Hey @erin.walker! 
Thanks for jumping in to introduce yourself, we are excited to have you in the community! 
Introduce Yourself Here! đź‘‹
Hi McKenna & errbody! Love the new digs! Three things… let’s see. I’ve been a Drupaler since 4.6 (around 2005 as I recall), though didn’t get professionally serious about it until v6. Hooked up with the Pantheon guys while they were still beta testing (2009?). I founded Gotham City Drupal (2010) in NYC (where I had been working in the community to help plan local and regional Drupal educational events) to build amazing, best-practices-compliant Drupal sites, help clients who needed senior full stack Drupalists to build custom modules and integrate third-party resources into their sites. We’re a small agency, very quality-driven, with low turnover and high customer satisfaction. We are a fully remote workforce, distributed throughout the Americas. In 2017 I moved to a sheep farm in rural western Washington. I became a Pantheon Hero when that program launched (I don’t remember what year that was), but resigned earlier this year in protest over Pantheon’s Alliance Defending Freedom platforming. While it’s hard for me to fully support pantheon at this time because of my disappointment, I still wish to support its users and Drupal users on the platform, as it has always been part of my larger service to the Drupal community. So here I am!
(Ummm I think that was way more than 3. Sorry!)
- Drupalista
- musician
- shepherd
Is that better?
1 Like
Michael, didn’t we used to work together at one point? I mean didn’t you help me out of one scrape or another in your time as a customer success engineer at Pantheon? Maybe several times? I seem to be having several fond memories of you…
—kelly
1 Like
Hey Kelly 
! I’m not exactly sure but you’re more than likely right 
Either way, I’m glad to be crossing paths again.
1 Like
KELLLLLYYYY! Hello there friend! Glad to have you in the community!
Thanks for sharing a little bit about yourself with the rest of the community! 
I cannot belive you did some beta testing with our founders back in the day! I bet you have some funny photos hiding somewhere in those archives of yours 
I completely understand & respect your departure from the Heroes program. Thank you for being such a wonderful advocate for other Drupal developers Kelly, you are just such a wonderful human being. That said, it’s no surprise your small agency is so successful!
I knew you were a drupalista but a muscisian?! 
Tell me more!
1 Like
Hi everyone!
My name is Cathi Bosco, Senior Manager UX Research here at Pantheon. I have met some of you before through interviews and surveys. In the coming weeks we will be inviting you to formally join our UX Research Panel (If you have not already). Your feedback is important to us.
Our UX team regularly conducts research and usability studies to enhance our understanding of what people need and to test product concepts.
We welcome both current and prospective customers. Most of our participants have backgrounds in development, design, marketing, or IT.
Meanwhile, if something comes up in your experience with the Pantheon Platform - frustrating or awesome, we’d love to hear about it!
2 Likes
Wooohooo one of our very own UX Research gurus 
has entered the chat!
Thanks so much for sharing a little bit about yourself with the community, Cathi!
1 Like
Ooh, a UX Team? Do tell! Very exciting!
1 Like
I only sing, play and write for fun now, but I used to record and tour. The band I’m “best known” for (haha) was The Shivers, and our records on Restless Records are available for free on SoundCloud The Shivers and The Buried Life. Glad to be back!
1 Like
Nice to meet you @kelly.bell.kbell !!
What is a recent win and a recent challenge you’ve had using the platform recently?
1 Like
Well, Autopilot has been a lot of fun to work with and has been a client favorite for sure. Our biggest most recent challenge has been dealing with the widespread upset over Alliance Defending Freedom hate group platforming issue. Our clients read about that issue on LinkedIn and are most displeased about it but, like us, don’t feel they have any reasonable recourse. We wish this policy would change and that Pantheon leadership would take a more responsible position. On a positive note, I would love to see Autopilot expand its services and features to whatever degree possible in future, as I believe VRT is definitely the new best thing to come along in quite a while!
Okay waaaait, are you in Austin, TX? 
Becase if you are we have to get to together! I am here for two months visiting my sister!
Also that is sooo cool! I am totally going to check out your music!! I am seriously challenged in the music space, so I can’t promise you will ever hear me sing along
No, I’m just from there - I live in Washington state now. Too bad tho, I’d love to hang out!
About Christian rock from mid-to-late 1990s and 2000s:
I finally got around to putting together a playlist of a few hours of artists and songs I enjoy from this fairly obscure sector of music: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4oGKGQc3QmAvyn4omfVrDL?si=5127a02093ae452e
Enjoy! (Or just keep listening to Taylor Swift and Beyonce if you prefer–that’s totally awesome too!)
Hello Pantheoner’s!
A little late to the party on this thread but better late than never I have been in the web development world mostly focusing on the front end and utilizing solutions that have good support teams for the better part of a decade. I started my small agency after working alongside other local marketing firms while in college. I saw where they were using a business model that they couldnt itemize the services they provided their clients and would just name a figure even on small projects; using their influence in the community to gain the gig. I wanted to create something where I charged a bit more ethically, where I could show where the money was going and how to create true results.
Web Dev Word: I went to school with a huge focus on Cyber Security and started my business with a colleague who helped set up several server environments using antiquated solutions at first and building into more robust solutions that I still use to this day; other than of course with Pantheon clients.
I never considered myself what would be Full Stack or Software Engineer; however, I am now calling myself a Programmer-on-training-wheels. My real forte is networking with good content creators and using my analytical mind to build out digital strategies/SEM/SEO that rank high with google. I have also become quite good with Pay Per Click campaigns and Review Management, which is a good chunk of my monthly business. Driving results for my local small business owners is what I strive for, but I also love to get involved with my local nonprofits like NAMI (National Awareness of Mental Illness), MOWW (Military of World Wars), and VWMI (Vietnam War Memorial Initiative). Although i never served in the military my sister and several other relatives have. I feel a deep passion to help our veterans [as well as those with disabilities] any way I can.
On another personal note: I too - like Chris- LOVE TTRPG mostly Magic the Gathering. I have quite an extensive collection that had I known the cards would have been so expensive would not have sold a ton of them when I graduated college as I thought that I would likely never return after becoming “an adult” - haha the lies we tell ourselves! Now my collection is likely a 10th of what it once was, I still play casually amongst several friends I new back in college, as well as teaching several new friends now
I really love being involved with the Pantheon community. It has been a true joy learning how to develop better web solutions and grow as a developer!
1 Like
Hey Reed!
Thanks so much for sharing a little bit about yourself!
I started my small agency after working alongside other local marketing firms while in college.
This is so intriguing! Do you feel like working alongside marketing professionals helped better prepare you for working in development and project management? I ask that because as a marketer myself, the most valuable digital asset is my website Would love to hear your thoughts here!
My real forte is networking with good content creators and using my analytical mind to build out digital strategies/SEM/SEO that rank high with google. I have also become quite good with Pay Per Click campaigns and Review Management, which is a good chunk of my monthly business
That’s awesome @reed.mcdow! Would you be open to maybe sharing some best practices with the larger community? Or with our team? Also, I love how involved you are with nonprofits! Especially supporting our veterans. We have an employee resource group here at Pantheon with Veterans Some of the most selfless, pure human beings I’ve ever met.
Last but not least, let’s see this collection of yours! 
Now I am interested myself!
Hi I’m Bram and was actually also part of the previous community 
. As a job I’m working as a Drupal Developer and DevOps engineer. I’m an active contributor as well and maintain a handful of modules. Furthermore I also like to volunteer and co-organise the Belgian DrupalCamp.
As for hobbies I like to play soccer, game a bit every now and then and, take photo’s and play with my cat.
Really looking forward to DrupalCon Lille next month!
1 Like
Hi all I’m Kevin Blanco, an accomplished Technology Evangelist, currently working as Senior DevRel Advocate at Appsmith and Tech Director at Decimal Studios. My mission is crystal clear: I’m here to engage, support, and empower developers worldwide, and I’m deeply committed to advancing the global developer community.
My expertise lies at the intersection of infrastructure, architecture, engineering, and digital product innovation. Over the course of 14 years, I’ve led multiple projects and development teams, orchestrating high-availability digital platforms at scale, dealing with staggering demand and transactions per second. I specialize in the design, deployment, and maintenance of cloud solutions, and I take pride in doing it with finesse, minimizing time, impact, and cost.
I’ve earned a prominent place in various tech communities, thanks to my active involvement in open-source and product-centric ecosystems. I’m a Drupal Certified Specialist Advocate and Google Expert Advocate in Google Cloud, and I’ve played a pivotal role in shaping and nurturing these communities. My portfolio includes speaking engagements at events, content publication, mentoring fellow developers, and making impactful contributions that have cemented my status as a trusted voice. Notably, I had the privilege of being a featured speaker at DrupalCon New Orleans 2016 and DrupalNorth Canada 2016. More recently, I was honored to be the keynote speaker at Google I/O Toronto 2023, with Google sponsoring my participation.
Drawing from my 14-year journey in the tech industry, I bring a multifaceted background spanning front-end, back-end, mobile development, and devOps, covering regions in the United States, Canada, and Europe. Over the past five years, I’ve excelled in roles such as Architect, Tech Lead, Tech Manager, and Tech Director, leading diverse projects for high-impact digital platforms. My ability to efficiently orchestrate cloud solutions has proven to be invaluable to my teams.
But it doesn’t stop there. Beyond my technical prowess, I also bring an artistic dimension to my work. I hold a degree from Film School and am certified as a Davinci Resolve editor and colorist. I leverage my creative acumen to deliver high-quality, engaging live streams. My recording studio is equipped with cinema cameras and top-notch audio facilities, demonstrating my commitment to producing exceptional content.
1 Like
Hey @bram.driesen
It’s so good to see your face in here Thanks for being such a loyal community member! I remember you saying you managed several modules. Can you share some of those? Would love to take a peek!
Also I am a sucker for animal photos if you want to share your precious cat! 
Oh, and I heard DrupalCon Lille is going to be amazing! Lots of great sessions! Jealous, I wish I could be there!
Hey @kevin.blanco!
Thanks for sharing a little more about yourself! I will admit, I didn’t know a lot about your professional experience although as a Hero I really should have! Forgive me
That said, I am really impressed! You have such diverse experience! 
How has your experience been at AppSmith working as a Sr. Dev Advocate? Fun fact, I also work on the Dev Relations team. Although my background stems from marketing & building brand communities. My teammates however are all developers (front end/back end, etc.) so I am the black sheep here in the mix (but in a good way). Speaking of developer relations, I would love to hear your thoughts on the evolution of developer relations, seeing you have been in the space for 14+ years.
More recently, I was honored to be the keynote speaker at Google I/O Toronto 2023, with Google sponsoring my participation.
That is AMAZING! What an honor! Was this recorded by chance? I would love to hear it!