Ray Schmitz knows the stress and frustration that sometimes come with serving in the military, and he’s reaching out to other vets in the Wilson area to offer his services as an art coach.

“Veterans are kind of in an exclusive club,” Schmitz said. “We have a connection; we just do. And so many of us were just ignored. I didn’t expect anything after my service, but we were ignored. So many don’t give a darn about veterans. I want to see what I can do to give them something to do, to lend a hand.”

Schmitz and fellow Wilson artist Kim Joy have been tossing around the idea of Schmitz offering free art coaching to military veterans for some time. Joy, who has Schmitz’s artwork hanging in her gallery, has donated her space at Art Happens on Tarboro Street in downtown Wilson for Schmitz to use as a coaching studio.

Schmitz pitched the idea to Joy, saying he wanted to help veterans release tension by using their artistic talents.

“I think these lessons could get some frustrations out,” Schmitz said. “I’m not a therapist, but I think it would be helpful.”

Schmitz and Joy met while both had work displayed at Art123 in Wilson. Joy felt a kinship to Schmitz and his cause as she had raised three children while being a military wife, and daughter Meagan served in the U.S. Coast Guard. Kim also taught stained glass classes at Fort Belvoir. One of her students even went on to teach stained glass as part of the Wounded Warrior Program.

“I thought this would be an opportunity for veterans in Wilson to have another outlet and for Wilson residents to share and support a grassroots veteran program that would be free of charge to veterans,” Joy said.

Schmitz’s plan is to help veterans advance their drawing skills in a one-on-one environment with no onlookers, no one looking over their shoulders.

“The person will choose what he or she wants to draw or paint,” Schmitz said. “After an initial meeting, I will ask a student to bring a sample back from an artist he admires, along with some piece of art that he has done. Then, we will know where you are and where you want to go. I will simply share my experience and skills. Together, we will get there.”

ARTIST’S BACKGROUND

Schmitz was born in Edmonston, Alberta, Canada. His family moved to Minnesota when he was 12 years old. 

I’ve been drawing ever since I can remember,” Schmitz said. “I would use my mother’s salt and pepper shakers to draw circles. What lit my light bulb was when I was 10 or 12 and my sister was taking an art class, and she showed me about shading. This is magic, I thought — light and dark and shading — this is amazing.”

After leaving the military, Schmitz lived in Austin, Texas, for 18 years and worked for 3M as an illustrator. He moved to Wilson about 15 years ago when he got married.

A couple of years ago, Schmitz was volunteering at the Veterans Affairs hospital in Durham and met a U.S. Marine vet by the name of Charlie. Charlie had no family and no visitors. His talks with Charlie inspired him to paint a piece of work he called “Reflecting.”

“I’ve been fortunate to maintain contact with friends from school, Air Force and places employed,” Schmitz would write later after meeting Charlie. “While we enjoy sharing memories and current interests, I perceive a feeling common to us in varying degrees — the feeling of being often dismissed as boring, out of touch, non-productive ... simply because of age. People just aren’t interested in our varied past and ongoing accomplishments and travels. Thus, each person is often left alone to reflect on their proud moments. This is what I attempted to capture in ‘Reflecting.’”

Schmitz said most artists get frustrated by attempting work that is too advanced right from the start.

“Start with something that will be encouraging, something you can take pride in, something simple to build your confidence a little bit and then add on,” Schmitz said. “Begin with simple stuff. Don’t begin by drawing the forest. Draw a twig first.”

Schmitz encourages any veteran interested in art coaching to call him at 252-292-3431 to set up an initial meeting. Vets are required to take a copy of their DD-214 discharge form or military ID.