The Valley 10.9.2017

Danny Herb

Hailing from the Sacramento Area in northern California, I came down to LA to pursue my dreams in the filmmaking industry. With a construction background, I worked on set for years in the grip/electric department, Art Department and moved into producing and editing as well. Read more>>

Carly Larson

I had a very non-traditional journey to get to my role now. I started off College at Penn State Behrend in Erie, PA (my hometown) with the intention of going into Anthropology. The field is still a significant part of my life but it only took 3 semesters for me to see that was not going to be my path in life. Read more>>

Brett Endes

Growing up with Asperger’s syndrome, a high functioning form of Autism made social situations difficult for me. I was always more comfortable around animals than people. As a kid, I brought home every pet I could find! From hamsters (we had over 100) to lizards, I spent hours watching my pets, analyzing what they were thinking and what it would feel like to be them. Read more>>

Todd Tucker

I grew up in Northern California as an only child. I was a huge fan of horror/fantasy films. I started collecting monster masks and creepy puppets. It wasn’t long before I started making these things in my garage and became the weird kid in the neighborhood. Read more>>

Dr. Tanja Johnston

I am a trained engineer in the field of media technologies, I worked at Europe’s largest research facility for 6yrs and then co-founded a technology company based on one of the inventions created there. My partner in crime was the inventor of MP3, Prof. Dr. Brandenburg. Read more>>

Selena O’Connor

I grew up in Berkeley, home to the California’s healthy gourmet food movement. My mother had been working for ten years with our supplier, which is a 90-year old family-owned Bay Area business. After college, I relocated to Los Angeles, which is my Mom’s birthplace, and grew to love the West Valley – its Mediterranean landscape and climate. Read more>>

Cori Jackson

I’ve had a passion for music as long as I can remember. Growing up I was in a children’s chorus and took private lessons on piano, guitar, and violin. After high school I traveled throughout South America, where I volunteered at an animal rescue center in the Amazon and a school in Peru. Read more>>

Tamika Lewis

I lost two dear friends to suicide. These were smart, dynamic, beautiful women. The kind you study and admire from afar. When I got the news about my friend, who was also my roommate throughout college, I was devastated. She was only 25. We were young, and had so much life ahead of us, but it was all too much for her. Read more>>

Holly Freeman

After 12 years of climbing in the corporate world, I was laid off in November 2016. I was forced to make a decision; stay in the corporate world or take a risk and pursue a dream I had for years. I wanted to do something that made people happy and feel amazing. Being a very fair skinned redhead, I don’t tan very well and tend to burn. Read more>>

Janelle Kandziora

Janelle is the owner and lead designer at Janelle Interiors Design Showroom in Ojai, CA. She specializes in construction design, color consulting, custom furniture, lighting and much more. She has a successful design career furnishing homes all over the greater Los Angeles area, Santa Barbara and Palm Springs Desert communities. Read more>>

Cayden Riley

I started working in a gym at 14 years old. I became a 2-time state grappling champion in high school. I continued working in a gym as a personal trainer and strength and conditioning coach. throughout college. After graduating College in 2008, I started an internship with the IFBB Mr. Olympia Competition. Read more>>

Ana Paula Markel

As most birth folks, my own birth experiences led me to become a childbirth educator, birth activist, doula, doula trainer, business owner, speaker, hospital consultant, product development consultant and President Elect of DONA International… in that order. Read more>>

Hugo Quintanilla

Real Estate was never in my radar, in 1998, by chance I briefly worked at a mortgage company with a real estate branch. During the time, I worked at the mortgage company I became friends with people who felt I would be a successful real estate salesperson. Read more>>

Jonathan

I was born in the city of Great Neck, New York, where I grew up until I was 6 years old. My parents decided it was time to make a change, so we packed our bags and headed to Los Angeles, and settled in Tarzana. We moved 3 times throughout the valley within our first year before finding a stable living situation. Read more>>

Daniel Regan

I started training martial arts as a kid with my father. My father was in a karate class and brought me down with him to train, I was about 5 years old. That lasted only a year or two then he was working more and didn’t go to class so I stopped as well. Later in junior high, I joined a Tae Kwon Do school, I was really into Bruce Lee and the Shaw Brothers’ movies and loved to train. Read more>>

Jessica Manherz

I decided I wanted to make movies when I was very young. As with most kids, at first, I wanted to be an actor. Then I discovered writing and directing, and started rounding up my cousins to film music videos and commercials in the backyard. Finally, my father bought me my very first editing software, and I was completely hooked. Read more>>

Jackie Amaya-Garcia

I had been brought up in New York in a predominately international home and always had access to people from foreign lands speak into my life talking to me about the wonders of the world in languages I never felt uncomfortable in. I lived in Europe and in South America and it always felt natural to reach out to people in their native language. Read more>>

Jo Wyman

Being the youngest of six might have prompted me to become Martial Artist, which led me to being a pro-athlete. After feeling great and working out, I knew I could help people to feel the same energetic, motivating great feeling. I then started JoJo’s body shop to help people “get in or back in shape” After a very successful career, and still going! Read more>>

Nvard Chiroglyan

Traveling and exploring the world has always been my love and the thought that I would plan a memorable trip for someone else was a dream come true so I decided to research and see how I was going to make this dream come true. July of 2016 was the birth of My Classy Vacations. I started my business as a hobby wanting to just make dream vacations. Read more>>

Stephanie Perri DiBrizzi

I’m 100% Italian, and as funny as it sounds, I grew up around many Italian women who would heal people through prayer and with use of objects. My grandma was a healer. She would use prayer, salt water (water dispelling method that I use today), objects like jewelry, crystals, etc. Read more>>

Gina Casazza

I was born and raised on Long Island and I was always interested in health, thanks to my mom! She taught me how to eat properly, read labels and ingredients, and stay active. She also taught me that no matter what anyone tells you listen to your heart and do your research. She was big on researching. Read more>>

Rico Mandel

I was raised in Woodland Hills, CA. I developed my first roll of film when I was 8 years old – a friend of mine called me to see if I had any B&W film to develop I said yes. He brought over his developing kit and we developed the film – I was hooked. He taught me how to make prints and introduced me to the classic photographers Ansel Adams, Edward Weston, Imogen Cunningham etc. Read more>>

Ruth Frechman

When I was young, I didn’t know that I wanted to be a registered dietitian. But in third grade I knew that I didn’t want to get osteoporosis. My grandmother from England never drank milk and didn’t consume much cheese and had shrunk in height from osteoporosis. Read more>>