Senator Grove with Senate District 12 Nonprofit of the Year recipients, Jason Geis and Sandi Jantz, with Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County.
Today, Senator Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield) proudly recognized Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County as the 12th Senate District Nonprofit of the Year. Each year, Senator Grove has the distinct honor to choose one nonprofit from her district to attend the California Association of Nonprofits annual luncheon and commend their incredible work with a Senate resolution.
Established with a noble mission, the Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County stands as an incredible tribute to the post 9/11 warriors from Kern County who made the ultimate sacrifice for their country. Each portrait displayed within its walls serves as a lasting reminder of the courage, valor, and selflessness embodied by these fallen heroes.
"I am honored to recognize Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County as my Nonprofit of the Year. This remarkable organization, founded by Jason Geis and Lili Marsh, stands as a powerful tribute to Kern County's fallen heroes,” remarked Senator Shannon Grove. “Their dedication to working with Gold Star Families and providing vital services to veterans and the community is truly inspiring. I am deeply grateful for their unwavering commitment to ensure our veterans’ legacies live on for generations to come.”
"On behalf of Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County, we are deeply honored and grateful to Senator Shannon Grove for recognizing us as her Nonprofit of the Year," said Jason Geis, Executive Director and Co-Founder of the Portrait of a Warrior Gallery. "Senator Grove's unwavering support and dedication over the years has been invaluable, especially given her own service as a U.S. Army veteran. Thank you, Senator Grove, for your continued support and for helping us keep the memories of Kern County's fallen heroes alive."
About Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County:
Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County was founded by Jason Geiz and Lili Marsh on September 10, 2018, and works to keep the memories of Kern County’s fallen heroes vibrantly alive through portrait displays, biographies, education, and ever evolving exhibits. It also works directly with Gold Star Families to honor the lives of fallen service members through art and education and by assisting in sourcing services available to local veterans, their families and the local community.
Housed in a 5,000 square foot facility open at no cost to its visitors, Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County displays its Fallen Warrior Gallery, which features portraits of the 27 post 9/11 warriors from Kern County who were killed in action or died of wounds suffered on the battlefield. The Hall of Honor showcases black and white pencil drawings of post 9/11 veterans who died due to other circumstances such as heart attack , car accident, training accident, or post-traumatic stress disorder complications. A display of 22 crosses brings awareness to veteran and active duty service member suicides. The Medal of Honor Wall includes the likeness of two Vietnam veteran Medal of Honor recipients from Kern County, Specialist Four Leonard L. Alvarado and Staff Sergeant Larry S. Pierce. Portrait of a Warrior Kern County also houses a Vietnam Memorial Room honoring veterans who died while serving in Vietnam, the Post 9/11 Team Room raises awareness around what living conditions were like in the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and its Education Room serves as a unique gathering place for question and answer sessions with veterans for students on school field trips and for community members to hold meetings and classes.
Portrait of a Warrior Gallery Kern County works hand in hand with many organizations and nonprofits that provide a variety of veteran services including grief therapy, PTSD groups for healing and comradeship, canine and equine therapy groups that offer special programs for veterans, other social and sporting groups for comradeship and exercise.