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.
Portia Stewart
Portia Stewart, BS, RYT 500, RPYT, C-IAYT. I am a yoga therapist, award-winning journalist, and innovation consultant. I’ve combined innovation and creativity principles and adopted mindfulness practices to launch my business, Mind Full Creatives. I leverage my background leading high-performing media teams to promote well being inside and outside the workplace, speaking to audiences that include women in technology, veterinary professionals, and corporate innovators. Read more>>
Tanner Wilkens
At 14 years old I bought my first car. It was a hand-me-down from my mother, 1987 Honda Accord. I enjoyed the car until I started learning more about accessories, modification, etc. I sold the Honda Accord to then take my first loan and bought a 1992 Chevy S10 pickup truck. This turned into a project. Read more>>
Brooklyn Horne
My story with art began with simply loving to create as a kid. I’ve always been drawn to the arts – anything involving painting, scrapbooking, crafting, drawing, dancing singing etc. I was lucky enough to grow up in an extremely creative family – so it was fate. Read more>>
Katia Hunley
I started doing makeup in 2015 after I got hooked on watching makeup tutorials on YouTube! I randomly came across a video and I couldn’t stop watching them. I wanted to learn how to do my own makeup, but taking clients was never on my mind. Read more>>
Blair Chandler
I am a wife and fur-mom who is so passionate about brightening up the world around me. So many beautiful, heartbreaking, breathtaking, traumatizing moments and experiences have gotten me to where I am today. There are so many things that have shaped me, taught me, made me into the human being I am today. Read more>>
Isabel Tignor
I first picked up a camera when I was 15 years old, it was this dusty beat up Nikon that I found in my family’s garage. I remember holding it in my hands like it was an ancient relic, a discovery that was just for me. Read more>>
Sean Alexander
I actually moved to Atlanta, Georgia after leaving my job as a Scheduling Receptionist for Kansas City Internal Medicine. At the time, I was working in scheduling for seven different major hospitals, and after a while, I was just burnt out. Read more>>
Julie Brown
Pleasant Hill Historic District grew out of a group of dedicated downtown merchants and community members who shared a desire to revitalize and bring new life to our historic shopping district. With buildings dating back to the late 1800s and early 1900s, our downtown has seen its share of ups and downs over the years! Read more>>
Jackie Ahumada
Creativity has always been a part of my life. Growing up, my dad worked for the IRS by day, but at night he was always creating. He painted, made macramé, and was constantly working on something with his hands. I think I inherited a lot of that from him. I’ve always loved painting, crafting, and making things. Read more>>
Kalena Shoman
I’ve always been drawn to the arts. Some of my earliest memories are of staying up late painting in my bedroom and filling notebooks with poetry, lyrics, and sketches. Creating has always been how I process the world. At 17, I landed my first creative job at a production studio. Read more>>
Carrie GERACI
I am an artist. I started teaching and then was offered a position as the director of the Center of Wonder in Jackson, Wyoming. While there, a young artist offered to be our wonder ambassador and started creating temporary public art installations. I saw the power of art to transform sites, and the pleasure of discovering public art provided for the public. Read more>>
Riley Flynn
My creative career started after I failed an entire semester in college. I thought computer science would be for me but I quickly got overwhelmed and failed all of my courses. Shortly after that nightmare, I discovered Graphic Design and fell in love with it, I excelled in the learning environment, especially motion graphics. That success brought me to Kansas City and to KCAI. Read more>>
Michelle Gould
I’ve been interested in photography since I was a kid but it wasn’t until I went to college that I got my first DSLR and took my first photography class. I officially started my business 12 years ago and as I was starting out I took every free photography course I could get my hands on. Read more>>
Shawn Lee
My journey really took a transformative turn in 2018 when I made a deep, personal commitment to my core values—a decision that continues to ground everything I do. When COVID hit, like it did for so many, it forced a pivotal reset. As a natural extravert and entrepreneur, that pause gave me the space to recharge, realign my purpose, and sharpen my vision. Read more>>
Arturo Feliz-Camilo
My journey began as a young boy asking my mother to teach me how to cook. After some initial reluctance, she agreed, and she and my grandmother became my greatest teachers. From them, I learned traditional Dominican cooking, and when my grandmother passed away, I felt compelled to preserve that heritage and everything they had taught me. Read more>>
Kelly Burgess
My love for affordable, comfortable fashion that transitions seamlessly through every stage of life. I was a teacher when I started, so finding stylish pieces that didn’t break the bank was essential. I wanted clothes that could work for a workday in the classroom and easily carry over into the weekend! Read more>>
Ruby Nichole
Once upon a time ‘I chose this Life’. I will never forget the first time hearing these words and being triggered at a retreat where I was supposed to be centering myself and find balance within. I couldn’t believe what this guide in front of me was saying. Are you freaking serious?! Read more>>
Derrick Smith
I’ve spent over 30 years in the culinary industry, building my craft from the ground up in real kitchens under real pressure. Somewhere along the way, food stopped being just a job and became my way of honoring where I come from — my great-grandfather’s 1875 barbecue marinade recipe is still the foundation of what I do today. Read more>>
Kristian Rogers
In 2017, I started my photography journey by purchasing my first camera from Best Buy during a Black Friday sale. Prior to this, I had consistently enjoyed taking photos of sunsets on my smartphone and admired the work of photographers featured in magazines. I started learning how to utilize my camera through trial & error until I got the picture that I was happy with. Read more>>
Viktoria Volosin
Bespoke Beaute Lab started from my lifelong love of makeup and a girls’ trip where I stumbled across a custom lipstick experience. I was immediately hooked. As someone who had bought more lip products that I’d like to admit and was always searching for the ‘perfect’ shade, I loved the idea of creating something completely personalized. Read more>>
Megan Vargas
How I’m Winning KC Started ❤️ In 2021, I experienced a level of burnout that I had never felt before. I was a mom, a business owner, a woman trying to take care of everyone around me while also trying to keep myself together. Read more>>
Kelsey Hall
Sewing has been a part of my life since my early teens. I first learned the craft in home-ec class and from my grandma who sewed clothing and costumes for my family. I’m proud to be part of a lineage of Kansas City seamstresses, including my great-grandmother, who created costumes for Starlight Theater in the 1950s. Read more>>
Jill Machovsky
I went to college to become a teacher, but after graduating, I decided I wanted to try something different before heading into the classroom. I was also a little concerned about the earning potential in teaching, so I ended up taking a sales position with a forklift company. Read more>>
Lorrie Trout
Over 15 years ago, I found myself in a place I never could have imagined; on the other side of the law. I was in a dark place in my life. I attempted to end my life over a choice that I had made. Obviously, it was a bad choice and I wanted the easy way out. Read more>>
Matt Anthony
My brother Chris was diagnosed with brain cancer, and he passed away in February 2003 at just 37 years old. Rather than let that loss defeat him, Chris chose to spend his fight helping others facing the same diagnosis, and that spirit of turning pain into purpose is really what Head for the Cure grew out of. Read more>>
Christina O’Shia
I began my career in the medical field and transitioned into more of a wholistic approach with massage therapy and energy work. I have worked for myself and a collaborative with other wellness practitioners for nearly 20 years Read more>>
Chelsea Morris
The Story Behind Chelsea Mitchell Photography When people ask how I became a photographer, they’re often expecting a single defining moment—a camera for Christmas, a high school photography class, or one person who inspired me along the way. The truth is, I don’t remember a time when photography wasn’t part of who I was. Read more>>
Miss Kush
Miss kush was raised in the heart of Kansas City . She started her rap career at a young age. She watched her mother go thru trials and tribulations while growing up and learning to survive off every hustle she could think of. Read more>>
Kortney Lee
My story is really a collection of things I decided to build, learn, and figure out for myself. I have spent more than 15 years in technology. I worked for 12 years with Cox Automotive and VinSolutions across software quality, automation, product, cloud systems, and engineering leadership. Read more>>
Emily Burns
When I was 16 years old, I graduated high school and started perusing a career as a makeup artist. After graduating with my international makeup certification, I started working at Ulta Beauty. A couple years later, Covid started and resulted in me being furloughed. The industry really changed after Covid and I decided to look for other careers. Read more>>
Mickel Garrett
My journey has always been rooted in creativity, even though the path hasn’t necessarily been a straight line. I’m originally from Kansas City, but I spent over a decade in Los Angeles building my career and working across photography, lighting, video, and production. Read more>>
Sienna Golden
Hi! I’m Sienna. I have wanted to be an actress since I was six years old. When I was younger, there were little to no outlets when it came to acting or any arts because I lived in Kansas. So, I learned as much as I possibly could about the craft online and through books. Read more>>
Brother Spacebear
(This was written by Brother Spacebear’s sister, Ramona) Brother Spacebear got his start back in 2004. He began playing dive bars all around the area with a variety of different cover songs and a few originals. For a while, it really was just a hobby, as he was working full time at the Munitions Factory in Parsons, Kansas. Read more>>
Nicole Price
I’m endlessly fascinated by people. I always have been. That’s probably why I’ve had what looks like four or five careers. I don’t actually think I’ve changed careers at all. I’ve just found different ways to ask the same question: How do we help people understand each other a little better? The answer to, ‘What do you do?’ depends on what day you catch me. Read more>>
Jenn Schouten
I’ve been in the beauty industry for about 30 years, and over that time, both the industry and my relationship with it have changed tremendously. I started behind the chair, and for many years I experienced beauty through the traditional salon lens. Read more>>
Dre Lamont
I’m Originally from Kansas City, began tattooing at 16 still in highschool. I wanted to further my tattooing career, so I got business license a few years after I received my tattoo license. I also had a transition of moving to Los Angeles California and getting a tattoo license there to further grow my brand. Read more>>
Jeff Fenster
I never set out to be an entrepreneur. Growing up in the ’80s and ’90s, I don’t think I’d even heard that word, you were either a business owner or an employee. Read more>>
Roderick Leak
Halfdolo is CHANGING THE GAME, How Call of Duty Icon Halfdolo is Building the Future of Esports Infrastructure From entering the elite 1 Million Kills Club to paneling at the LVL UP Expo, speaking at SEICON 2026, and securing Name, Image, and Likeness (NIL) rights for the next generation, Roderick ‘Halfdolo’ Leak is shifting the culture of competitive gaming. Read more>>
Rochinda Pickens
My journey began with a life-changing tragedy on December 22, 2007. My late husband of more than 20 years and I were involved in a devastating car accident when our vehicle flipped on the highway. He lost his life, and I survived. In an instant, everything changed. Read more>>
