Bay Area man uses art to inspire at risk kids at ministry

HUDSON, Fla. - A Bay Area man whose son died serving his country is now giving back to others as his way of honoring his son's memory. 

Craig Gross has been painting for a long time. 

"I've been painting and doing artwork probably since I was eight or nine years old," he shared. 

Craig Gross has been painting for most of his life.

For him, it's a way to find peace. 

"Art, for me, is an escape. It's quite frankly, it's a way to just go and shut the world out," Gross added. 

He's now opening his world to teens at "Hope for the Children Ministries" a grass-root non-profit that counsels at risk children. 

Gross wants to inspire kids through art.

"It's a very vulnerable time in their lives," said Gross. "And me being here reinforces some things in their life that maybe weren't there before."

Craig hopes to open up their hearts with art. 

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"It's not just about painting. It's not just about art. It's about teaching these kids about God and the love of God," he shared. 

A love that he and his wife needed after their son Corporal Frank Gross was killed in combat in July 2011.  

After losing his son, Gross used art as a form of therapy.

"We want to give back to our community, and we want to volunteer, we want to help people. And in so doing, we help ourselves. It's therapeutic," Gross said. 

He says that it's therapy that has changed his life. 

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"I don't even really see this as volunteering. This is something that, you know, I want to do. I speed up the highway to get here every week. Just to be with these kids," shared Gross.

Gross takes pride in leaving an inspiring impression on the at risk teens.