Meet Veronica Rogers | Artist/ Entrepreneur

We had the good fortune of connecting with Veronica Rogers and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Veronica, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
After my daughter tragically passed away at the age of 29 in 2019, it literally turned my world upside down. I was so heartbroken and I did not want to live anymore. I didn’t know how to turn this around for the better. One day the thought came to me,” the bravest thing I ever did was learn to live again” I knew that I needed to take this phrase and do something with it in order to extend love and healing for others who were dealing with such loss and grief. I wanted to do something to change lives for the better and others in my daughter’s memory. This way I would be able to keep her alive. I knew that this would be a perfect start and beginning to being a part of a solution. My daughter passed away suffering from addiction. It is something that no mother ever wants to see their child have to go through. A the same time the outcome for her is something no mother ever wants to endure. Addiction is a very big problem and I knew that this type of business could bring awareness to the problem and help with healing.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
My artwork and my clothing line is geared towards the stages of grief. It shows depictions and has phrases of the various stages we go through during grief. Although my collection is personal to my story of losing my daughter to an addictive lifestyle, My collection is for anyone who is dealing with any type of grief that can resonate with my work. Grief comes in many different ways and my artwork is personal to each person who views it. I am excited about the mission and cause that it is reaching out to. I’m excited for the healing it can bring to others and change lives. I believe that it is a very strong message that unfortunately many can relate to. I got here little by little, taking baby steps. It is still in the early stages and I have a long way to go, but I believe that this will make a very big difference when the time is right. The biggest challenge I have with pursuing this endeavor is the emotional pain I feel when I create my art in memory of my daughter. It’s a very painful subject and it takes a lot out of me. So, this process is taking me quite a bit of time. The lessons I am learning are love and patience mainly. I want the world to know that they are not alone in their grief. It may seem unspeakable and completely derailing when dealing with grief, but in your darkest hour, know that you are not alone and there are other people out there who are here for you and love and care for you. This is what my art collection is about. My organization is non-profit and all proceeds. I make go back into the community to spread love and promote healing and well-being. I want to gear a lot of the funds towards rehabs and halfway houses, however a lot of times it also goes to the homeless projects.

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
I would take my best friend to the Grand canyon and I would also take her kayaking. I live in a beautiful area of the desert where lakes and rivers are abundant. I would initially take her to the Grand canyon where we can take lots of photos and then go on a beautiful camping trip where we could go hiking and kayaking.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Hi dedicate this shout out to my daughter, Ashley Nicole Rissi and all of the parents who have tragically lost a child to addiction.

Website: www.ashleyrissicharities.org

Instagram: @artbyveronicahazel

Twitter: @artistrybyvee

Facebook: www.facebook.com/veronicahazelrogers