NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A familiar face we all know is being celebrated at the Nashville Public Library. All these years after this person first came into our homes, there are still lessons he's teaching.
"Mommy, look!" said a little girl, looking at a portrait inside the library.
"Uh-huh. It's Mister Rogers!" the mom answered, standing in the middle of a crowd.
"I thought I would sport the red sweater in honor of Fred Rogers," smiled Melanie Lockett.
A portrait's just arrived of the man behind the more than 900 episodes of Mister Rogers' Neighborhood.
"When he was speaking, it always felt like he was speaking directly to us," said Dieta Duncan.
"He was your friend!" added Tess Peters.
"In a childhood and upbringing where things aren't necessarily the best, that's a bright, shining star," said Martha Lopez, remembering Fred Rogers' show.
The portrait of him is the work of artist Wayne Brezinka.
"This is Fred's handwriting," Brezinka said, showing a note that's part of the portrait. "'You are special. That's obvious. Kindest personal regards. Fred Rogers, 1994.'"
Brezinka made the portrait out of things that tell Fred Rogers' story. Some of it is donated by people who knew him best, like Fred Rogers' wife, Joanne Rogers.
"I asked her, 'how might I honor you in the portrait?'" Brezinka remembered of his conversations with Joanne Rogers. "She said, 'there's a picture of Fred and I that was taken shortly before Fred died. It's one of my favorite pictures.'"
"This is one of Fred's bowties that was in his collection, as well as the tie he has on in his red sweater," Brezinka continued, showing other parts of the portrait. "This is an original pair of glasses that Fred owned."
People visiting the library remembered moments of television that just stuck with them, like a particular episode from the late '60s.
"It was during segregation, and he was in a swimming pool with a Black police officer," said Richard Thigpen. "This was something that needed to be shown."
"As a kid growing up in the '70s in the south, I think it was a pretty big deal," added Lockett.
"It was a symbolism thing," said Duncan. "It meant something."
"Everybody was welcome in his neighborhood, and I think that's the way the world should be," smiled Karen Woolridge.
It was moments of television like that that endeared people on a deeper level to someone who seemed to just embody kindness.
"It's almost emotional seeing it," said Lockett, looking over at the portrait. "Life is short. We need to be very accepting and tolerable of one another, even if we don't agree."
"I feel like there's nobody who doesn't like Mister Rogers," said Thigpen.
The portrait is expected to be at the Nashville Public Library through next summer.
