7Salutes | Faces of 22, a powerful portrait collection of veterans who took their own lives, open in Frederick

FREDERICK, Md. (7News) — A memorial portrait collection at the Platoon Veteran Service Center in Frederick, Maryland recently opened and it's unlike anything I have ever seen.

There are 22 portraits of servicemen from various branches of the military. Some are in uniform; some are holding their children and most have a smile on their faces.

All of these veterans have one thing in common: Every one of them took their own life.

“Half of these Veterans are local to our community," said Katie Moran.

This exhibit was Moran’s idea. She is the program director for Platoon 22, an organization that provides veteran services.

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“I think this is something that needs to be done, we need to pay tribute to these men, honor them and this is another way of bringing awareness to this epidemic," Moran said.

22 is the number of veterans that take their own lives in our country every single day.

Seeing this exhibit is incredibly powerful, especially when you take into account that every one of these men on this wall represents just one day of loss, and every one of them leaves a gaping hole in the lives of their loved ones.

"This wall represents 19 daughters that won’t have a father to walk them down the aisle, 12 sons that won’t be able to play catch with their father, and there are 47 siblings that can’t call their brother anymore and 47 parents that had to bury a son," Moran continued. "We hear the number 22, but we don’t hear the other numbers associated with it.”

On this wall is a portrait of 25-year-old Max Tyeyar. On the day of my visit, his father Wes was there.

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“Anytime my son can be remembered, or honored I look at that as a good thing. It’s also with the understanding he’s no longer with us," said Wes Tyeyar.

Wes said his son seemed happy and was excited about his future. He never knew his son was struggling.

“What I really struggle with is not seeing Max’s struggle because he hid it so well. I miss him. He was one of my best friends," Wes said.

Katie is hoping the people will come to this exhibit and walk away with an awareness and an understanding that more needs to be done.

“We need to help all veterans not just the veterans we think are struggling. All veterans deserve more," Moran said.

If you or someone you know needs help, call 988the Suicide and Crisis Lifeline.