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.

Cachia Cherise | Author, International Speaker, and Certified Coach

I’m originally from the west side of Chicago, IL. My childhood was filled with community images of drugs, homelessness, murders, hopelessness, and lack of jobs and resources. I grew up internally knowing that I wanted to be different and that my actions would have to reflect that. So, I carried this mentality into my home life, school, and entrepreneurship. Growing up I was exposed to working hard and doing what you have to do to make it happen. I have fond memories of being at the “Taste of Chicago” in the 80’s selling beverages and snacks alongside my parents and siblings as we recited the items and the cost: this and other experiences instilled in me a drive to see it through. My background and upbringing impacted the person I am today through the display of perseverance tenacity, determination, courage, endurance, love, and commitment which can be seen in everything I do. Read more>>

Anicka Martin | The Self-Care Phoenix | Founder of Eneka Elements

I am from California originally. My grandmother had a store and was a businesswoman. She had me working in her store at a young age and I loved it. She taught me so much and how to focus on providing the customer with a great experience. It was wonderful to have responsibilities as a young woman and to get paid to work at a young age. Me and my cousins always reflect on this and how we all got this great lesson from her. I am so thankful for her example. Being immersed in that environment laid a great foundation for me to become a businesswoman and entrepreneur. Read more>>

Mike Cooper | Night Photographer

When I was growing up, my mom and one of my uncles were always taking pictures at family events. Their mother–my grandmother–was also a photographer, which is pretty amazing considering this would have been from the 1920s and into the Depression up through the ’60s and ’70s. So I guess the idea of photography as a hobby has always been part of my life. Read more>>

Gayle Petrillo | Career and Confidence Coach, Author and Speaker

Born and raised in Albany, New York, I grew up in a middle class family and working neighborhoods. I’ve called Tucson my home for 25 years.

Early on I learned the importance of family and work ethic. We lived in apartments until I was about 12, when my parents purchased their first home. They were so proud of this accomplishment. My dad worked two jobs and when I went to school (kindergarten was full time), my mom went to work outside the house. She had earned a scholarship to a prestigious art school which she turned down to marry my dad. They met very early in their lives, were five years apart, and married when my mom turned 18. Read more>>

Skylee Edmiston | Esthetics Educator/No profit Spa Owner

I am from Tucson originally but I spent a great deal of time moving back & forth from the east coast where my mom was from. I grew up with a single mom and we were extremely poor. My mom had 4 children after me, the youngest being 18 years younger than me and only 1 year older than my son. Growing up with nothing, living in a minivan at a camp ground I knew when I unexpectedly became a mother at 19 that I wanted more for my son. There was never a question in my mind as to whether he would have to struggle like my family and I did. I worked so many dead end jobs just to make ends meet before being blessed with a scholarship to Esthetics school. I worked and went to school over 70hours a week to be able to graduate and make a better life for us. I knew I’d never achieve my dreams and be able to give my son everything I never had if I didn’t learn everything possible and work as hard as I could in my new career. I believe 100% that I wouldn’t have the drive, dedication, motivation and perseverence that I do if I didn’t know what it’s like to have nothing and struggle. Read more>>

Heather Spencer | Owner & Certified Wedding Planner

I am from Castle Rock, Colorado and grew up there with my sister, parents, grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins. Family has always been a central part of my life and has provided me with incredible support for anything I set out to do. From a young age (approx. 5 years old to 18 years old) my sister and I participated in 4-H, a youth program built to teach children and teens the importance of caring for animals and others, record keeping, creativity, healthy competition, community service, responsibility and self-motivation. Being in this wonderful program, while raising and showing hundreds of sheep on my grandparents’ farm is probably the largest part of my upbringing that has made me who I am today. I have the confidence to take risks when needed and the skills to plan, organize and execute my goals. Read more>>

Joan Pevarnik | Potter

I grew up in Colorado . I went to Northern Arizona University to study Spanish. I had already taken pottery in high school so I enrolled in a ceramics class. Much to my amazement, I met a teacher who would change my life. Don Bendel taught Art in such a thoughtful and transforming way. Art was a way of living, and Ceramics was his medium. Read more>>

Iya Affo | Culturalist & Trauma Specialist

Prior to the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade, my family originated from Benin Republic. During the Slave Trade our ancestors ended in Barbados and then The Bahamas on my mother’s side and Jamaica on my father’s side. I am a nomad! I was born in New York City, grew up mostly in Began County, New Jersey, but have spent the majority of my adult life on the move! I’ve visited over 25 countries and lived in India, China, West Africa, Thailand and Sri Lanka. During childhood, I grew up in a very Jewish community, which I loved. I felt a sense of interconnectedness with my Jewish friends as an African American person. Growing up in this community, however, was the catalyst to where I am today. I can remember standing outside of the Temple with my face pressed against the glass while my friends attended Hebrew School. Sometimes the Rabbi would let me come in and observe their lessons. I wondered what language my people used to speak, and which religion they practiced. I was particularly moved by the fact that our ancestors shared a history of trauma; for them, the Holocaust and for us, the Slave Trade. It made me wonder though why I still witnessed the immense suffering of African American people and while my Jewish friends experienced pain and guilt, they were less likely to struggle socioeconomically, with literacy, incarceration, addiction and mental illness. This set me on a path to researching the impact of Historical Trauma and the science of epigenetics. Read more>>

Carrie-Joy Neal | Entrepreneur & Esthetician

I’m a local girl, born and raised in Tempe, AZ. I love Arizona and the truly believe that the mashup of rich culture and history of the southwest gives us one of the most diverse and beautiful landscapes in the country. I grew up in the 5th st neighborhood near the ASU campus in the 90s, before the big explosion of industry that you see now. As a kid I remember just feeling free. We rode bikes until dark, roamed the neighborhood, created chalk art on the sidewalks, made up dances in eachother’s front yards….it really was a quaint childhood. A time of pure exploration and creativity. I think in some ways I’ve always been chasing that feeling. My Mother was an ER Nurse, super organized, no nonsense, a real “get shit done” type of woman. My Father was an artist, an entrepreneur, a teacher and an absolute dreamer. I think I’ve inherited the best of each of them. In business I’m tough, tenacious and regimented, but I am also always reaching for what’s next. I want the presentation of my business to feel uniquely me. To do that, I have to be true to my vision of staying creative, lifting others, and engaging the community around me. Those things are paramount to who I am as an individual and what Counter Culture has come to represent over the last five years. Read more>>