By Rachael Lindley
Photography by Crystal Wise
Illustration by Becca Waugh
The effervescent Sainty Nelsen lives in a real-life dollhouse. Albeit a Fort Worth version. With its baby pink front door, vivid color scheme and Slim Aarons’ photos, the Nelsen’s home is a clear reflection of Sainty’s sunny disposition. With an infectious energy and obvious joie de vivre, it comes as no surprise that the voice actress has 21 shows under her belt, with four debuting soon, most notably Gabby’s Dollhouse: The Movie, where she will continue to voice Pillow Cat.
Sainty brings a whirlwind of animated characters to life from the comfort of her home studio. She voices Nova Swift in Trolls: The Beat Goes On!, Fleur Blanc on Eureka Seven: AO and even characters on Spidey and Friends. No two days sound the same for this dynamic voice actress.
Sainty made her stage debut at three years old at Casa Mañana. She belted out ‘Ain’t Nothin’ but a Hound Dog’ and landed the part of an elf in Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, the youngest performer the theatre had ever hired. Sainty’s career had just begun.
“I loved Fort Worth, but I was also ready to go to New York City at any given moment. I wanted to be on Broadway,” she says.
Sainty continued to work in various productions all through her formative years.
After attending Baldwin Wallace University in Ohio, Sainty made her way to New York, where she met Eric Nelsen while working on a Broadway-style version of “Finding Nemo.” In keeping with Sainty’s style, the couple was engaged on stage and later married in November 2013.
Despite Sainty’s exuberant exterior, she’s overcome her fair share of adversity. Sainty, a self-proclaimed late bloomer, found herself in 2021 as a mother of two, with a sick newborn (Mick), anxiety through the roof and leaning on food for comfort.
“I lost my happy,” admits Sainty.
Stuck in a cycle of feeling utterly helpless, Sainty’s mental health spiraled as Mick was sick with no diagnosis in sight.
“In 2021, I didn’t want to be here,” says Sainty. “I remember telling my mom, ‘I don’t want to do this anymore.’ I didn’t want to take my life, I just didn’t want this life.”
She realized that if she couldn’t fix Mick, then she would fix herself. She stopped drinking and started taking anxiety medication.
“I almost had to have a funeral for who I was. And it’s like ‘okay, you’re not that chick anymore.’”
The Nelsen family received a diagnosis for Mick at long last: pyloric stenosis, a condition in babies where the opening between the stomach and small intestine narrows, resulting in great difficulty feeding.
While most infants are diagnosed immediately after birth, Mick wasn’t diagnosed until after he was three months old, about a week away from cardiac arrest. This brought on a plethora of other health issues after his diagnosis for the young family to tackle.
In the years that followed, things had returned to a new normal for the Nelsen family — if normal meant balancing filming locations and recording sessions for both parents.
Motherhood
Sainty has learned the art of thriving in the chaos of motherhood. As someone who loves to play with a penchant for chicken strips, hot dogs and candy galore, she thrills in planning fun activities for the kids around her busy schedule. The Nelsens’ two children, Molly Morgan, 5, and Mick, 3, keep the couple busy but also give them a hefty sense of purpose.
“As a working mom… I’m doing it for a reason. For them. Every time I’m gone and working, I want them to realize that I’m doing this for them. I want them to see it.”
Sainty also admits that she’s a better mom when she’s working.
During the day, Sainty keeps an extremely full schedule only to come alive in the evenings with her kids.
“My love language is gift giving and that’s my sparkle with my kids,” she says. “My kids stay up till midnight, but that’s my showtime!”
Sainty recalls nights watching movies, playing games, having snacks and singing show tunes with her children.
Philanthropy is just another one of Sainty’s passions.
“Philanthropy is a gift. Being able to raise money and rally people — that’s a calling of mine,” Sainty says. “So many people helped me in my times of need, so once I was able to help myself, it became my mission to help others.”
When she can give her time, she will do so freely.
Sainty volunteers at Cook Children’s Hospital, Bass Hall and the National Cowgirl Museum, as well as working directly with Texas Health to bring awareness to Breast Cancer. Sainty is also a fierce advocate for early skin cancer detection and is an American Cancer Society Ambassador. The cause is near and dear to her following her own melanoma diagnosis in 2023. Sainty had a questionable area on her back removed in an unexpected two-hour surgery that left her with nerve pain and a large scar. She is now cancer-free and tells everyone she can about the importance of yearly skin checks.
Now, with a second lease on life, Sainty’s on a mission to give back, lean in, and love hard. “If I had more money than God, I’d spend it all on philanthropy,” she says. “That’s how much I believe in it.”
So, what does a day in the life of Sainty look like?
As someone living life at full volume, it’s like stepping into a world of a modern renaissance woman — one part Broadway, one part mother, one part philanthropist, and all heart. Sainty tackles each day with a microphone in one hand, a hot dog in the other, and a caffeinated beverage always within reach.
6:00 AM
The house is still quiet, but Sainty is already up. She uses the early morning hours to post content, edit videos, and answer emails — she does everything on her own. “People always ask me who runs my Instagram,” she laughs. “It’s me. Just me.” With her children still asleep, it’s her sacred hour to set the tone for the day.
7:00 AM
The chaos begins. Molly Morgan and Mick are up, and Sainty’s moving. Hairbrushes, backpacks, dance shoes, and breakfast negotiations fly as she does the solo morning shuffle — her husband, Eric is often away filming. By 8:00, both kids are out the door, and Sainty is already in the carpool lane with her trusty Starbucks order in hand.
9:00 AM
She heads into her home voiceover booth — a space that has shaped her career in more ways than one. “Voiceover changed my life,” she says. “Denis Leary was actually the one who told me to try it.” From animated characters to commercials, her voice brings stories to life, all from the comfort of her custom studio.
11:00 AM
Board meeting. Or two. Sainty sits on multiple nonprofit boards, including Bass Hall and the National Cowgirl Museum. “Sometimes it feels like I’m in a board meeting more than I’m in my own house,” she jokes. Her philanthropic work is as much a part of her identity as her love for the stage. “I’m obsessed with giving back. It’s my new form of performing.”
12:00 PM
She picks up Mick from preschool, puts him down for a nap, and uses the next precious hour for “the content grind” or business meetings related to her holiday stocking product line. “I’m always throwing spaghetti at the wall to see what sticks,” she says, unapologetically. “I do everything 155%.”
2:45 PM
Back in the carpool line. She picks up Molly Morgan and plans a post-school outing — usually somewhere playful like Cheeky Monkey, Rainforest Café at Grapevine Mills or Cowtown Art.
5:00 PM
If it’s not a baseball game or dance practice, it’s family time — and by family time, she means a dance party in the kitchen or spontaneous photoshoots with her kids in costumes. “I’m not the best parent during the day,” she admits, “but I come alive at night.”
8:00 PM
Jammies on. The kids are in bed with her. “We stay up late,” she shrugs. “We sing. We tell stories. It’s our time.” Sometimes, it’s also when she sneaks in work — answering DMs, designing product packaging and editing a podcast episode.
10:00 PM
Her house is finally still again, mostly. But not for long.
Sainty Nelsen is a reminder that life isn’t about being perfect — it’s about showing up, loving big, and maybe eating a hot dog every now and again.
