COLORADO SPRINGS - In the Honor Court near the Air Force Academy Chapel stands a life-size bronze statue of an African-American in a World War II pilot's uniform, honoring the Tuskegee Airmen, the first black fighter pilots ever to fly for the U.S.

The statue, The Black Airman, stands not only as a tribute to the legendary squadron but also as a legacy of the man who sculpted it, Clarence Laudric Shivers, a Tuskegee Airman himself, and an artist who crafted the statue in his first attempt at large sculpture.

Shivers, a retired Air Force lieutenant colonel and artist who had lived in Colorado Springs since 1979, died Feb. 17. He was 83.

Shivers' life, though tempered by war, exuded hope, happiness and faith in the human spirit.

"He was just a wonderful, outgoing person who was comfortable with everybody, from kids to old folks," said his widow, Peggy Shivers. "It didn't matter what your background was, Clarence was comfortable with you and could make you comfortable with him."

Shivers was born in St. Louis in 1923. He joined the Army in 1943 and was sent to train with the Tuskegee Airmen, but he completed flight school too late to join the squadron, which was already flying combat missions over Europe.

"He was not one of those who was over in Italy. The war ended just as he was getting ready to go over," Peggy Shivers said.

Shivers returned to college and graduated with honors with a degree in fine arts from Bradley University in Peoria, Ill. He was teaching at Jackson State College in Mississippi when war again intervened and he was called back into the Air Force. He served as an instructor pilot through the Korean War, then stayed on until his retirement in 1969.

Shivers was always an artist, Peggy said, and his talents ranged from painting to music to sculpture.

"He was a unique person. He loved flying, but he was a creative person. He couldn't go too long without painting," she said.

He met Peggy, his second wife, in 1966 through her brother, who was stationed with him at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California.

After Shivers retired from the Air Force they moved to Spain, where they lived for 10 years before moving to Colorado Springs.

In Spain, he continued his painting but also sang, played piano and trumpet and won an award in an international competition for one of his own compositions that he performed.

Shivers would return to the U.S. to attend the Tuskegee Airmen reunions and finally decided to move back.

It was at a Tuskegee Airmen chapter meeting in the 1980s that the group decided to create a bronze statue to pay tribute to their members.

Shivers hadn't done sculpture, but took a quick tour of a foundry for instructions and went to work.

"He made a small model, and the next meeting, he brought it and unveiled it. Everybody ooohed and aaahed, and they commissioned him to do the statue," Peggy said.

The bronze was unveiled at the Air Force Academy in 1988.

Shivers continued his painting in Colorado Springs. He and his wife endowed the Shivers African-American Historical and Cultural Collection at the Pikes Peak Library District.

They also created the Celebration Concert Series, featuring black classical musicians from around the country.

Shivers is survived by his wife, two sons and two daughters, six grandchildren, two great-grandchildren and two great-great- grandchildren.

A funeral service is scheduled for 11 a.m. Saturday at Sunrise United Methodist Church. Burial with full military honors and a flyover of World War II airplanes will be at the Air Force Academy.

fosterd@RockyMountainNews.com or 719-633-4442