While some nonprofits dabble on phonecards, others have raised them to an art, literally. An accomplished painter, Ron Heagy of the Ron Heagy Destiny Foundation and his own Life is an Attitude organization, shrinks his works and sells them on phonecards. Proceeds from the cards are used to fund Heagy’s motivational speeches.

But it’s not that easy. Heagy was paralyzed from the neck down after a 1980 surfing accident. He paints with a brush held by his teeth.

Heagy’s phonecards became collectibles after the first 1,000 quickly sold out. The Tangent, Oregon-based Heagy has issued five cards that were published in limited editions of 1,000 each. In fact, an auction of the phonecards conducted by Oakland, California-based Destiny Telecommunications for its Heagy Foundation raised $7,000.

The Heagy/Destiny Foundation provides grants to disabled individuals and organizations that support them.

“Not too many cards are made from a person’s mouth,” he explained. “It’s a unique story.”

Although Heagy received a master’s degree from San Diego State University, he couldn’t find a spot in the corporate world. “I could make it through graduate school, but they didn’t think I could perform on the job,” he said.

His hometown high school appreciated his efforts and invited him to speak to the student body about his experiences. “I realized this might be something I wanted to do,” Heagy said.

That homecoming marked the beginning of Life is an Attitude. To date, Heagy has spoken to over 700,000 teenagers from across the United States. By using his experience as an example, he shows students that their goals are achievable.

It was Destiny Telecommunications that led him to put his art work on a phonecard. After all, it’s difficult — not to mention expensive — to carry an 11x14-inch print around.

“You can take it out of your wallet and look at it if you’re having a bad day,” Heagy said.

Heagy usually paints landscapes, although his Native American card depicts a girl with a wolf. Another shows a sunset from the beach.

“Most are scenery,” he said. “I don’t do abstracts.”

He’s also helping other nonprofits along the way. A local Catholic parish, for instance, used one of Heagy’s paintings in its fundraising efforts. Since he is a celebrity in his region of Oregon (near Salem), the caption “mouth painted by Ron Heagy” generates added interest to parishioners.

Spreading the word about his cards was comparatively easy for Heagy since his speaking engagements gave him a willing audience. That’s a luxury that Heagy knows many nonprofits don’t have.

And, with other nonprofits jumping on the phonecard bandwagon, organizations must make their cards and programs “creative and unique,” Heagy said.

“Go ahead and take a chance,” he said. “The sooner you get your stuff out there, the more valuable it will be.”


Justman, Sandy. “A Painter’s Brush with Phonecards.” The Nonprofit Times, Direct Marketing Edition (April 1997): 6.