Paige Linback, Southwestern Michigan College 2013, marked seven years in October as a graphic designer for WNDU-TV in South Bend, though she left an indelible image at SMC as a photographer.

As the designer of Cass County’s honor coin, Linback, of Edwardsburg, owns #1. Only 100 were minted.

In July, the Cass Area Artists assistant director won a contest. The Cass County Board of Commissioners honored her at its Aug. 10 meeting.

Her winning entry depicts the 1899 courthouse bell tower in downtown Cassopolis which, to her, represents the heart of not just the village that is the county seat, but the entire county.

The coin, inspired by military challenge coins, contains eight stars — one for each commissioner.

“I came up with the idea because I did 25 years in the military, where challenge coins are a big deal,” Chairman Jeremiah Jones of Pokagon Township said.

The Army veteran served three combat tours — Desert Storm in 1991, Iraq in 2006-07 and Afghanistan in 2012-13.

Using a photograph she took, Linback traced every brick with Adobe Illustrator to create the required flat-vector design. Of 11 submissions, hers was one of only three that met that criteria to qualify.

“I’ve resided in Cass County most of my life. I’ve been in 4-H, done Miss Edwardsburg and I’m part of Cass Area Artists, so this was an honor to be able to be part of this contest,” said the 2010 Edwardsburg High School graduate who also considered becoming a translator, influenced by chef and travel documentarian Anthony Bourdain.

“Art has been a passion of mine for as long as I can remember. I was sometimes discouraged in high school to pursue art, so decided to be a translator instead. In high school, I took six foreign languages and four art classes. When I came to SMC, I took German and Spanish.”

Linback, whose associate degree is in fine arts, visited campus in April 2019 when Californian Bill Rothwell retired from teaching 20 years at SMC, and again Sept. 9 for the Renaissance Faire.

She added a 2015 bachelor’s degree in technical and professional communications through SMC partner Ferris State University.

Linback, who interned in graphic design at Granger Community Church, attended a Worldwide Global Leadership Summit when Granger was a satellite host for the event at Willow Creek Church in Chicago beamed to 92 countries.

Linback won an art talent scholarship at SMC and awards in student shows for watercolor and photography.

“I really got involved on campus,” she said. “I started taking pictures for the newspaper at a lot of SMC events. My Zombie Run photos from 2012 are my favorite. I took the famous photo of Jason Wilt as a gruesome zombie.”

Wilt, SMC’s first housing director and a founding member of the Young Professionals of Greater Dowagiac, now works for the University of Notre Dame.

SMC in the summer of 2013 purchased a photo she made that spring in digital photography of a quilt shop in uptown Edwardsburg. It still hangs between the art gallery and the theatre in the Dale A. Lyons Building.

Linback was very involved with Phi Theta Kappa Sigma Psi Chapter of the international honor society, honing her design skills creating advertisements, a logo and videos. She’s proud PTK created the Roadrunner Kitchen food pantry.

Linback also created SMC STEM Club’s original logo. She won second place for an oil painting in Ferris State’s Prism writing contest in the art category featured in an FSU publication.

“I started being a marker and color pencil artist in middle school,” Linback said. “In high school, I took drawing, oil painting and Advanced Art I and II. I learned in Bob Ross’s oil painting style of happy trees and clouds.

“I started photography towards the end of middle school when my parents got their second digital camera. It was a fun hobby because I did wildlife photography, which is still my specialty.

“I started competing in open class and 4-H at the Cass County Fair in high school. I have won several awards from 4-H and open class with my paintings, photography and a few drawings. Photography is my cheap, quick art hobby and painting is my passion. I don’t have the time to draw or paint as much as I do photography as my quick creative outlet.”

Pop culture and music inspired her artwork. Influences range from Japanese comics and National Geographic to nature, classic artists and Disney.

In 2014, while visiting her brother and sister-in-law in California, they  went whale-watching at Moss Landing.

“Seeing whales in the wild was one of the greatest things that I’ve ever experienced in my life,” she said.

U.S. Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg owns two of her paintings of his dogs when he was South Bend mayor. Paige also painted a portrait of Lucy, anchor Maureen McFadden Dorgan’s dalmatian.

“I had a blast painting Lucy,” she said. “I even listened to the Rolling Stones while painting it,” knowing the English rock band formed in London in 1962 was a McFadden family favorite for her and co-anchor brother, Terry.

As “Mo” wrote when she left the station after almost 40 years in 2019, “I work with the greatest group of friends. Paige Linback brought in sweets, Irish no less, and painted this beautiful watercolor of Lucy from one of my Facebook photos. And I got my first dog at age 11 from her grandfather. So special.”

McFadden may have helped her get her foot in the door at WNDU when Linback tried to leave Martin’s for television with a portfolio fat with client work but light on experience.  McFadden came in for groceries one night and said she’d put in a good word for Linback at WNDU.

Linback, one of two designers, felt her interview went well, but feared she might not be seen as qualified for the position, which involves everything from logos and web banner ads to illustrations which pop up behind the anchors.

She was shocked when her work with Monica Murphy’s reporting popped up in April 2021 on CBS’ “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” one of her favorite comedians along with Seth Meyers.

“I’m a massive fan,” she said. “I thank Monica every day for this because she is an awesome reporter. It was a dream come true. It meant more than an Emmy.”