On November 29 2010, Michael Reagan and his work on the Fallen Heroes project was recognized in Congress. Here is the proclamation as by the Honorable Jay Inslee of Washington State:
Madam Speaker, all members of this body and indeed all Americans are united in the high esteem we have for the men and women of our Armed Forces who have given their lives in service to our country.
A constituent of mine provides a grand example in this regard. Mr. Michael Reagan, a portrait artist residing in Edmonds, Washington, a member of the U.S. Marine Corps, a combat veteran of the Vietnam War, and a member of the local Veterans of Foreign Wars, has committed himself to providing surviving families with hand-drawn portraits of every man or woman killed in Iraq and Afghanistan. To date, Mr. Reagan has completed over 2,400 portraits of servicemembers.
These portraits make a difference.
A wife of a fallen Marine wrote to Mr. Reagan, “I sit in the living room every day looking at the portrait you drew . . . It just brings me a little bit of peace because I feel like he’s right there with me.”
In honoring the dead and comforting the living, Mr. Reagan helps the families to hold their loved ones in their hearts forever and helps assure that our Nation will never forget the service they gave and the sacrifice they made. I believe we should reflect on Mr. Reagan’s contribution and ask ourselves how we, too can continue to honor the brave men and women of our Armed Forces.