Have you ever heard somebody say that going through a divorce was a gift? Well, come to think of it you probably have, but let’s talk about that process of transformation a little bit more....

Laurie Aiello refuses to live a life of regretting chances not taken. Our Woman of the Week and fitness coach with Team BeachBody is a self-professed “recovering” introvert whose biggest challenge has been to push...

“Everything is figure-out-able,” according to our Woman of the Week Justine Willeford, founder and designer at Pelican House Swimwear. After graduating from UCSC with a BS in Marine Biology, Justine ended up landing her dream...

“Creative pursuits satiate the soul,” says Mahina Hoey, author of The Illumine, who as a child found magic, peace, continuity and her own strength in nature. From her hometown of Taos, New Mexico to the...

A community-minded visionary, Dr. Marissa Castello believes that natural medicine should be accessible to everyone, regardless of income or geography. Originally from a small desert town in West Texas, she spent her summers at the...

Twin and techie-turned-yogi, Robin Penney was born in Seattle and has lived in Georgia, Texas, Colorado, the Bay Area, Bermuda, Eastern Canada, and now Santa Cruz! She moved here two and a half years ago...

Meghan Neeley, founder of Be Your Own Badass Boss, is an international speaker and business coach who’s grown a multiple six-figure company by mentoring women in business, helping them to turn their passions into profits....

Fifteen years ago, Lucia Paxton was exhausted. She had a toddler and, like many of us, wore multiple hats. By the time she finished her to-do list for the day and even thought about making...

Born and raised in Santa Cruz, Malika Bell of the Santa Cruz Learning Center travelled around the world in high school and graduated at the age of 16. Talk about an early achievement! Not only...

Sandy Takashima Shaw sees art as a springboard for conversation. A lifelong painter, she studied fine art while majoring in business. She’s half Japanese and grew up in Ohio, so after graduating she moved to...

Born and raised in the Santa Cruz area, Kristin Cosner, RN BSN and founder of Team G Childhood Cancer Foundation, needed to spread her wings and find out what the world had to offer. Yet...

  Yoke Wong moved to Soquel three years ago and opened Bhody downtown last August. She had already established an extensive natural body care line, Avvya, over the previous 12 years, and had begun searching...

Janelle Pierini is all about giving back. Digital Marketing Strategist at Adtaxi, mother of three, board member and volunteer at Club Dust, she loves sharing knowledge, resources, time and energy. “Being able to help people...

Stay true to your authentic self. Be creative, be deliberate, be open, and, most importantly, work toward being the best version of yourself you can be. Angela Quan, executor to Founder of Limitless Partners, keeps...

If you live in Santa Cruz and don’t know Monica Smith personally, you almost certainly know someone who does. With her ever-present smile and boundless enthusiasm, she’s made her mark on our community by being...

Dedicated to sustainability and good, clean and fair food, Liz Hodges of the Verdant California   is making her green mark on Santa Cruz. Her website, The Verdant Pantry, showcases her talent for cooking, writing,...

It is rare that you meet someone who is able to successfully fuse their dreams and passions with hard work and results, but I get the impression Michelle Riddle is just such a women. In...