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.
Geraldine Brisbane Crooks
In 2002, I established a international student/teacher exchange program with five adopted sister schools in South Africa. We also deliver school, medical and food supplies during our annual study tours. Hosting the learners and educators from Johannesburg and Cape Town also helped expand young minds and inspire them to achieve their greatest desires. Our Brisbane Academy scholars receive the same benefit as they build life long relationships and memories during their travel experiences in Africa. Read more>>
Portia Shipman
Born and raised in Greensboro, NC, Portia grew up in a home filled with love, culture, and complicated emotions. Her childhood was marked by moments of joy — and moments that left deep scars. These experiences would one day become the foundation of her books and her advocacy work. Read more>>
Tammy Cobb Kim Williard
Alamance Arts is a non-profit organization that is on the cusp of our 70th Anniversary, as we began in 1956. Starting with Burlington Writers Club as the foundation, multiple Affiliate groups were formed and the Arts Council of Alamance was created. Over the years, children’s theatre, jazz, artisans, photography, singers and others have utilized the Arts Council as a means for engaging with the community. Read more>>
Shannon Whitaker Tinisha Welsh
Tinisha and I started this adventure kind of by accident, we are both just busy moms who worked with the rec leagues and sporting teams of our children. Tinisha did a lot of our apparel ordering for our teams, and I typically handled the paperwork and logistics pieces. Read more>>
Elias Kirkman
My name is Elias Founder and owner of Nidas Recording Studio in Burlington NC, this is the story of how I started. I always had a love for music but didn’t ever consider audio engineering or making music till I was a junior in high school. Read more>>
Sarah Marshall
My path into education has always been rooted in making learning feel real, meaningful, and joyful. I began my teaching career in South Florida at a public project-based learning school, where I taught K–5, led PBL workshops for teachers, and designed reading and curriculum that connected high-quality literature to real-world learning. Read more>>
BJ Bowen
I fell in love with code early. Around age 12, I was glued to a Timex Sinclair 1000 that connected to my TV. I spent nights learning code, breaking things on purpose, and reverse-engineering errors. Read more>>
Chuck Browder
Chuck discovered his love for guitar at the age of 12. His formal music journey began in High School at The North Carolina School of the Arts, where he studied classical guitar under the tutelage of renowned maestros Aaron Shearer, Kenneth Frazelle, and Gerald Klickstein. Read more>>
Lizbeth Canseco
For many years, I worked at the local health department. I always knew that I liked things in the beauty industry. I first started by doing make up for weddings and quinceneras and I did that for a little while, but I didn’t truly enjoy it. Read more>>
Kayla Brown
I’m Kayla Brown, a licensed speech-language pathologist and the founder of My Roar Therapy. My path started like many others in this field, focused on providing care and helping people communicate. But early in my career, I realized that traditional models often missed what mattered most—people. I kept noticing how families were left without support once the session ended. How therapists were burned out. Read more>>
Karmen Hart
My journey as an artist has unfolded gradually and intentionally. While creativity has always been part of my life, I returned fully to painting later, allowing it to become not just an outlet, but a serious and deeply personal practice. From the beginning, I was drawn to abstraction and mixed media, using layers, texture, and intuitive mark-making to explore emotion, balance, and transformation. Read more>>
Lauren Harrell
I started my nursing career in 2018, working within the hospital system in various roles but always caring for infants, children, and families. Through both my professional work and my personal journey after having my three children, I became very aware of how little true prenatal education and postpartum support most families receive. Read more>>
Nick Pindale
I started my photo booth rental company while a sophomore at UNCW, February 2016 while working towards a business degree specializing in Entrepreneurship. I started out with a self-built photo booth that I stored in my dorm and continued to use it until 2019 when I upgraded to the Open Air Photo Booths we use today. Read more>>
Michael Pellegrino
Today, I’m the chef-owner of Eternal Sunshine Café in Wilmington, known for our creative Benedicts, modern French toast dishes, and seasonal menu drops that give our guests something new to look forward to. But the path to get here started long before I ever learned to cook — and in a very different way than most chefs. Read more>>
Dr Charay Smith
Dr. Charay Smith is a proven leader who has spent her life lifting up children, families, and entire communities. From Title I classrooms to the nonprofit sector, she’s done the work — not for recognition, but because people deserve someone who shows up. A former teen mom who rose to become a school principal, Dr. Read more>>
Jessica Imes
My story begins in college (UNCG). While Majoring in media studies I became pretty well versed with the camera. I sparked an interest in photography and soon my hobby of taking cap’ and gown pics led into a side hustle of portrait photography. Read more>>
Jennifer and Jaesuk Yu
We’ve always been interested in music, art, and cultural diversity, and we believe food is what connects everyone. Jaesuk has experienced a wide variety of cuisines, and I grew up in the food industry. When we found Sosta Cafe, we instantly fell in love with its food and the way it captures the heart of the community. Read more>>
Elvira Yanez
ELVIRA YANEZ, Founder & Clinical Director, Coast to Coast Bilingual Counseling Elvira is a licensed clinical social worker and licensed clinical addiction specialist with over a decade of experience in mental health and wellness. She earned her Master of Social Work from the University of Washington in Seattle and has dedicated her career to supporting individuals and families through life’s most challenging moments. Read more>>
Victoria King
The love of photography really started for me in Lagos, Portugal. The sun was sitting above the Atlantic, casting the turquoise waters into a breathtaking, almost unbelievable sight. I stood there mesmerized: I had to capture this. My phone camera felt incredibly inadequate; it couldn’t translate the sheer scale or the warmth of the moment. Read more>>
Jane Gates
After 17 years, I chose to voluntarily transition out of my corporate career as an analytical chemist in 2006. Those years were spent supporting research and development in the micro-electronics, semi-conductor, and hard disc drive manufacturing industries. My passion had always been environmental science and applied chemical analysis. Read more>>
Tiffany Slade
Like many journeys you have some hills and curves but persistence is key. One of the challenges is shifting your mindset from employee to business owner especially in the beginning. Also, learning how to navigate being the owner but also providing the bulk of care until you’re established to hire help. Read more>>
Lyndsey Simpson
Where to start…I moved to Hendersonville, North Carolina in July of 2016 after my family and I found it on a map. We had never been here before and our entire move from deciding to jump to being here was only 45 days. I graduated from Flagler College (Saint Augustine, FL) with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Graphic Design and a minor in Advertising. Read more>>
