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.
Isabel Abreu 
My Story Villa Bella Events I was born in Brazil and moved to the United States when I was nine years old with my mother, father, and my sister, Kelly. We left our entire extended family behind, and for me, the transition was incredibly difficult. Read more>>
Taylor Belcher 
My journey with Perfect Paws started in 2020 with Perfect Paws House Calls. I’ve always had a huge love for animals, as well as entrepreneurship. After graduating grooming school, I had been thinking of starting my own business, but just didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do. Read more>>
Anna Licciardo 
My journey into healthcare actually began with dance. I went to college to study dance and eventually became a Pilates instructor. After nearly 10 years of working with clients through movement and completing more than 1,000 hours of Pilates training, I became fascinated by the body’s ability to adapt, compensate, and heal. That curiosity ultimately led me to pursue a career as a clinician. Read more>>
Sara Beauchemin 
My journey began in a small women’s fitness group in my hometown, where I decided to take the leap and earn my first fitness certification. From there, I continued to expand my certifications and began renting a room at a local small business, teaching just twice a week. Before long, the studio was packed, classes were filled, and I had a growing waitlist. Read more>>
Maricela Martinez 
I’ve always had a passion for decorating and creating beautiful things. My journey actually started with Christmas tree decorating. I loved taking an idea and transforming it into something special, and once the holiday season ended, I found myself looking for another creative outlet. That’s when I became interested in flowers. Read more>>
Ashley Lebrun 
I’d known since watching What Women Want that I wanted to working in marketing. Then I graduated and started working in video production just as paid advertising on social media was becoming a thing. That early exposure to branded content production redirected my entire career. Read more>>
Jaqlin Medlock 
I’ve always had a hard time answering the question, “What do you do?” because I’ve never really been just one thing. At my core, I’m an artist. I’m a dancer, photographer, certified energy healer, and now, alongside my husband Ryan, the co-creator of Studio 810, our live/work creative space in Downtown Jersey City. Read more>>
Lauren Carabelli 
About 8 years ago, a good friend of mine asked me to do ‘guest portraits’ for her sister’s wedding. I had never heard of it before so she sent me an example and I immediately thought, ‘I don’t think I can do that!’ With some kind persuading, she convinced me I could paint guests at a quick pace, and they would, in fact, look amazing. Read more>>
Destiné Harper 
My journey into the beauty industry started with waxing, but it has grown into something much bigger for me. I began my career working for wax studios European Wax Center and Waxing The City Montclair, where I developed my skills, built relationships with clients, and discovered how much I genuinely loved helping people feel confident in their skin. Read more>>
Annalysa ‘Lee’ Coleman 
My story has really been about following my passions, even when they’ve taken me in completely different directions. I’ve never believed that I had to choose just one thing to define who I am. Professionally, I found my purpose in education. I earned my bachelor’s degree in Literature and later my master’s degree in School Counseling. Read more>>
Joini James 
Moving to America as a young child was an eye-opening experience on multiple fronts. The biggest challenges included navigating my health journey, trying to find answers both a dismissive and expensive healthcare environment. After beginning my undergraduate degree at Montclair State University, I began to discover the unfortunate relationship between healthcare and racism while diving into maternal and mental health outcomes. Read more>>
Dr. Sabratha Thomas 
At 425 lbs., the traditional workout became less of an option for me. I wanted to “work out,” but more than that, I desperately needed something I could connect to, something I could be consistent with. Read more>>
Brian Wright 
Brian Michael Wright walked into a karate school in 1980, at six years old, and has never stopped training. He was so young that his instructor had to tie his belt for him. By 1992 he was fighting, and he went on to compete professionally in kickboxing and MMA in 13 countries. Read more>>
Maha Metwally 
My journey with Madam Maha Permanent & ParaMedical Cosmetics Clinic began with a passion for beauty, artistry, and helping women feel more confident in themselves. I have always believed that beauty is not about changing who you are—it is about enhancing your natural features in a way that makes you feel your best. Read more>>
Linda Murphy
After retiring from education, I found myself looking for a meaningful creative project. I had always cared about helping people learn and grow, but I was ready to explore a different way of doing that. I began taking courses through a program titled Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, which included Writing a Children’s Book with Gina Casazza, and Intentional Living with Lauren Kerr. Read more>>
Helena Chywski 
My path to becoming an artist wasn’t exactly traditional. I’ve always been creative, but for many years, art existed alongside a completely different career. I studied business management and have spent more than a decade working in the corporate world while creating whenever I could. My connection to art began much earlier, though. Read more>>
Michael Mincey 
Growing up with my family cooking was always something we all did, you learn from your mom your dad your grandparents aunts uncles all of the above. Through that process you find your own way what works for you. Read more>>
Kara and Filipe Da Silva 
Sacred Vessel was founded by husband and wife team Flip and Kara Da Silva. We first dreamed of opening our own studio when we were just 21 years old. At the time, Flip was working construction during the day while apprenticing in tattooing at night, and Kara was beginning her own journey in permanent makeup. Read more>>
Tibor Kuno 
I moved from Hungary to the United States in 2020, just before the pandemic. I initially settled in the Catskills, where I found a safe place to live and worked occasionally at a local hotel. Surrounded by the landscape of upstate New York, I began exploring photography through nature and landscape images. Read more>>
Jeimy Simon 
I came to the United States from the Dominican Republic when I was 15 years old, without speaking English and without any friends or family here besides my mom. I had to adapt to a completely new country and environment while figuring out where I belonged. Read more>>
Tracey Khan 
My name is Tracey Khan, a Guyanese, New York-based journalist whose passion for storytelling began at just 17 years old in Berbice, Guyana. My journalism journey started at a local television station, LRTVS, where I served as a news anchor and reporter. Read more>>
Caitlyn McCreary 
After graduating from college, I was working from home in pharmaceutical marketing. but because I was home all day, I often felt isolated and disconnected. The one hour I spent working out each morning became the thing I looked forward to the most. Read more>>
De Bolton 
My journey into health and wellness started with my own life. Nine years ago, I was more than 100 pounds heavier and trying to figure out what it meant to truly care for myself. At first, my focus was mostly physical exercise, nutrition, and changing my body. Read more>>
Amy Rizzuto 
Photography has always been a passion of mine, ever since I was a little girl! I still have boxes filled with my first Polaroids and remember the feeling of turning in my film at our local camera store. Read more>>
Ashley Patterson 
Zyry Wellness was born in 2020, during a time when life felt incredibly uncertain and overwhelming. Like so many people, I was navigating the anxiety that came with the pandemic while also trying to balance being a mother, a partner, working 2 jobs, and simply figuring out how to make it through each day. Read more>>
Kathy Taylor 
My first memory of seeing and communicating with a Spirit was at the age of four, when a boy named Frankie and his dog—both of whom had perished in a car accident—came to me in my home. Read more>>
Danila Kartashov 
Nuria and I both came to the United States in our early twenties, myself from Russia and Nuria from Spain. We met in New York. Young dancers chasing big dreams. We formed a dance partnership and eventually joined Arthur Murray, starting at the Chatham studio, Nuria as a manager, and me as an instructor. Read more>>
Stephanie Marengo
I’ve been an animal lover for my whole life. As a child, I would bring home frogs, turtles, and even beetles to keep as pets! The desire to provide care for all creatures stuck with me throughout college, where I earned my Bachelor’s Degree in Zoology from Weber State University. Read more>>
Joanna Suchcicka 
Dyslexia Wellness grew out of my passion for helping people feel good about themselves, feel empowered, and succeed in life—with children and teens being especially close to my heart. My professional career began in healthcare, where for over 20 years I worked as a physical therapist. Over time, my interests grew beyond physical health to include mental health and education. Read more>>
NIKITA TANWANI 
My journey started the day I left a six-figure tech job to pursue pageantry and YouTube full-time. It was 2019, and I had just finished competing at Femina Miss India, the country’s largest national pageant. During my preparation, I noticed there was hardly any information online about pageant prep techniques for Indian women. Read more>>
Jackie Spiteri 
I’m the owner and founder of Colias Cafe. Originally from Malta, I moved to the United States 38 years ago and have been living in Bloomfield, NJ for about 26 years. I always knew that I wanted to open a cafe.I have a unique background when it comes to experience in this industry. Read more>>
Taylor Gordon 
My journey to dancing professionally internationally for more than two decades began in my hometown of Milford, MA. My family ran a dance studio in that small town, so basically since I could walk, I was dancing. Read more>>
Aaron Nixon
The Philadelphia running community has always been special to me. It’s guided me through a storm in some of my dark days, and has been a constant positive reinforcement when there’s nothing to feel but joy and happiness. I started running after high school as a way to stay fit. What I didn’t know then was how much running would consume my every being in the most transformative way upon lacing up those first pair of running shoes and stepping out the door. The lessons that I have learned through running—both physically and mentally rewarding—yet challenging at the same time, have become woven into every fiber of my body both on and off the road. Read more>>
Corinne Nanfeldt
First and foremost, I’m a mom to three incredible little humans. While I have a bachelor’s degree in Business Administration, my dream was to stay home and raise my babies, just like my mom did. “Mom” will forever be my favorite title. It’s a role I wouldn’t trade for the world, but as so many women can relate, it’s also one of the hardest. Read more>>
