Beverly and Area
Community News
FALL 2024
Beverly’s Newest Mural Celebrates Community You’ve likely heard about, or perhaps attended, events that have taken place over the past two years at the Pocket Park beside No Frills at 11615 36 Street. The park has been abuzz with year-round family fun, thanks to the work of numerous community partners who have come together to revitalize and activate the space. One of the culminations of this is an expansive mural project that was recently completed along both walls that face the Pocket Park. The greater Beverly community and numerous stakeholders were consulted on the vision of the new mural project. Titled “Welcoming Waters”, the mural project was completed by Christina Hamer, who has served as an art teacher at Eastglen High School for over ten years, alongside the work
of Eastglen students, teachers, and volunteers, including: Alyssa Demers, Ryan Plante, TylerRose Arden, Camile Gordon, Deb Bok, Aylie Mohr, and Andrea Trueman. On why the design was chosen, with the theme of “welcoming”, Christina noted that it all began with the original vision a few years ago to “make the Pocket Park more welcoming for the community”, and this became the core theme of the mural. It’s not Christina’s first mural completed with her students, and she loves the impact it has on them. “Passing on the joy of art making and giving them that confidence” is what it’s all about, Christina says. “Setting them up to have some stuff on their resume to continue on their own path”. “As an artist, I love to be collaborative”, she says, noting how she laid down the original vision for the mural, and then watched the students take it, grow it, and make it their own. “A huge part of why I’m a teacher is to have ideas and have the kids go out and create their own. All of the things they can think up that I wouldn’t have thought of”. The “Welcoming Waters” mural is now complete, with beautiful and meaningful elements sprinkled throughout. The base of the mural is an abstract depiction of the North Saskatchewan River that forms the southern edge of Beverly and has played a significant role in Beverly’s rich coal mining history. The artistic depiction of the river symbolized the life and connection this body of water brings to our community, and
serves as a metaphor for the ongoing journey of welcoming and embracing the diverse cultures, backgrounds, and stories that make up Beverly. Throughout the river, colourful river rocks are depicted, adorned with imagery inspired by the ideas and values shared by the community, representing cultural welcome and diversity with patterns and symbols from various cultures interwoven into the design. See Murals page 3