What’s your name and what fills your time? Tell us a little about your background story and how you got here (First Coast)
My name is Steve Janowicz and I grew up in a blue collar town (Garfield) in New Jersey to a Polish father and an Italian Mother. I attended a small art school there after high school and played guitar and ultimately bass guitar in bands with my friends. When you don’t make it as an artist back then (80’s) you end up in graphic arts so, I was a paste up artist until I learned how to operate a printing press. My entrepreneurial spirit led me to owning my own print shops. Once the personal computer was invented, I sold off the printing business and went into computers. I owned computer repair centers until a friend invited me to come work with him at AT&T on the help desk. This led to management positions and web development. Am I boring you yet? lol. I was recruited on the golf course by a man from IBM and there I would work and travel until I decided to open my own photography studio in Fleming Island. After many years and diverse professions, I reverted back to my artistic roots.
There is really so much to cover but in the interest of brevity, I’ll just say that through photography, I became a music journalist, founding GetAMPED Magazine and was Jacksonville Veteran Memorial Arena’s house photographer for over ten years. I captured too many rock, country, r&b, soul and every other genre artists to count. In 2020, I started doing media work for a wonderful Jacksonville charity named St. Michael’s Soldiers. Look them up. Kathy and Jim Signorile are on a mission to support our deployed and front line workers. True inspirations to many including myself, they inspired me for my current focus, filmmaker. Last year, I debuted my first documentary film inspired by their actions.
Anything special going on for this summer?
I have not made an announcement yet but my film, “They Are The Heroes” has been licensed by Amazon Prime Video. Soon it will be airing and I’m super excited. I have started production on my docuseries of the same name as well.
Any hobbies or interests worth telling us about?
Golf is a passion and holds a love/hate status in my life. These days it’s more love and just last week, I shot my 30 year low score of 77. The other thing I consider a hobby is pizza making. My wife Andrea bought me a small pizza oven that sits on our back porch. I have watched so many videos and am proud to say that I make my pizzas from scratch. I mix the ingredients with my hands to make the dough. I buy tomatoes and cheese from Italy. I have spent far too much money on all the paraphernalia but when we bite into our pizza, you can taste the love that goes into it. I post far too many pictures on facebook but my fb friends seem to like it, haha.
What’s one thing (funny, different, cool) that many might not know about you?
Well I was always a dog person and I’m actually allergic to cats but not many people know that I have a cat. Actually, we have two cats and two dogs but one of our cats definitely belongs to me. “Dennis” as in the Menace adopted me and as I write this, he is cozily laying between my legs on the couch. He’s my buddy and is at the bedroom door waiting to bust in to see me each morning when Andrea heads out to make coffee. My wife talks for him and as I’m wiping the sleep from my eyes, I hear (in a high pitched tone) “Dad, I’m here! I missed you”. lol. It’s funnier in person but you’re not invited to see it, haha.
What’s the best part of living here on the First Coast?
The beach! I raised (with my ex) three kids in Fleming Island and also lived in Green Cove Springs and Palm Coast. The culture is not quite what I grew up with (20 minutes from Yankee Stadium) being so close to NYC but Jacksonville has a lot to offer. I like seeing the Jags (still a Giants fan though) and the music scene is top notch. The First Coast rocks!
Anything else that you would like to tell the community?
I think I have said too much but at the risk of being extra I want to say the three accomplishments I’m most proud of are Brittani, Steven and Jessica Rose. I was born to bring these three extraordinary humans into the world. As far as my recent success, my wife Andrea is my best friend and biggest fan. Her love keeps me going and for that I’ll always be grateful.
Steve Janowicz
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Mike is a native First Coaster and was a leading figure in surfing and skateboarding for most of his life. After promoting music for many years on the local music scene, Mike now brings a unique perspective to FirstCoast.Life as a contributing writer.
