Amid Minnesota wildfires, artist creates "Ely Strong" design to help buoy community

For Bethany Hway, Ely, Minnesota, is home. And there's no place else she'd rather be. 

"We have access to beautiful wilderness. We love being able to go canoeing and backpacking and mountain biking and downhill skiing right out our back door, literally," Hway said.

She describes Ely as a place where connections run deep.

"It's an extremely personal, close-knit community," she said.

When wildfires sent smoke pouring through town and forced residents to confront the possibility of losing the place they love, Hway said she felt the same uncertainty as many others.

"So you're looking at this place that is so meaningful and imagining, what if it's gone?" she said.

Hway and her family prepared for the worst while looking for ways to help those around them.

"When you live in an area this remote, your neighbors are your lifelink," she said.

Hway decided to use her graphic design skills to create something that reflected what she saw in her community.

"I just started thinking about this idea of how resilient and strong our community has been in the face of uncertainty," Hway said. "And I wanted to celebrate that."

That idea became the Ely Strong project, a way for Hway to give back to a community that she says is always giving back to one another.

"Just seeing neighbors helping one another, seeing organizations pop up out of nowhere to coordinate resources, and seeing people respond with such hope," she said.

Hway's design has now been printed on posters, stickers, shirts and hoodies, with proceeds benefiting Ely Community Resource, a nonprofit that has supported young people through outdoor activities and after-school programs in Ely for nearly 50 years.

For executive director Jill Swanson, the meaning behind the project meant everything.

"When she had first sent me the email with the graphic and just reading those words, 'Ely Strong,' I just started crying," Swanson said.

She said the artwork captured the spirit of the community.

"There's so much strength in love and caring for each other, and I think that it was such a beautiful gesture. We were so honored that she thought of us," Swanson said.

For Hway, the project is a reminder of what matters most when a community faces uncertainty.

"You start to really realize how much you care about a place and the people," she said. "When something you love is threatened, it really puts things in perspective."

Now, through a simple design and a shared message, Hway is giving people a way to show their support for an iconic part of Minnesota's Northwoods.