Page 14 theview . com August 2017
Local Students Support Veterans Home through Art Auction of Paintings to benefit future West Tennessee Veterans Home
By Terry Bondurant
Two collaborative works of art created by this summer ’ s Arlington Art Camp students are being auctioned separately to raise money for the West Tennessee Veterans Home to be built in Arlington and serve 66,000 veterans in Shelby , Fayette , and Tipton counties .
The airplane at Arlington ’ s Playground of Dreams is proudly flying the purple & white once again . During the original fundraising for the park in the mid-2000s , Memphisbased FedEx donated $ 5000 to sponsor the airplane . In thanks , it was painted in FedEx colors and had a FedEx logo .
In 2015 the airplane was vandalized with graffiti and the town was forced to paint the airplane blue .
Arlington resident and FedEx pilot Lee Mills explained that in February 2017 , Parks and Recreation Director Kevin Carter contacted him . Carter asked if , in his capacity as a FedEx pilot and Parks and Recreation Committee member , Mills
giving back
FLY HIGH , ARLINGTON
Plane at Arlington Park Receives a Makeover Thanks to FedEx
By Terry Bondurant could oversee getting the airplane painted back to FedEx colors .
The response from FedEx ? An immediate “ Yes !”
It was decided that the best course of action would be to wrap the original wood in plastic and then use vinyl to wrap the plane .
As an added bonus , the plane was given the moniker “ Arlington ,” in FedEx ’ s tradition of naming all of their airplanes after children of employees .
Mills is happy with the results and the support shown to the Playground of Dreams .
“ FedEx prides itself in giving back to the community and so do I ,” said Mills . “ In every community there are things that need to be done and people who can do them . This time , it happened to be my turn to help bring a project to fruition . The real thanks goes to FedEx and the FedEx family .”
Photo courtesy of Lee Mills
Camp Owner Sherry Chapman explained that camp participants designed their own flowers for this project . Each blossom was then cut out and added to the bouquet to make a collage on these two pieces . On the back , the students signed the canvas , making them truly unique works of art .
“ When we told the kids that the paintings would be auctioned off to help our community with West Tennessee Veterans home , they were so proud to be helping a great cause ,” Chapman said .
Bidding on the works — one from each session of camp--ends at midnight 8 / 11 . The works may be purchased together or individually . To place a bid , visit www . 32 auctions . com / FlowersforVeterans . The paintings can be viewed at Walker Street Salon in Arlington ’ s Depot Square .
Arlington Art Camp started in 2011 and promotes education of the visual arts in the Arlington , TN community through both summer camps and private afterschool classes .
For more information on the West Tennessee Veterans Home , visit www . veterans-home . com .