, making art and supporting local artists of Austin, and dancing the night away in the live music capital of the world.