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It was just another ordinary day for Sarah Justice as she parked her car and walked into a local convenience store up the street from Grand View University, but something caught the former art teacher’s eye. She saw a homeless man sitting outside of the store, working on an incredible piece of art. Many people in the Des Moines area have followed the stories of Sarah Justice, but for those who aren’t familiar, her interest in the man’s art would continue.

As Justice grabbed a coffee, she could not seem to let go of the inspiration she felt from the man’s art.

She “just had to do something out of the norm for once,” Justice said.

She said what really enticed her to speak to the man was her Visual Culture and Rhetoric class that she was taking at GV. The class is categorized as English with a mix of art and is based off real-world situations that students are able to connect to.

“I think your art is really beautiful; I was wondering if you would be up to make a trade,” Justice said to him.

Justice ended up coming to an agreement with Billy and traded some of her art supplies for his artwork. Before she left, she asked him to sign his work, and he looked at her, puzzled.

“All artists have to sign their artwork,” Justice said.

Justice went home that night and posted about her experience on Facebook. An individual suggested that she should take it a step further. Justice looked back on her Visual Culture and Rhetoric class and decided to act. She came up with a plan to raise money for Billy.

She printed 75 notecard prints of Billy’s art. These prints were blank on the inside, and she sold three of them for $5. She figured that if she sold his art and got money out of it, she would give it to Billy to use for things he needed.

“It ended up taking off, like dramatically,” Justice said. 

At this point, Justice was very nervous that she would never see Billy again.

“All of these things were ‘what if,’” Justice said.

She said she often reflected on how they were two completely opposite people but believed “creativity can bring us together from all walks of life.”

She finally saw him again out of the blue, sketching on a sidewalk. Justice came to an abrupt stop and quickly put her car in reverse. She asked him if he remembered her, and he did.

Justice told him everything that had been going on and asked him if he would be interested in collaborating further. He once again looked confused.

“If you allow me to continue to do this, I would like you to come with me to my art show,” Justice said.

She wanted Billy to be her guest of honor and give him the opportunity to exhibit his artwork.

Billy agreed, and for a month they came together for their art. The Des Moines Register covered the story multiple times, making it known to the community.

The art show was starting to become a huge plan in Justice’s mind, and she was really looking forward to it. However, according to Justice, Billy was arrested before the show for a probation violation and possession of a controlled substance.

“It was kind of blindsiding,” Justice said. “You have all of these plans, and you want it to work out so bad, and it just came to a screeching halt.”

Justice donated a lot of the intended money to various places. She and her daughter are currently using the rest of the cash to make blankets for homeless shelters.

A couple months after the show, Cyndi Wiley, a professor in the art and design department at GV, received a piece of mail addressed to Justice from Billy.

“The envelope was hand-drawn with this lovely desert scene,” Wiley said.

“He gave an update saying that when he got arrested, it was the best thing that had happened to him; that he was able to feel set free, and he realized that the one thing that he was chasing after to feel alive was actually killing him,” Justice said.

Justice said that Billy is healthier, and he is more emotionally stable. He explained to Justice that he wants to use his art as a way of expressing his shame and everything that he kept to himself about his addictions and mental illnesses when he gets released from jail. 

“Creativity can bring us together through all walks of life,” Justice said. The way Billy’s art inspired Justice and brought them together is a testament to this.

“Acknowledging someone else’s humanity is really important in a lot of our everyday interactions,” Wiley said. 

Justice is now a senior at GV. She will be graduating in April with a degree in art education. Justice’s goal is to teach high school students and base her teaching on how physiology and mental illness play a part in students’ creative sides.