Asher Hebel is an ex-public school teacher, ex-high school girls softball coach, and ex-lacrosse coach with a degree in secondary education, summa cum laude, from Webster University. In addition to being a founder of 1419 Art, she works with her husband at their creative digital marketing agency. Asher is the past secretary of the Webster Groves Historical Society and Sara Kerr’s sister.
Asher was raised in St. Louis, Missouri. She attended the Webster Groves High School of Sixteen in Webster Groves fame. This sensationalistic and truth-bending documentary grabbed national headlines in the late 1960s for its depiction of a materialistic, segregated, ambitious, and privileged suburb. Despite its shock-tv style and alleged staging of certain scenes, elements of uncomfortable truth existed within its message. But the other side of the story was also left out, the side which includes the town’s own battles with economic and community segregation and its pioneering steps toward inclusion. Webster University, for example, was founded by women in 1915 and open to women throughout its history.
During Asher’s time as a student at Webster Groves High School, a court-mandated desegregation program was in full swing. While all the students shared the same classrooms, lunchrooms, and team loyalties, they did not share the same experience. Some students had to wake at 5:00 am to ride the bus through its numerous stops on its route from the city, while others walked tree-lined streets to their local high school. People noticed; Asher noticed.
These experiences introduced Asher to the diversity of both economic and racial backgrounds and their pernicious consequences. They serve as a reminder to her today of the importance of helping to break down the hurdles blocking others from pursuing their dreams, accessing opportunities, and participating in all our United States has to offer. She believes in the importance of giving voice to a cause, of being brave, and of opening difficult dialogues to public scrutiny.
In 2021, Asher and her partners launched 1419 Art to give voice to those so often pushed to the sides of or bypassed by our communities. She hopes you join 1419 Art’s effort. And she hopes her children will grow up into a world which no longer needs to fight for equity, because it exists.