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Starting on Wednesday, May 20th, Baton Roots will have weekly virtual gardening workshops and videos to help the stay-at-home gardener utilize the space they have to grow fresh food. Our first workshop will feature: Mental Health/Gardening Show various herbs that can be planted in early summer Tips for planting an herb garden Container garden demonstration Tips to care for your plants Be sure to share your herb garden! Tag Healthy BR, Baton Roots, and #GeauxGetHealthy

BATON ROUGE – Today, Cox Communications and ExxonMobil Baton Rouge announced they’re joining forces with several non-profit organizations to provide technology to support student learning from home in East Baton Rouge Parish. Both companies are providing $15,000, for a total of $30,000, in grant funding to The Walls Project, which collaborated with 100 Black Men, Metromorphosis, Front Yard Bikes, and Southern University’s Upward Bound program to identify students and families in the East Baton Rouge Parish School System who needed technology to help them more effectively learn from home. “The consistent education of our children is of upmost importance, especially in times of uncertainty. We are proud to partner with others in offering our support to the families and teachers of the East Baton Rouge Parish School System as they continue to grow our community’s young minds during this challenging time,” said ExxonMobil Baton Rouge Plastics Plant Manager Angela Zeringue. Representatives from The Walls Project’s Futures Fund coding program will work with the other non-profit organizations to facilitate the distribution of computers to pre-identified children. “We’re confident computer hardware, combined with our Connect2Compete program will be helpful to low-income children in our community,” explained Anthony Pope, senior vice president and region manager for Cox Communications. Pope continued, “Cox will continue to focus on our customers with the greatest need to ensure they have the tools necessary to close the digital divide.” Cox previously announced the expansion of its Connect2Compete program which provides low-cost high-speed internet to qualified households for $9.95 per month. Parents who’ve been notified their children will be receiving computer hardware expressed gratitude to Cox, ExxonMobil, and their non-profit partners in this initiative. “As a parent, you always want the best for your family and at this time, everyone is facing some type of challenge to ensure they continue to provide the best for their families. Receiving this laptop is not just a gift, but it is a blessing, a lifeline and confidence that my sons can continue with their educational needs to enhance their educational experiences and requirements to secure their futures,” explained Marissa Gremillion, whose son will receive technology from this partnership.

Mural honoring LSU Professor of Architecture, Julian T. White, by Robert Dafford At the epicenter of LSU’s campus, you’ll find yourself standing inside the College of Art & Design. 68 feet above the entrance to the building’s atrium, a master artist and his team work in a flurry of color, transforming a once empty wall into a campus landmark. The halls, known for producing some of the greatest visionaries of Louisiana, now honors directly one of the most iconic and boundary-breaking professors, Julian T. White. The portrait mural, championed together by The Walls Project, LSU Foundation, and the College of Art & Design, honors the legacy of the first-ever African-American professor at Louisiana State University. When Julian T. White joined LSU’s faculty in 1971 to teach architecture, he paved a way for people of all backgrounds to have equal opportunity. Professor White spent thirty-three years as an educator at LSU, impacting his students, inspiring them to break barriers, and cultivating several waves of strong architects. After his passing in 2011, the LSU Art & Design department honored Prof. White’s work by naming the building's atrium after him. In addition to this, leadership wanted to memorialize him in a bold and meaningful way.“When we were thinking about how to celebrate the naming of this space, we came upon the idea of doing a mural and not just a little bronze plaque that no one would read. We thought that this man’s contribution that freed and opened the doors of LSU to everyone was great enough to be commemorated in a way just as exceptional as he and his teaching was.” stated the College’s Dean, Alkis Tsolakis, who received his inspiration for this project from a small picture cut out from Julian T. White’s driver's license, a gift he received from the late professor’s wife, Mrs. Loretta White.“His picture sits on my desk and looks at me every day,” said Dean Alkis. As the mural design began The Walls Project had 99 public murals in their catalog. The organization was ecstatic for this landmark mural to become the cornerstone #100 public artwork. For the job, Walls selected Lafayette legendary artist, Robert Dafford, a master muralist with nearly 500 public artworks under his belt. Globally known for his murals, Dafford has painted in a variety of places across the United States, as well as some in France, England, Belgium, and Canada. When hearing about the project he happily accepted. “Being from Louisiana, and LSU being the flagship for Arts in the state, I am very excited to paint something in the Arts building and to honor Julian White who was the pioneer minority person who opened the doors for so many that followed. That’s an honor for me to get to do this and to paint so much diversity. The student body is so diverse now and I want to reflect that it started with this man leading the way.”- Robert Dafford This mural’s completion has not come easily. Working at an active college campus in a nearly 70’ space led to some engineering challenges. To combat the foot-traffic and vertical spacing issues, Dafford ingeniously designed a pulley system for the mural to be created as three large canvas panels. Work was going smoothly until Dafford fell from a ladder at his studio and broke his foot and ankle. The injury sustained required surgery and recovery time, halting production for another six months. Despite this setback, Dafford worked with his assistants to finish whatever he could while battling reduced mobility. By the beginning of this year, Dafford was healed and ready to finally install the panels. The first pieces went up at the beginning of February. Dafford, with his production assistant, Miguel Lasala, began finishing the elaborate and large piece in the heart of the atrium. The project is proposed to be finished in early March for generations of students and faculty to enjoy. The Portrait of Julian White mural is already touching the lives of those around it. From LSU’s Art & Design team to the students who see it every day, Julian T. White’s impact is still being made. “This project means everything to me. It means another step in freeing LSU and making a home for everyone. Another step in what Julian White did for LSU, for Louisiana, and for the world.”- Dean Alkis "This Friday and Saturday on LPB's Art Rocks!, meet renowned artist Robert Dafford, who has painted a collection of murals at Louisiana State University that span three floors of the College of Art & Design. The murals honor architect Julian T. White, the first African American professor at LSU. Dafford is a native of Lafayette, Louisiana, and has been designing and painting primarily outdoor works professionally since 1970. He is one the most prolific and successful muralists in America, with over 350 large scale public works completed throughout the U.S., as well as France, Belgium, England, and Canada. Robert Dafford tells us about the project at LSU on this week’s Art Rocks! Plus, see stories about artists from around the country. Art Rocks! airs Friday, April 10 at 8:30 pm and Saturday, April 11 at 5:30 pm and is hosted by Country Roads publisher James Fox-Smith. Current and past Art Rocks! episodes are here: www.lpb.org/artrocks."

During natural disasters and in this case the COVID-19 pandemic the most vulnerable of our populations are at the greatest risk of adverse health outcomes. One of the primary drivers of poverty that contribute to these poor health outcomes is food insecurity, which occurs when households struggle to both afford nutritious food and to meet their other necessary obligations, like paying rent, paying for transportation, and keeping the lights on at home. In East Baton Rouge 17.8% of the people in the parish simply do not have enough food to eat on a daily basis (national average is only 8%). Still, nearly 40% of these food insecure individuals are not eligible for federal nutrition programs like SNAP and WIC. Six zip code areas in East Baton Rouge parish do not have adequate access to food and higher crime rates. To address this disparity and mitigate potential disruption in the food supply chain the pandemic Baton Roots Community Farm is scaling operations to provide fresh food access for individuals and families living in 70805, 70807, 70811, 70812 and 70802 as part of Mayor-President Sharon Weston Broome's Geaux Get Healthy coalition.

For the safety of participants and staff, all in-person training activities at the farm were halted in March. Fortunately, Baton Roots will be bringing the garden online! In April, local residents will be able to receive access to online resources and 'Garden In A Box' home growing-kits. Additionally, residents and Hustle & Grow trainees can register to participate in weekly online classes to learn how to maintain the garden themselves and grow fresh food for their families. A select core team will continue work at Baton Roots Community Farm during the spring, practicing the utmost in health and safety, to keep the food production flowing in North Baton Rouge. Baton Roots began its transition to spring crops in March and will continue to plant with spring and summer favorites: tomatoes, cucumbers, eggplant, peppers, squash and more. As the potential for food access to decline for residents, Baton Roots aims to relieve the supply chain and help families obtain food that normally would be inaccessible or unaffordable.

"Drawing the Line" by Bryson Boutte Local artist, Bryson Boutte, began the third mural in the #OneRouge series. This crowdsourced mural, nestled in Old South Baton Rouge, represents the driver of poverty “Lack of homeownership and escalating rental costs,” as well as Old South’s rich past and potential future. Work began in March after partnering with Kimble Properties, Partners Southeast, and The American Heart Association. During production, Bryson live-streamed his progress of the mural on Facebook. Although paused, for now, the progress of this mural will resume once the state has lifted its stay-at-home order. Want to help support the mural's completion? Donate now! “In correlation with the #OneRouge project, [the mural] hones in on the lack of homeownership and the rising rental cost that many residents of the city are facing… [as well as] the future and what investment could transform the area too, repurposing the buildings of old to house businesses that can bring economic independence.”

As we continue to practice social-distancing, in-person classes for Futures Fund have been paused for the spring semester. Despite this, Futures Fund looks to adapt its curriculum for online delivery. Program Coordinator, Cheryl Cummings highlights the necessity to continue learning in these difficult times, "Our trainees are facing abrupt changes in their overall education, routine, and home lives. We are working towards ensuring that families can access our program no matter where they are." The Futures Fund piloted its first live webinar on Saturday, March 28th via Zoom. The workshop, on web accessibility, was led by Futures Fund’s Dean of Coding, Quinton Jason. Be on the lookout for upcoming workshops! Future workshops will be communicated via email to Futures Fund families.

Read the full article here. Change doesn’t come all at once, but with unwavering determination, change happens. Brightening the once banal streets of downtown Baton Rouge, the first mural of the Walls Project shone like a beacon for newly returned artist, Helena Williams. Since moving back from the west coast, Helena, then twenty-four, was settling back into her hometown. Despite returning, she wanted to see more from her city than what she experienced growing up, “I felt that Baton Rouge had so much potential, and it took me seeing other cities embrace its diversity and creativity so well to know we could absolutely do it here too.” The Walls Project’s first mural inspired Helena to act, signing up for the first opportunity to participate in their volunteer mural event. Helping paint a large fence at BREC’s Gayosa Street Park allowed her to experience, first-hand, the volunteer rush of helping out for a greater cause. From there Helena went on to help the nonprofit wherever a need presented itself, mainly using her creativity and skills to be the organization’s main graphic designer. After years of seeing Walls grow, not only by adding programs, but growing deeper in its mission, Helena knew this nonprofit’s ripple effect was invaluable, and she wanted to be a part of it. In 2017, Helena seized the opportunity to join the Walls Project staff full time. Always recalling her first volunteer experience, Helena sought to strengthen the structure of the organization and its events. By planning the volunteer experience, Helena allowed for the artists and creatives to do what they do best, make beautiful art. Working closely with Walls director, Casey Phillips, Helena assisted as volunteer coordinator for the 2018 and 2019 MLK Festival of Service. MLK Festival of Service, shortened to MLK Fest, is Walls Project’s four-day community service event. Started on MLK Day in 2014 as a one-day painting project grew into an event seeing thousands of volunteers from all over the parish during the course of MLK weekend. Working with over 200 partners, including the City of Baton Rouge, Walls Project manages the coordination and implementation of the projects focused on revitalizing old buildings and cleaning trash and debris from streets. As the organization’s influence and creative reputation grew, bringing in first 1500 volunteers in 2018 and then 2500 volunteers in 2019, the Walls team designed a strategic plan behind catalyzing the numbers of volunteers and partner organizations to one location. Following the Plank Road Master Plan put forth by Build Baton Rouge, the Walls team brought to life a new program: Reactivate. This program’s mission was to bring the action of MLK Fest to a yearlong endeavor – reactivating neighborhoods in need. Setting sights on Plank Road, and having a vision at the helm, Helena worked to plan three Quarterly Cleanups along Plank Road and major artery streets, like Winbourne Avenue. By returning to past locations and systematically going along Plank, the clean up efforts saw consistent work accomplished, and most importantly, set a precedent to the community that the work is never done. For MLK Fest 2020, Walls focused on an area of Plank Road sandwiched in between two major streets, Choctaw and Winbourne Avenue. With the help of 3500 volunteers, Helena and her team painted 8 buildings, cleared 3 large vacant lots, and cleared a total of 50 tons of trash and debris from neighborhood streets along Plank Road. The effect these cleanups have on the community are not just in the number of sites, or how many building owners are served, but in the thousands of volunteers who have the opportunity to participate in something bigger than themselves, and to help a city that faces many struggles. As the work continued, it became clear to Helena that the people of Baton Rouge want to see their city flourish, and they are increasingly willing to take charge and make change. “What I look forward to the most in our cleanup events is not just the work getting done, but seeing the relationships form between strangers. We really start to see a community grow closer together.” A decade after returning home, Helena is finally seeing the needle move. While the work never seems to stop, the end result is a city propelling forward. As a creative, she is excited to see a vibrant city, and as an activist, she is thrilled to see everyone having a seat at the table

Walls Project Newsletter August 2019

Download the full Current Magazine Quarter 4 by BRAF here.

Documentary shot by Dirk Graeser.

The Walls Project has a vision for the future of Baton Rouge. The group sees a city where artists can have sustainable careers, the youth have access to important resources and no neighborhood is left behind. For some, this may sound like a fantasy. But this local nonprofit is determined to make it a reality, one intentional mural at a time. Most residents know The Walls Project from its beginnings back in 2012, painting colorful murals on drab walls around downtown. Now, the murals will have a different message. This fall, the Walls Project begins its new campaign #ONEROUGE. In addition to a Kickstarter to raise funds for the organization, the campaign includes the Nine Drivers of Poverty project: murals addressing primary causes of poverty, as described in reports from the Mayor’s Task Force on Poverty in Dallas and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development. Those drivers range from lack of affordable transportation to a high number of households with children living in poverty. During a nine-month mural campaign that began in October, The Walls Project is unveiling a new mural each month around town addressing one of those causes. The first one, located downtown, is inspired by the ninth driver of poverty and highlights equal pay issues. “We have this big interactive installation that we’re going to be putting together, as well as the mural,” says Helena Williams, director of marketing and communications. “We’re not leaning toward any policy or any political stance—we want dialogue to start. We want it to create change. It’s what sparks within you when you see it. It really puts the power in other people’s hands.” Since 2012, The Walls Project has generated $2 million in revenue to local artists and created 120 murals and art installations across the city. It doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon. The Futures Fund, its STEAM education and workforce development program, trains middle and high schoolers. Its newest program, Baton Roots, educates the public on how to grow their own food at an urban farm “Now is the time to bring the city whole,” founder Casey Phillips says. “Just as much as we support the resurgence of downtown and Mid City, we’ve been equally focused on the reactivation of north Baton Rouge. Development can’t be in piecemeal. It has to be holistic. So the future of our organization has been and will continue to be a part of a larger solution to reactivate north Baton Rouge.” The Walls Project has more big plans for 2020. In addition to hosting its seventh MLK Fest, the organization will launch its first youth conference, JOLTcon, at the Main Library on Goodwood in March. With the help of event company Red Cake Events, the conference will be organized, planned and led by The Futures Fund students. “We want to empower the next generation,” Williams says. “Let’s not put age as a barrier for change. We are training for a future of more conferences and more youth-led events.” By educating and empowering the youth, beautifying the city and addressing major issues, The Walls Project hopes to create a better Baton Rouge. But they can’t do it alone. “We want to see the city rise. But we are not the magic bullet solution,” Phillips says. “We are part of a much greater solution.” thewallsproject.org