good evening thank you by show of hands
how many of you out there know how to
draw good very good
all right now how many of you think you
cannot draw
uh-huh well there’s where you may be
wrong and I’m gonna show you how right
now now we can all make a simple circle
correct let’s make a simple circle right
here now inside of that circle let’s
make another smaller circle now what
have you got an eyeball right simple all
right we all know our alphabet correct
we can make a capital D let’s make a
capital D underneath that that eyeball
but put it on its side like so got a
mouth don’t you we’re building something
here let’s put a couple of small V’s on
the inside of that and we have the
beginnings of a cartoon monster now you
can fill this out any way you want to
put it in here for a tongue upside-down
you for the body a couple of double use
at the bottom for a claws maybe an S
here attached to another ass and the
same on the other side monster right
yeah see it’s all in the perspective of
how you look at things art can be part
of the building blocks the core building
blocks of anything that you do now what
we use there was simple shapes and
letters in order to form a cartoon
monster using the artistic mind to help
you come up with your answers is very
helpful and meaningful at the same time
now take my story for instance I’m a
disabled veteran who used the creative
arts in order to rehabilitate and I can
honestly say
art saved my life it’s a pretty bold
thing to say but it’s true
and I’m going to talk with you about how
I have come to this conclusion let’s
start with a little bit of backstory at
the age of 18 I joined the United States
Air Force right out of high school the
idea of working on high-tech equipment
getting my education and best of all
traveling the world was pretty high on
this young man’s list at the time best
decision I ever made I got a great
opportunity to travel all over the
United States and part of Europe and I
learned a pretty cool trade my job I was
an audio-visual media maintenance
technician in other words I worked on
cameras camera systems anything and
everything that could take a picture
make a picture or project a picture it’s
pretty cool things are going great up
until the first Gulf War and
unfortunately after that I became
extremely ill now I lived in some great
like Texas Colorado California twice and
best of all he’s bought in Germany and
as I mentioned to you before the first
Gulf War after that I became so ill that
I couldn’t stay in the service so after
two two operations Rick his Bell found
himself medically retired and out of
service now I didn’t know at the time
but my drive to be able to work again
and to better myself was my saving grace
years later I would run into a doctor
that would help me cement this theory
you see as a 24 year old man I couldn’t
accept being labeled 100% disabled my
gut was telling me I had to pick my
self up push forward and get my
education no matter how sick or weak I
felt they say that knowledge is power
and I’m here to tell you I it is and I’m
living proof I was able to talk the
there we go I was able to talk the VA
into allowing me to go to the Columbus
College of Art and Design through the
chapter xxxi vocational rehabilitation
program not an easy task PA doesn’t
allow a lot of things but in anyways it
was the best thing that I’ve ever done
and you see I wouldn’t share a story
with you first my family we all like to
joke kid around and be generally goofy
we’re all together you better bring your
a-game because the funny flows fast yeah
unfortunately for me when I returned I
was noticeably slow and sluggish I
always felt like a step behind by the
time I thought of something quick and
witty to say they had already moved on
to another part of the conversation it’s
a lonely feeling and although I was
surrounded by all these people who loved
and cared for me I just couldn’t keep up
with him it was if someone had put gauze
over my eyes and I couldn’t see clearly
and everything was out of focus
years later I worked with a doctor named
dr. Chris Ann Gordon she is the founder
and chair woman of resurrecting lies
foundation our chance meeting gave me
some insight what happens to the human
there we go now it has been shown in
studies that there can be blockage in
your pathways there’s their scarf to
chew and it can be blocking all your
memories and if you don’t start working
your brain right away you may lose those
memories that’s why you find so many
military and veterans feeling so
frustrated they know the memories there
I just can’t get to it the key is to get
in education as soon as humanly possible
because then you can build pathways
around those scars and get back to those
memories so you see
had I not forced myself to go back to
art school when I was physically able I
may not have been able to forge those
paths and clear out the cobwebs I can
tell you I’ll never forget the day when
I actually felt lucid I woke up that
morning and I was like someone had taken
a veil from in front of my eyes and all
son died I could think clearly I I could
I could see clearly there’s no more haze
all the synapses were firing I was me
again it’s best feeling ever only
feeling it was any better was the birth
of my children and the marriage to my
beautiful wife earlier I made the bold
statement that art saved my life I will
always be convinced that it was the
creative arts that helped me to
rehabilitate faster and in that vein I
recently joined a VA study to see how
art helps disabled veterans now I
already knew the benefits that it had
for me but I wanted to see how the other
vets accepted it what they did and it
was wonderful to see the change that
came over these veterans as they were
being creative and try a new thing
there was a calmness that came over all
of us and it was felt by even the most
angry of the group we were a group of
everything and we were up sexist ages
colors Creed’s we serve during different
times we were diversity at its finest
after that we were asked we want to be
part of a an art program and at the
gallery and they asked me to do it and I
said I will only do it if I can put in
art that I made during the time of my
rehabilitation this was the art that
pulled me out of the haze this was the
art that helped me make my comeback this
art that helped me come back into life
and finally this is the art that made me
feel more than just a 100% disabled
veteran I overcame adversity and a lot
of things in order to get to my top two
goals number one was to be able to work
again and support my family what was my
best goal number two to be able to honor
celebrate and inspire veterans just like
myself with great causes such as the
fallen 15 American Legion and the
I’m happy to report to you that after my
rehabilitation
I’ve been gainfully employed for quite
some time that being said I have given
back with my skills and talent to the
community I have given countless hours
to nonprofit organizations for such
things as logos coins and medals posters
and license plates that serve as a
moving memorial to the families of our
fallen heroes ladies and gentlemen has
been an honor to serve our veterans and
military community and I want to thank
you all for coming here tonight
and walking with me on my pathway home
thank you [Applause]
how many of you out there know how to
draw good very good
all right now how many of you think you
cannot draw
uh-huh well there’s where you may be
wrong and I’m gonna show you how right
now now we can all make a simple circle
correct let’s make a simple circle right
here now inside of that circle let’s
make another smaller circle now what
have you got an eyeball right simple all
right we all know our alphabet correct
we can make a capital D let’s make a
capital D underneath that that eyeball
but put it on its side like so got a
mouth don’t you we’re building something
here let’s put a couple of small V’s on
the inside of that and we have the
beginnings of a cartoon monster now you
can fill this out any way you want to
put it in here for a tongue upside-down
you for the body a couple of double use
at the bottom for a claws maybe an S
here attached to another ass and the
same on the other side monster right
yeah see it’s all in the perspective of
how you look at things art can be part
of the building blocks the core building
blocks of anything that you do now what
we use there was simple shapes and
letters in order to form a cartoon
monster using the artistic mind to help
you come up with your answers is very
helpful and meaningful at the same time
now take my story for instance I’m a
disabled veteran who used the creative
arts in order to rehabilitate and I can
honestly say
art saved my life it’s a pretty bold
thing to say but it’s true
and I’m going to talk with you about how
I have come to this conclusion let’s
start with a little bit of backstory at
the age of 18 I joined the United States
Air Force right out of high school the
idea of working on high-tech equipment
getting my education and best of all
traveling the world was pretty high on
this young man’s list at the time best
decision I ever made I got a great
opportunity to travel all over the
United States and part of Europe and I
learned a pretty cool trade my job I was
an audio-visual media maintenance
technician in other words I worked on
cameras camera systems anything and
everything that could take a picture
make a picture or project a picture it’s
pretty cool things are going great up
until the first Gulf War and
unfortunately after that I became
extremely ill now I lived in some great
like Texas Colorado California twice and
best of all he’s bought in Germany and
as I mentioned to you before the first
Gulf War after that I became so ill that
I couldn’t stay in the service so after
two two operations Rick his Bell found
himself medically retired and out of
service now I didn’t know at the time
but my drive to be able to work again
and to better myself was my saving grace
years later I would run into a doctor
that would help me cement this theory
you see as a 24 year old man I couldn’t
accept being labeled 100% disabled my
gut was telling me I had to pick my
self up push forward and get my
education no matter how sick or weak I
felt they say that knowledge is power
and I’m here to tell you I it is and I’m
living proof I was able to talk the
there we go I was able to talk the VA
into allowing me to go to the Columbus
College of Art and Design through the
chapter xxxi vocational rehabilitation
program not an easy task PA doesn’t
allow a lot of things but in anyways it
was the best thing that I’ve ever done
and you see I wouldn’t share a story
with you first my family we all like to
joke kid around and be generally goofy
we’re all together you better bring your
a-game because the funny flows fast yeah
unfortunately for me when I returned I
was noticeably slow and sluggish I
always felt like a step behind by the
time I thought of something quick and
witty to say they had already moved on
to another part of the conversation it’s
a lonely feeling and although I was
surrounded by all these people who loved
and cared for me I just couldn’t keep up
with him it was if someone had put gauze
over my eyes and I couldn’t see clearly
and everything was out of focus
years later I worked with a doctor named
dr. Chris Ann Gordon she is the founder
and chair woman of resurrecting lies
foundation our chance meeting gave me
some insight what happens to the human
there we go now it has been shown in
studies that there can be blockage in
your pathways there’s their scarf to
chew and it can be blocking all your
memories and if you don’t start working
your brain right away you may lose those
memories that’s why you find so many
military and veterans feeling so
frustrated they know the memories there
I just can’t get to it the key is to get
in education as soon as humanly possible
because then you can build pathways
around those scars and get back to those
memories so you see
had I not forced myself to go back to
art school when I was physically able I
may not have been able to forge those
paths and clear out the cobwebs I can
tell you I’ll never forget the day when
I actually felt lucid I woke up that
morning and I was like someone had taken
a veil from in front of my eyes and all
son died I could think clearly I I could
I could see clearly there’s no more haze
all the synapses were firing I was me
again it’s best feeling ever only
feeling it was any better was the birth
of my children and the marriage to my
beautiful wife earlier I made the bold
statement that art saved my life I will
always be convinced that it was the
creative arts that helped me to
rehabilitate faster and in that vein I
recently joined a VA study to see how
art helps disabled veterans now I
already knew the benefits that it had
for me but I wanted to see how the other
vets accepted it what they did and it
was wonderful to see the change that
came over these veterans as they were
being creative and try a new thing
there was a calmness that came over all
of us and it was felt by even the most
angry of the group we were a group of
everything and we were up sexist ages
colors Creed’s we serve during different
times we were diversity at its finest
after that we were asked we want to be
part of a an art program and at the
gallery and they asked me to do it and I
said I will only do it if I can put in
art that I made during the time of my
rehabilitation this was the art that
pulled me out of the haze this was the
art that helped me make my comeback this
art that helped me come back into life
and finally this is the art that made me
feel more than just a 100% disabled
veteran I overcame adversity and a lot
of things in order to get to my top two
goals number one was to be able to work
again and support my family what was my
best goal number two to be able to honor
celebrate and inspire veterans just like
myself with great causes such as the
fallen 15 American Legion and the
I’m happy to report to you that after my
rehabilitation
I’ve been gainfully employed for quite
some time that being said I have given
back with my skills and talent to the
community I have given countless hours
to nonprofit organizations for such
things as logos coins and medals posters
and license plates that serve as a
moving memorial to the families of our
fallen heroes ladies and gentlemen has
been an honor to serve our veterans and
military community and I want to thank
you all for coming here tonight
and walking with me on my pathway home
thank you [Applause]
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