Chamber event includes portraits of heroes

By Donnita Fisher

Managing Editor - 

In addition to being the traditional red, white and blue celebration of patriotic pride and celebration of America’s birthday that it always is, the Canton Chamber’s Fourth of July parade served as the unveiling of a special memorial art gallery – “Platoon of the Fallen.”

 Marchers in the parade carried large paintings of Texas military men killed during the War on Terror. Canton was chosen as one of the first cities to host a platoon.

"My passion for the past 5-and-a-half years has been to create a suitable way to honor our brave men and women from Texas," said Kent Pridgeon, founder of The Portrait of a Warrior Gallery.  “Painting these portraits of the fallen has been the most rewarding thing I have done in my life. By introducing this concept of the Platoons of the Fallen we hope to ensure more people are aware of the sacrifice these Americans and their families have made.”

Located in Baytown, the organization behind Pridgeon is seeking funding for a suitable repository for his work, which is expected to total more than 600 custom portraits when completed. For more information about the portraits, visit the website www.portraitofawarrior.org.

Joe Glover was the coordinator of the local marching group. 

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