From Here I Can… Live in Motion

Ella (Nicholson) Mull was born and raised in Wayne County, Indiana, where she attended Nettle Creek Schools, ran cross country, served as a lifeguard, and enjoyed connecting and playing in a community where her family’s roots run deep.

Ella’s father, grandfather, and uncle are avid bike riders. From volunteering for Reid Health’s annual ReidRide, to serving on the board of the Cardinal Greenway, her family have long been active and involved advocates for cycling across Wayne County. From an early age, Ella began riding, too — both in organized events and for fun, around her neighborhood. This passion for staying active and connecting to community through motion was imprinted on her life, and she took it with her to college. “My family has a long history of cycling in Wayne County,” Ella shares. “And some of my earliest memories are of being around bikes and cycling — it’s where my love for staying active began.”

Left: Ella joins her family at ReidRide, a family tradition. Middle: Young Ella sits on top of a bike at a museum she visited with her dad in Washington, D.C. Right: Ella poses with her dad at a Cross Country meet.

During high school, Ella earned two years’ worth of dual college credits — enough to enroll at Ball State University as a junior. In just two years, she was able to graduate with her bachelor’s degree in Media Design and Development — a huge accomplishment that also reduced the cost of her college education by half. 

And because she was able to earn graduate credits during her senior year at Ball State, Ella was awarded her master’s in Emerging Media Design and Development after just one year of graduate school. With her impressive resume, she quickly landed a job at IronGate Creative, a marketing agency back in her hometown in Wayne County.

From Home to College — And Back Home

With a suite of accomplishments and two higher education degrees under her belt, Ella was poised to take her career and her life in any direction. She purposely chose to return to Wayne County — both for a job opportunity, and to stay connected to family, friends, and the outdoors.

“I’ve really only ever worked in Hagerstown and Wayne County,” says Ella. She’s found ample opportunities to put her experiences and skills to work right here, where she grew up, by making the most of the connections she had already made throughout the community.

At IronGate, Ella used her understanding of design principles and user experience to create stories that spoke to her clients’ deepest needs. After two years of honing her design skills, she landed yet another job in her hometown. Now, at Davis Cabinets, she uses her experience to solve problems for clients who are looking for more function and usability in their homes.

Small Town Living at Its Best

Ella and her high school sweetheart, Quaid, bought a house in their hometown and married in August 2025 — just a little over four years after she graduated from Hagerstown High School.

“Within the past year, Quaid and I have traveled quite a bit, and visited some bigger cities,” Ella says. “It’s always very peaceful when we come back home.” 

Left: High school sweethearts, Ella and Quaid married in August 2025. Middle and right: The Mulls hiked and explored the outdoors during their honeymoon in Washington State.

Visiting bigger cities has driven home the benefits of living in a small town. Ella and Quaid enjoy staying active, and thanks to their location in a small town, Ella enjoys the ability to go for a run or a bike ride without having to deal with heavy traffic or busy streets.

Staying connected to her hometown means Ella has also been able to carry on the family tradition of organizing bike rides. “During the summer, I try to get my family, people from church, and others in the community to get together and bike,” she says. “It’s fun — we just bike around, talk, and enjoy the time together.” 

Ella and her family are a part of a larger community of biking enthusiasts in Wayne County. With eight miles of mountain biking trails in Hayes Arboretum, multiple nearby trailheads for the longest rail-trail in Indiana, and annual events like the Reid Health ReidRide (now Reid Adventure Course) and the Ride Across Indiana (RAIN), this is a place that makes it easy to get out and ride. 

From here, Ella and her husband are enjoying a lifestyle that speaks to their values: staying active, connecting to community, and finding joy in small town living — all while leading careers of purpose.