For some entrepreneurs, business and personal life intertwine intentionally, as couples build together, navigating the rewards and challenges of working side by side, showing how trust, communication, and mutual respect can transform collaboration into both a livelihood and a way of life.
Elevate Events: Building a Business and a Life Together
For Elyse Jurutka and Darin Price, co-owners of Elevate Events, a dance studio and venue, building a business has been an extension of the life they’ve built together. Their studio on Pitkin Street reflects two decades of shared creativity, partnership, and community-building.
Originally from downstate New York, Jurutka and Price studied at the Rochester Institute of Technology and the University of Buffalo, respectively, and made Rochester home, where they met in the dance community in 2013. Their parallel careers (Jurutka in operations and technology leadership, Price in real estate development and operations) soon intertwined through dance events, eventually leading to a shared business. Rochester, where they’re raising their daughter and son, became the center of their professional and personal life.
Their work is driven by a belief in dance’s transformative power, saying, “We’re inspired by how dance helps people heal, reconnect with their culture, explore new ones, and find joy and confidence in movement.” They cherish watching students grow, forming relationships across generations, and hosting events that bring the community together.
“[We] made a conscious choice early on to prioritize building our local community rather than chasing individual careers as traveling artists,” Jurutka explains. Creating a home for Upstate New York dancers remains one of their proudest accomplishments.
Working side by side offers rewards, including a built-in creative partner, they say. “There’s always someone to test a new dance move with in the kitchen or brainstorm the next event or idea.” Their children have grown up witnessing entrepreneurship and creativity as everyday life.
The challenge, they admit, is separating work from personal time. “Time spent working together isn’t the same as time spent for us.” With full-time careers, a business, and a family, they’ve learned to be intentional about protecting their relationship beyond the studio.
Their advice for couples considering a shared business: “Don’t let the business or your shared passion be the entire foundation of your relationship.” Maintain separate interests, communicate openly, and divide responsibilities based on strengths, they advise, adding, “A healthy relationship makes for a healthy business.”
As Elevate continues to grow, Jurutka and Price remain deeply grateful for the community that has supported them. “Elevate has always been about connection, helping people meet, grow, and celebrate.” For them, Elevate Events is not just a business, but a reflection of the life they’ve built together and the community they’re committed to uplifting.
Krista and Nate Rozzi on Architecture, Partnership, and Place
Krista and Nate Rozzi have built a life together and joined forces in Rochester’s Rozzi Architects, a practice reflecting their shared commitment to collaboration, intentional design, and community.
Krista grew up in Henrietta in a creative household shaped by her father’s work as a graphic designer and an uncle who introduced her to architecture as a purposeful art form. After graduating from Mercy High School, she studied architecture in Buffalo, where she met Nate. Raised in Rochester then the Genesee Valley, Nate developed an appreciation for how buildings and landscapes influence daily life. Both were raised with values that now guide their practice: hard work, curiosity, creativity, family, and service.
Their friendship began in their first year of architecture school amid the pressures of studio culture, laying the foundation for trust and honest communication. That friendship evolved into a romantic and professional partnership. Krista initially launched her own firm, gaining experience that proved invaluable when they joined forces as Rozzi Architects.
The Rozzis reflect that architecture has a long history of couple-led firms, perhaps due to personality types drawn to the profession, perhaps due to the collaborative demands of the profession, perhaps “the ability to give/receive brutally honest criticism,” or something else, but it’s “common enough that it has been the subject of several articles,” they say.
Krista and Nate say their complementary skill sets and “endless trust and confidence in each other” allows them to divide responsibilities flexibly, stepping back when the other is better suited to lead and believe no one is above any task (“You’re likely to find either of us greeting someone at the door, cleaning up the conference room after a meeting, watering plants, or walking our office dogs,” they say). They value teamwork and the opportunity to bring together talented collaborators. With projects ranging from cafés and apartment buildings to medical clinics and office spaces, the firm’s work is dynamic.
Working alongside a spouse brings both rewards and challenges, the Rozzis say. In the firm’s early days, personal and professional time often blurred. Over the years, they’ve learned to set clearer boundaries, keeping most operational conversation at the office while enjoying creative discussions at home. Their daughters have grown up surrounded by sketch paper and building tours, absorbing architecture as a natural part of family life.
Some of their most meaningful moments come from witnessing each other’s professional successes, and their advice for couples considering a joint business: “Always make time for each other. Have fun! Remember to smile, laugh, and enjoy what you build together. It won’t always be easy, but be respectful, supportive, and honest with yourself and with each other.” For the Rozzis, architecture is not just business—it is a responsibility to shape a place with passion, intention, and partnership.
“Always make time for each other. Have fun! Remember to smile, laugh, and enjoy what you build together. It won’t always be easy, but be respectful, supportive, and honest with yourself and with each other.”