Erica Opstad and Keith Opstad

[00:02] ERICA OPSTAD: My name is Erica Opstad I'm 49 years old. Today is January 22, 2020. I'm at the New Children's Museum in San Diego, and I am here with my wonderful husband, Keith Opstad

[00:15] KEITH OPSTAD: My name is Keith opsted, and I'm 48 years old. Today is January 22, 2020. We are at the New Children's Museum. And the person that I'm interviewing today is Erica Opstad my best friend.

[00:29] ERICA OPSTAD: So, Keith when you were growing up, what did you want to become and who inspired you to kind of get that spark?

[00:39] KEITH OPSTAD: You know, I've been able to draw since I could walk. And my parents were both educators. They sponsored that creativity. But really, when I got into elementary school, I had two absolutely amazing educators who really gave me an opportunity to become an artist and explore that, because it was not something that I was very familiar with. My, like I said, child of teachers, they didn't know how to be an artist. We didn't have a lot of artists as friends, and they didn't know kind of what to do with me. Probably not the first time, definitely not the last. But Mrs. Hartley, I realized in first grade that I could draw better than she could. And so I got to teach the class how to draw President Lincoln as part of President's Day weekend back in the day, and actually still have the piece. And then fast forward a couple years to fifth grade. And I had a wonderful teacher for fifth grade that was Mrs. Jane Koneknick, who's no longer with us. But she really fostered my art, encouraged me to take risks, really promote the quality of work that I was doing in fifth grade. And gave me my own first one man art show in the library.

[01:37] ERICA OPSTAD: A one man art show?

[01:39] KEITH OPSTAD: Yeah. And got to open it up. And there was an open house, like a back to school night. And people walked around and made comments and people didn't know that something I could do. And it was really cool that a teacher took the time to foster that interest in me. And that really, that was a moment like, I, I want to be an artist.

[01:54] ERICA OPSTAD: That's very cool. And your parents probably being educators too, they probably saw that and they could probably figure out how to help you along, which is really pretty great.

[02:03] KEITH OPSTAD: And same question to you.

[02:05] ERICA OPSTAD: Who inspired me?

[02:06] KEITH OPSTAD: Yes.

[02:06] ERICA OPSTAD: And what did I want to become? It was 1984. I was in sixth grade and the Olympics were coming to California. They were going to be in Los Angeles. And I went to a really great school where sister Barbara Jones, she was my. My elementary school teacher. I was in sixth grade. We went K through 8. But Sister Barbara Jones said to me, Erica you really love to be creative. Let's do something to celebrate the Olympics. So, giving me all the power to do whatever I wanted, I created a flag parade with all of the grades. The students created their own flags. We made the medals out of paper mache. I called the fire department and asked them to come and help do a relay with a flare, which was our baton, it was our torch, and we lit a barbecue, which was our flame for the rest of the day. But it was the first time that a teacher really let me be as creative as possible, use resources all around me. And she also really encouraged me to bring the community into it. So having the fire department there, having the police department there, it was just a really great way to celebrate a pretty cool opportunity that came into our community. But, you know, that inspiration, it leads us places. And I know for you, Keith you mentioned that the teachers and the art educators that you were introduced to, but where did that inspiration actually lead you? What was your path and your journey?

[03:55] KEITH OPSTAD: Growing up in San Diego, I knew that I wanted to pursue something in the arts. Just didn't know what it was going to be. And my parents didn't want me to be a starving artist. And so I was a graphic design major at Cal State Long beach for my undergrad, got my teaching credential there, and I kept working with young people at the time. And that funny thing is, as much as I wanted to be an artist and change the world and make these really cool logos and people recognize my work, what I really did is loved working with young people and still being an artist. And so being an art educator was a natural combination of those two skill sets. So became an art educator, graduated Cal State Long beach, got a job teaching in Powell Unified Ceramics. Then I went into drawing and painting, AP Studio Art. And now 25 years as an art educator in Poway Unified. Still not sure what I'm going to do when I grow up, but what I love is having kids come into my class who have this either preconceived notion of what they can or cannot do or what art is supposed to be. And what I do is I basically open their eyes to what it can be. And there's a great quote by Walt Disney that says, I don't know if it's art, but I know I like it. And that can be anything arts and culture related, Whether it's dance, whether it's the symphony, music, theater, fine arts, whatever it happens to Be. So to get these kids to be able to open their eyes and their minds to the world around them and become thinkers. One of the obstetrics methodisms I use is memorize the rules, then learn to break them.

[05:22] ERICA OPSTAD: To break them, yes.

[05:23] KEITH OPSTAD: And not to create children of anarchy or anything like that, but in art there's not a black and a white way of doing it. There's so many different ways of creating a really well educated guess or solution. How am I going to create this composition? What colors am I going to choose? So to get the kids that are high school kids to be able to do this and just see them blossom, even the shy ones that all of a sudden can stand up in front of people or someone who had a speech impediment and suddenly gets in front of a class and can do a 5, 10 minute speech without even stuttering whatsoever. It just gives me goosebumps. And like I said, that's why I continue going to work and love being an art educator.

[05:56] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, just walking into your classroom, you can feel that. I mean, first of all, it is probably the most artistically decorated I've ever seen. My favorite thing in your classroom, though is your ghost of Bob Ross, which when you do your landscape teaching, Bob Ross is channeled through you.

[06:14] KEITH OPSTAD: And we don't do the impressionists, we do landscapes through the eyes of Bob Ross.

[06:19] ERICA OPSTAD: Bob Ross, yes. So that's one of my favorite things in your classroom. And your obstetric, of course. I also really love when you bring our son to your classroom. There are times when he comes home from that day so inspired the scratch board painting that he made those things. He's watching you do something you love. And honestly, Keith it's going to be the greatest thing for him in his life to see a parent doing what they love and teaching other people and inspiring them.

[06:49] KEITH OPSTAD: Right. And you know, as I'm coaching kids, thinking about what they want to pursue for a career, you know, find something that you've got some natural ability for.

[06:56] ERICA OPSTAD: Yeah.

[06:57] KEITH OPSTAD: Find something that you're passionate about and find something you can make a paycheck so you're not on mom and dad's dime, you know, for the rest of your life. And when you can find something like that, it's a magical thing because it's really not work, it's. You're doing something that you love. When I'm counseling my parents at back to school night, I know I finish some of them, but what I tell them is I say, look, this has never been a better time to be A working artist. I said, there's no such thing as starving artists. If you're a starving artist, you're not a good artist, number one. You're not a good business person. It's a lifestyle choice or some combination of the first three. And what I'm doing is saying, look, if we value our artists, we should properly compensate them. And whether you're a designer, you're working in film, you're a colorist, you're setting up a window display in a shop, you're using the elements and principles of art to make a living doing what you're enjoying and making the world a better place.

[07:46] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, you know, and it's interesting because the night I met you that rainy day on Valentine's Day, 1998. 1998, and we met, and the conversation we had, you had just come off of doing a videotape. It was part of what you were making money in addition to, you know, working as a teacher. But the conversation we had and then the realization through just conversation between you and I that we both really liked superheroes that, you know, came out. And from there, you know, it grew into this friendship and this love that we've had forever. And that's kind of the start of our own artistic journey in a way. Even from the day that you sent the tape to my parents, which was mission impossible.

[08:30] KEITH OPSTAD: Oh, can't forget that. That's right.

[08:31] ERICA OPSTAD: The videotape asking for to marry me.

[08:34] KEITH OPSTAD: That was going to implode in 60 seconds.

[08:37] ERICA OPSTAD: Yes, that's right. But it's. That's where I feel like where we started and growing into the couple that we were being really actively involved in the community. But being actively involved in the community came from the work that I do as a community investor, as a grantmaker, and the way I think about that, we as a family have been able to enjoy some really interesting experiences. And the one that always strikes me is when the new Children's museum opened up. And I think about it because not only did we have a small child that had just come into the world, one of the greatest gifts we could have ever had, but it was the day that I walked into the building, and I remember going downstairs very distinctly and even coming here today for the interview. You saw me peek over the edge, didn't you? And what I was watching. But down on the bottom floor is a space where kids can explore and they can create with unstructured play. It is the way I grew up. It's a bunch of fabric and things that you put together. You create Your gypsy costume or whatever it was, and you use your imagination. And so when I saw that, I felt like this is the kind of place I want my child to be. It's an asset to our community. And with the new Children's Museum building, I mean, it was just an amazing experience. So having to share that with the family was one of the best things. When we brought our little guy here for the first time, we just looked at the pictures. I mean, he's just. He is, like, just glowing through every single shot. But for me, when I think about our journey as a family, when I think about the art experiences we've had, the places that we've been within the city, this one stands out for me.

[10:26] KEITH OPSTAD: I agree. And, you know, even before the new Children's Museum, I had been here at the Children's Museum.

[10:32] ERICA OPSTAD: That's right.

[10:33] KEITH OPSTAD: And this was probably the mid-90s, where a group of other art teachers and I, we came down. We were just looking at different areas, and Poe's only 30 minutes north, but it's a totally different environment than it is downtown. And this is, you know, in the mid-90s, San Diego Downtown was not what it is now. This was just a big open warehouse and a bunch of parking lots and old buildings, and it's gone through this complete resurgence. And I gotta tell you, just seeing the unstructured play. And what I did, my takeaway that day was, you know, not every school has an art teacher. And I have been very fortunate in my career to not only have a job as an art. Art teacher, but there have been several of us on the same campus. So we can collaborate and bounce ideas off each other. And if a kid's fallen through the cracks a little bit, we can usually kind of help lift them up. But it's a really amazing thing. And so down here, this has provided so many thousands of kids over the last several decades, tens of thousands of kids, the opportunity to be a kid. And when I think about this museum, it's think, play, create, play, create. Okay? And it's funny because that's a very similar mantra to I have in my classroom. Mine is. Mine is think, have fun and create. But, well, you know, it's splitting. Splitting hairs there. But what I love is, you know, kids that would not have that experience because, you know what, they were probably born and put on this planet to be an artist, but if they don't have that opportunity to be creative and express themselves and interact with people of different colors and ages and dynamics, they'll never turn into or Reach their potential. So this has served such a huge need for all of San Diego for so many years. But I agree with you that it became a game changer when we started our own family and our own journey. And, you know, to be able to come in. I refer to the museum as often as being very fluid because you go to Disneyland and you know what? Experience is always going to be the same. I grew up going to museums in Balboa park where you were allowed to look but not touch. To have a museum where you're encouraged to touch, you're supposed to get dirty, you're supposed to make a mess. It's so against what many of us grew up with. And that's a fantastic thing to be able to push your own boundaries as a human being and then also as an artist. But to see those experiences through the eyes of a then 2 year old and now 13 year old, it is really cool. And I've been at this museum many times and it's never been the same experience. It continues to change and evolve and present new opportunities to experience.

[12:52] ERICA OPSTAD: I couldn't agree more. And when I think also about what that did in our connection to the museum, I feel like this is a similar path for a lot of people. When you start to really touch the exhibit, be a part of the exhibit, explore the exhibit, you actually become part of the museum. And through that, our connection grew by being more philanthropic with museum and providing our own giving to the museum, attending the most amazing, wonderful parties I've ever been to in my life and drawing our friends in. Right. There are friends of ours that don't have children, but even the experience to know that this is here and when they have nieces and nephews come into town, they have a place to take them and a safe place.

[13:39] KEITH OPSTAD: Right. You don't have to be a child to have fun at the inner Children's museum.

[13:41] ERICA OPSTAD: Oh my God, you're not kidding.

[13:42] KEITH OPSTAD: And most the people that I see are of course, inner children. However, it is experience. I saw grandparents out there laughing and having fun and little teeny tiny ones that are still in diapers running around and squealing and there's that just sound that is very unique to this amazing museum.

[13:58] ERICA OPSTAD: Yeah, well, you know, as we look at this as a community asset too, I always think about, you know, what's the next phase and where is it going to take us. And one of the things I've loved watching you over the years is how you've grown with your students to provide them different experiences and, you know, we talked about this earlier. It was one of the things that you do is the speed paintings. And I have to say this, Keith you know, I grew up in more in the sports in high school and I was a cheerleader and we got to dance in front of the school. You gave your students an opportunity to show how what an artist does by putting those four speed paintings in each corner of the gym and let them show their talent and their art. It's amazing. And I think that that recognition and what you've done for your kids to be able to have that Instagrammable moment is really, it's a wonderful thing and it makes them feel more part of the campus.

[14:53] KEITH OPSTAD: You know, I went to high school, went away, came back, and after 25 years, I was actually just talking to my kids today about empathy versus sympathy and understanding that common experience, that yes, you might be wearing different clothes, you might be listening to different types of music. And that was when they referred to 80s as old music. And I had to enlighten them. But anyway, it's. Every kid is good at something and it's real easy to put on your hoodie and be quiet and sit in the back of the room and just be there and then look for that clock to end and then rinse and repeat and have a whole day to start over again, to find something that those kids, like I said, are genuinely good at. They're so passionate about that. As a parent, that's what you want your children to have and thrive with. But yeah, to see those kids that are, whether they're traditional athletes or whatever, they've embraced that part of the high school experience. And to suddenly do a painting in front of 2,200 peers is incredible and in 45 minute period. And it's just something that makes Westview unique. But it's a memorable experience that those kids will never forget.

[15:55] ERICA OPSTAD: It's true. And it's also something that I love to share with other people across the country. I've had an opportunity to see other children's museums, discovery type museums. And I do have to say we've got a gem here. And one of the really interesting programs I saw out there was really teaching the art, I'm sorry, the business of art. And you know, wouldn't it be wonderful here someday to be able to showcase that with the students and show them how they go about doing that? You paint murals and you bring your students along, you show them how to price what they're doing and just all of those intersections, to me it's part of, you know, the community and who we are. But it's also helping those students kind of grow and nurture a potential career.

[16:39] KEITH OPSTAD: I think the most successful art educators that I've had the opportunity to work with or alongside have been wonderful artists. And I think that in order to really embrace that and continue to get better and demonstrate or even have street cred, as I would call it, my classroom, I didn't become the art teacher because I wasn't, Couldn't make as an artist. I actually do very well as an artist, but as an art educator, I really love that job. So, as you said, when I'm painting murals during the summer and I'm employing my former students, it's really fun to put my baseball hat on backwards and go out and paint. And I've got kids that come by.

[17:12] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, I helped you.

[17:13] KEITH OPSTAD: I know. That's correct. That's correct. But to have those kids say, hey, look, this is what you do. This is how you price your murals. This is how you paint a straight line on stucco. This is how you work with a client to teach all those things. I only learned that by accident.

[17:27] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, and it's apprenticeship, too.

[17:29] KEITH OPSTAD: Correct. And so that's exactly what happens. And so these kids now, after a couple summers, can go off and do their own thing. I honestly, I get sad when I don't have that connection with my kids anymore, but then also get an email or a text out of the blue saying, hey, Mr. O. Just so you know, I graduated. I'm working as an artist. I just did my first mural. I used the same paint that you taught me how to do. I didn't get paid until my client was 100% happy. I never use a color straight out of the can. Like, listen to all those things that you're not sure if young people are actually paying attention. And that's just that goosebump moment where you're like, wow, you're going to do amazing. And thank you for that compliment.

[18:03] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, I want to pivot a little bit, because we, you know, obviously had the people that inspired us, and then we were inspired here at New Children's Museum. But one of the things I love about our relationship and our marriage and our family is how we inspire our friends and our neighbors. And we were talking about this the other day with just the group of neighbors, and that is we inspire people to decorate more. Around Halloween, we've got the haunted mansion house with the paintings, the stretching portraits, the whole nine yards.

[18:35] KEITH OPSTAD: And that started before Blake was even born. It was just. We did it for us.

[18:38] ERICA OPSTAD: And people come, they walk into the house, they see what's new every year.

[18:41] KEITH OPSTAD: It's the Haunted Mansion meets Nightmare Before Christmas.

[18:43] ERICA OPSTAD: That's right.

[18:43] KEITH OPSTAD: And it's almost like a Where's Waldo? And we've got four projectors going and dancing ghosts, a big batch of soup to share with our neighbors. And there are people who we literally have. We only see once a year at Halloween.

[18:54] ERICA OPSTAD: I know. And now we have the maleficent house down the street, and we've got the Pirates house.

[18:59] KEITH OPSTAD: And it's spread.

[19:00] ERICA OPSTAD: It has spread.

[19:01] KEITH OPSTAD: It's amazing.

[19:02] ERICA OPSTAD: But that's what they were saying is that being a kid at heart and having the. I don't want to say courage. That might sound a little funky, but just having that, you know, hey, we can do this. And it's not goofy or geeky or anything else, but it really does inspire our friends. And the other piece of that is it enriches our lives. Who has a Thanksgiving where you dress up like a Viking and you eat giant turkey legs and everybody's there in costume having a really great time? But, you know, each of those themes for Thanksgiving, it brings kind of a new food, and it always brings an art project. And so that's something that. When I think about all the years and all the crafts that we've done with the kids this year was what, the shields?

[19:45] KEITH OPSTAD: Well, it's. What's so funny is the kids have gotten older now, and so they're all teenagers, and what they want to do is just be on electronics and whatever. But the funny thing is, with our Viking themed Thanksgiving, they're like, hey, is Mr. Obstetric or is Blake's dad gonna be doing the arts and crafts? And it's not little styrofoam plates. These were full on wooden Viking shields. And the thing is, they learned how to use some power tools. And, you know, it rained. It was like, it never rains in San Diego.

[20:09] ERICA OPSTAD: We had a yeti.

[20:10] KEITH OPSTAD: And we had a yeti, and we had a Viking ship, so. And everyone. I was wearing a cape, and you had on a fur cloak, and.

[20:18] ERICA OPSTAD: Come on, Keith you or Thor.

[20:19] KEITH OPSTAD: Okay. Life is too short to have a little bit of fun. And I think the opposites have a lot of fun. And it is completely contagious. And that's, you know, pull it all together. That's exactly what happens in this museum.

[20:28] ERICA OPSTAD: That's right. And it. That's what I'm saying.

[20:29] KEITH OPSTAD: We try to model that same behavior.

[20:31] ERICA OPSTAD: We do. We do. And all of the events that we've come here, we've brought friends along. They have had the opportunity to also dress up, whether it's superheroes or the Village People. All of those things just kind of. For me, I. I love this place as a big part of my heart.

[20:45] KEITH OPSTAD: Well, it's fun, too, because we've met people in our regular everyday life. They're like, we had to Google to see what you look like not in makeup. You kind of have to laugh at that because you try to be serious and a professional, responsible person in the community, and then all of a sudden, there's pictures of you with silver makeup dressed as Mr. Freeze or as Wonder Woman or in your Hawk Girl wing. So you never quite know what we're going to be doing next.

[21:09] ERICA OPSTAD: And that's part of the flavor of the ops studs. But, you know, it all comes back to me for that creative ability to bring that all together, invite people, and not make it scary, right? Make it something where one of the things that people say is, I can't even draw a stick figure. And I think to myself, well, okay, that's fine. But there are other things you can do, and you have an imagination, and it may be that you're musical. It might be like you said earlier, there's different forms of art, but even when you sit them down and you give them a bunch of material and they create. Oh, what did we do that one year at Easter? We made hats out of Easter baskets. And I think Amy still has hers. And she. It's like, it's the most glorious thing. It was a boho chic thing, but she walked around with that thing on her head all afternoon.

[21:57] KEITH OPSTAD: So you mentioned that I had a kid that said, I don't know how to mix color. I'm colorblind. I said, what does this one say? This one says yellow. This one says blue.

[22:05] ERICA OPSTAD: Read the bottle.

[22:07] KEITH OPSTAD: Yes, yellow and blue make green, but really equal amounts of primary make secondary colors. And so they said, okay. I said, are you really colorblind? They're like, I'm not colorblind. I was joshing them, like, totally fine. I said, so make me green, make me green. Okay, you are an athlete. You're fairly competitive. How many different greens can you make?

[22:22] ERICA OPSTAD: Oh, interesting.

[22:22] KEITH OPSTAD: And so this child went from, I can't mix green to they won. And suddenly a couple kids behind. There's kind of a fun, healthy competition. Like, well, so and so is doing this. Can I do this? I said, paint's cheap. Paper's even cheaper. Go for it.

[22:34] ERICA OPSTAD: That's cool.

[22:34] KEITH OPSTAD: And Next thing you knew, we had. It looked like a Home Depot swatch on the table because there were about a thousand.

[22:39] ERICA OPSTAD: Did he name a color after?

[22:41] KEITH OPSTAD: I don't think that would have been a different lesson plan, but we already spent too much time mixing green. But it was a really cool opportunity to be flexible and take someone that thought they couldn't do something and show them not only can you do it, you can do it better than anyone else.

[22:53] ERICA OPSTAD: Right, Right. Well, we're really lucky. Where we live, we've got, you know, culture, arts and culture all around us. This last year, when you got to join the arts Commission, was probably one of the proudest moments for me. I've been actively involved in the community for the 22 years that I've been with my company, US bank, which has been great. But prior to that, I had been at the city and knew the importance of our commissions and our commissioners. And, you know, honey, I will say I'm so proud of you and just makes me happy when I think about it, I get, you know, a little choked up.

[23:28] KEITH OPSTAD: But, well, it's been nice being empower unified. I've won some nice awards. I've been a teacher of the year.

[23:34] ERICA OPSTAD: It's passion, honey.

[23:35] KEITH OPSTAD: That's the really what made you want to do things beyond just power unified. And so when the opportunity came up to read some of the application for the Arts and Culture Commission, I thought, wow, what a really cool opportunity. That is so out of my comfort zone. And so I think that's another thing that's really important, that you have to continue taking risks, and you're not going to be successful at all of them, but you're also not going to grow as an individual or person if you don't at least take some of those risks.

[23:59] ERICA OPSTAD: Right. And you definitely did that. You offer your expertise, which is different than other parts of the commission, which I really do appreciate, how diverse they have, the different backgrounds of the people that are on it. And what it does for our city and our community is it makes it an opportunity for all types of art to come into play and funding things that are small, medium, large, whatever they are. But it's that, I think was a moment for me watching you get sworn in with the Daisy pen at the city Clerk's office. I'm like, oh, that's pretty fancy.

[24:31] KEITH OPSTAD: That's fancy.

[24:32] ERICA OPSTAD: But it was a really proud moment for me, Keith And I think that that the more maybe teachers could have those opportunities or maybe step outside themselves to offer some of that time would be pretty awesome, too, if people could take that opportunity. Because when I think about what inspired us, what inspires our friends now, what inspires the community, what I love about the power of play is that it brings diverse cultures together. And I see this in my work every day. I see it with the team that I lead across the nation. That's, I think, probably the greatest thing that I have is I get to see this art and this work in cities all around. Whether, you know, it's an urban core or a rural community. I love that arts brings those people together. It allows people to have a conversation.

[25:22] KEITH OPSTAD: It's that those commonalities.

[25:23] ERICA OPSTAD: Commonalities, right.

[25:24] KEITH OPSTAD: That the most advanced civilizations have still in common with the most primitive. So whether it is clothing, whether it's dance, music, food.

[25:33] ERICA OPSTAD: We talked about that at Thanksgiving. We were asking, what with the Fatiman. And every group has a fried doughnut of some sort, right? So whether it's called a beignet or whatever that is. But that, you know, for me, it's. I look at how awesome it is that we get to live in a place that opens that up.

[25:52] KEITH OPSTAD: And San Diego is the eighth largest city in the US and it's still a fairly sleepy military town, but we have some really cool opportunities here. And our weather is spectacular. But, you know, culturally, we aren't a New York, we aren't a Chicago, we aren't a San Francisco, but our weather is much better, and we surely could be. And just the sheer size.

[26:13] ERICA OPSTAD: That's why I live here and not in Minneapolis.

[26:14] KEITH OPSTAD: That's right, honey. But the quality of our arts and the quality of our arts education, if we help to promote that, everybody benefits and kind of like the Walt Disney, you know, quote that I said earlier, you know, if symphony isn't your thing, you love the opera, if fine arts isn't your thing, but you love the culinary arts. There is literally something for anybody on any given weekend in San Diego. And that's what I love so much about the city and raising our family here.

[26:41] ERICA OPSTAD: Right? And I think about Blake and all the opportunities he's had to, you know, touch and learn and really grow. And like I mentioned earlier, you know, he goes into your classroom, learns a skill. A neighbor next door brings over a skill. You know, she does those little mini art things. And he loves that. He's now in that the theater program where he's building the sets, and that is just thriving. It's awesome.

[27:04] KEITH OPSTAD: And so yesterday, you know, this weekend he's in the garage with a Phillips head screwdriver and showing and demonstrating that knowledge and respecting the tools, not fearing them.

[27:11] ERICA OPSTAD: That's true.

[27:11] KEITH OPSTAD: How many kids in college don't know the difference between a Phillips head and a flathead screwdriver?

[27:15] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, it won't be Blake. Awesome. Well, you know, as I, you know, think kind of about where we're going as a. As a city, as a community, as a new children's museum and as the opsted family, I have to wonder what the next, you know, thing is going to be. And when I think about the new children's museum, they've touched on some of the digital. They've touched on, you know, the technology, the STEM programs. But at the end of the day, when you use your hands and you just have, as we said, you can get messy. I still think that there is such high value in that, and I do. My future view really, is that that's going to come back, that more people are going to take that time, and maybe you call it an arts and craft, and it's more of a craft to people. Well, it's art. And so I. That's what I see in the future for this museum, is that it will continue to have some of that technology experience, but you can't not have the hands and eyes and mind in it.

[28:18] KEITH OPSTAD: I agree. And while a lot of the schools have gotten rid of the traditional fine arts programs or the vocational arts, there are so many kids. Okay. Not every kid's a visual or auditory learner. You need those kinesthetic learners, the ones that build your cabinets to fix your plumbing, that can see something and see a vision for a fence to define your house.

[28:36] ERICA OPSTAD: Ooh, I just had an idea. The new children's museum. School. Trade school. There we go.

[28:41] KEITH OPSTAD: There we go.

[28:42] ERICA OPSTAD: I got it. That could be the future vision.

[28:45] KEITH OPSTAD: Whatever happens, I truly believe it's gonna be incredibly successful, and it will be looking very different in 10 years than it does today, for sure, as the San Diegans change, as the culture changes, and it will continue to give traditional as well as contemporary art experiences to children of all ages.

[29:03] ERICA OPSTAD: Agreed. Well, and I will also say that we've got really great conventions that come into town which allow us to explore our inner superhero and comic book hero.

[29:13] KEITH OPSTAD: Mrs. Oppset, what's your favorite convention?

[29:15] ERICA OPSTAD: My favorite convention as well, and the new children's museum is part of it because they always have some wonderful things happening here. But I love the comic book convention and, you know, being married to you and meeting you when we first met and you telling me what you were dressed up of as Halloween, the year before. We were both characters in the same movie. And I love it. I love it with our family. It's something that we get to go out and walk around. I can walk around like Wonder Woman. No one knows who I am. But, you know, that's cool. I do love it. I think it's one of the things that the city has grown. And the new children's museum being right across the street from all of the action, They've opened the space up. They've had all sorts of great displays and activities, but it's by far one of my favorite. I can't wait for next year, because Wonder Woman 1984 is coming out. As I said, you know, 1984 is when I had my first big creative experience, you know, with my Olympic parade. But I'm looking forward to it. I am.

[30:16] KEITH OPSTAD: I agree. And like I said, when the entire downtown area transformed that middle to third week in July, it's magical. You don't even have to go inside the convention center to experience it. You never know what you're going to see, who you're going to see. But some of the best people watching cultural, artistic experiences cosplay, literally something for everybody, for everyone.

[30:40] ERICA OPSTAD: And the museum staff is so great to open up the doors to supporting the activities. And, you know, I actually will say, too, about this beautiful place. The people inside of it make it what it is. Judy Forrester has just been a gem and somebody who's grown the museum into a thriving, thriving organization. I'm so proud of every single person. I know what it takes. And when you walk in, especially on a really. On a rainy day, we don't get many of those. But on a day where there are tons of kids in here, they just keep the ball rolling. So that's another piece of the museum that always impresses me every single time I come. Even today, when we walked in, like I said, there's.

[31:26] KEITH OPSTAD: I heard squeals. The first noise I heard were squeals.

[31:28] ERICA OPSTAD: Yes. And the little girl.

[31:29] KEITH OPSTAD: No, it was actually the grandma, the grandmother, and then it was the little girl. And then it was just a fun conversation, a fun dialogue. And, you know, I think sometimes museums can get bad raps about, you know, not being for everybody. This is in a museum for the people, for everybody, for the kids, for the adults, for the young at heart.

[31:46] ERICA OPSTAD: Very true. So what is your favorite memory of the new children's museum?

[31:54] KEITH OPSTAD: When it opened and Blake was about 2, there was a Volkswagen bug on the exterior patio, and kids were invited to paint it. And There had already been about 20 coats of paint on it, and that got to where you could barely even define what car it was underneath. But kids wanted to come back with a different color of paint and add more to it and see if they left a mark from previous. That was a really cool part. There have been so many exhibits over the years designed for teeny, tiny ones. There was a couple exhibits at the teen cafe that gave teens something to do during the evening rather than, you know, getting in trouble or doing something out in the community. And it was really open beyond what the typical hours were to be. And that was kind of a game changer, because instead of a nine to five. You know, who said museums ever had to be open during that time?

[32:44] ERICA OPSTAD: True. True. And I would say a lot of the events that the museum has put together to really showcase all of the parts of the museum every year, their annual gala is one that I never miss. And it is something. There's something for everybody that attends. But, you know, we've dressed up, like, everything that you can imagine to come to them Village people this last year. We were techno people.

[33:07] KEITH OPSTAD: Superheroes.

[33:07] ERICA OPSTAD: Superheroes. But my. My one memory that just makes me laugh so much to this day was being at the. I think it might have been the superhero gala. And they auctioned off a. It was. What was it? A playhouse.

[33:23] KEITH OPSTAD: Can I tell us?

[33:24] ERICA OPSTAD: Yeah, well, yeah, you can. Yes. Okay. Maybe I don't tell this story.

[33:26] KEITH OPSTAD: Okay, so. So this was it. Yeah. There was actually Fashion Week.

[33:30] ERICA OPSTAD: It was Fashion Week was New York. Yes.

[33:32] KEITH OPSTAD: And there was a. Like, a Willy Wonka golden ticket. Okay. So you could buy tickets, and you would have your first choice. Well, the architect that designed the museum made a playhouse. There was a sporting event. There were all these different ones. Well, our large table. The ladies had stood up to excuse themselves.

[33:47] ERICA OPSTAD: Yes. We had left the table to use.

[33:49] KEITH OPSTAD: The restroom, and the two gentlemen were there, and Todd won the ticket. And they said, well, what do you want? And we looked at each other. I'm like, I don't know. What. What do you want? He's like, should I take Fast Wing? I'm like, I don't know. And, like, you've got two young kids. Why don't you take the playhouse? It's really cool. So he picked the playhouse right as his wife comes out of the building. And about five women were yelling, no, fashion week. And two. Well, the nice thing is they raised over $40,000 for the museum because the architect donated another playhouse that went for the Fashion week, went for a high ticket. Bid. His wife still doesn't speak to me 10 years later, but that's okay. They had a wonderful playhouse. They did a great experience.

[34:29] ERICA OPSTAD: Experience they did. And their kids had a really awesome thing that they got to play with for years.

[34:33] KEITH OPSTAD: Years.

[34:34] ERICA OPSTAD: Well, you know that as I look through and I'm looking forward to the years to come, and even, you know, I can see our son maybe working here someday. You know, with his love and passion for art, you know, that might be a future. Heck, maybe he'll be the executive director. Who knows that? I think that's very possible. But it's. It's a pleasure for me just to watch it grow. And really, when I think about the job I do, the donations we've made over the years, every single one of them has really resonated. We've done a lot with military families, as you mentioned, it's a military town. This is such a great opportunity for parents to come and unwind, watch their kids squeal, and just love life. So for me, Keith I am really grateful that this is part of our life. Right.

[35:25] KEITH OPSTAD: Absolutely.

[35:25] ERICA OPSTAD: It's just. It's. There's not a moment that doesn't go by that we don't have something artistic going on in our. In our home, in our neighborhood.

[35:33] KEITH OPSTAD: We share with others, whether it's our son.

[35:35] ERICA OPSTAD: That's right.

[35:36] KEITH OPSTAD: Colleagues, our neighbors, my students.

[35:39] ERICA OPSTAD: It's. It's definitely a part of our lives. But if I was to ask a question that maybe the last question. What are we going to be when we grow up? Superheroes. I love you.

[35:59] KEITH OPSTAD: Love you, too, sweetie.