Member Spotlight
Kira Bernard
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself? Where are you from? How long have you been coming to FHC?
I hail from the ~great~ state of Delaware. That's the tiny state underneath New Jersey and to the right of Maryland. The best thing about Delaware is how close it is to New York City, Philly, DC, and Baltimore so I obviously left the state as soon as I possibly could. :) I went to college in Dayton, OH and then I lived in Salt Lake City, UT after graduating for a spell of time. I quickly realized that Utah was NOT the place for me and then got the hell out as soon as I could--to Seattle, which is much more my speed. I've been coming to FHC since July of 2017. I'm also a triplet--one of my sisters lives here in Seattle as well. Manatees are my favorite animal. My middle name is Michelle. Uhmm...I've never been to Canada? I like vodka martinis. A lot.

What do you do for work? How long have you been doing it for? What drew you to your profession?
I've been a registered nurse for almost eight years now. I moved to Seattle three years ago and have worked at Seattle Children's Hospital since that time. I specifically work in the neurology department so most of my patients have epilepsy/seizure disorders, neuromuscular disorders, neuroimmunological disorders, etc. etc. There are many different things that drew me to nursing (some which are extremely personal) but if I really had to sum it up I would say that it was my lifelong desire to help others coupled with my strong dislike of boredom and my need to be intellectually challenged.

You take a lot of classes since you've joined the gym. Besides classes do you do any other types of workouts?
Yes! I love classes because I'm absolutely horrible at motivating myself to work out on my own. Plus, classes are fun and it is important to me to do things at the gym that I actually enjoy. I like to do weightlifting outside of classes, too.
In the past couple of months you've taught a couple of classes here at FHC! How did you get started teaching? Which classes have you taught? What has the experience been like for you?
Honestly, I never even considered teaching before. Neal asked me if I would be interested in subbing her classes while she was out of town and I said yes (see, I do like to help people! Standing in front of people and instructing is waaaaay out of my comfort zone. As I've been doing it, though, I've realized that I actually do have a decent amount of knowledge that I can offer people in a class setting. Plus, I like picking out my own playlists.

For people who haven't gotten to know you, you've got a subtle but wicked sense of humor. It's unique. You've definitely brought smiles and laughter to our FHC community (especially that grouch behind the front desk, Hieu). Have you always been this funny?
Hmmm. I think it's taken many angsty years for me to perfect my dark humor...or maybe I've always been this hilarious. We may never know for sure.

Word around the gym is you're also quite the baker! What other talents do you possess? Outside of work and the gym what does Kira do for fun?
Ha! Between work and the gym I don't really have a lot of time during the weekdays. I do bake a lot on the weekends, though! Cakes and cheesecakes are my specialty. I also like going to concerts, getting tattoos, and binging Netflix with my cat, Harper (and sometimes my boyfriend, too). I'm also really talented at saying weird things at the wrong moment at social gatherings...