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"I thought it would be fun and creative and it was but it also gave me a peek into the Little Hedgehog mission. But it was also so much fun too! I was surprised with the amount of creative freedom I was allowed working on this piece. We have a lot of toys and books surrounding our culture but this will be our first toy that really looks like [my grandma] and all of my ancestors. The feeling this inspired for me as an adult just proves how important and special representation is in toys and media for our children."

"My daughter and son both have warm skin tones that are unique even from each other, varying shades of brown. I wanted my children and their friends to be able to see themselves in our collection of toys and learn to embrace people of all walks of life."

"Growing up, so many BIPOC never saw people that looked like them being admired and elevated in our society, let alone in the toys we played with. This sends so many messages to our kids that they internalize, unless we counter that message and show that they belong; that all of our differences are amazing. The only toy I ever remember having that looked like me was a doll that my Mom sewed herself."

"The process really is as dreamy and open ended as you'd like it to be! I think people should know that they’re coming up with all of the details just not the execution- hair style and patterns, tones, clothing, positioning. I found it helpful to create a story for this little figure based on my own little person and go from there."