Genya Kalinina has always been an adventurer at heart, so when she and her husband, Stan Myshkovskiy, moved to the Star City in 2019, it was no surprise that she chose to carry her free-spirited nature along with her. That same relentless hunger to uncover life’s greatest—and often hidden—treasures inspired her to create ‘Hello Roanoke,’ initially known as ‘Best of Roanoke,’ in early 2020.
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It started with Genya and Stan eager to learn more about the Roanoke Valley and everything their new home had to offer. Naturally, they turned to online guides and ‘best of’ pages for direction. But when those came up short, they took matters into their own hands by launching ‘Hello Roanoke.’ Their mission was crystal clear: to build a positive platform that highlights locally-owned businesses and the people behind them while unveiling community events and hidden gems that might otherwise go unnoticed.
Several years later, their business not only lives up to those aspirations but surpasses them. In roughly five years, ‘Hello Roanoke’ has grown into a widely recognized resource within the Roanoke Valley, for newcomers and long-term residents alike, amassing more than 100,000 followers in total on all of their social media platforms.
“It’s been amazing,” Genya said. “This has really given us a reason to kind of go out and explore.”
Stan added, “We enjoy doing what we do. We’ve met so many people through this page. It’s incredible. It makes us feel a part of the community, and that’s rewarding.”
What began as a simple hobby has evolved into a meaningful journey deeply woven into Genya’s and Stan’s lives, deepening their connection with the community. Stan explained that they have often bumped into people in public who have shared how much they enjoy and appreciate their content, something they say makes their hard work well worth it.
“Some of the comments are from people who are like, ‘I grew up here my whole life and now I have fallen in love with this place all over again,’” Genya said.
However, Genya emphasized that much more goes on behind the scenes than most realize.
“There’s just so much behind-the-scenes work that never makes it on the page, like contracts, legal, proposals, meetings, and accounting,” she explained. “Taking pictures is really just the fun part of what we do, but that’s not all that we do.”
Their work often requires thorough and strategic planning that is typically orchestrated several months in advance. Their genuine desire to uplift the people who truly make the Star City and beyond shine drives them to continue sharing the stories of community happenings and local businesses, many of which they highlight for free, they said.
According to Stan, they spend tens of thousands of their own money on meals and other outings related to the page. And not only that, but ‘Hello Roanoke’ also supports community initiatives, like the Ronald McDonald House Charities of Southwest Virginia, where they raised $5,000 through a fundraising event that they hosted.
“That was super rewarding, and it took a lot of time and energy to put that together, but it was like one of the most rewarding things that we’ve done with the page, and we’re looking into ways of doing something similar to that again,” Stan said. “And also, just going from a hobby to a business, I think that was a really big accomplishment for Genya.”
In general, when social media influencers or pages do paid promotions or sponsored content, they are often required by law or platform rules to disclose that clearly with disclaimers. For ‘Hello Roanoke’, while they are adamant about supporting those in the area free of charge, they are clear in being transparent on their page in disclosing promotions.
Stan continued, “We are proud that we are able to provide a platform for smaller businesses and smaller restaurants to be able to be visible to like hundreds of thousands of people for either free or very affordable forms of advertisement.”
A staunch supporter of their work is Jon Murrill, a Roanoke native known for his vibrant murals, including one painted under the 9th Street bridge along the Roanoke River Greenway. He is recognized for putting his heart into his art and creating meaningful artwork that conveys the spirit and unique cultural identity of Roanoke. He said they were some of the first people to support his work in its early stages and push it out to a wider audience.
“They’ve done a phenomenal job of promoting not just my own work, but the work of many different muralists and artists across the region, so now that through them and other organizations, Roanoke, I think, is seen as more of a city that promotes and supports arts and culture. They’ve played a great role in that,” Murrill expressed.
He praised the remarkable difference he says they’ve made in the community.
As someone who has grown up and is from the area, I have great admiration for Genya and Stan and their mission to unite and inspire the community and different organizations to come together and enjoy our city in ways that we haven’t enjoyed it before. I think they shed a lot of light on opportunities that we may miss out on or may not notice through their social media and their online promotions, and one of the greatest observations that I’ve had about Hello Roanoke is that they not only put out this content online, but they also physically attend and show their support in person to many of these events as well.
Jon Murrill, professional muralist
Christy Rutledge with Abide, a gift shop and coffee bar that opened in early April, echoed this sentiment. She initially wasn’t aware of Hello Roanoke due to not being on the internet or social media, adding that it was Hello Roanoke that actually reached out to her.
“Genya came by, I think the first day that we were open, and posted the next day. I can say that Abide’s successful opening far exceeded our expectations, and I give Hello Roanoke and Genya a lot of credit for that. We still have people come in every day, four months later, who say they saw Abide posted on Hello Roanoke and are coming in because of that.”
She pointed out that what Genya is doing goes far beyond typical advertising; it’s about connecting people on both sides with what they’re looking for.
“From a business point of view, what she’s doing is a very kind thing. She’s giving some of her time and her efforts,” Rutledge said. “I think she really has a heart for this. It’s not just what she’s doing day-to-day. It really is her passion.”