Theme: Community Resilience

In resilient communities, individuals, organizations, and systems withstand stresses while strengthening their infrastructures and spirits.

Wyatt Center for the Arts
Alumni Drive
Louisville, Kentucky, 40205
United States

Clay Marshall

Co-Owner Bourbon Tango

Clay Marshall earned a degree in Community Entrepreneurship from the University of Louisville in 2007 and worked for Commonwealth Theatre from 2002 to 2019 as a teacher, technical assistant, and eventually, technical director. Clay met his partner Cherie Lanier in 2015, and they dreamed of using dance to teach people to radically accept the strengths and weaknesses of themselves and others, balancing self-care with making meaning. This dream became the mission of Bourbon Tango, a social dance studio for teaching living and evolving dance styles that allow people to embody music. Clay and Cherie plan to grow Bourbon Tango into a social dance cafe, a space for people to enjoy music, movement, and one other 7 days a week.

DeWana Hadder

Director, United Community, Metro United Way

A dynamic and energetic thought leader from Louisville, KY, DeWana Hadder has spent 17 years in the nonprofit sector. She is currently pursuing a Doctor of Philosophy in Education Sciences with a concentration in Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation at the University of Kentucky. DeWana uses her life experiences as testimonials showing that regardless of situation or circumstance, every person can become whoever they want to be. She enjoys spending her spare time volunteering, traveling, and investing in family and friends.

Gin Spaulding

Author, Speaker, Educator, Child Advocate

An author, educator, and speaker, Gin Noon Spaulding specializes in helping families and organizations understand the challenges faced by children with sensory issues. Gin's mission is to promote true acceptance and inclusion for all children, regardless of their differences. After completing a Bachelor of Arts in Education at Austin Peay State University, Gin began teaching in Louisville, KY before earning a Master of Education in Educational Counseling from the University of Louisville. Eventually retiring from teaching allowed Gin to focus on her writing career, and she serves as a volunteer for Salvation Army, Blankets of Hope by Maleah and Friends, and Delta Sigma Theta sorority.

Jim Loring

Humanitarian Photographer

Jim Loring has served as chief photographer and photographic editor for numerous aid organizations, including Care International, World Vision, Save the Children, Childfund, and Tearfund UK. In 1997, Jim began teaching at the Surrey Institute of Art & Design in the UK and later became Program Director for Photography at North Georgia Technical College. He is an award-winning humanitarian photographer and has used his journeys to Malawi, Afghanistan, and Lebanon to document struggles of refugees, the human cost of climate change, the work of HIV/AIDS programs, and the positive impact of education projects.

Michael Kopp

Assistant Professor (Art Department)

Michael Kopp is an Assistant Professor of art at Bellarmine University and the Founding Director of The Social Practice Lab. With the mission to narrow the health equity gap, this non-profit organization serves as a host for collaborative projects addressing the intersection of public health and public art. Community-engaged work has been the cornerstone of Michael’s artistic practice, through which he strives to move the artist from the studio and into positions of community leadership. Employing the conceptual framework of glitch theory, Michael analyzes the politics and processes of HIV transmission through the production of contemporary queer visual and social practice art. He has presented his research at The Ohio State University and Indiana University and exhibited internationally at the Millepiani Gallery in Rome, Italy in 2019.

Steven Michael Carr

Development & Operations Director

Having told stories for The Moth, Double-Edged Stories, We Still Like You, USA Today's Storytellers Project, and Louisville Fringe Fest, Steven Michael Carr is the founder of SMC Story Coaching, which he uses to help nonprofits, businesses, and thought leaders tell compelling stories. He also produces two storytelling shows, Tales from the Jukebox and Come Out Lou. When he isn’t working as the Development & Operations Director for IDEAS xLab, he may be jogging through Old Louisville with his beloved pitbulls, Mercy Mae Marlene and Kiley Vangeline Grace, deejaying for Louisville Silent Disco, or enjoying a cold beverage with his husband David at Old Louisville Brewery.

Zoey Parker

Student at Bellarmine University (CJS Major)

Although she is studying criminal justice at Bellarmine University, Zoey Parker promises her grandfather taught her nearly everything she knows, and she is always thankful for his guidance. From film and photography to bluegrass music, Zoey loves expressing herself through many forms of art. She has been playing bluegrass music since the age of 7, sharpening her skills on the banjo ever since. Zoey’s confidence as a musician grew throughout her years in high school from attending Thursday night jam sessions at a local coffee shop with her grandfather and his friends.