When Casey was little and all the other kids at daycare were napping, Casey had to be put in a separate room. She refused to sleep and all she wanted to do was color. So, surrounded by glittery crayons and construction paper, Casey’s love of art began. You could say it was in her genes to be creative- Casey’s dad designed and built her family’s post and beam home, while Casey’s mom was the “cool mom” who provided glitter and crafts at every playdate.

As she got older, her artistry manifested in the form of dance, figure skating, and musical theater. Arts and crafts were a hobby while performing was the focus. When Casey was 16, her life was changed forever. She was the passenger in a car when another driver ran a red light- texting- driving over 65 mph and t-boned the oncoming car, directly hitting Casey. Doctors in the hospital were amazed at her survival, but prepared Casey and her family for a future where she might never be able to walk again. Being confined to bed rest and a wheelchair, her doctors told Casey’s parents to give her an “artistic outlet” to take the place of dance classes, play practice, skating competitions… Her mom grabbed all the paint she could find and crossed her fingers that this outlet would be therapeutic, distracting, and motivating. Little did they all know, it was the beginning of Casey’s beautiful, meaningful life as an artist.

If you’ve met Casey, you know the happy ending of this scary story is that she defied the odds and not only was able to walk again, but was able to return to the ice, majored in Theater and Dance in college, and became a professional dancer/actress for over a decade… Not only did that chapter of her life make her a HUGE advocate for not texting while driving, but she realized how important art is- for ones creating it and the ones receiving it. What better purpose in the world than to bring color, joy, and magic to each and every day.

Casey toured the country for years as a performer, and when she wasn’t onstage, she was teaching live acrylic painting classes throughout NYC and California. She was passionate about sharing her love of art with others and began creating art of her own- branching out from painting to different mediums and skills like woodworking, sewing, upcycling, and digital illustration. The name “Rally Bird” was born when Casey and a friend were running through Central Park and a flock of birds was led from the ground and into the sky by one little bird. They decided this bird was the one saying “Come on, everyone! There’s more to see, more to do! Let’s go!” Casey was inspired to “be that bird”, to be the one that is always ready to do more, make more, share more... To go outside our comfort zones, to boldly fly towards new horizons and share the view with others seems like a pretty wonderful life- after surviving a car accident and getting to stick around this beautiful world, Casey plans to continue doing just that.