WASHINGTON, October 9 (RIA Novosti) – A Ukrainian-born artist who spent five years restoring a mural in a Catholic church in Texas, received the ultimate state accolade this week when he was declared an “honorary Texan” in an official document signed by Gov. Rick Perry, a local news website reported.
Bogdan Chernetskiiy received the document confirming his new status on Sunday, during a crowded service celebrating his successful restoration of the mural at the Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Victoria, Texas the Victoria Advocate reported.
Chernetskiiy, who lives in Cleveland, Ohio, also received a gift card for a pair of custom cowboy boots, the website reported.
The artist was recruited in 2008 to restore the mural in the sanctuary of the Texas church to its original 1924 design, two years after the Reverend Celestino Say, pastor at the church, first proposed the project.
The mural, which is executed in soft blues, white, and gold depicts apparitions of the Virgin Mary as she appeared to a French shepherd girl, Bernadette Soubirous, in the 19th century. The church takes its name from one of these apparitions, the Victoria Advocate reported Sunday.
Mary Cox, a member of the congregation, said "Bogdan's ability to capture the spirit of the gospels and do it in such a way that creates harmony and beauty and peace is overwhelming. And that's what I feel when I look at it – peaceful," the Advocate reported.
