He Had Him at ‘Howdy’

Just three words had passed between Will Jardell and James Wallington when each said they knew they had found the “one.” The two met in February 2014 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles during auditions for the reality TV show “America’s Next Top Model.” Mr. Wallington was a casting assistant, Mr. Jardell, an…

Opening Their Eyes to Art and Each Other

When Opera Memphis staged a production of “Porgy and Bess” at the city’s Orpheum Theater in the fall of 2006, there were at least two love stories playing out in the room. One centered on Gershwin’s titular opera characters; the other, two high-school students in the audience. Talibah Safiya and Bertram Williams Jr. were different…

‘Who the Heck Are You?’

A graduate of William Woods University in Fulton, Mo., where she earned a bachelor’s degree in English communications, Ms. Kunkler is now a senior vice president, financial adviser and the global sports and entertainment director at Morgan Stanley in Kansas City, Mo., where she lives and grew up. Born and raised in Phoenix, Ms. Todare…

From ‘Yes, and’ to ‘I Do’

In the spring of 2017, Roseanne Blair and Houston Hardaway played a married couple onstage while performing improv at Dallas Comedy House. Four years later, they became husband and wife. The two had become acquainted in 2016, through the local improv scene. “We really loved the comedy chemistry we had, which turned into friendship,” said…

10 Gifts to Buy for Yourself

Traditionally, the holiday season focuses a lot on shopping for other people. You research, budget, and try to figure out exactly what will delight someone else when they get through ripping off your aesthetically pleasing wrapping paper. But, ask yourself: Why aren’t you on your own list? If the purpose of a holiday gift is…

Not Home for the Holidays

Megan Vice’s family lives on Long Island and wants her to come home for the holidays, but for the past few years, spending Christmas there has been a bummer. “My parents don’t even have a tree anymore,” said Ms. Vice, a 31-year-old musician who lives in Los Angeles. “I need to be doing things that…

Black Women Make Waves in Hair Care

Ms. Donaldson, a Harvard-educated lawyer, developed her brand after writing her first book, “Thank God I’m Natural.” Almost 20 years ago, after she stopped relaxing her hair and learned to embrace her kinks and curls, she had an “aha” moment. “It was like, ‘Thank God, I’m natural,’” she said. “Thank God, I can go swimming,…