Today we’d like to introduce you to Jessica Enos.
Hi Jessica, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I was born in Glendale, CA in 1987. Our family was one of many who migrated to the Antelope Valley in the 90’s because housing was more affordable. I went to junior high and high school here, basically living a very normal life. I married my high school sweetheart. He enlisted into the United States Air Force and off we went to live in North Dakota for eight years. While in ND we had two of our three children. My husband was medically retired from the Air Force, so back to California we came. We thought this move back home would be temporary, but God had other plans. We moved back in 2019 and have remained ever since. We had our son in 2021, completing our family.
I am a woman that wears many hats. I’m a wife, a mother, a business owner, and an activist. My number one priority is always God then family. As a mother my responsibility is to raise up the next generation of God-fearing children, to navigate this world, and to become profound world changing individuals and followers of Christ. In doing so, I must lead by example.
I became a business owner back in 2022, with Anchor of Hope Art Studio. My dream was to always teach art, with focus on kids ages 5-17. Art is subjective. There is no right or wrong way to do art. This is the opposite of what our children are taught, and I wanted to provide an outlet for them to unleash their creativeness without the need for perfection. Anchor of Hope is somewhere youth can utilize a creative outlet to find peace in a very chaotic world. My slogan is: changing the world, one creative mind at a time.
Aside from being a business owner, I am also a community leader. This is something I am proud of and believe we need more in this world. I love bringing awareness to issues and creating conversations. I find that with dialogue and communication we can discover that many of us share the same values. My main priority is to spread the truth, create change, and allow people to come to their own decisions based on the information given. So, what does this look like? Currently my group, AV Parents for Education, is a group of God-fearing people who so desperately want to protect children. We are currently working on initiatives to give parents a loud voice in their child’s education, working with local organizations and politicians to bring awareness and prevention to child/human trafficking, and working with other community leaders on ways to make our schools safer for our children against bullying (in all its forms). Like I mentioned before, it all starts with a conversation. Just imagine how much change we could bring to this world if people just talked to each other!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
Definitely not a smooth road. I believe that being successful means taking risks. Each risk does not bring immediate success. You will fail but it’s how you respond to the failure that matters. In owning a business, you have the vision but executing that vision isn’t always easy. As a creative person, I know what I want and how I see it unfolding but don’t always have the intricate details aligned or planned. As a community leader, I feel the solutions to community issues are so simple/black and white but don’t always put together the legalities of what those changes would require. Roadblocks do popup and require innovation and different ways of thinking to get to the ultimate goal.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
Art has always been a passion of mine. I went to college to become an art teacher but mistakenly changed my major from art to business because I thought that degree was more “usable.” But I never lost my desire to teach children the amazing world of art. Art has a way of connecting our mind, body into an expressive outlet. Knowing how therapeutic art and creativity is to me and how it helped me navigate some not so nice teen years, I knew it was something I needed to share with other children. To give them this space free of chaos, free of judgement, somewhere they could be their true authentic selves.
Ever since becoming a parent, I became more hyper aware of what my community lacked and needed attention. I noticed that very few people in my community were speaking up about these things and decided to be their voice. If no one is going to show up for kids in our community, then I will.
I am most known for my role as a community leader. I am known for my willingness to say the quiet parts out loud and to not be afraid of what people may think. This attitude and desire for change has opened many doors for me to meet with people including politicians and other community leaders who have the ability to bring about the desired change. Standing up for truth has given me a seat at the table and allowed me to be a valued voice in my community.
In terms of your work and the industry, what are some of the changes you are expecting to see over the next five to ten years?
As a community leader I see more and more people putting aside their differences and coming together for the greater solution for issues within communities. I see the group I started influencing other communities to do the same. We will never agree one hundred percent with everyone we come into contact with nor who we invited to sit at the table to find solutions, but we all must find a way to work together.
As an art teacher, I pray that I am able to guide children into unleashing their creative side. I tell all my students that anyone can do art, anyone can draw, and anyone can paint. Removing the stigma that art is hard or that perfection needs to be the goal. I foresee this concept growing my business and allowing me into arenas that will empower our youth.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: @AVParents4Education; @anchorofhope.artstudio
