By BEN CRAFT, The News Virginian
WAYNESBORO, Va. (AP) — When Ellen Morris received her master’s degree in graphic design, she had mixed feelings.
The diploma marked the completion of his academic journey, from a graphic design degree from Bridgewater College to his graduate program at Radford, but was overshadowed by progress on Morris’s personal journey.
Morris struggles with clinical depression and anxiety, something he said he suppressed for most of his life to avoid awkward conversations. Morris points to his master’s completion as a pivotal moment in her desire to spread awareness of mental health.
“Honestly, I felt like breaking it because I was proud of what I accomplished, but I was more proud of what I learned about myself than the title,” Morris said of the day she received her diploma. “I felt like I should focus on that instead of this role. After realizing that, I was able to talk more about (mental health).”
Political Cartoons
Since then, Morris has spoken on his Facebook page about the struggles he faces, where he has received support from others for sharing issues that others normally avoid.
During her time in graduate school, Morris battled alcoholism, which led her to perhaps the biggest art show of her career—one she missed. Morris failed to show up for a scheduled show after drinking the night before.
“That was very revealing to me how bad I had gotten,” Morris said. “I didn’t want drinking to compromise my art in that way.”
Morris’s battle with alcoholism eventually resulted in him going to rehab last year. After getting out of rehab, she decided to start volunteering at the Shenandoah Valley Center for the Arts to allow herself to participate in a more positive environment.
“There is so much power in being vulnerable,” Morris said of the lessons he learned in rehab. “You can connect with people on a really deep level while doing that. That’s another thing I learned in rehab because we were all best friends because we were all at rock bottom.”
In November, Morris painted a mural on the side of the Shenandoah Valley Animal Services Center in Lyndhurst. The opportunity arose after Morris approached the shelter with a digital illustration to show what the mural would look like on the building, which was well received.
After the two parties agreed on the shelter mural, Morris created a GoFundMe page to raise money for the project. During the fundraiser, the GoFundMe team donated $300 of the $900 goal to Morris as part of the company’s Give Back program to highlight good causes.
“That made me feel really good about what I was doing. It made me feel like I was doing something worthwhile,” Morris said.
It was the second mural Morris has painted, having painted another in Blacksburg last year after winning a design contest. The Blacksburg project was originally intended to be a 6×6 mural but ended up at 21×17, a size that initially intimidated Morris.
After completing the project, Morris said it convinced her that she could do other projects besides graphic design.
“I’m really glad I decided to do it, even though I was terrified to do something this big and permanent,” Morris said. “Every day that I worked, people walked by and said how well I was doing my job and how this was going to be good for the city. When I finally finished it, the sense of accomplishment was outrageous.”
In addition to graphic design and murals, Morris also paints pet portraits. The portraits are often commissioned to honor pets who have died, Morris said.
“For me it’s more of a nice way to get off the computer eight hours a day and do something with my hands,” Morris said. “And it makes people happy. When people lose a pet, it’s like losing a family member, so it’s very rewarding to see them when I give them the painting.”
You can see Morris’s work on his website proudedcompanions.com.
Copyright 2022 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
.
