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A young and gifted musician as well as a college student majoring in costume design, Brooke Shellberg is full of possibilities. She grew up in a small town in southwestern Colorado, and remembers feeling like she was the “weird girl” in school. True, there is something different about her–she’s an artist.
Brooke recalls a family ski trip that would radically change her life. She was in the lobby of a restaurant waiting to be seated, when she picked up a copy of People Magazine. Inside was an article called “Grammy High” which featured a high school in Dallas, Texas called Booker T. Washington School of Performing Arts.. This well-known school had produced such Grammy award winning talents as Nora Jones and jazz trumpet player Roy Hargrove. After reading the article, Brooke looked at her mom and said, “I want to go there.” Within three months, she found herself in Dallas interviewing for the school. Her mom brought the principal a case of his favorite beer to seal the deal. In the end, though, it was Brooke’s talent that landed her a spot in the school. Her mom, her stepdad and her three brothers packed up and moved to Dallas so that Brooke could follow her artistic dreams.
Currently, Brooke is living in Denver, near her father, where she attends a local college and studies costume design. Musically, she spends evenings performing at local venues wherever she finds an “open mike” night. Her father supports her and faithfully attends every show she plays.
Brooke is blessed to have the love and support of her family and friends as she searches for her creative path. Unfortunately, not every young person has this kind of support. Often, parents may not relate to or understand the young artist. While trying to help their children find “normal” careers and “success” they end up wounding rather than nurturing the child. The life of the artist involves risk, and parents often want to play it safe where their children are concerned. Perhaps, as parents, our job isn’t so much to keep our children safe, but rather to equip them to take risk and follow their dreams.
