So many of us parent the way our parents did – because it’s the only example we’ve had a chance to see up close. We think one of the ways to remedy this is to create a space where people can share stories of the things they feel their parents did right, so we can all learn from those examples.

Dero Quenson

My parents since I was very young, instiled into me that I can do whatever I want to do. And when I do anything, do it the best. That drove my confidence high but my work ethic even higher, I was never told what I couldn’t do, I always had the love and support to achieve anything. Even if it was small, I could do it. Read more>>

Jenniffer Smith

My parents instilled faith as my foundational fortitude, and a work ethic that will not quit. I saw them give to others as we struggled. They would simply say, “If we meet a need, God will never not meet ours.” They were absolutely correct, and my love to work and revere knowledge came from them as well; as they always believed in finding what was beautiful about the world, not wrong with it. Read more>>

Aleli Rodriguez

In the fabric of my life, the threads woven by my Ama and Apa form the most vibrant and influential patterns. Our home was modest, often teetering on the edge of scarcity. What made it even more challenging was that my parents were undocumented immigrants, on top of that my dad battled addictions and early childhood trauma. Yet, within these circumstances, my Ama’s spirit shone like a guiding light. Read more>>

Rachel Jaggers

My parents have always helped me cultivate my artistic skills. As a kid, I would love to create and so instead buying me “kid level” supplies, they would gift me beginner yet professional level stuff. I was not a child prodigy or anything. They supported me because I liked it. Nothing crazy or high end, but easels and paints that really helped me feel valid in stepping into my identity as an artist. They let me play and fail pretty risk free which gave me a lot of confidence. Read more>>

Jane Swane

Shoutout to my parents for real. They are both immigrants from South Korea. My siblings and I witnessed first hand a story of an immigrant’s “American Dream”. My dad came here with literally nothing and worked three jobs to support us. By pure example, my parents showed me what hard work and discipline really means, and instilled a great amount of integrity in me. Read more>>

Tanya (Yating) Li

I can confidently say that my parents’ trust in me has been pivotal in shaping my identity as an artist. It’s given me the courage to pursue my passions wholeheartedly and weave them into my work. Growing up, they adopted a unique approach to nurturing my learning attitude, always encouraging me to explore what genuinely interested me. Read more>>

Austin Tremblay

My parents taught me discipline at a very young age. They taught me to never give up even when everything seems to be going the wrong way. Nothing can stop hard work and dedication. Another attribute my father always instilled into me and my brothers is to have a positive attitude in every situation. Read more>>

Jona Monet

The whole idea of following your heart.. now they did not always believe art was going to be fruitful for me, or that I would be able to find success through the arts, but whatever I wanted to pursue they held my hand through the process and made sure I followed through on my end. Which in turn led me to pursue painting, graphic design, and marking my mark into history. Read more>>

Chelsea Lea

My mom is a jewelry designer and works professionally as a jeweler for a company in Atlanta. Before this she owned her own gallery and I grew up in that environment and she taught me from a young age how to work in the store with her. She taught me everything from a young age, I went to the post office, made the bank deposits, and cleaned and organized the store. She had her store from 1991 to 2014, and I helped her close the gallery which was very hard for both of us. Read more>>

Rosalind Wyatt

I suppose this question made me stop and think because as my parents get older they get more precious. My Dad is 92 and my mum is 88 and they are still learning and growing and showing me how … Growing up they gave us a lot of space to be who we were. There was always a structured home space which was harmonious, clean and wholesome. Read more>>

Lisa Story

I grew up with very little money and our family struggled a great deal in the early years while my parents put themselves thorugh college with three young children. They taught us with perceverence and a good work ethic, nothing was out of reach. My parents relied on us from an early age to help around the house, gave us responsibilities like making dinner, shoveling snow, and raking leaves; we learned what hard work was, and we didnt give up. Read more>>

Rochelle Smith

My parents have always emphasized honing my talents. As a child, they saw a desire and a gift and made sure I was able to express it in many ways. From church choir, to stage plays, dance, spoken word I have always had access to musical and spoken art in some form throughout my entire life. My parents, Ronald and Katherine Smith, made sure art was just as important in our house as any other form of work/learning. Read more>>

Gina Moore-Herring

My parents provided an unlimited amount of commendable actions, so it is challenging to highlight just one thing. But their unwavering consistency is absolutely what encompasses everything they did right. Read more>>

Kristin Rebecca

My parents have been integral to my pursuing and succeeding in my music career. They give me support and encouragement, perform music with me, and help with aspects of the business and touring sides of the industry. They also taught me a good work ethic. I’m not sure everything they have done for me and taught me could fit into one box. I am deeply grateful for everything they do and have done throughout my life. Read more>>

Shelly Wayne

I would not be who I am or where I am without my parents. First of all, I need to send out an apology to them for giving them gray hair at an early age. I was not an easy child and grew into an impossible teenager. I wasn’t a bad kid, I was just always pushing limits: mostly speed limits. I wrecked my share of snowmobiles and jetskis and actually ended up needing reconstructive facial surgery at 19 years old after wrecking a jetski. So… let’s start there… Read more>>

Joeming Dunn

Looking over all the possible discussions I felt this was the one that could be the most impactful. My parents both immigrated to the United States from Taiwan so they both had a unique perspective about both cultures and trying their best to integrate both me and my brother to the best of both worlds. So here are some of their things that impacted my life. 1) Cultures….they never said one culture was better than the other, Embrace them all and hope you find the good in both. Read more>>

Sarah Nettuno

Throughout my entire life, my biggest strength has been my innate creativity and artistic skills. Early on, my parents recognized this trait, noting that I most likely inherited it from my grandma Mary. Committed to nurturing my artistic abilities, they spared no effort in fostering my skills, boosting my confidence, and providing unwavering support. Read more>>

Anastacia Diaz

My parents have always been my biggest supporters from the very start and I’m am so grateful for them throughout my journey because I know of so many people who don’t get to have that type of support system during their decision to get a career in the art field. I vividly remember when I was in high school my parents had gone into a parent teacher conference and a teacher had brought up the fact that I wanted a future in Art ; at this point in time I wasn’t even sure what specifically but I knew I needed to be in a creative field; the teacher definitely disapproved and was very skeptical of this career path, she had gone to an art school prior, when brought up to my parents they told her that if this was what I wanted to do that they would support me 100% and believed in my abilities. Read more>>

Velle Kimble

My parents play a tremendous role in the person that I am today without them there’s no me. Growing up I always had dreams of being a star. No matter what career I pursued my mother and father always supported me, even when things didn’t always workout in my favor. Having 2 hardworking parents motivated me a lot. Though my life has been well lately due to my emerging success, I’ve also experienced the bad side of it as well. Read more>>

Kwaku Sefah

I grew up in a family house in West Africa, Ghana and my aunty and grandpa took care of me and my siblings. One thing they did right was to instill the love of God in us and also the power to be content with what we have and also the power to be selfless because at some point in time, we had experience having nothing and now experience having what we didn’t have when growing up. Read more>>

J’ana Price

My parents taught me about entrepreneurship and how to believe in myself. As a young author and entrepreneur, I’m able to share the gift of creativity with my peers. My parents have also helped me to explore my talents which allowed me to meet some amazing people such as Nakia Dillard, Nikki Turner, and Cathy Hughes. Read more>>