A Disney Cinderella classic, “A dream is a wish your heart makes,” has been guidance for people of all ages. For Richard Terpstra, it spoke to his passion.

Richard is a Ball State University alumnus working as a Senior Manager Creative Designer for Disney Consumer Products. 

As a child, Richard’s future was fated. He grew up going to Disney theme parks as a family bonding experience, but they found another avenue through Ball State University. Both of his parents are alumni, along with his older and younger sisters. 

“Ball State has always been my universe. Growing up always wearing Ball State sweatshirts in middle school. It just felt like a ‘warm hug,’” Richard said, unintentionally quoting Olaf from Frozen, “It felt like a second home.”

Richard originally went to Ball State, attending the Teachers College for secondary education, following the same flight path as his parents. The curriculum allowed him to explore other interests and expand his knowledge to other potential careers. Through these opportunities, Richard shifted to a Bachelor of Fine Arts in painting. 

His freshman year, he participated in the PRIDE Alliance (now known as SPECTRUM) group on campus. Eventually, his academics took priority, so he spent a lot of time working on perfecting his craft. Ball State’s Fine Arts program helped Richard build his creative foundation, which eventually helped him find success.

Reflecting back on his childhood, he never fit the stereotype. Children are often told what to do. They are told to be polite, say ‘please’ and ‘thank you.’ They are taught to be tidy and not make a mess. They are taught to color within the lines and follow the societal norm. 

Richard’s watercolor media professor, Marilynn Derwenskus, was the opposite. She broke all the rules and made him look at the medium in a different way. She taught him to color outside the lines and represent your true self through art. Her lessons spoke to Richard and guided him to follow his heart through his creative passions. 

“Ball State does a really good job of task to talent and finding the instructors that can really inspire and drive individuals. I would say a lot of the teaching and learning from my individual professors in my area engrained a lot of the principles that I carry through to this day.”

During his time in the Fine Arts program at Ball State, he started to develop a dream to work for Disney, but wishing upon a star does not mean it will come true. 

Much like the father of Tiana said in the Disney movie Princess and the Frog, “Remember Tiana, that old star can only take you part of the way. You got to help it along with some hard work of your own.” Much like Tiana, Richard didn’t stop at the wish, he used it as motivation to work hard and achieve it. 

The summer of his junior year, Richard applied to a Disney design competition under the fine arts discipline. To his surprise, he made it to the finals. This brought Disney to campus in Muncie, Indiana, and allowed him to fly out to L.A. with the other finalists. His hard work paid off and he won. The competition helped him make connections and network through the Disney company and find new opportunities. He started working for companies that made consumer goods with a license to use Disney, Nickelodeon, Sony and DreamWorks Animation property on their merchandise. This opportunity gave him an entirely different perspective in how commerce and creativity worked together. 

During his time working in consumer goods, he started to create a blog focusing on Disney and design from different perspectives. He used social media to bring attention to his name and work. After two years of persistent efforts, freelance work started to come in. 

He later went into a T-Shirt screen printing shop to focus more on design. During this time he also took on freelance work for three different divisions of the Disney company. After three years a job opened up and he was hired full time for Disney at 34 years old. 

He embarked on a strenuous 15 year journey from graduation to the time he received his name badge. His dream came true. 

His biggest challenge was networking and being able to find someone willing to mentor him into his passions. Keeping this in mind, he became a mentor to others trying to pursue their dreams. Richard lives by his own advice, but will help anyone willing to listen:

To college students trying to find their way in the workforce:

“Your portfolio should be living and breathing. Constantly changing,” Richard said.

To fine art students:

“Don’t try to find your style. You have to wear multiple hats. You have to be adaptable to what is being asked of you. Especially in a creative environment,” Richard said. 

To anyone trying to wish upon a star:

“Don’t rest. You’re not finished. You haven’t crossed that line … Don’t give up on the dream. It can be achieved. It just takes that hard work and perseverance. Finding that balance will be difficult, but tough it out. You can do it,” Richard said.