Adam S.

Adam Simmons
My creative practice started in a very unproductive manner, as a graffiti artist. After getting arrested several times, I decided to join the military as a way to learn discipline, find purpose, and skills to be a beneficial member of society. I remained in the Oregon Army National Guard for 14 years. That time in served me in all the ways I’d hoped and more. It was the most transformative experience  I’ve had in my life outside of fatherhood. While on my last  eployment I started to rethink my priorities in life while facing my  own morality in combat. Although being in the military served to  teach me personal accountability and discipline, it lacked any outlet for my creative drive, and at times oppressed it. Once I returned home I immediately started attending community college and tarted honing my creativity into a career. I was able to enter the workplace, but not at a level that would sustain my creative ambition or the financial needs of my family. I was forced to look at other ways of
making a living, and worked for a short period as a postal carrier. The work was more than I could physically handle given my disability. Having been a front line soldier, this was humiliating and humbling. My disability had become a hinderance, but with a hidden blessing. No longer could I count on the sweat of my labor to sustain me and my family, pushing me to instead double down on my creativity capacity. I was accepted into Pacific Northwest College of Arts
Video and Sound department and found eligible for the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation program.
Since being in this program I’ve experienced the largest professional boost in my work, skills, and creative network. It also taught me the value of education for education sake. After finishing my Bachelor’s I intend to continue to get my Master’s. I’ve found no greater success in life than diving headlong into my creative practice. My work is well received and in demand. I’ve been on the verge of current technologies, most notably in drone-based videography and photography. It has been this focus on my talents that has enabled me to push them further and learn how they apply to all avenues of human endeavor. This is the basis for moving forward to get my Master’s in Collaborative Design. The Collaborative Design program makes use of my philanthropic efforts in my community. I’ve worked in urban development and an active member of my neighbor hood association. I helped manage and advise programs that helped small businesses and people of various walks of life that needed assistance. Combined with my education in critical creative thinking, it proves to be a very valuable skill set for designing and developing projects that serve to create a better world.
I’m very close to having all my financial needs met, and have been working for clients as much as I can manage without compromising the time I need to dedicate to my studies and family. Being in the VA’s Vocational Rehabilitation program covers most cost while in school, but there is still costs that fall through the cracks.