“Design in the absence of content is just decoration.”
EDUCATION AND RIGHT AFTER
In May of 2000, I graduated from Bowling Green State University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Graphic Design and a secondary focus in Fine Art Photography. After graduation, I had no intention of finding a job right away, so I went to Australia for a few weeks. Of course reality always rears its ugly head and I had to come home and get a job…
CAREER PATH(S)…
In September of 2000 I moved from the flat frozen tundra of Northwest Ohio to the Washington, DC area to begin my very first job. Since then, I amassed invaluable knowledge as I worked in advertising agencies, non-profit organizations / associations and more corporate settings over the first 13 years of my career. Full time jobs and freelance gigs both allowed me to experience each different type of setting and each bucket of constraints a good designer should know how to work within.
Being taught to be my own concept creator, designer, traffic manager, production artist and vendor-detective early on helped me navigate every new situation with confidence that the end product would be the best it could be.
In 2013, I decided I wanted a better work-life balance and the freedom to work from anywhere, so I took my freelancing to a full time status. I’ve been my own boss for some time now, and I love it! I love the unique challenges it creates and every single day is different from the day before.
HOBBIES
I am an avid animal lover (see below for my side hustle), and I enjoy doing just about anything in which my deaf Dalmatian, Nitro, can join. Whether it’s driving all the way to Charlotte, VA to go to the best dog park, taking him to the beach or the lake, or hitting the wineries with him, I enjoy it all. I also used to regularly volunteer at the Smithsonian National Zoo and, in the past, I have fostered over 150 dogs and puppies through both Lab Rescue of the LRCP and Homeward Trails Rescue.
My other interests include football (I love the Green Bay Packers), I also love soaking up all sorts of knowledge from the best book of all, the Bible, and listening to my favorite apologist, J. Warner Wallace. I am actively involved in my church, New Life Christian Church in Chantilly, and for the last several years have led our greeting team ministry, a weekly bible study and I co-lead a weekly small group. Each of these ministries has led to an incredibly wonderful relationship with Jesus, and for that I will forever be grateful.
FUN FACT
I’m a living organ donor. I donated a kidney to a woman I didn’t know (she’s family, now!) back in August of 2015. It was one of the greatest experiences of my entire life. The journey was worth every step, and being a freelancer was one of the big reason that I could do it. I kept working right from the recovery hotel! Another fun fact about that journey is that the recipient was formerly the high school history teacher of author Brad Meltzer, who, as a thank you for donating, made ME a character in his thriller, The Escape Artist. My character didn’t die, either, so she’s in the sequel, The Lightning Rod. Whoo hoo!
THE GLORIOUS SIDE HUSTLE
Graphic design is a fickle industry. It always has been. But since 2020, and all that came with it, the freelance design industry has begun to change in ways that none of us could have predicted. I thank God I have a side hustle. If you have a friendly dog and need to go on vacation, or out of town for work, and they need a place to stay in Northern Virginia, Nitro would love to have a buddy to hang out with. Use promo code AMYW35017 to earn $20 off your first booking!