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.
Denisha Jenay 
My holistic journey started in 2022 I was always into natural options but I remember I went to a herbal shop to pick up a few herbs and a customer asked me what I was buying I said Blue Lotus and I told him the benefits and he asked if I knew what herbs was good for diagnosis of multiple sclerosis (MS) I helped him and it came natural I was comfortable and confident in the knowledge I was sharing it just flowed. Read more>>
Zeynep Donmez 
Since high school, I knew deep down that I was meant to do something meaningful with my life. I had it all planned out: build a career, travel the world, and eventually settle down and have children. I followed much of that plan—just not in the order I expected. I finished university six months pregnant and newly married. Read more>>
Jae’ Wiley 
Lipstyck Lab started when my daughter turned five years old. I realized there really wasn’t anything like this for young girls. We found a place where they did nails and pedicures, but they didn’t do lipstick. Me being a girly girl, I instantly went home and started writing down all these notes: there’s not this for girls, there’s not that for girls. Read more>>
Josh Woratyla 
I graduated from the University of Pittsburgh in 2018 with a degree in Philosophy and Psychology and began working for a variety of test prep companies. I started out after graduating working in Psychology labs, but realized I had a love for tutoring and helping students, and it worked with my schedule as I was also working as a musician at the time. Read more>>
Alexa Dombkoski 
I grew up in Glenside, PA. My dad was in the restaurant business and eventually opened his own restaurant in Philadelphia and I spent my childhood listening to stories about my grandparents adventuring around Europe with their food and wine group back in the 70s and 80s (back before it was cool and everyone could post about their trip on Instagram!). Read more>>
Jeffrey Selby 
I grew up in Westminster, Maryland, in a blue-collar family, and I learned pretty early that if you wanted something, you worked for it. I never had some big master plan for where my life was going to go. For years, I knew something physically was different with me, but I did not really know why. Read more>>
Shamar Paisley 
T.L.O.S. Catering actually started long before I ever thought about owning a catering business. T.L.O.S. came from a saying I used to say so much that I would annoy my family with it. When my daughter was very young, I would even tell her that one day I was going to turn that saying into a business. Read more>>
npopolito@yahoo.com Polito 
I’m a singer songwriter from southwestern Pennsylvania. Music has always been a big part of my life, but for a long time it wasn’t something I believed I could realistically make a career out of. I spent years working underground as a coal miner for Consol Energy before eventually deciding to take a chance on myself and pursue music full time. Read more>>
Molly Stahl 
My entrepreneurial spirit emerged in college when I noticed a specific gap in the market for late-night snacks. It led me to become my apartment building’s in-house ‘Grilled Cheese Girl.’ I made and sold $1 grilled cheese sandwiches from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m., Thursday through Saturday. Read more>>
Taylor McConnell 
Since 2023, The Wilds Sonshine Factory (WSF) has become a premiere rural tourism destination along the historic Route 6 in Kane, PA, featuring a Distillery, Education Center, Gift Shop and Event Venue! As a new innovative “seed-to-still” distillery, WSF created “Sonshine”, the only spirit in the world to be made with sunflowers. Sonshine is trademarked as. Read more>>
Filip Musat 
My friends and I started a community outreach group in the early 2000’s. We all grew up poor so we wanted to use our time and talents to change that reality for others. Our aim was to create businesses to fund our charity work so that we wouldn’t be controlled or influenced by those who would fund our work. Read more>>
Janet Digber-Williams 
Saucy African really started as a solution to a problem in our own home. My husband, James, and I are both Ghanaian, and food has always been an important connection to home, family, and culture for us. But as a physician working long hours, I often didn’t have the time to start dinner from scratch. Read more>>
Christine Carr 
The older men in my family were mechanics, my grandfather had a business, Forrest Garage. It was passed onto my dad. When my dad passed one of my brothers acquired it. We (my brother , sister in law and my ex husband) decided to go into business together. That’s how Penn Club on 2nd came about. Read more>>
Suzanne Hobbs 
My story has taken a lot of unexpected turns, but one thread has connected nearly all of them: storytelling and the belief that one person really can make a difference. I spent 14 years working in television news as a reporter and anchor, beginning my career in Idaho. Read more>>
Nathaniel Franley 
I grew up in Jefferson, OH, just across the border. My grandfather delivered 4,000 babies in our hometown area as a family medicine doctor. Between him, my father as a dentist, and other grandfather as a veterinarian I learned about the service of medicine and developed a love for the day to day way healthcare can impact our patient’s lives. Read more>>
Samantha Washington 
We See Productions was founded by Sam Washington and Brad Swiatkowski in 2019 in the Poconos. Sam was living in Poconos but commuting to NYC for work and Brad was a recent grad who was looking for work closer to home. Read more>>
Felicia Ambrosine-Allen 
Wildflower Balloons began long before I knew it would become a business. I started by making decorations by hand for my children’s birthdays. I loved finding little ways to make their celebrations feel magical, and over time, I found myself creating for other people, too. In 2023, Wildflower Balloons grew out of that joy almost by accident. Read more>>
Gerald L. Jackson 
I grew up in a single-parent home in West Philadelphia with my mother and brother. My father was absent while battling addiction, leaving me yearning for a father who wasn’t there. I often felt alone and lacked the love and encouragement I needed. Read more>>
Hadarina Ceballos 
My business began during a time in my life when I was struggling to find a job and, at the same time, having a hard time finding someone I could trust to take care of my children. I wanted to find a way to work while still being present for my kids, so I decided to explore the beauty industry. Read more>>
Bre Gingrich 
I have always had a draw towards the natural beauty around us. I also love to be creative, and floral design was something that had piqued my interest as it combines two things that I am passionate about. Read more>>
Irron Williamson 
My name is Irron Williamson, I’m a visual artist / event curator from. West Philadelphia. I’ve been doing art since I could remember. My grandmother always encouraged me to do more art and my mother enrolled me in multiple art programs throughout my teenage years, Read more>>
Mike Meulstee 
could build a career around creativity. I went on to study at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia, where I explored fine art, commercial art, and design. I also spent time learning across different mediums—sculpture, animation, printmaking, illustration, and design—which gave me a flexible, multidisciplinary approach that still shapes how I work today. Read more>>
Jorge Cruz Molina 
My story with magic began shortly after I came to the United States from Puerto Rico. I was about five or six years old when I arrived in New York City, and one of my earliest memories in America became the moment that changed my life. My mom was taking me to see our family doctor in manhattan. Read more>>
Michael Asante 
My name is Michael Asante, but I’m professionally known as Mickey Johnson. I’m a filmmaker, director, cinematographer, photographer, and creative director from Accra, Ghana. I started my career in Ghana creating music videos and TV commercials, and over the years I became recognized as one of the top 10 music video directors in Ghana. Read more>>
Liam Cochran 
I first became interested in martial arts when I was 14. There was a martial arts school in my neighborhood that I had always been curious about, and of course I had seen martial arts movies, but if I’m being honest, there was more going on underneath that. I was a scared, insecure teenager. Read more>>
Karen Weber 
As is often the case with future artists, I was always making things as a child. I grew up in the deep woods near St. Peters Village in Chester County, PA, and spent much of my time wandering, playing, creating and imagining within them. Read more>>
Taylor Rebisa and Tori DiMichele 
When I was 24, I decided to take a leap of faith, leave the salon I was working at, and open Vibe Salon. The first people I went to with the idea were my parents, who have been my biggest support system every step of the way. Read more>>
Ashley Basilio 
I spent over 20 years in the corporate world as an engineer and product design manager. I was good at my job but I knew in my heart it wasn’t where I was meant to be. My passion was people. Specifically, women. And helping them feel strong, capable, and truly supported in their bodies and their lives. Read more>>
Morgan Broker 
Shemps farm started in 2019 with the mission to feed people and we bought a 200 year old farm that needed a lot of love and construction. The first 2 years we cleaned up the house and rebuilt greenhouses while building up organic matter and proper nutrients in our fields to plant blueberry’s, raspberry’s, strawberry’s, sweet corn, pumpkins and trees. Read more>>
Abigail Hunt 
Christmas Morning started with a simple desire to give back close to home. Each holiday season, my husband and I would look for a local family we could support, but we often struggled to find a way to connect directly with someone in need. Read more>>
Ari Golden 
Well my discovery into art really started when I was younger, maybe around 8 or so. Art really drew me in as a way to be able to block out stressors from my home life . I grew up in a rather dangerous environment filled with things a kid shouldn’t have see or experience. Read more>>
Taslim Patterson 
My Journey: Health Is the Wealth You Deserve My journey into health and wellness didn’t start because I planned on becoming a vegan chef or building a wellness brand. It started because I wanted something different for my life. Read more>>
Cierra Hall 
I began playing the flute in my 5th-grade band class in Baltimore County, Maryland. I was immediately drawn to the instrument and quickly learned in group classes at school, but I always went ahead in the method books to learn songs and new notes on my own. Read more>>
Felicia Shanken 
My story began long before I became an entrepreneur. I spent over 25 years years working in healthcare, where I learned how to care for people, listen closely and show up when it matters most. But somewhere along the way, I began to feel that God was calling me to serve women in a different way. Read more>>
Melissa Gray 
My story with Body Systems Fitness began at the age of 13 when i joined a gym that had just opened. I have struggled with my weight and confidence my entire life and wanted to start working out. I quickly fell in love with the feeling of accomplishment after a good workout. Read more>>
Erin Yapsuga 
I stumbled upon Level Red Boxing Pittsburgh in November 2018, shortly after the grand opening in September 2018. I had recently graduated from Penn State with a degree in kinesiology and was working as a Therapy Aide in a nursing home. Moving back to Pittsburgh, I was eager to try new things and find my niche. Read more>>
Danielle Lockwood 
From a young age, I was always drawn to science. I participated in every science club I could find, competed in science fairs, and even spent my summers attending science camps. I knew I was interested in medicine, but I wanted to explore different paths before deciding where I truly belonged. Dentistry was naturally familiar to me. Read more>>
Joe Arlotta 
My story goes back to when I was a kid. My mother was a pianist. She went to college for Music, but then dropped out one of six kids growing up in Buffalo New York. My oldest sister took to the piano I took to sports. When a child is learning the piano, the notes and scales come first . Read more>>
Melissa (LYSSA) Taylor 
My love of music started very young. I would sit and listen to my grandfather play the guitar and sing, sometimes I would sing with him. Ever the performer, whenever my family had company over, as soon as grandmom said ‘do that little thing you do’, it was light-camera-action for me..lol. It just grew from there as life went on, open mics, wedding singing, etc. Read more>>
Beth Olenik 
I was raised in the Philly suburbs (on the same street I live on today!), but my husband and I had moved to Seattle for work opportunities in 2012. In 2022, after a decade in Seattle, we decided to move back to the Philly suburbs to raise our boys closer to family. Read more>>
Annie Walsh
We are Rollies, a family owned egg roll/spring roll food truck based in Pittsburgh, PA. I was born and raised in Vietnam. I traveled to the US for college and met my husband Mark. My Vietnamese background deeply influences our daily cooking. Read more>>
Starr Daniels 
I started my journey because I wanted to feel healthier and more confident. I didn’t have everything figured out, so I began taking it one step at a time. I lost around 70 pounds, then pregnancy and motherhood brought new challenges. My journey has been about more than weight…it’s also been about rebuilding my confidence and learning to make time for myself. Read more>>
George Berdomas
I started my real estate career in April 2018 while working full-time. I’ve always had an interest in real estate and saw it as an opportunity to build something of my own while helping people through one of the biggest decisions of their lives. Over the years, I’ve worked with buyers, sellers, and investors throughout Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Read more>>
Jessica Precopia 
I’ve been in digital marketing for over 12 years, working across paid media, analytics, mobile app marketing, lead generation, and growth strategy. Over the years, I’ve had the opportunity to manage multi-million-dollar advertising budgets, build campaigns across platforms like Google, Meta, LinkedIn, Apple Search Ads, and Indeed, and help businesses turn marketing data into real growth. Read more>>
David Holzemer 
My story really started with photography. I was originally a traditional photographer, and photography took me in a few different directions. I was a freelance concert photographer for NewReleaseTuesday.com, covering the Christian music scene throughout the tri-state area. I had the opportunity to photograph some great bands, including Third Day, TobyMac, Skillet, NEEDTOBREATHE, and events like Creation Festival. Read more>>
Ryan Errickson 
We go through our lives trying to find our way. Success often can be found when we hone in on what sets us apart from the rest. What are we best at, better than the others around us. For some that’s baseball, math, sales, carpentry. We may even think we’re good at those things, though there were always a number of people better. Read more>>
Andrew Barth 
Several years ago, I used to work in one of the Apple Retail stores. A place that carried other products besides Apple hero products, including high-end drones. One day I purchased a drone, and when I decided to fly it, a Real Estate Agent approached me and had told me I can make profits with that tool. Read more>>
Matt Marx 
I’ve always been someone who likes learning and figuring things out. I call myself a philomath, which just means a lover of learning, and math was really where that started for me. I went to the University of Pittsburgh for mathematics and later earned my Master of Arts in Teaching Secondary Mathematics there. Read more>>
Pamela Diaconis
I started my work life in a family business at 12 years old. After 20 years as an aerospace engineer working on projects like helping to design the reentry tiles on the Apollo spacecraft, my father decided to by a diner and start over with my mother and another couple. I worked as a cashier on the weekends. Read more>>
Amber Cadmus
Well, I guess the journey was already underway at around 5 years old…My late grandmother Cleo, was an amazing watercolor and printmaking artist, and manyyyy hours were spent in her old barn studio. She taught me about everything; from simple charcoal sketches, to layering watercolor, to copper printing plates for etchings. The smell of EVERYTHING; paints for printmaking, hand soap in a little tub, kneaded erasers…lives in me fully. I remember going to her shows, and the gatherings afterwards were just amazing. While in middle school and junior high, homeschooling lent itself to an almost Pandoras box of possibilities for independent studies. Handwriting and calligraphy were an interest for a bit, as i appreciate the fullness of letters… Read more>>
Meredith Baker 
I have always loved flowers, a love birthed from my grandma’s discipleship in finding beauty in the ordinary, everyday moments. At a young age, I found joy in wildflowers as I roamed the fields of my home state of Michigan. Read more>>
