By Doug Ireland
The new year is the time to dream.
We enter 2026 hoping for better. Or, at least, more of the same. Most of us are hoping this year brings the happiness we crave, without the headaches and heartaches we survive.
Lots of new year’s resolutions are made. Some are written down, input in a computer, or at least ingrained into our minds. The list is endless, and personal, and in plenty of cases, perpetual: exercise more, work less, lose weight, smile more, budget better, budget – period ….
Here’s my suggestion: dream. Whether 18 or 88, it goes further than a “get better” resolution, don’t you think? It fits “get happier” and “do something meaningful” and about a dozen others among that one-resolution-fits-all group.
Not saying insert “dream” to replace anything on your list. Just add it if it’s not already there.
Chris Brown had a dream and he’s well down the path to fully realizing it.
Brown graduated from Northwestern in Natchitoches with a degree in art education and he’s still putting it to use nearly 30 years later. He teaches art at a Fort Worth high school, and nurtures the creative instincts of impressionable, ambitious teenagers. That’s important. He is a leader in his church, a doting husband to Paula and an active dad to 10-year-old Maddux (yup, named for the great Cubs/Braves pitcher).
He’s also been, since 2009, the official artist for the Louisiana Sports Hall of Fame, rooted in Natchitoches.
That is a natural fit, because it was sports that brought him to Natchitoches. Brown pitched for the NSU Demons in 1997-98, well enough to get drafted by the Chicago Cubs. He pitched in the Cubs’ minor league system and then came to Alexandria and threw a season for the Aces, continuing six years as a pro, most with the Edinburg Roadrunners.
Then it was time for him to put that degree to work, and also to launch his artistic career as a side gig – his dream.
It began years ago, wrote Matthew Kayser a few months ago in CEO Weekly:
Brown’s journey began in childhood. Growing up in Nebraska, he found solace in drawing during life’s most difficult moments. While his home felt unsettled, school offered encouragement. Teachers quickly recognized his natural talent, and their praise gave him something solid to hold on to. “When your life feels like it’s in disarray, and you’re getting praised at school for something like that, it drives you,” Brown recalls. By the age of five, he was already consumed by creating, an interest that never left him.
Six years after swapping his glove for art supplies – and with the connection of former NSU teammate Pete Wardell, a young dentist in Natchitoches, Brown was the pick to become the new Hall of Fame artist.
Quickly his impact grew past the artwork he created. In his process, collaborating with each inductee is essential. They get to choose, and approve, images that Brown shapes into their official portrait, seen on display throughout their induction year and forever in the museum’s inductee data base accessible to all museum visitors.
Friendships formed. Referrals got made. And Brown’s collection expanded far beyond his now-iconic portraits for the Hall. You can visit ChrisBrownSportsArt.net to see for yourself.
You’ll see him with Eli and Peyton Manning, Roger Clemens, Nick Saban … just to start a star-studded list.
His dreams continue to expand. He’s now a published author. Kaysar writes:
In 2024, Brown published “Life Lessons from the Diamond,” a book that combines his illustrations with wisdom from Major League Baseball players, coaches, and umpires. Designed as a self-help collection accessible to young athletes, the book pairs memorable quotes with vibrant, engaging artwork. “It keeps you engaged, like you’re reading it,” he explains. “It’s a different form of getting people lessons they can carry with them.”
He has also collaborated on other illustrated books, including children’s titles and coloring books, showing a flexibility that allows him to move seamlessly between styles.
That is happening with other projects, and his ever-expanding portfolio.
All of which traces back to his time as a kid in a rural Nebraska school, his baseball prowess that carried him to college and for a year, to Alexandria … and included countless bus trips, and time to dream.
Chris Brown didn’t see this all coming years ago. But he did have bigger dreams than throwing strikes.
He is using his God-given talent to brighten lives – not just the sports stars whose portraits he does, but those who see them, and anyone who in whatever way, might be inspired by the art.
When you make your 2026 resolution list, be willing to add “dream” to it.
You might be surprised by how that works out.
