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.
Doug Kadzban
I found myself out of work in late 2019, and decided to spend my free time at the Herrick Library in Holland, Michigan. Out of idle curiosity, I started perusing the local history section and doing research, when I realized that I had studied history in college and how much I loved doing research on local topics. Read more>>
Ysahai Honor-Marie
Ice Cream Detroit has been serving the city since 2018, starting as a pop‑up with bold, handcrafted flavors that always stole the spotlight. From the beginning, the product was the star: liquor‑infused (under 0.5% ABV) and non‑alcoholic ice creams and sorbets built with premium ingredients and Detroit personality. Read more>>
Aidan Burke
Definitely! I started playing guitar when I was 9 years old, taking classical guitar lessons at home. At the time, my brother was learning Jazz Drumming for his middle school and highschool Jazz bands, so naturally I wanted to learn to play jazz guitar. Read more>>
Karen Buscemi
I have been building brands for my clients for nearly 30 years. I went from an art director/copywriter for an ad agency in Royal Oak, Mich. to starting my own graphic design and writing business while pregnant with my first child when I couldn’t find suitable childcare. It was a tough way to start a business, but it was right for me and my kid. Read more>>
Ashanté Harrell
Growing up in Detroit was quite an experience. So much so that I was very sheltered. I had an uncle lose his life to violence and that was something that truly changed my family forever. As a result, my family became far more cautious with our daily maneuvers. Because of this, I pride myself in staying out of drama, and surrounding myself with like-minded individuals. Read more>>
Angela Redd Redd
When I was twelve years old, I wrote a play and got a bunch of kids from the neighborhood to perform it in my backyard. By the time I was fourteen, I was working on two young adult novels, simultaneously moving seamlessly between the two worlds of characters living inside my head. Read more>>
Jennifer Neal
Around twenty years ago while I lived in Florida I covered local music scenes for local newspapers and magazines. Music has always been a passion of mine and I would still write about music from time to time on my personal blog. Read more>>
Delano Glass
I started in the music industry. I worked & toured with many artists. I did marketing & tour promotions on 2 tours for the artist Prince. I did the Jam Of The Year Tour & also the emancipation tour. I also did a tour with Slum Village & J Dilla. Tribe Called Quest was on the tour also. Read more>>
Jamila Williams
Fashion has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. Growing up, I was always drawn to clothes, putting outfits together, and expressing myself through personal style. In high school, I even wrote a fashion column for my school’s newspaper, which gave me an early opportunity to share my love of fashion with others. Read more>>
Trash Kickers
Tyler, our main songwriter, had been sitting on these songs a while. When John and Danny’s old band broke up, he asked them to join. Then he was out at Delilah’s one night and met Stas and bonded over The Replacements. Read more>>
Whorled
Mariko and Keala met in the womb — and it seems they’ve been playing music together since then. Thom met them both by chance at a traditional Irish session in a hole-in-the-wall cafe near Grand Rapids, Michigan. They noticed an immediate musical affinity. Read more>>
Rosa Ball
Growing up on a hobby farm in rural mid-Michican, I always had my hands in the dirt. I ran around in my parent’s garden and made forts among the wildflowers in our fields. Around 2019, after having my first child, I had an itch to start build something new and leaned into my roots; I jumped all in to starting seeds in my. Read more>>
Lauren Mleczko
I graduated from Eastern Michigan University in 2015 with a BFA in Furniture Design and Fiber Arts. I also fufilled an internship with the art galleries on campus. While living in Ypsilanti, I started to collect furniture from the side of the road after people moved out of their apartments and started staging mine with it. Read more>>
Depeila Hill
I come from a musical background. My father, Paul Hill is part of the legendary Funk group Parliament and the Funkadelic. They just celebrated 50 years at the Essence music fest! Being around such freedom of expression, staying up late in the studio, going on tour and watching my Dad create gave me the bug. I’ve been hooked ever since! Read more>>
Tamarra Campbell
I’ve been an independent artist in the film industry for a decade now, and early on, I completely fell in love with the business side of the craft—specifically, understanding the market. I became fascinated by the lifecycle of a project: where films move, how they hop around from platform to platform, and the strategy required to position them successfully once the cameras stop rolling. Read more>>
Kristen Carder
When I was diagnosed with ADHD at the age of 21, I was given a prescription (which helped) and sent on my way. I knew absolutely nothing about ADHD – what it meant to have ADHD and how it impacted my life. Medication improved my life, for sure, but it didn’t solve every issue I was struggling with. Read more>>
Ned Impastato
In regards to Ned’s Eats Detroit, It all started in 2019. I got into the hobby of photographing my meals. I figured I’d share them on Yelp so that people could use them for their reference. I created the moniker “Ned’s Eats Detroit” in 2023 and started making shorts/reels. The rest is history! Read more>>
Heather Wejroch
In 2023, I was knee deep in classes for my bachelor’s degree and Entrepreneurship was one of my mandatory classes. We had to come up with a business idea to create a business plan for our term project. I told my professor that I am not an entrepreneur, and I am not creative enough to come up with a business idea in a week! Read more>>
Camilla T.
I am someone who has always found joy in creating, but even more than that, I have always been deeply inspired by the world around me. Growing up, travel was a constant part of my life. Read more>>
William Baker
I had wanted to be a YouTuber ever since I was 12, and a few years later, my friends and I decided to do it! It was super simple videos, and it never went anywhere, but I found myself really enjoying the editing side of it. After some time, I decided to start making short films just for fun and fell in love with filmmaking. Read more>>
Henry&Loretta Hahn
Hello we are Henry and Loretta Hahn. We’ve been married for 16 years and have two beautiful kids. It has been quite the adventure to get here and we’d like to tell you some of the backstory on how East Fork Pasty Company came to be. While on vacation visiting Henry’s hometown(Calumet) in 2019 we sampled every available pasty in the Copper Country. Read more>>
Ryan Humm
I am a video production director helping people share who they are, and why they do what they do. In college I discovered my love for documentary filmmaking, and it changed my trajectory. Now, I get to dive into people’s worlds, find goodness, truth, passion, creativity, and sometimes harsh realities. I am animated by portraying people with depth, authenticity, and personality. Read more>>
Lyndsay Sharpenedstone
My name is Lyndsay, I’m from Kalamazoo, MI. I fell in love with yoga when I was 17, and I’ve been practicing now for over 10 years. I felt the calling to teach, so I got my first 200 hour teaching certification when I was 21, and received an additional 200 hour certificate at 28. Read more>>
Rebekah Jon
I grew up the 3rd oldest of 9 children, at the very end of a dirt road in Westland, Mi. We lived in a city, but had found ourselves tucked away in the center of the woods, and so in many ways the house and its surroundings felt like a completely different world. Read more>>
Samantha Raj
I have worked in the marketing and advertising Industry for over 15 years. I’ve always been fascinated in the space and working for some of the largest agencies and with some of the most recognized brands has been such an amazing treat. In 2024. Read more>>
Hope Mccleary
My Pilates journey started simply because I fell in love with how it made me feel. What began as a personal passion quickly turned into something I knew I wanted to share with others. Read more>>
Kristen Carlson
Believe it or not, my story starts in cybersecurity, where I ran global software projects for Fortune 500 and automotive clients. After years as a successful IT professional, I left to pursue wine, sustainable agriculture, and herbalism. My husband and I now co-host The Carlson Collective, a podcast on health, spirituality, and marriage. Read more>>
ALICE DI STEFANO
If you had asked me a few years ago what I wanted to do with my life, I probably wouldn’t have said “floral designer.” Looking back, though, all the different parts of my career somehow make sense. I spent more than ten years in the events industry, working for creative and communication agencies in Milan. Read more>>
Joe Montgomery
I started my career doing freelance web and design work more than 20 years ago. What began with building websites and creating graphics quickly expanded because I kept finding myself solving whatever problem a client had next. A website would lead to branding, branding would lead to packaging, packaging would lead to product photography, video, marketing, databases, automation, or custom applications. Read more>>
Sanchez Thomas
Born and raised in Cincinnati Ohio I started my brand with my Juice bar business Juice’d-tox Juicery due to my mom having to juice for health issues. I quickly realized health is wealth and I wanted to make sure I did my part spreading that message. Read more>>
Mason Sova
I grew up surrounded by art, music, and entertainment, my father made music in his spare time and would often perform at concerts like flow fest alongside other musicians and artists. This planted a seed of curiosity in me that would only grow as I got older. Read more>>
Ally Youngblood
The Coffee Club started from a simple idea: create a place where coffee could be more than coffee. I wanted it to feel like a reason to gather, a small moment of kindness in someone’s day, and a space where people could show up exactly as they are. Read more>>
Becca Rae Eagle
Journaling saved my life since the early age of eight. Where else can a second grader process hidden abuse and trauma? At 51, journaling has shaped and transformed my mind, body, & spirit to a place of healing & now providing education and service, grounded in hope-the egregious tenacity of Faith. I help others feel better by journaling. Somatic meditative journaling activates energetic discovery. Read more>>
Erinn Pope
Cos Press Network was born from my personal journey in the beauty industry and my passion for helping others discover purpose through their careers. After becoming a licensed cosmetologist and instructor, I recognized that many aspiring beauty professionals needed more than technical training. They needed mentorship, business education, leadership development, and access to opportunities. Read more>>
Gena Sayers
When I was a little girl, I had no idea how many hats I would be wearing as an adult. My vocation is direct support with differently-abled adults. I am now a certified crisis intervention systems trainer in the behavioral health field. Day jobs aside, I also write, create art and jewelry, and read tarot for several long time clients. Read more>>
Daniel Prekup
My name is Daniel Prekup, and I am a musician based in Holly, Michigan. My musical journey began in the early 90s during my time at Holly High School, where I graduated in 1994. It was then that I discovered bands like Metallica and Alice in Chains, sparking a lifelong passion for guitar-driven music. Read more>>
Darla Hand
I’ve loved theatre for as long as I can remember, but I’ve always been just as fascinated by the spaces where it happens. While studying music at the University of Michigan, I found myself drawn to directing, producing, and creating experiences that felt more personal and accessible than a traditional performance setting. Read more>>
Sean Gavin
A master of the uilleann pipes, Irish flute, and tin whistle, Seán Gavin is a leading performer and teacher of traditional Irish music. He is known both for his recordings, including The Boys of 25, Music From the Lost Continent, and Home Away from Home, and for his work with Bua, Téada, and Séamus Begley. Read more>>
Amanda Steffke
Amanda Steffke Photography started as just a silly dream and now has grown right alongside me for 15 years. What started as a creative passion for a young girl has turned into a wonderful business. I became a mom at a young age, and photography quickly became so much more than taking beautiful pictures. Read more>>
Katie Asher
I have been a collector for as long as I can remember, and I believe I got the bug from my grandparents. They were storage unit buyers, who would collect vintage and antiques. When we moved them out of their house, we found a bear skin coat, among many other cool and wild things in their attic. Read more>>
Tara Jueckstock
I got my start as an illustrator, was always drawing, especially in class. I would later get into photography because I was working retail and wanted to catalogue the outfits I came up with, so self-portraiture was where my photography journey started. Read more>>
Yana Sifford
Everything changed after becoming a mother and experiencing my own health struggles. After giving birth, I dealt with hormonal imbalances, postpartum depression, digestive issues, and symptoms that did not feel fully explained or resolved. That experience changed the direction of my life. I wanted answers. I wanted to understand not only what was happening, but why. Read more>>
serenay akçiçek
Hello, my name is Serenay Akçiçek, though many people know me through my Instagram account, @serenayakcicekx. I am a tattoo artist working primarily in microrealism and avant-garde styles, and I have been professionally involved in the tattoo industry for more than six and a half years. My artistic journey actually began long before tattooing. Read more>>
