I grew up in west Texas but it’s not the magical area of the state you’re thinking of. It’s more like the place that you read about in books where the main character yearns to leave or they spend their childhood raging against the powers that be. Or maybe just trying to hold a school dance (fun fact – Footloose is partially based on a town 20 minutes from where I grew up). Living my early years, and part of my college ones there drove me to the only profession that made sense for someone who felt like a big outcast her whole life – photojournalism.
After attending four different schools I graduated from the University of Texas at Austin. I then left to intern across the country before landing at a small paper in the late ‘90’s in suburban Chicago. From there I came back to Austin where I worked a legislative session for the AP and settled into a staff position at the Austin American-Statesman where I stayed for 18 years. There I got to travel the world, learn from the best, shoot video, work a bit on the editing desk and have a taste of the days where newspapers had money and weren’t falling apart.
Once I started having a family, I decided to take a break from newspapers and went to work for a governmental agency where I learned how to be a better videographer, develop my own web series, get my drone license, and decide that corporate work just isn’t for me.
I recently left that job to manage a small but wonderful team of dedicated visual journalists for the local NPR station and their sister music station. From filming musical performances to working with my staff to edit videos and curate photo coverage it is a busy and rewarding position to be in.
When not working I’m learning teen slang and embarrassing my daughter, volunteering on the board of a non-profit preschool, watching too many social video posts, spending time with my family (which includes a failed service dog given up for adoption and the world’s smallest and loudest cat), listening to too many audiobooks (need a rec? I have plenty) and planning trips.