Speranza Foundation

Claire Gibson Claire Gibson is a novelist and essayist whose work explores the complicated terrain of family, friendship, belonging, and the stories we tell about ourselves and one another.

Her debut novel, Beyond the Point, was published in 2019 and is currently in development for television. Her second novel, Burst Into Song, will be published by Pamela Dorman Books/Viking. Now, while that book makes its way toward publication, Claire is already deep into something new.

“When you’re writing something new, you have no idea whether it will actually come together as the product you’re hoping it will be.”

For Julian, Claire is looking forward to something fairly simple: coffee, a desk, long stretches of uninterrupted writing, and hopefully a few early mornings before, as she puts it, “my critic is awake.”

We're grateful for Claire, and for the thoughtfulness, wit, and willingness to venture into uncertain territory that she brings to this community. We're excited to welcome her back as an Artist in Residence with our Julian cohort.

Rheanna Downey rheannadowney is a singer, songwriter, and guitarist whose career has spanned more than two decades of performing, recording, and writing music across a wide range of styles and collaborations.

As one half of The Lonesome Roses with Molly Jenson, Rheanna continues to write, record, and create alongside Molly as they shape what comes next for the band. Alongside that work, she has also accumulated a collection of personal songs that she hopes to spend time developing and bringing together as a larger body of work.

“I’ve given myself permission to just let it be what it needs to be, like let all the shadows come out in my artwork. I’m not trying to make it be something. I’m just allowing it to present to the world, and in turn, I think beauty is the outcome of that kind of honesty.”

We're grateful for Rheanna, and for the musical range, experience, and spirit of collaboration she brings to this community. We're excited to welcome her back as an Artist in Residence with our Julian cohort.

Hakim Bellamy Hakim Be is a poet, writer, performer, and former inaugural Poet Laureate of Albuquerque whose work is rooted in language, history, community, and radical imagination.

Hakim first found his way to poetry through hip hop and has spent more than two decades writing, performing, teaching, and creating work that gives language to the people, places, and histories that shape us.

“I create to not forget. I create to imagine more evolved futures. I create to survive. I create to sustain the communities that represent. I create to resist. I create to cultivate.”

That sense of purpose has remained constant even as Hakim's life and creative practice have continued to evolve. After completing law school and becoming a practicing attorney, he is finding a different kind of structure around his art and asking new questions about what he wants to create.

Right now, that includes developing his third collection of poems and exploring a project centered on the history of Negro Motorist Green Book locations in New Mexico.

We're grateful for Hakim, and for the wit, nuance, energy, and generous spirit he brings to this community and are excited to welcome him as an Artist in Residence with our Julian cohort.

Carlos Medina Carlos Medina a musician, comedian, writer, and performer whose work is deeply rooted in the stories, characters, and culture of Northern New Mexico.

Across more than three decades of creating, Carlos has moved between music, comedy, performance, and storytelling. Now, those different parts of his creative life are finding their way into something new.

Carlos is currently part of the creative team behind an original television series in development about a fictional small town facing a series of mysterious disappearances and an unexpected election. In addition to writing for the series, Carlos will be stepping in front of the camera as well.

For Carlos, the project has become a place to draw from everything that has come before.

“It seems like it’s tying everything I’ve created over the last 30 years together.”

As the project moves toward its next phase of production, Carlos is exploring what it means to create as part of a larger ensemble, bringing his own voice, history, and years of creative experience into something being built collectively.

Thank you Nomadic School of Wonder for nominating Carlos. We're grateful for the humor, curiosity, and generous creative spirit he brings to this community. We're excited to welcome him as an Artist in Residence with our Julian cohort.

Jay Morra Jay Morra is an artist, writer, producer, and performer whose work has helped expand how and where drag is experienced as an art form.

After years of bringing drag into museums, educational settings, and community spaces, Jay has entered a new creative chapter. Having recently relocated to Brooklyn, he's developing a memoir that reflects on his career as a drag artist and the unexpected lessons it has offered about resilience, kindness, identity, and embracing change.

“It's not if, it's when.”

That simple reminder speaks to the hope and perseverance that continue to shape Jay's creative life. Rather than waiting for certainty, he's choosing to trust the process, let curiosity lead, and remain open to whatever comes next.

Whether through performance, writing, or conversation, Jay's work invites us to see ourselves with greater honesty, flexibility, and compassion.

We're grateful for Jay, and for the courage, humor, and generosity he brings to this community.

Some creative partnerships are built on shared ideas.

Christine Berg and Simon Shterenberg have built theirs on shared curiosity.

As filmmaking partners, they've learned that the best creative conversations don't begin with opinions. They begin with questions.

"What are you trying to say?"

Followed by:

"Why?"

It's a simple shift, but one that makes room for curiosity instead of certainty.

Whether they're developing a screenplay, offering feedback to another artist, or participating in one of our Fellows Forums, Christine and Simon remind us that meaningful art rarely comes from having all the answers. It grows through listening, wrestling with difficult questions, and remaining open to perspectives beyond our own.

That spirit of curiosity and generosity has become a defining characteristic of the way they engage with this community.

Their commitment to asking better questions and helping others discover the heart of their own stories continues to enrich the Lincoln City Fellowship.

Billy Joe Miller Billy Joe Miller is an interdisciplinary artist whose work transforms spaces into places of gathering, reflection, and restoration. Working across sculpture, installation, and public art, Billy Joe explores how architecture, light, and everyday materials can reshape the way we experience one another and ourselves.

Lately, his creative questions have become more intimate.

"I'm interested in objects that support reflection, meditation, presence, or simply a heightened awareness of light, color, and time."

As he develops new work, Billy Joe is exploring sanctuary not simply as a place, but as a daily practice. Inspired by the rituals, contemplation, and shared spaces of his childhood, he's imagining objects that become companions to everyday life like small vessels for attention, beauty, and connection.

Whether creating large-scale public installations or quiet works meant for a single home, Billy Joe continues to ask how art can foster healing, presence, and belonging.

We're grateful for Billy Joe, and for the imagination, generosity, and care he brings to the Lincoln City Fellowship.

✨ Lincoln City Fellow Spotlight — RuBen Permel ✨

We’re honored to highlight — an interdisciplinary storyteller & artist whose creative life has spanned stage, costume design, painting, photography, puppetry, and more. Born in Virginia, RuBen began making art with an 8-color crayon box and has since built a remarkable career both on and offstage.

For over 30 years he’s worked across the U.S. and Canada, including 16 years leading teams and creating with MGM Resorts and Cirque du Soleil.

RuBen’s work brings together visual impact and lived experience — from dynamic costumes and stage designs to award-winning paintings and evocative photography. He believes that doing what you’re passionate about is not a job but a calling, and his art reflects a lifetime of curiosity, craft, and generosity.

We’re grateful for RuBen’s voice in the Lincoln City Fellowship community and for the way his practice inspires wide-open creative possibility and wonder. 🌟

May NYC forever shine brighter from these brilliant artists who showed up so fully for themselves and each other during our Lincoln City Fellowship Fall Retreat.

Thank you for sharing your beauty and grief, your play and your challenges, your laughter and your powerful stories in progress. Your willingness to ask bold questions and respond with deep curiosity and softness reminds us what art can do.Your creativity is exactly what the world needs right now.