The editorial team has a special attachment to our new series, The Trailblazers: Rewriting the Narrative, because so many of us feel that media portrayals of women have been too one dimensional. Today, women are doing incredible things in all fields – from science and technology to finance, law, business, athletics and more. With the Trailblazers series, we hope to highlight and celebrate female role models, encourage more equal and just representation in the media, and help foster a more tight-knit community locally helping women find mentors, business partners, friends and more.
Below, you’ll find some incredible trailblazers from in and around North Miami that we hope you will check out, follow and support.
Jeanne Noralus
A few years ago I worked for a hotline that handled suicide prevention and Veterans in crisis. Although I loved helping people, I realized the job was starting to take a toll on me emotionally. Read more>>
Cara Despain
I was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah and am now based in Miami. I work between the two places, and they are nearly diametrically opposed. I feel like somewhat of a weirdo participant and observer in both locales, and enjoy being an interlocutor between them. Read more>>
Sarah MacMillan
I was born in Colombia and moved to Miami in 1997 to go to college. In my 20’s I suffered from depression for many years after my boyfriend committed suicide. Read more>>
Nina Arce
My whole life I have been an artist… after high school, it was my Mom’s idea for me to go to makeup school. So, in 2007, I graduated from Cosmix School of Makeup Artistry and that is where my career began. I have done makeup for a wide range of genres including music videos. Read more>
Chelsea Sumner
I am a daughter, sister, and student. I grew up very poor. I barely had a place to lay my head at nights. My mom was a single mother with three kids who were struggling to make ends meet. When I turned for years old, that was the point in my life where I had to learn how to take responsibly trying to provide for my little brother and sister. Read more>>
Debbie Grossman
As a young child, I wanted to become an artist. Throughout the years I created art for enjoyment and used it as a therapeutic tool. When times of challenges occurred in my life, I produced large amounts of paintings. I decided to start selling my paintings after I placed second out of 1,300 artists in an international art contest. Read more>>
Heiress Rolle
At a very young age, I developed a skin condition called Vitiligo. Vitiligo is the discoloration in the skin which leaves you with white patches. Some celebrities like Michael Jackson and supermodel Winnie Harlow have this skin condition. By this happening to me. Read more>>
Lauren Fadeley Veyette
I am a Principal Soloist professional ballet dancer with Miami City Ballet. I started teaching the next generation of dancers as a way to make extra money and stay in shape during our lay-off seasons, but it’s now turned into a true passion and love of mine. My husband, Francis, is a former professional dancer and now full-time ballet teacher in the Miami area. Read more>>
Florencia Pendola
I believe that people, myself included, sometimes don’t really express themselves because they are afraid of rejection, being ridiculed or they are too worried about what people may think. People repress their emotions, talk themselves out of trying new things because of the fear of how people will perceive them, by doing this, they don’t really enjoy life and live to the fullest. Read more>>
Angelica Maria
It began in college when I realized I had a knack for photography and social media growth. College was never something I wanted, just something I did because it was what we all are taught brings success. My major was graphic design and later advertising but my passions weren’t properly executed in a classroom setting. Well, after my first year, I decided I wanted a different path than the traditional. Read more>>
