First Name: Daniel

Age: 25

Occupation: Communications Coordinator for JCCI & JAX2025

Favorite Childhood Memory: My mom came up with this thing called “Daniel Days” when I was little, and they were the best thing ever. There was no set criteria for earning them, but they only happened every once in a while when I had done something really good or achieved a major accomplishment. It was like having an extra birthday. The only rule for Daniel Days was that I got to choose the itinerary. I specifically remember that I earned one before The Lion King came out in theaters, so we went on opening day, saw it THREE times, and had ice cream for lunch. Pretty much the best day of my life.

Tell Me About Your Favorite Pet (past/present): My dog Athena is the sweetest little girl. She was born in Brooklyn and raised in Queens, so she’s a city dog at heart with a big personality! When we moved here to Florida, it was a big change for her. But because she’s from New York, nothing scares her! She’s incredibly loyal and fiercely protective over me. She thinks she still weighs eight pounds like she did when we got her, which is always proven not to be true when she goes to sit on your lap. Now that she’s adjusted to “the country life,” her favorite things to do are to chase squirrels in Memorial Park and walk along the river, where she first discovered dolphins. I love her to death! What Inspires You? I am inspired by artists in all art mediums that work to push boundaries and re-define genres. I’ve always been interested in the artistic side of pop culture, figures like Warhol, Grace Jones, Jeff Koons, and Lady Gaga. As a kid, I lived off of Whitney, Michael, Mariah, and Celine, and would pretend to have my own radio station or host a performance of all my favorite artists. I find NPR inspires me quite often, I love hearing stories from across the world in such an intimate way. At heart, I’ve always been a performer, a communicator, and a storyteller, so I have to find my inspiration in both the amazing and the everyday. It’s all about variety.

List One Thing On Your Bucket List: See a tornado in person. I have no interest in becoming a storm chaser, but I love watching their footage and the raw, awesome power of those storms. There’s something other-worldly about them. I think it all started with The Wizard of Oz, which I watched obsessively as a child.

Favorite Thing About Jacksonville: The energy that you can feel from the people that activate this community every day. I moved back here because there are so many great things happening in the city; there’s a real creative shift that’s growing here, and I’m excited to be a part of the movement. I used to think there was nothing to do in Jacksonville. Now, there are so many things happening that my biggest problem is schedule overlaps. What a wonderful problem to have! I’m proud to say that now, truly #ilovejax.

Any Hidden Talents?: My face is incredibly stretchy. Creepily so. I’m afraid one day it will lose all its elasticity and I’ll look like Droopy Dog.

Anything Random You’d Like to Share?: I’m a proud member of Jacksonville’s theatrical community. I graduated with a BFA in Theater from UF, and sit on the Board of Directors of The 5 & Dime, a Theatre Company here in town. The theatrical community here is absolutely AMAZING, and if you haven’t been out to a show yet, pick one that interests you and give it a try. You’d be surprised at the level of artistic performance available for very reasonable ticket prices in this city. I also write for a blog called Somewhere in the City. Our goal is to connect People, Places, and Happenings in Jacksonville by highlighting them and telling their story. The blog is getting more successful each day, and I’m glad to be part of something so positive and necessary for our community.

Website Address: www.SomewhereintheCity.com, www.JAX2025.org

Learn more about the I AM JAX Movement.