One of the first families we met with was a family far from home. They came all the way from Hawaii to get their baby boy the best possible medical treatment for a very rare and devastating disease. Ryan spent many months in the hospital and was very fragile. He needed to stay isolated from germs which meant growing up in a small room with only windows to the outside world.
Ryan has never felt the warm sand or cool breeze from his home in Hawaii. Instead, he has spent years fighting his illness. Since he was too young to tell us what his story should be about, his mom came up with a wonderful suggestion. She mentioned that she would love his story to be about the day Ryan gets the good news that he is all better and gets to go home. Children with his illness are not only isolated, they are unable to be around live plants or flowers. His mom mentioned that he was able to touch a red rose for the first time in his life shortly before we met with her. The idea for his book became obvious in that moment and Rose From Ryan was born.
We created a movie poster for Ryan when his cover art was finished. Then, we took his story and created illustrations to bring it to life. The format of a coloring book seemed perfect for him, so we went with that. Giving this book to his family was an experience none of us will ever forget.
