SUMTER, S.C. — News 19's Street Squad discovered Ryan Shirah's story after meeting one of his clients, Kathryn Staab.
When her fiance's dad passed away, Staab says she wanted to get him something meaningful, so, she reached out to Shirah for help.
"It was my Christmas gift and a total surprise," Ryan March, Staab's fiance' said. "My fiance' told Ryan about mine and my father's relationship and what we did together and from those ideas... he came up with this awesome artwork to remember my dad by. Very special."
Shirah says he started drawing when he was four.
Art has always been a form of therapy for him. Now he's working to spread that joy to others.
"I feel like everybody has kind of dark places in their life," Shirah said. "So, I'm always trying to impact people in my community."
Say you've lost a pet or are grieving the loss of a loved one, Ryan takes those moments and creates drawings that will last a lifetime.
He's also working to spread positivity on Facebook with the hashtag "keep sharpening," and says he works everyday to encourage his students at Alice Drive Middle School to be their best.
"A lot of times, it's taking my God given talents and being able to just share that light with the rest of the world," Shirah said. "Being able to memorialize people and create heirloom products that they'll be able to keep forever."
Shirah does sell his work. If you're interested in purchasing please click here to connect with him on Facebook.
If you have a story idea you'd like to share, email StreetSquad@WLTX.com, use the #StreetSquad19, or click here to connect with Street Squad Sumter on Facebook.