The most meaningful house portrait…

Before I turned my house portrait art business into my full time gig, I worked at Lifeline of Ohio; a non-profit in Columbus, Ohio. This organization facilitates organ donation within the central Ohio area and I was so proud to work here. My colleagues were some of the kindest, most dedicated people I’ve met and I still keep in touch with many of them. In my last few years at the organization, I worked as a Community Educator alongside Kelli. Sadly, in 2023 Kelli’s husband, Matt unexpectedly discovered he had a heart condition which required a heart transplant. Such an ironic turn of events, as Kelli had dedicated her career educating people on the importance of registering as an organ donor. Unfortunately, a heart didn’t come in time for Matt, and he passed away just before Christmas.

They were raising three boys together. Matt was a local firefighter and they had JUST finished building their new dream home. They didn’t even get a chance to fully move in before he passed away.

Kelli reached out to me a few months after the death of her husband and asked if I would create a painting of her family standing in front of their new home. They were never able to get a photo of them all in front of the house, so this would be a truly special piece.

Kelli sent me a few photos of the home along with some recent family photos and a request to have her arms around Matt in the painting. I pieced everything together and created this 11x14 matted custom watercolor of Kelli, her family and their new home.

I know it’s certainly not how they imagined their life in this new house, but I hope this piece can bring Kelli and her boys a bit of comfort; knowing Matt’s spirit will always be with them.

You can follow Kelli’s grief journey on her TikTok account found here.