Episode 04: Mark's Story Today, Kristen and Kelly welcome colleague and friend Mark Travis Rivera. Telling stories is at the core of Mark’s purpose in life. He is an award-winning creative entrepreneur and the Chief Executive Officer and founder of The Professional Storyteller. As a writer, Rivera’s bylines include The Bergen Record, Herald News, The Star-Ledger, Fox News Latino, and The Huffington Post. He was also a contributing author in the anthology, Crisis, and Care: Queer Activist Responses to a Global Pandemic (PM Press, 2022), edited by Adrian Shanker. His debut collection, Drafts: An Imperfect Collection of Writing, was published in August 2017. He was also a contributing writer for Imagining: A Gibney Journal, where he shared his experience as a disabled choreographer and dancer. As a stubborn and determined 17-year-old, Rivera founded marked dance project (2009-2019), becoming the youngest person in the United States to create and lead an integrated dance company for disabled and non-disabled dancers. Inspired by his desire to dance as a person with cerebral palsy, he would go on to help disabled and non-disabled dancers alike find their voice as artists. As a Puerto Rican queer man, he was also one of just a handful of artistic directors of color in the disability dance field in the United States. As an independent disabled choreographer, Mark is determined to build a bridge between the main dance field and disability dance. As a speaker, he has addressed audiences at various institutions of higher learning, including Harvard, MIT, Rutgers, and NYU. As a diversity, equity, and inclusion consultant and facilitator, he has spoken to corporate audiences virtually in the UK, Canada, Mexico, Latin America, Israel, China, and India, to name a few. His TEDx Talk, “Embracing Yourself, Embracing Your Potential," was a smash in 2014 at Bergen Community College. ✰ Follow Mark - https://linktr.ee/marktravrivera ✰ Thanks for tuning in! How We Got Here gives individuals with lived experiences with mental illness and addiction a platform to share their journey and expertise. Each episode explores what it is like to live with mental illness, trauma, addiction, recovery, and much more. We feature a wide range of individuals and hope to create a space to spotlight these unique experiences. As well as our own. Join us as we figure out How We Got Here. ✰ New Episodes are dropping in 2024 bi-monthly on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, Google, and wherever you listen to Podcasts.✰ You can watch this week’s episode here: https://youtu.be/bIKqsLCo_Ns ✰ Follow us https://linktr.ee/thehowwegotherepod✰ Podcast IG @howwegothere_official Kristen @kristen.harootunian Kelly @kellybernadetteeee 988 has been designated as the new three-digit number for the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. 📞 You don'tweek's have to be in crisis to reach out; you might just be having a bad day. You can talk to a mental health professional 24/7, 365 days a year. And follow us here for the latest updates and episodes. If you’re interested in being a guest on the show, email us at TheHowWeGotHerePod@gmail.com
