Life & Work with Mikah Meyer of National Business

Today we’d like to introduce you to Mikah Meyer.

Hi Mikah, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today?
My dad passed away from esophagael cancer when I was 19-years-old. He was just 58 at the time, and it taught me an important lesson that we’re not all guaranteed to make it to retirement age.

My dad loved road trips, so I took my first independent road trip just days after his funeral. Then did one road trip every year around the time of his passing, April 29, to honor him.

When I turned 30, I had planned to do a road trip “on steroids” to honor him, but also to help teach my friends the lesson I had learned in a hard way: Tomorrow’s not guaranteed, so chase your dreams today.

Thus, that year, I turned my “annual road trip” into what would become a 3-year, world record road trip to all 400+ U.S. National Park Service sites.

That journey was the inspiration for my short documentary film that’s currently touring the world as 1 of the Best 30 Outdoor Films of the Year, with the Banff World Tour (can be watched free/embedded into your web piece here): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hnLdPs1gjls

That journey is also what inspired me to create my organization Outside Safe Space that helps make outdoor, rural, and active spaces more welcoming to LGBTQ+ people. Something extra important to a community like Denver/”Menver” known for having large populations of both LGBTQ+ people and outdoorsy folk! https://www.mikahmeyer.com/adventurepride

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Not at all! lol

I launched my 3-year road trip without the money to finish the trip! Having faith that I’d somehow figure out a way to pay for it all.

That answer came in the form of being the guest preacher/singer at 113 churches around the United States during the final 2 years of my journey.

America’s Christians funded a gay man to set a world record! Quite the flipping of the script from what we’d assume.

Today, the biggest struggle is that there’s been a huge cultural backlash against anything Pride or diversity related. Even as a National Parks Expert, I’ve found it’s hard to get companies to work with me the way they did pre-2023 and the Bud Light/Target backlash, even for fear of being PERCEIVED as having worked with me for being gay. Despite all my national parks expertise.

I’ve lost 85% of my income in the past two years due to this anti-LGBTQ+ cultural backlash, so it’s required me to really tighten my belt and hope that the culture levels out. Especially for a place like Denver, that is home to VF Corporation and companies like The North Face. They abandoned the LGBTQ+ marketing they were doing up through 2023. Which is really silly, because LGBTQ+ are THE most likely people to recreate outdoors according to the Outdoor Industry Association’s own study https://outdoorindustry.org/article/pride-outside-lgbtq-individuals-are-the-most-active-adult-cohort-in-outdoor-recreation/

Yet, unfortunately, companies like Denver’s VF Corp have folded to unbased fears of LGBTQ+ people, and ignored our $1 trillion purchasing power in the United States, plus higher discretionary incomes and higher likelihood of recreating outdoors.

It’s a sad day when an industry turns their back on their best customers, out of fear they will offend their least-active customers.

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I’m a professional singer (male soprano) who paid my way to set a world record visiting every National Park Service sites by singing/preaching my way across the United States.

I don’t know anyone else with a niche that combines the outdoors and classical music.

With that, I perform 2 hour variety shows all about my national parks journey. Like a Dolly Parton concert, there’s jokes, pictures/videos from my travels, and notes as high as Kristen Chenowith! https://www.youtube.com/shorts/_gHnSwzW0DA

Are there any apps, books, podcasts, blogs or other resources you think our readers should check out?
https://www.gaychurch.org/find_a_church/

Every Sunday I’m at a different church around America showing my Canyon Chorus short doc film and guest preaching/singing.

There are lots of churches who aren’t publicly welcoming of LGBTQ+ people, but really want to have the discussion my film fosters.

But when I can’t speak at one of those churches, I find a welcoming church on this website and offer to help affirm their stance of loving and celebrating all of God’s children.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.mikahmeyer.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/mikahmey
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MikahMey/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mikahmeyer/
• Twitter: https://x.com/MikahMey
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/mikahmeyer
• Other: https://www.mikahmeyer.com/adventurepride

Image Credits
Courtesy Mikah Meyer