Where you grew up and your background can often have surprising effects on our lives and careers. We’ve asked folks from the community to tell us about how their background has affected them.

Skylar Sustin | Emotion & Trauma Release Coach and Healer

I’m from Santa Clarita, a city in LA county. I’m the oldest child of two and grew up in a really loving and safe home. But of course, it wasn’t perfect. Growing up, I was always pushed to talk about my emotions and work through them until there was some type of understanding of why I did certain things. However, most of the time my answers and understanding were always based on what my mom thought was right and never what I really felt. Read more>>

Ashley Moreau | Personal Trainer / Functional Movement Specialist

I was born in Massachusetts, in a city right outside of Boston, where my family resided until I was around 5 years old. We then moved to a small, rural-feel town in New Hampshire where we stayed until I graduated High School. I went on to go to college in a south-west city of Connecticut, where I studied Sociology and Psychology. When I moved back home to New Hampshire after college, I was trying to find jobs in my field, but was struggling with the ‘entry-level’ job positions that were requiring 3-5 years experience… fast forward a couple of years and I decided to follow this feeling in my gut to move across the country to California. Read more>>

Alyssa Dolleschal | Printmaker & Fine Artist

I am of Mexican and German descent and frequently use my upbringing to influence my artwork. I grew up in Los Angeles county where Chicano culture is prominent and proud and later relocated to Temecula, CA. My artwork frequently relates to my Mexican heritage, as that is the side of my family I grew up closest to. My maternal grandfather, a Bracero railroader, Immigrated from Zacatecas, México, and brought the family to East Los Angeles. Read more>>

Kristen Diaz | Graphic Designer & Illustrator

I was born and raised in Los Angeles, California. I come from a hard working family that encouraged my creativity. My mom had been a retail manager for multiple venues including toy stores such as Imaginarium when i was growing up. So i was surrounded by a fun environment where there was music and tools to help nurture my imagination. My dad is one of those guys that can fix just about anything. He was a plumber but also worked in different areas of construction. There were couple times where I would go with him to a job and had get my hands dirty, it didn’t mattered that I was girl. Read more>>

Tatiana Velasquez | Makeup Artist & Cookie Baker

I am originally from San Diego with a Mexican/Lebanese background. Ever since I was 13 years old, makeup has always been something I enjoyed learning about and putting on. I obtained a majority of my makeup inspiration from youtube videos. That’s where I learned how to apply makeup starting from mascara all the way to putting on foundation. I was motivated by watching many Youtube makeup tutorials on my own. Read more>>