As a little girl, Rachel’s dad drove the morning carpool. Once all butts were in the seats and seatbelts fastened, her dad would begin weaving and spinning a new story chapter from his imagination. Although each week was a new adventure, the characters and plot line in his stories always remained the same. The heroine was a redheaded little girl (much like Rachel) who loved playing the violin (much like Rachel’s sister) and investigated unsolved, often supernatural mysteries in her small, Midwest town. This little girl, however, didn’t solve these mysteries alone. She had the help of two conspirators: her best friend and the local librarian, Mr. Oofot (aka Ufot).

 

Mr. Oofot, however, was not your average librarian because Mr. Oofot had a secret; a secret only the young car riders knew. Mr. Oofot’s true identity was actually a shape-shifting dragon. Somehow Rachel’s dad wove enough suggestions and evidence into his stories that his listeners all understood and felt privy to Mr. Oofot’s dragon secret, yet, also left enough unsaid that Mr. Oofot’s identity wasn’t explicit. In fact, even Rachel’s dad, the narrator, remained forever skeptical and dubious that Mr. Oofot wasn’t merely a simple man doing his job as a supportive librarian. Despite all the ambiguity, however, Rachel’s dad made it clear that, like all dragons, Mr. Oofot also hoarded treasure. The treasure he hoarded, however, wasn’t piles and piles of coins, gold, and jewels. No. Instead, Mr. Oofot hoarded the most valuable treasure of all; stacks and stacks of literature, art, and the friendship of a little girl that played beautiful music.

 

These stories were elaborate, imaginative, and incredibly influential to who Rachel is today. Although her dad was mostly just trying to keep a bunch of kids quiet on a twenty-minute drive to school, he ended up molding Rachel values, interests, and creative mind.

 

Oofot is a cultural strategy firm dedicated to recognizing the treasure and value of art, the people who make it, and weaving the creative experience into our urban landscapes and social environments. Through human-centered, collaborative concept generation combined with reimaging existing budget allocations, Oofot is able to reasonably design powerful, individualized spaces and strengthen community cohesion.