Hummer Salute
A Salute to Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason and all the Military personnel that sacrifice every day! Took two hundred and fifty hours to paint.
MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. ( March 2,
2006)
Karla Comfort received a lot of looks and even some
salutes from people when she drove from Benton , Ark., to Camp Pendleton,
Calif., in her newly-painted, custom Hummer H3. The vehicle is
adorned with the likeness of her son, 20-year-old Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason,
and nine other Marines with F Company, 2nd Battalion, 7th Marine Regiment,
1st Marine Division who where all killed by the same improvised explosive
device blast in Fallujah, Iraq, in December.
For Comfort, having the vehicle air brushed with the
image of the 10 Marines was a way to pay homage to her hero and his fellow
comrades who fell on Iraq's urban battlefield. "I wanted to let people
know (Marines) are doing their jobs honorably, and some of them die, said the
39-year-old from Portland , Ore. I don't want people to forget the
sacrifices that my son and the other Marines made."
Leading up to her son's death, Comfort had received
several letters from him prior to his return. He had been deployed for five
months, and Comfort worried everyday he was gone until she got the
letters and found out the date he was coming home, she said. Marines knocked
on the front door of her home in Farmington , Mich. , at 3 a.m. with the
dreadful news. "I let my guard down when I found out he was coming home, she
said. There are times that I still cannot believe it happened. It's very
hard to deal with." Comfort came up with the idea for the rolling
memorial when she and her two other sons attended John's funeral in Portland , Ore.
"I saw a Vietnam (War) memorial on a car, and I said to my son Josh,
'we should do something like that for John'", she recalled. "He loved
Hummers."
She purchased the vehicle in January and immediately
took it to Airbrush Guy & Co. in Benton , Ark., where artist Robert Powell
went to work on changing the plain, black vehicle into a decorative, mobile,
art piece. "I only had the vehicle for two days before we took it in", she
joked. Two hundred and fifty man-hours later, Powell had completed the
vehicle. The custom job would have cost $25,000. Out of respect for Comfort's
loss and the sacrifices the Marines made, Airbrush Guy & Co. did
it for free. Comfort only had to purchase the paint, which cost $3,000. "I love it", she said. "I'm really impressed with it,
and I think John would be happy with the vehicle. He would have a big smile
on his face because he loved Hummers." Comfort gave Powell basic
instructions on what to include in the paint job. But in addition to the image of
her son in Dress Blues and the faces of the nine other Marines, there were
several surprises. "He put a lot more on than I expected", she said. "I
think my favorite part is the heaven scene."
On the left side of the vehicle, a detail of Marines
are depicted carrying their fallen comrades through the clouds to their
final resting place. The American flag drapes across the hood, the words,
"Semper Fi" crown the front windshield and the spare tire cover carries the same
Eagle Globe and Anchor design that her son had tattooed on his back. "All
the support I have been getting is wonderful", she said.
Comfort decided to move back to her hometown of
Portland, and making the cross-country trip from Arkansas was a way for her to
share her son's story. It's also her way of coping with the loss. "Along
the way I got nothing but positive feedback from people", she said. "What got to me was when people would salute the guys
(Marines). It's hard to look at his picture. I still cry and try to get
used to the idea, but it's hard to grasp the idea that he's really gone."
To see more of this amazing tribute and hummer click on the following link.
Salute Pictures! - Lance Cpl. John M. Holmason!
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Automotive Alley
