Interesting People
Message Received
If Sami Kader feels down or overwhelmed, he takes his own advice: “Never give up—you got this.”
It’s a message Kader spreads to more than 50,000 young people each year through his motivational movement program, Sami’s Circuit. It’s also a message kids in more than 100 schools throughout the state receive remotely through his weekly video series, “Sami’s Circuit On Demand.”
Frame Up
Every Christmas, Kathy Caitano gives her sons a piece of original art. Her grandkids get one too. This unique gifting strategy is not just because Caitano owns Artistic Edge Custom Framing & Gallery on Fulton Avenue. It’s because she knows the importance of getting children hooked early on art.
“Art education in the U.S. is lacking,” says Caitano, who has owned Artistic Edge for 15 years. “In Europe, art is not a luxury but a necessity. Here, people don’t feel that way if they’re not exposed to art when they’re young. My kids grew up in the gallery, so they know how to admire art. I always suggest that people bring their little ones in and expose them to art—they love it.”
Exercise Caution
Exercise Caution Yoga studios need rules as business returns By Amira Sweilem May 2021 Julie Havelock, owner of Purely Hot Yoga, reopened her studio in response to demand. Despite COVID-19 closures, some of her clients pleaded with the business to...
Reporting For Duty
For Sgt. Frincee Prado, the Army is more than a career. As he sees it, “It’s a major opportunity to use your own personal skills, talent and passions to make a real difference in people’s lives at home and abroad.”
Prado has been a technical engineer with the U.S. Army Engineering team for four years. In that time, he’s been part of the design and construction of several Army projects across the country and abroad. He’s one of 12 soldiers starring in the latest installment of the Army’s “What’s Your Warrior?” campaign that aims to educate young people about the breadth and depth of careers in the nation’s largest military branch.
Hospitality Man
Sacramento resident Timothy Sheehan works as a hospitality ambassador at the McDonald’s on Watt Avenue near Myrtle in North Highlands. He recently celebrated 25 years of employment.
Sheehan brightens the lives of customers on a daily basis. That’s a big part of his job.
“Timmy is a breath of fresh air,” says Faris Abdelshaid, McDonald’s director of operations. “He is always punctual and makes everyone around him feel better. He brings warmth, joy and smiles to every customer and fellow employee he meets.”
Brewed For Success
Onit Coffee’s motto is “Impacting lives one cup at a time.”
Founder and owner Shadi Khattab chose the phrase for his business—Sacramento’s first mobile gourmet coffee truck—as a homage to his partnerships with nonprofits and coffee’s integral role in his Middle Eastern upbringing.
“In my culture, we’re very big on quality tea and coffee,” says Khattab, who emigrated from Syria at age 5 with his family so his father could pursue medical studies. “Family and friends sit down together and bond over a cup of coffee. It’s a very big cultural thing for me, so I thought, why not bring aspects of my culture into the business I want to create?”
