Cover Stories
Paul Lamar Hunter grew up in a two-bedroom house with twenty-one siblings, often without enough food, clothes or space to sleep to go around. Despite this, he’s overcome the perils of poverty, neglect, abuse and family dysfunction to become the first in his family to earn a college degree. His story is proof that it’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.
“Life is what is happening to you now, so try to live it as best you can, and keep trying to grow and learn.”
Ultra_Eko is an independent hip hop artist from South London, UK. He writes songs based on the message he wants to put into the world, from a place of passion and love for music.
Chris Kelly is a Black Founder and Education 3.0 Curator of world-class digital educational experiences. He has spent the last four years teaching at the International College of Beijing, and has now returned to the US to launch Onyx Global, his first initiative as a Founder. He is also a Doctoral Candidate in Adult & Professional Education at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, focusing on International Education Administration and Leadership.
Armand Peri is the American Dream personified and an inspirational success story. Armand is multifaceted as an entrepreneur, bodybuilding champion, artist, successful real estate investor, motivational speaker and author. He is the CEO of New Age Productions, Inc., a New Jersey/New York-based nightclub production and entertainment company. Armand had a difficult childhood, between his parents’ financial struggle and being excessively bullied at school.
Dr. Alan Barnard is a serial entrepreneur, app developer, author, speaker and one of the leading Decision Scientists and Theory of Constraints experts in the world. His life goal is to help people discover and overcome their own limiting assumptions or beliefs that could be blocking them from seeing and unlocking their inherent potential.
When the world was shaken with the most horrific pandemic humanity had ever seen, UStrive Manufacturing answered the call to help front-line workers in need. When the pandemic hit, they immediately got to work making a difference. They pivoted from being a U.S. certified organic t-shirt manufacturer for some of the top brand names in the country to making masks and gowns.
We all have moments where we are faced with challenges. How we face those challenges and move past them is an important process in growing as an individual. This is hard enough as adults, but children may not have the maturity or tools to move beyond their struggles. So, what can they do?
Did you ever step outside after being inside all day, and just breathe in the fresh air? Nature is soothing in a way that goes down to our soul. We reconnect on a cellular level with healing that slowly unravels our tightly bound stress. For some people, that’s enough. Others need more, like talking or healing modalities that allow you to release those bits of you trapped inside.
Protests erupted around the world after the death of George Floyd on May 25th, and the threat of a global pandemic calmly took a backseat. A rush of justifiable rage flowed against ongoing racial injustice. There’s so much pain and anger. Regardless of face masks, the agony spilled from peoples’ eyes, unable to remain hidden.