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.
Denise Schutte
Brent and Denise Schutte are farmer’s in rural Au Gres, Michigan. The historic grain elevator built in the early 1900’s was purchased by the Schutte’s family farm in 1975, it was a working grain elevator at the that time, but then the larger grain system was built and the building sat empty until the mid 1990’s when Brent & Denise converted the space and started the Wolverine Hardwood Pellet business, that business was opened for 7 years. Read more>>
Valeriia Wang
Launched in October 2025, Paws & Joy Pet Bakery began with a simple belief: pets are family, and they deserve the same level of care, quality, and celebration as any loved one. Read more>>
Meaghan Scott
I didn’t just step into photography because I’ve been immersed with stories for years. As a high school English teacher, we can see how stories are something we live. Every person has a narrative that was shaped by others, connections, moments on repeat. Additionally, I am a Theatre teacher and directed plays for 25 years and in that role I could visualize those stories. Read more>>
Reagan Donaldson
I was born and raised in Metter, GA. I married my high school sweetheart, Frances. We have been married for 39 years. We have two sons, a daughter, and five grandsons. My journey in the monument business started as a 19-year-old simply looking for a job. I stopped in at a local monument company and found they were hiring. Read more>>
David Dohnal
I first started using night vision in the military 26 years ago. In 2022, I had taken a night vision shooting course and the next weekend we rented side by sides and went on a tour. While driving these I thought it would be super cool to do this at night as a business and that’s how it all started. Read more>>
Bridget leonard
Dr. Bridget A. Leonard, DNP, MSN, MBA-HCM, RN, CRRN, NEA-BC, CNE®pv is an award-winning nursing executive, educator, author, speaker, and resilience expert whose life and leadership embody the power of perseverance, purpose, and reinvention. Known to many as “Dr. B,” she is a transformational leader with more than 30 years of nursing experience and a story that inspires audiences far beyond healthcare. Read more>>
Attia Qureshi
Attia and Isaiah started the Upick on Wilson Rd in 2019. Isaiah had come back to the family farm about five years earlier, so he knew how to grow cherries but had never tried opening the farm up the public. Read more>>
Frank Fiorello
Getting into journalism wasn’t a corporate pivot; it was a personal one. It started with a simple ‘why not?’ among friends. We realized we had perspectives that weren’t being represented and stories that were being left on the cutting room floor. We didn’t want to wait for permission to write, so we decided to build the platform ourselves. Read more>>
Emily Garcia
Emily Garcia’s path into real estate wasn’t traditional—it was built through resilience, determination, and a willingness to bet on herself when it mattered most. Before real estate, Emily owned and operated a home cleaning business. When a serious back injury made it clear she could no longer continue, she was forced to step away and rethink her future. Read more>>
Gary Merel
My life has been guided by a commitment to my own personal and spiritual growth. I am a certified life coach with 25 years of experience as a functional medicine practitioner at Ann Arbor Holistic Health. In 2022, I stepped away from clinical practice to devote myself entirely to the deeper work of transformation, helping people live with clarity, intention, and alignment. Read more>>
Gandhi Bhattarai
I didn’t choose healthcare because I had a plan. I chose it because I couldn’t imagine doing anything else with my life. Read more>>
Grace Pantea
My story begins at home, where my sisters and I were raised in a very intentional environment. We were homeschooled by our mom, a certified teacher, but our education didn’t follow a conventional model. Our learning was individualized and structured around growth. We moved at our own pace academically, which allowed us to accelerate, but also to truly understand what we were learning. Read more>>
Dionel Lake
I started photography nearly 20 years ago, long before it was a business. At the time, it was simply a way for me to slow the world down and make sense of it. While I did take the time to pursue formal training and earn a college degree in photography, I was also doing that alongside raising a growing family. Read more>>
Jennifer Coria- Muñoz
I am a proud daughter of Mexican immigrants, raised by parents who came to the United States in search of safety and a better future for our family. Growing up as a minority in a predominantly white, conservative town, I experienced firsthand the cultural barriers, stigma, and silence around mental health—especially within the Hispanic community. Read more>>
Ginny McCallum
For Gregg and Ginny McCallum, the journey to owning A Matter of Taste at Tapawingo began long before they held the keys, 14 years ago (2011). While still culinary students—she at Macomb Community College and he at Kendall College—the pair made their first trek to the tiny town of Ellsworth. Read more>>
Megan Dooley
I was born into a very creative family in the parking lot of Borgess Hospital in Kalamazoo, MI in the cold, early hours of March 1st, 1986. My grandmother was an impressionistic oil painter, my grandfather was a guitarist, my father was a commission artist specializing in hand-made quills and recreating historical documents, and everyone was an amazing singer. Read more>>
Stephanie Pierce
I was originally born and raised in the metro Detroit area, and I actually took photography classes in high school. I loved it, but at the time, I wasn’t really shown that it could be something I pursued as a career. At the same time, I felt a strong pull toward working with at-risk teens, which was very personal to me because I was one. Read more>>
Clift Roach II
Born on Detroit’s west side. Raised by 2 hard working parents that sacrificed everything to invest in great education for me and my older sister. She attended Cass Tech and FAMU then Emerson College. I attended University of Detroit Jesuit High School as 3 sport athlete, tennis, basketball and track. Read more>>
Taylor Ryan
We opened our comedy club, One Night Stan’s, in 2018 with the goal of creating a unique and welcoming entertainment space within our local community. Our owner, Stan Moore, has been a lifelong fan of comedy and recognized an opportunity to bring high-quality live performances to the area. Read more>>
Julie McBee
I have worked retail for most of my adult life, from Pier 1 Imports to Sales Director at Lavender Hill Farm, helping to run our family business, BC Pizza of Charlevoix. Read more>>
Friends of Rolling Rock Ranch 501(c)3
FRRR started when six friends were hanging out talking about an event one had been to the previous weekend. A cancer fundraiser. He mentioned he was so amazed at how people opened their wallets so generously. Said he thought it would be cool to do something for the veterans. Read more>>
Annick Odom
I’m a Belgian-American performer–composer, storyteller, and folk singer, originally from Morgantown, West Virginia. My path into music hasn’t been linear. I grew up playing classical clarinet and bass, studied performance and psychology at the University of Michigan, and later moved to Europe, where I lived in The Hague for about six years studying at the Royal Conservatoire. Read more>>
Lisa Sarasin
Our farm journey began in the fall of 2020 when I was working a part time job at a farm in Colorado. My favorite position was taking care of their goats and 2 alpacas. I spent about 6 weeks at this farm, and it did not take long for me to fall in love with these amazing creatures. Read more>>
Kristine Felske
I was originally a service dog trainer for Paws With A Cause. I became engaged and moved back to Bay City only working for Paws With A Cause part time. I started a dog daycare to help work with clients with separation anxiety cases. We had a 100 percent success rate getting these dogs to overcome their anxiety with owners leaving them. Read more>>
Roslyn Taylor
Since 2005, Epiphany Education Center has been dedicated to raising the level of childhood literacy in Detroit. Epiphany Education Center provides accelerated academic intervention programs to low- income elementary and middle school students who are at-risk, have disabilities and/or I.E.P.’s, victims of trauma, below grade level readers and/or have been retained or in jeopardy of being retained. Read more>>
peter sabbagh
I came into this work through a side door, through storytelling, not sales. Early on, I was in New York, studying film and business, trying to understand how to turn an interest in storytelling into something practical. My first roles reflected that tension. Read more>>
Dawn Zondervan
Eagles Landing: How a Family Dream Took Flight on Michigan’s Croton Pond For nearly three decades of marriage, my husband and I shared a quiet dream: someday, we would run a bed-and-breakfast. Life, of course, had other plans. We raised three kids, balanced careers—his in sales, mine as a speech-language pathologist—and filled our days with the beautiful chaos of family life. Read more>>
Melissa Crull
In 2002, I began my massage therapy career at Halsa Hem School of Massage in Springfield, IL. I became a licensed massage therapist in 2005 and briefly worked at a massage clinic then a hair salon in Peoria, Illinois until June 2006 before I moved to Traverse City, MI. Read more>>
Heather Herrera
Our story dates back to 2019 when we were just a small yoga studio in Tecumseh, Michigan. We opened a new location just months before the pandemic shutdowns of 2020, and pivoted to an online-only, donation-based yoga studio for most of that year. When we were able to return to an in-person studio in 2021, we had grown by quite a bit through that experience. Read more>>
Russell Schindler
I’m a Geologist so I started from working in the field, not from the software world. Read more>>
Katie Denslow
I started Massage school in 2009 after becoming a single mom and losing my home due to predatory lending and the 2008 crash. I felt that education was going to serve better than struggling to keep my home. My wonderful parents were kind enough to let us stay with them as i finished my program. Read more>>
Amy Darnell
My path to Clarkston SCAMP has been shaped by both professional experience and personal purpose. I earned my undergraduate degree from University of Michigan and went on to complete my MSW at Washington University in St. Louis. Early in my career, I worked in for-profit education, where my focus was on organization growth and program development. Read more>>
Marissa Coutts
I have been a singer for as long as I can remember. I sang constantly as a child and begged my mom for singing lessons until she finally signed me up when I was 11. Read more>>
Kate & Brandon Slotman
In January of 2024, we had the idea to open a bakery. We had been milling our own wheat at home for a few years. This was due to some dietary changes that needed to happen in our family. There was no one else in the area making breads, and no one who used fresh milled wheat in their baked goods. Read more>>
Bertlin Batiancila
I began my career in finance, working in trade operations at JPMorgan Chase & Co., where I learned the discipline and responsibility that come with managing capital. Over time, I moved into consulting and asset management, working with investment management firms across global markets. Read more>>
Larry Wozniak
In 2000, 55 WWII veterans were asked to have their stories recorded. NBC News’ Tom Brokaw introduced the video. in 2002 Korean veterans told their stories and later Vietnam veterans. This led retired Army Colonel Donald Alsbro to decide to form an organization. Lest We Forget was formed as a 501(c)(3) non profit in 2006. Read more>>
Margaret Hoggard
My story really begins with both caregiving and survival. I started my career in healthcare over a decade ago as a Certified Nursing Assistant, working in hospitals, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, and private duty care. Being a CNA taught me the importance of compassion, patience, and truly showing up for people during some of the most vulnerable moments of their lives. Read more>>
LaShawn Mico
My story doesn’t start with a business plan. It starts with survival. I grew up learning that love had to be earned. That if you performed well enough, worked hard enough, showed up perfectly enough — maybe then you’d be worthy. I carried that lie into adulthood, into relationships, into ministry, and into every room I walked into. I called it dedication. Read more>>
Briana Tholen
My name is Briana Tholen and I am a mom of 3 beautiful children, Eliana (6), Micah (4), and Caroline (2). Until 2022, I was a high school science teacher. I decided to put my teaching career on hold to be able to spend more time with my children. During the transition from teaching to becoming a stay-at-home mom, Bayshore Baby Co., was born. Read more>>
Angela Williams
President & Co-Founder, DetailXPerts Franchise Systems, LLC Angela L. Williams is the President and Co-Founder of DetailXPerts Franchise Systems, LLC—the world’s first eco-friendly, steam-cleaning car wash and commercial cleaning franchise. Since its founding in 2008, DetailXPerts has become a model of sustainable entrepreneurship, transforming an eco-conscious idea into a national brand recognized for innovation, inclusion, and community impact. Read more>>
Marlene Wallace
I started Celestial Essentials during the pandemic, at a time when my life felt uncertain and emotionally heavy. I had just gone through a difficult breakup, and instead of letting that pain consume me, I made a conscious decision to transform it into something meaningful. What began as a personal healing outlet quickly evolved into a deeper purpose. Read more>>
Kirsten Elliott
My story really begins with lived experience. I grew up with housing insecurity in a single-parent household and benefited from Section 8 housing as a child. Because that housing was in a stronger school district, I had access to better educational opportunities and eventually became the first in my family to graduate from college. Read more>>
Dale Dykema
Mobility Worldwide West Michigan began in 2008 as the 13th affiliate shop of Mobility Worldwide International. Each shop is its own 501(c)3 non profit raising its own funds and staffed by retiree volunteers. MWWM and MWI produce 3 wheeled, hand-cranked carts for leg handicapped people in rural developing countries. At MWWM we produce the small cart for children. Other shops make the adult version. Read more>>
Scarlett Idema
I was born in Costa Rica as the eighth of ten children, in a family where resilience wasn’t something you talked about, it was just how you lived. Resources were limited, but work ethic, faith, and determination were abundant. From a young age, I learned how to take care of others, how to adapt, and how to keep moving forward no matter the circumstances. Read more>>
Alicea Davis
I started in elementary school with drawing flowers in art class as instructed but I added my own touch later on. Jump on to age 25, I lost my corporate American career and decided that I would be a creative for the rest of my life because I wanted freedom, freedom, FREEDOM! Read more>>
Sara Boyd
My spiritual journey began at the age of 17. My mother once told me that when a streetlight flickers out as you pass beneath it, it’s a loved one saying hello. For me, that meant my grandmother—still present, still watching. I carried that belief with me. In my late teens, I discovered Tarot. Read more>>
Samantha Goril
When I started Goril Creations, I had no real idea how to run a business. I don’t have a business degree, no real plan, or years of experience behind me. What I did have was a love for creating things and the determination to figure things out as I went. Like many creative hobbies, it started small. Read more>>
Chris Fontes
I started in tech, teaching myself programming at a young age and building a career in software, marketing, and small business development. That entrepreneurial path led me into hemp in 2018, when I was introduced to the industry, but saw it could really benefit from my existing skillset. There were a lot of players in hemp, but they were all disjointed. Read more>>
Melaika Taylor
I started doing Locs in 2018, what started as a curiosity quickly turned into a passion. I got into doing Locs because I used to see people out and their hair just didn’t look all that appealing to me and I felt I could do a better job, whole time I knew nothing about doing Locs lol but I was intrigued. Read more>>
