The President's Corner

This is a current draft of the Welcome to Parma mural.

Last month I unveiled the Welcome to Parma mural project. This month I thought I would bring you up to date on where we are with the project. I am happy to report that it is coming together, as planned. In case you were not aware, let me bring you up to speed on the project. Earlier this year, I contacted Stamy Paul, a Valley Forge High School graduate and founder of Graffiti Heart, to commission a Welcome to Parma mural. I was so pleased that Stamy, whose name rhymes with Tommy, loved the idea and agreed to partner on it.

Graffiti HeArt is a 501(c)3 non-profit that develops opportunities for graffiti and street artists to create art installations with donors looking to bolster community beauty and pride. The organization’s projects generate commissions for talented aspiring and accomplished artists, as well as fund art education scholarships.

Being an educator and lover of the arts, I was inspired by the fine work of Graffiti HeArt. I have been particularly moved by their Welcome to Tremont and the Greetings from Cleveland murals, among others. That is why I contacted Stamy to bring a Welcome to Parma mural to a wall on one of the entranceways into our community. As you may know, I led the effort to bring Script Parma to our community, which has brought so much excitement to Parma, and I am just as excited about this project. 

The estimated cost of the grassroots project is $15,000. Like the Script Parma sign, our plan is to bring the project to life with private donations – not using taxpayer dollars. I am happy to report that the fundraising effort has been a great success, thus far. In fact, in the first few weeks of fundraising, we have already raised over $5,700.  Special thanks to Donna Koler, owner of Koler Financial Services, who also supported Script Parma, as well as Ilah Adkins, each of whom have donated $1,000. Other donors include my wife and I, Friends of Sean Brennan, Harry (Stamy’s dad who still lives in Parma) Paul, Maggie Denk-Leigh (my sister-in-law and Cleveland Institute of Art professor), Bethany Yackin-Miller, Parma Law Director Timothy Dobeck, former County Prosecutor, Parma Law Director, and Councilman Bill Mason and wife Carol, former mayor Dean DePiero, and several donors who wish to remain anonymous.

We hope that you might consider helping in any way that you can to help us reach our goal. Your donation is tax deductible. Checks can be made out and mailed to Graffiti HeArt c/o Welcome to Parma, 2452 West 7th Street, Cleveland, Ohio 44113. You may also donate securely online at ioby.org/project/welcome-parma-mural. In fact, our project is eligible for matching funds from the Cuyahoga Arts and Culture program, so your donation will be doubled!

Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions at councilmanbrennan@msn.com or 440-885-8091. Also, please check out Graffiti HeArt’s website at graffitiheart.org to find out more about this fine organization. Thank you in advance for your time and consideration.

Sean Brennan

Parma City Council President Sean Brennan

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Volume 12, Issue 8, Posted 7:34 PM, 08.04.2020