Full project here.

Optimism is the hope for a successful future. We were lucky enough to spend time with three creative makers who have harnessed their optimism and turned it into action. They’ve used their passions to bring people together into a community, building the America they want to see.

Joe Falcone uses his "Holy Hands" to craft quality surfboards.

To Joe Falcone, being in the water is the best feeling, period. He and the surf were constant partners while growing up in Rockaway Beach, and he channels this passion for the ocean into his talent—a talent that’s earned him the name “Holy Hands”—for shaping iconic surfboards. With his boards gracing the waves of Rockaway Beach and beyond, it’s clear how Joe brings his hometown and larger surf communities together.

Artist Juan Angel Chavez creates work that brings together his community in Chicago.

When Juan Angel Chavez moved to Chicago from Chihuahua, Mexico at the age of 13, he felt stifled by the cramped city. Skateboarding helped him find and create the space he craved, a feeling that directly informs his artistry as he creates larger-than-life sculptures and installations from found artifacts and repurposed materials. Today, he brings together community by reflecting them—their faces, their passions, and their spirit—in his work.

Down in the dirt with Pashon Murray.

Dirt is Pashon Murray’s life. Even as she expands her reach in the environmental space through work worldwide with the UN, it’s dirt—and helping to regrow the city of Detroit from the ground up with the community’s help —that’s still at the heart of everything she does. Through success and hardships, Pashon has dedicated her life to be part of the future of Detroit, and Detroit has had her back in return.