In this episode of Celebrate Your Story , I sit down with Ed Mitzen, founder and CEO of FingerPaint Group and Business for Good Foundation for a conversation about what it takes to build a company that lasts.

Ed walked away from a stable career at 30, with young children at home and no guarantees ahead. He started his business in a basement, pushed through years of uncertainty, burnout, and personal loss, and ultimately built FingerPaint into an 800-employee company serving some of the largest healthcare organizations in the country.

Along the way, he learned lessons many entrepreneurs discover the hard way — that the work never truly shuts off and that success often comes at a personal cost.

We talk about the parts of entrepreneurship people don't always share: starting over after divorce, carrying the weight of payroll and responsibility, and finding perspective after years of effort. Ed also shares how advances in AI are reshaping healthcare and the workforce, and why those changes have made questions of access, opportunity, and dignity even more urgent.

That urgency led Ed and his wife to create the Business for Good Foundation, using their business skills and resources to invest in workforce development, housing, and entrepreneurship in underserved communities. It's a reminder that while business can be demanding, it can also be a powerful tool for lifting others. What do you think? Share your thoughts and stories with me here.

What if the real secret to happiness isn't success, money, or achievement—but love, relationships, and how we show up for one another?

In this episode of Celebrate Your Story, I sit down with Professor Arthur Brooks, a Harvard professor and behavioral scientist who has dedicated his life to studying what makes people happy. Arthur is a best-selling author and one of the most thoughtful voices on happiness, faith, and meaning today. Our conversation goes far beyond theory. We discuss family, marriage, faith, money, purpose, and why many high-achieving individuals still feel empty.

Arthur shares insights from decades of research, including why chasing "the number" never works, why love must come before ambition, and how happiness is built through enjoyment, satisfaction, and meaning—not fleeting feelings. We explore the science behind relationships, the role of faith and prayer, the importance of commitment, and why serving others is the surest path to a meaningful life.

As someone who's spent nearly 50 years in the business of helping people express love through flowers and gifts, this conversation deeply resonated with me. It's a reminder that while products may change, relationships are everything.

If you've ever questioned what success is really for, how to live with greater purpose, or how to turn your life into something that truly matters—this is a conversation you don't want to miss.

In this special Celebrate Your Story, I revisit my early years working at St. John's Residence for Boys, a home for boys who couldn't safely live with their families. It was a place where structure created stability and relationships created possibility.

At the time, I was a young counselor, learning the job alongside the boys themselves. My days were shaped by schedules, shared meals, hard conversations, and small moments of trust earned over time. St. John's showed me how much consistency matters, and how powerful it can be when a young person knows someone will show up for them, day after day.

In this episode, I share stories from life inside St. John's, including the boys who taught me resilience, the mentors who modeled patience and leadership, and the experiences that revealed how belief and guidance can shape a young person's future. These relationships left a mark on me and influenced how I think about responsibility and leadership to this day.

This episode reflects on service and the role we each play in creating environments where people can grow. It's a reminder that our stories are formed through relationships — through the people we support, the lessons we pass on, and the communities that help us become who we're meant to be.

As the holiday season unfolds, we're reminded that the most meaningful traditions are often the simplest ones.

In this Holiday Edition, I share heartfelt stories from our community about ornaments passed down through generations, small rituals that spark laughter, and traditions born from love, creativity, and sometimes even necessity.

These moments, whether painted by little hands, forgotten cranberry sauce, or a New Year's fairy known only to one family, remind us that holidays aren't about perfection. They're about connection, memory, and the power we all have to create traditions that can last far beyond us.

December birthdays come with their own unique challenges — and their own unexpected joys. It's a month when celebrations can feel overshadowed by holiday plans, winter weather, and the rush of the season.

In this special episode of Celebrate Your Story , Jim reflects on the notes and memories Celebrations Pulse readers have shared about what it's really like to have a birthday in December.

Community members share how they learned to embrace the timing, carve out their own traditions, and appreciate the way a December birthday can bring everyone a little closer. From feeling lost in the swirl of "birthmas" gifts to discovering the perks of a season already filled with warmth and togetherness, these stories show that meaning comes from the people who make space for us.

Grief is one of the toughest journeys we face and one every one of us walks through it at some point in our lives.

In this special mini-episode of Celebrate Your Story, Jim reflects on the stories Celebrations Pulse readers shared about loss, healing, and the ways we show up for one another.

From the wisdom of "there's no timeline for grief" to the power of a buddy check, these stories remind us that comfort grows from simple presence. Community members share how they endured unimaginable loss, found strength in counseling groups, leaned on faith, celebrated beautiful memories, and learned to let grief move through them instead of fighting it.

In this mini-episode, we honor the quiet heroes among us caregivers. Through personal reflections, we explore the gratitude, challenges, and unexpected blessings that come with caring for someone you love. It's a story of family, community, selflessness, and the powerful legacy passed from one generation to the next.

This episode is a reminder that caregiving isn't just responsibility — it's love, connection, and the heart of what holds families together.

Thanksgiving is more than a meal — it's a moment to pause, reflect, and share gratitude.

In this short conversation, we explore the traditions that bring families together: opening your home to others, celebrating the small joys, and honoring the rituals that connect generations.

From stories of community to simple moments of thankfulness, this episode reminds us why this holiday still means so much.

In this very special episode of Celebrate Your Story, I sit down with someone many of you know well: former NBA All-Star and legendary rebounder Jayson Williams. After a brilliant career cut short by injuries, Jayson went through some very dark years — addiction, public struggle, and eventually incarceration.

But he refused to let his past define him. Instead, he chose gratitude, accountability, and the hard work of rebuilding. In doing so, he's helping others rebuild their lives too.

Jayson walks me through the journey that led him to create REBOUND, a program grounded in outdoor adventure and spiritual grounding for adults in recovery and returning from incarceration. From paddleboarding to skydiving, REBOUND gives its participants confidence, connection, and a sense of possibility.

He also shares his newest effort, REBOUND on the Road, an eight-week truck-driving program in Nassau County that helps people earn commercial licenses and take their first steps toward meaningful careers.

This is a story about resilience and the power of lifting others as you rise. I hope you'll tune in to hear Jayson's extraordinary second act and the impact he's making every day.

I've always believed that stories are how we make sense of life. They're how we connect, teach, and remember. Whether it's a tale passed around a dinner table or one shared in a business meeting, the right story can bridge generations and bring people closer together.

In this week's Celebrate Your Story, I sit down with Kindra Hall, a bestselling author and expert in storytelling who's helped thousands of people learn how to share their stories with authenticity. Kindra believes that every person's story has value, even the ones we might think are too ordinary or small.

Our conversation reminded me that the best stories don't need to be perfect, just honest. We talk about the importance of finding the heart in our experiences, how to match stories to the messages we want to share, and why self-deprecating moments often connect us most deeply to others.

Take a moment to reflect on your own story and the lessons you've learned, the people who've shaped you, and the moments that have made you who you are. When we share those stories, we tell people who we are and remind them they're not alone.