It’s more important to understand someone than to judge them. We think the first step to understanding someone is asking them the fundamental questions about who they are and how they became the person they are today. Understanding and empathy are essential building blocks for a better, more compassionate world. We’re incredibly fortunate to be able to ask these questions each week through our interview series. Below you’ll find inspiring interviews from in and around San Diego.
Jocelyn Dunn
Jordan Catapano and Jocelyn Dunn are sister co-founders of This Girl Walks Into a Bar, a premium non-alcoholic mixer brand built on clean ingredients, hospitality expertise, and thoughtful product design. Southern California natives raised in San Diego, they grew up surrounded by citrus trees and their mother’s garden, an early influence that shaped their commitment to fresh, real ingredients and balanced flavors. Read more>>
Krystle Hart
I have always known that my identity as a multiracial woman gave me a unique perspective, but over time I realized it was actually my greatest superpower as an arts leader. Growing up navigating different spaces taught me how to listen closely and bridge distinct worlds – much like a choir blending individual voices into a single, beautiful harmony. Read more>>
Debbie Keckeisen
I’m a native San Diegan, and real estate has been part of my world for most of my life. My family has been involved in the San Diego real estate market for more than 50 years, but my own path to the industry was anything but traditional. Read more>>
Joe Curtin
I grew up in Los Angeles, born to parents from Coronado. We’d come down to San Diego for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and summers. At the start of high school, my mom pulled out her old Minolta analog SLR from the 80’s, taught me the basics, and sent me on my way. Read more>>
Michele Hall
My first career, from June 1972 through January 1991, working as a registered nurse where I held a few positions including working in the operation room, pediatric intensive care unit, in-hospital research, and running a newborn screening in southern California. Read more>>
Jennifer Kropke
My story has never followed a perfectly straight line, and I think I’ve finally learned that’s one of my favorite things about it. A huge part of my entrepreneurial journey began with Twinkle Toes Today, where I was able to combine my love of children, dance, creativity, and education. What started as an idea became something I had to actually build. Read more>>
Kristin Royster
I started making jewelry as a teenager but I have explored a lot of different artistic mediums including photography, sewing, crochet, metal-smithing, and ceramics leading to a variety of new product lines like crocheted pineapples, hand sewn purses, paintings, photo pillows and more. Read more>>
Lindsey Rummings
At my core, I’m passionate about breaking the mold of what a professional ‘should’ look like. You don’t have to choose just one path—you can care for patients as a PT, step in front of the lens as a model, and show up fully as a partner, daughter, and friend without diluting any part of who you are. Read more>>
Maxwell Higgins
My path to becoming a therapist actually started with animals. I worked in the animal field for about six years and was involved in animal husbandry, training, education, rescue, and rehabilitation. Animals were my passion and I thought that this would turn into a lifelong career. Read more>>
JENN-JENN MARSHALL
Basketball has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember, but one of the most interesting parts of my journey is how the skills I learned through basketball carried into business, and years later, the skills I learned in business carried right back onto the court. Read more>>
Amanda Levy
My path to audiology started sideways. I was a music major at UCSB, and the only thing standing between me and my degree was a math requirement. I fulfilled it with a class called The Physics of Sound, taught by an audiologist, and it completely rewired my plans. Read more>>
Helene Suos
I moved to San Diego 10 years ago and have been in the hospitality industry ever since. In 2023, I launched my wedding event planning business, Happily Chic Events. Being French, I’ve always loved caviar, it’s part of the culture I grew up with. Read more>>
Victor Vargas
I grew up in Chula Vista which is the neighborhood that I live in and where I decided to teach. My parents were both born in Mexico and came to the United States in the 1960’s for a better life. I was born in Los Angeles but have spent most of my life in Chula Vista. Read more>>
Jules Deguzman
I got my start almost by accident — editing Call of Duty highlight reels in middle school and picking up a camera just to shoot friends and capture the city, with no real plan behind it. Read more>>
Angela Adelmeyer
approximately 20 years ago, an occupational therapist (my partner) and social worker (myself) decided to try a new business venture. Bonita Florist had been an established family business for 20+ years, the original owners were retiring and decided to sell the business. Bonita florist has been serving three, four generations of families throughout the years with their events such as weddings, proms, funerals and retirements. Read more>>
Emerson Mahoney
I remember making some photography prints with a point-and-shoot when I was in elementary school. I submitted one of them into a photography competition at the local agricultural fair on Martha’s Vineyard and ended up winning an award. Read more>>
DEEP$IDE
I’m DEEP$IDE and I’m going to be the biggest music artist in the world by 2040. I began making music when I was 14 years old in my parent’s kitchen- I used to record on IMovie because I didn’t have access to a computer or a professional studio, but I kept going until I got my first microphone at 15. Read more>>
Munira Suterwala
I’ve always been drawn to creating things with my hands – whether it was crafting, designing, or experimenting with new materials. What started as a small personal hobby slowly grew into something much bigger when friends and family began asking for custom pieces. They weren’t just looking for products; they wanted meaningful, personalized items that carried emotion, memory, and intention. Read more>>
Sierra Ballard
My love for art and visuals started while I formed my first memories under the glitz and sometimes harsh glamour of Las Vegas. Some people see Vegas as a land of lost memories and forgotten responsibilities. Read more>>
Xavier Ray
Hi my name is Xavier Ray. I’m a content creator from San Diego. I started streaming gaming content in 2024 when my friends gave me their old pc for my birthday. I started creating content on YouTube back in 2019 with my wife when we were a travel channel. Read more>>
Deaune Boyd
Honestly, I don’t think there was one specific moment that made me want to become a photographer. I’ve been obsessed with pictures for as long as I can remember. My dad has been taking pictures of me since I came out of the womb, and he still takes pictures of me to this day. My mom was also really intentional about preserving memories too. Read more>>
Tiffany Gillis
Spending many years in the corporate world, I realized something important: success didn’t feel complete unless it was connected to purpose. Read more>>
Pasha Tseitlin
The story of the California Institute of Music is deeply tied to my family’s lifelong passion for music education. The school was originally founded in the early 1990s by my parents, Michael and Irina Tseitlin. Read more>>
Julien Brandt
My entrepreneurial journey started in 2010 when I founded OrganikSEO, a digital marketing agency here in San Diego. I bootstrapped the company and spent the next several years learning how to build a team, serve clients, navigate uncertainty, and grow a business. From the beginning, I wanted to build a company that could be financially successful while also having a positive impact. Read more>>
Kristi Harlig
My path here started in the classroom. I spent more than 20 years in public education as a teacher, school counselor, and school-based college counselor, working in both the Los Angeles and San Diego areas, including at a highly selective magnet high school in LAUSD and later at a public high school here in San Diego County. Read more>>
Kate Yen
I moved to California from Syracuse, New York when I was 21, right after graduating from college. I had always dreamed of living in California, and taking that leap was one of my first experiences of trusting a vision for my life before I knew exactly how it was going to work out. Read more>>
Raven Kim
I got here today by showing up for myself, day by day. It began when I was four years old, playing an electric piano my dad bought for me. He asked me, “What do you want to be when you grow up?” I said, “A star! A model,” and he laughed. My family couldn’t afford formal lessons, but music was always present in the house. Read more>>
Vanessa del Rosario
Even from a very young age, I used to join my mom when she worked out to her Jane Fonda tapes. I loved putting on my tights and leotard, getting my hair up in the highest ponytail possible, and my mom even got me little wristbands so I could match Jane. I knew the choreography so well I could recite it word for word. Read more>>
Chag Lowry
I am the Executive Director of the Indigenous Futures Institute (IFI) at UC San Diego. I enjoy collaborating with Native scholars, writers, artists, and language speakers from throughout California. I work with some amazing professors such as Dr. Theresa Ambo, Dr. Katie Walkiewicz, and Dr. Heather Ponchetti-Daly on health, culture, history, and storytelling projects. Read more>>
Ernie Garcia
My name is Ernie Garcia, and I am a graduate of Rise Up Industries and now it’s Machine Shop Manager. What, I’ve come to understand is, that I don’t simply manage a machine shop. I manage opportunities. I went to prison at 17 years old and came home at 46. I spent 28 years incarcerated. For most of my life, prison was what I knew. Read more>>
Mandy Chuey
I had been riding for about a year and a half when I started noticing a common theme in the North County motorcycle community: **women were looking for other women to ride with.** Through various Facebook riding groups, I saw women reaching out to find riding buddies, build confidence, and simply feel more comfortable getting into the motorcycle community. Read more>>
Corey Calabasas
Hi, I’m Corey Calabasas. I’ve been a musician for 88% of my existence, and a student in perpetuity. I also love writing. I was born a Gemini (sorry) on a full moon in a town splitting the 49th and 50th parallel (I am Canadian), thirty-one years ago. Read more>>
Joshua Orozco
I grew up in the Philippines, where I loved drawing as a child. In third grade, an illustrated storybook about Robin Hood inspired me to create my own artwork. I also spent hours copying landscapes with oil pastels. Art was something I cared about deeply, but as I got older, life took me in other directions. Read more>>
Carlos Toledo
It all started by going back to the drawings I used to make as a student. Instagram had just appeared, and instead of posting photos of my personal life, like most people did, I thought it would be a good idea to post one illustration a day. Read more>>
Casey Hollen
I’ve been a hairstylist for 16 years, and I’ve always loved that this career is about so much more than hair. It’s about creativity, connection, and the relationships you build with people over the years. After spending most of my career behind the chair, the opportunity came up to purchase Tribe Studio Salon, an existing salon in Leucadia. Read more>>
Elee Joven
My story begins on the Pacific island of Guam, where I was born and raised primarily by my strict maternal grandmother, who took me back and forth between Guam and the Philippines. Growing up in a traditional Filipino environment, I was expected to become a doctor, attorney, or engineer. Read more>>
Banafsheh Sharif-Askary
I grew up in Florida, and my path to becoming a plastic surgeon took me from Duke, where I completed both my undergraduate education and medical school, to Georgetown for an integrated residency in plastic and reconstructive surgery. My training there included a strong focus on trauma reconstruction and limb salvage, helping patients recover after injuries that could change their lives in an instant. Read more>>
Monica Zech
I am writing to share a background on my career in broadcasting and public safety speaking. As a native San Diegan, my broadcast career began during my senior year at Crawford High School with an internship at KGTV ABC 10 News. I continued my studies in Communications at Grossmont College, which led to a news position at KITT radio. Read more>>
Susan Lazear
My creative path began years ago in the late 1980’s when I developed a link between an electronic knitting machine and a personal computer. It was the first of its kind in the United States, and it led to the start of Cochenille Design Studio, a business I have owned and run since that time. My global market were creatives who used knitting machines. Read more>>
Ericaa Copes
I’ve been drawn to beauty for as long as I can remember. Some of my earliest memories are watching my mom do her makeup, nails, and hair, and being completely fascinated by the process. I was always the girly who wanted to be involved. I would glue on press-on nails in every length imaginable and eventually graduated to the Sally Beauty acrylic kit. Read more>>
Bill Brown
Before working with Prison Yoga Project, I spent nearly 20 years as a software developer, much of it within large corporations. In 2012, I began practicing yoga and immediately felt significant, life-changing benefits. I entered a yoga teacher training because I wanted to understand yoga more deeply; I had no intention of actually teaching. Read more>>
Harshal Ramteke
My journey actually began back in the late 1990s in Nagpur, India, when I was first introduced to electronic music. At the time, I didn’t know where it would take me, but I started working as a music director for fashion shows in my native city. Read more>>
Sheldon Woodson
To be specific about my film career, I’ll start with my time in the military. I was stationed on the USS John C. Stennis, an aircraft carrier, off the coast of Virginia, and then transferred to San Diego, California. I believe we had a crew of over 2,500 people, but the air wing doubled that to 6,000 people on board during a cruise or deployment. Read more>>
Richard ChauDavis
I am Richard B ChauDavis, San Diego artist (born 1956), doing my art in San Diego since graduating from UCSB College of Creative Studies with a Bachelor of Arts in 1979. Married (1) with children (2), cisgender, Christian, bisexual, monogamous, he/him/they/them. Art that’s often naked, edgy, ethical, sexual, multimedia, performance, composite, archival… Read more>>
Zarah Hedge
I was lucky in that I always knew I wanted to be a veterinarian. I grew up in the Midwest, and we moved around a lot (I lived in South Dakota, Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin). My family always had animals growing up, including dogs, cats, ferrets and a bird. Read more>>
Josquin Des Pres
Born in France, Josquin Des Pres got an early start in music. By the mid-1970s, he was playing bass with the French progressive jazz-fusion band Edition Spéciale, which signed with United Artists and RCA Records. He later joined a band with renowned violinist Didier Lockwood before moving to the United States, where he began working with a number of top studio musicians. Read more>>
Natalia Maestre
I’m Natalia, also known as the Love Guru, and heart has always been my compass in how I move through the world. My career started in marketing, working for an implant specialist who took me under his wing. Read more>>
