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Villa Maria College students, faculty create mural at Gerard Place

'All Are Welcome' message is the focal point of the mural.
Credit: Villa Maria College

BUFFALO, N.Y. — A new mural at Gerard Place puts their tag line front and center - "All Are Welcome."

"This mural helps us tell this community what we do at Gerard Place,” said David Zapfel, the CEO of Gerard Place. “If people need help – they are welcome here. For us, it is more than mural.

Gerard Place helps and provides housing to single-parent families who have suffered from homelessness, domestic abuse, poverty and substance abuse. The organization also provides training and counseling.

The mural was created by students, alumni and professors from Villa Maria College's Fine Arts program. It not only added color to Gerard Place's building, but also allowed for students to practice their skills at a larger scale. 

"I had such an amazing time working on the Gerard Place mural,” said Kelsey Sikora, a graphic design major. “I have never worked on an art piece of such a large scale before, so it was great to learn new tips and techniques. Specifically, I worked on the mural’s faces, drawing and painting the woman in the middle L, the baby face in the R, and painted the woman in the E."

Assistant Professors Kyle Butler and Adam Weekly began designing the mural in May.

Sikora worked with alumni Nick Ellis and Shanel Kerekes to paint the mural. It took a week and a half for the mural to be painted on to the wall. The mural was completed in June.

Butler was impressed with the dedication of the students.

"We are endeared by and proud of how capable the students were in realizing this project and by the positive response from Gerard Place," Butler said. "While only one of the three students involved had previous experience working at such a large scale, they brought a mix of skills essential to its completion. We are happy to have had the opportunity to facilitate, working with the students and communicating with those at Gerard Place."

“I hope this mural spotlights the much-needed asset the Gerard Place is on the surrounding community," Sikora said.

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