About Rapid Growth
Grand Rapids community news
Rapid Growth covers the people, organizations, and ideas moving Grand Rapids forward. From small businesses to big projects, we cover the work happening on the ground to drive meaningful change. This is Grand Rapids community news you won’t read anywhere else.
We are committed to solutions journalism that reflects lived experience, builds understanding, and strengthens connection. Our Grand Rapids community news uncovers how communities are responding to real challenges — practical solutions, local leadership, entrepreneurs, and community organizations working to improve quality of life and expand opportunity.
Informed, engaged communities depend on open access to local information. All of our content is free and accessible, with no paywall.
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Our Team
Tommy Allen, Publisher & Lifestyle Editor
Tommy Allen, a Communications Major from Calvin University, is a founding member of Rapid Growth as well as the author of more than 2,500 stories on the Greater Grand Rapids art scene. Tommy’s civic contributions span leadership in projects such as Green Grand Rapids and the Urban Forestry Committee. As a trailblazer, he served as the first Queer person to chair the Community Relations Commission from 2017 to 2019. As Rapid Growth’s Publisher since February 2015, he balances his journalism work with his creative pursuits leaving space for quality time in the garden, nights out exploring the local arts scene, and volunteering in his neighborhood to keep it funky. #KeepCrestonFunky.
Shandra Martinez, Managing Editor
Shandra is an award-winning writer and reporter. After a distinguished career in daily journalism, she launched her Holland-based business, Shandra Martinez Communications. A longtime resident of West Michigan, she now writes and edits on a variety of platforms for clients in Michigan and across the country.
You can reach her at editor@rapidgrowthmedia.com.
Lucia Rios, Co-editor, Disability Inclusion Series
Lucia is the Co-Editor of the award-winning Southwest Michigan-focused series Disability Inclusion. Lucia has been awarded a lot since she joined us in this work, including the prestigious 2023 PRSA’s Media Person of the Year for her work on this series. Please visit here to see all the award-winning stories that Lucia and Shandra Martinez co-edited together since 2022.
Lindsay Patton-Carson, Project Editor, Voices of Youth
Lindsay, a Journalism graduate from Grand Valley State University and owner of Blackstar Communications, brings her seasoned journalism expertise to Rapid Growth’s education-focused program. Since 2023, she has led the Voices of Youth (VOY) story series, introducing innovative lessons that amplify local youth voices. Lindsay’s extensive background includes teaching at Aquinas College, with her writing featured in local publications and notable magazines like The Huffington Post, Entrepreneur, Business Insider, PhillyVoice, and the Center for Health Journalism. VOY, a pioneering journalism training program, is transforming youth engagement and representation on both the local and national scenes.
Contributors: Estelle Slootmaker, Sarah Spohn, Matthew Russell, Shanika Carter, Bill Lee, Ashley King, and Joanne Bailey-Boorsma
Photography Contributors: Tyler Herbstreith, Tommy Allen
Emeritus Editors: Anna Gustafson, Juliet Bennet Rylah, Lauren Fay Carlson, Leandra Nisbet, Stephanie Doublestein, Matt Gryczan, Daniel Schoonmaker, and Andy Guy
About Issue Media Group
Vital journalism moving communities forward
Rapid Growth is part of the Issue Media Group family of publications.
Issue Media Group (IMG) is a national network of locally focused publications advancing community transformation through solutions-oriented journalism.
Across our markets, we report on the people, organizations, and practical responses addressing real challenges — sharing insights that communities can learn from and build on.
As the parent company of this publication, IMG provides the editorial framework, infrastructure, and cross-market collaboration that strengthen local impact.
Founded in 2005 in Detroit, IMG partners with mission-aligned organizations across the public, private, nonprofit, and grassroots sectors through an underwriting model of publishing. Our journalists engage directly with residents and stakeholders through ongoing listening sessions, ensuring that our reporting is community-informed, trust-building, and grounded in lived experience.
IMG’s journalism has been recognized and supported by national media and civic organizations, including the Knight Foundation, Solutions Journalism Network, Columbia Journalism Review, INC Magazine, Ground Source, and the Society for Professional Journalists.
