Darkhorse Collection
The Darkhorse Series was inspired by the brave Marines of the 3/5. A Blue Star Marine Mother e-mailed Debra Ferrari a NPR story, "An Afghan Hell On Earth For The Darkhorse Marines" by Tom Bowman (Oct. 2013) about the sacrifices and bravery that this Marine unit suffered in Afghanistan in 2010- 2011. She was deeply touched by this story and inspired to create a painting as a tribute to them titled 3rd 5th Battalion Darkhorse #1. The 3/5 received their nickname from the radio call sign that originated from one of it's commanders, Col Robert Taplett from the Korean War. It remains their call sign today to pay homage to the Marines bravery in Korea. As a way to raise money to help support combat veterans, Debra will be painting 25 original paintings to honor the 25 Marines who lost their lives in Afghanistan in 2010- 2011 ( 200 were wounded and 25 were killed.) As of 2018, she has completed 12 original Darkhorse paintings. She donates a portion of the sales of the original paintings and prints to help support the Darkhorse Lodge in TN, a retreat for combat veterans.