Thank you for visiting my portfolio, featuring design work, honors program accomplishments, and travel adventures.  If this is your first time visiting or we haven't met personally, then there are two important things for you to note:

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 1. I truly enjoy bananas.

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 2. I am heavily inspired by my Irish heritage, hence my usage of traditional Irish Gaeilge.

(Even my name Áine ("awn-yah")  is Gaelic for Anne.) 

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3. I am a mathlete, a pianist, a singer, a linguist, a Girl Scout Gold Award recipient, a traveler, a writer, & a waterfall chaser.  

4. I'm a DESIGNER.  A MUSICIAN.  An EXPLORER.  A FRIEND.

 

I left my small central Illinoisan hometown of Morton, Illinois (the pumpkin capital of the world!) to chase my dream of studying fashion design in the prestigious DAAP program at the University of Cincinnati where I am currently a 4th year honors student and Cincinnatus scholar.  

       Outside of my design studios, I sing in the St. Monica-St. George Parish Liturgical Choir, mentor inner-city high school students with DAAP Alliance, work closely with DAAP admissions to guide prospective students through DAAP Ambassadors, and am a brother in Alpha Rho Chi Professional Fraternity.  Additionally, I volunteer in the Emergency Department at TriHealth Good Samaritan Hospital in Cincinnati to help bring a hopeful spirit to an environment filled with chaos and fright.  I also enjoy volunteering my time babysitting homeless children in urban Cincinnati.  I absolutely love having a full schedule to maximize my opportunities to meet new people and explore new places. 

       I also continue to be heavily involved in working with students with special needs.  For the past six years, I devoted a large portion of my life to The Penguin Project, a program providing children with developmental, intellectual, learning, and neurological disabilities the opportunity to act, sing and dance in a musical theater production (http://penguinproject.org and http://penguinprojectpeoria.org/).  One goal of mine in my fashion career is to design trendy clothes for my friends with special needs. 
 
      I am learning everyday to allow the space between where I am and where I want to be to inspire me and not to terrify me.   Additionally, my ultimate goal in life is to simply be the smiling face of a friend.  I am amazed by the complexity of life, and I believe that every individual is powerful beyond measure.  I try to incorporate these beliefs into every aspect of my work to achieve my greatest potential.

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       Enjoy my portfolio, and please don't hesitate to contact me for any reason!

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With love & kindness,

 

 Mariaáine

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