The heart of our mission is to find the amazing souls that breathe life into our communities. In the recent weeks, we’ve had the privilege to connect with some incredible artists, creatives, entrepreneurs and rabble rousers and we can’t begin to express how impressed we are with the incredible group below.
Kelly Hassan
We perform throughout the year at many events such as the Michigan Renaissance Festival in Holly, MI, Canterbury Village Medieval Faire in Lake Orion, MI, Michigan Fantasy Fest in Saint Claire Shores, MI. We spin fire at Terrorfied Forest in Pinckney, MI , as well as other belly dance events, and private gatherings. Read more>>
Harley Wallen
My humble beginnings as a filmmaker was at the end of the film incentives in Michigan funny enough. Read more>>
Melissa Haimowitz-Clouse
Brave Wimp launched in 2017 with an Indiegogo campaign; successfully raising $1500 to get us off the ground. The goal was to sell handmade and painted wood lapel pins that raised money for local and national non-profits. Read more>>
Meagan Rinck
I started into triathlons when I was about 35. I had two kids and wanted to try and be fit to keep up with them. I had a goal to complete a half Ironman and I did that. I fell in love with triathlons and wanted more. I did an X-Tri and enjoyed every second of that as well. Read more>>
Daleesha Nelson
I didn’t start my Airbnb journey with a roadmap, just faith, personal knowledge, and the little funds I had saved. Back in 2019, I was working at Graphic Packaging, grinding 9–5 and wearing my hands down until they literally started giving out on me. That was my sign. I knew I had to choose myself, my dreams, and my future. So I took a leap. Read more>>
William Chatlosh
I’ve always had an artistic inclination– as a kid, I was always drawing, and got pretty into origami when I was about ten. My grandma taught me the basics of knitting around the same time, and I started to look at different knitted and crocheted stuffed animals and clothing online. Read more>>
Alvin Hill
I was born into circumstances that most people only hear about in cautionary tales. My earliest memories are tied to instability — bouncing between foster homes, boys’ homes, juvenile facilities, and state programs like Independent Living. I didn’t have the luxury of a stable household, a traditional support system, or a roadmap for success. Read more>>
anthony adegbola
So I guess my journey into filmmaking really kicked off back in 2019. I’d just moved to New York, didn’t really know anyone, and was feeling a bit lonely and reflective about life. I remembered that as a kid, I always had a thing for cameras—my mom used to say I had an eye for it. Read more>>
Ann Dallman
I’m one of the lucky ones because I’ve known since the age of six that I wanted to be a writer. I majored in Journalism Education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison where student uprisings protesting the Vietnam War were prevalent. I graduated in June 1970. J-School was much smaller in those days with a limited enrollment of about 287 or so. Read more>>
Corri Riebow
I started making jewelry as a hobby when my daughter was a baby and my husband worked out of town. My friends and co-workers wanted what I was making and Paris Creek Jewelry was born. My craft has evolved over the years and I am so grateful for my customers and custom clients who have supported me on this journey. Read more>>
Jen Willoughby
The Blue Water Doula Collective I created the Blue Water Doula Collective because I realized early on that this work—educating families, filling gaps in the medical system, and supporting people through death—was far too big for one person to do alone. Read more>>
Nick Veine
I started playing guitar when I was 10 years old. In years prior, my dad would play guitar for my brother and I around the house. He would sing a few songs before we went to bed and was always gentle and entertaining, sometimes singing classic songs, sometimes goofy improvisations. Read more>>
Jan Canty
Until 1985, I was leading a pretty conventional life. I was finishing up my post-doctoral education in psychology at the Detroit Medical Center. Two weeks shy of finishing, my husband of eleven years disappeared. Ten days later, I found myself sitting across from Inspector Gil Hill of the Detroit Homicide Division on Floor Five of Police Headquarters. My life was in freefall. Read more>>
Carmen Moreno
I’m venezuela photographher and I started in photography almost without planning it. I’ve always loved observing people, places, light… and one day I picked up a camera and just never put it down again. At the beginning I was shooting anything I could, learning by doing, making mistakes, fixing them, and slowly finding my voice. Read more>>
Tom Keda
I got into kiteboarding about 13 years ago after getting a 1-way ticket to Puerto Rico. I fell in love with the sport and went from learning it to instructing it there. I later moved to Miami, where I managed a kite school with Adventure Sports for 6 years. Read more>>
Amanda Zelley
Hello! My name is Amanda and I’m the owner of Zellevated Designs, a custom balloon decor and flower wall, along with floral arch company. We officially hit the ground running in March of 2024. I’ve always had a creative side and first started exploring the art of balloon decor 5 years ago for my oldest daughter’s first birthday. Read more>>
Christian J. Williams
Fun fact – starting my business was a complete accident. I actually used to help people with their resumes for fun. I know – weird right? But if someone mentioned to me that they were having trouble gaining interview traction, I’d say, ‘let me see your resume’. Read more>>
Chris Randall
I actually came up with the idea for Sweep on the road while working as an Account Operations Manager at Pepsi. I was constantly traveling, listening to audiobooks, and one day I was deep into ‘My Master MBA’. It talked about how successful businesses often start with two things: solving something people hate doing, and bringing modern technology into an outdated space. Read more>>
Jeannene Jones-Rupert
My journey into weddings and gatherings has always been rooted in people. Before I started my business, my background was in developmental psychology and community-based storytelling. I’ve always been fascinated by how we connect, what makes us feel seen, and the ways we craft meaning through shared experiences. Read more>>
Emma Guzman
I started performing when I was 8 years old! It began with auditioning for musicals at local community theaters, and soon after that, I found myself learning how to play guitar. By the age of 11, I was writing my own songs. I released my first album, ‘Echo,’ in 2015- I was only 13 at the time. Read more>>
Eric Robinson
In 2020, I lost a dear friend to me. Mr. Azal Lockett aka “Chase Billiano” or “Chase Billi”. GOAT TOWN essentially was his movement. When he suddenly passed away, I picked it up and vowed to push it forward. Since then I’ve been pushing the brand, doing various things. Record label for myself releasing various projects, and also distributing other artist music across the globe. Read more>>
Antoinette Simpson
My introduction to culinary arts began in high school when I took a culinary arts course at a local vocational training school. I was intrigued by the cold foods course with how to plate salads and appetizers. The knowledge I gained there helped me land my first cooking job at the Detroit Athletic Club in 2001. Read more>>
Ahmed Badr
I began my photography journey in 2002 in Egypt, shooting on a borrowed Nikon film camera. What started as a small spark of curiosity quickly grew into a passion that shaped the course of my life. When I moved to Michigan in 2016, I came with experience, resilience, and a belief that visual storytelling could transform how people present themselves, their brands, and their communities. Read more>>
Joshua Johns
I worked for a company a felt the Dunk Tanks were undervalued. After a few years of sitting on the idea, in 2014, I purchased a dunk tank at auction and started my journey. Ended up learning my original idea was not a good idea and had to pivot to rentals. Slowly over the time I was able to build that up. Read more>>
Shawn Hondorp
I never planned to become an entrepreneur. In fact, I had planned to be a psychologist in an academic hospital setting for the rest of the my career. But as I continued my own journey of healing and trusting my body, I realized I was getting a lot of my own answers outside traditional systems and ways I was trained. Read more>>
Halie Gary
Hi, I’m Halie Gary — the creator and creative force behind Boum Boom. Boum Boom is my independent brand specializing in clothing, accessories, and handmade press-on nails inspired by the things I love most: Detroit culture, anime, and K-pop. I launched the brand in 2018 while pursuing my MA in Animation at DePaul University, initially focusing on apparel like hoodies and T-shirts. Read more>>
Jessica Jurcak
My journey into the world of healing and pain relief began over 15 years ago when I became a Licensed Massage Therapist (LMT). Early in my career, I noticed that while physical techniques could provide temporary relief, many clients struggled with chronic pain that seemed resistant to traditional methods. Read more>>
Hannah Sherwood
My career began nearly 17 years ago at a prestigious Northern Michigan spa, where I became the lead bridal makeup artist and immersed myself in all things beauty—from makeup and hair to advanced facials and body treatments. Read more>>
Elige ‘Eli’ Stewart
I’ve spoken before about my journey into art and psychic work in general. Well after I had been working for about 10 years in Michigan as a psychic reader, I had the opportunity to participate in a remote viewing study. I had been aware of remote viewing since the government had declassified its ‘psychic spying’ programs in the 90s. Read more>>
Amanie Mokdad
I am an award-winning makeup artist and a veteran of television, live performances, and bridal makeup. I have eight Emmy Awards from the National Television of Arts and Sciences. As the key makeup artist for PBS-Detroit for more than twenty years, I have worked with local and international celebrities. Read more>>
Ember Henderson
I have always been a maker of things. For most of my life that showed up through visual art: painting, collage, handmade objects, anything that let me work with texture and meaning at the same time. I have kept journals for years, not because I planned to write a book, but because writing has always helped me notice what I might have missed while living. Read more>>
Madeleine Vedel
I start my chocolate making day by turning on my tempering machine to melt my chocolate. This takes a couple of hours, during which I can prepare the ingredients and the recipes for the batches of ganache centers I’ll be making. Read more>>
Fernando Romero
My Story: How I Started and How I Got to Where I Am Today I began my journey in Buenos Aires, where I studied Language and Literature at the Instituto Superior del Profesorado Joaquín V. González. Those early years shaped my love for teaching, languages, and cultural exchange. Read more>>
Tikresha Warren
Hey there, my name is Tikresha Warren I originally started doing hair my freshman year in college attending Wayne State University. Read more>>
Dr. Tareva Watts
How I Became a Therapist: My Beginning From the time I was a young girl, I felt a quiet calling tugging at me—an instinctive pull toward people. While other children ran around playing games, I found myself drawn to the emotions behind what others said. Read more>>
Kumasi Mack
My name is Kumasi Mack, but on the stage and in the community most people know me as Kaizen Kabir. My journey with poetry didn’t start with applause — it started with heartbreak long before I even knew what heartbreak was. I was 12 when life taught me my first real lesson in loss. Read more>>
Hugh Davis
Revolin started the way a lot of innovations do—with frustration. Back in 2013, I starting playing pickleball, and very quickly got obsessed. I signed up for every tournament I could and found the best paddles I could. But, my so-called “premium” paddles kept breaking. These were top-tier models, yet they barely lasted a few months. Read more>>
Christi Dreese
I’ve been immersed in the arts for as long as I can remember. From childhood through high school, I took every art program available, always knowing deep down that I was meant to be an artist. At Aquinas College, I majored in painting and earned my Bachelor of Arts with a dual major in business—two fields that would later become the foundation of my career. Read more>>
Ami Rybicki
Travel has always been my love language. Long before I ever turned it into a business, I was the one planning every family vacation, girls’ trip, anniversary escape — the unofficial travel curator for everyone I cared about. Crafting beautiful experiences was something that just came naturally to me. Professionally, I spent my career in Human Resources, leading the HR department and building compensation programs. Read more>>
Chloe Schans
I have always been fascinated by characters. Creating them, performing them, depicting them, investigating them. I cycled through wanting to be an author, illustrator, animator, rockstar, and filmmaker as a kid, all of which seem more or less like different ways of embodying characters and being a storyteller. Read more>>
Mary Reynard Liss
I have been very fortunate to have lived a life dedicated to the Arts. As long as I can remember I loved to sing, dance, act and write. As a child I was mesmerized by my mother’s records. I loved to make up acts to accompany the songs. I would dress up my three younger sisters in costumes made of old clothes, petticoats. Read more>>
Sidney Arrington-Ashford
My story begins three years ago, during the pandemic, when I had just moved to Virginia to pursue a career in the nonprofit sector. While the work was fulfilling, it didn’t fully cover my bills. Around that time, I saw a college friend share that she had her own travel agency. I reached out, and she introduced me to my current mentor. Read more>>
Javion Harris
I’ve been in this Electronic and Ghetto Tech game for years, and people know me as one of Detroit’s most creative DJs and producers. I’m not just behind the tables — I’m an entrepreneur, a builder, and somebody who knows how to reshape sound from the Underground all the way to that gritty Ghetto Tech energy. Read more>>
Julio Wagner Tearney
I first got started with photography using the family camera. It was a simple point and shoot that made the process a joy and hassle-free experience, much like using a modern phone camera today. Read more>>
Anna VanAgtmael
I quit a 13 year career in Molecular Diagnostics to start a retreat brand. Even though I was successful and making more money than I ever thought I would, I was wildly unhappy. I started burning my life time and pursuing what I actually wanted, which was a foreign concept. Read more>>
Rahnda (Loussia) Myers
I come from a long line of hardworking and diverse business owners, so entrepreneurship has always been in my blood. I am the eldest of three girls, a wife, and a mom of three, and those roles have shaped my work ethic and my outlook on life in such a meaningful way. Read more>>
Kristin Revere
I started Gold Coast Doulas to make the journey into parenthood easier for women and families during one of the most challenging times in their lives. During my first pregnancy, I had difficulty finding the resources and support I needed. Read more>>
Morgan McRay
I was inducted into the formalwear world over 10 years ago. I loved it from the beginning, but graduated college and decided to try my hand at a corporate office job. COVID changed everything from me. My job shifted from in-office to work-from-home and I was missing the ‘human’ aspect. Read more>>
TNL (KING T & LUSS)
We started TNL as two brothers from Michigan with nothing but a dream, a mic, and a whole lot of fire to prove something. Read more>>
Lauren Amt
2008 was a year of survival for most and I count myself lucky among those starting their architectural careers that year at a firm with strong footing. My first job was in Washington, DC working in the education and government sectors under a project architect who was an artist at heart with a structural background. Read more>>
