When you drop a pebble in a pool of water you can hear the initial splash, but it’s unlikely that you’ll pick up the sound of the ripples that flow outward.

The same can be said of mentorship. In the beginning, it’s not always clear how far its impact will reach.

Eddie McAnthony, who is called “Doc” by friends and former students, didn’t set out to become a mentor or gallery owner.

“All I wanted to do was to make art,” he said. But, McAnthony, who is now 90 with a head full of short silver hair, is both.

Camilo Diaz Jr. / KERA

‘ You’re in the wrong place’

In college, an advisor encouraged McAnthony to consider teaching to help pay the bills as he pursued his dreams of making art.

Neither of his parents knew how to read or write, so McAnthony felt like he was behind in school

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