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. Check out our favorite stories from across the Voyage family.
Gina Coronado
I was blessed to start my involvement at Guadalupe Centers as a participant in my youth. This led to me earning an opportunity to tutor elementary students in an afterschool program at the age of 14. I recently celebrated my 28th anniversary working at the Guadalupe Centers. It has been an honor to serve the Kansas City community. Read more>>
Stacey Davis
I was born and raised in Kansas City Mo. When I was younger my cousin Terry and my cousin John-John were murdered. As a kid it was difficult to understand and process why this happened to my aunts amd cousins. At the time I didnt realize this trend would continue. Read more>>
Allison Murray
I worked for a startup nonprofit a few years ago; in that role, I led much of the planning and execution of large annual fundraising events. In a subsequent role, I planned and executed customer-focused, community-oriented company events. Read more>>
Lisa Blumer
I have always been surrounded by people with a multitude of talents and resourcefulness. To keep me occupied, my mother had a drawer in our kitchen with pencils, paper, crayons that was easily accessible. Being the only the girl in our family and neighborhood, I spent a lot of time by myself reading, drawing, and listening to music. Read more>>
Erin Meyers
As a dedicated business owner, hearing about other businesses closing always makes me stop and ask, “What can we do to keep it open?” When we learned that our local community theater in Higginsville, Missouri was set to close permanently at the end of June 2023, we knew a vital part of our downtown would be lost. Read more>>
Don Clinton Thompson
Started playing guitar in local bands in and around Springfield, Mo. in the early 70’s. First ‘big time’ gig was with Brewer&Shipley for 2 years on the road. Next was singer/songwriter Steve Forbert in the early 80’s. Formed the bands The Skeletons and later the Morells in the 80’s. Read more>>
Cara Hile
I am Cara Hile and I am the Senior Organizer at Abortion Action Missouri. When the draft opinion leaked that roe v. wade was going to be overturned I was on a medication for my auto-immune disease that would cause birth defects. Read more>>
Brandi Beckett
I have worked in the bar industry since I was 18. I worked my way up from a hostess to a bartender over the years. Eventually I was asked if I wanted to buy the bar I worked for, it was an easy yes. I love the bar industry, meeting new people and making customers into friends. Read more>>
Julie Huckleberry
Being a stay at home mother of 2 boys I have always helped with classroom parties and activities. But I knew there was a greater purpose of life. I started working for Brad Seiner about 8.5 years ago. Brad and another person started a non profit called Christmas 4 Kids. Read more>>
Breanne Eggers
I was born and raised in Kansas City and graduated from Platte County High School. After spending two years in college, I earned my certification in interior design, which eventually led me into real estate in 2016. I started in the business young and was fortunate to learn from two of my aunts, who were already successful in the industry. Read more>>
Melissa Contreras
I always had the idea of being my own boss one day. Growing up with entrepreneur parents who did exactly that, you could say it was already instilled in me from a young age. I’ve seen how successful they became and I wanted nothing less than what they were able to achieve as immigrants. Read more>>
Cristine Sundquist
My art journey started young, around the age of five. I was constantly drawing and painting everything I loved. This eventually lead to my first large residential commission when I was 17 for a prominent columnist in St. Louis. I went on to pursue a degree in Fine Art from the University of Kansas. Read more>>
Courtney Carson
I started cooking and baking at a very young age. My mother and grandmother always let me help out in the kitchen and I was always eager to learn new things. As I grew up, I started watching shows on the food network and my favorite was always the baking shows. Read more>>
McKayla Boldrey
My story… I was born and raised in southern California; a far cry from where I am now! I’ve always been artistic, I remember when I was little, I would lay on the floor in the office while my mom worked at the computer. I remember coloring in a Barbie coloring book and using several different colored pencils to give Barbie highlights! Read more>>
Rebecca Rojas
I moved to Kansas City from Lacrosse WI about 15 years ago. I was looking for a fresh start. My sister and her family lived here so I thought it would be a good idea to try here. I was working as a nanny and a waitress. I really wanted to go back to school but was not sure for what. Read more>>
Kendra Pickering-Clements
I grew up in SW Iowa and raised by two loving parents and a younger sister and brother. I was heavily involved in track and cheerleading. When I graduated from Clarinda High School, I went on to Northwest Missouri State University in Maryville, MO. There I ran track for one year, was involved in ROTC, and was a Student Ambassador for the NW Dietetics program. Read more>>
Monica Thornburg
We started Trad Construction around 2 years ago because believe your dream deserves a builder who sees its true value. Since then we’ve added two partners to help guide and support growth. We are very driven to serve our clients, communities and provide great work opportunities for our employees. Read more>>
EagleCore Motion LLC
EagleCore Motion LLC was born out of a simple yet powerful mission: transform places into smart spaces incorporating the vision, objectives, and necessities of every customer. As our world undergoes a rapid technological transformation, the way we live, work, and protect our homes is changing faster than ever. Read more>>
VJ Herbert
Music has always been a powerful healing sacred gift for me. Whether celebrating life’s most joyful moments or being loveling held in the midst of tragedy, music has been my favorite way of experiencing existence and expressing my humanity. It was the music of the church especially African American worship that deeply spoke to me. With its beautiful hymns and songs of praise. Read more>>
Dan Loftus
I got started playing music at the age of 5 or 6 and haven’t looked back since. It’s grown to become not only a way to express myself artistically, but a passion that has consumed my life and also a way to make a living. Music runs deep in my family. Read more>>
Jason Domingues
I’ve been a photographer since i was a teenager, working as a stringer for a newspaper in my Rhode Island hometown. I officially started my business, along side my wife, Allison, in 2004, shooting weddings and family portraits. I take the photos and she runs the business. Over the years, we’ve photographed over 1000 weddings, and countless other sessions. Read more>>
Jasmine Anderson
I started my boutique while working full-time and being a new mom, just trying to carve out a space that combined my love of fashion, design, and connection with other women. What began as a small online shop slowly grew into a community — a place where customers became friends, and where I could showcase pieces that made women feel good about themselves. Read more>>
Iryna Stroganova
I was born in the city of Dnipro, Ukraine–part of the former Soviet Union. I was fascinated with art my whole life. When I was twelve, I enrolled in a youth art school. I dropped out of public school, and shocked and disappointed my parents by enrolling in a vocational college for master painting and theatre scenic, set, and prop design. Read more>>
Denise Kean
I was a the CFO for a Kansas City, MO construction company for 26 years. 5 years ago, I decided to open my own company and start growing that on the side, while still working full time. I started studying the tax preparation industry and got another job on evenings and weekends filing taxes. Read more>>
Helen Krause
I’m Helen, founder of Photobooth by HK. My love for weddings started back in 2010, thanks to Say Yes to the Dress and David Tutera. I got my first real taste of the industry in college, helping a friend with her wedding and event planning business in Kansas City — and I was hooked. Read more>>
Melissa Butcher
My name is Melissa Butcher, I’m a wife, mom to 2 daughters, and a salon owner. I have been in the beauty industry since 2004. I love this industry, its truly one of the best. We get to make people feel beautiful and that is the most amazing feeling. Read more>>
Skylar Botteron
I graduated from esthetics school back in 2015 with hopes of working in skincare and maybe even in a medical spa one day. I spent a few years trying out different jobs in the industry, hoping to find that perfect fit, but eventually realized that side of esthetics just wasn’t something I truly enjoyed. Read more>>
Angelique Foye Fletcher, LMFT, LCMFT, RPT
I started my career in behavioral health and family systems work because I’ve always been drawn to understanding how people heal and connect — especially children and families navigating stress or change. Over the years, I worked across community agencies, schools, and healthcare settings, including serving as a Behavioral Health Consultant for the City of Kansas City. Read more>>
Matt Glover
I’m a truck driver by trade. A couple of years ago we started praying for a change that would allow me home more with my wife and kids. My son and I were pouring jig heads in the basement one afternoon, I turned around and saw an airbrush I bought 7 years ago to touch up some duck decoys. Read more>>
Sarai Williams
In 2019, I became a licensed massage therapist, earned my associate degree in occupational science, level 1 lymphatic drainage and became a certified corrective exercise specialist. My passion has always been helping others restore balance—physically, mentally, and spiritually. But in 2022, life brought me to a breaking point. Read more>>
Brittany Brooks
I’ve always been drawn to weddings—the joy, the details, and the beautiful chaos of it all. Organizing has always come naturally to me, and over the years I found myself helping friends plan their big days just for fun. Read more>>
Nick McIntyre
My Story When I was a kid, I was always building something. Whether it was forts, treehouses, or cars and trucks out of scrap materials, I loved creating things that could actually be used. That hands-on creativity grew into a lifelong passion for design and craftsmanship. Read more>>
Denny Nguyen
Word of mouth and referrals became the backbone of our growth. People appreciated the personal care, fast turnaround, and accuracy we provided, and they told their friends and families about us. We expected business to slow down after tax season, but instead, we stayed busy year-round with bookkeeping, payroll, and tax planning. That was the moment we knew we were building something special that would last. Read more>>
Travis Black
I tune and service pianos under my business name, Hammer & Strings Piano Service. I service the northern KC region. Most of my work revolves around tuning pianos but there is much more! My most popular service package includes a standard tuning, light cleaning, some minor repairs, fixing sticking keys, light regulation, or anything else I can fit into an extra 30 minutes. Beyond that, I’m always willing to take on larger projects such as hammer shaping, voicing, action regulation, and larger repair projects. Read more>>
