The wardroom of the new USS Missouri submarine displays a painting by Jefferson City artist (and News Tribune cartoonist) Jim Dyke.
It features the recently commissioned Virginia-class submarine in the foreground, shadowed by the previous USS Missouri - the World War II battleship where the treaty ending the war with Japan was signed.
The painting was commissioned by the state's USS Missouri Commissioning Committee, and prints of it now are being sold to raise money for the commission's continuing work.
"Since 1776, when you commission a ship, you're bringing it to life," explained Sam Bushman, the Jefferson City businessman who chairs the commissioning committee, "and, since the Navy can't use taxpayer dollars to pay for any of these activities or traditional things that go along with a ship's commissioning ... it's just to show the captain and the crew of these ships that somebody cares about them."
Since the Missouri has been commissioned and now is continuing its pre-deployment trials, money raised by the sale of the prints will help with other expenses the Navy can't cover.
"We're giving scholarships," Bushman said. "The Navy can't buy home-entertainment centers (or) things to make it more comfortable."
And, although the Navy will cover the travel expenses of the sub's crew when they visit Missouri, the commission pays for their lodging and meals while the crew is in the state.
The prints are available either from Bushman's store, Samuel's Tuxedos at 236 E. High St., or from Dyke's Cottonstone Gallery at 116 E. High St.
The 500 prints are numbered, and will be signed by Dyke.
The first 25 are the "artist's proofs," and will be sold for $125 each.
The remaining prints are $50 each.
If ordered through the mail, there's an extra $4.95 shipping cost. Those mail-order requests should be addressed to the USS Missouri Commissioning Committee, c/o 236 E. High St., Jefferson City, MO, 65101-3207.