BOZEMAN, Mont. — Visitors to the Bozeman Senior Center may have noticed something new lately: a brand-new banner outside the building.
The banner has a special story behind it, thanks to local illustrator Harrison Howard, who took it upon himself to replace the center’s old sign.
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“For a place that’s constantly giving, I thought I could do something a little nice for them,” Howard said.
Howard, a Bozeman native, grew up with a passion for art and later graduated from Montana State University with a degree in graphic design.
“I grew up in a pretty artsy family, and it was just my way of sort of processing things,” he said.
He also grew up bringing his grandmother to the Bozeman Senior Center.
“The senior center has been a staple of my entire childhood,” Howard said.
But for years, something about the center’s old banner bothered him.
“I drop off my grandma every week, and it kind of bothered me. There’s been that spelling error forever,” Howard said.
The previous banner read: “The doorway to friends, fun, and fit ness?”
“I just thought they deserved better,” Howard said.
Howard began working on a redesign.
“It really started with just doodling on my iPad,” he said.
He brought those ideas to Shannon Bondy, executive director of the Bozeman Senior Center.
“We were so excited. I said, ‘I hate that sign, and we’ve been talking about replacing it forever,'" Bondy said.
With Bondy’s blessing and a personal budget of about $300, Howard created a new banner featuring Montana-inspired imagery, including mountains and a stitched heart symbolizing the senior center’s place in the community.
Bondy also contributed an idea for the sign’s message.
“‘Focusing on the opportunities of positive aging’ — that was your idea?” I asked.
“It was,” Bondy said. “Oftentimes, people think the senior center is a rest home. This kind of promoted an image of normal, retired, active people.”
Howard had the banner printed by local company SCS Wraps, which gave him a discount after learning about the project. He installed the sign himself a few weeks ago.
“I’ve been dragging everybody out here at lunch saying, ‘Did you see our new sign?’” Bondy said. “And everyone’s like, ‘Oh, I love it. It’s beautiful.’”
That includes Howard’s grandmother.
“A little hoot and a holler from my grandma,” Howard said.
For Howard, creating the new banner for a community that helped raise him comes down to one word.
“Love,” he said. “It’s love for my grandma, love for the community, love for Montana. I wish I could give more, and that’s what it comes down to.”
The new banner is now on display at the Bozeman Senior Center. Howard also created stickers that are available at the center.
