Ten years ago, Sway Soturi woke up to find that her face had swollen “to the size of a watermelon.” After speaking with doctors and friends, she decided to cut out inflammatory ingredients like gluten and dairy from her diet. 

After 15 years working in the restaurant industry and battling an eating disorder, Sway had to re-define nutrition and her relationship with food. Over the next few years, she shifted to a wellness mindset becoming a personal trainer and cooking with more natural and local ingredients. 

Derreck Johnson is painstakingly aware of how the current global health crisis has impacted not only his small business but the entire small business ecosystem in Oakland, Calif. 

Derreck has been an entrepreneur for the past 30 years and has always had a passion for identifying a community need and filling it with a business. His entrepreneurial journey started with a small car washing business, but now he is a restaurateur and the proud founder of the now employee-owned restaurant Home of Chicken and Waffles.

After working as a public school teacher in Los Angeles during the height of the 2008 recession, Corissa Hernandez was inspired to launch her first mission-driven company to support her local community in Covina, California. Through Legacy Full Circle Financial & Insurance Services, Corissa educates low to middle-income families about financial literacy and planning. But she didn’t stop there.

Rob Lightner and his business partner Chris Coomber opened East Brother Beer Company, a brewery and taproom in Richmond, California with the idea that beer can be a democratizing force—by being more accessible to those who wish to try new “potions,” enjoy some downtime and foster relationships in an inclusive community.

Kiev Morales has been an entrepreneur for most of his life. His product? His music. The 20-year-old violinist has performed all over the world, but these days is having to adapt to virtual audiences and online streaming and only recently began performing outdoors again. 

When you walk into My Corazon-Libros Y Cultura in Hanford, California, you step right into a ‘90s Chicano dream. The walls are covered with brightly colored murals and almost every product is designed and produced by owner Janie Isidoro and her family. My Corazon-Libros Y Cultura serves as a creative outlet for Janie, her husband and her three kids, but also serves as a bookstore and a place for people to either discover or reminisce about this distinct culture.