We asked some of the most talented folks in the community to talk to us about projects they’ve worked on that they still think about, projects that really meant something. Have you had such an experience? Are you looking for inspiration for your next project? Check out the stories below, they are exciting, entertaining, and most importantly – inspiring.

Brittney Megann

Meaningful projects, where do I even start? I might be a little biased, but I truly believe that every single project we have worked on at Socials & Stilettos has been meaningful. You might be thinking “How meaningful could working with beauty, fashion, and lifestyle brands really be?”. It’s not always the products that are being sold, but the mission behind the brand that truly makes the projects we work on so meaningful. Read more>>

Joseph Valle Hoag

My first single, Covered Ground, was truly a turning point or me because it represented a shift in my career from live performance to recording artist. It was the middle of the pandemic, and when I started it felt like the only thing I could do with my music, but by the time I finished, I knew it was something I wanted to explore further. The subject matter was very personal despite the otherwise happy-go-lucky lyrics. When I released it on bandcamp, I included this message: Read more>>

Tiffany Dodson

I’ve been lucky enough to work on so many amazing projects. The most recent is a film called Retro Freaks (2022). I play the villain and the character is silent mostly. It was one of my favorite roles because of the cast and crew. Everyone just worked so well together – and it was almost completely volunteer based so everyone was really there because they truly love making movies. That’s what it’s all about. Making movies with the people you love. Read more>>

Airam Camacho

List of projects: Movies: -Autumn and the Black Jaguar -Todavia Conmigo -Born Again T.V y Series: -De Noche con Yordi -TUDN Tu tribuna – Mayans MC season 5 -Telemundo ” El Doctor del Pueblo” Video Musical: -Fuerza Regida ” Descansando” Comerciales & Print: -Volskwagen ” Las Familias” -Illumina
-Disguise Costumes TV Promo for Estrella TV Mes de la Hispanidad TV Promo Jugueton Azteca 2022 Modelaje: Mini Universo Mexico 2021 Expo Moda 2021
Modelo Infantil oficial de Mitzy Read more>>

Anthony Tagliavia

One of the most meaningful projects I have worked on is the development of my Kids Breakdance program. The name of the program is IllStylezCrew. It is a kids breakdance crew from Brooklyn, New York. During Covid I lost majority of my breakdance program and once things started to open back up I thought it was a safe bet to take a job as a teacher in the Public school system. Read more>>

Tara Brooks

I’d love to pick one but theres 3 I must share! long before I was a dj or producer, I was a huge fan of John Digweed. I used to get lost in his unique sets which I can only describe as a beautiful & twisted journey into another world. his flawless mixing told a story that touched and moved the listener. fast forward around 10 yrs, as my dj career took off, I knew if John heard me, he’d connect with my music & me. Read more>>

Paulyae Dawkins

My album “The Feeling” is such a meaningful project to me because it stemmed from my inner light and awakening. During my solitude, God spoke to me and made me realize how beautiful it is to love yourself and be free from worry! All we need is ourselves; material things and relationships are secondary, NOT necessities! I unlocked this realization and decided to share this beautiful feeling with the world through my music, so that I could help others heal and feel the things I felt! (Hence the album title) Read more>>

Kaitlynd Satterfield

My name is Kaitlynd and I am a lifestyle & motivation content creator that focuses on living and making it memorable. My goal is to create a space for individuals seeking community, encouragement, and inspiration. A place where we feel welcomed and inspired! I want to help others live a life with intention where goals are created, progress is made, and dreams are achieved. Read more>>

Katy Mikelle

I wrote, composed, and directed a musical called “The circle of Eyes”. It took me about 5 years to complete and although it won 4 awards off broadway in New York, it’s still a work in process for me. It’s the one thing that gets me out of bed in the morning and gives me hope. Its my baby, and the thing I am most passionate about more than anything I’ve ever created. Read more>>

Zac Levine

Whatever you do, do it with a purpose. When I am creating art, a business, or working on any project, I always start with a deep dive on understanding why it is worth doing. For me, Supernova is a beautiful combination of my two passions in life; art and business. It provides me joy, an outlet for my art, a monetary return, and fosters an incredible opportunity for intersectional community building. I was tired of “four walls and a DJ booth” nightclubs. I had a deep desire for immersive art, entertainment, customer service, and an atmosphere designed for the age of inclusion. Read more>>

Steven Hellman

Recently starting up my Hellman’s Kitchen “Veteran Foodie Podcast” has been meaningful in several ways that I didn’t anticipate prior to beginning my first recording session. As a U.S. Military Veteran, I am part of a small tribe of individuals with a shared unique experience. Approximately 6% of the United States population has served in the Military which makes the veteran community very tight knit in the most positive way possible. Read more>>

Heather Doyle Fraser

The most meaningful project I have ever cultivated is the ComPASSIONATE Writer Program I run twice a year. I developed this six-week group coaching program and course in the summer of 2020 in order to create a group program that incorporated the one-on-one work I do with first-time writers and authors when they are beginning the book writing journey. Read more>>

Jacob Larson

A project that I am most proud of is my band’s debut original album, Totally Legal. We are a Funk & Soul band, and our debut record definitely captures a “straight from the ’70s” feel. This album was started in 2019, and therefore became a COVID project. We released it in October of 2022 and I truly could not be more proud of the work that the band and I did on it. I have been performing cover songs for the majority of my career as a musician, so to be able to release and then play music that I wrote is a special feeling. Read more>>

Skip Benefiet

The most meaningful project I have had the honor of doing was actually very recent. Two of my best friends recently brought a beautiful baby boy into the world and they wanted to ask some friends to be his godparents. They wanted to make the occasion extra special so they asked me to make some matching pieces for them with some stunning picture jasper, a bolo and a pendant. Of course they said yes and now they have a piece to commemorate the occasion! Read more>>

Emily Burrowes

I’ve always love drawing significant spots for my clients, whether that be the place they got engaged, a childhood memory, etc. I also love making maps of places that people grew up in and the memories they get when they see certain streets. For my parents one Christmas I made maps of their hometowns. My parents are both not from the United States and have not been back to their home country for a long time, so it brought so much joy to them! Read more>>

Nina Feliciano

In the fall of 2020, I organized a virtual concert fundraiser for my church. Earlier that year, my college a cappella group, The GW Vibes, was supposed to perform there in person, but unfortunately, we were unable to at the time. My mom suggested putting on a virtual concert, and we decided to make that happen. Since that school year was completely virtual and everyone was living in different parts of the country, we couldn’t sing together in one space. So, we decided to make a cappella videos, where each person sings in their own square. Read more>>

Tiayrra Bradley

In 2022 I started a non-profit Organization called Birth Dei, which is a holistic wellness and arts initiative focused on providing tools and resources in the health and mental wellness space to bring about restorative healing in black and brown communities in Philadelphia. This has been the most meaningful and full circle projects I have worked on to date because it allows me to fully express all that I was and all that I am becoming. Read more>>

Colleen Cambridge

I lit on this topic because I wanted to take a minute to explore what, exactly, a “meaningful project” is. In my world, as a novelist, many people might think a “meaningful project” would be The Great American Novel—ie, some great literary feat that somehow changes the world or becomes indelible in our society. Something that is breathtakingly beautiful and at the same time, utterly compelling and brilliant and timeless. Read more>>

Mike Bankhead

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on is my upcoming concept EP. It’s called I AM EXPERIENCED. (Note: In the article, the name of the EP should be italicized, not capitalized. I don’t have a way to do that in this form.) Songwriting is one of the ways I deal with anxiety & depression, how I cope, and how I reflect and react to current events and the world around me. Over the last few years, I kept seeing the video and images of people who look like me being executed by everyday racist citizens or by the police. Read more>>

Jason Yungbluth

Possibly one of the most meaningful things I have done is to keep one of my oldest creations– a Garfield-inspired comic strip I began when I was twelve–alive for four decades! Through stapled, homemade comics onto high school and college newspapers and self-published comic books those characters have persisted no matter how many times I have tried to kill them off! Read more>>

Ellen Lindner

Lost Diamonds: A History of Gender Rebellion in American Baseball, my current project, has been meaningful to me because I have learned so much doing it. I was a lifelong baseball fan but completely ignorant about gender politics within the sport. Some quick examples of the blind spots in my knowledge: did you know that the New York Mets franchise was started by a woman? Read more>>

Cindy Veltman-Marshall

One of the most meaningful series of prints I completed was based on a short story written by my husband’s cousin entitled “A Man With His Head in a Tree”. As she read the story to a group of us images filled my mind with a reinterpretation of her words. The prints were literally taking shape as she read. We were out of state at the time and I couldn’t wait to get back to Colorado and get those images into ink. Read more>>

Early Birds Club Teens

EBC Teens works to host events and other activities that are meaningful to the teens participating. That is an important virtue we hold. One series that was particularly insightful to the teens was the Career Series. In the career series, we invited a variety of adults in different fields such as international law, aviation, art, and others. Read more>>

Jenna Cipolloni

The most meaningful project I’ve worked on so far is my first short film I directed under my company, titled “Concealer.” It’s an expression of my feelings about being socialized into a feminine role and being told that my body is inherently obscene and impermissible through no decision of my own; being pushed into these feminine standards against my will into a culture that tells me that the feminized body is inappropriate by nature and must be altered in order to be socially acceptable, whether that change be aesthetic or something deeper. Read more>>

Bryana Joy

Four and a half years have passed since I quit my job to become a full-time artist selling my work primarily via online and social media channels, and if I could summarize in three words my primary takeaway from that experience, it would be these: people aren’t brands. To me one of the saddest consequences of the stranglehold corporatism has on the American consciousness is the ever-bigger push to condense the beautiful intricacy of our humanity into bite-sized morsels of brand recognition. Read more>>

Amanda Nadig

The most meaningful quilts I have made have been the ones of have involved my children in. I started my obsession with quilting in late 2019, so by the time the pandemic hit, I welcomed the unexpected time to create. I was motivated to take on many handwork projects and I spread textiles from any fabrics I could find throughout our home. Read more>>

Aida Masliah

The significance of my artwork lies in the expression of my perspective on various life issues through the incorporation of surrealism, as well as occasionally incorporating humor or addressing pertinent issues of contemporary society. I utilize colored pencils as my primary medium for creating these works. Read more>>

Luis Figueroa

Connecting with people that come together over something like a drawing or painting. Is so fascinating that we can get together to share our feelings. Building longterm relationships with people that have different thoughts to the table. Keeping the spirit of creation alive! Read more>>

Betsy Wiersma

For 18 years I have dedicated my life to creating a network of 5000 women who were on purpose for good. We called it the CampExperience(tm) Network. And our motto is Go Good Have Fun! In the 18 years, we raised over $1 million for 60 charities in our home state of Colorado and around the world. We looked for connections to women in Colorado and followed our dreams to help children in Nepal, women in Africa, children in Africa and hundreds of people in Colorado. Read more>>