Resilience is often the x-factor that differentiates between mild and wild success. The stories of most of the wildly successful folks in our community have exhibit an extreme degree of resilience and we’ve come to believe that if our goal is to help our community achieve great outcomes we have to help build resources and knowledge around how one can become more resilient.

Cassie Leon

Resilience means facing difficulties head-on rather than avoiding them. It’s about walking through challenges with perseverance, knowing that every struggle has a purpose—to refine us and make us stronger. I’ve learned that setbacks aren’t the end but stepping stones to growth. In both my career and personal life, I’ve encountered failures—sometimes more than once— Read More>>

Dr. Jessica Mierzwa

Resilience comes from knowing that every challenge I face is an opportunity for growth—not just for me, but for those I serve. Growing up and working in a small rural community, I’ve seen firsthand the struggles people face when it comes to accessing quality healthcare and wellness resources. I refuse to let obstacles define the outcome; instead, I lean into faith and perseverance, trusting that the Lord equips me for every challenge.  Read More>>

Sean Underhill

I learned resilience early on in life. I was raised by a single parent and witnessed the fortitude of my mom working multiple jobs to support me and my older siblings. Our economic difficulties effected the way I view things now and fostered a creativity that has served me greatly throughout my adult life. This resilience has helped me navigate many of life’s struggles, such as the loss of my best friend in a car accident at the onset of High School. Read More>>

Nick Mershon

My resilience comes from the baseball field, Navy submarines, and the sales world where rejection, continuous improvement, and failing are part of life. All of my formative years were spent on the baseball field learning from my dad who played professional ball in the Cincinatti Reds organization. The ability to forget what happened earlier in the game, earlier in the week, and even earlier inside that same at bat allowed me to focus only on the present moment. Read More>>

Abi Adekitan

I get my resilience from a combination of my faith, life experiences, and the values instilled in me over the years. My faith in God is my anchor—it reminds me that I am beautifully and uniquely made, and that challenges are just stepping stones to something greater. Read More>>

Ashlee Bankz

I get my resilience from my grandmother. My grandmother is the person who showed and taught me strength, but most importantly how to keep going forwards and not backwards. She has been preaching/teaching me resilience since a child. Read More>>

Victoria Orlovskaya

As a small child, I thought the moon followed me. It made me feel special, like I could do anything. But one day, I learned that the moon followed everyone, and I felt an overwhelming sense of betrayal. That may have been the first mental hurdle I had to overcome. It might seem silly to some, but if you think about it, as a child, that realization was my first indication that I wasn’t as significant as I once believed. I was no longer special. Read More>>

Jane Shoenfeld

My own resilience comes partially from examples set by my parents, particularly my mother. She was not happy in her marriage but she sat at her Underwood typewriter every day and wrote short fiction that found publication in many magazines. Later she divorced my father, moved several times, went through psychoanalysis, and supported herself through her writing. Read More>>

Niki Perez

I’ve had the opportunity to enter some hopeful arenas the past year, each surface built differently. Where one rink is made of ice, another is made from wood.

When the music starts, I almost always step in wobbly, questioning whether my laces are knotted or tied just right— if I’ll glide feet from left to right smoothly. Will I muster the strength to stand should I fall? Read More>>

Chelsea Farley

My father. As a child growing up I had a good example of the “hustle” it takes to make something successful. My dad ran a food truck in which he made me a part of, and I am so thankful for that opportunity. Through sickness, storms, and mishaps… the key ingredient to success is resilience. He is still by my side today, cooking with me and reminding me that persistence will allow you to achieve your goals. Read More>>

Alexander Bounyavong

My parents first. I’ve watched them go through some of the most difficult times. I am their first child and I’ve been there since they had very little in this country. They were refugees now United States Citizens. The journey was far from anything easy. Resilience to me is understanding the moments where it is hard, uncomfortable, and foreign. There is no navigation for this problem right now but we’re going to find out what to do and someway we will get through it; because we have to survive. Read More>>

Saddaf Yusuf

My resilience comes from the fire I’ve walked through. I have known what it is to shatter completely, to lose myself to the depths of grief, heartbreak, and the kind of darkness that makes you forget the light ever existed. There were nights that swallowed me whole, moments where I questioned whether I would ever rise again. And yet, something ancient within me always whispered: Not yet. Keep going. Every fall became a lesson, every rock bottom a portal to something greater. Read More>>

Julie Mires

Even the earliest memories of my dad were of him working hard. He worked long hours and I never once heard him complain. He made a very good living and took care of a family of five until I married and moved out in my early twenties. He retired in his late fifties and had a massive stroke not long after. I lost dad during Christmas in 2020, but every day I do something in my business that makes me think of him.  Read More>>

Pamilerin Jacob

Like all children, my first lessons came from my parents. I remember Dad dipping Agege bread in water because there was little else to eat. For tea, we could only afford ‘eruku Oshodi’ — an incredibly substandard substitute — which caused me major digestive problems well into adulthood. Three years after marriage, he’d done a career pivot which hampered finances. Yet, we were not without laughter, even after the loss of my baby brother who died at birth. Read More>>

Whitney Duhart

I get my resilience from my time in the military and the experiences that shaped me there. The discipline, structure, and challenges I faced taught me how to adapt under pressure and remain focused, no matter how tough the circumstances. Those lessons helped me develop mental toughness and a problem-solving mindset that I carry with me every day. Beyond that, my drive comes from my goals and the people I want to inspire—staying resilient is how I push through and grow. Read More>>

Ryan Maesen

Life is a series of ups and down. Early on, I was taught that it’s all about getting back up when you get knocked down. As long as you learn from it, it is okay to have setbacks. I have also learned that when you make a mistake; like trying something that doesn’t work out, move it. You made the best decision in the moment but it didn’t work.  Read More>>

 Jenna Mcmicken

Growing up on a farm while being the oldest child of six brothers, I practically helped raise my younger siblings and learned a lot about responsibility and grit. God has definitely been my source of strength in the hardest times of my life. Becoming a single mom was the hardest hand dealt to me but, the life lessons learned in my younger years through dealing with loss and heartbreak, taught me that I was strong and I could get through whatever life threw at me. Read More>>

Alan Li

My resilience comes from my parents. As first generation immigrants, they sacrificed so much for a new opportunity to come to the US. They left everything familiar behind—culture, language, community—to create a better life for our family. My dad first moved to New York City with less than $100 in his pocket before bringing my mom and sister 2 years later. He barely spoke any English too. When I think of hardships I have these days, it really pales in comparison to what my parents went through and I know that I can keep going. Read More>>

Justin Lamar

I believe I got my resilience from growing up in my neighborhood. I’m not saying that I was in the worst or roughest neighborhood, but the people I grew were extremely tough and weakness would be attacked, especially if you were an outsider in this includes my parents. I think my community I grew up in were a proud people that always had to-prove themselves.  Read More>>

Liz Fernandez

My resilience is deeply rooted in my identity as the eldest daughter of farm-working Mexican immigrant parents. I grew up watching my parents wake up before the sun, work tirelessly in the fields, and push through exhaustion because they believed in the possibility of something greater—for themselves and for me. Their sacrifices planted the seed of resilience in me long before I even understood what it meant. Read More>>

Ryan “franko” Frankowski

When people ask me where I get my resilience from, I tell them without hesitation my mom. She’s a living example of determination and reinvention. She started working at just 15, lying about her age to land a job at a nutritionist’s office. Even as a young girl, she dreamed of designer clothes but couldn’t afford them, so she taught herself how to sew and created her own. That drive and creativity carried her through life. Read More>>

Quontica Conley

Reflecting on the origins of my resilience, I am profoundly inspired by my grandmother, a remarkable woman who single-handedly raised not only her own children but also her grandchildren, including me. Balancing a full-time job with the demands of family, she exemplified unwavering strength and dedication. Read More>>

Sharnell Smith

I believe my resilience comes from a combination of personal experiences and mindset. Growing up, I learned to navigate challenges by seeing them as opportunities for growth rather than obstacles. My support system, whether it’s family, friends, or mentors, has played a significant role in helping me bounce back when things get tough. I also rely on a positive mindset and a strong sense of purpose, which helps me stay focused on what matters even when setbacks happen. I try to view failure as part of the process rather than a reason to quit. Read More>>

Tiffany Catron

One of the greatest pieces of advice I have been given in business is to persevere. Resilience is all about mindset. Obstacles are always going to come at us, but we need to be able to persevere past them, and trust in God to see us through. However I will admit, it is easier said than done. To achieve anything great in life it takes steadfast commitment and endurance.  Read More>>

Jefferson Noël

I get my resilience from a mix of my personal journey and the incredible examples set by my family. Growing up Haitian-American in Miami, I saw firsthand the sacrifices my parents made—my father’s courage and my mother’s relentless work ethic. Every challenge, from battling severe eczema to coping with loss, taught me that vulnerability isn’t weakness; it’s the raw material for strength. Read More>>

Karen Jarchow

My resilience is deeply rooted in watching my mother navigate life’s challenges with quiet strength. She endured so much yet never complained, never asked for help, and never let on that she was carrying a heavy load. That unwavering strength shaped me as an athlete and entrepreneur, giving me the grit to push through difficulty and trust that I could handle whatever came my way. But I now realize that I missed a crucial aspect of resilience—one that may have been present all along, yet wasn’t the driving energy I inherited. Read More>>

Reyna Lopez

I acquired the residence from my paternal grandmother. She taught me that for every bad situation in life, there is always a reason and a thousand opportunities to learn and become better. Read More>>

Luanne Prima

My Mom
She was a very wonderful singer and no mattter how she felt would always go to work. Going from venue to venue and then home showed so much resilience.
I live my life on spiritual principles
I’ve studied chopra Louise hay Wayne dyer etc to name a few. This all started in 1989 when I got sober. I put principles before personalities. Read More>>

Yulia Denisyuk

I get my resilience from a lineage of strong women. My mother and grandmother both are strong women who have had many challenges in life. My grandmother grew up during World War II in the hunger-stricken Soviet Union. She raised three children alone. My mother went through the fall of the Soviet Union, raising her daughter (me) alone as well in a situation of a complete economic crash and currency devaluation. Read More>>

Sal Crivelli

I don’t know whether I would refer to it as resilience or just dogged stubbornness. I remember a moment very clearly on my second birthday party when my parents decided it was time for my scheduled midday nap. I was put in my crib, my parents shut off the lights and returned to the party. To my knowledge, I had never left of my own volition before then, but apparently I simply decided that point in my life was over.  Read More>>

Cassandra Goins

It’s in my DNA, my mother was a single mother with 5 kids, she was a serial entrepreneur, she insipired me to be self-sufficient, and instilled her work ethics and values in me. Read More>>

Xiaoyan Sun

Resilience probably comes from realizing that I can continue to create even after facing setbacks time and time again.
In the illustration industry, rejection is normal. You won’t be shortlisted for every competition, client feedback may repeatedly change your plans or your piece just got killed during the progress, and sometimes the market doesn’t respond to the work you put in effort.  Read More>>

Lindsay Drouillard

As a child I grew up on a horse farm. A life of privilege and considerable fighting among my family. As I learned how to ride, train and compete failure was a daily opportunity for learning. Thankfully, I was never severely injured with riding young horses. We learned mostly by trial and error. The barn was a place of respite, building resilience while spending quality time with my horses. Read More>>

Jennifer Oak

About fifteen years ago I identified resilience as an important tool for living a contented life, and since that time I’ve intentionally worked to develop it as a skill and to model it for my family.
When my kids were young, our family went through a traumatic experience. As a product of the trauma, we endured years-long financial and emotional hardships.  Read More>>

Michelle Maclaggan

My resilience comes from experience—being in the trenches of startup businesses, navigating the inevitable ups and downs, and staying laser-focused on my vision, and that’s the mindset that keeps me pushing forward. Read More>>

Joel Camassar

I get my resilience from learning to pivot when things aren’t working out.

I’ve always been really into cars and originally majored in automotive design. I was attending a small art school in Cleveland, which was a feeder school for the Detroit Big Three: Ford, GM and Chrysler. Unfortunately I graduated high school right after the housing bubble burst in 2008 and by 2009 the outlook in the auto industry was pretty grim.  Read More>>

Knadijah Hickman

My resilience is deeply rooted in my past. I can truly say that without the challenges I faced, I wouldn’t be the person I am today. I didn’t grow up with the typical mother-father dynamic in one household. I never knew my father, and my mother was not able to take care of me at the time. Thankfully, my grandmother raised me in the projects of Dallas, TX, specifically in Pleasant Grove. We had little to nothing, but she made it work with what she had. Read More>>

Tellygp

I found my resilience from my Mother, she had us young and literally had to figure it out. Figuring it out takes work, takes patience and understanding. She had 3 kids she had to provide for and within that had to develop early. My mother was the talk of the town growing up, She had threw the best parties on the block, she was known for that laidback vibe but didn’t play type and even I knew that. Moments with her meant a lot to others, from conversations to time spent is how she is remembered, how we should all cherish life. Read More>>

Belen Arilla Martinez

My resilience in tattooing comes from my passion for creating art on the human body and the discipline required to constantly improve. Tattooing is not an easy art, it takes years of dedication to perfect the techniques, understand skin, and deliver work that truly matches my clients expectations.  Read More>>

Alessandra Anizio

Believing in myself fuels my motivation and determination, making me more likely to succeed.
a realistic understanding of my strengths and weaknesses and trusting that I have the ability to learn,
grow, and adapt to whatever life throws my way. Read More>>

Stephanie Padro

I never really knew what the word resilience meant until someone told me I had a ton of it.. I just knew that no matter what hardships life sent to me I could do one or two things; push through or give up. And there were definitely times I felt like giving up. My teen years is where it all started. I was cheated on by boyfriends with my friends. Read More>>

 Drew Henry

Resilience for me was forged through experience. Growing up, football was my first love, but by the time I graduated high school, I’d undergone five knee surgeries. Each one required long and grueling rehab—a process that taught me to embrace the journey, not just focus on the outcome. Read More>>

Laura Longmore

I think my resilience comes from always keeping my eyes on the bigger picture. I tend to daydream a lot—about my life three, five, even ten years from now. That vision of where I want to be keeps me from getting stuck in past moments or feeling weighed down by temporary struggles. No matter what challenges I face, I remind myself that they’re just stepping stones, shaping me into a stronger, more resilient version of myself. I know that everything I overcome now will only make me better in the future. Read More>>

Rochelle Cheever

My resilience comes from trusting my own path, even when it didn’t look like anyone else’s. I never followed the conventional route—I built my life and career through intuition, reinvention, and an unwavering belief that I could do something I loved and make a living from it. Read More>>

Alyssa Morgan

I think I probably get my resilience from my mom! She basically raised us three kids solo, and while we certainly did not grow up rich, she never let us feel that way. We wanted for not and had all the newest toys, clothes, and gadgets that all our friends had. We even took vacations from time to time, but even when we couldn’t afford to travel during the summer, she spent all her free time playing with us, reading to us, cooking for us… basically doing everything a good, attentive mom should do.  Read More>>

Liz Cooper

The rehearsal room has always been a sacred space for me. It is the place where my entire mind is absorbed and the outside world doesn’t exist. As I have gone through the toughest periods of my life – trauma, grief, heartbreak, you name it – music and theatre have always been my saving grace.
It’s a combination of the people and the work itself. Read More>>

Leo Ciaramitaro

In 1987, in the early morning hours before school, a few of us would gather in the auditorium at Gloucester High School to jump on the drum set and show off. Jaime, a classmate, had been taking lessons for a while and could absolutely crush “Moby Dick” by Led Zeppelin. Watching him rip through that solo filled me with jealousy—I wanted to play like that. More than that, I wanted the approval of my peers, something I didn’t get very often. Read More>>