In August 2025, Ariean Colton stepped outside for a morning run in Kenai, Alaska. Moments later, her life changed forever.

Attacked by a bear just steps from her driveway, Ariean suffered devastating injuries, including a traumatic brain injury, multiple fractures, and months of recovery. Dragged nearly 100 yards and left for dead, she survived because of a neighbor who heard something unusual in the early morning and went to investigate.

But this conversation isn't just about the attack.

It's about what happens after survival.

Ariean shares the physical, emotional, and mental challenges of rebuilding her life, learning to walk, run, and trust the outdoors again. We talk about fear, trauma, family, resilience, and the difficult question many survivors ask: "Why me?"

We also discuss her Instagram project, Ariean's 101st Yard, inspired by the distance she was dragged and the belief that life's most important step is often the one that comes after tragedy.

This is a conversation about courage (not the absence of fear) and the decision to keep moving forward despite it.

Whether you've experienced trauma yourself or have supported someone through it, Ariean's story is a powerful reminder that healing isn't about returning to who you were before. It's about discovering who you can become next.

Follow Ariean's journey on Instagram: @the101styard

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Carly Padrta — known across Instagram as Carly on the Kenai — is a lifestyle and adventure photographer based on the Kenai Peninsula. What started as a hobby born out of new motherhood and a pandemic-era YouTube rabbit hole has grown into a full creative career taking her across glaciers, into the backcountry, and all over the state of Alaska.

In this conversation, Carly pulls back the curtain on what her life actually looks like behind the camera — from the gear she trusts in brutal Alaska conditions, to how she balances adventure with raising two young boys, to why bad weather almost always makes the best photography.

In this episode:

• How a halibut charter in Ninilchik turned into a life in Alaska
• The accidental origin of her photography career
• Why she lets her camera take a beating — and what's survived
• Her go-to gear: Sony, Sigma, and a backup SD card she keeps for emergencies
• The Knik Glacier camping trip that got a little too real at 2 a.m.
• Her honest take on AI editing and presets (spoiler: she's not a fan)
• Aurora photography, wildlife encounters, and her favorite spots on the peninsula
• Practical advice for parents who want to get outside but feel stuck

Follow Carly:

Instagram & Facebook @carly_on_the_kenai

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Kaedyn Jennings is 20 years old, from Wasilla, Alaska, and by almost every conventional measure wasn't supposed to be a success — a complicated upbringing between Anchorage and the Mat-Su Valley, and a self-described bad student who nearly dropped out three months before graduation to start a lawn care company.

He didn't drop out, but he did start the business — and four years later Snip&Clip Alaska has crossed a million dollars in total revenue, serviced properties over 6,000 times last year, and has become a force to be reckoned with in the industry.

In this conversation Kaedyn walks Manny through all of it — his upbringing, the lawn care math that started everything, how he solved the three biggest problems in the industry before he even had his first client, and what he's learned about debt, hiring, leadership, and money from a network of real Alaska business owners he's built around himself.

But the deeper thread running through this episode is what comes next — Kaedyn is 20, has already built the time freedom most people spend decades chasing, and is now figuring out how to turn that into financial freedom, 50 rental units, a helicopter, and a life built entirely on his own terms.

What We Cover

• Growing up between homes, the aunt who raised him — and what shaped his drive
• How he went from watching a friend cut grass to building a company that did close to $750K last year
• Why he believes passion is overrated when it comes to building a business — and what matters more
• His take on Dave Ramsey, debt, and why he's focused on eliminating it entirely at 20 years old
• "Hire fast, fire fast" — his no-nonsense approach to building a small team and getting out of the way in leadership.
• The loneliness of being a young entrepreneur, and why he says the bottom is just as lonely as the top
• Big aspirations and the long game he's playing while others his age drag their feet

About Kaedyn Jennings

Kaedyn Jennings is a 20-year-old entrepreneur from Wasilla, Alaska, and the owner of Snip&Clip Alaska, a lawn care and snow removal company serving the Mat-Su Valley and Anchorage. He built the business from the ground up as a teenager, growing it to a small team with an operations manager, a sales team, and an office — and he's currently aiming for 400 customers this year.

He also creates content daily across Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube, where he shares his journey as a young business owner in Alaska.

Follow Kaedyn Jennings on Facebook, Instagram, and TikTok

Subscribe to his YouTube channel @KaedynJennings907

Contact Snip&Clip Alaska for your lawncare and snow removal needs.

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Shoot me a text, what do you think?