We All Remember

November 11.

We all remember. It was the day we all actually stayed silent for a moment in school, remembering the soldiers who fought for our country.

At the time, those soldiers were often not known to us and their faces not familiar. But we knew from our teachers and parents the incredible significance of honoring their service.

November 11: Remembrance Day. Veterans Day. Armistice Day.

Around the world it has different names, but the day is the same and the purpose also the same. The day is seen as the end of World War I, which ended on this day in 1918.

Today, it is as powerful as never before. We honor those who served Canada in World War I and other wars our country was involved in, and also we honor the soldiers whose faces are now familiar - those from the Afghanistan war. Our brothers, boyfriends, husbands, sons and fathers are among the faces who fought for our country and the Afghan people. Some of them have not come home, sacrificing themselves for the cause they believed in.

We remember them today - those serving currently and those who served in the past - and thank them all for their incredible service to Canada.

We pray for the continued safety of all soldiers serving in the Canadian military. May they take comfort in knowing how grateful we are for what they do.

Impersonating a soldier? No way!

This is a repeat of of an old post, but it demonstrates an issue that soldiers have to deal with on a day to day basis. I will never be a soldier - painting portraits is a worthy occupation but doesn't require bravery or brute strength.

I'm an imposter! I'll start off with an apology for having the gear on completely wrong. And, I'll apologize for what might appear to be an impersonation of a soldier.

What this photo actually is, is me attempting to find out if I could actually carry even the lightest gear that a soldier routinely carries.

Well, I found out. I sure can't!

I've read about the weight of military gear, but it never sunk in until today. I was fortunate enough to visit Lancaster Park - the military base in Edmonton - with a soldier giving me a guided tour.

When I left, I literally had almost everything but the pants and shirt Pat was wearing, although I did get other pants and shirts in the collection I took with me. He actually changed his boots and cap so I could take the ones he was wearing.

This warmed my heart to the very core. The reason he shared his gear for a couple of days was to allow us to photograph and paint some of the items for Project Heroes.

The first item he handed me was a helmet. For all intents and purposes it looked like a hard hat, but with camouflage on it. Well I've picked up many hard hats before so I had a mental expectation of the weight. Wrong. I almost dropped the helmet. The next thing I picked up was his 'flack jacket' (I've also heard it called a tack jacket). I'm guessing it weighed about 20+ pounds - like a large bag of potatoes. I can't even begin to guess the weight of the backpack, but I was assured that it was "light" compared to when the soldiers actually have it packed for use.

As I dressed in the heavy gear to take this photo (and I didn't even wear the helmet), it struck me hard that our soldiers have to endure so much in their duties, and the weight of their gear is only scratching the surface of the amount of sacrifice they make for all Canadians.

I'm compassionate, and my heart breaks for every fallen soldier, but brave I am not. I would never be able to stand in a soldier's shoes, so I'm incredibly thankful that they do what they do. I guess I technically did stand in his boots, but I couldn't even stand up straight! I estimated that I was carrying more than half my weight - don't ask and I won't tell.

Cindy, Shairl and I are all very thankful for the support that we are getting for Project Heroes and for the participation of the families who allow us to paint their soldiers and share them with Canadians. Thanks also to Pat for the military gear that I was able to borrow temporarily. 

- Susan Abma

The Project Moves Along

A project like this takes time, energy and money to put together and none of these things are in great supply. Each of us has other work to take care of, illustration, commissions, and an online magazine, nevertheless it's something we think is important and it's moving forward. Before the trip to Saskatchewan we each worked on 2 sample paintings that would be shown to the families of the soldiers to help them understand what we were doing.

Society Status Underway

Although we may not have been in contact much over the last several months, we have been very busy and a lot has happened with Project Heroes™.

At long last, after many meetings, after creating bylaws and objectives, etc., we have applied to become a Society.

This will mean many things for Project Heroes™. First, we'll be able to apply for federal charitable status and will hopefully be able to issue tax receipts in the near future. It means we're working together with expert assistance of volunteer board members, and it means we'll be able to accept other members to the society. How exciting it will be if you all become members of the Project Heroes Society.

It also means we'll be scouting out volunteers to assist with things like fundraising, membership, looking for venues, bookkeeping, data entry, etc. If you would like to assist with the project, please let us know - we can certainly use you now or in the near future.

And we will be in contact much more often now that we're finished much of the organizational 'stuff' and things are back in full swing . Please feel free to contact us at any time - info@projectheroes.ca or 780-986-0789. And, please follow our blog by clicking on the 'Follow' button in the right hand column. We sure appreciate your support.

Our Blog Has Moved To Our Website

Welcome to our blog. We have got some exciting news - at least for us! Our website has been redesigned and our blog has been integrated into it. So, now one simple address will get you virtually all of the Project Heroes information.

To go to our new blog: go to www.projectheroes.ca and click on Blog Updates on the top bar. All of our old blog posts have been moved there, so if you're looking for a particular post, you'll still be able to access it.

Thanks so much for following our blog. We will continue to provide you regular updates on Project Heroes.

Painting with friends

For several summers now, Shairl (centre) and I (right) have spent three weeks in Newfoundland painting scenes there en plein air (outdoor painting).

Although we have a fairly grueling schedule while there, painting from sunup to sundown most days, it is well worth it because it helps keep our painting skills finely tuned, and it is also a lot of fun.

This year was extra special for us. We were very busy painting portraits of fallen Canadian soldiers before we left, so we took a couple of the portraits with us to work on in case there was a rainy day that we couldn't work outside. We were also very fortunate to also take along Judy Budd, mother of one of the fallen soldiers (left).

Judy used to paint, but for the last three years since her son died in Afghanistan, she had not picked up a paintbrush. When Shairl and I visited her earlier this year, we immediately liked this woman and within a few hours of talking to her we invited her to join us on our painting trip this summer. A day or two later she accepted.

Although she hadn't painted in several years, she painted with us every day and when our trip was done, she had created as many paintings as I did. For those who don't paint, that may sound easy, but it is actually hard work and not very comfortable at all. We painted at the edge of the ocean some days and we were so cold that we painted with as many layers of sweaters that we had with us and had shirts tied around our heads and socks on our hands to be able to withstand the wind and bitter cold. Other days, inland, the heat and sun were brutal. In the evenings we had to fend off mosquitos, some days we were rained on...

Not only did Judy stick with the painting (and us), but she created some excellent paintings and she kept us laughing with her great sense of humor.

Now that we are home and getting back to painting 'our' fallen heroes, we are doing it with an even greater connection than ever before, and we feel so blessed by the new friendship we have made with Judy, and the friendships that are developing with families of other fallen soldiers.

In the photo above, Shairl is shown with the painting that she painted of Judy while Judy was painting a NFLD scene. It will always remind me of the strength, determination, and wonderful kindness and humor of our amazing new friend, Judy.

- Susan Abma

Personal Time With A War Hero

This pencil drawing was done with the photos of Cpl. Shane Keating at hand. I wanted to explore his face and get to know his structure before starting the portrait painting.
Drawing out these heroes before I start painting them gives me personal time to get to know them.
I can imagine their strength, their love of Canada, and their dedication to their cause.
It's important to me to attempt to capture not only their physical self, but their spiritual self as well.
- Shairl

Project Heroes Thanks Its Sponsors

Another Canadian soldier has recently died and it makes us nervous to see a soldier friend leaving for Afghanistan. Thank you for the courage and generosity of spirit that takes you across the world to make life better for the people of Afghanistan.

We also want to recognize the friends who have sponsored this project so far. Your financial help is a wonderful way to say thank you to the soldiers. It's also your support that will help us see this project to the end. When the paintings are done and the exhibition is up it will be an incredibly touching way for Canadians to show their gratitude to Canadian soldiers.

Work in Progress - Portrait of Corporal Cole Bartsch

Corporal Cole Bartsch-Work in Progress
Work in Progress-Stage 2

This is the second stage of the painting with all areas roughly blocked in with the approximate colours. At this stage there's no detail and I'm not too fussy about getting exact colours, my goal is to get the canvas completely covered with paint and try to stay true to the oil sketch which ultimately gets covered up. I had an illustration assignment to do so I only had time to block in the background and shirt.

The next day after taking care of some business aspects of art (the part I don't particularly like) I added Cole's beret and got the first layer of paint on his face. Luckily the painting isn't dry yet so I can paint wet in wet which I prefer. I'll be fine tuning the colour and shapes, making sure that the drawing is accurate, adding details and the pattern to the uniform. It looks like I've wandered a bit from my oil sketch (see post from June 12) so I'll have to make some adjustments here and there.

We're painting from photos given to us by the families and most often the soldiers are dressed in civilian clothing and are in candid situations. It's necessary to delete backgrounds and other people from the photos and add what is needed like the beret and uniform. We paint a background that is flattering to skin tones, add the berets and uniforms, and pose them all in a similar manner so that the paintings will look like a cohesive unit when they're displayed together.

Cindy

Composition Issues

Susan - Every now and then a painter has a painting that just isn't working for one reason or another, and this one is problematic for me. There are some things that work well - I like the soldiers marching into the distance on the right and I like the main soldier and the way he fades into the soldiers marching.

The problem is the 'bloom' of faces behind him. There's some glare on the photo, but still you can see how the faces look like a flower growing out behind the main soldier's head.

It doesn't matter how excellent our skills are, or how long we've been painting, we still occasionally create paintings like this one that I've had great challenges with and may eventually have to put in the scrap file if a really great idea doesn't arise quickly.

So, if you have any ideas, feel free to comment. In the meantime, wish me luck with this one and I'll either post the end result, or let you know if it hits the scrap heap and I start again.

Shairl Follows ‘Andrew’s Smile’ to Vancouver Island

Shairl (left) with Maureen (right) This incredible quilt was a gift made by a neighbor friend that honours not only
Andrew but other soldiers that have died in previous wars.

“I have to meet this mother; I want to paint her son!” said Shairl as she listened to Maureen Eykelenboom share her story called ‘Andrew’s Smile’ on CBC Radio.
Corporal Andrew James Eykelenboom died on August 11, 2006. He was the first Canadian Forces Medic to be killed in Afghanistan. “Andrew was packing up to go home, but he volunteered to go out on the day he died”, said Maureen. She spoke of how Andrew lived his life to the fullest but always had time to help others.

As Shairl visited with the Eykelenboom family in their home in Comox, B.C. she observed the many plaques, photos, and commemorative items throughout the house that honored Andrew as a brave hero, soldier and medic. Through Maureen’s stories Shairl learned that Andrew’s sensitivity and compassion for all peoples was evident even as a young boy.

Shairl feels she knows this young son of Maureen and Hans a little better now. It will be an honour to paint him. She will start his portrait tomorrow.

A Visit With Corporal Cole Bartsch's Family

Susan and I (Cindy) recently had a visit with the family of Cole Bartsch, one of the soldiers who died on July 4, 2007. We heard about Cole's love for the outdoors and comics, his antics, his great respect for the military, and his deep love of family. And photos, so many wonderful photos of Cole.

Hearing about him and seeing his pictures and bedroom will make painting his portrait all that more poignant.

Cole's parents want his name and the wonderful young man that he was to be remembered. Project Heroes™ is a way we can remember our fallen soldiers and show our deep gratitude, even so it seems as though we can't say thank you enough for what the soldiers and their parents, siblings, extended family, and friends have given up.

Thank you Bartsch family. Thank you Cole.

The brushes are wagging....

Shairl and Susan have been drawing two young corporals, while Cindy has been working on a commemorative painting for the exhibition.

Although the subject of our paintings is sad because we have lost these heroes to the Afghanistan war, there is some happiness for us because they will 'live' in their paintings for many, many years into the future. We feel so grateful for the opportunity to help them do that.

This week we are contacting some more families of fallen soldiers so we can start on some new paintings for the exhibition.

Working on the Project

Posted on the website, click here!