Carlos McCray

There’s not much I don’t really enjoy doing, and trying new things is just about my favorite thing to do in the world. I think of it like this: there was a time in my life that I had never tasted a one-day-old, cold corner piece of a brownie with a cold glass of milk. That mouthful of sweetness is just about my favorite treat, although since being vegan, I can’t seem to replicate the exact taste.

The way I see it, there’s gotta be something else I’ll love as much as that brownie out there, so I try everything. It goes the same with experiences, traveling, and connecting with people.

I have an MSW and am a Licensed Clinical Social Worker. I’ve been in and out of homes throughout San Diego since 2006, helping people with everything from navigating probation, parenting coaching, and guiding people through substance abuse recovery, to my time in Child Welfare Services, reunifying parents with their children.

What I’ve learned from 19 years of working with everyone from kids in the system to high-net-worth professionals is that there is a ton of untapped potential out there. Regardless of what part of the world I’ve been in (Ukraine, Spain, Mexico, Europe, Japan, South Korea, etc.), or how much money someone has (or doesn’t have), I have come to realize that everyone wants to be happy; it just looks a little different depending on who you are.

I currently serve as the Director of Youth Programs & Strategy at the Lucky Duck Foundation, and I teach Social Work courses at San Diego State University and Cuyamaca Community College, as well as a class I was fortunate to create for SDSU’s Honors College titled Purpose, Perspective, and Human Connection.

I also run my own private psychotherapy practice and spend my free time exercising, playing a variety of sports (mainly soccer and beach volleyball these days), working on cars, and giving back to the community.

While chasing my own purpose, I was fortunate to cross paths with a fantastic woman, Chelsea, who is now my wife. I now get to experience being a father to our son, Jackson Dean, and a father-figure to three other amazing kids. It is a non-stop experience of love and chaos, which I will most definitely have to write a book about later!

Kristina Israel

Hi! I’m Kristina. I’m an Excel junkie and get-it-doner. I am an only child and was born and raised in San Diego, with a short stint up in Oregon during grade school; this allowed me to have memories of cutting down our own Christmas tree and blueberry picking at the farms down the road from us. I’m a University of San Diego graduate and received both my undergrad and Masters in Accounting and Financial Management there. I’ve been working as a corporate accountant and project manager for almost 20 years. I get excited about making things efficient, planning things, analyzing numbers, and am obsessed with real estate investing. And you guessed it! I got a spreadsheet for that too. I used to spend a lot of my spare time salsa dancing which is how I met my husband Joe. At one point we even were on a salsa team – a beginner team… no dancing with the stars moves going on here. It was INCREDIBLY fun! Nowadays, we have a son, Devan, who is a ball of energy so we spend our time running around after him and enjoying our wonderful city. And yes, I still dance. I’m a personal development enthusiast so you can usually find me driving somewhere listening to an audiobook or podcast. But I wasn’t always this way, my journey with personal development started a decade ago. Through consuming a ton of content, applying lessons learned, self-analysis and dissecting myself, and consistent work on improving my thoughts and actions have resulted in a more fulfilled version and more smiles.

Tayari Shorter

Hey you! I’m ready. No really, in Swahili Tayari means ready. I’m a ready to laugh, groove, and move native San Diegan with a deep passion for all types of music, dance, and culture. I’ve backpacked through 17 cities, across 11 countries, and for the life of me, I can’t seem to shake the travel bug. When I’ve been on solid ground, I’ve enjoyed teaching women studies, tutoring kids who are surfing the colorful waves of autism, firefighting, and trying to better understand why people do the things they do. At the fork in the road, I chose the Psychological path and graduated with a Bachelor of Arts from California State University San Marcos. I’m passionate about activating and helping people find their potential, and believe I have a gift to see the beauty in all. Having said that, I joined the board for the City Heights Community Development Center as well as Mid City CAN’s Peace Promotions Momentum Team (PPMT) to advocate for underserved communities as well as their youth. In my spare time, fitness of all kinds, tinkering with cars, and being outside in just about any capacity (as long as it isn’t too hot) can keep my smile from turning upside down.  

Yoichi Hamada

It’s Me, Yoichi!, and I’m here to tell you a little about myself. I grew up in Torrance, California with two older brothers. As the youngest of three boys, I had some perks (privilege & spoiled) and some life lessons (getting beat up and coming in last). As the youngest it was easy to follow in the footsteps of my brothers, but I learned that there are just some things that maybe one shouldn’t follow in someone else’s steps. Finding out who I am has been difficult and I still haven’t figured everything out yet, but I know I am competitive, I like playing soccer and golf, I enjoy being lazy sometimes and I love to listen to music (instrumental and love songs). I have a lot of hope and dreams, and am generally a happy person. Staying positive and seeing the brighter side of things have become important to me. I grew up in a family business (helping in every way) and am still grinding away at our business now incorporating my triple major in International Business, Operational Management, and Management. I like information (numbers, data, trivial), I like to plan (vacations) and do research. I know I learn better by talking to people, hearing their stories, and making conversations. My business takes me to Japan and while I was there (a few years ago) I was very fortunate to be introduced to a special person by a business partner (her father), and after years of going back and forth, I am very happy to say she is now my wife and we are finally living together in the US. She has a lot of different viewpoints from me but talking and sharing ideas always gives me new perspectives and helps me broaden my view about my surroundings and in life.