Houston’s Most Inspiring Stories

Every neighborhood in Houston has its own vibe, style, culture and history, but what consistently amazes us is not what differentiates the various neighborhoods but rather what they all have in common.  From the Fourth Ward to Sugar Land (and everywhere in between) we’ve been blown away by how many creative and talented people call Houston home.  Check out some of the inspiring stories we’ve discovered throughout the city.

Sharon Hinds

We provide virtual Intensive Outpatient Substance Abuse treatment(IOP), virtual Supportive Outpatient Substance Abuse treatment (SOP), virtual Thinking for a Change program, stand-alone Assessments, Relapse Prevention Counseling, Cognitive Behavior Therapy and Trauma Focused Therapy, with experience in trauma-informed care. We are honored to serve our community.  Read more>>

Mrs Lakelvia Chatham

I’ve heard many times if you ever want to make God laugh tell him your plans. In December of 2017 I quit my job expecting to start another job within the next day. I’d just moved into my new apartment about a month prior to. Read more>>

Matthew Conerly

Back in 2001 my wife, Camilla & I came to Houston, Texas on a turnaround trip. I was coming to interview for an offshore job. We had some relatives here that suggested we stay 2 weeks. Although I didn’t get the offshore job, I was able to get on a 2 week ticket with Labor Ready. Read more>>

Amanda Hatch

I spent 17 years in the retail industry until the pandemic shifted everything in 2020. When my company closed its doors, the uncertainty of brick-and-mortar retail pushed me to pursue a complete career change. I pivoted into IT and spent time managing COVID-19 testing sites across Houston. As the world began to stabilize, I returned to the job market, which eventually led me to PrideStaff. Read more>>

Les Pugh

After serving a decade in support of our country—including one year as a soldier in Afghanistan and nine years as a government contractor—I knew it was time to come home and focus on my most important roles: being a husband and a father. Read more>>

Calan WHITE

Randy founded the company more than 30 years ago and proudly serves the Kingwood area—the same community where he was raised with his family. Because of this deep local connection, Randy knows the area extensively and understands the homes, neighborhoods, and needs of Kingwood homeowners. Read more>>

Crystal Dinh

My journey began over 12 years ago when I started as a Life Insurance Agent, driven by a passion for helping people protect their families and financial futures. Early on, I realized that insurance is more than policies—it’s about peace of mind and security during life’s unexpected moments. Read more>>

Joel Quezada

I got my start doing massage therapy as a child , walking on my parents and siblings. After high school i signed up for a massage therapists course in Houston and Graduated a year later. Since then I have worked in franchises like massage heights and massage envy, smaller businesses like yoga studios and day spas. Read more>>

Dawn-Petrice Youngs

My career and life have been shaped by rich experiences that inform my empathetic approach to therapy. Before becoming a counselor, I worked as a special education teacher and high school counselor, where I honed my skills in supporting children and adolescents with unique learning and behavioral challenges. Read more>>

Shayne Brantley

My name is Shayne Brantley and I am from Odessa, Texas. Odessa was founded in 1818 as a water stop for the Texas Pacific Railway and became a significant cattle shipping center. The discovery of oil in the 1920s transformed Odessa into an industrial hub for the burgeoning industry. To this day the cowboy culture of the cattle drive is always an undertone. Read more>>

Monica Alfaro

Whew, lets see… well, I started wanting to do pet photography a few years ago. I always loved wildlife and nature and I wanted to still in a way photograph animals, but pets. I got discouraged due to lack of confidence. I always doubted myself, and was afraid of failing. Until the last year I have been contemplating of picking up where I left off. Read more>>

Robert Alexander

I’ve been coming to Galveston since I was in diapers. My grandparents partly raised me here, with many days of the year spent on the beaches swimming in those clear waters, fishing on piers, and hanging around the old seafood docks on the Strand. Read more>>

Carla (Micole) Campbell

I began logging paperwork for MHMRA for children with mental health in 1991. When I started working at The Bridge a domestic violence shelter in 1999 I was able to learn a lot but also saw a lot that was scary happening to children and their mothers. I grew up without my father and it weighed heavy on me. Read more>>

Cody Breunig

My path to founding Black Dog Forensics wasn’t a sudden pivot or a single defining moment. It was the result of nearly two decades of service and investigation, shaped by a consistent calling to serve others and protect the truth. I come from a family where service wasn’t talked about, it was lived every day. Read more>>

Matt Clayton

I was living in Bolivia in one of the poorest areas in the poorest country in South America, El Alto. I was there working to help kids, and I noticed that there was no playground for kids. So I decided to build a playground using local materials. When I completed the playground, hundreds of kids showed up to play. They had a blast! Read more>>

Jazzyriri

I’ve been an artist for as long as I can remember. I started singing and creating melodies around age seven, but my path hasn’t been linear in the slightest. Read more>>

Courtney San Miguel

As a senior in high school, praying and discerning for my future, I believed I had the talents and skills (that desperately needed sharpening) to seek counseling as a career. Throughout college, the more I learned about psychology, the more I loved it! Upon graduation with my Master’s degree, I began having babies. This significantly slowed my progress in completing my associate hours… Read more>>

Katherine Hynes

I started my boutique from a desire to create something meaningful and flexible while still being creative. What began as a small idea grew through hands-on learning, trial and error, and listening closely to what my customers actually wanted. There were seasons of growth and seasons of challenge, but staying consistent and adapting along the way helped shape the boutique into what it is today. Read more>>

Sandy August

My path to The Arc of Katy, a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization whose mission is to ensure that teens and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities have opportunities for growth, connection, and purpose throughout their lives, was shaped by nearly two decades of working in nonprofit fundraising and leadership. Read more>>

Jen Noronha

I have held multiple roles within Corporate America, and during the pandemic I had some time to self reflect and realized that having just one source of income was too risky. Read more>>

Kylee Gilmore

I started Inérra Marketing after realizing I was already doing the work long before I gave it a name. My background is rooted in both creativity and strategy. I spent years working in marketing across multiple industries, including solar, boutiques, nonprofits , and political campaigns. Read more>>

Adam & Brandy DeSplinter

We were established in early 2022. While developing our new ranch we decided we wanted to add something unique in addition to our cat, dogs, ducks, horses and Brahma/ Brangus cattle. Longhorns seemed a perfect fit, especially living in Texas. We began learning about registered Texas Longhorns and researching their pedigrees and before long, we were hooked. Read more>>

Mariano Facundo Scigliano

It all started as a dream: protecting digital content. Cybercrime is everywhere, and for too long cybersecurity has been playing catch-up. That is how I conceived VisionTech, and how we built it: to make the digital world safer, where intellectual property can actually be protected, where you can take action, and where there is real traceability for the people behind the infringement. Read more>>

Victor Jackson

My story is a long story! But to make it short I migrated from West Africa to the US at the age of 19. After arriving to the US, I worked as a mechanic, joined the United States Air Force and served for 8 years. Got out and started medical school at The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston. Read more>>

Tiffany Pinnock

Tiffany Pinnock serves as Chief Executive Officer for Texas Cops & Communities, Inc. a nonprofit organization that exists to bridge the gap between law enforcement and the community through education and positive interaction. She is one of the very few African American women serving in this capacity and is very passionate about serving youth and the community. Read more>>

Ryan Fremuth

While finishing college, I was working in the casino industry in Pennsylvania. During that time, I was in charge of the graveyard shift security. Running the security shift meant handling medical emergencies and criminal events as well as minor disturbances. I investigated a plethora of crimes prior to police arrival, interrogated suspects, and performed all initial investigative duties. Read more>>

Murtaza Manaqibwala

The concept of the Natural Soap Outpost as a soap refill station emerged from the changes going on around us: increased use of synthetic ingredients, inflation and price gouging, the environmental toll from single-use plastics, and ‘value attrition’ found in expensive products designed for short lifecycles. In natural soap, we found a wholesome product that could truly impact the well-being of our community. Read more>>

Melissa Stewart

Fitness has always been a central part of our lives, though our journeys began in different ways. From an early age, Darren knew a traditional desk job wasn’t for him. He entered college planning to pursue physical therapy, but his passion for fitness ultimately led him down a different path. Read more>>

Khufere Qhamata

My story is a bit complex and untraditional. My social entrepreneurialism and community projects all start with my entry into technology. I started my career on the software side of business technology after being hired to run the business development and marketing for a small Healthcare IT consulting firm in Houston named Zenith Integrated. Read more>>

Charles and Satara Henry

First Missionary Baptist Church–Conroe was first organized in 1892 and, for more than 133 years, has faithfully served the Conroe community. In 2000, a devastating hailstorm rendered the church building unusable, resulting in the suspension of worship at the site for five years. Read more>>

Nadine Berns

HI! Yes, I would love to. Professionally, I started back in 2014. Expectations and trends were a lot different a decade ago and I definitely didn’t know my style, my why or what I wanted to photograph as far as niches go. Read more>>

Jasmine Castle

I started my nursing journey as an LPN in the nursing home and in outpatient clinics. That is where I first learned what it really means to care for people at their most vulnerable. I was helping seniors, families and caregivers every day, seeing how much a kind word and a little patience could change the whole tone of a visit. Read more>>

Risa Auger

I grew up in California and started my family there, always dreaming of bigger, wider spaces to live, explore, and enjoy life. While the beach still calls to my heart now and then, I have to say, that whole “everything is bigger in Texas” thing really is pretty wonderful. Read more>>

Monica Noor Morales and Juan Pablo Osorio N/A

Thank you so much for having us. We’re truly excited to share our journey. Outreach In The Barrio was born in the heart of Houston with a simple but powerful mission: serving the most forgotten with consistency, compassion, and dignity. I (Monica Morales) grew up in the same barrio where we now serve. As a proud Houstonian and Mexican-American Muslim, I experienced the effects of poverty, homelessness, and neglect. Read more>>