The Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center has a new mural to showcase to students, staff, and visitors.  The 4 foot by 8 foot painting, designed by Internationally Known Artist and Grand Rapids Native Mr. Paul Collins, depicts the life of the late President Gerald R. Ford.

President Ford once walked the halls of the present day Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center when it was the former Grand Rapids South High School.  Ford played football for South High and graduated in 1931.

In 2004, the Grand Rapids Job Corps Center was renamed the Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center to pay tribute to the former 38th President of the United States, the only President to hail from the State of Michigan.

The painting was officially dedicated to the Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center Student Government Association on Tuesday, June 28th during a special ceremony. Mr. Collins’ Sale Representative, Mr. Silas Dean, and the Gerald R. Ford Job Corps Center Business Community Liaison Ms. Gretchen LaHaie, unveiled the mural before a crowd of students, staff, media, and community members.

Mr. Collins could not be in attendance for the unveiling, but asked two of his friends and former South High graduates, Mr. DeCarto Draper and Mr. Levi Richens, to speak on his behalf.  Both Draper and Richens acknowledged that this mural representing the life of President Ford deserved to be in the building he once attended as a student, and should serve as a reminder to Job Corps students that they too can achieve their dreams.

Following the unveiling, Mr. Stine Holifield, President of the Student Government Association thanked Mr. Collins for his great work of art and stated that the student body was “honored to hang this mural in the building they call home.”

WZZM 13 News Coverage of the Gerald R. Ford Mural Unveiling