Michigan’s Most Inspiring Stories

Katrina Genge

Since I was a young teenager I had always been interested in pursuing a career in body art. My mother wasn’t too fond of the idea but she also knew I wanted to be an artist to some effect and urged me to keep making art. My career began about 10 years ago in a small town up in the Manistee Forest area. I was fortunate enough to have a best friend who tattooed. We had just traded services (I painted him a custom picture in exchange for a tattoo) and he asked me “Katrina, why don’t you want to tattoo?” I immediately said “Of course I want to tattoo. That’s always been the goal!” To my surprise he said “Great, your apprenticeship starts monday.” Read More>>

Timothy Jones

A prolific and award-winning singer, composer, arranger, actor, teacher, music director and conductor, Mister Tim has performed around the world in bands, a cappella groups, orchestras, and music theater productions. He performs his solo vocal live-looping show and a solo classic crooning show, is music director for Vocality Music, regularly releases music and music videos, and directs and performs with a variety of ensembles. Read More>>

Sarah Hofstra

For as long as I can remember, I’ve had a dream: to work in real estate. The thought of guiding people to find their perfect homes, of negotiating deals, of turning houses into places of belonging—it’s always seemed exhilarating to me. But as a young single mom of three, that dream felt far from reach. Real estate was commission-based, and I depended on my stable paycheck. It was also clear that the cost of getting licensed was more than I could afford at the time. And, with no one in my circle who could guide me through the process, I pushed my passion to the back burner. Read More>>

Maddie Zumstein

I began advertising on social platforms (TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook, and Instagram). From there, I started hanging up fliers in local stores and restaurants in Milford. In late October, I started asking around for podcast sponsorships and landed my very first one with Terraces Flower Farm. From there, my podcast seemed to take off and become more well known. Then, I started interviews with many business owners and started to diversify my podcast audience and expanded across other listening platforms such as Apple Podcasts and Spotify. I got to where I am today because I wasn’t intimidated by other’s opinions of me and went all in. Read More>>

Betsy Gist

Seeing growth in both that space and our eBay store, we decided to look for our own standalone location in Davison. After months of searching, we fell in love with our current space at 9009 Davison Road. With help from our families and friends, we opened on June 1 of this year, aiming to create a cozy, welcoming space that our customers would look forward to visiting. In less than six months, we’ve surpassed our goals and accomplished more than we expected. When people walk through our doors, we don’t just see customers—we see friends. We’ve grown our customer base, expanded our book selection, and recently added a “bookish” apparel line. Read More>>

Kayleigh Gratz

I had grown up with the Jaycees, with parents who were very active in the organization since I was two years old. A significant portion of my childhood was spent attending Jaycee events around the state with my parents- everything from Easter Egg Hunts, Haunted Houses, camping weekends, Christmas Caroling at nursing homes, building playgrounds, gathering donations for a family who lost everything in a house fire, Hometown Idol (a local version of American Idol), etc. I officially joined the Allegan Jaycees in June of 2017, upon moving home after college. Read More>>

Rebecca Miller

After I graduated from college, I worked at different design studios & production companies to keep the creative juices flowing. Each year exposed me to fun, new, and exciting ways to illustrate and design. My work is inspired by my days spent in the library, out in nature, or in the print shop. Some of my biggest influences include pop culture, graphic novel art, letterpress, Red Rhino Glass & Print, naturalism, Doc Hammer and Jackson Publick’s ‘The Venture Bros.’ TV series, tattoo design, and tongue-in-cheek humor. Read More>>

Nikki Harris

I actually got started in photography as a kid when I was in the 4-H program! I would enter photos into the county fair competition. I always loved capturing the beauty of nature, then one day after college I decided I wanted to try taking photos of people. I took on my first few sessions for free trying to see if I enjoyed it and I did! After that I started taking more and more sessions in famiy photography and finally got my business up and running. Now I photograph everything from families to weddings to newborns! Read More>>

Adrianna Czyzewski

As we all know Covid-19 has changed lots of lives at a very rapid pace. I was first furloughed, then got let go from my job, and with not much holding me back, my husband and I decided it’s time to explore the country. We rented a mini van with my brother in law and his girlfriend and we started our adventure. We created so much content and started posting. Couple years later, we have a great following on our page and are doing what we love on our spare time as content creators. We both work full time, but that never stopped us from exploring the world. Our goal is to show others that you do not have to be a a full time blogger or influencer to experience this kind of adventure; it’s attainable to everyone as long as you set your mind on it! Read More>>

Keith Johnson

Everyone loved the unique blends and raved over the delicious juices we created. We ran the test trial store for about five months, doing several pop ups across the city at food markets and community yoga events. After pausing operations in 2021, we officially relaunched in 2024 as JUICIE Detroit on Juneteenth. Since our relaunch, we have expanded our offerings from the original 6 to 14 unique cold pressed juice blends as well as one protein almond milk blend. We are soo grateful to have had the opportunity to service the Metro Detroit community with over 350 bottles of delicious cold pressed juices so far. Read More>>

Gerti Begaj

I was born and raised in Albania. Moved to Michigan when i was 18 years old. My restaurant journey starts as a server assistant at Tallulah wine bar and bistro when i was 19years old in 2013 . Within 4 years i was now the GM at Tallulah and had discovered the passion for hospitality, good food, wine and spirits. The passion pushed me to grow and with the owner of Tallulah and a few other partners I opened BESA as the Managing Partner on October 20th 2018. Read More>>

Ashya Rice

Every Christmas, my sisters, cousins, and I would gather at my grandparents house and spend the day baking cookies, cakes, and sometimes even pizza with my grandma. I think my love for baking really started there, surrounded by family and creating memories in the kitchen. In high school, I began baking cupcakes and selling them for some extra money. It was a way for me to be creative, and I loved seeing how much people enjoyed both the look and taste of what I made. Those early experiences shaped my passion and set the foundation for where I am today. Read More>>

Rian Thomas

I fell in love with music when I was about 13 years old, but even still music was around me my whole life. When I turned 17 is when I began taking it seriously and making it my life. I started using music as an outlet to express myself and say the things I couldn’t via texts, calls or etc. I love to make music that people can feel or relate to, it makes me feel more connected to the mass I’m trying to project to. My goal when everything is set and done, I want to be remembered as a generational talent, a once in a lifetime type of experience. Read More>>

Jaylon Tyler

I got into music in third grade going to the studio to the first time 2012 then I started recording some music on my tablet in 2014 when I moved to St. Louis with my father then in 2016 I started releasing music seriously and since then becoming a professional artist rapper singer songwriter gaining over 200,000 streams and 1 million views while still being underrated Read More>>

Andrea

During the pandemic, I found myself with extra time on my hands and decided to use it productively. I took the opportunity to explore a craft I’d always been curious about but never had time for: crochet. Teaching myself through YouTube tutorials and practicing consistently for months, I gradually honed my skills. One of my first creations was bows and hats for my guinea pigs, a fun project that I still make to this day! The following year, I launched an Etsy shop to sell my crochet creations for both pets and people, eventually expanding to Amazon and Michael’s MakerPlace. Read More>>

Margaux Deconcini

When I started my career in direct practice, I quickly realized how broken the system was. While I cherished working one-on-one with individuals, I felt called to make a bigger impact. That calling led me to focus on education, community engagement, and philanthropy. By bringing people together and fostering a sense of shared responsibility, I strive to create a synergistic effect—a ripple of positive change where everyone steps up to be part of something greater than themselves. Read More>>

Adam Muncy

Samson’s started with a modified rice cooker and a product that wouldn’t wash out. There weren’t any distributors serving our area so our product exposure was limited. But Jake believed that I was the right partner one day when I was getting my hair cut. From there, we went door to door selling our pomades to any and every salon and barber shop in Michigan. Since then, things have gotten a lot more complicated with a team of reps and products in about 1,500 retailers in the US and Canada. Read More>>

Jill Robertson

The journey for me started when my parents got me some fashion plates for Christmas when I was about 5 years old. I started wrapping fabric and towels around me as dresses, sewing small items by hand and got my first sewing machine when I was 10 years old. I got my undergrad in design and marketing and a master’s in business. Living in Michigan, it is easy to work in automotive, and have for many years in engineering. I had designed for private clients for many years before launching a brand in 2007, but needed a break with the economic downturn. In 2023 I launched my clothing brand. When deciding on a name, I wanted to connect to my Michigan roots, and 1837 is the year Michigan because a state; Brand 1837 was born. Read More>>

David Cholak

Founded in the early 2000s by Amy, our family-owned floral business began in a cozy shop in Southfield. With the support of her son, David, who is now the owner, we’ve grown from humble beginnings into the thriving floral shop we are today. Over the past 20 years, we’ve brought countless weddings and events to life, leaving smiles on the faces of countless brides, grooms, and every client that needed our services Read More>>

Jason Smith

That first dance may have started 8 years ago but since that moment there have been many hours of practice, research into how and where to get a business started, and lots of faith in one another that we were doing the right thing. What officially pushed us into action was after Jamie left her job we were able to look back at her experience, how dancing brought us together, the personal connections that were still going strong, and the want to work for ourselves, not someone else, and thought, “We could do that”. Read More>>

Melissa Myers

Once I earned the CERTIFIED FINANCIAL PLANNER® designation, I left corporate America and started my own financial planning practice. I recognized that clients were hungry for more education, guidance and accountability in the areas of personal finance. This realization led to me writing a book, workbook and journal. Then came facilitating a book club, course and public speaking opportunities. This fall I went rogue and established my own, 100% independent firm, Bayou Financial Planning LLC, DBA Melissa Myers Group. I have a heart for helping people get what they want in life and feel blessed that I can be a blessing through my work! Read More>>

Lola Elzein

I had 6 underwriters I was trying to sign with, 5 of them denied me. A few of them told me I would never make it in this market. The one that approved me helped me pave the way for what is now known as, Venture Title Agency. I did not give up. It was extremely difficult to start. I started in a 300 sq. Foot office in downtown Detroit, I was a one-woman shop. And I grew from there. It was a very humbling experience as I had no idea where this journey was taking me, I just followed my heart and my dream and kept going. Read More>>

Daniel Okunawo

I’ve always been a fan of capturing moments and pictures. I’m the friend that pulls out the camera to record everything I can possibly remember to capture. I’ve played with editing for a while as well. Around my birthday in 2024 a close friend along with other friends surprised me with my first camera Sony A7II and that’s when the real journey began. Ever since then I’ve refined my craft and in a short amount of time increased the quality of my work as you see today. Read More>>

Lauren Dombrow

The long-term goal is to be a celebrity make up artist and a make up artist for runways, photoshoots, and magazines! Also like every other influencer, a long-term goal is to hit 1 million followers and to be recognized worldwide for my make up ability and talent. The passion that I have for my career will die with me. This is my life‘s journey and I’m so grateful to my my craft! What I want people to take from my experiences is just to never give up if you believe in something with your whole heart and you put everything you can into it. There is nothing you cannot achieve! Live passionately, and believe in yourself! Read More>>

Danielle Gugino

Since then I’ve dove deeply into travel, both domestic and internationally, often basing a lot of the trips around trying the best food the world has to offer. My favorite food destinations I’ve travelled to are Tokyo, London, Mexico City, NYC, Paris, and Seoul. Some of the most interesting experiences have come from solo traveling South East Asia for 7 weeks right before COVID, flying to Dubrovnik for work, and hiking Machu Picchu during the Inti Raymi Festival of the Sun in Cusco, Peru. Read More>>