I have been in love with Rapid City since I was a little girl and my family visited regularly from Iowa to stay with relatives in Piedmont.  I have fond memories of Dinosaur Park, Wind Cave, Custer State Park and Downtown Rapid City.  My favorite destination was The Rushmore Mall though, it really felt like we were in the big city when we shopped, ate and played there.  Family crisis moved us here in 1991 where I was a Sturgis Scooper, graduating in 1995.  During my High School years I sadly lost both of my parents.  This massive loss shaped me whether I liked it or not.  In some ways I missed out on important teenage developmental markers, but in most ways it made me a strong, independant young woman who carved a path through life with tenacity and courage to do it my way.  I started by doing the one thing that I loved the most.  I moved to Albuquerque to study Dance at the University of New Mexico. These studies had me dancing professionally across New Mexico and to the Austrian Alps.

Upon graduating with my BA in Dance I returned to the Black Hills and opened Barefoot Dance Studios in 2007.  I'm proud of the success of that small business and gained so much first-hand knowledge about, not only children and families, but also the hardships of running a small business in Rapid City. Since selling Barefoot in 2023, I shifted my focus to become a shopkeeper and textile artist, meanwhile being the best mother I can be to my incredible daughter Elsie (15). Now, I’m the proud owner of Blissed, which is located downtown.

* President of the Dance Network of South Dakota 2011-2020

*East of 5th Board Member 2015-2019

*Flutter Productions/Black Hills Works 2008-2012

*Community Connections Award/Black Hills Works - 2010

*National ANCOR Foundation Winner (Community Building) - 2011