Growing up in South Florida, Vanessa was exposed to the rich and colorful stories brought forward by hispanic communities. Her parents, each from their own Latin American countries, wove culture and tradition into the fabric of their daily lives. Having spent their 20’s working on cruise ships and traveling the world, her parents’ home became a revolving door of friends and family from all different countries. It was here, amid the clinking of coffee cups and the hum of layered accents, that her curiosity for people took root.

That same curiosity eventually led her on her own adventures. As she began to travel, work on cruise ships, live in other countries, and make her way into homes and kitchens far from her own, she continued to develop her passion for people with diverse backgrounds and the common humanity that is often at the route of their stories. With her degrees in fashion design and international business, she’s combined her love for creativity with her instinct for connection. Her travels, her volunteer work with the elderly, and her creative projects have all revealed the same truth: a desire to find and form community and to honor the stories that knit people together.

Vanessa continues to chase those stories: the ones whispered across kitchen tables, traded on long train rides, exchanged through tears and laughter, or carried across oceans.

She believes that every person is a living archive, and she’s determined to keep immersing herself in their pages.