Name: Jodi Stelley, she/hers

First KAtCH event:
I think my first KAtCH event was sometime in 2014-ish. In 2012, I was living in upstate NY and attending a conference in NYC where I met a fellow KAD who lived in Florida. The next year, I moved to Chicago, and this Florida-based friend virtually introduced me to some of the Chicago KAtCH folks. Joe Meyer brought me to my first event, and the rest is history!

Where did you grow up/Where do you live now?
I grew up in Buffalo, NY and moved quite a bit in my 20s. I consider Chicago "home" and live in the Ravenswood/Uptown neighborhood with my partner and five-year-old son.

Tell us about yourself:
I was born in Peolgyo-eup, South Korea and came to the US when I was four months old. I grew up in Buffalo, NY in a predominantly white community and began critically examining my racial identity when I was ten or eleven years old (pretty early, I think!). I spent much of high school and undergrad exploring this and was very involved in social justice and advocacy initiatives in my teens and early 20s. My first career was as a student affairs professional working with underrepresented college students in multicultural affairs and new student orientation programs. I left that field in 2017 and returned to school for an MA in Clinical Mental Health Counseling. I now work as a psychotherapist and specialize in working with emerging adults, Asian Americans, and transracial/transcultural adoptee populations. 

You’ll likely KAtCH me doing the following:
I try to stay physically active through home workouts and walks in my neighborhood. I love spending time by the lake to clear my head and listening to podcasts. If/when it is possible, grabbing a cocktail and a meal with a good friend is always welcome.

Why do you enjoy being involved with the KAtCH community?
KAtCH provided me with a safe space when my world felt really shifty and uncertain. I was recently divorced and new to the city, exploring some complex and painful stuff with my adoptive family, and questioning my career - KAtCH was my community during those really challenging times and helped me move forward and heal. I think KAtCH is important because of what it symbolizes - a place and voice for Korean Adoptees - and also because of the people who make up KAtCH. I think it is our commitment to one another and both finding/receiving acceptance and support from one another that makes KAtCH so special.

Favorite restaurant(s) in Chicagoland:

The places we frequent most tend to be - 

  • Mexican food/Tacos - Primo Chukis - I have fever dreams about their veggie tacos and I am not even a vegetarian.

  • Thai food - Immm Rice & Beyond - I love all the things here. Never a bad meal.

  • Korean - Cho Sun Ok (BBQ is good but don't sleep on the jjigaes). We recently went to Perilla Steakhouse and it was fire.

  • Vietnamese - Pho 777 (on Argyle, I can't speak for the one in the burbs) - my son and I love the Bun with pork and fried spring rolls.