Carlos McCray

“Hi, my name is Carlos, and I’m adopted!” That’s how I used to introduce myself to people when I was a wee little Tasmanian devil. Now I’m known to most as Smiles and am a grown Tasmanian Devil, full of energy (until it’s time to sleep, then I knock out faster than you can say goodnight). There’s not much I don’t really enjoy doing, and trying new things is just about my favorite thing to do in the world. I think of it like this: there was a time in my life that I had never tasted a one-day-old, cold corner piece of a brownie, with a cold glass of milk. That mouthful of sweetness is just about my favorite treat, although since being vegan I can’t seem to replicate the exact taste. The way I see it, there’s gotta be something else I’ll love as much as a cold corner piece of brownie with milk, so I try everything, and it goes the same with experiences and traveling. I have an MSW and am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. I’ve been in and out of homes throughout San Diego’s underserved communities since 2006 helping people with anything from parenting, teaching life skills to children who are severely emotionally disturbed, empowering people to get their life on track, guiding people through sobriety from substance abuse and all that comes with it, to reunifying parents with their children. What I’ve learned from working with all those children and adults is, there is a ton of untapped potential out there. Regardless of what part of the world I’ve been (Ukraine, Spain, Mexico, Europe, Japan, South Korea, etc.), or how much money someone has (or doesn’t have), I have come to realize that everyone wants to be happy, it just looks a little different depending on who you are. I currently teach Social Work courses at Cuyamaca Community College, as well as a class I was fortunate to create for SDSU’s Honors College, titled Purpose, Perspective, and Human Connection. I also spend time as a Child Mental Health Clinician at a 6-bed women’s recovery home. I spend most of my free time exercising, playing all sortsa sports (mostly soccer these days), doing things outside, messing with cars, giving back to the community in different ways, trying my hand at art, and learning. While running a nonprofit I started a few years ago I was fortunate to have crossed paths with an amazing woman, Melanie, who is now my wife, and her two little ones. Now I get to experience being a step-father, a non-stop experience which I will most definitely have to write a book about later lol.

Kristina Israel

Hi! I’m Kristina. I’m an Excel junkie and get-it-doner. I am an only child and was born and raised in San Diego, with a short stint up in Oregon during grade school; this allowed me to have memories of cutting down our own Christmas tree and blueberry picking at the farms down the road from us. I’m a University of San Diego graduate and received both my undergrad and Masters in Accounting and Financial Management there. I’ve been working as a corporate accountant and project manager for over 10 years. I get excited about making things efficient, planning things, analyzing numbers, and am obsessed with real estate investing. And you guessed it! I got a spreadsheet for that too. I used to spend a lot of my spare time salsa dancing which is how I met my husband Joe. At one point we even were on a salsa team – a beginner team… no dancing with the stars moves going on here. It was INCREDIBLY fun! Nowadays, we like to spend our spare time playing strategic board games (Terraforming Mars anyone?), eating sushi, driving and looking at houses in different neighborhoods of San Diego. He’s a general contractor and I’m a real estate agent – so yes this is an actual thing we enjoy. =) I’m a personal development enthusiast so you can usually find me driving somewhere listening to an audiobook or podcast. But I wasn’t always this way, my journey with personal development started several years ago. Through consuming a ton of content, applying lessons learned, self-analysis and dissecting myself, and consistent work on improving my thoughts and actions have resulted in a happier me.

Tayari Shorter

Hey you! I’m ready. No really, in Swahili Tayari means ready. I’m a ready to laugh, groove, and move native San Diegan with a deep passion for all types of music, dance, and culture. I’ve backpacked through 17 cities, across 11 countries, and for the life of me, I can’t seem to shake the travel bug. When I’ve been on solid ground, I’ve enjoyed teaching women studies, tutoring kids who are surfing the colorful waves of autism, firefighting, and trying to better understand why people do the things they do. At the fork in the road, I chose the Psychological path and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from California State University San Marcos. I’m passionate about activating and helping people find their potential, and believe I have a gift to see the beauty in all. Having said that, I joined the board for the City Heights Community Development Center as well as Mid City CAN’s Peace Promotions Momentum Team (PPMT) to advocate for underserved communities as well as their youth. In my spare time, fitness of all kinds, tinkering with cars, and being outside in just about any capacity (as long as it isn’t too hot) can keep my smile from turning upside down.  

Yoichi Hamada

It’s Me, Yoichi!, and I’m here to tell you a little about myself. I grew up in Torrance, California with two older brothers. As the youngest of three boys, I had some perks (privilege & spoiled) and some life lessons (getting beat up and coming in last). As the youngest it was easy to follow in the footsteps of my brothers, but I learned that there are just some things that maybe one shouldn’t follow in someone else’s steps. Finding out who I am has been difficult and I still haven’t figured everything out yet, but I know I am competitive, I like playing soccer and golf, I enjoy being lazy sometimes and I love to listen to music (instrumental and love songs). I have a lot of hope and dreams, and am generally a happy person. Staying positive and seeing the brighter side of things have become important to me. I grew up in a family business (helping in every way) and am still grinding away at our business now incorporating my triple major in International Business, Operational Management, and Management. I like information (numbers, data, trivial), I like to plan (vacations) and do research. I know I learn better by talking to people, hearing their stories, and making conversations. My business takes me to Japan and while I was there (a few years ago) I was very fortunate to be introduced to a special person by a business partner (her father), and after years of going back and forth, I am very happy to say she is now my wife and we are finally living together in the US. She has a lot of different viewpoints from me but talking and sharing ideas always gives me new perspectives and helps me broaden my view about my surroundings and in life.