Celines and her one-year-old son entered a Safe Horizon domestic violence shelter at the height of the pandemic with a photo album, face masks, a blue sippy cup, a blue and white blanket, and her sketchpad.

In a Safe Horizon domestic violence shelter, Celines ran a ballpoint pen across paper, sketching the outline of a face. In between glancing at the mirror, she heard her son, Chosen, cooing from his crib in the corner. She paused to look up at him to see that he was safe. As he fell back asleep, she continued to draw.

Two years later, Celines walked into The Things We Carry gallery – not far from the shelter she previously called home – and saw her self-portrait hanging on the wall.

Before this full-circle moment, Celines found safety at a Safe Horizon shelter when an abusive partner came back into her life at the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. The staff at the shelter encouraged Celines to pursue her passion for art while she healed from abuse and gave her the care to raise her young son.

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