{"id":243258,"date":"2026-04-23T13:53:19","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T13:53:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/243258\/"},"modified":"2026-04-23T13:53:19","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T13:53:19","slug":"jacksonvilles-most-inspiring-stories-voyage-jacksonville-magazine-23","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/243258\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacksonville\u2019s Most Inspiring Stories \u2013 Voyage Jacksonville Magazine"},"content":{"rendered":"

The heart of our mission is to find the amazing souls that breathe life into our communities. In the recent weeks, we\u2019ve had the privilege to connect with some incredible artists, creatives, entrepreneurs and rabble rousers and we can\u2019t begin to express how impressed we are with the incredible group below.<\/p>\n

Aisyah Rafik
<\/p>\n

Our Community Story Our community organization was established in 2021 with a sincere intention to support and uplift families in need, especially refugees who are facing hardship in their daily lives. From the beginning, our mission has been simple but strong to stand beside those who have no support and to provide help in any way we can. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

William Adams
<\/p>\n

I have always had a fascination with cars growing up. Working on my own projects and race cars throughout the years. We made the jump to opening our own business in 2020 renting a space at a local mechanic shop. As our customer base grew we saw the need for a larger space. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Nick Wagner
<\/p>\n

I am a Jacksonville native. Born in Riverside at St. Vincent\u2019s hospital in 1973, I\u2019ve spent nearly my whole childhood in the same neighborhood that I was born, and my memory is of a poorer but edgy and artsy neighborhood populated being by every kind of person I could imagine, with some hippies, and even a few bikers for flavor. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

nate hill
<\/p>\n

Start DJing in 1997 at a local skating rink called generations in Fort Myers Florida, from there, I learned the passion of music and the art of DJing. The local DJ is there would mix songs together and when the songs mixed correctly, everyone would clap on the skating rink floor that instantly hooked me. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Kimberly Pierce
<\/p>\n

My story started when I was purchasing my own home and found out from the listing agent that my realtor I was using license was inactive. It was a moment that forced me to pause and reflect, but it also pushed me to step fully into my purpose. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

KEVIN JONES
<\/p>\n

Of course so in 2012 I was coming out of a workforce situation that was overworked and underpaid. One of my best friends was in the Party Rental Business who had just started 2 years ago so he was in the building stage. I asked him about the ins and outs to see if it was something that piqued my interest. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Sean Bono
<\/p>\n

I grew up making things. Drawing, building, figuring out how objects and surfaces worked. By the time I was eighteen I had dropped out and found my way into the art world in New York, not through school, but through the street. I was doing work out of Deitch Projects, absorbing everything I could from that era of downtown Manhattan. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Kasey McCaskill
<\/p>\n

I have carried a love for interior design since my early childhood. I grew up watching Architectural Digest videos on YouTube for hours on end, rearranging my parents\u2019 entire house in the middle of the night, moving all the furniture in my room around weekly, and wearing onesies while painting my childhood bedroom every color a little girl could dream of. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Timothy Korecky
<\/p>\n

I came into this as a business owner with a background in electronics, not through the traditional agency route. After starting a service company of my own, I experienced firsthand how saturated the digital marketing space had become with companies all selling the same promises \u2013 better rankings, more visibility, more leads, ads, websites, and every new trend under the sun. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Brianna Garcia
<\/p>\n

Twelve years ago, fresh out of high school, I took a job at a local beach bar never imagining it would spark a lifelong passion. Since then, I\u2019ve been all in on the hospitality industry and haven\u2019t looked back. What started as B\u2019s Bar, a mobile bar service, quickly grew into a full-service party rental company. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

MARSHALL NAIL
<\/p>\n

NailTuff Trailers, Welding & Steel, LLC is a family owned business offers a wide ranger of services for trailer repairs and modification, general custom welding fabrication and repairs, exterior handrail fabrication and installation as well as golf club restoration. Our business started several years ago in our garage and blossomed into what it is today, which is working out of a 30ft x 44ft workshop. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Jason Forrester
<\/p>\n

The story of \u201cA Silly Patch\u201d is one born out of a simple, yet profound, personal need. How to secure my medical device and make it look cool. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Camron Wright
<\/p>\n

Wright Way Painting & Repair Services started with a vision to raise the standard of what people expect when they hire a painter. Early on, I noticed that a lot of homeowners weren\u2019t just frustrated with the quality of work; they were frustrated with the lack of communication, professionalism, and care throughout the entire process. I knew I could do it differently. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Michael Castro
<\/p>\n

My path into medicine didn\u2019t begin in a traditional clinical setting\u2014it started during my time serving in the United States Air Force and Florida Air National Guard, where I spent over two decades in operational (not medical as some might expect) roles, including nuclear launch (ICBMs, serving as what is affectionately known as \u2018Missileer\u2019) and space operations. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Jennifer Crawford
<\/p>\n

My story has unfolded through a series of obedient steps, moments of courage, and seasons where I had to trust God without having all the answers. I started out serving in ministry with a sincere love for people and a deep passion for the Word of God. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Max Michaels
<\/p>\n

I was born and raised in Jacksonville, FL. I had been drawing since I could hold a pencil, but my path in life to a career started when I picked up my dad\u2019s cameras for the first time. Photography quickly became a passion. My love of photography, art, and music found common ground in photographing bands and live shows. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Maria Kellermann
<\/p>\n

I didn\u2019t start Venezuela Marka with a clear plan or the intention of building an organization. It really came from a very personal place in my life. As a Venezuelan immigrant and a mother, I started noticing something that stayed with me. A lot of children in our community were growing up without a strong connection to their culture. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Brad Mangold
<\/p>\n

The company was founded in 1983 by Richard Woods and has grown to become a leading cabinet supplier in Northeast Florida over the years. I joined Woodsman in 1999 and quickly advanced into the role of Controller, where I served for many years working closely with Rick and gaining a deep understanding of the business. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Nicole Zalud
<\/p>\n

Hi! My name is Nicole Zalud and this is The Story Behind Women Run Jax! Three years ago, I moved from Athens, Georgia to Jacksonville, Florida, not knowing a single person. At 21 years old it was one of the most exciting yet isolating seasons of my life. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Ashley Roussell
<\/p>\n

My journey into healthcare started with a deep desire to help people in a meaningful and lasting way. I began my career in nursing, earning my Bachelor of Science in Nursing after initially studying psychology. That foundation helped shape how I view patient care\u2014not just physically, but mentally and emotionally as well. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Patricia Southard
<\/p>\n

My background is in software engineering, where I had the incredible opportunity to work on the Space Program. While stationed at Vandenberg AFB, I started visiting local wineries\u2014what else is there to do?\u2014and that\u2019s where my love for wine truly began. Wayne, a wine distributor and exporter, turned out to be the perfect match\u2014personally and professionally. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Cheryl Kennedy
<\/p>\n

It all started with a tape recorder I received as a Christmas present when I was young. Once I started playing around with it, I was hooked! I found myself recording family conversations, music, and silly skits with friends. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Migdalia Quintana
<\/p>\n

My childhood passion was drawing. I was one of the most artistically gifted students at the elementary school I attended. That passion for art was always present; it never left me, even though I later studied marine biology and subsequently became a professional photographer. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Courtney Sowle
<\/p>\n

Garrett and I both started our careers as packaging engineers\u2014we each got our bachelor\u2019s degrees in the field and spent a few years working in it before making the shift into real estate full time. Even early on, though, real estate was always kind of running in the background for both of us. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Kane Baillie
<\/p>\n

I moved here from England in 2016 to be with my wife who is from Jacksonville, i have always been in construction and OSHA on the railroads but wanted to find my own business and be my own boss. After a few years of project managing here, my wifes friends parents had put on fb that they wanted a laborer. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Russell McBride
<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve always been involved in the entertainment industry. Even at a young age, you could find me performing on the small stages at the school plays. When I moved to Jacksonville 5 years ago, I wanted a way to keep that entertainment thread alive within me. I created my own trivia company called Lucky Trivia which has fulfilled some of that itch. Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n

Don Ringhofer
<\/p>\n

Back in 2005 I was drumming in a band and we were rehearsing in my living room. One of my bandmates back then was familar with rehearsal studios. Places you can rehearse that have studios fully equipped with musical gear (drums, guitar and bass amps and full PA systems). Read more>><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The heart of our mission is to find the amazing souls that breathe life into our communities. In…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":180549,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[116,118,117],"class_list":["post-243258","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville","tag-jacksonville-headlines","tag-jacksonville-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243258","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=243258"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/243258\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/180549"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=243258"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=243258"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=243258"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}