Appleton students pick up their paint brushes to create a mural at the local Boys & Girls Club

Aug 12, 2023

by: Katie Amrhein

Posted: Aug 7, 2023 / 04:52 PM CDT

Updated: Aug 7, 2023 / 04:58 PM CDT

APPLETON, Wis. (WFRV) – Students from the Appleton High Schools are picking up some paintbrushes and brightening up the local Boys & Girls Club.

This is the 2nd year for the Paint the City program founded by muralist Neo Medina. While he has been passionate about painting his whole life, his greatest passion is working with children.

“I think sometimes, as youth, they might be seen one way in the school system or in the public, but once you get to know them, they are just people. They are beautiful people, and I think this mural of them is my attempt to show that.”

In talking with the students, Medina came up with the idea for the mural to incorporate the faces of the student’s classmates.

One of the students painting is Breyon Macon, a junior at Appleton North. He was initially put on a waitlist for the program, but when a student dropped out, Breyon jumped at the chance to grab a brush.

Breyon says, “It’s really impactful because, throughout Appleton, there’s not a lot of people who look like me or come from the same background. Being able to do something where everyone is going to see and I can say ‘I did that,’ it’s really great.”

While the mural will bring some more color to Badger Street, the connection between students putting a stamp on their community is far greater than any work of art.

Medina says, “By the end of it, we’re all just this weird kind of family. We know each other. We all got our jobs, depend on each other, and help each other out.”

The mural will be finished on Friday, August 18th. To celebrate, in conjunction with the B&G Club’s 25th anniversary, a party will be hosted on Lawrence Street and Badger Street near the mural from 4 p.m. -7 p.m.

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