Escape Adulthood is fueled by some pretty amazing and talented people. And nice, too.
Jason Kotecki is the co-founder of Escape Adulthood and delivers the speaking programs, makes the pretty pictures, does a bunch of the writing, and oversees the design and overall direction of this ship.
Where I Grew Up: Peru, IL
Some of My Previous Jobs Include: Scorekeeping Little League games; Washing cars for a GM dealership; Drawing a sports panel cartoon; Assembling widgets at a nail factory; Teaching college art history; Newspaper ad layout designer; Creating web sites.
Why I Love Working Here: I get to make a living doing what I love every. single. day. Plus I get to work with and meet really cool people and travel to cool places.
Artistic Influences: I’ve always been fond of a wide variety of artists, among them being Norman Rockwell, Drew Struzan, J.C. Leyendecker, Vermeer, Monet, and Alfonse Mucha. On the cartooning side, the top two are Charles Schulz (Peanuts) and Bill Watterson (Calvin and Hobbes). I also have great admiration for Pat Brady (Rose Is Rose), Michael Fry and T Lewis (Over The Hedge), Michael Jantze (The Norm) and Gary Larson (Far Side). Comedians such as Bill Cosby and Jerry Seinfeld have been key influences on me, in terms of their ability to find humor in the everyday little things.
When I Was a Kid, I…adored Michael Jordan, Ryne Sandberg, Michael J. Fox and Han Solo, wanted to be George Lucas, and was afraid of the Thunder, the Lightning, and the Fire Trucks (among other things).
The One Event From My Childhood that had the Greatest Impact on What I Do Today Was: When my third grade teacher, Mrs. Smith, asked me to draw Santa Claus for the school newsletter. Her saying that I could draw him better than her blew me away, and it instilled in me the confidence to pursue art.
The Lesson From Mom I Still Live By Is: Try it, you might like it. (Although I fought this one for a long time.)
My Favorite Childhood Toy(s) and Book(s): My favorite toys were my vast collections of Star Wars stuff and baseball cards. My favorite books: Where the Wild Things Are, George’s Marvelous Medicine, and anything by Shel Silverstein.
My Favorite Way to Fight Adultitis Is: by wearing fun, retro t-shirts, browsing the children’s book section at Barnes & Noble, and asking lots of questions.
Stuff I Love: Long walks by the lakes here in Madison, spending hours and hours, at Barnes & Noble, cooking, photography, travel, art supply stores, watching NFL football, Seth Godin, Apple, Arby’s, live music, art museums and galleries, Jars of Clay, Joshua Radin, Jon Foreman, Switchfoot, Toad the Wet Sprocket, The Weepies, U2, Andrew Peterson, Good Old War, Dave Matthews, Michael W. Smith, Ray Lamontagne, The Beatles, watching really good movies (Empire Strikes Back, Field of Dreams, The Crow, The Dark Knight, anything by Pixar), Seinfeld, Arrested Development, Parenthood, Ed, Gordon Ramsay, Reese’s Peanut Butter Cup Blizzards from Dairy Queen, thin crust pizza, cherry pie, shrimp, fresh crab, Krispy Kreme doughnuts and sugar laden cereal (especially Cinnamon Toast Crunch and Oh’s).
What I Know So Far: Be yourself. Be nice. Question everything. Don’t take yourself too seriously.
Jenna Regis
Where I Grew Up: Reddick, IL
Some of My Previous Jobs Include: Grill Crew at McDonald’s, Assets Protections Specialist at Target, Assistant Manager at Dollar General, Justice and Social Action Coordinator at the Newman Catholic Student Center, Child Wrangler at Red Caboose Afterschool, VP of Customer Service for Fall Protections Pros.
Why I Love Working Here: It’s not enough in life to have a Bucket List of adventures, you need a mission to fulfill using your gifts. Being a part of the fight against Adultitis allows me to use my talents to help touch lives and make the world a more awesome place to play.
When I Was a Kid, I…loved losing myself in books while perched in the branches of an apple tree.
The One Event From My Childhood that had the Greatest Impact on What I Do Today Was: When I was 8 years old we moved from a two flat on a city street to a farmhouse on a country road. My third grade year brought be some of the best childhood experiences of creativity, curiosity, friendship, and fun.
The Lesson From Mom I Still Live By Is: Love the important people in your life unconditionally.
My Favorite Childhood Toy(s) and Book(s): I have a well-worn stuffed dog named Henry and a dog-eared copy of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory both imbued with warm memories.
My Favorite Way to Fight Adultitis Is: Nothing treats my Adultitis symptoms like playing the the snow!
Stuff I Love: blowing bubbles, jumping in puddles, playing with kids, fantasy stories, sci-fi tv, superhero movies, fairytales, penguins, the sound of waves, the smell of old books, gazing at a sky full of stars, donuts, coffee, Mountain Dew, playing cards, camping, road trips, family get togethers
What I Know So Far: Everything that has happened in my life so far has brought me right where I’m supposed to be.