Ray Lopez is a professional MMA fighter. 

Ray has a gym in New Orleans, NOLA MMA,  where he teaches people to kill other people – only in self defense, not randomly – but the greatest thrill in his life comes from getting in a cage with another human and trying to kill him. Nothing in the world, he says, can make you feel more alive than having survived a fight.

Ilana Obuchowski is super-competitive too. Ilona is the City Commissioner of fun for an organization called NOLA Fray. NOLA Fray organizes you and your friends or just you as a free agent in to leagues and teams to play games. Everything from softball to speed dating. No kidding. As the official city Fun Facilitator, Ilona might have the coolest job in New Orleans.

Joshua Starkman, oddly enough, also refers to himself as a fun facilitator. You might have seen Josh on social media – he’s the musician with the giant smile, the wacky songs, and the short video that always ends with the exhortation to “Have a great day” and “We love you.” If you haven’t seen Josh’s work on Facebook, click on this link and check it out, it’s totally worth it.

Photos at Wayfare by Jill Lafleur.