Three years ago, on a rainy August evening in Miami, as I was walking up to my apartment, I suddenly encountered the love of my life. Off to the side of the path, there was a little gray and brown striped cat, wet and shivering. I stopped right where I stood, heart in my throat, and she ran right up to me. She weaved between my legs a bit before plopping herself right on my sneakered feet. I squealed (as quietly as I could) with delight: just 2 nights before, I had proclaimed to my roommate that we would be getting a cat. We had already began to rearrange our furniture, effectively baby- (or kitty-)proofing the space; we bought oodles of wet food, a comfy bed, a carrier, and tons of toys. We had no idea that 2 days later, we would be welcoming this small furry ball of energy, who came to be called Tootsie, into our home. I am so glad she did!
My name is Gari François and I am a human of many talents. I am originally from NYC. I'm a Prep for Prep, Sacred Heart ('12), Wesleyan ('16), and AmeriCorps/City Year ('17, '18) alumna. I've lived in Miami (and briefly in Maryland) for the past 2 years. I came back to the Big Apple at the end of 2018 (for those keeping track: since moving back to NYC, Tootsie is currently living with my cousin and I visit her every other weekend). In addition to loving up on and caring for cats, a large portion of my time goes towards building my healing & coaching business, where I work to create spaces for folx to explore & better understand themselves, their feelings, and their purpose. When I'm not doing that, you can catch me cleaning/KonMari-ing people's homes, reading something about consciousness, drawing in my notebook, or working on any one of my numerous passion projects!