ASHVILLE, Ohio — Everything happens for a reason. Some of us believe it to be true. Others know it to be true.
In 2016, Jennifer Morbitzer shared the story of her struggle, her pain and her son.
Justin Huntzinger, then 22, told 10TV in 2016 he had used drugs since he was 12. The endless cycle of drugs including pills, cocaine and heroin gave way to an endless cycle of rehab stints. Five years later it’s still a cycle, but he’s still trying.
“It feels good,” Morbitzer said. “It feels good to see him hold a job. To do simple things like hold a job is a big deal and he’s doing that.”
With all the worry and the sleepless nights it’s surprising to some to know that Morbitzer doesn’t believe, but knows, everything happens for a reason.
“It was through my struggles with Justin that I actually really started opening up and recognizing angels,” she said.
It’s comforting. It’s peace of mind. For many, it’s hard to understand.
As a child, Morbitzer says she was spiritually sensitive. She recognizes not everyone accepts this idea of communicating with the spiritual world.
“It’s about connecting them with people who they love on the other side to validate that when the physical body’s gone, the soul just doesn’t die,” she said.
Her son is still here. Other parents can’t say the same. Her gift helps them, too.
“Sometimes people will come to me because they have lost a child to overdose and they do want to know if that child is OK on the other side,” she said.
The dead. The living. Morbitzer is connecting the two while realizing her gift is not only a burden for adults.
Wanting to help children accept and harness their gifts, Morbitzer started a YouTube page and she wrote a book “Stella and the Stars.”
“Stella, the character, was actually my imaginary friend,” Morbitzer said, laughing.
Stella is a spiritually sensitive child who, over time, learns to control her gift and embraces it instead of fearing it. The book was written five years ago, but Morbitzer couldn’t find the right illustrator, even looking at two nationwide companies. Then, like everything else she knows to be true, it just happened.
The right person, not some nationwide company illustrator, is a teenager who dates Morbitzer’s son.
“I never would have found her had they not found each other,” she said.
“I was told that she talks to ghosts on the computer,” Ansleigh Greer said.
Greer, 16, is a soon-to-be junior at Teays Valley High School. It’s her work that is the fine line between images and Morbitzer’s words.
“That is my vision what she did,” Morbitzer said. “I mean it turned out better than I ever thought it would turn out.”
If you don’t believe in the spiritual world you must believe there are some who do. Morbitzer and Greer say those people have questions and fears. “Stella and the Stars” is helping to offer answers, comfort and peace of mind.
“Yeah, that’s like what I want,” Greer said. “That’s what I want to do with my life is to help people. So, this is almost like the first step in doing it.”
People helping to ease the burden of other people; something all of us should believe in.