Ella Nolan

Spokeswoman

 

Ella Nolan is a powerful example of how strength, faith and determination can overcome adversity, even in its most difficult incarnations.

 

Born in the Southern town of Lafollette, Tennessee, Ella was raised with small-town values and appreciation of a simple life in which God and family are the priority.  Although, Ella’s personal story is one of unimaginable loss, it is also a journey of hope, compassion, and forgiveness.

 

After Ella was born her mother Marie, had married a man who would soon show his true colors.  He was physically and emotionally abusive and the violence escalated to a tragic end.

 

Marie waited far too long to break free.  She was 4 months pregnant and feeling trapped in her circumstances.  However she did manage to leave her violent husband and attempted a new start once again.

 

Only days later on a warm and peaceful afternoon Marie and her brother J.B. were taking 3-year-old Ella and her 2-year-old sister for a walk to her Grandmother’s house.  In that fateful moment Marie’s estranged husband drove by and from his moving vehicle open fired on the family.

 

J.B. was critically injured.  And horrifically, while holding tiny Ella’s hand, Marie and her unborn baby boy were shot and killed.  Ella remembers the day; the memory of her mother’s hand clenching hers in those final moments.

 

Following her mother’s murder, she went to live with her Grandmother.  Years of her unconditional love would soften her heartache.  Ella’s Grandmother and loving family were tremendous role models and provided a foundation of security for her and her younger sister.  After her graduation from Campbell County High School in 1998, Ella received both her Real Estate license, as well graduation from the Tennessee School of Beauty to be a certified stylist and beauty consultant.

 

Recently, the man who killed her mother was released from prison.  Ella felt compelled to visit him and tell him face-to-face how what he did had affected her life.  It took every ounce of courage and the Grace of God, yet she stood on his front lawn and forgave him.  While Ella doesn’t necessarily feel that he has learned from his mistakes, she did need the forgiveness for her own sake.  When Ella forgave him she was able to leave behind the burden that she had carried for years.

 

Her story is an experience too traumatic for most to even imagine.  Yet rather than allowing domestic violence and the loss of her beloved mother to jade her, Ella has turned it into an opportunity to help people to change their lives. Having had to overcome the ultimate loss has given Ella the drive to raise awareness for a cause that plagues the lives of millions worldwide.

 

Today, Ella lives her life trying to have a positive influence on the lives of everyone who crosses her path.  She strives to be an authentic role model for her son Ethan and she lives everyday guided by the memory of her mother.  She believes that domestic violence is not merely a cause that she feels strongly about; rather that she has a vested personal interest in raising awareness.  Ella feels that every woman living in fear and abuse is in some way the memory of her own mother.

 

She gives to her community as an advocate speaking at local high schools about self-confidence and goal setting, and is a Presenter for Campbell County Children’s Center; where she ardently speaks to the local community about children abuse prevention.

 

Ella wishes that women who are suffering from situations of violence might realize that: they are not alone, they are meant for something more, and there is hope for a better life.

 

“Growing up and living with the death of my mother at such a young age, I always felt different and not in a positive way.  However, I knew that this is the life that God had given me, so I made the choice to turn my mother's murder into something more.” 

 

In 2010, Ella appeared as a contestant on Season 14 of ABC’s The Bachelor: On the Wings of Love.  Following this experience she was a guest on The Ellen Degeneres Show, and was a contestant in Dancing With The (Knoxville) Stars. Ella has been able to pursue her passion for the cause of domestic violence through opportunities made available through her new-found public exposure.

 

One such opportunity has afforded Ella the honoured position as Spokesperson for Make It Beautiful (MIB).  A national charitable organization based out of Nashville, Tennessee; MIB provides individuals and families in need with the tools to make healthy life transitions.  Make It Beautiful offers encouragement, support, education and hope to connect people in need with the resources and opportunities needed to make even the hardest situations beautiful.

 

A passionate and profound Spokesperson, Ella is currently working with Make It Beautiful and other charities, speaking out and raising awareness.  She believes that if her story can help change even the life of one woman, she has succeeded.

 

 

Ella Nolan is the Official Spokesperson for www.MakeItBeautiful.net
~ In fond memory of my mother Marie and my baby brother ~