A Gulf Breeze second-grade student got to rub elbows with the governor last month for her award-winning drawing inspired by Gen. Daniel "Chappie" James and the possible renaming of the new Pensacola Bay Bridge in his honor.
Gulf Breeze Elementary School student Whitney Morrill, 8, won this year's statewide Black History Month student art contest for a drawing that ties in her sketches of James, the bridge, the state of Florida, an American flag, a fighter jet piloted by James, and the late general's headstone.
Morrill's father, Billy, said Whitney chose to draw James after reading articles about him in the Pensacola News Journal.
"When we got the letter from the school about the contest, she was kind of looking to draw inspiration from a person," Morrill said. "And it was one of the (News Journal) articles that tied Chappie in with the bridge that she read. She picked him based on that."
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Whitney herself said there was one accolade in particular that James achieved in his decorated career that jumped out at her when she was doing her research.
"That he was the first African American to get four stars in the Air Force," Whitney said Friday.
James, a four-star U.S. Air Force general, was the first African American to ever achieve a four-star ranking in the U.S. military. Born and raised in Pensacola, James became a Tuskegee Airman flight instructor during World War II.
"She isn’t at the level of (French artist Edgar) Degas yet, but I think she did a great job honoring (James') legacy, while hoping the bridge is added to it," Billy Morrill said of his daughter. "... He should be an inspiration for all Americans, and I’m very proud Whitney honored him in this way."
Whitney said the idea behind her sketch was to form a collage of people, places and things she felt best represented James.
"I wanted to involve his awards and like, where he was born and the plane he flew," Whitney said.
The Morrill family visited the governor's mansion in March during spring break to meet Gov. Ron DeSantis and First Lady of Florida Casey DeSantis. Whitney received a plaque and enjoyed a full evening at the Tallahassee mansion, highlighted by live music, catering, and a whole lot of meet and greets.
"It was very exciting," Whitney said of her visit to Tallahassee. "It was a once-in-a-lifetime thing to meet the governor and the first lady."
Pensacola City Council and Santa Rosa County endorsed naming the new bridge after James, while there was some push back in Escambia County, which is considering forming a committee to evaluate the proposal.
Jake Newby can be reached at jnewby@pnj.com or 850-435-8538.
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