(Newberry County) - There is peace and seclusion in the woods of Prosperity, but also an invitation, an open door. Nestled in the comfort of nature, a family is building a home. The home is for them, for their boy, for their memories.
?This will be all David,? said Fran Fellers, walking up the stairs of the under-construction house. ?His portraits, his medals, pool table, putting green that he loves so much."
Fran imagines how her son would love the log structure, the wrap-around porch.
?He's gonna have his own bedroom here," she said.
This is David's house.
?This is dedicated not only to David, but to all the troops until they return home safely, and they'll have a home to be at,? said Fran.
Her first born, U.S. Marine Corps Corporal David Weimortz, was called home for good on August 26, 2006. It was a roadside bomb; it went off beneath David's humvee.
?You give birth to your children, you expect you to be the one to pass away before them,? said Fran, holding back tears. ?That's the way it's supposed to be."
And so the David?s new house is one place where she deals with the pain. She envisions these walls covered with David's pictures and memories, yet there is one image still missing.
Seventeen-hundred miles away, in the mountains of central Utah, a woman has a vision of David Weimortz.
?He's a beautiful man,? she says. ?And I wish he was still alive, because the earth is a richer place with his quality of people."
She reads the letters from David's family, looks at his pictures. She feels his spirit.
?He's a lady's man. Yes ma'am, I get it. I can see it, I can feel it, sense it."
Her name is Kaziah Hancock. She is a goat farmer, a painter, and a mother to hundreds of soldiers who made the ultimate sacrifice.
On this day, her newest adopted child is David.
?I am a woman on a mission,? says Kaziah as she prepares her canvas and oil paint pallet. She is about to paint her interpretation of David Weimortz.
?It just kills me, the way he died,? says Kaziah. ?Trapped, in a burning vehicle--God."
She is crying, but she continues painting. She has a job to do.
It is an honor she has given time and time again. In 2003, Kaziah painted her first soldier and gave it to the family free of charge. Since then, she has taken more than 300 portrait requests from around the country from families who?ve lost loved ones in Iraq.
Kaziah has completed all of them, free of charge.
?Because somebody needs to do it,? she says. ?And I think that would just be me."
Stroke by stroke, color by color. Kaziah meticulously brings David back to life, if only within the bounds of her canvas.
?That's gonna be absolutely stunning,? she says, nearing completion of her portrait.
?Hell yes (he?s a lady?s man),? she says. ?You better believe it."
Her image of David has him in a tuxedo, with a gleaming smile and perfect white teeth.
?Is that a gorgeous guy or what?"
She signs her name on the bottom right side of the painting. In four hours, she has completed her latest masterpiece.
?OK, little sweetheart,? she says. ?You're going home ... you're going home."
Three weeks later, at David?s house in Prosperity, the day has come. Fran, along with David's sister Kelly and his stepfather Frank, are ready to bring David to his new home.
They carry the package in together. With David?s military knife, they open it. Fran sees it.
?Oh ??
Fran pauses, catches her breath.
?That is so David,? she says. ?His smile, his hair ? thank you, Kaziah.?
She and Kelly grab David?s painting together, carry it up the stairs. They place it on the wall.
?And David will greet everybody as they come in to play a game of pool," says Fran. She takes a step back, looks at it the photo from a distance. She is awestruck.
?Kaziah gave me something to hold onto,? says Fran. ?His smile, his eyes ... because he is in a better place."
To learn more about Kaziah?s artwork, visit her website at http://www.kaziahthegoatwoman.com/.
5/4/2007 8:26:17 AM
