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When
Peter Fromme-Douglas, a local Muskoka artist, witnessed the
tragic events of September 11th he was moved, as were many of
us. And like many of us he wanted to do something to help.
More specifically he wanted to do something for the
Firefighters. With the help of friends he decided to
"make a painting and donate it to some charity to raise
money for the lost firefighters families."
"I
started the painting immediately", states Douglas.
"The painting I did then was not the one that was
finally auctioned off in New York. I made a small pastel
that I used to make the poster design from. The idea at the
time was to print this poster and give one to every
firehouse in New York City."
But,
as Peter states, "with most plans this one was no
exception,… it changed."
With
the help of other friends he made contact with a company in
New York City to arrange all of the details. "I thank
God for Peter (Morrell)," says Douglas, "He
managed to make it possible for us to get the painting into
an auction that they were already in the process of setting
up for the 8th of December, 2001 at the 'Union League Club'
in New York City."
Realizing
that the auction would be a 'high-end' auction, Fromme-Douglas
knew the painting "had to be of size and quality to
honor, and add to what Mr. Morrell was creating."
Once
completed the painting was framed and sent ahead to the
auction at New York City. Peter and his friend Brad, (who
had been instrumental in helping with this project) then
went to New York City to attend the auction, and more
importantly, to distribute the posters to the firehouses.
"I
had forgotten the 'Heart' that has always been a trademark
of the New York City people, " said Douglas.
The
auction was a success. "Mayor Giuliani made a
special appearance at the auction to sell a few items and
was given a heroes welcome by all that attended. I was
especially blessed with having a chance to say a few words
about how I felt about this man," continues Douglas.
Peter's
painting sold for $ 22,000.00 USD. "I was very
concerned that the money from my painting would all go,
untouched, to the Firefighters Fund", said Douglas. He
was assured by Morrell and Company that would, indeed, be
what happens.
The
painting will be donated to one of three museums in New
York, one of which is the Firefighters Museum. A plaque
bearing the names of the generous New Yorkers who gave
towards its purchase will be located beside the painting.
"It
was, without a doubt, the most rewarding thing I have done
for many years," Douglas said. The next day Brad and he
spent the entire day trying to get into as many firehouses
as possible to give posters away. "They received us in
the most humble way, not really seeing themselves as
heroes," says Peter.
One
firefighter they met "took us to the roof of his fire
station just one floor up from street level. We walked out
to the edge overlooking all of Ground Zero. I had not
realized that there was a firehouse inside the immediate
area. It had all its windows blown out by the falling
buildings but somehow remained, for the most part, intact.
They lost 5 men that day. I took many pictures there and
felt guilty every time the shutter opened and closed. It was
like some sort of sacrilege to do this. I did it anyway.
I’m an artist and I believe my agenda is, at the very
least, respectful."
More
complete details and photos of this project, as well as
other artistic work of Peter's can be viewed at www.fromme-douglas.com
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