People

Pam Blevins Hinkle

pbhinkle@iu.edu

317-278-2644

Pam Blevins Hinkle–arts administrator, song leader, composer, officiant, tree-lover, and kazoo fanatic–has devoted her life to projects that blend creativity, community-building, and spirituality. She has served as director of Spirit & Place since 2006, and is a certified trainer in Civic Reflection Dialogue (focus on race and racism) and Restorative Practices with additional training in Arts Based Community Development and Mental Health First Aid. In addition to her work with Spirit & Place, Pam leads spontaneous group singing for conferences and events, co-leads SongSquad Indianapolis with her brother Adam, co-produces the Indy Winter Solstice Celebration, and more. As a composer she specializes in short, layer songs than are taught by ear in minutes to audiences of all skill levels. Pam has received numerous awards including the IUPUI Inspirational Woman Award and the Creative Renewal Arts Fellowship from the Arts Council of Indianapolis.

LaShawnda Crowe Storm

lascrowe@iu.edu

317-274-2463

February 1, 2025
Greetings Spirit & Place Community!

As I sit down to write this letter, I am filled with immense joy, gratitude, and sadness. After much thought and consideration, it is with a heavy heart that I have decided it is time to move on to new adventures. For the past 10 years it has been an honor and privilege to serve the community and work with you all to create opportunities for new collaborations, uplift voices from the beautiful kaleidoscope that is our wide and varied community, as well as take leaps of faith into the unknown to build new ways of being and seeing.

When I arrived at Spirit & Place, I was stepping into unknown territory as the inaugural Community Engagement Director. There is so much to say about what I love about my decade of service with Spirit & Place, but the work done with Powerful Conversations on Race has and will continue to be one of my most profound collaborative community experiences. I am proud of the work we were able to build with community facilitators, who were willing to walk into the fire and create critical space for difficult conversations. I am humbled by the various community members that have consistently showed up since 2017 with a commitment to be vulnerable and do the challenging work of community listening and speaking truth to power.

I have been honored to work alongside such a talented and dedicated team of staff and community facilitators, and I am so grateful for the many lifelong bonds I have formed through my work with Spirit & Place. While I am stepping away from Spirit & Place, I’ll still be in Indy, but focusing my attention more on supporting youth in our communities. So, I’ll still see and connect with you in some kind of way.

In closing, I want to say thank you. It’s been a good ride, but alas all good things must come full circle and now my watch has ended.

With love and profound appreciation,
LaShawnda Crowe Storm

Erin Kelley

ekkelley@iu.edu

317-274-2462

A native Hoosier, Kelley completed her bachelor’s degree in sociology and history from Ball State University and earned her master’s degree in public history from IUPUI. As the Program Director for Spirit & Place, she oversees the annual Spirit & Place Festival by working with 100+ community partners to design and host events. Kelley also supports Spirit & Place’s Powerful Conversations on Race series by serving as a certified Civic Reflection Dialogue facilitator and trainer. In 2018, Kelley was selected as one of twenty recipients from across the country for Civic Saturday training by Citizen University. She has evolved that series into Spirit & Place’s current Civic Circle gatherings which aim to nurture a shared sense of (little “d”) democratic fellowship. Prior to Spirit & Place, she served as Director of Education and Community Engagement for the Indiana Historical Society. Kelley is an active member and past president of the League of Women Voters of Indiana where she advocates and educates on issues ranging from voting rights to redistricting reform.