Our stories are often hard to understand until folks understand our true motivations, our true drivers and the stories behind why our mission or purpose truly matters to us. We’ve asked some inspiring folks from the community to talk to us about why they do what they do and have shared some of our favorite responses below.

Shehla Rooney

GoKNEE’s mission is to provide the most effective and convenient home exercise program for individuals recovering from knee replacement surgery. As a physical therapist with over 25 years of clinical experience, I have seen firsthand the impact of chronic knee pain with my patients and the sacrifices they make every day because of it. Read more>>

Danielle Williams

I created Danielle Sadé Artistry and Sadé Unlimited to allow those an outlet to curate their own personal beauty journey and unleash their inner fashionista. We are often lead to believe that there is one walk of style or that we must adhere to beauty trends. While trends may seem cool, there is nothing cooler than being yourself Read more>>

Linda Engram

Our Mission: Provide the support you need so you can show up for your passion and experience the luxury of time. As an OBM and Business Systems Strategist, Linda is able to pull from her vast experience from her 20 years of experience. She couples that experience and knowledge with high energy, attention to detail, and a passion for supporting business owners so they can thrive and grow their businesses while still maintaining a balance between work and personal life. Read more>>

Gustavo Catto

Guseven Kitchenware was born out of one simple idea: from kitchen to table. We’re a small startup company from South Florida with a big dream: to transform the day-to-day kitchen and tableware into small works of art by fusing modern design with comfort and style. Read more>>

Rebecca Gradler

I fell in love with both shoes and Greece at an early age. My father was born there and one of the few in his large family who emigrated. He took my sister and me back at every opportunity he had. As the “American cousins”, we would receive the warmest welcome from the moment we landed. Read more>>

Tonya Cowan

Ms. Positivi-T, LLC The Brand. One Brand. Multiple Businesses. My Purpose is to Empower, Inspire, and Uplift People – Specifically Women, by Spreading Positivity. God births a purpose in all of us. Grateful is the word that comes to mind when I think about how I have been allowed to use my gifts to help others be successful. Read more>>

Chelsea Green

I started with Modern Nature to have financial stability or as some may say a “Side Hustle” after having my son. I quickly realized, it’s not about the money. I help people make the switch to vegan, cruelty free haircare, skincare and wellness products. Read more>>

Mary Galvanek, Emily Ruppert

Through our nature-based educational children’s program, our summer camp, and our farmer’s market, our mission is to foster ec0-consious mindsets, connect people with healthy food options and to support our farmers. Northern Michigan was a wonderful place to grow up. Read more>>

Meg Ward

Launching JoyKC was extremely vulnerable. Katie Howard and I both previously worked for a ministry that hosted similar respite nights for folks with disabilities. Through many factors, that ministry uprooted and moved to a different State. At that time, the world was shut down in COVID. It was such an uncertain time, and yet, I undeniably felt the green light from Jesus to continue gathering through a new expression (now JoyKC). HA. Not the ideal time to start a non-profit. Read more>>

Daemon

I’ve recently become obsessed with the “future” of hip hop. We’ve done so much with what folks might consider “digital” soundscapes, autotune, 808s, and the trap drum kit. Read more>>

Kyle Creamer

Radio SoBro exists to promote the original music created by Nashville’s singer-songwriter community. It is estimated that nearly 1k songs a DAY are written in Nashville, yet when you listen to terrestrial radio you hear the same 75-100 on repeat. Read more>>

Monica Ricks

As a chemistry major during my undergraduate studies, my first dream was to become a cosmetic chemist and develop scents for Bath and Body Works. I quickly found a passion for pharmacy and switched paths to achieve my goal of being a pharmacist. However, my dream of cosmetic chemistry never went away and would resurface almost 10 years after graduation. Read more>>

Makatelyn Shepherd

The story behind my mission is simple: confidence for everyone. There is a desire to fulfill the void that so many individuals have with the trope of being and staying confident. NO matter what the circumstance is, or who the people are. Confidence, on so many levels, is the gap between believing in yourself and coupling that with achieving your dreams. Read more>>

Andrew Snorton

As a published author (4 books and 5 audiobooks), press/media advisor (as I work with businesses and events with their engagement with radio, television, magazines, and related media to connect with multiple audiences), and educator (individual tutoring/coaching to ACT/SAT prep), the underlying theme is simple. Read more>>

Jes Leffler

Our mission is to create unique DIY-centric experiences for all ages. Read more>>

Flederick Lewis

I started my business “Earthly Essentials” in 2020, around the time of the Covid pandemic. My business consists of natural body & skin care (soaps, body butter, body scrubs, face masks, etc). When I started my business, I was looking into becoming more self-sufficient & wanting more financial freedom. I spent a lot of time doing research on natural skin care, learning how to make my own products. Read more>>

Michelle Mras

My mission in life is not nearly to survive, but to thrive and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor and some style. – Maya Angelou I have survived an auto accident where I obtained a traumatic brain injury. I lost function in four areas of my brain, The damage caused me to be unable to talk or walk without assistance for just over 2 years. Read more>>

Hannah Milks

My story starts the day I first walked into my therapist’s office four office years ago. I had no idea how the decision to show up for myself would change the course of my life- but here I am one year into entrepreneurship, at the very beginning of so much more. Read more>>

Willie Reese

I have always been visually challenged. Growing up in New York City and having cataract surgery at the age of 1 provided a serious challenge growing up. I have always been told by doctors that I am lucky to be seeing at all. Read more>>

Eni Stillman

I love all things about natural hair. Growing up I would watch countless youtube videos to help me learn how to do my curly hair. I went through a phase when I was 18 years old where I had to cut all my hair off due to damage and there was a point that I felt like I wasn’t pretty or enough because my hair was so short. Read more>>

Amy Matthews

My LLC is called Trailblazer Wellness. I didn’t have a lot of luck using traditional methods and medicines to address some of my health issues. However, I ended up blazing my unique trail to wellness when I discovered how the Cannabis plant could help me. That caused me to become certified as a Cannabis & Wellness Coach. Read more>>

Gabrahm Vitek

The meaning behind my brand Dojo Mod is; the pursuit of a place. Everyone is seeking their place in the world. Your home is where your expression can fully be actualized in physical form. When you own a home, you have the opportunity to curate a space that directly reflects your identity and tastes. Read more>>

Priya Kumari

I am a CPA and CA by profession but I changed my career to writing and publishing after seeing widespread misrepresentation, misinformation about India and Indian culture in children’s books. Born and raised in the scenic foothills of Himalayas, I inherited her love of reading and passion for the written word from my father, who owned a bookstore. Read more>>

Jonathan Carradine

My purpose or my mission is to create pieces that inspired and motivate those who view my work. Each piece that I have created with intent and meaning behind it. Whether it is a portrait of recognizable figure that has characteristics that I’m inspired to be or a piece that I am feeling at the moment, I hope it can connect with viewer. Read more>>

Yevette “Vette” Christy

My name is Yevette “Vette” Christy. My mission is to generate awareness about ethical advocacy, religious violence, community complicity, and cultural competency within the anti-sex trafficking movement while creating safe spaces for women to reclaim, restore and rebuild their lives. Read more>>

Dave Isaacs

I started teaching guitar because it was a way to get paid with an instrument in my hand. After ten years I had built a successful neighborhood practice, But it wasn’t until I moved to Nashville in 2005 that I began to see teaching as a mission. Read more>>

Mario A. Bayne

Losing both parents at an early age and being angry at life and circumstances because of that that I wanted to create an organization that would help young people. Read more>>

Angel Randall

My story dates back to early 2019 when I was a full time graduate student studying to be a Mental Health Therapist. I was struggling to maintain self-care; I experienced burnout often and was unsure how to help myself. Also, I was balling on a budget haha, and was not able to do self-care in the financial manner I desired. Read more>>

Gustavo Lomas

My mission is simple, in each one of my practices I strive to inspire people to remember/realize/cultivate who thy’ve always felt themselves to be. I’m driven by my own memories and feelings of past fear, trauma, and hopes/dreams. I wrote my first poem when I was 8 years old and realized I wanted to write when I grew up, no matter what. Read more>>

Klaus Laleau

Growing up in the inner city you see a lot. From drug dealing, pimping, violence, teen deaths, teen pregnancy, fatherless home, high incarceration rate, a large high school dropout rate, gangs, insecurities, etc. I always wanted to give back to my community and be asset. Read more>>

Natalia Robert

I started like most photographer, doing any photography gig I could just to bring in some money and keep my business going. Eventually, I realized that I was most talented and drawn to photographing spaces, so I focused in on that. While learning the ropes for this niche of work, I struggled to not only find information specifically about working with Interior Designers, but also to find other women who were succeeding within this space. Read more>>

Sam Wake

Have you ever failed at something you poured your heart and soul into? Many of us have and it sucks. In 2019, I was coming to the end of a career path that had once been so promising but it wasn’t working out anymore. With the failure came a sense of identity crisis. The let down was tough and the future a daunting mystery. Read more>>

Deneisha Phillips

Being a mom of 3 in a 2 bedroom apartment, I know all to well the benefits of having organized systems in place. Over the past few years, I’ve taken everything I’ve Learned professionally and personally and now, as a professional organizer I make it my mission to help you reclaim your home. Read more>>

Jamil Glenn

Jamil Glenn also known as, “Poet Jamil” or “B’ Ham’s Poet”, is an African American poet. He is also a self taught photographer of his company E.J. Glenn Photography. He is also known as, “B’ Ham’s Shoota” amongst creatives from the Hip Hop and Poetry community. Read more>>

Melissa Smith

The seed of my giving journey was planted at a young age. After my mom went back to work as a teacher, most weeks my dad would do the grocery shopping. He always shopped at Sam’s Club (a.k.a Costco) because we are Italian and we like to eat…a lot. During most trips he would buy two big packages of peanut butter crackers. Read more>>

Kenny Kim

My Mission is to share mine and others success stories to empower the younger generations in setting goals and as a Entrepreneur. Read more>>

Winnie Tam

We support rescues while selling coffee. Read more>>

Tammy McBride

I’ve written a book of my financial struggles that I’ve been through and how God has blessed me out of those valleys. I wrote the book to inspire others to have faith to believe for spiritual help in their struggles. I’ve taken on my story as my ministry to witness to the goodness of God. Read more>>

Erin Burns

Over the last few years, I’ve heard numerous accounts of emotional, mental, and unfortunately even physical abuse in acting studios around the country. Our mission as a studio is to make sure that we take care of your heart and your spirit, and that you even feel better as a human when you leave our classes in addition to the instruction that you’re given. we believe that we are all the same, and our love for acting is what brings us all together. Read more>>

Lourdes Oquendo-Oria

My mission is to bring permanent joy to an adult or child’s life by creating custom pieces of laser engraved wood and acrylic that they will cherish forever. Read more>>

Bryant Acosta

I started my career as a graphic designer working for big brands, Fortune 500 and 200, companies. Just doing creative direction and large scale activations. After a while I was just like, “I’m doing this for other people, I should do it for myself.” I love music, I love art, I love being able to bring an idea to life. That’s how this was born.  Read more>>

Ms. Noris Hernandez

Ms. Noris started to dream of her own tax business – one that would provide more than just tax preparation. “I wanted to add value, mentor, and develop other entrepreneurs with my years of experience as a leader, going beyond preparing individuals and businesses Income Tax returns. I want to provide all-year-round tax consulting, resolving taxpayer’s IRS situations, and supporting my clients to cope with life changes.” Resolving her client’s tax situation is her number one priority. Read more>>

Glenna Nave

I originally started my Instagram account, OT_theTNway, as a way to keep up with activities, themes, and materials I had bought or created. At the time, I was working solely as a school based occupational therapist, and I loved planning themed weeks to give variety and something for my students to look forward to. The problem was each year I would have a hard time remembering what materials, games, and ideas I had used with each theme in years prior. Read more>>

Ashley Johnson

My mission is and has always been to accommodate every woman in every way. Fashion has no limits and can’t be put into one construct. From as far as I can remember fashion has always been a major part of my life. My mom would dress me in the cutest outfits from head to toe and as I got older the more I realized how much I had evolved with fashion. Read more>>