Blog → August 2, 2018

Covey Center Art Exhibit with Elizabeth Thayer

Running Water Portrait

Written by Megan Carson

Don’t miss out on an extraordinary opportunity to meet Elizabeth Thayer, the incredible portrait artist behind the paintings done of our friends seeking refuge. She has her work currently on display at the Covey Center in Provo, Utah (on Center Street).

Cover Center Art Exhibit With Liz Thayer

THIS FRIDAY, August 3rd from 6-9pm, Liz will be greeting exhibit-goers at a reception for her exhibit. You won’t want to miss this exhibit - it’s soul-stirring and powerful! And, to meet Liz in person, to hear her experiences behind the paintings makes them really come to life.

In•humanity Flier

I had the privilege of meeting Liz this week, as she walked with me through the stories of the courageous subjects of her paintings. In an intimate setting like that, these beautiful people became so much more than refugees. It was clear that she was telling me about her friends.

Liz Thayer Tsos Portrait Artist
Liz Thayer, TSOS Portrait Artist with Megan Carson, TSOS Social Media Manager

You also don’t want to miss an interview she had with Julie Rose on BYU Radio as they walked around the exhibit together! Liz knows the people and their stories, and her personal connections with them bring them as much to life as her paintbrush.

Covey Center Art Exhibit
Covey Center Art Exhibit
Other Posts

Partner Profile: No One Left Behind

Their Story is Our Story and No One Left Behind (NOLB) joined forces in 2025 to launch the StoryShield program.

We spoke with Matthew Marcellus, Director of Communications with NOLB, and asked what the partnership with TSOS has meant for his organization and their Afghan clients.

August 13, 2026

Context with Layma

Social media presents us with an endless scroll of headlines and ‘hot takes’. What’s often missing is context. What is the history that led up to an event? Whose interests are served by a certain policy? What effects is that policy having on people’s lives? Layma Murtaza produces and hosts the video series “Context with Layma”, featured on Their Story is Our Story’s social media channels. We spoke to her about the context of her own life, as an Afghan-American and a professional in humanitarian aid, that led her to use storytelling to illuminate the personal and political context behind the headlines.

August 13, 2026
What would you do if you had to leave everything behind?

By the end of 2025, more than 117.8 million people worldwide had been forcibly displaced by war, persecution, or human rights abuses — and 45 million of them are children.

They arrive in refugee camps and countries seeking safety and carrying little: legal papers, if they're lucky. A backpack. A child's hand in theirs.

What they carry that we can't see is heavier: fractured families, homes they'll never return to, professions they loved, friends and relatives they may never see again.

In a climate where immigrant stories are often ignored or twisted, we believe stories are a form of justice. When someone shares what they survived, they reclaim their voice. When we amplify it through film, photography, and advocacy, the world listens. Hearts soften. Policy begins to shift.

Because when a lawmaker sees a person instead of a statistic, and a neighbor understands instead of fears, rebuilding becomes possible.

Your support helps us share these stories where they matter most.

— Kristen Smith Dayley, Executive Director, Their Story is Our Story

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