LIFT Youth Center Inc, working in conjunction with the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce, will hold a Ribbon Cutting Ceremony this Saturday at 12:30 p.m. at 61 Tennessee St. Ringgold. The Ceremony will be held immediately following the 1890 Days Parade in Downtown Ringgold.
The HOPE Mural was a community-wide project coordinated by LIFT Youth Center Inc. and Strength for Catoosa. December through January, Strength for Catoosa held a mural contest for middle and high school students in Catoosa County.
The contest gave young artists the chance to have their artwork turned into a mural, work alongside the well-known muralist SEVEN and have the experience of helping paint a mural in their own community.
"The HOPE mural complements and supports the Strength for Catoosa movement, which seeks to change the way people engage with issues of mental health, wellness and connection in their own lives, and to enact that change on a cultural and community level," officials said.
The HOPE Mural contest winner, Chloe Lyles, was selected through a voting process that began with public votes and was finalized by a Submission Approval Team and the Ringgold City Council. Ms. Lyles collaborated with the artist SEVEN to finalize her design. The artist SEVEN is a muralist, illustrator and designer who has artwork throughout the southeastern United States.
"LIFT was thrilled to have such a talented artist on board who has a heart for working with young creative minds, involved in this project," officials said.
The artist SEVEN said, “I am excited to have been to be involved with such an uplifting project.”
The finalized design was painted in April by SEVEN, with a little help from the top four student artists. This public mural is located on the side of Jessie Thornton’s United Karate Studio in Ringgold.
LIFT Youth Center Inc, Strength For Catoosa, The Catoosa County Family Collaborative and The NW GA Hope Over Suicide Coalition will have a tent set up by the mural during 1890 Days on Saturday.
"We will begin our celebration with the Ribbon Cutting Ceremony and continue the day with information on Strength for Catoosa and other mental health resources in our area," officials said. "The Strength for Catoosa student peer leaders will be rounding out the HOPE Mural project by capturing footage for a video where we ask the public what HOPE means to them. They are asking the public to please stop by their tent to share your thoughts on hope for their video."
Chrissie Brown, LIFT’s Marketing and Development director, said, “Art has the power to inspire others in a deeply emotional way. I can’t wait to see the impact Chloe’s and SEVEN's work has and how it will radiate HOPE out from Ringgold, across Catoosa County and beyond.”
The mural is supported in part by Georgia Council for the Arts through the appropriations of the Georgia General Assembly. Georgia Council for the Arts also receives support from its partner agency – the National Endowment for the Arts.
The HOPE Mural Ribbon Cutting is sponsored by Builtwell Bank and the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce.