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.
Nate Evans
Nate Evans is a Kansas City–based electronic music artist, performer, fashion designer, and visual artist known for delivering high-energy, crowd-driven experiences that blend festival-scale EDM with a bold pop aesthetic. His sound fuses progressive house, electro pop, and modern dance music, creating immersive performances designed for peak-hour moments, emotional connection, and packed dance floors. Read more>>
Joanna and Anthony Freeman
It started as a passion for nerdy stuff that grew into a family who loved nerdy stuff. Joanna got sick and was not able to work a traditional job. She found that doing things like building lego sets and playing games helped her on her road to recovery and we loved it. Read more>>
Erica Demby
I’ve experienced a plethora of challenges throughout my life since birth like being born with a respiratory virus that I still struggle with today. My current mental health challenges stem from my traumatic upbringing. I was raised in a toxic, unsafe environment with my father, a former Marine, who was abusive & struggling with alcoholism. Read more>>
Emma Ludwig
Letter Cat Studio was started in 2023. I was working a full time job I hated, and I had just parted ways with the former studio I had been teaching classes at. All the full time jobs I found myself working were unfulfilling and honestly, soul sucking. I realized, pottery was truly made me happy, and decided to start small with just an LLC. Read more>>
Hailey Upshaw
H+K Homes started from a passion for building homes that stand out. Our founder began his career on the inspection side of the industry, which gave us a strong understanding of what goes into a well-built home. After seeing how many homes felt rushed, plain, or lacked personality, we wanted to create something different. Read more>>
Michelle Aiello
My journey to becoming a therapist was shaped long before I earned my credentials. Through decades of lived experience, excruciating at times, I came to understand both the resilience and vulnerability that define the human experience. I learned firsthand what it means to navigate adversity, seek meaning, and confront the parts of ourselves that often remain hidden beneath expectations, fear, and survival. Read more>>
Morgan Vecchi
Hello! I’m Morgan, the owner of Buttercup Cottage Bakery, LLC. My journey with Buttercup Cottage Bakery began during a season of recovery. In September 2025, I was recovering from reconstructive hip surgery and found myself needing both a creative outlet and a sense of purpose during that time. Read more>>
Anthony Bertoncin
I’ve been making content since I was 10 years old. It started with gaming videos, then vlogs, and prank videos, but nothing really got me any traction. Then when I turned 18, I started making travel videos while using my UMKC student loan money to travel. Read more>>
Andre Harris
My name is Andre Harris, and I grew up in Kansas City, MO. I wasn’t always this person you read about today. Before I sold drugs from 14 until I was 25 years old. I banged 12 Street the whole time. This wasn’t a life that I chose. I fell into the trap, like many young boys my age at the time. Read more>>
Chrissy Zemencik
I started Cake Loft out of my mom’s kitchen in 2017, just under a year after I graduated high school. I started off by primarily making cupcakes, cookies, and brownies for friends and family, and as word spread, my business grew. For just over seven years, I stayed home based, quickly expanding the products and services that I offered, and the area I reached. Read more>>
Justin Franklin (i9incher)
Sure thing. Although I’m mostly known for Drum and Bass, Jungle, and Modern Breakcore right now, I actually started with electronica back in 2010 making Dark Techno and Industrial music. I would upload to Newgrounds and my YouTube Channel where I gradually gained traction for a few years. Read more>>
Lina Sattarin
I started photography in high school through yearbook class, where I first picked up a camera and quickly fell in love with it. From there, I got into sports photography, which eventually led me to start doing photoshoots with friends and taking their senior portraits, where I really discovered my passion for portrait work. Read more>>
Jennifer Hoffman
What began as a vision to preserve a piece of Topeka history has grown into one of Northeast Kansas’ most celebrated wedding and event venues. Originally designed by Kansas State Architecture students in 1927 as a dairy barn, The Brownstone sat quietly on five acres of countryside, serving many purposes throughout its lifetime, from family homes to small businesses and even a bed and breakfast. Read more>>
Mynesha Hagen
Well hello, im Mynesha Hagen 35 year old, hair specialist, makeup artist, nail tech, model, influencer, and creative born in kcmo. Im owner of nenenofraudzzllc. This is my 3rd interview with this magazine, and i like to say thank you for helping each hidden gem feel seen. Read more>>
nichole pricha
My story truly began in those first months postpartum with my first child. I felt this deep urgency to hold onto what was already slipping through my fingers. Photography became a way of remembering, documenting, and playing around. Of grounding myself inside a life that had just cracked open. But it was just the beginning of my path as an artist. Read more>>
Tyler Vickrey
I have struggled with addiction for the last 12 years of my life from when I first began using marijuana at the age of 13 and drinking alcohol regularly. I soon began living a negative lifestyle not focusing on what’s important and once bad things started happening. I just continue trying not to deal with them by using or drinking. Read more>>
Harold Smith Jr
I am self taught artist who has been writing and drawing since grade school. I taught from 1986-2021 and was making art along the way. When I retired from teaching, I began doing art full time. Kind of like the late black woman painter Alma Thomas. Read more>>
Arie Monroe
My name is Arie Monroe, I am a local artist and traveling caricature artist. I Am born and raised in Kansas City and attened UMKC where I graduated with a degree in studio art and later Attended the Joe Kubert School of Cartoon Graphics where I studies comics and animation. Read more>>
Sara Rieth
I am a wedding photographer turned Romance Author. I’ve always loved reading romances and wanted to give readers more options on PG-13 heat level books with more plot driven stories because I felt there was a space in the romance world that needed to be filled. The spot between sugary sweet, Hallmark Channel goodness and the smuttier the better. That space is real world romance. Read more>>
Nathan Begnaud
In 2013 an idea popped in my mind: a leather bow tie. So I pitched the idea to my dad, given as he’s worked in leather for years. He liked it, but didn’t think it was for him. I thought about it often, but never acted upon it, largely because I didn’t know anything about leather or how to make anything. Read more>>
Princess Elliott Hopkins
Regal Status was created from a passion for fashion, personal expression, and understanding the deeper psychology behind style. What began as a love for styling and creative presentation gradually evolved into a larger vision centered around confidence, identity, and empowerment through fashion. Read more>>
Paola Amaya
It all started with me trying to find something to do after having my firstborn. I had just graduated high school and felt like I had no purpose or direction. Then I found the gym, and something inside me lit up. For the first time, I found purpose. Read more>>
Kristian Gilmore
I always wanted to build something through media—whether that was producing, content creation, YouTube, or whatever form it took. The challenge wasn’t a lack of passion; it was consistency. More often than not, I was willing to stand in my own way. Eventually, I had to be reminded of who I am. That reminder came through my faith in Jesus. Read more>>
April Madden
I am a clothing and costume designer with 30 years experience. I have worked for the performing arts, films, commercials, celebrity clients, bridal and for lovely people on an every day basis. When people ask me what I create my response is “I can create anything….if I want too. Read more>>
Jamez Hunter
My name is Jamez Hunter, and my professional journey has been anything but traditional. Over the years, I have built experience across media, communications, event planning, talent management, and content creation while balancing full-time work and higher education. I earned a Bachelors in Mass Communication, Humanities, and Theatre, and I am currently pursuing an MBA in Marketing. Read more>>
Sophii Jones
I’ve always existed somewhere between creativity, entrepreneurship, marketing, and culture-building – long before terms like “creator economy” or “personal branding” became mainstream. Looking back, it’s absolutely surreal to realize how many dreams I’ve been fortunate enough to accomplish through the worlds of entertainment, fandom, business, and community. Without community, I would not be where I am today. That is a fact! Read more>>
Katelyn Queen
When I started doing ceramics I was still working at a sandwich shop and going to school full time, now I am working full time and using my Communication Degree every single day at my job. Read more>>
Jessica Lim
The idea for Wanderlust Farms began long before we purchased the property. While working for Room 39, a farm-to-table restaurant in Midtown Kansas City, I discovered that my favorite part of the job was catering farm dinners and special outdoor events. There was something magical about bringing people together around great food in a beautiful setting. Read more>>
Kara Moore
Love, Coffee originated from a random phone call and an empty store front about 10 years ago. My husband and a friend had a conversation about the space and the rest is history. Build out began right away and we opened our doors in October of 2017. Read more>>
Lindsay Howerton
My story is about resilience and learning from adversity. I grew up on a farm, where hard work wasn’t optional. My alarm clock would go off at 3:30 am and I would work until it was time to go to school. As soon as I got home, we worked for hours or until it got dark. Read more>>
David Nudelman
I started Stereotype Co in 2008 with a hundred dollars and a screen printing course. It started with a love for hip-hop, merch, and turning dreams to reality. Over the years, the business grew into a full custom apparel and print operation. But somewhere along the way, something unexpected happened. I started teaching. Read more>>
Miles McMahon
Theatre of the Imagination is happy to be celebrating our 25th anniversary! We started as an after school drama program at an elementary school in Brookside. Hoping to get 5-10 kids, we were surprised when 28 showed up! We split into equal sized groups on different days, so everyone could get a lot of attention. Read more>>
David Scott
I started performing stand-up comedy after I retired and my wife, who had Alzheimer’s, entered a nursing home. My son, Robert, had begun attending and performing at an open mic. He invited me to join him one evening, so I performed and never stopped. The following year, I organized the first of several Alzheimer’s Fundraiser/Comedy Shows. Read more>>
Marcus Ollie
My journey toward who I am today was defined by early experiences of isolation and a search for purpose. Growing up, I often felt misunderstood and struggled to find a sense of direction. Without the presence of a father figure and with my mother working tirelessly to support our family, I began seeking validation and direction in the wrong places. Read more>>
Laura Bratt
My husband went to a training to get CE credits as a psychologist. It was 2004. He called and told me it was incredible and I had to do it with him. I said no; it was weird! He nagged me for a month every single day until I agreed. Read more>>
CORY P.
Art and design have always been second nature to me. Looking back, I feel like creativity has always been a part of who I am. As a kid, I was constantly making things, drawings, or little projects I came up with on my own. I was fascinated by typography, graffiti, cartoons, logos, and anything that involved visual expression. Read more>>
Kevin Larson
Tom’s favorite battle cry, ‘Do it for the Kids!’ was inspiring. Tom Roy, a devoted family man, was a member and past Master of Rosedale Masonic Lodge and an active member of Abdallah Shriners. Tom organized Abdallah Shriners first local golf event for Shriners Hospitals for Children. Tom served as chairman of Abdallah’s golf event until he passed away in 2019. Read more>>
