By Kyle Peveto, Page Editor
Freshmen worked for days painting a mural centered on a loving mother embracing her child and surrounded by a hopeful, happy community.
A learning community from the Department of Art and Design recently painted a mural on the outside wall of Noah Sales Again, a resale shop at 648 Butternut St. that supports the Noah Project, which assists victims of family violence.
“All U-100 classes are required to do a service project, so we decided to pick one that was relevant for the interests of our learning community,” said Dan McGregor, assistant professor of art.
Each student in the learning community turned in an idea for the mural, and Scott Akard, Noah Sales Again store manager, selected one, McGregor said. After Akard approved the design, McGregor added to the background and finalized it.
“We are a non-profit and don’t have the economic funds and we have been the recipients of community service (from ACU) in the past,” Akard said.
Jessica Craddock, freshman graphic design major from Edmond, Okla., had her design painted.
“I enjoyed doing it a lot,” Craddock said. “It made a big difference for the store.”
The mural depicts “a grouping of people of different ages and ethnicities looking happy, healthy or visionary,” McGregor said. “[It] is supposed to show adults and children working together in a positive way.”
Each learning community participant worked for at least one day on the project. The mural took about three days to complete. While working on the mural, volunteers from the Noah Project prepared lunch and drinks for the painters.
The mural may allow Abilene residents to understand the need for a family violence shelter in the city.
“We wanted to try to not only dress up the neighborhood, but get the message out,” Akard said.
He added that many have already stopped by asking about the mural.
“When people drive by it, they would be more aware of … what the mission was for the store,” Craddock said.
The Noah Project offers temporary housing for victims of family violence and works toward educating others through conferences and newsletters.
