Public invited to help paint Chewstick mural

The Chewstick Foundation will be hosting a Fundraising Rally and Open House at its headquarters on the corner of Elliott and Court Streets this Saturday. 

The highlight of the event will be the repainting of the 12 foot by 30 foot mural with images following the theme of Community.  The mural will be designed and managed by a group of students from Bermuda High School for Girls. The mural is part of Chewstick’s Community Art Programme which began with four foot by eight foot paintings donated by the Ministry of Education and continued with the painting of the chairs and tables outside the building thanks to Blue Halo and Rowe Spurling Paint Co.

On their first Fundraising Rally & Open House, on December 1, 2012, the charity hosted tours of its facility, mural painting, performances, side-walk chalk art, DJs and an open-mic. The event saw a broad range of people, some who were experiencing the area for the first time. 

Chewstick’s Deidra Lee Bean said: “As the objective of the programme is to be a catalyst for positive activity and interaction, when The Chewstick Foundation was approached by Bryn Thomas, Chante Pitcher and Lesley Campbell for the next phase of the programme it was a welcome example of the programme’s impact.”

The group of BHS students has been working over the past month, planning the design of the wall and the Community Day as part of their Creative Action Service class project. Their focus has been on enhancing the work that The Chewstick Foundation does in breaking down barriers for social change and community healing. 

Group Leader, Bryn Thomas said: “I have been involved with Chewstick programmes and see how focused they are on bringing everyone together, so it made sense that our project should help them to do that. We’re really excited for everyone to come out, get involved, and get to know Chewstick.” 

The general public are being invited and encouraged to lend a helping hand in painting the wall on the Court Street side of the building.

Anyone interested in volunteering for the mural painting event or any number of other Chewstick Foundation initiatives can call The Chewstick Foundation office at 292-2439, email [email protected] or visit www.chewstick.org for more information.