ALLENTOWN, Pa. — They worked side by side, painting a masterpiece, brothers and sisters in arms — and colors, and ideas, and hopes and dreams.
For seven weeks, an artist and young teenagers bumped shoulders, exchanged laughs.
They shared the challenges of lives lived decades apart in their hometown — disclosing what they were, who they are and what they hope to become.
Kyle Edwards and a group of Allentown school students painted an inspiring mural inside the Teen Center of the Boys and Girls Club of Allentown.Boys and Girls Club of Allentown ceremony
Allentown Arts Commission Vice Chairman Kyle Edwards and a group of Allentown school students painted an inspiring mural inside the Teen Center of the Boys and Girls Club of Allentown.
The image, unveiled in a ceremony on Wednesday, fills an entire wall.
It's mostly a splash of multicolored hands and arms reaching skyward to grasp their dreams.
A basketball and football are tucked into corners, a lightning bolt cuts through the image, and a series of diamond shapes dot the creation.
'Came alive because of them'
In preparation for the mural, Edwards and the students created sketches. He spoke to the students about their vision of what the quintessential mural would be.
Possibilities and opportunity and togetherness were words he heard.
“And from working with these students, I was inspired by them. The mural came alive because of them.”Kyle Edwards, artist
As the students spoke, Edwards nodded. They were similar hopes and dreams he had heard before.
From himself.
“I grew up at the Boys and Girls Club,” Edwards, of Breinigsville, said. “I was raised in Southside Allentown, but my uncle lived right around the corner from here. I was one of them.
“And from working with these students, I was inspired by them. The mural came alive because of them.”
The mural was funded primarily by the United Way of the Greater Lehigh Valley.
'Here long after we're all gone'
Mia R., 15, of Allen High School, was among the students who worked on the mural.
“I helped sketch and offered ideas of what it should be,” said Mia, whose surname was withheld for privacy.
“We did it in little pieces, some painting. Then Mr. Edwards finished it off. It looks great.”
Mia was awarded a $1,000 scholarship to help fund her pursuit of a career in the arts. The scholarship was funded by JOSHWAY, a nonprofit dedicated to nurturing and inspiring Lehigh Valley’s next generation of creative talent.
“When children’s hands create, it opens a portal of opportunity for them. In this mural I see equity, color, creativity and possibilities."
With state Sen. Nick Miller and Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk looking on, Katarah A. Jordan, chief executive officer of Boys and Girls Club of Allentown, said she hoped the mural would spark curiosity in the teens who see it.
“When children’s hands create, it opens a portal of opportunity for them,” Jordan said. “In this mural I see equity, color, creativity and possibilities.
“It creates conversations. There are messages in murals. I hope it encourages teenagers to keep coming to the Boys and Girls Club.”
Edwards continues to speak positively of his hometown.
“This is a proud city that knows where it's going,” he said. “To have an opportunity to work with students, to create this mural and to have something here that will be here long after we’re all gone, is pretty exciting.”
