The design of four colored ribbons, three circles and a Celtic knot came about after Walsh had made several suggestions of designs with a peace crane and a house. Peg Coleman, Haven House executive director, said she had been looking at looped colored ribbons arranged together and realized the design evoked a Celtic knot. Coleman asked Walsh to explore that idea.

“She’s Irish, I’m Irish,” Walsh said. “(Coleman) said, ‘Why don’t you try something with a knot in it?’”

When Coleman showed Walsh’s design to the Haven House staff and board of directors, it was an instant hit.

“They looked at it and said, ‘This is it,’” Coleman said.

Walsh learned graphic arts when he was in the U.S. Air Force. He drew and designed military insignia, not logos for social service agencies dealing with domestic violence and sexual assault.

“I really liked graphics. I stuck with it,” Walsh said. “It’s nice to use those abilities in something that’s not military.”

The three circles stand for the individual, the family and the community. Each colored ribbon symbolizes one of Haven House’s concerns. Purple is for domestic violence awareness. Teal is for sexual assault awareness. Mint-green is for child abuse and neglect awareness.

And the white? It stands for the white ribbon campaign, for men ending family violence — a program Coleman said Haven House plans to launch in Homer. The intertwining of the ribbons speaks to the effects of domestic violence on children and includes men in the movement to end violence.

“It always struck me as funny that we want men to change their behavior, but we don’t want them to be part of that process,” Coleman said.

Walsh said at first he was reluctant to use the ribbon symbol. Using colored ribbons to symbolize causes has been overused. He tried out the idea anyway.

“It actually turned into something that has gotten me past the feeling about how overdone the ribbon thing is,” Walsh said. “I went with the flow and it turned out well. That’s a good lesson for me.”

Coleman said her staff has suggested she get a tattoo of the logo.

“I’m settling for a sign outside our building,” she said. “It would make a wonderful stained glass if anybody wanted to donate that.”