lauren Ornelas and

Mark Hawthorne

 

46, vegan 28 years, hometown San Antonio, TX

54, vegan 15 years; hometown Rohnert Park, CA

 

 

What is it like to be in a couple where you’re both focused on AR?

 

L: It’s good and it’s helpful because we know the same people, we understand the struggles, we understand  the pain. It’s also very cool because I find people in this movement to be very competitive with one another, and it’s so fun and exciting to want to promote somebody else who I respect and obviously love. There’s something fun about the fact that we’re in the same place. We both understand the pain of driving and seeing animals hit by the side of the road. There’s no time spent explaining to somebody why this is so painful.

 

M: I think we’re both really conscious of the importance of taking time out to recharge your batteries. I guess I’m better at it, and I try to encourage lauren to do it more. We have a Fun Friday. Every  Friday, after work, we relax. We almost always have dinner together, but the extra part of Friday is that we have what I like to call ‘an adult beverage,’ which is really just a way of saying ‘alcohol.’ Or maybe two, if we’re being honest. And watch a bad movie, or maybe two bad movies, if we’re being honest. And just unwind, for three or four hours not think about the state of the world.