LIFETIME MEMBERS
Honorary Lifetime Membership is NCAG's highest recognition awarded to veterans, artists, and supporters who have made extraordinary contributions to the organization and its mission.
BILLY MARPLES (In Memoriam)
Retired Marine and Vietnam veteran Billy Marples served with USMC Supply Battalion 1st FSR, I Corps as a truck driver from 1969 to 1970. His art — drawing, painting, sculpture, and historic scale models — drew directly from his own war experiences and those of veterans he interviewed for the Veterans History Project. His first significant work, depicting the Brecourt Manor Assault by the 101st Airborne during the Normandy Invasion, is permanently displayed at the Utah Beach Museum. Billy earned a BFA in studio art from Bellevue University and founded New Genesis Art Studio. He once said, "Art has been the release valve for me to express what war and political involvement in a war can do to a soldier." In November 2004, Billy and Troy Muller began the conversations that would become New Century Art Guild.
He was made a lifetime member November 10, 2011.
He passed away in January 2013.
SAL GIUNTA
Salvatore "Sal" Giunta was born in Clinton, Iowa in 1985. A former U.S. Army soldier, he became the first living recipient of the Medal of Honor since the Vietnam War, cited for saving the lives of members of his squad during combat in Afghanistan on October 25, 2007. After leaving the Army in 2011, Giunta relocated to Colorado, where he attended Colorado State University and wrote his autobiography, Living with Honor.
He was made a lifetime member January 30, 2012.
MARIO LOPEZ
Sgt. Mario Lopez was born in Corpus Christi, Texas in 1984. Motivated by the events of 9/11, he joined the U.S. Army in 2003 and deployed to both Iraq and Afghanistan. While on mission, he was struck by an IED, sustaining burns to 54% of his body, losing his right arm, vision in his right eye, and four fingers on his left hand. He was awarded the Purple Heart for his bravery and sacrifice. During his recovery, Mario returned to painting — a pursuit he had loved since childhood — and found it therapeutic. His work spans landscape, abstraction, and original design, and reflects what he describes as an unwavering faith and perseverant spirit. Mario's passion is bringing hope to fellow veterans and the broader community.
He was made a lifetime member March 22, 2014.
KYLE FOSTER
Kyle Foster served three years on active duty with the U.S. Army, deploying to Afghanistan as an 11B infantryman with D Company, 2-35 Infantry Battalion, 25th Infantry Division. He saw heavy combat in Kunar Province and was awarded the Purple Heart after being injured by an IED. Following an honorable and medical discharge, Kyle reinvented himself as a civilian — getting married, starting a family, and pursuing art at Metro Community College. His sensitive eye for composition and skill in charcoal, pastel, and pencil earned him the 2015 NCAG Veteran Artist Grant.
He was made a lifetime member November 10, 2015.
DR. SCOTT P. SMITH, M.D.
Dr. Scott Smith was born and raised in Wichita Falls, Texas. A United States Marine veteran, he served a tour of duty in Vietnam with VMA-311, an A-4 Skyhawk attack squadron. After his military service he earned a B.S. from Midwestern State University and his medical degree from Texas Tech University. His passion for art led him to become co-owner, and later full owner, of Genesis Art Studio, where he personally completed much of the construction and renovation of the foundry studio and classroom. Scott was a founding member of NCAG and largely responsible for its official incorporation in 2013.
He was made a lifetime member December 1, 2015.
NEVILLE BRIDGEFORD
Neville Bridgeford was born in southern California in 1983 and entered the U.S. Army in 2002 after graduating high school. He served as an infantryman with the 25th Infantry Division, deploying to eastern Afghanistan from 2004 to 2005 — where he picked up a camera at a PX and never put it down. Back in civilian life, he expanded into acrylic painting, finding that creative expression was vital to managing the post-traumatic stress he carried home from deployment. He was selected as the 2016 NCAG Veteran Artist Grant Recipient.
He was made a lifetime member August 19, 2016.
ROBERTA "BERT" LEAVERTON
Bert Leaverton was born and raised in central Nebraska and served with the Army and Army Reserve for over 20 years. She deployed to Iraq in 2003 with the 530th Military Police Battalion in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Operation Enduring Freedom. Her photography grew directly from that experience. As she described it: "My photos are a result of my own personal artistic effort to capture and recreate my year of boots on the ground in Iraq. Setting up and photographing these images has also served as therapy for me, a combat veteran with PTSD." Bert served NCAG in numerous capacities over many years.
She was made a lifetime member February 20, 2017.
ERIC HOWARD (In Memoriam)
He was made a lifetime member February 20, 2017.
Eric passed away in 2023.
LARS GERT LOSE
Lars served as Ambassador of Denmark to the United States, having previously held the position of Permanent Under-Secretary of State and Chief Adviser on Foreign Affairs to Prime Minister Helle Thorning-Schmidt. His long career within the Danish Foreign Ministry included serving as Private Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Head of the Foreign Minister's Office. In April 2018, Ambassador Lose visited the NCAG Gallery in Kimballton, Iowa, where he toured the Hans Christian Andersen sculpture garden, met with NCAG leadership, and received a photograph by veteran artist Bert Leaverton as a gift. He expressed sincere respect for American veterans and enthusiasm for future international collaboration on veteran art projects.
He was made a lifetime member April 2, 2018.
JIM O’KEEFE (In Memoriam)
James "Jim" O'Keefe graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1972, serving as a gunnery officer aboard the USS Charles Berry and spending two years in Korea, Japan, and North Vietnam. He went on to become a helicopter pilot conducting search and rescue missions before ultimately serving as Nuclear Safety and Security Officer for the United States Pacific Command. After retiring in 1994, Jim founded several software companies and served for many years as NCAG President, contributing enormously to the organization's growth and stability. He passed away one day after his 69th birthday on February 5, 2019.
He was made a lifetime member February 5, 2019.
GUY BANTA
Guy Banta retired as a Navy Commander after 28 years of active duty, beginning as a Navy corpsman in Vietnam — where he earned three Purple Hearts and a Bronze Star for combat valor. He later earned his PhD from the Uniformed Services School of Medicine in Bethesda and went on to command the Naval Medical Research Command, complete two deployments to the Persian Gulf, and become a Navy finalist for the astronaut program. Art had been his college major before the military interrupted that pursuit. He returned to painting in 2013 and describes his work as impressionistic — an attempt to capture life's beauty, simplicity, complexity, and sometimes hard reality.
He was made a lifetime member March 10, 2023.
RICKY TAVITAS
Ricky Tavitas studied graphic design at Columbia College Chicago before enlisting in the U.S. Army, where he served 13 years as a wheeled vehicle mechanic and deployed to Iraq in 2009 and Afghanistan in 2011. In June 2020, a motor vehicle accident left him paralyzed from the neck down with no movement in his fingers or hands and limited movement in his arms. Living at a VA nursing home during the pandemic, a conversation with a caregiver led him back to graphic design. Using assistive technology called Smile Mouse — which translates facial and head movements into cursor control — Ricky recaptured the creative work he had set aside years before.
He was made a lifetime member March 10, 2023.
MARIE BOEHME US Navy
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
BILL DUNN USMC
Made an NCAG lifetime member JunE 15th 2019.
ERIN COLSON US Army
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
SHARON ROBINO-WEST USMC
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
JEFF WILD US Navy
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
RONEE SMITH US Army
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
BRYON LINE US Army
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
STEVE ELLIOT USMC
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
CHARLIE ANDERSEN USMC
Made an NCAG lifetime member June 15th 2019.
MIKE & LOU HOWARD
Made NCAG lifetime members June 15th 2019.
HAL & MARY HOLOUN
Made NCAG lifetime members June 15th 2019.
LARRY & SUZANNE HROMEK
Made NCAG lifetime members March 10th, 2023.
PYNKO
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
ROGER BETSCHLER
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
PATRICK PUTZE
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
DAVID & ANGEL PECHE
Made NCAG lifetime members March 10th, 2023.
KATHRYN HOPKINS
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
ROY VILLARREAL
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
RANDY MCGUIRE
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
CHRISTIE REMMEL
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
CODY VANCE
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.
KIRSTEN CARLSON HAYES
Made an NCAG lifetime member March 10th, 2023.