Students from Professor Jamie Adams’ mural painting class at Athens State University braved the soaring temperatures this week to resume work on the veterans memorial mural located across from the Alabama Veterans Museum & Archives.

The 15×40 foot mural features three soldiers, an American flag and portraits of those from Limestone County who served their country.

“I think we were told there should be about 170 portraits up here. These are all local veterans up here, “ Nastia Buryak said. “There are some who need some touch up, but right now we are just trying to fill out the space.”

Work began on the mural in 2020 by Adams and led to the creation of a mural painting class.

Buryak and Carson Phillips, both students, agree that the experience is wonderful.

“This is for me, personally, one of the first actual murals I have ever worked on,” Phillips said. This is the second summer in which Buryak contributed her talents to the mural.

The mural is the result of a fundraiser for the Alabama Veterans Museum & Archives, which allowed families and friends to purchase a square on the mural to feature a veteran special to them.