Through our work we have had the good fortune of seeing firsthand how success comes in every shape, size, color, faith, and orientation. More importantly we’ve learned that success is often the result of people embracing their unique backgrounds and so we’ve asked the community to tell us about their background and how it has impacted where they are today.

Andrea Piering | President of Sun State Builders

I am a born and raised 3rd generation native of Arizona. My father was the general manager of Sun State Builders for 40 years. As a kid, I grew up in the business. My father and I would do the electrical underground for Sun State’s projects on the weekend from the time I was 14 years old. This is where I started to learned to read construction drawings and developed interest into building things. From there, I worked at Sun State from the time I was 17 years old. I started out as a courier and worked my way to owner from there. I have held every position in the company with the exception of the accounting roles. I believe this helps me to better understand our employees and the day-to-day challenges they face. Read more>>

Julia Schwadron Marianelli | Artist

I grew up in a family of writers, artists and thinkers. My father is a newspaper editor and a musician, and my mother transitioned from professional ballet dancer, to writer, to homemaker, to career counselor who works to support dancers and artists. I have two siblings, one who is a professor of Dance and Dance studies and the other who is a professional musician. As for me, I was always encouraged to think creatively and to use my natural observational abilities to reflect what I saw in the world. I began drawing at a young age and to this day, my primary mode of expression is drawing and painting. Many of my paintings are text based, and I believe my early exposure to multiple channels of learning allowed me to maintain a simultaneous interest in both literal and conceptual reflections of my environment. Read more>>

Kassidy McConville | Freelance Photographer

I grew up in Southwest Nebraska in a town of less than 300. It was a big farming community full of the most hardworking and supportive people I’ve ever met. My dad followed suit. He was gone before the sun and home long after it set. Very rarely do I ever remember him complaining about the workload; he mentioned more times than not that if you do something you love, life doesn’t feel like a chore. And granted he worked well over the standard 40 hour work week, he was happy. I think having that entrepreneurial spirit and self-motivation close to home was a big inspiration, and having a community that’s eager to watch you succeed played a huge role in getting to where I am. Read more>>