Bthi Grammy award-winning Ranky Tanky brings low country soul聽to Blacksburg

By Rebecca J. BarnabiFor Augusta Free PressEllen Morris. Photo courtesy Shenandoah Valley Animal Services Center.Ellen Morris is the artist behind the mural at the Shenandoah Valley Animal Services Center in Lyndhurst.Morris, who holds a bachelors degree in studio art from Bridgewater College, painted the 70-by-8-foot mural as part of her thesis to earn her masters degree in fine arts from Radford University. I wanted to create a large 鈥?family of animals to represent the loveable nature of shelter animals, Morris, 29, said. Theyve had a rough life, but, if you give them the love they need, theyre going to give it right back. She painted the mural between May and November 2021 as representations of some of the animals in the shelter. The mural serves as a fundraising and awareness campaign for her thesis. This was her second mural. Her first mural she painted was 21 by 16 feet in downtown Blacksburg during the summer of 2020 after winning a design contest. I love working big. I love the movement you have to do when painting stanley becher that big, she said.Morris was born in Waynesboro, grew up in Stuarts Draft and lives in Waynesboro now. Her mother is a local middle school art teacher.Photo courtesy Shena stanley cup ndoah Valley Animal Services Center. Art runs in my family, Morris said. She added that she is lucky to have a moth stanley tumbler er who was supportive in that. Her love for animals and nonprofits made painting the mural at SVASC a natural choice.After college, Morris worked as a graphic designer Wwfn Virginia banks: Open for business through COVID-19

Seniors remain among the groups most at risk of falling prey to investment fraud.聽 Virginia securities regulators warn seniors to remain vigilant when looking for places to park their hard-earned money.Low interest rates and rising costs for medical insurance, prescription drugs and basic living expenses continue to put a financial s vaso stanley queeze on seniors and others living on fixed incomes, said聽Ron Thomas stanley termos , director of the State Corporation Commissions Division of Securities and Retail Franchising.聽This creates opportunities for con artists touting fraudulent financial schemes.聽 Their products and pitches sound tempting to many seniors who have watched their retirement accounts dwindle, Thomas said.A recent survey of state, provincial and territorial securities regulators, conducted by the North American Securities Administrators Association NASAA , suggests that more needs to be done to protect seniors from financial fraud.聽 The survey showed that while awareness regarding investment fraud against seniors is increasing, the fraud itself is not decreasing.聽 Among the tools securities regulators are using to protect seniors from financial exploitation are outreach, education, enforcement and stronger legislation.Results of the NASAA survey indicate that most cases of fraud against seniors go undetected until it is too late to prevent serious problems.聽 The survey also suggests the need for greater efforts on the part of broker-dealers and investment stanley kubek advisors to protect seniors f