Tenino artist Adam Barr on Thursday stands in front of a mural of Justin Norton, a Rainier native who died fighting in Iraq. Barr, Tenino artist Tammy Schroeder and students from Rainier and Tenino high schools volunteered to repaint the mural which was vandalized last year.
Chris Warnock on Thursday stands under a train trestle outside Rainier and looks at the face of her son, Justin Norton, painted on the wall. A previous mural of Norton — a soldier who died fighting in Iraq — was vandalized last year. Tenino artists Adam Barr and Tammy Schroeder, as well as students from Tenino and Rainier high schools, donated their time on Thursday to painting a new mural of Norton.
Tenino artist Adam Barr on Thursday stands in front of a mural of Justin Norton, a Rainier native who died fighting in Iraq. Barr, Tenino artist Tammy Schroeder and students from Rainier and Tenino high schools volunteered to repaint the mural which was vandalized last year.
Rainier and Tenino residents on Thursday repaint a mural of Sgt. Justin Norton, a soldier killed in Iraq. The mural, under a Rainier train trestle, was vandalized last year.
A coat of white paint, a black outline and then strokes of color on Thursday brought Sgt. Justin Norton’s image back to life, covering every trace of the vandalism that last year disfigured a previous mural of the Rainier soldier, who was killed while fighting in Iraq.
Gathered under the train trestle over Highway 507 northeast of Rainier, Tenino artists Tammy Schroeder and Adam Barr led a team of students from Rainier and Tenino high schools in creating the work, known as the Sgt. Justin Norton Memorial Mural.
Barr, a painter, photographer and Tenino art teacher, said he did not know Norton, but saw the day as an opportunity to put his talents toward a community effort.
“It’s going to be even better than before,” he said.
Wayne Fournier, a Tenino City Councilor and Schroeder’s husband, said he was happy to have young people involved in the effort.
“Some of the original concerns after the act of vandalism were that local youth may have had part in the act,” Fournier said, “so our hope is that by having the youth repair and restore it they will become future caretakers and stewards of the memorial.”
Also there were Norton’s parents Gary and Chris Warnock.
Chris Warnock, Norton’s mother, described the event as “special and bittersweet.”
Norton was a goofy, kind, loving son, Warnock said.
“He loved movies. He’d tell us, ‘Oh, you’ve gotta watch this one,’” she said, “and then he’d start saying the lines before the actors.”
An honors student, Norton graduated from Rainier High School in 2003, and, that same year, joined the military — the fulfillment of a lifelong dream, his parents said on a memorial website.
Norton attended Basic and Advanced Training at Ft. Knox, Ky., and then was assigned to the Alpha Troop “Apaches,” 1-10 Cavalry, 4th Infantry Division out of Fort Hood, Texas.
“Justin was quickly promoted to SGT because of the high standards of excellence and leadership abilities he possessed,” his parents said on the site.
He was killed in Baghdad by an improvised explosive device in 2006.
His military awards and decorations include the Purple Heart, Bronze Star, Army Achievement Medal, Army Good Conduct Medal, National Defense Service Medal, Iraq Campaign Medal, Global War on Terrorism Medal, Army Service Ribbon, Overseas Service Ribbon, Combat Action Badge, and the Expert Rifle Marksmanship Badge.
