DREAM Role Model

A few months ago, I was notified that the Ohio Department of Public Safety had selected me as one of their DREAM Role Models for a library of interviews they are putting together to use as a resource for teachers and students. The initiative aims to share positive messages about the power of hard work, not using or abusing substances, and never giving up on your DREAM!

I’m humbled to share the video interview with you.

As an artist who advocates for mental health support and uses art as a way of giving myself a daily dose of hope and joy, it’s an honor to have the chance to share more of my story with others!

For many years I’ve managed some challenging mental health diagnoses, and painting allows me to process many of those tough emotions in a powerful way. Showing up to a blank canvas, being inspired by the sky on any given day, and allowing an image to emerge has helped me give meaning to life experiences when I don’t have words for them.

In 2020, I began painting storm clouds to process all of the new challenges we were facing individually and collectively. Storms seemed to carry much of the burden of expressing the depth of what I felt—fear, anxiety, stress, uncertainty—but also gave me an avenue to share hope in a visual form. Contrasting every dark, looming storm cloud I paint are strands of light on the horizon or bouncing around the storm itself. To me, this is the ultimate reminder that storms cannot last forever and light always wins!