Last Saturday, August 9, Team #2 of the Neighborhood Leadership Class of 2008 unveiled two murals focused on health for elementary school children. The murals depict healthful activities and healthful foods. The unveiling took place at the South Street Parkway. Immediately after the murals were shown to the public, refreshments were served at the Historic Long Beach Dairy and Creamery, 167 E. South Street. Several representatives of city council and city agencies were in attendance.
“This is a mural about healthy choices for children that ultimately will be hung at an elementary school in Long Beach,” said Caprice Rothe, spokeswoman for the Neighborhood Leadership Program.
The mural itself was a culmination of an illustration that community activist and artist Dan Pressburg drew with pencil and a logo designed by Rothe.
“We put it together with the Neighborhood Services logo to create this mural,” Rothe explained. “It was painted by community members, none of whom were professional artists.”
According to Rothe, the numbers of cases of obesity and childhood diabetes have reached epidemic proportions in the United States. “We are hoping this has a positive impact on the food choices that children make,” she said, adding that the mural is aimed at making healthy food choices more attractive to youngsters.
The logo says “Thrive” in three languages: English, Khmer and Spanish.
Colin Powell Academy, a local elementary and middle school, has expressed interest in acquiring at least one of the murals.
Pictured above, Pressburg and Rothe stand next to one of the murals.
