Today we’d like to introduce you to Adelia Spivey.
Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
As far back as I can remember, there were two things I knew I wanted to do with my life: make art and save animals. As a little girl, I couldn’t wait to grow up because I imagined adulthood would mean having the freedom to create beautiful things and help animals who needed someone to care about them. In many ways, I’ve spent my life becoming the person that little girl hoped I would be.
I earned my art degree from East Carolina University and have lived a creative life ever since. Art has always been more than something I do – it’s how I express myself, connect with others, and bring a little more beauty and joy into the world. At the same time, animals have always held an equally important place in my heart. Throughout my adult life, I have found ways to help them, but eventually I realized I wanted to do more.
In 2025, my partner and I founded Addie Catz Sanctuary and took our commitment to animal rescue to an entirely new level. What began with a desire to help has grown into a community of compassionate people working together for cats who often have nowhere else to turn. Alongside our wonderful team of volunteers, we rescue cats, provide them with safety and care, and work to give them the second chances they deserve.
My business, Soul Anchor, has become another way for me to connect my creative life with my rescue work. Through my art and jewelry, I’m able to help support the needs of Addie Catz Sanctuary. We still rely heavily on donations and the generosity of people who believe in our mission, but I love knowing that something I create with my own hands can ultimately help provide food, medical care, shelter, and hope for an animal in need.
There are certainly easier paths I could have chosen. Running a sanctuary and building a creative business both require tremendous amounts of time, energy, and heart. But when I look at the life I’ve built, I realize it is remarkably close to the life I dreamed about as a child.
I still make art. I still save animals. The difference is that now those two passions have become part of the same purpose.
I believe the things that call to us when we are young often tell us something important about who we are. For me, that calling never went away. It simply grew stronger. Today, I have the privilege of using my creativity to help animals and of being surrounded by people who share that compassion.
And somewhere inside me, I think that little girl who couldn’t wait to grow up would be very happy to see what we’re doing now.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It has not been a smooth road. But the truth is, I don’t think I ever chose the smooth road – I chose the one that felt meaningful to me.
Being a self-employed artist requires an enormous amount of perseverance. There is no guaranteed paycheck, no clear road map, and no one else responsible for making it work. You have to keep creating, keep believing, and keep showing up, even during the times when you’re exhausted or uncertain about what comes next.
Animal rescue asks something different of you, but it can be equally demanding. When you open your heart to animals in need, it becomes very difficult to look away. There is always another animal who needs help, another medical bill, another heartbreaking situation, and another moment when you wonder how you can possibly do more. It can be physically, financially, and emotionally exhausting.
There have been times when I’ve wondered what my life might have looked like if I had chosen an easier path. Sometimes I imagine what it would feel like to have more predictability, fewer responsibilities, and a little less weight on my shoulders. I think it’s okay to acknowledge that. Following your heart doesn’t mean the journey always feels inspiring. Sometimes it means continuing forward when the thing you care deeply about is also the thing asking the most of you.
But even during the hardest seasons, I have never truly regretted the path I chose.
My life has been filled with extraordinary beauty and incredibly rich experiences. I have been able to create things that came from my imagination, watch animals heal after someone finally gave them a chance, meet wonderful people, and see firsthand how much good can happen when people choose to care.
The bumps in the road are part of my story, but they are not the whole story. For every difficult moment, there has been something that reminded me why I started.
I may not have chosen the easiest life, but I chose a life that feels deeply meaningful to me. And when I look at it that way, I wouldn’t trade the road I’ve traveled for a smoother one.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I have been creating handcrafted jewelry for decades, and my work has evolved considerably throughout that time. I began as a metalsmith, creating jewelry and traveling to larger art shows to sell my work. In 2012, a back injury made the long hours of traveling and participating in those shows no longer sustainable. It was a major turning point in my career, and one that ultimately pushed me to reinvent what I was doing.
Living near the beautiful beaches of Southeastern NC, I began incorporating my own ocean photography into my jewelry and creating pieces that spoke to the people who wanted to take a little piece of the coast home with them. That concept has become one of the things my work is best known for today.
Many of my pieces contain actual photographs I have taken of the ocean. At first, people are often drawn to the beautiful shades of blue and assume they are looking at a gemstone. Then comes this wonderful moment of discovery when they realize there is something more inside – that the “stone” they are seeing is actually an image of the ocean. I love that element of surprise. It makes each piece feel like a tiny wearable window to the sea and gives people a tangible connection to a place they love.
More recently, I have returned to another longtime love of mine: painting. As a way to raise funds for Addie Catz Sanctuary, I began giving myself permission to spend more time creating whimsical cat paintings. I now sell them online and through local art events, and I am having an incredible amount of fun with this new chapter of my creative life. It feels like I’ve come full circle, bringing my love of art and animals together in a very natural way.
When I think about what I am most proud of, however, it isn’t one particular piece of jewelry, painting, or accomplishment. I am most proud of my ability to adapt.
A creative career rarely follows a straight line. Life changes, circumstances change, and sometimes the path you thought you were on simply isn’t available anymore. I’ve learned how to change direction without giving up – to take what is in front of me and find a new way forward. That requires creativity beyond artwork itself. It takes resilience, determination, and a willingness to keep reinventing yourself.
What sets my work apart is partly what I create, but even more importantly, why I create it. My ocean photography jewelry is unusual and gives people a way to carry a piece of the coast with them. But behind the jewelry and the paintings is a larger purpose.
Through Soul Anchor, my creativity helps support animals in need and the work we do through Addie Catz Sanctuary. Of course I love making beautiful things – I always have. But today, I’m creating for something bigger than myself.
My art has become part of my mission, and I think that sense of purpose is ultimately what sets my work apart.
Alright, so to wrap up, is there anything else you’d like to share with us?
You can find my jewelry and artwork online at Paws4SoulAnchor.Etsy.com. Please check out our social media to see new creations, upcoming markets, and the stories behind my work.
Instagram.com/paws4soulanchor
Facebook.com/paws4soulanchor
Every purchase helps me continue using my creativity to support animals in need.
I would also love for readers to follow Addie Catz Sanctuary on Facebook.com/addiecatzsanctuary and Instagram.com/addiecatzsanctuary. Following our pages, sharing our posts, volunteering, donating, fostering, or adopting may seem like small actions, but for a rescue organization, they can make an enormous difference. We truly depend on our community to continue this work.
Most importantly, I hope my story encourages people to pay attention to the things they feel called to do. You don’t need a perfect plan, unlimited resources, or an easy road to make a difference. Sometimes you simply start with what you have, use what you’re good at, and keep going.
For me, that has meant creating art, building Soul Anchor, and helping animals through Addie Catz Sanctuary. I am incredibly grateful for every person who purchases my work, follows our journey, donates, volunteers, adopts, fosters, or simply helps spread the word.
Art and animal rescue may seem like two very different worlds, but in my life they have become beautifully intertwined. Both are ultimately about connection, compassion, and leaving something meaningful behind. If my work can bring someone joy while also helping an animal receive the care and second chance they deserve, then I feel like I am doing exactly what I was meant to do.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://Paws4SoulAnchor.Etsy.com
- Instagram: instagram.com/addiecatzsanctuary and Instagram.com/Paws4SoulAnchor
- Facebook: facebook.com/addiecatzsanctuary and Facebook.com/Paws4SoulAnchor
