VFW Post 7511 member Jeremy Blake views artwork hanging at the VFW Art Gallery grand opening in Monroe on Feb. 3. Blake, a member of the Army Infantry, has been involved with VFW Post 7511 for a year.
Evan Morud
MONROE — A new art gallery opening downtown on Feb. 3 will feature a collection of pieces representative of Monroe from local artists and military veterans. The gallery at 125 E. Main St. is an initiative of the Veterans Arts Council for Veterans of Foreign Wars (VFW) Post 7511.
“This was an opportunity to continue reaching out to veterans in the community,” Terry Stinson, District One Commander for the VFW in the state of Washington and director of the Veterans Arts Council for VFW Post 7511 said. “It’s an opportunity to reach a new group of veterans that we haven’t reached before. And of course, it’s an opportunity to continue to support our community in Monroe.”
Post 7511 is a community of 120 veterans who do community service in the city of Monroe. The post has been meeting in various locations of other nonprofit organizations in the city since 1968. For Stinson, VFW meetings are “a ‘buddy check’ on 100 of our closest friends.”
“We have folks who struggle with mental health challenges from post-traumatic stress, anxiety, or depression,” Stinson said. “We’re able to watch our group of veterans and make sure we’re as mentally fit as we can be.”
Stinson said he expects the art in the gallery to represent the diversity of Monroe. The gallery will feature quilts, woodworking, pottery and photography. It will be the only gallery currently open in the city.
“It’s not just displaying and selling art,” Stinson said. “Art is a therapeutic process for veterans battling post-traumatic stress.”
VFW Post 7511 took inspiration from Denver VFW Post 1 which opened a similar art gallery in 2015. The post in Denver created a successful model for artist commissions that Post 7511 is set to follow.
“If you’re a civilian artist, someone who hasn’t served in the military and is not a member of the VFW or auxiliary, we request a 20% donation back after the sale of the piece,” Stinson said. “If they’re a military veteran, or they’re an auxiliary member, we would request a 10% donation.”
There is no charge for showing a piece in the gallery.
“The art gallery really kind of came out of necessity,” Stinson said. “We had the opportunity over the last several years to earn enough money to where we can lease our very first post home.”
The gallery began renovations in June, when Casi Myers, Commander of VFW Post 7511, took over the post. Her first task: sign the lease.
“The only way we accomplish our mission is through service from our members,” Stinson said. “It’s 100% a community thing within Monroe and Snohomish County, none of this would be possible without them.”
VFW meetings are open to veterans who have served honorably in the United States military and have been deployed to hazardous duty areas. They are also open to auxiliary members, a volunteer arm of the VFW composed of family members who have a mission of helping veterans in the community.
The Veterans Art Council is open to not just VFW veterans, but veterans and the community in general. Stinson said their goal is to have two civilian members on the council, so they have a different perspective; at present, they only have one.
VFW Post 7511 meets on the second Thursday of every month at 6 p.m. at 125 E. Main St. The gallery is opening on Feb. 3 at 11 a.m. To learn more visit www.flags4rfallen.com.
This story was produced by a journalism student at the UW News Lab for the Tribune.
