Nikki DeLoach is someone to look up to. Since her days on the Mickey Mouse Club , DeLoach has starred in MTV’s hit series Awkward, guest starred in NCIS and Criminal Minds, and taken over Hallmark. But DeLoach’s work does not end when cameras stop rolling —she’s been taking up activism for over a decade. The co-founder of What We Are, DeLoach aims to encourage women to tell their own stories, as she has done. She pursues every cause that is dear to her and inspire others to do the same along the way. DeLoach went in detail with Jejune about these causes, making the most out of the holidays amid COVID-19, and why we should all be activists. For more on Nikki Deloach, read below.

Where are you based?
Los Angeles, CA

What inspired you to pursue acting?
I began watching musicals with my Nana at three years old. I will never forget how they made me feel. I didn’t know there was a Hollywood or sets or that it was even a business. I just knew that whatever they were doing, I wanted to be a part of making people feel the way that these stories, characters, and actors made me feel. Barbara Streisand’s performance in Funny Girl was the greatest thing I had ever seen. To this day, it is one of my all-time favorites. I connected to the fact that SHE saw herself, even if no one else did. SHE knew she mattered, even if no one else did. SHE knew she had purpose, even if no one else did. That’s the power of storytelling. You see yourself in the story and you feel seen, less alone, connected to something bigger. I knew I wanted to spend my life being a storyteller.

You were recently in the Hallmark movie Cranberry Christmas. Can you tell us a little bit about this film and your character?
Cranberry Christmas is about a separated couple who have to feign marital bliss on national television to help their town’s Christmas festival and their business. This forces them to communicate, connect and rediscover each other in ways they hadn’t experienced before. It is a beautiful story about a couple finding one another again and remembering what’s truly important. I play Dawn, who is a very driven and passionate woman. She has to learn to make room for her husband’s dreams as well as her own which forces her to make some tough decisions. As a working mom and wife, I really connected with her. It’s hard. You can’t be in two places at one time so you always feel like you are letting something or someone down. The goal is to not let yourself down in the process of trying to please everyone in your life.

In some ways it feels like the holidays are cancelled, but we are grateful to have Christmas movies coming out to help us feel connected and seasonal. How does it feel being in a Christmas movie with everything going on?
You know, because of our situation with Bennett, we have been extremely careful inside of all of this. However, we also have bills and, most importantly, it is critical for us to maintain healthcare because Bennett’s medical issues are very expensive. He was born with multiple heart defects and has already had three heart surgeries. I had long conversations with Hallmark and with the producers of the movie about safety, and I felt really comfortable with all the protocols. I am so grateful we were able to bring our audience 40 new holiday movies this year. I applaud all the executives and producers for making this happen. I believe that people needed them. They needed to just escape all of this loss, pain, anxiety, fear and get lost in lightness, the fun and love of Hallmark movies… if only for 90 minutes.

We also loved you as Lacey Hamilton in Awkward. Can you tell us a little bit about being on this show and playing a young mother?
It’s funny, I didn’t think twice about playing a young mother. Most of my actress friends who were my age were saying that they wouldn’t make that choice, or they were concerned it would then place them in the mom category forever. All I knew was that it was one of the best pilot scripts I had ever read in my life and Lacey Hamilton was a dream role. Also, I felt so deeply connected to her. It was a creative soulmate connection. I loved every second of it.

It is very empowering to see Lacey go back to college at the same time her daughter does. Can you talk about this a little?
This was really important to me. I wanted Lacey to find empowerment, confidence, and growth. She got pregnant in high school, and even though she loves her daughter more than anything in the world, her personal growth and dreams took a backseat for a long time. I think this happens to so many women. And we wanted to say that it is never too late for you to go after your heart’s desire.

In addition to acting, you also co-founded the blog What We Are. What inspired you and co-founder Jen Dede to start What We Are, and can you tell us a little bit about it?
We wanted to create a space where women could show up exactly how they are, their unfiltered, messy, true and beautiful selves. We wanted to tell those stories and amplify the voices of all the courageous and inspiring women we met along life’s path. It has been such a joy to connect with so many women. We are all growing each other and walking through life together.

What We Are is all about creating a community to uplift women from all kinds of life. How are some ways you ensure to lead with this initiative? Why is this important to you?
I am a firm believer that being a leader is about showing up and doing the work. I don’t ask other people to do something that I am not willing to do myself. If I am asking our followers to explore what they value and if their relationships, voting choices, and actions reflect those values, it’s because I have already done that for myself. When you show people that you are willing to get vulnerable, to open your heart and soul up, to grow, learn, make mistakes, you inspire them to do the same. In Sonya Renee Taylor’s book The Body is Not an Apology, she talks about the fact that radical self-love is what will truly heal the world. I believe that is true. I want women to have radical self-love.

Jejune loves how active you are in community. You have been very vocal about getting people to vote and we are very grateful that you joined us as part of our HeadCount registration push! Can you tell us a little bit about how this election was for you?
Thank you so much for including me! I have been an activist since I was 22 years old. This election was unlike anything I’ve ever experienced in really incredible ways and also extremely scary ways. I would like to focus on all the good, however. This year, I have never experienced such tremendous movement around social and racial justice. This fueled the work that was done with the elections. I am so grateful that I had the opportunity to work with organizations like Fair Fight, New Georgia Project, Southern Crossroads, SURJ, and Future Now: Giving Circles. These are tremendous organizations that are led by people with so much heart, humanity and passion. I learned so much. I worked side by side with friends and met so many people who have become friends. I would encourage everyone to look up these organizations and get involved. We must show up. We must get involved if we want to save our humanity and our world.

You’re a spokesperson for Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. Could you talk a little about your involvement with them, and the story behind why you are so passionate about their work?
Bennett was born with multiple heart defects. At five days old, he underwent his first open heart surgery with Dr. Vaughn Starnes. Since then, he has had two more life-saving heart surgeries. They saved my son’s life. Not once, but three times. That’s the first reason I wanted to get involved with Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. It was personal. Also, CHLA is one of the top five children’s hospitals in the country and serves 18 million kids in our area. It is one of very few safety net hospitals left in the country which means no child is ever turned away because of a lack of insurance or money. In my opinion, no mother or father should ever have to choose between going bankrupt or saving the life of their child. I will fight for this hospital, the people that work inside, and those kids for the rest of my life.

You are also very active with this Alzheimer's Association. Could you talk about what moved you towards this cause and your involvement with this association?
Alzheimer’s and dementia has hit our family hard. My grandfather was diagnosed and passed away with Alzheimer’s. And then, my dad was diagnosed with a rare and aggressive form of dementia called Pick’s Disease. I am a big advocate of turning your pain into purpose, so I reached out to The Alzheimer’s Association to see how I could get involved. I have been working with them ever since. They are an incredible organization that dedicates every second of their time and every dime they receive to finding a cure, researching preventive measures, and supporting families who are dealing with the disease. They have been a huge support system for my family. I am very honored to work with them.

Your father, David, has Pick’s Disease, a rare form of dementia. This is a really hard time for the elderly, especially those in homes. How is he and your family doing?
This is so hard for me to talk about without sobbing. The thought of my dad in a home at 66 years old is too much for my heart to take. The worst thing about all of it is that I can’t get to him safely. I have had to protect my son, Bennett (my heart baby), so travel has been limited. But hopefully, I will be able to get there very soon. We are going to try and drive to Georgia this spring. I just want to hold him for as long as I can.

Speaking about family, you are a mom. How has it been navigating having the kids home more often and any homeschooling you have had to implement.
Between work, a three year-old and a seven year-old in homeschool, it has been a handful! However, we are good. We are very fortunate. We have both been able to work, keep a roof over our heads, and food in our bellies. We’ve all been healthy. And at the end of the day, that is all that really matters. So, I don’t really complain much. I try to imagine what other families are going through and always keep perspective.

You are clearly a very active person, how do you go about balancing acting projects, humanitarian work, What We Are, and family life?
I don’t, I am a disaster! There is no balance! But that is okay. I don’t stress about it as much as I used to. I am a bit of a work horse, I always have been. So, I know I will always do my best. And if my best isn’t as good as I would want it to be on some of the really hard days, then so be it. Life is far too short. I let go of so much over these last few years. When you go through traumatic, life and death situations you really learn that everything else is just small stuff that will get handled.

How are you staying positive during shelter-in-place?
We’ve been doing a version of this for over three years because of my youngest son’s health condition. It certainly has been far more strict and serious with COVID-19. So, it hasn’t been as much of a shock to the system as it has been for others, that’s for sure. I plan fun activities, adventures, movie nights for all of us. I tell myself that this too shall pass. Nothing stays hard forever. I know that firsthand. If you can just focus on the present moment, getting yourself from one minute to the next, then it makes it much easier to move through.

What is your life motto?
It changes and I have many. One thing I am doing right now is just reminding myself to soften. I will literally say it out loud to myself twenty times a day if I need to. When I get overwhelmed or stressed or scared or angry, I breathe and whisper to myself “Soften.” It really helps.

To keep up with Nikki Deloach, check out the platforms listed below:
Instagram: @nikdeloach and @welcometowhatweare
Twitter: @nikkideloach
Website: What We Are

Team Credits:
Photographer: Inda Reid of Images by Inda
Hair: Kyle Hennessy
Makeup: Ashley Beverly Cordova

Nikki DeLoach’s Guide to Self Love