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Mary Pralinsky
Homepage:
E-Mail: mpralinsky@juno.com
Referred By: Just Surfed In
City/Country: Orange, Massachusetts
Comments:
Ellen is AMAZING. I would like to share this story with everyone to let
you know what an incredible artist AND person that Ellen is.
A couple of months ago we lost our home to a fire. Due to our rural
location the fire was not found until it had been going for hours.
Tragically our 2 dogs, Cassidy and Sega, and 2 cats, Oreo and Matty, were
lost in the fire.
Cassidy and Sega were like our children. Cassidy was a 7 year old
Husky/Border Collie mix that I had rescued from the pound when she was 4
months old. Sega was a 14 year old Rottweiller that my boyfriend brought
home as a puppy.
When I met my boyfriend 3 years ago Sega was not doing very well. His
arthritis was setting is and it was all he could to get up. We would have
to make him get up to go outside. When Sega was introduced to Cassidy he
somehow found his reason to get up in the morning. Cassidy was so full of
vim and vigor - it was all Sega could do to get up and chase her around.
Slowly but surely Sega got up on his own every day and became more and
more active. At the end of a 3 month period Sega was moving better than he
had in years.
The bond the 2 of the developed was a sight to be seen. People used to
laugh when we would make the statement that they were like a couple until
they saw it for themselves. Sega would "grunt" and Cassidy would come
running to his side. They would sit next to one another and lick each
others faces over and over and over again.... to the point we would tell
them to stop and get a room!! Sega always knew where Cassidy was - he
never let her out of his site - his way of protecting her.
After the fire I wanted to find a way that we could have something that
would remind us of all the wonderful memories we had with our 2 best
friends. I though a painting would be the best way to do this and I
desperately wanted to have this done for my boyfriends upcoming birthday.
I began searching the web for artists that specialized in portraits of
animals. One of my biggest concerns was the limitation the pictures I had
presented. We had lost all of our photographs in the fire and I only had
one of Sega on a computer at work and 2 of Cassidy. The pictures were dark
and I was afraid it would be difficult for an artist to see the
expressions and personality that I so wanted to capture.
When I emailed Ellen the response was phenomenal. After explaining to her
the lack of photos I was able to provide she stated she could work with
what she had and began immediately working on the painting. She displayed
no hesitation when I let her know the time frame in which I was looking to
have this done - I had little control over the timing of the fire. and
period of time until his birthday.
After some correspondence via email Ellen began the portrait. A day later
she sent me a photo of her rough sketch on the canvas. I was floored.
Those were my babies and there was no doubt it was them. You could see
them beginning to take form. I was so anxious to see the finished
painting... it could only get better from here.
The day came when I opened the package that had arrived which contained
the completed framed painting. I literally shook with excitement as I
carefully opened the box. All I can say is the painting is the MOST
INCREDIBLE thing I have ever seen. I could never have imagined that
someone could capture every little piece of Cassidy and Sega - especially
if they never saw the dogs themselves. Right down to the little scar on
Sega's nose - to the ice blue color of Cassidy's eye. You can feel the
bond between them just by looking at it.... Absolutely amazing.
I could never have asked for a more precious memory of Cassidy and Sega.
Every time I look at it I see the light in their eyes and I remember how
special they were to us and to each other. This painting will be the first
piece that is placed into our new home after the construction is complete.
It will be placed were both my boyfriend and I , our family and friends
can enjoy it. I can only count the days now until his birthday so I can
see his expression when he sees it for the first time.
I would like to thank Ellen with all my heart for giving this memory to
us. She went out of her way for us - I truly believe she connected with
both of them while she was creating this painting. There is no other way
she could have captured their spirit like she did. Ellen - I can never
thank you enough.
Your BIGGEST fan,
Mary Pralinsky
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3880 NE 15th Ave., Oakland Park, FL 33334