Wednesday, August 26, 2020 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
9
Entrepreneur artist seeks to bring joy to Sisters
By Katy Yoder
Correspondent
When she was 30 years
old, Kelly Rae Roberts dis-
covered it9s never too late to
start playing with paint. After
an early career as a clinical
medical social worker, she
felt a calling to seek a more
creative and joy-filled life.
Her generous heart was
brimming with possibilities.
She wrote a book and pro-
duced compelling images and
ideas that generated lucrative
licensing deals. Her dream to
share the joy she9d found was
realized, and her artwork and
insights were featured in gift
shops and home décor stores
around the globe.
Then she and her fam-
ily decided to make Sisters
home. They were seeking a
slower pace with more com-
munity and heart-centered
connections; but opening
a store wasn9t part of their
plan. Then building own-
ers, Dana and Nancy Bratton
contacted Roberts about
an opening in their Hood
Avenue building, and she
was intrigued. It was the
first of many serendipitous
moments that helped Roberts
and her family decide to open
a retail store and food truck
in Sisters.
<Having a vegan food
truck has been my husband
John9s dream,= Roberts
said. <The Brattons were so
excited about the idea. Within
48 hours, we were signing
leases for both spaces.=
The whole family is
contributing.
<We were in Portland for
20 years, but we9ve always
loved Bend and Sisters,= said
Roberts. <So, we moved here
and so did my parents. Now
we live just a few blocks
from each other. My dad
helped us build out these
spaces; he9s been such a big
help.=
Roberts wanted to create a
shop for creative people, and
a space blooming with color.
Every part of SoulShine
& Co. has been carefully
curated from bright, cheer-
ful color combinations to a
pleasing collection of vin-
tage light fixtures, displays,
and of course, the products
she carries.
<I have a lot of artist
friends, like Carrie Schmitt
whose paintings are cur-
rently featured in the shop,=
said Roberts. <I thought her
flower paintings were perfect
for our opening month.=
Outside the dressing room
is a sign that says, <Wear
Your Joy.= The concept came
from Roberts9 early years as
a mother.
<I found myself still wear-
ing maternity clothes and
sweats. One day I found a
pair of cowgirl boots that just
spoke to me and I purchased
them. Those boots really
inspired the idea of wear-
ing my joy. Even if I want to
wear a pair of sweats, they
should be sweats that delight
me. I9ve been doing this
practice of wearing my joy
for about 10 years. I created
an online course called, Wear
Your Joy. It9s been taken by
thousands of people. I deeply
believe we9ve got to be in
love with everything we
own, whether it9s a piece of
clothing or a candle.=
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Almost everything in
SoulShine & Co is produced
by small-batch, women-
owned companies; with a few
larger manufacturers to help
round out the price point.
The recent protests and upris-
ings supporting Black Lives
Matter continue to inspire
Roberts to carry pieces made
by people from culturally
diverse backgrounds.
<I look at who my ven-
dors are and if I9m includ-
ing Black, Indigenous, and
people of color,= she said.
<We9re doing that, but I
know we can do better.=
The store9s EnergynSoul
clay earrings are made by
Quan Santos, a Black single
mother from Virginia.
<We love her work!=
said Roberts. <We also
carry books written by Pixie
Lighthorse, an Indigenous
woman from Redmond. All
of Lighthorse9s books sell
out fast. As an artist, offer-
ing a diverse array of fair-
trade items bringing joy and
a feeling of belonging to
all customers is important.
I work extremely hard to
choose vendors making ethi-
cal and sustainable choices
when producing their wares.
A beautiful example is the
responsibly-sourced smudge
PHOTO COURTESY IN HER IMAGE PHOTOGRAPHY
Kelly Rae Roberts has launched SoulShine & Co. in Sisters.
sticks created by a Native
person on her Native lands.
The more we practice and
understand how we can
be more inclusive in our
choices, the more opportuni-
ties there are for growth on
a personal and community
level.=
SoulShine & Co opened in
mid-July and their food cart,
Nourish opens in September.
There9s a new mural painted
by artists Katie Daisy and
Karen Eland on the store9s
exterior wall.
<It9s a selfie-mural,=
said Roberts. <There9s a big
owl, rabbit, elk, and other
local wildlife.= The mural
is another realization of the
dream for a joy-filled, happy
life. <We9ve met so many
friendly locals. Sisters is a
very welcoming city.=
To learn more about
Roberts9 career and offerings,
visit KellyRaeRoberts.com.
SoulShine is located at
351 W. Hood Ave. in Sisters.
Store hours are Wednesday
through Saturday 10 a.m. to
5 p.m., and Sunday noon to
5 p.m.
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