It’s never been easy, but it’s always been interesting! To be a part of Cardthartic, you really have to be able to hold your own. Currently, 10 talented and independent equals run their own parts of the business from here and there. Each is proud to say that ~ for us ~ child care, elder care, pet care and self care rank right up there with customer care.

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT is still my primary focus as Founder & Creative Director. I feel blessed to be able to create our cards while overlooking the Atlantic from my home office on Miami Beach. There’s nothing that gets the words flowing for me quite like swimming in the sea!

My right hand is Products Manager Ana Behm, whom I met when she moved into the apartment right next door! It’s Ana who helps determine what more our customers want from us – in the stores and on-line. She helped create this site, and will head our effort to bring additional product categories to it. A kindred spirit whose life experiences are very different from mine, Ana brings a wonderfully fresh perspective to Cardthartic. She was born in Venezuela, raised two daughters outside Denver, studied computer science and taught Spanish at the college level. Who knows, Spanish may one day be in our cards!

Ana and I both depend on Creative Coordinator Betsy Coble to work with our contributing photographers to get great images in. My six-years-younger sister, Betsy inherited this fun job from our middle sister, Amy Reinhart, who left the company in November ’09 after building a great stable of fine photographers from throughout the world. Betsy works from her home/office in Columbus, OH.

Artist Julie Ross creates our meanings of life designs, incorporating peas in her work as a symbol of peace. Yes, peas. As Julie tells it, she once saw a bumper sticker that read: "Visualize Whirled Peas." The idea resonated with her to the point that it is now the dominant recurring theme in her work (it’s fun -- you have to look pretty closely to see her peas sometimes, but they’re always there). Julie believes, “We all have a very real ability to generate and disperse positive energy throughout our universe, and through the incorporation of ‘peas’ into my work, I am in fact painting "Peace" on both conscious and subconscious levels”.

SALES is led by the exceptionally bright and gracious Marcy Shackelford from our Champaign business office. As Sales Director, Marcy ensures that we’re doing all we can to support our 100-plus independent reps around the country. She shows them we have their backs and ~ because they’re so good at what they do there on the front line where we’re not ~ lets them know that whatever they say generally goes. Being on the road riding with a rep, greeting our customers at a show, there’s nothing Marcy loves more ... unless it would be her two truly delightful teenage daughters or a well-made margarita! (Reps have been known to call Marcy at home for her well-honed recipe(:-)