PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Families of gun violence victims gathered Friday evening to honor their loved ones at an art exhibit in Philadelphia.
More than a dozen portraits lined the walls of The Presbyterian Church of Chestnut Hill, each containing a name and a story written by their loved ones as part of the Souls Shot Portrait Project.
Laura Madeleine, executive director and curator of the project, told visitors the goal is to present diverse works representing the essence of the person portrayed.
One of them was William Oscar Ward Jr., Sheila Ward’s son. He was shot and killed in 2005.
“Anytime that you lose a child, then you have to go through the part of seeing them in a picture, and they on display — it’s a lot of emotions that come back that wasn't there before,” Ward said.
Ward had passed up the opportunity in previous years to have her son featured in the project but finally decided to this time around.
“I wanna leave a footprint of his here and his story to be told,” she said, “and for other people to know that you know his story, and it was just emotional and amazing.”
In a blurb next to William's picture, she wrote about how he played football and entered the hall of fame for his alma mater Roman Catholic High School.
“I see a picture at the house and stuff, but when you've seen a lot of other children that have lost their lives and stuff, it, it's very emotional,” she said.
This is the eighth annual portrait project in Philly, adding New Jersey and the rest of Pennsylvania to the initiative.
The portraits will be on display at the church’s Widener Hall through Nov. 24.