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.
Mark Freeman
Lucia and I met in college at Tulane University in New Orleans, where we were both attending the School of Architecture. We graduated in 2002, just after September 11th, and many areas weren’t building or hiring architects. We moved to Washington, DC versus heading back to our hometowns. We had many friends who had moved here and convinced us we’d find jobs. Read more>>
Sara Bell
I always wanted to be covered in tattoos. Growing up in rural Virginia I only knew one person with any tattoos, my uncle, and he was the coolest looking person I’d ever seen. As I got older and started getting into art I knew that yes, I wanted to be covered in tattoos, but I also wanted to be the one doing the tattoos. Read more>>
Kirk Wolgamott
My grandfather Dan was a prodigious storyteller. Growing up in rural Nebraska I spent innumerable childhood hours spellbound by his tales of the old west and World War I. I went through school to become a lawyer and engage my passion for helping seemingly defenseless people and protecting the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. Read more>>
Khallil Daher
For more than 15 years, I worked as an automotive engineer in Michigan. Engineering was my career, but food was always my passion. I grew up loving food, spent time working in restaurants, and from a very young age knew there was something about bringing people together through food that I loved. Read more>>
James Moss
On December 8, 2025, Family Coin Laundry officially opened its doors—a milestone born from a deeply personal turning point. For years, I served as a Principal Port Engineer for Military Sealift Command. It was an exciting and rewarding career, but its heavy travel demands frequently kept me away from home. Read more>>
Amanda Linas
I have always been an animal lover. I started volunteering for local shelters in High School (in New Hampshire, where I am from.) In my senior year of high school I got a job as a pet care technician and learned a lot about taking care of dogs and cats, as well as grooming, therapy and I assisted in training classes. Read more>>
Connell Lee
I’ve always believed that financial planning is about much more than money. It’s about helping people create the freedom and confidence to live the lives they envision. As a Financial Advisor with Kuttin Wealth Management, a private wealth advisory practice of Ameriprise Financial Services, LLC, I’ve built my practice around listening first. Read more>>
Brad Burton
Decipher Brewing was founded by three veterans: Brad, Scott, and Megan Burton. Brad and Scott began homebrewing in 2005 while stationed in Denver, CO. We fell in love with the process and decided we wanted to open our own place. Read more>>
JEANINE BABYAK
JEANINE BABYAK Jeanine is a self-taught artist who is passionate about color and concentrates mostly on acrylics and mixed media paintings, though her interests and experience are varied and wide. One pique interest of hers entails the rich experiences and cultural exchanges added to our lives by travel. Read more>>
Jesse Randall
Randall Branding Agency was founded in Richmond, Virginia, in 2011 with a simple philosophy: work hard, stay focused, and over-deliver at every turn. More than a decade later, that philosophy still guides everything we do—even though where and how we work has changed dramatically. Over the years, Randall Branding Agency has grown and evolved alongside our clients. Read more>>
Diamond Frost
My journey started about eight years ago with a passion for the nail industry. I first began doing nails out of my college dorm room while earning my degree, and that’s where I discovered not only my love for the craft, but also my passion for entrepreneurship. Read more>>
Dave Lyons
My wife Corinne and I live in Purcellville VA with our 2 boys, Ethan (8) and Colton (4). I work in medical device sales and Corinne is a registered nurse. I went back to school at West Virginia University to get my MBA in 2020/2021 with the goal of eventually being able to run our own business. Read more>>
April Kemp
I think I’ve always been a DreamHer. Even as a child, I was drawn to motivation, personal growth, and the idea that we have more control over the direction of our lives than we sometimes realize. Read more>>
Melissa Face
I published my first collection, I Love You More Than Coffee: Essays on Parenthood in September of 2020. Two years later, I welcomed mothers into the conversation with I Love You More Than Coffee: A Guided Journal for Moms. Read more>>
Laura Sant
Like a lot of creative people I’ve had quite a meandering path to what I’m currently doing now. I studied design at VCU and my first job out of college was as a graphic designer at a small marketing firm. Read more>>
NATASHA FRISK
My journey into wellness began through my own life and my desire to create a healthier, more grounded way of living for myself and my family. Over the years, that curiosity grew into a deep love for food, nutrition, movement, gardening, herbs, and the simple rhythms that help us feel more connected to our bodies and our lives. Read more>>
Kay VanDyke
I am an architect, old enough to relax and do community work. But having just moved from Seattle and a demanding job, I was bored, so in 2010 I bought a building on Main Street, renovated it and started a non-profit art center called ‘Arts on Main’, right at the low point of the depression. Read more>>
Deenalin Crook
I began painting at a young age after watching my grandfather, an oil painter from Norway, spend countless hours painting beside the sea. Throughout childhood and early teenage years, I drew and painted often but didn’t pursue much of it until my late 20s. Read more>>
Lauren Shanks
My path to interior design wasn’t exactly a straight line. Before launching Brass & Brine Interior Design, I spent more than two decades in corporate project management, building a career around bringing complex ideas to life, managing competing priorities, solving problems, and keeping people and projects moving forward. At the same time, design had always been a creative thread running through my life. Read more>>
Juliya Oksana
I was originally adopted from Ukraine. When I came to the states I had a lot of health issues my parents were sorting out. I was diagnosed with 7 different diagnosis – one including cerebral palsy. Mainly due to the way my bone developed and how I was walking. I ended up not having central palsy and was treated extensively for my walking. Read more>>
Anna Woodie
I started my career out backwards. When I opened my salon, I had no business background or cosmetology background. I was an elementary school teacher making a crazy career change. In the beginning there was a lot of bootstrapping, tears, and figuring things out as I went. What surprised me the most was—I LOVED IT. Read more>>
Kirtrice Badger
Krowned by Kirtrice was started after a seven year sewing hiatus. It began with me making headbands and head wraps. At the time pop ups were popping up all over so I decided to jump out, start a business and begin selling at pop ups. Initially I only planned to make and sell what I was already doing, then I learned how to crochet. Read more>>
Jesse Kemp
Our story began years before Element Contrast Studio had a name. As the owners of Dragonfly Yoga Studio, we’ve spent a long time creating spaces where people can move, breathe, and feel connected to themselves and to one another. Wellness has always been personal to us, not just something we do for work. Read more>>
Craig Coleman
My path to entrepreneurship has been anything but linear. I grew up in Richmond, Virginia, and joined the U.S. Navy shortly after high school. What began as an opportunity to find direction ultimately became a 30-year career that took me from being an enlisted electrician to becoming a commissioned officer, aerospace engineer, program manager, and eventually a physician. Read more>>
Damon Decker
I didn’t pick up a camera because it looked cool—I picked it up because I’ve always been drawn to stories. I started in wedding videography, and I loved the feeling of taking real moments and turning them into something people could relive forever. Then I realized something: I could tell stories with photography the same way I did with video. Read more>>
Madison Cameron
My journey into photography started in 2013, shortly after my daughter was born. What began as a hobby quickly turned into something I couldn’t put down! I had always been interested in the wedding world—even back in high school, I was experimenting with floral design, and then baking—so I guess you could say I was destined to find my way into the industry somehow. Read more>>
Marie Barjon
I am a Navy Veteran and currently a career civil servant in the Hampton roads area. Skin care was always a passion of mine and decided to attend Esthetics school at a later point of my life. I want to help others by doing corrective skin care. I am only doing it part time right now until I retire from the government. Read more>>
Paris Munn
I’ve actually been interested in real estate for a long time. I’ve always loved homes, architecture, and interior design, and I remember thinking about getting my real estate license years ago when we were living on Guam. At the time, though, the timing just wasn’t right. Read more>>
Danielle Green
My path into the home furnishings industry began after graduating from Washington College with a degree in Studio Art and minors in Art History and Mathematics. I have always loved the way creativity and business can work together, and becoming a sales representative allowed me to combine both sides of my personality. Read more>>
Adam Dayton Gibson
Adam Dayton Gibson is an American songwriter, recording artist, author, singer, producer, and bandleader of Adam Dayton Gibson & The Mustard Seed Revival. His catalog includes more than 350 songs, available across all major streaming services in 202 countries and territories worldwide. Gibson’s professional songwriting journey began in Nashville, where he became affiliated with EMI Music Publishing. Read more>>
Port Tamara
My career in social work has taken me through a lot of different settings, communities, and even countries—and I think each experience has shaped the therapist and business owner I am today. Read more>>
Julia Bay
My path to Pour Paint Party wasn’t a straight line. I spent the first part of my career in international education, working in student services at the University of Oklahoma and later leading international programs at two other institutions. It was work I loved: helping people find their footing in a new place, building community, and creating moments where someone felt genuinely welcomed. Read more>>
Olivia Lee
I have always wanted to do makeup, ever since I was a little girl. I even wrote papers about it in school in career class. I ended up getting a full scholarship to college, so instead of pursing makeup, I furthered my education, eventually getting my Masters in Forensic Psychology. During my time in the legal corporate world, I desperately needed a creative outlet. Read more>>
Yunhee Kwak
I studied Fine Art in South Korea, attending both an arts high school and university. After graduating, I worked as an artist and later moved to the United States, where I continued my creative career as an independent designer and participated in exhibitions. My journey into art education began after I became a mother. My first child was a little cautious about touching unfamiliar things. Read more>>
Alexandre de Paris
My story with hair really began when I was about 12 or 13 years old. Even at that age, I was fascinated by the way a hairstyle could completely change how someone looked and, more importantly, how they felt about themselves. I was constantly imagining different looks for people. Read more>>
Melinda Ritz
Ive owned Cascades at Parks Mill for about 5 years now. I found the property on line, during the covid lock downs of 2021, was immediately attracted and intrigued, got on a plane within 2 days of finding it and bought it the day I landed in Abingdon. I was in love. It was a little jet lag and a lot of magic. Read more>>
Karan Townsend
Voyage Virginia, Claude, Interview, 30JUL2026 My Story Looking back over 75 years, deciding in 2006 to open an inn in the historic market district of Harpers Ferry, West Virginia — ‘almost heaven,’ as the song goes — was one of the best decisions of my life. Read more>>
Shaquahia Biggs
Hello! My name is Shaquahia Biggs. I’m a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Virginia and I own Comfort Counseling, LLC. A private practice that’s supports women’s mental health and trauma recovery. I started my practice in 2023 due to noticing a gap of providers that both look like me and provide perinatal care to better support black women. Read more>>
Kathy Lyons
As a State Department child, I grew up around the globe, but our family always centered our lives in Northern Virginia. After completing a Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Computer Science, I landed my first – and lifetime – professional job, met and married my husband, Tim (a Connecticut transplant), and raised three amazing children, Patrick, Michael, and Margaret in Northern Virginia. Read more>>
Olivia Orzhekh
My Story When I look at what we have built today, it is hard to believe where it all started. We opened our salon in 2021 with very little money, very little support, and absolutely no roadmap. Read more>>
Rachel Cornett
I got my first camera when I was in elementary school and from that point on, I was always taking pictures of something. Trees, animals, my friends, really anything I could find. In high school, I took a film photography class and completely fell in love with it, but at the time, I never really considered photography as something I could turn into a career. Read more>>
Andrea DeRubba
My journey began with nearly 20 years of experience in education. Throughout my career, I worked closely with students who needed additional academic support, particularly in reading. I earned my master’s degree in literacy and became licensed in Virginia with endorsements as a Reading Specialist and English Learner teacher. Read more>>
Joshua Robinson
I started out in the Navy in 2013, mostly stationed on the east coast between Florida, North Carolina, and Virginia. I got out in 2023 from Quantico. I got my MSW at Florida State while in the military, and picked up an MBA at George Washington too, which people always find a little odd for a therapist. Read more>>
Derrick Scott
My journey into fitness really started with a passion for helping people become stronger—not just physically, but mentally too. I worked at Bally Total Fitness when I was 18 and cleaned for 6 months before getting certified and training immediately after. I was there for 5 years before working at One life Fitness for another 5 years. Read more>>
Knikki Hernandez
I’ve been in education for 20+ years and have always strived to better myself academically, personally, and professionally. The goal for me has always been to make strides in every aspect of my life so that students can receive the best version of me that I’m capable of giving. As a student, though, I was a late bloomer. Read more>>
Mary Lechter
After graduating from the University of Maryland, I moved into DC and started out as a freelance actor, and eventually, teacher. I was fortunate that my first two teaching jobs were at the Studio Theatre Acting Conservatory (helping to develop their young peoples’ program) and the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Read more>>
Danielle Neville
I’ve rebuilt my life more times than I can count and every time, a song came with it. I left London chasing a dream. I never expected I’d have to rebuild my entire life to find it. People often ask me if music was Plan A. The truth is, music was the one thing that survived every other plan falling apart. Read more>>
Shweta Chauhan
My spiritual path did not begin with a business plan or with the intention of becoming a holistic practitioner. It began with questions. I have always been deeply curious about people—why we hurt, why we repeat patterns, what allows one person to rise after hardship while another loses hope, and what it truly means to heal rather than simply survive. Read more>>
