The Most Inspiring Stories in Utah

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.

Randi Gardner

Harvest Home Market is a family-run, porch-pickup bakery and shop in southern Utah. Inspired by our English-American heritage, our shop feels like a piece of our hearts and history. Harvest Home exists to celebrate beauty, simplicity, and family through seasonal living and handmade goods. Read more>>

Stephen Olson

In 2019 I realized that my health wasn’t where I wanted it to be. Despite being active, going to the gym, playing basketball every week, and trying to eat well, I felt sluggish and below my potential. Read more>>

Jessica Sutherland

I always knew that I wanted to work in healthcare. My professional journey in healthcare began when I was just 16 years old, working as a certified nursing assistant (CNA). I fell in love with nursing early on, the human connection, the ability to make a difference in someone’s hardest moments, and the sense of purpose it brought me. Read more>>

Taylor Wood

I started Chariot Bookkeeping in March 2024. At the time I was looking to start a career in finance, but wasn’t sure what area of finance to pursue. I was interested in the investment side but was disappointed in the career options. Read more>>

Stacey Deittman

My journey into real estate really began long before I ever held a license. With more than 25 years of experience in sales and marketing, I’ve always been passionate about helping people and finding solutions to real-life challenges. I thrive on connecting with others, understanding their needs, and guiding them toward the right next step—and real estate became the perfect extension of that. Read more>>

Julie Shipman

I took a bit of a circuitous route to find my career as a photographer. I grew up in SLC and attended East High School, class of ’84. I headed east to college (Duke University) and did not return until 2000 after my father died in a plane crash. Read more>>

Justin Harmon

Stackedo was created to help at-home workers become more productive and profitable. The passion for this business came when Ashley and Justin Harmon started their own home-based business in 2016. As their marketing business grew, they helped other businesses expand and increase profitability, all while enjoying the freedom and flexibility of working from their home office. Read more>>

Jeff Wheelwright

I grew up in a very unconventional family. My grandfather was a Biochemist and Herbalist who traveled all over the world to research how various cultures used plants for healing. He later started an herbal supplement company. All of his children became involved in alternative medicine, including my father. My father decided to go a different route and became a chiropractor. Read more>>

Del Dickson

I was born and raised in Vernal. I always knew that I wanted to do something in public service, which is likely because I come from a family of teachers. For a whole host of reasons, I moved out of Utah as soon as I could after turning eighteen, and attended Pomona College in California. Read more>>

Jon Cuevas

After my oldest daughter was diagnosed with Celiac Disease, almost 10 years ago, it flipped our lifestyle around. I loved cooking, baking, and creating recipes, so I began experimenting with gluten free cooking and converting all my recipes to be celiac safe so my daughter could enjoy everything. Read more>>

Vennette Farr

About seventeen years ago, I took a stained-glass class and immediately fell in love with working with glass. For a while, I focused on creating custom windows and other commissioned pieces, but over time my work evolved toward mosaics and three-dimensional forms. Read more>>

Oscar Delgado

Ivan Solow: I always wanted to be a WWE superstar, that was the dream growing up. When that didn’t pan out, I started leaning into my creative side. I’ve always felt like creativity was a part of me. It started with writing poems, then those poems turned into bars, and over time, music became the way I expressed who I am. Read more>>

Emily and Jenavee Merrill

Sure! We are Emily and Jenavee, sister-in-laws (who married brothers) and flower farmers/florists at Wild Bunch Flower Farm. We are a two-woman operation and here’s a little bit of our story of how we began: Emily: “It was 2023, I was turning 30, and I wanted to set a big goal for the year. Read more>>

Kailah Page

I have always been in a creative industry. Even in college I went to school for fashion and design. I worked a long time in retail and visual display, but got burnt out and wanted to do something that I felt was more meaningful and would give me purpose. Read more>>

Ellinor Petersen

My mom started weaving soon after she moved to Sweden in 1971, as a young bride from Michigan. She had just started learning the language when she discovered weaving, and has kept adding to her experience and skills over the decades since then. Some years ago, she started teaching weaving in a studio in a small town in Sweden, and she loved it so much. Read more>>

Alexandra Martinez

I started Golden Hour Beauty Bar in late 2020, I decided to pursue a career in the beauty industry as I was feeling unfulfilled in my then field. I began my journey towards becoming a licensed beauty professional in 2021 and graduated/became licensed within the same year. Shorts after graduation I began working and networking as a licensed esthetician primarily focusing on lash extensions. Read more>>

Max Brugia

We are an Italian integrated architecture and interior design firm. Beside Salt Lake City and Park City, our Head offices are in Rome and Milan. Obicua, the company name, comes from Latin and means ‘being in the many places at the same time’. Read more>>

Camille Chapman

Seven years ago, life brought me to an unexpected crossroads. After going through a divorce, I needed a way to supplement my income while still being there for my children at home. I’d always loved flowers—their beauty, their symbolism, the joy they bring—but I had no experience in floral design. Read more>>

Morgan Stephens

I began my journey working as a veterinary technician, where I spent six years immersed in the world of animal care. Though I loved helping all animals, I’d always felt a special pull toward horses—even before I had one of my own. When I was sixteen, my parents surprised me with my first horse, and that moment changed everything. Read more>>

Mike Sandoval

Growing up, life hit me hard at an early age. I’ve been through my share of struggles — mentally, emotionally, and spiritually. For a long time, I felt like I was fighting battles nobody could see. As men, we’re taught to stay strong, keep it together, and not show weakness. But the truth is, that pressure can break you inside. Read more>>

Carolee Mafi

My story is about transforming from deep pain and self-loathing into empowerment and self-love, from feeling powerless and stuck in victimhood to realizing I am the creator of my life. Read more>>

Jessa Munion

I grew up global, spending parts of my childhood and teenage years in Japan and China, where I was deeply influenced by eastern approaches to health, healing, and wellness. My dad was a huge influence—he spent time in a Buddhist monastery in his twenties and always emphasized mindset, self-improvement, and the deeper work of being human. Read more>>

Angelique Fish & Cindy Vance

We’re Angelique Fish and Cindy Vance, co-founders of the Women’s Wine Hiking Society (WWHS). We met more than 10 years ago through a mutual friend of our husbands (A: now my ex-husband, thankfully). When the guys would go dirt biking, we’d hit the trail and explore Utah on foot. Our friendship grew, one mile at a time.  Read more>>

Kate Silvey

The Nordic Yurt started as The Creekside Yurt 10 years ago, in Wasatch Mountain State Park. A small husband and wife business run completely by the two of us. We hosted small groups for snowshoe dinners, and small private events. We did everything from cleaning dishes, to guiding the groups, serving all the food, and hiked everything we needed for the evening in ourselves. Read more>>

Lisa Shearer

A life of design. I started my career as a graphic designer, but spending my childhood watching my father draft and build homes gave me an early understanding of house structures and passion for drawing and organizing space layouts. “I was born to do this work,”. Read more>>

Rebecca Moody

When people ask how long I’ve been massaging, I usually say “my whole life”, but professionally, since 2012. I’ve always been drawn to helping people find relief and ease in their bodies. My path to massage school just took the scenic route. After high school, I joined the Navy, which eventually led me to seasonal work in Australia and Alaska. Read more>>

Rob Weesner

It started in the very early 90s. I had come across a metaphysical shop. I visited this shop many times, checking out the crystals they had in stock. One of these times, I had visited, I walked past a basket full of quartz crystals. One of the crystals was rocking back and forth on its own, clicking against the other crystals. Read more>>

Alexa Rose

We are Staci Pulham and Alexa Rose, owners of The Stella Rose Salon and Hair Co in the heart of Spanish for Utah. We both started in the industry with a shared love for creativity and making people feel confident! Read more>>

Kyle Wagner

I’ve worked with quite a few different contractors in varying trades. A lot of them were either really mean or absolutely crazy. The thought occurred to me that if they could make money doing this, than so could I. I started off as just a handyman in 2017. Read more>>

Jasmine Gordon

We are in our 10th year of business at Nomad Soul. It all started with us sisters and our mom having 2 important purposes, 1 being that we knew that Utah needed a place to be able to source unique furniture and home decor. and the second being, we knew we could be the ones to do it! Read more>>

Yelitza Quintero

I moved to the United States from Venezuela in 2018, carrying with me the courage to start over, the nostalgia of leaving my home, and the hope of building a new life. A year later, something unexpected happened that shifted my path forever. I visited the Tulip Festival for the first time, and what I experienced there felt almost magical. Read more>>

Tim Rabetoy

I’ve been an athlete and involved with sports my entire life so personal training was always a natural fit for me. I strongly believe that our physical health is very closely related to our happiness as humans. I grew up in San Diego and then moved from Southern California to Salt Lake City, Utah in 1996 to attend the University of Utah. Read more>>

Elias Horat

I grew up in Montana, surrounded by wide landscapes and a strong sense of community. I studied architecture there through undergrad and graduate school, and eventually moved to San Francisco to start my professional career. Over time, I realized I wanted to build a practice that felt more human—one that prioritized transparency, collaboration, and design that supports everyday life. Read more>>

Heidi Stimpson

I’ve always been someone who pays attention to the inner workings of things: bodies, minds, systems, patterns. Even as a kid, I was trying to understand why people behaved the way they did or why certain things made us feel better or worse. That curiosity shaped everything that came after. Part of that curiosity came from living in a body that didn’t always make sense. Read more>>

Brook Lyons

I didn’t grow up dreaming of being a photographer; I grew into it by obsessing over what it takes to get a great photo (angles, posing, lighting, camera settings, people skills, etc.) then watching people come alive in front of my lens. The moment I realized this wasn’t just a craft but my calling was when a woman looked at her portraits and cried. Read more>>

Belle Kurudzija

My Story I started my design journey at the University of Utah, certain that I would pursue architecture. But early on, I realized what drew me in most were the interiors. So I followed that pull and decided to try my hand at interior design. In my early twenties, while still in school, I began interning at Lisman Studio. Read more>>

Liza Domingo

I’ve danced all my life. I started to taking dance lessons at 3 years old in Southern California. In high school I got into musical theatre, and after college I worked as a professional dancer, singer, actress for well over a decade, performing in a bunch of theatre, Nationals tours, at Disney, and performed on Broadway. Read more>>

Leslie Makai Gleaves

I’ve always been creative. Growing up, that meant dance—from Polynesian performance starting at age 2 to ballet, jazz, hip hop, and contemporary through high school. Being mixed-race and growing up navigating two different worlds—my father’s Tongan heritage and my mother’s Utah-born, LDS upbringing—gave me a unique perspective that has shaped how I approach my work and fueled my passion for equity and inclusion. Read more>>

Tavish Hubbard

I was a single, teenage mother who dropped out of college at 19 and now I am a therapist who founded a small private practice almost 3 years ago. I have worked all over the place searching for where I belong when I finally found a home in Social Work in 2012. Read more>>

Bryson Wanner

How I lost 120lbs and transformed my entire life Throughout most of my life, I’ve battled obesity. As a chubby kid who developed a complicated relationship with food and had zero understanding of nutrition, things spiraled quickly. I hit my heaviest weight of 320 pounds as a young adult, but the journey to that point started much earlier. Read more>>

Chad Baird

The Story of CrossFit Zion Our journey began back in 2001 with a little league football program we owned and operated. For over a decade, we poured our energy into developing young athletes, building confidence, and teaching the fundamentals of hard work and teamwork. Read more>>

Donna Montgomery

I found that when I was scared of something, I found a way to conquer that fear by just doing it anyway. Read more>>

Alex Brown

I started college thinking I wanted to open a bakery, but after some business classes, I realized that was a no go! While I didn’t always know I wanted to be a therapist, I knew really early on in my pursuit of a therapy degree that I wanted to pursue sex therapy. Read more>>

Keslee & Brooke Pilcher & Peterson

We both have such a love for design and creating beautiful spaces, and it’s been so fun to bring that into what we do at Elements. Brooke has always worked in retail and found her way here a few years ago- now she manages the store and keeps everything running seamlessly. Read more>>

Heather Vandermeyden

In 2000, my life changed forever. After developing severe complications from ulcerative colitis, I underwent thirteen abdominal surgeries and spent three months in the hospital — much of that time in the ICU. During that period, I experienced over twenty near-death experiences, during a three-week period of time. Read more>>

Meredith Villalba

I started Color Compass in 2021, during a time when so many women — myself included — were reevaluating who we were and how we wanted to show up in the world. What began as simple curiosity about color analysis quickly became a calling. Read more>>

Jennifer Hoover

With no luck finding a location for sale where we could receive the appropriate permits for our dream, I started door knocking places that were already permitted for such a business. One day I stopped at Country Kennels and asked them if they were interested in selling. I took her by surprise, so after some thought we were both so excited to make it happen. We have been updating the facility since that first summer to make it into the resort we dream about. Read more>>

Stephenie Gayler

Hi, I am Stephenie Gayler. I am the owner of White Tiger Taekwondo. I started training in taekwondo at 8 years old so I have been training in taekwondo for about 29 years. I reached the 1st Dan black belt at 13 years old. In the school I trained at my Instructors had a tradition of giving taekwondo names that fit the student’s taekwondo style. Read more>>

Alfonso Brito

I was born in Córdoba, Veracruz, Mexico, and my journey started in my mother’s small restaurant near a sugar factory in Paso del Macho. After losing my father at a young age, I had to grow up quickly, helping her cook, clean, and run the business taught me early what hard work and passion for food meant. Read more>>