Contributed by Gabriela von Euw
The project is in collaboration with Service for Peace/Youth and Students for Peace (YSP) and Sobrante Park Resident Action Council.
The fruits of our design team efforts have begun! For the past two to three months, a small team has been meeting to create a design to paint on the wall along Sobrante park on Edes & 105th Ave.
For Martin Luther King Jr Day this year, it was wonderful to see people come out eager to serve whether that was to help with the mural or another local project in the Sobrante Park Neighborhood and all over Oakland. As Dr. King said, “Everyone can be great because everyone can serve.”
Volunteers from CARP, Higher Ground, and the Bay Area Family Church gathered together to begin the mural project by first being reminded of Dr. King’s spirit of serving and the hopes and goals for the mural we are painting. Our theme for the mural is ‘revival.’ Through talking with Cynthia Arrington and Sylvia Brooks, Sobrante Park community leaders, the hope is that this mural can revive the spirits of the community and bring the community together as we paint the mural and leave positive messages about caring for the environment, being active, family and more! It’s more than just a mural; we are painting but to revive the hearts of the community and volunteers.
As we painted the wall, people stopped to learn more and help paint the wall. It was beautiful to see. People would drive by expressing their appreciation and even bring fresh cold water. At the very end, someone who grew up in the neighborhood came to share with us their appreciation, sharing how they have lived here for most of their life with many unfortunate things happening in that area and how inspired and hopeful they are seeing us paint the moral.
We were able to accomplish more than what we expected and in a very short time. Prior to painting, we did a trash sweep along the wall and street. Students and community members painted the wall with a white primer coat, followed by the main background color of yellow. It was finished very fast with the help of 15 people and neighborhood members stopping by to help.
The design team stayed longer after lunch to start drawing the letters and design and to start painting the outline of the walls which we will have volunteers paint on our next project date.
A great successful day 1 complete!
See more of CARP Bay Area on their Facebook page. Share your story to jennifer@carplife.org!