With paintbrush in hand, Lisa Belding effortlessly brushes it against the canvas. Layer by layer, she creates definition, highlights and color to portray a reflection of herself and her life.

Belding, who used to work at Waynesburg University, started painting six years ago, and each one of Belding’s paintings and artwork are a piece of her life that portray a story.

Belding describes a therapeutic feeling when creating her paintings.

“I just love doing it – for people who are not verbal, it is very good therapy,” Belding said. “I always say that when I do my paintings, you get a soul shine inside of you…you can’t even explain it – it’s just an incredible feeling and I would just like others to experience that.”

Tiffany Morgan - The Yellow Jacket

For the last 10 years, Belding’s big goal with her artistic passion is to get members of the community together to paint some of the old, run-down buildings in town.

“If we get the locals involved, everyone is going to have a piece of [themselves] on this wall,” Belding said.

Belding was present at a craft show Saturday, March 17, hosted by the Veterans of Foreign Wars 4793. Auxillary President Renee Jones, has been an active part of the community, and is motivated to bring the community together and support veterans. For Jones, her roles as the auxillary president and district president for region number 24 are more than just positions: she is an advocate for the community.

“I have always been a community person,” Jones said. “I come from a family of veterans. So, I feel strong about supporting our veterans”

The craft show has become an annual community event, with this being its third consecutive year. Jones brainstormed the idea in hopes that it would be a successful way to support veterans.

“I suggested that we try a craft show and see how it’d work – it has grown by leaps and bounds,” Jones said. “It is doing quite well and it is here to support our veterans.”

Jones sees the success of the VFW 4793 today and credits the many events held to raise money for veterans. Her message through each event is simple: “Support our veterans.”

Jones was already an active member of the VFW 4973, but she was asked to take charge and take on a larger role. Jones began with a specific goal: she and the other members involved wanted to develop the organization, to be more successful with supporting veterans.

“I have a strong set of officers behind,” Jones said. “We stepped in and looked to see what needed to be built back up and have been working strong at it ever since as a team.”

The craft show is just one of the many events that Jones utilizes to connect those in the community and recognize local talent.

“It brings the community together – it shows what our community has to offer [in a small way],” Jones said.