The Art of the Leap

Mariah Smith (class of 2013) is navigating a full, yet deeply rewarding season of life. Between raising three young kids with her husband, Perry, and running a tech startup, inly, together, her days are fast-paced and hands-on.

When asked if her high school self would be surprised at the direction her life went post-graduation, she said, “I’d probably be surprised to learn that I really would end up leaning into being an artist. I loved art class at school, but there were the kids who were like studio artists. I never had any of that opportunity—it just never worked with my schedule.”

Mariah’s journey of falling in love with art was forged purely by sheer passion and doing, and it all started with the support she found at Maranatha Christian Academy.

“I definitely look back and reflect on a lot of the memories from my time at MCA,” Mariah began. "I’m very grateful for the leadership at MCA and how active and involved they were in my own trajectory."

"Grateful for some of the guidance I personally got from Brian Sullivan,” she continued,

I didn’t look like a lot of my classmates [...]. They were very high performing, super academic, and I was more creative and interested in the arts.

“I really appreciated the fact that he [Mr. Sullivan] saw value in that [...] and what I could offer out in the real world and why creatives are going to be important.”

That validation quickly turned into opportunity when during the end of high school, a connection at MCA opened the door for her to begin editing videos for Living Word, something she wanted to pursue full-time.

It’s at Living Word where she gained hands-on experience, met mentors like Ryan Grams, and crossed paths with a freelance photographer named Perry Smith, who would later become her husband. After two years working at Living Word, she landed her dream job at Capture Film Co in 2015—a goal she had had all the way back in 8th grade.

Well, fast forward to today past many great experiences and exciting business ventures, and Mariah and Perry have channeled their immense creative background in visual storytelling into inly, their CRM platform built for small business owners.

Taking that entrepreneurial leap felt natural for Mariah, deeply rooted in a heritage built by her grandpa, Richard Harrison—co-founder of the highly successful snowmobile line, Scorpion Snowmobiles. Mariah's grandpa proved to her that creating and building something successful from scratch was in her blood.

“I’ve always been very drawn to stories,” Mariah shared, reflecting on where she is now and those who came before her, “especially the entrepreneurial ones because of our family and our grandparents being entrepreneurial.”

For Mariah, software has been an exciting new medium upon which to tell a great story and continue that family tradition of entrepreneurism.

When asked what she’s most proud of out of all the new business things she’s created since graduating MCA, Mariah said, “I’m the most proud of inly. I see it almost like a hero’s journey. The main character who goes on a quest. Then they meet some kind of guide who gives them a tip and helps them out along their way. And then they encounter some sort of challenge. And right before they think they’re done for and they can’t overcome it, there’s some sort of breakthrough and plot twist. Then they look back and realize the amazing adventure that they’ve been on.”

“Yes, it’s a business that we’re building,” she clarified, “but it’s really about empowering other business owners to flourish and get the most out of their time and go on their own adventures and carve their own ways.”

Looking back at how all the right pieces seemed to just fall into place to make everything with inly not just work, but be successful, she added,

It feels like something only God could orchestrate in hindsight.

That’s something that Mariah and husband Perry are not ashamed of to admit: that where they are at now is 100% due to God’s goodness. It’s something they’re also making sure their children learn as they prioritize making sure they grow up in Christian education like they did.

“It has never been a question to me whether or not we would have our kids in Christian education,” Mariah shared. “It's that fundamental exposure to, not only biblical teaching, but also exposure to a huge range of adults and positive figures in your life that you can look up to that also have a faith journey.”

For Mariah, it seems that even after her many highly successful years in business, enterprise, and you name it, what’s become most important for her as time’s gone on is something much more rewarding than career success: seeing the world through her kids' eyes, laughing at their spontaneous sense of humor, and teaching them about the things she finds interesting.

“Now, I just want to be home with my family and making memories with them.”

Written by Jordon Harrison, MCA Storyteller

For generations, Maranatha Christian Academy has been shaped by families who saw potential, invested deeply, and stayed faithful to the work of forming students in truth and purpose.

If you’re exploring a school where your family can grow roots and make a lasting impact, we’d love to welcome you into the story.

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