Alva Review-Courier -

The idea began when Clair Bradford contacted Connie Moore about donating to the Fifthsister Gallery fundraiser to benefit the Waynoka Historical Society. The Fifthsister fundraiser was offering a chance to win any piece of art in the Fifthsister Art Gallery for a $50 donation. Her motivation, Bradford said, was a desire to give back to the community that had given so much to her. Bradford also suggested she was interested in a special piece of art to honor our communities' fallen heroes and others lost in the tragic fire.

An agreement was made for donations to be made and Moore set out to create a special piece of artwork that honored those lost. The process began with gathering firefighter equipment items from the Waynoka, Alva and Enid fire departments. Various setups, lighting options, consultations with other artists, meditations, love and over 200 photos later, a composition was created. From the photos, the process of getting the idea onto the canvas began.

Seven months later a 24x30 oil on canvas artwork was completed. One 24x30 print was made, ten 16x20 canvas prints and ten 11x14 paper prints were produced. Five canvas prints and eight paper prints are available.

As part of the compensation for the artwork, Bradford donated $1,000 to the Waynoka Historical Society, $1,000 to Project Waynoka Foundation and $1,000 to the Waynoka Fire Department. In addition, Moore has agreed to give a portion of each sale of the Fallen Firefighter's piece to the Waynoka Fire Department.

"Creating this piece of art was truly an honor. I grew as an artist and I found so much healing in the creation process. I hope the artwork brings peace, love and healing to the families closest to the tragedy and to others," Moore said.