Before she wound up in La Porte, Indiana, Julia Kanestrom was all over the place, moving from spot to spot. It was a stroke of pure love that caused her to arrive where she is now, and she now leads a hard-working life in the humble Region.
“I've moved around a lot. My dad is an Episcopalian priest, so he ended up moving to various parishes, kind of all over the country. I was born in upstate New York, and then we moved to Cook County in Chicago, then to Connecticut. Then we came to La Porte, where I went to middle school and spent my freshman year of high school. In 2000, though, we moved to California and wound up living there for about 15 years. But I moved back to Indiana to be with my high-school sweetheart, as we stayed in contact with each other since I was 14,” Kanestrom said.
Prior to moving back to Indiana, Kanestrom was enrolled at a school out in California. From there, circumstances changed pretty quickly, and she was thrown into an entirely new life. As she was already at the college level, she allowed herself to switch things up and embrace her artistic desires in order to chase after her true passions.
“I was going to Modesto Junior College for history, but I transferred to IU (Indiana University) South Bend and actually changed my major to fine arts, with a concentration in drawing and painting,” she said.
Almost anyone can admit that post-graduation is a scary time, a bleak period when the possibility of different job opportunities seems elusive. On top of that, one is incessantly asking themselves, “How can I incorporate what I love and what I studied into my career?”
Once again, Kanestrom found that faint light in the darkness, which turned out to be something that she still pursues and participates in today.
Like it did for most people, COVID-19 rocked all kinds of worlds, especially the world of the individual. Habits were thrown off; common practices, whether it be going out to dine in public or hanging with friends at the park, practically became nonexistent and hard to experience. But on the bright side, COVID-19 paved the way for unique opportunities, opportunities that Kanestrom took advantage of.
“COVID-19 was a hard time. But while it was going on, I was volunteering for Arts in the Park. I think I began volunteering in 2019. At first, I was the art exhibit chair,” she said.
Kanestrom found success from her selfless volunteering efforts, building up strong relationships with the people that worked around her.
“I met Lisa Smithson, the executive director at the time, and I really got along with her. She suggested that I apply to take over her job since she was thinking about retiring and wanted to find a really good replacement. So I started off as an intern, but I soon became assistant director in January of 2021,” Kanestrom said. “That's when Lisa started stepping aside, allowing me to take on more responsibility. Then in June 2021, I took over completely, and it was this great learning experience for me.”
Taking one’s fervent joys into the workplace provides a stimulating work environment, and the ease with which Kanestrom has applied what she knows best with her job is truly incredible.
“With my job, I’ve also really enjoyed working on our website, keeping it fun in terms of our marketing materials. I didn’t major in graphic design, but I'm learning much more about it than I ever did in college. In my opinion, it’s cool to be able to bring a bit of artistic talent that way,” she said. “It's just so great being able to take what I learned from IU South Bend and incorporate more art into Arts in the Park. We're always trying to diversify.”
There’s no lack of influencers for Kanestrom, either, as many people have had a profound impact on the paths that she has decided to follow.
“Personally, I would say that all of my drawing and painting professors from South Bend have had the biggest influence on me. Specifically, Ron Monsma – he had never seen my work before, and he was kind of known to be a really strict teacher, so I found him very intimidating. He was really impressed with some of my earlier work, but he pushed me to be better, and I wanted to impress him; I wanted to show him that I'm not just average, I'm more than that. And throughout his teaching, over four years, I became one of his favorite students. And he’ll always be seen as a mentor to me,” she said.
Finally, as is the hope for everyone, one’s community can offer an amazing living experience, and Kanestrom is someone who is skilled at admiring others just as much as herself.
“In my community, there are so many people that are really comfortable doing what they've always done, people that I truly believe are pushing to bring more support to other organizations, and people who are willing to get out there and succeed,” she said.
If you want to discover more about the busy Arts in the Park organization and discover the work that Kanestrom constantly puts forth, its website can be found at https://artsintheparklaporte.com – in the process, maybe mark down some upcoming events and projects, such as the 2022 Summer Concert Series.