Community & Guest List
What happens when you mix a passion for celebrating blackness, slaying the status quo, championing marginalized groups, mild sauce, with a splash of side-eye to pop culture shenanigans? You get Joi’ Has Questions. After spending almost, a decade karate-chopping down microaggressions on the daily in the Media World, she turned her sights to what she feels is truly her purpose in life: to educate Black People about how dope they are and helping others feel empowered to tell their truth. She’s currently the creator and host of the podcast, Joi’ Has Questions, where she motivates people to follow their passions, along with interviewing fellow change agents, tired of being fed b.s. by the powers that be- soooooo I have a question: You, ready?
Best friends Amy and Kate were celebrating their shared birthday in 2017 when the conversation turned to how amazing women are when they join together for a common goal. A few months an official idea was idea sprouted and Rowan Tree coworking and cogrowth community was born. Offering both virtual and in-person memberships, they are pioneering a new way to work. Geared for women and welcome to ALL, Rowan Tree offers an inclusive, safe, and open community and coworking space. Within their growth ecosystem of women entrepreneurs and passionate allies, they intentionally foster a community of connection, collaboration, and inspiration. They infuse a mix of wellness, creativity, laughter, self-health, and kindness into their Rowgramming. In the last year, they offered over 200 workshops on professional, business, personal, well-being, and creative growth.
Katiana Jolimeau (KJ) is the owner of Trips Travel Agency. She embarked on a career in travel after having spent many years in the financial services industry. In that time she has spent many years providing travel planning services and concierge to clients worldwide. Her travel specialties lie in international destinations, sporting events and behind the scenes access. If you're looking to follow your team during World Cup or plan your next Safari trip, she's the one who can make your travel dreams come true.
Chandler Sterling founded the California Beard Company in 2016. A cartographer by training but a lover of beards by birth he became frustrated by the cosmetics industry after searching for a high-quality natural beard oil. Fed up with being unable to find a suitable beard oil, and being a DIYer at heart, he set out to create his own recipe that would meet his high standards. The goal was to create something simple, only containing materials that came from the earth, that could mimic a product from the era before cosmetics were synthesized and contained potentially harmful chemicals. The result of this experiment led to California Beard Company’s Original Beard Oil recipe. After months of serious use, he realized that this product needed to be shared with the world, and it’s been a wild ride ever since.
Danielle Kristine Toussaint, founder and CEO of She Thinks Purple, is a storyteller, strategist and social enterprise brand architect on a journey to help mission-driven start-ups make money and a make a difference. She has been the writing pen behind op-eds and speeches for Huffington Post, Forbes.com, and TEDx. Danielle holds a B.A. in Political Science and African American Studies from Yale University and a M.S.Ed from the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education.
Lauren Befus is the founder and chief historian of Memory Lane Jane, a national life story writing company that partners with individuals and families to preserve their loved ones’ life stories and legacies in custom heirloom books. Lauren’s company is based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, where she lives with her husband and four kids, but she travels around the country interviewing and working with life story clients.
Neha Gupta is the founder of College Shortcuts. She is a TEDx speaker, 3 time best selling author, and has helped thousands of students get into the college of their dreams while finding their passion and unique angle. She has built a school in Africa and plans on helping 1 million students over the next ten years while building 100 schools worldwide to push education forward.
Sean is a lifelong digital marketer who runs AlchemyLeads.com, a boutique search engine marketing agency based in Los Angeles, CA. He is a big believer in the motto, "people do business with people, not companies."
Olympia LaRose is a Women in Tech Ambassador, Speaker, and Career Advisor for distinct leaders, managers, and executives. As a former engineering consultant, Olympia has worked with global 500 companies including the United Nations, PIMCO, and Paul Weiss law firm to solve complex technology challenges. Today, she's the Principal and Chief Purpose Officer at Piahrose (pee-ah-rose) a strategic career marketing firm headquartered in Atlanta. Olympia leads the career marketing and coaching development operations, ensuring clients find purpose in work, manage their human capital and develop a strong career brand to future-proof their employment against the tech disruption.
Alison Waldman is a movement artist and wellness educator in healthcare spaces. As the Founder and Lead Facilitator of Available Wellness she works with patients, providers, and industry leaders to incorporate creativity and community building into the culture of healthcare. She brings her expertise in trauma-informed facilitation to hospitals and clinics, leading engagements in mindfulness, yoga, dance and joy practice onsite. She recently helped design and launch two new projects: A wellness support telehealth platform for cancer patients; and a series of creativity workshops for caregivers to build emotional resilience and prevent burnout.
