Published on July 14, 2010

Gold Star father John Van Gyzen III of Somerset, Massachusetts, created this figure as a tribute to Marine Brandon Bury of Texas. Mr. Van Gyzen's son, Marine Lance Corporal John Van Gyzen IV, was killed in Iraq on July 5, 2004. Photos by Richard Creaser

NEWPORT — The Memphremagog Arts Collaborative (MAC) is hosting a unique tribute to soldiers who died in Iraq and Afghanistan.  Titled "Remembrance — A Memorial," the display features thousands of figures handcrafted out of tea bags, sticks, scraps of cloth and other sewing notions.

The exhibit is the brainchild of Merilee Bowers, an art teacher from Somerset High School in Somerset, Massachusetts.  MAC member Victoria Mathiesen of West Glover worked closely with Ms. Bowers to bring the exhibit north for its first showing in Vermont.

"Especially in this part of the state, people have really been paying attention to the wars," Ms. Mathiesen said.  "It really seems that joining the National Guard is a right of passage for many of this area's young men and women.  Because of that, people are very interested in something that much of the rest of the country has largely forgotten."

The power of the exhibit transcends the collection of odds and ends that go into the creation of each figure.  Each of the thousands of figures represents a U.S. serviceman or woman who has died since the start of the Iraq occupation and the ensuing involvement in Afghanistan.

"Each figure is as unique as the person who created it, and the person it represents," said Gold Star Mother Jane Van Gyzen of Somerset.  "It's our

Merilee Bowers (center) of Somerset conceived "Remembrance — A Memorial" to honor the soldiers who died in defense of their country in Iraq and Afghanistan. More than 1,500 people have contributed to the creation of thousands of tiny figures honoring this nation's most recent war dead. Ms. Bowers is flanked by Gold Star parents Jane (left) and John Van Gyzen III (right) also of Somerset.

way of remembering them, not only as names, but as the people they were and those they left behind."

That remembrance is perhaps where the exhibit is most poignant.  Ms. Van Gyzen walks over to the display case where the figure she created for her son, Marine Lance Corporal John Van Gyzen IV, hangs.  Though he died almost exactly six years to the day on July 5, 2004, the emotion behind this humble memorial  remains fresh.

"It's our way of honoring him and the thousands of other soldiers who died for their country," she said, wiping away tears.  "It's a little bit sad to remember, but it also reminds us of who he was and what he meant to the people who knew him.  It's our way of saying he will not be forgotten."

As meaningful as the effigies might be, the method behind their creation is equally powerful to all who have taken part in the project.  Tiny strips of yellowed paper identify each warrior who fell in those foreign wars, wrapped lovingly around the figures crafted of muted cloth and dried tea bags.

The tea bags symbolize a form of soothing and healing, just as the act of sewing symbolizes the closing of a wound.  These simple acts are why no glues, tape or other adhesives are used in the construction of the palm-sized figures.  Fallen tree branches often serve as the frame for the figures and that, in itself, emphasizes the sense of community that goes into each figure.

"That tree came out of somebody's backyard," Ms. Van Gyzen said.  "They died thousands of miles from home, but they live on tied together to these little pieces of home."

The project began as a  project of the high school art department, Ms. Bowers said.  It began as the two thousandth soldier died in the war.  The care and interest the students showed in crafting the figures proved how powerful and meaningful it could be.

"I was amazed to learn that it was more than just another art project for the students," Ms. Van Gyzen said.  "Many of the kids actually looked up the soldiers online to learn more about them.  They wanted to put a human face on what they were doing."

Thousands of tiny figures, each hand sewn and assembled, hang suspended as if in mid-air from nearly invisible strands of monofilament. The exhibit will be on display at the Memphremagog Arts Collaborative gallery on Main Street in Newport until Labor Day.

"Remembrance" will cease to grow when the last fallen soldier is honored with his place in the display.  Just when that might be, no one rightly knows.

"How can you stop at 4,000 or even 5,000?" Ms. Van Gyzen said.  "You can't.  That would sell short the sacrifices of everyone after and this is a tribute to them."

The roll of the war dead is encapsulated in both the figures hanging on delicate strings and a tiny box containing the names of soldiers yet to be immortalized in tea bags, thread and buttons.  The enormity of the task and its continued relevance is exemplified as Ms. Bowers works diligently on her latest figure.  The name she draws from the box is Specialist Ryan Grady, the young Vermont National Guard soldier from West Burke who died on July 2.

Bringing the traveling exhibit around the nation is Ms. Bowers' ultimate goal.  Doing so, however, comes with a price.  Even a trip to Newport entails significant expense.

"Getting these into the moving van and bringing them up here cost $800," Gold Star father John Van Gyzen III said.  "And it'll be another $800 to bring it back.  But it has to be done and it has to be seen."

Mr. Van Gyzen also works on a figure, that of Brandon Bury, a Marine Corps soldier from Texas who died on June 6.  The fact that he has never met Mr. Bury or his family doesn't matter in the least.

"My son was a Marine and he was a Marine," Mr. Van Gyzen said.  "It doesn't even matter that they were both Marines.  All that matters is that they died to defend this country."

"Remembrance" will be on display at the MAC gallery on Main Street in Newport until Labor Day.  Visitors may view the exhibit Monday through Saturday from 10:30 a.m. until 5 p.m. and Sundays from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Workshops will enable visitors to participate in the creation of additional figures.

Information about the workshops can be found on the MAC website: memphremagogartscollaborative.com/remembrance_memorial.html.

"Through this display they have their own life again," Mr. Van Gyzen said.  "They will live on."