Where you grew up and your background can often have surprising effects on our lives and careers. We’ve asked folks from the community to tell us about how their background has affected them.

Antonio Velotta | Celebrity Hairstylist

I’m from Cleveland, Ohio. and my upbringing in my grandma’s beauty salon Coiffures By Maria during the 80s and 90s has played a significant role in shaping who I am today. Read more>>

Sara Levin | Co-Owner of The Barrel House, Dayton, Ohio

I grew up primarily in a suburb of Buffalo, NY, East Amherst. During my freshman year of high school my dad was transferred to Cincinnati for work and I decided to move with him, along with a couple of my other siblings. My Father is Jewish and my Mother has been many different iterations of Christian, so I feel like it was instilled in me from an early age to be open minded and to always be asking questions and exploring ideas. My parents divorcing when I was 5 led to years of tumultuousness for my mother, and ultimately myself and my siblings. For a few years after their split, before moving in with our dad full time, we were subject to a level of neglect and trauma that we are all still trying recover from in various ways. I’ve learned through therapy that the trauma I experienced as a young child hugely impacted who I am as an adult, but certainly in my drive and ability to survive in dire situations

Cassidy Poe | Artist

I was born and raised in Columbus Ohio! I have lived here my whole life and I really love Columbus because it truly is such an art city. My mother is an artist and taught me to draw at 6 months old hand over hand with crayons, as I grew up she supervised me with painting and markers until I could do it on my own. Read more>>

Nuke Franklin | Musician

I’m from the Midwest, Cleveland, OH to be exact. I was raised in a single family household with just me, my little brother and my mother but we moved around the city a lot. That taught me how to be able to adapt in any room with people from any and every walk of life. Growing up in Cleveland in general taught me resilience, work ethic and to make the most out of the things I did have. Read more>>

Carson Hay | Country Music Artist

I grew up in the coal fields of southern West Virginia. It was a small area that I wouldn’t even classify as a town. The drive to the grocery store was about 30 minutes, but it was an area full of down to earth, hardworking people. At a young age, I was taught the value of hard work and respect. I spent my childhood watching my father work long hours in a coal mine. He worked a job that was very physically demanding to provide a good life for my family. It taught me that you have to do what it takes to allow your family to have what they need and want. In watching this type of work ethic growing up, I have became a person who never gives up on something no matter how hard it may be. My uncle was also a huge influence on my child hood. He instilled in me a love of the outdoors. We would spend lots of time hunting and fishing. He taught me to not only love nature but to respect it. It is our job to leave the world a better place that we found it. Read more>>

Tiffy Sea | Creative Artist / Storyteller & Breast Cancer Survivor

I was born in Augusta, Georgia but primarily raised in North Augusta, South Carolina for majority of my life. Growing up I was always in the presence of my grandparents (Grams and Poppee). They adopted me when I was in the first or second grade because my mother was absent in my life and nobody had any knowledge of who my biological father was. Being raised by elders is an experience in itself. The way I would analyze things as a child would always impress teachers and those around me. Attention to detail and being very confident in my own self expression; which was greatly encouraged by both of my grandparents. My grandfather was a truck driver for over forty-two years, and my fondest memories were our picnics we would have in the backyard, our hiking trips in Tennessee (where he was born and raised), all of the traveling we did when I was a child, and how he is the reason I am the artist that I am today. He was a man who never met a stranger, the first to open the door for someone, and the last to fix his plate with his evening beer. Though I was a Poppee’s gal through and through, my grandmother taught me the importance of being independent, keeping a tight grasp on my individuality (especially in relationships), and to always be excited about learning and exploring new things. Unfortunately, my grandfather passed away in 2011 a month before I graduated and the same month that I would get to stand out in our Spring school play. Since then it has just been my Grams and I. Our house has and always will be a safe place for those who may not have that, and because of that I want to to continue to create spaces that are safe, loving, accepting, and supporting Read more>>