Natalie and Marisa are working on their first illustrated children’s book about anti-bullying called “Stand – An Inclusion Story”.
Natalie Green
Author
Natalie is 25 and believes that everyone should be able to do what they love, because that’s what inclusion looks like. Natalie is a California native, but moved to Utah when she was just 3 months old. She was diagnosed with cerebral palsy from a stroke she had before she was born, and has IDD, a left side paralysis and epilepsy from the stroke. When she was only 11 years old, she had a surgery on her brain to help stop the seizures, and that is what we call her second birthday, because she got her life back when the physical seizures stopped. She still has seizure activity but it’s controlled by medication now.
Natalie went to school in Jordan District. She started at Bluffdale, then Welby, Terra Linda and South Jordan Elementary. She attended Elk Ridge Middle School, then Bingham High School before transferring to RSL Academy High School where she graduated. In all of the schools, Natalie attended special needs classes and mainstreamed with students. She met friends and learned a love of art, but she also experienced bullying and learned the importance of standing up for herself and for others. She found soccer and built more friendships with teamwork and competition. She also learned that she could be an advocate and help others by being a leader. Natalie was the Chief Diversity Officer in her SBO when she graduated.
Natalie started playing TOPSoccer in 2008, and has played soccer ever since then (that’s 17 years of soccer!). She joined Special Olympics in 2011 after recovering from her brain surgery, and her very first competition was in cycling. Since she started with Special Olympics she has competed in different sports, and uses her platform as an athlete to speak about disability and inclusion. Natalie has played with Real Salt Lake Unified team, and currently plays with the Utah Royals FC Unified and Sovereign soccer teams. Natalie has also trained with US Soccer Extended National Team, Women’s CP Soccer. In the past two years she has competed in dance, bowling, soccer, and flag football. She uses her art to promote Special Olympics with Athlete Design Collection apparel, Law Enforcement Torch Run shirt, and Team USA stickers for 2025 Winter World Games. She is all-in for Special Olympics!
Natalie works at the Jordan School District as a para for a special education class, and can be found at Lucky Ones coffee inside the Marmalade branch of the Salt Lake City Public Library on Saturdays. She is part of the Utah Developmental Disabilities Council Speaker Network, and has discussed legislative bills that impact people with disabilities. She continues to play and compete in sports, and work on her art. She works out every day to help stay fit, and loves to take Peloton classes. Natalie is a leader because she uses her life experience to advocate for herself and for others, and she wants you to be an advocate too. It all starts by finding a path to do what you love.
Marisa Green
Illustrator
Marisa is 27, is married and lives in the Daybreak community with her husband Aaron. She is a professional chef and illustrator who holds an AS and is pursuing a Bachelor of Science degree in illustration and cinematography.
Marisa has always loved drawing. She loves to explore new mediums with an emphasis on digital art and paint. She introduced Natalie to Procreate on the iPad and has been a major influence on her younger sister’s ability to express herself through artwork.
Marisa and Natalie initially came up with the idea to host an Instagram account called harpers_scrapbook that would be used for fanart and storytelling. That account became a foundation for working together on Stand.
In the words of the character Harper from Follow Your Art, “Art is anything that makes someone feel something.” and Marisa wants to be able to do that. Through her work, she creates stories that move people, that help tell stories for her audience to relate to.
Her ideas are boundless, and it’s only a matter of time before she creates them.
A portfolio of her work can be found at artbynerdy.wixsite.com/portfolio