From the time I was 18, I have had an entrepreneurial spirit. I launched my first business, Lucky 7 Mobile DJ Services, the summer after graduating high school. From then on, I have embarked on several ventures over the years. Some have succeeded and some have failed. No matter what, I have enjoyed the process and work.
Most of my businesses revolve around the world of journalism and website design with a little photography and freelance writing thrown into the mix. What follows is an overview of the ventures I am involved in (omitting a failed monthly magazine and a weekly newspaper that never got off the ground due to financing).
My work history is available on LinkedIn. If you like what you see and would like to discuss how we could work together, please send me a message via the Contact page.
Disk Jockey
Lucky Se7en Mobile DJ Services officially opened for business on July 1, 2004. Within the first few months, Lucky 7 began booking gigs for various events, and by the end of the first full year, the business had jobs across the state and in Nebraska and Missouri. DJing everything from birthday parties and corporate events to weddings and school formals, Lucky 7 continues to keep each and every party alive with excitement and fun. Read more at www.lucky7dj.com, which is now a part of this site.
Publisher
In June 2014, Todd Vogts and Jerod Horchem decided they wanted to fill the need of small businesses and non-profit organizations in search of professional and affordable design and production services. They were tired of seeing big companies take advantage of the little guy. Jerod worked for a small business and had seen this firsthand. Todd also saw how schools could be better served by having more options for printing school publications, such as magazines and yearbooks. So, having been involved in print journalism for close to ten years, Todd formulated a plan to launch a company he and Jerod could call their own.
Lucky 7 Publishing LLC was launched, and it provided media design and production services at an affordable price. This ranged from postcards, brochures, monthly magazines, school publications, and email marketing, to name just some of the services offered. This Kansas-based publishing and media company’s flagship product was the monthly Wichita Family Magazine.
Due to economic hardships, the company was shuttered in 2020.
Rental Company
Established in 2016, Eighty One Properties LLC was founded by Todd and Kendall Vogts and DaWayne and Britney Stos with the intention of providing high-quality but affordable homes to rent in the McPherson County area. The company name paid homage to Old U.S. Route 81, which runs along the west edge of Moundridge.
Due to economic hardships, the properties were sold and the company was dissolved in 2021.
Web Designer & Admin
I designed and maintain this site and all of the sites mentioned above. WordPress is my CMS of choice, but I have used Weebly and Wix as well. Additionally, I use Dreamweaver and the now-defunct Adobe Muse, and I enjoy learning to use new and different platforms, such as Adobe Spark. I used Dreamweaver to build the original www.lucky7dj.com and used Muse to create the original Eighty One Properties website.
Outside of my own, I also create and manage sites for other entities. Some of this work consists of less involved work. However, three projects have been more intensive.
The Coronado Quivira Museum website was created using Weebly. I then gave instructions on how the museum personnel could maintain the website independently. The museum has since redesigned its website.
I originally designed the Ransom, Arnold, Brownell, Western Plains Alumni Association website and the Galva Alumni Association websites using Dreamweaver before switching them over to WordPress. Both organizations elected to forgo their websites due to financial constraints, so they are no longer online.