The School of Visual Art and Design mourns the loss of  Khaldoune Bencheikh (1974- 2022), Studio Art MFA alumni and adjunct faculty member.  Khaldoune not only believed in the power of art to change people’s lives, but acted on it every day. While he was an undergraduate in Casablanca, Morocco, he volunteered in hospitals, offering painting workshops to patients and family members. After moving to the United States from Morocco in 2000, he worked tirelessly to bring art, awareness, creativity, and joyful exploration to people and the community - his deep care and commitment to people without homes took so many forms, from The Mobile Landmark Project, to his Reliquarium Garden Mural Project at the Transitions Center in Columbia, to public rangoli and mosaic workshops he would hold to bring art to anyone who wished to create. Khaldoune sincerely cared about people’s ability to express themselves in word and image, and he listened. He worked to help create legacies for people who may otherwise be forgotten. May we not forget him, and the memories and artworks he created.