In 2012, grief gave way to creativity for Ryan Brunty.

Three years after graduating from UNLV, Brunty was mourning the loss of his grandfather. He stopped contacting friends, rarely left his house, and lost his job. But every night, he drew self portraits as a way to heal. One night, he drew a forlorn-looking Yeti that he named Yerman. For the first time, he had found a way to illustrate what he was feeling.

That drawing eventually led to the launch of his online shop, Depressed Monsters, which sells Yerman-centered accessories and toys. Yerman became a symbol of mental health awareness and helped propel Brunty onto the national speaking circuit

While attending UNLV, Brunty described himself as having been “meek” kid who was still trying to find his place in the world. Since then, he has spoken to audiences across the country about his journey, mental health, and finding a way forward. He's been invited to share his story at The Moth in Brooklyn; the Jed Foundation; the Clinton Foundation; CreativeMornings; the University of Rhode Island; and North Dakota State University.

Now, he’ll share that story with a new generation of Rebels as a featured speaker at Rebel Ready Week on Aug. 18.

Brunty says he hopes his message about nurturing mental health will resonate with first-year and transfer students as they begin a new chapter. Especially since he was once in their shoes as a new student learning to navigate college and campus life.

A 2009 graduate of the Hank Greenspun School of Journalism and Media Studies, Brunty focused on advertising and marketing. He is now a senior director of marketing for a Las Vegas hospitality group, where he manages live music venues.

He remains active in the arts scene. Last month, he launched the first Yerman vinyl toy on Kickstarter. Brunty also has completed two murals at The Space and another at Shine A Light, and he redid the Yerman mural at Gold Spike. His wholesale accounts now span the country, including boutiques, toy stores, gift shops, Meow Wolf, and even Harry Reid International Airport.

We caught up with Brunty in advance of his talk at UNLV.

Why is it so important for you to talk about mental health?

It's about the overall conversation of ending the stigma around it. When I first started this project over 15 years ago, we weren't as open as a society about talking about mental health. It was still like, "Be sad, but be sad over there."

I put my story out there, and the reason it resonated so much is because we weren't talking about these things. I had so many people reach out saying, "Thank you for sharing that, I know that I'm not alone now."

But there were a lot of messages from people saying stereotypical, unproductive things like, "Why are you sad? Just don't be sad."

I think that the more we talk about these mental health struggles, the better off we are. I hope that I've added in some way to that conversation to make it easier for people to talk about their own mental health, because it is really important, and I truly care about people getting the help they need.

What does being a Rebel mean to you?

Being a Rebel is like instilling a sense of exploring. For me, it's always been finding what makes you creative and finding what makes you special, and really focus on it. 

When I went to UNLV, I was a really meek kid. I didn't know anything about the world, and I was still trying to find myself. UNLV was the first time that I was given a sense of empowerment, where I was like, “I can figure this out. Not everything's as stressful as it needs to be.” That was like the first time that I felt like I was becoming a fully formed person.

I feel so grateful to have graduated with a degree in journalism. It has allowed me to learn communication skills that help in everyday conversations and business deals. I also am able to bring a marketer's brain to projects that don't necessarily call for it, but help immensely. I also worked for the Greenspun family [which has owned a number of local media companies] out of college, so everything comes full circle.

When everything took off after Yerman the Yeti, what kind of impact did you want to make on the world during that time?

I realize now that when I make Yerman, it's not for me anymore. It's for other people to find themselves in, and to find home or solace in. I mean, I have people that collect this character from all over the world now, and their stories are so different from what my story is. Whether it's someone buying a plush and it's their comfort plush that they fall asleep with every night, or whether it's a vinyl toy that they're going to put on their shelf, it now provides different pathways for people to connect with it.

I think that's the most beautiful thing about making art — that if you make something and you put it out into the world, your definition of what you made is going to be so different than anybody else's definition.