Artist Ray Simon proudly celebrates the forever loyal U.S. Marines who serve their country with distinguished discipline, courage and character. “Always Faithful” honors and chronicles the history, mission and tradition of the beloved Corps.

Contrasts of light and shadow; sun and dark clouds; and formal-dress blues against murky battlefield devastation evoke emotional realizations of the strength, hope, grace and pride that inspire a Marine’s intrepid heart in the face of loss and ultimate sacrifices.

Top left: Nov. 10, 1775 (Day One) – The Second Continental Congress raises two battalions of Continental Marines in the war for independence against the British.

Unfolding beneath top left: Driven by the presence of Old Glory, the Corps’ first officer, Major Samuel Nicholas, leads a battalion of Continental Marines to the damage and seizure of British naval stores at New Providence .

Ghosted behind top left: The storied tablet emerges from the clouds to commemorate Tun Tavern, the birthplace of the U.S. Marine Corps and the site of Major Nicholas’ inaugural recruitment of Marine battalions.

Blending at right: A Parris Island formation of WWI Marines performs the carrying of the colors beside the Marine Corps band while marching to deployment. These Marines would join our allies in Europe for the historic battle against the German army at Belleau Wood , where many Marines earned the nickname Teufelhunden (“Devil Dogs”).

Lower left center: A group of Vought F4U Corsair fighters dives in attack formation to back ground troops in the last land battle of WWII on Okinawa , signifying the onset of Marines in the air supporting Marines on the ground.

Ghosted behind these Marine fighters, the image of Lieutenant General Louis B. Puller represents the archetypical Marine.

“They are in front of us, behind us, and we are flanked on both sides by an enemy that outnumbers us 29:1. They can’t get away from us now!”

– Lewis B. “Chesty” Puller, USMC

Bottom foreground: In what may be the quintessential image of the U.S. Marine Corps, Marines and Navy Corpsmen raise the flag atop Mt. Suribachi beneath the South Pacific sky during the bloody battle of Iwo Jima .

Faded near bottom right: (Nov. 26–Dec. 13, 1950) – A column of the 1st Marine Division in Korea defies the odds, the elements and the enemy while breaking through Chinese lines in the Chosin reservoir.

Bottom right: A tenacious battalion of Marines in Vietnam defends their firebase during both the siege at Khe San and the relentless assaults of the Tet offensives.

Focal center: To express a grateful nation’s remembrance of every fallen Marine, the Marine Honor Guard presents the American flag folded 13 times, a ritual that reveres our brave Marines while it celebrates our great country and all for which it stands.