Dylan Hallé, Aibrean Stewart, Sawyer Greenhalgh, Liam Brooks, and Hendrik Soesbergen
A colourful and unique mural project brought students from Franklin Elementary School and École Centrale Saint-Antoine-Abbé together on November 27 and 28 for a fun and inspiring experience.
The mural was created as part of a partnership between the municipality of Franklin, the two schools, and the Create to get Closer program, which is a national organization that funds the creation of collective murals by children from official language communities.
The Franklin community was selected as one of only fifteen across Canada to produce a mural. The design features a winter scene and includes paintings of both elementary schools, including the barn at Franklin Elementary, as well as the town hall, churches, houses, Canada geese, trees, and multiple brightly coloured people.
The mural has four panels, and all the students from each school participated in painting. Then six ambassadors from Grade 6 in each school were selected to bring the mural together and added the final touches.
“It is about bringing the two communities together,” said Jean-Pierre Arcand, the national director of the Create to get Closer program. “So, municipalities do not have a choice. They don’t have the right to destroy the mural, they don’t have the right to break it in two. It must be kept together.”
The mural will be displayed publicly in the municipality.
“I liked how we all worked together, and when we did the people,” said Grade 5 student Hendrik Soesbergen, who really enjoyed doing the details.
“It was fun to do it with the other kids,” said Grade 5 student Aibrean Stewart, before adding that “It was a new experience.”
Grade 6 student Liam Brooks said he really enjoyed working as a team. He admitted he was not interested in participating at first, but “By the second day, I started with a frown and ended with a smile.”
Laure-Julie De Bellefeuille, who teaches Grades 3 to 6 at Franklin Elementary, said the mural project was eye-opening. “As soon as I started to see the students participating and working together, it really showed me that we need the two schools to work together,” she said.
“I think that is what we can take away from this project.”
All the students are proud of their work and are looking forward to seeing the mural once it is up in the municipality.
*This article was written by students at Franklin Elementary School as part of a partnership between The Gleaner and the New Frontiers School Board.