Behind the Scenes with Al Onkka

Al Onkka has been a member of our editorial team longer than anyone else! This month in Behind the Scenes, he tells us what it’s been like to work for Rainbow Rumpus.

What do you do for Rainbow Rumpus?

I was the Rainbow Riot editor for three years. Now I am joining the board of directors.

As an editor, I helped our writers with their articles for the Rainbow Riot part of the website. We would come up with article ideas, and then figure out who we needed to talk to. 

How did you discover Rainbow Rumpus and why did you start volunteering for the magazine?

I found Rainbow Rumpus on a volunteer website. I wanted to volunteer with them because I thought it would be fun to help make a cool magazine with a great mission. Rainbow Rumpus is a small magazine, and I thought I could learn a lot about how a website and magazine work. 

What has been the most challenging part of working for the magazine?

Because kids visit Rainbow Rumpus from their homes or schools, I never get to meet them! It would be fun to meet more of the kids who read the magazine. 

What is your best memory from working on Rainbow Rumpus?

My best memory was the first time my team and I saw the new website that Rainbow Rumpus put up last year. We were all so excited about how cool it was and we even got to help pick out the colors. 

Tell us about your awesome handmade bag business. How did you get started? What’s the most fun to make?

I sew backpacks and other bags from my apartment in Minneapolis, MN. Then I sell them online to people all over the world. I first started sewing backpacks about 10 years ago when I worked at a summer camp. Now I have many more designs and colors. People who order a bag from me can pick out just the bag they want. The most fun bags to make are the ones for people that I know, because then I can see them using the bags around town. 

What’s one thing you really want to learn how to do?

I really want to learn how to speak another language. When I was in school I didn't like my Spanish class, but now I wish I had learned more because I want to visit South America. I think speaking another language is like a super-power, and even just learning a little bit is fun. 

Best Halloween costume ever?

I am over a foot taller than my wife and one Halloween we dressed up as Jack and the Beanstalk. She was Jack, and I was the beanstalk. I dressed all in green with clouds and a castle on my head. She dressed up as a farmer with overalls and a little stuffed animal cow in her pocket.