Michael Thomas
Photographer
As an accomplished photojournalist, Michael Thomas often finds himself engaged in some of the area’s most important and polarizing stories. His work has appeared in both national and international publications, on television shows and with various big-name companies. What drives Michael is having the unique opportunity to connect with many different people as he documents their stories, especially those that often are overlooked. Favorite spot in St. Louis: University City Loop. Learn more at miketphotog.com.
miketphotog
miketphotog
Contributions
How the brothers behind a St. Louis startup are pioneering technology to prevent the next pandemic
With its innovative breath-based diagnostic and air bio-detector, Varro Life Sciences aims to protect against future global health crises.
The Best in the Game
Rawlings Sporting Goods has called St. Louis home since 1887. Today, with an interactive fan experience, and custom gloves and wood bats made in the metro, it’s still…
A World of Good
Through its skills training and support programs, Forai helps immigrant and refugee women in St. Louis build better lives — for themselves and their families.
60+ Valentine’s Day Gifts, Treats, and Date Ideas in St. Louis
Shop local for Valentine’s Day gifts and plan the ultimate St. Louis dates for your friends or someone special.
15+ Ways to Get Moving in St. Louis
Explore St. Louis area hiking trails, cycling paths, indoor dance studios, inclusive playgrounds and programs, and more ways to get moving across the metro.
2025 Year In Review: 40+ Inspiring
St. Louis Stories
From nationally beloved arts institutions and culinary stars to community leaders helping to rebuild after the tornado, take a look back at this year’s STLMade stories.
The Heart of the Arts
For four decades, the Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis has invested more than $115 million to shape and support the region’s vibrant arts community.
75+ St. Louis Spots to Shop for Holiday Gifts
This holiday season, shop local while supporting shops and makers in the St. Louis community.
Composing the Future
St. Louis Symphony Orchestra President and CEO Marie-Hélène Bernard reflects on the debut and future of the institution at its expanded and renovated home at Powell Hall at…
20+ Must-Try Sweets and Treats in St. Louis
From cookies, cakes, and pastries to donuts, ice cream, and confections, these St. Louis bakeries, coffee shops, and restaurants serve up the sweets.
Recover. Rebuild. Renew.
In the week after the May 16, 2025 tornado that devastated St. Louis, photographers R.J. Hartbeck, Tyler Small, and Michael Thomas documented the communities hit the hardest.
Game Changing
Mona Jawad and Ayesha Kazi founded ASL Aspire to bring a game-based approach to teaching American Sign Language for STEM concepts through interactive lessons.
Love Your Neighbor
With long-term tornado recovery now part of its mission, LOVEtheLOU continues to work from within to help North City flourish.
4 Must-Try Restaurants and Bars in Downtown St. Louis
Explore tasty eats, drinks, and treats at four locally owned spots Downtown.
Fielding
Opportunity
With the Dream Big Foundation, Jorge Flores is making competitive soccer more accessible for kids in underserved communities across the St. Louis metro.
Leveling the Playing Field
The Gateway Region YMCA’s Adaptive Sports Complex and adaptive programming offer inclusive play for all.
Center Stage
For over 100 years, The Muny has been a jewel of U.S. musical theater and a vibrant cultural institution for generations of St. Louisans.
“Get In WhereYou Fit In”
After a devastating tornado, the St. Louis community comes together to help North City residents.
Engineering a Better Tomorrow
At LUZCO Technologies in Maplewood, founder and CEO Lusnail Haberberger has built a successful engineering consulting firm with a focus on recruiting a diverse team.
Breaking the Ice
Based out of Maryland Heights, the St. Louis Blues’ Girls Development Program offers an accessible and affordable entry point into hockey for young girls.
Ready to Roll
Arch Rival, St. Louis’ oldest roller derby league, celebrates 20 years of skating, competition, and belonging.
On the Right Track
Race car driver and Kirkwood native Spike Kohlbecker’s career is picking up speed as he cruises into his third season with Toyota Gazoo Racing North America.
Building Blocks
With the Economic Mobility Program at Annie Malone Children and Family Services, Keisha Lee is empowering and elevating young men in St. Louis.
Set Up for Success
At the University of Missouri-St. Louis, Jonathan Lidgus and his team help students with disabilities thrive in college and land successful careers.
Home Run
Exploring St. Louis by foot, Ricky Hughes helps locals and transplants alike connect with the city in a new way through St. Louis Run Crew.
In the Key of Collaboration
With his bootcamp, Mvstercamp, St. Louis artist, producer, and songwriter Mvstermind is elevating creativity and collaboration — and the city’s music scene.
2024 Year In Review: 40+ Inspiring St. Louis Stories
From world-class artists and innovative entrepreneurs to culinary creatives and community trailblazers, take a look back at this year’s STLMade stories.
Pet Project
With its line of all-natural nutritional supplements hitting retail stores nationwide, St. Louis-based Native Pet is evolving pet nutrition for dogs.
Generation
Geospatial
At Harris-Stowe State University, Dr. Freddie E. Wills, Jr., Ph.D., is training students from historically Black colleges and universities across the U.S. for futures in geospatial science.
Fair Play
Unlimited Play founder Natalie Mackay designs and builds inclusive playgrounds for children across the St. Louis metro — and in cities across the country.
Foundational
Fathers
A new St. Louis-based program, Dads to Doulas, seeks to empower Black men in all aspects of fatherhood — both to enrich their parenting journeys and to advocate…
A Latte of Love
With three successful cafes opened in four years, Latte Lounge owner and entrepreneur Nyshaun Harvey is bringing coffee and community to the St. Louis metro. And that’s only…
New Stages
In just three years, the St. Louis region has gained three world-class music festivals, bringing national and local artists to stages across the metro.
Seeds of Change
Founded in Argentina, agtech startup Seed Matriz is developing seed encapsulation technology so farmers can save and plant more seeds — and thanks to investment and support in…
Words on the Street
With PSA, Shannon Levin and Marina Peng elevate and amplify St. Louis artists with unexpected and accessible art installations around town.
Fit for Everyone
Team Saint Louis, an inclusive sports league, welcomes all for fitness, friendship, and fun.
In Perfect Harmony
For nearly three decades, BandTogether has united LGBTQ+ musicians of all ages and skill levels to share beautiful music and performance with the St. Louis community.
A Different Ball Game
At True Success Basketball & Fitness Academy in St. Charles, Thurlester Robinson, Jr. uses basketball as a vehicle to teach kids lessons in teamwork, self-esteem, and leadership.
Feeding the Need
The Little Angels Foundation serves hot, home-cooked meals to refugees, immigrants, and the unhoused community in St. Louis.
Community Fabric
At Profield Reserve on Cherokee Street, Christopher Loss designs vintage sportswear-inspired clothing — and offers a community hub for all.
Prep Work
With Top Tutors For Us, founder Angelica Harris is helping Black high school students build academic skills and improve college admissions test scores in St. Louis and across…
2023 Year In Review: 25+ Inspiring
St. Louis Stories
From community transformers and restaurateurs to inspiring artists and innovative startup founders, take a look back at this year’s STLMade stories.
Mother of Invention
With Bask & Bloom Essentials, Candera Thompson has created hair-care products that empower women and help with postpartum hair health.
Friendship, Faith and Futures
Pastors Ken and Beverly Jenkins opened community development hub R&R Marketplace in Dellwood with the aim to change lives.
Mapping
Tomorrow
Through her nonprofit workforce development organization, Gateway Global, Zekita Armstrong Asuquo is training under-resourced high school students for entry-level jobs in the geospatial field.
Harnessing Talent
Entrepreneur and talent recruiter Anjie Sanford has launched a new program through BioSTL that offers minority college students internships at St. Louis bioscience companies and helps them thrive…
Making Moves
Danielle Deavens and Doug Spencer, Bold Xchange founders, and Craig and Mowgli Rivard, owners of Little Fox, share why they moved to St. Louis to grow their businesses.
Manufacturing the Future
Southwestern Illinois College leads the way in educating the next generation of manufacturing workers, helping to realize the vision of a thriving advanced manufacturing industry that will drive…
The Path Forward
Doug and Bill Mitchell’s startup ScholarPath helps graduating high school students figure out what’s next.
A Promising
Prescription
Educator-turned-entrepreneur Marcus Howard is raising the standard of pharmacy care with the launch of GreaterHealth Pharmacy & Wellness in the Delmar DivINe.
Bold Moves
Through Bold Xchange, co-founders Danielle Deavens and Doug Spencer aim to improve equity in entrepreneurship by helping large companies support smaller Black-owned businesses.
Stitching Vibes
Abbey Eilermann and her team at the Daily Disco bring fresh eyes and unique designs to the vintage art of chainstitching.
A Reading
Revolution
For more than 25 years, Ready Readers has helped advance social and racial equity in St. Louis by bolstering literacy education for preschoolers in low-income communities.
2022 Year In Review
Take a look back at this year's STLMade stories.
Tastes of Home
Shayn Prapaisilp’s parents introduced Thai food to St. Louis in 1983. Now Prapaisilp is leading the family business into a new era, bringing Thai cuisine and other international…
Open Arms
Moji Sidiqi leads the International Institute of St. Louis’ Afghan Support Program in helping refugees adjust to their new home.
More Than A Market
Lacy Cagle leads City Greens Market in the Grove to be a hub for community, education and local produce.
Cooking Up
Propel Kitchens is building health and wealth within the historically under-resourced community of the St. Louis Promise Zone by providing its members with hands-on training in food preparation…
Sew Crafty
First through a youth academy and now with a new online portal, Olivia Rae Davis wants to get more people into sewing.
Notes of Community
Soul artist turned community facilitator Brian Owens helps lift up young creatives in St. Louis.
Life-Saving Science
Dr. Sarah George and other researchers at Saint Louis University School of Medicine’s Center for Vaccine Development are leading national efforts to find treatments for a wide range…
The Future of Farming
Creve Coeur-based Climate LLC is helping transform the possibilities, profits and precision of farming in the digital age.
Hive Mind – Part Two
A team of local scientists work together on how to improve produce yields in urban orchards and community gardens.
Hive Mind – Part One
With the goal of helping community gardens produce more fresh food, scientists from six different St. Louis institutions are collaborating to research pollination in urban orchards.
Space for STEM
With Black Girls Do STEM, chemist Cynthia Chapple and her team are carving out an inclusive space for young Black girls to engage with science, technology, engineering and…
Raising the Bar
With ethically sourced cacao and local raw honey, Cam and Haley Loyet’s Honeymoon Chocolates makes bean-to-bar craft chocolate in its new Clayton factory, shop and cafe.
Rewriting the Narrative
At EyeSeeMe Bookstore in University City, Jeffrey and Pamela Blair are fulfilling their calling to provide people with positive stories of African Americans.
Drawing Outside the Lines
Steenz Stewart has blazed their own trail in the comics industry to become one of the few Black cartoonists at the helm of a nationally syndicated strip.
A Wider Net
St. Louis’ storied soccer tradition will take a leap forward in 2023 with an MLS team of its own, St. Louis CITY SC, whose goal is to include…
2021 Year In Review
Take a look back at this year's STLMade stories.
Off to the Races
St. Louis welcomes the NASCAR Cup Series to the region at World Wide Technology Raceway in Madison, Illinois, thanks to the decade-long efforts of track owner and CEO…
Giving Lessons
With the support of her local Buy Nothing group, Briana Morales guides her students in East St. Louis through social-emotional learning as well as their academic education.
Flavor Full
Charlene Lopez Young and Darren Young are bringing Filipino flavors to the region with their barbecue and smoked meats business, The Fattened Caf.
Natural Wonders
St. Louisans find peace and purpose in parks and on trails throughout the region.
Flipping the Script
Akeem Shannon is on a gravity-defying entrepreneurial rise with his creation, Flipstik.
Building Bridges
Natissia Small, Ed.D., reduces barriers for St. Louis youth to pursue and succeed in higher education.
Tap Into Talent
Led by Chief Operating Officer Sarah Bernard, Inclusively connects employees with disabilities with compatible jobs, and helps companies adapt to employees’ needs.
Exploring the Final Frontiers
At Impossible Sensing in St. Louis, Pablo Sobron leads a team of scientists and engineers in building sensors to explore and study the deep sea and deep space.
Plant-Based
Possibilities
Trezel Brown's CC's Vegan Spot has become a destination for local vegans and is converting more folks to try plant-based dishes.
Making Art at the MAC
Brandace Cloud's art collective is bringing people together in Staunton, Illinois.
Ready, Set, Launch
Je'Nell McCrary transitioned from radio to tech thanks to skills she gained through LaunchCode's CoderGirl program.
Preserving the Past, Shaping the Future
Michael Allen pushes back against the traditional view of preservation, and wants St. Louisans to embrace and appreciate all parts of the region - including those that have…
Empowering
Parents
The Navigate STL Schools dashboard and programs are helping parents make informed decisions for their children's education.
Mapping Out The Future
St. Louis is positioned to become an international hub for the geospatial industry.
Mapping Inequities
Kemba Noel-London used geospatial data in her doctoral research to discover disparities in access to youth sports throughout the St. Louis region.
Flying High
Entrepreneur Bronwyn Morgan brings drones and geospatial tech together with her company, XEO Air.
Defining
Geospatial
Leaders in the region explain geospatial technology and the many ways it's being used in St. Louis.
Bridging the Gap
The Foodshed.io app links small family farms to grocery stores so consumers can buy more local produce and farmers can do what they do best: grow food.
Brewing Community
St. Louis brewers find new ways to connect with beer lovers and continue their businesses during the pandemic.
Changing the Conversation
Local start-up We Stories is teaching the next generation to be anti-racist.
Advocating for Others
Dwayne Smith's first job was with the National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, and now, through education, he seeks to build up the geospatial workforce in St. Louis.
Traduciendo el Apoyo
Lourdes Bailón y Gabriela Ramírez-Arellano crearon STLJuntos, una paginaweb y de Facebook que se ha convertido en un recurso esencial para los hispanohablantes de St. Louis.
Translating Support
Lourdes Bailón and Gabriela Ramírez-Arellano created STLJuntos, a Facebook page and website that has become an essential resource for Spanish-speaking St. Louisans.
Friends in Knead
At Knead Bakehouse + Provisions, AJ and Kirsten Brown Rise to Meet Changing Needs During the Pandemic.
Personal Growth
Home gardens flourish in quarantine, providing floral beauty, nutritious food and positive mental health benefits.
Serving Families in Need
When what's "normal" changes overnight, faith leaders come together to support children facing food insecurity.
Data for the Greater Good
Saint Louis University professor Enbal Shacham, Ph.D., uses geospatial techniques to track the spread of the coronavirus.
Streaming With Faith
Places of worship use technology to connect with those looking for guidance in a time of uncertainty.
Download, Dine, Donate
Washington University graduate Andrew Glantz is giving back to the St. Louis community with his app, GiftAMeal.
Hope and Heart
Valeda Keys turns strength into action as she helps St. Louis women recover from breast cancer.
Home(Town) Brew
Here in one of the nation's top beer cities, St. Louis brewers are shaping the industry's future.
Pump Up the Volume
Through their Tunespeak platform, St. Louis musicians Tom and Rick Pernikoff are connecting international performers with ardent fans.
Funny Business
St. Louis is nurturing comedy careers, thanks to new talent and major events like Zach Gzehoviak’s Flyover Comedy Festival.
Feeding St. Louis
Local food assistance organizations are gaining national recognition for their commitment to education and action.
A Global Community
As the St. Louis region recruits top international talent to its companies, Susan Gobbo is building a support system for the families that follow.
Road Trip
Brothers Nick and Irfan Sinanovic are innovating the trucking industry through their rapidly growing, St. Louis-based company Vega Transport.
Call of the Wild
For Kari Musgrave, honing her veterinary skills at the world-class Saint Louis Zoo is a dream come true.
Rising Stars
Women business owners in St. Louis are drawing more funding and attention than ever before while giving other women a boost.
Urban Oasis
Theo Smith thought he’d become an urban planner, but Kennedy Forest in Forest Park beckoned.
A Grand Slam
St. Louis scores again and again as one of the nation’s best baseball cities.
All That Jazz
Lauren Parks and Jas Gary Pearson have turned the childhood home of music legend Miles Davis into a community catalyst.
Innovation Destination
OPO Startups founder Randy Schilling boosts Main Street St. Charles by connecting local tech, retail and service communities.
Appetite for Action
De Nichols and the FoodSpark team bring social change to the potluck table.
Finding the Spirit
SLU professors Pauline Lee and Rachel Lindsey are exploring what religion in unexpected places means to St. Louis’s future.
Niche of Time
John Clark and Masterclock keep the world in sync.
Keys to the Community
Kayia Baker and Pianos for People are changing lives one note at a time.
Family Matters
Angie Smart is an accomplished violinist with the St. Louis Symphony – a career her son Theo Bockhorst might want, too.
Bass-ic Instinct
Tonina’s passion for the low notes is creating a hum in St. Louis.
Cooking with Love
Through food, ‘MamaCat’ Cathy Daniels nurtures and respects St. Louis’s unhoused residents.
